Governor should fulfill duties, or go

Kansas Governor Sam Brownback announced recently that he had turned over one of his most important job responsibilities to his (second in command) Lieutenant Governor, Jeff Colyer.

The only problem is that Kansans expect Gov. Brownback to do the job he is being paid to do – all of it – or resign.

Gov. Brownback said that Lt. Gov. Colyer is the one (not him) who is developing a new budget for the state government.

And the day after that announcement, Lt. Gov. Colyer – apparently taking over another job responsibility for the governor - announced that Gina Meier-Hummel would be the new secretary of the Department for Children and Families. 

About four months ago, in July, Brownback was nominated by President Donald Trump to be the new U.S. ambassador for international religious freedom.

The U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations approved Brownback in a party-line vote last month, but the full Senate has yet to confirm him.

Opponents of Brownback’s appointment question whether he, as a U.S. ambassador, might be inclined not to support people facing religious persecution based on lesbian, gay, bi-sexual or trans-gender identity or sexual orientation.

They make a good point. A 2015 Brownback executive order rescinded protections for LGBT state workers in Kansas.

Brownback’s ambassadorship prospects in the immediate future look like they have about a 50-50 chance (at best) at this point.

Gov. Brownback’s announcement that Lt. Gov. Colyer is the one developing the new state budget and the fact that Colyer is now announcing state appointments has left a lot of Kansans wondering just what Gov. Brownback is doing these days to earn his keep, since he is still the governor and still living at Cedar Crest on the state taxpayers’ expense.

To some, it looks like Gov. Brownback has already left the state’s top office and is now just hanging around.

Brownback’s opponents in the state suggest that if he is not doing any work for the state any more, if he does not want to work for the state any more, then he should resign the position immediately.

I tend to agree. 

The Holton Recorder

109 W. Fourth St.
Holton, KS 66436
Phone: 785-364-3141
 

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