Election's over folks. But you can relive the fun here at KrisWatch.

The End

It is done.

Congressman Dennis Moore has won. Kris Kobach has lost.

The final unofficial numbers from the Secretary of State show Moore at 55% and Kobach at 44% -- a 36,223 vote margin. That's more than three and a half times Moore's previous largest margin.

It is an unprecedented win for Moore in an overwhelmingly Republican district that saw a blizzard of mailings and ads from national Republicans.

Kobach's grand strategy to win by motivating the base failed. Even in a presidential year, and even after playing to their issues the entire election, conservatives were not enough to even make it close. We'll have to see some data on the vote breakdown, but we have to imagine moderate Republicans abandoned Kobach in droves.

Kobach's plan to go on the offensive after the primary was stifled and he spent the entire election playing defense. Moore proved to be a much more formidable opponent than Kobach had faced in the primary. He perfectly executed his tried and true strategy of securing the moderate vote by running on his record, while at the same time showing Kobach to be an extremist.

We won't hazard to say what this means for Moore's future races. We anticipate this district will always be a battleground, yet have to think that some top-tier candidates will look at this result and think twice about running next time.

Moderate Republicans will look at this race and feel vindicated. Conservative Republicans will surely find something to point to in order to shift blame away from themselves. Expect the same moderate/conservative fight in the 2006 primary.

But either way, for now, it is done.

We'd like to thank our readers, our tipsters, and all of you who offered us help and support.

Farewell for now -- the 2006 midterm election awaits...

Blowout

Updated at 11:50 p.m.

Brad Cooper of The Kansas City Star has the first comprehensive post-game story on what can only be called a resounding victory for Congressman Dennis Moore.

With 98% of precincts in at this hour, according to KMBC, Moore is winning by 32,542 votes -- 10 percentage points -- in a district where his previous largest win had been 9,833 against Phill Kline in 2000.

Moore beat Kris Kobach by 5,394 in Johnson County. This is the first time since he ran for Johnson County District Attorney that Moore has won Johnson County.

To both voters who used KrisWatch to make your decision...you're welcome.

Vote Today

Today is Election Day. Polls are open in Kansas until 7:00 p.m. If you're in line when 7:00 p.m. rolls around, you can still vote. Links to the various counties' election sites are to the right. Links to some issues we've covered are below.

• Taxes, Education and Health Care
• Tax Cuts
• Federal Funding for Kansas
• Troops on the Border
• The Minimum Wage
• The Constitution
• A National Sales Tax
• Overtime Pay
• The End of Health Insurance
• The Duties of a Member of Congress
• The Patriot Act and more Patriot Act
• Veterans' Issues
• Missile Defense
• Immigration and more immigration
• Gun Policy
• Abortion
• Tuition for Children of Illegal Immigrants
• Tort "Reform"
• Worker Safety
• The Deficit and Taxes
• The Issues Covered in the KCPT Debate
• Border Security

Our election guide

More than 130 posts later, we are approaching the end. Here, now, in no particular order, are The Turks' Top 10 Favorite Posts from the campaign. Consider it our election guide...

Digging Deep -- Kobach flails for an explanation of his questionable ties, coming up with an equally questionable person to link himself with

Kris, meet the truth. Truth, this is Kris -- Google at its finest, Kobach at his most blatantly dishonest

KCPT Debate Recap -- A simple title, for an extensive post on the Kris-tortions at the debate

Utterly Arrogant -- 9/11 Commission has something to say about Kobach's NSEERS

Pro-Kobach mailer: Taxes = Slavery -- The opposition at its most outrageous

Send Lawyers, Guns and Money -- Kobach's answer to the nation's problems? More lawyers!

Kobach prefers pledge over poor -- Forget tax relief, what the poor really need is the Pledge!

(Patriot) Acting Out -- We're probably on a watch list for this one

Kobach promotes study by anti-gay extremist -- That headline is kind of self-explanatory

KrisWatch Contest -- We never did get that photo of Kris in a feed store


Honorable mention: Prospecting and The NRCC Strikes Back

Best week: September 19 through 25

Funniest post: Reach out and touch someone

ODN editorialists drink the Kool-Aid

The Olathe Daily News has drunk the Kool-Aid and endorsed Kris Kobach.

The Daily News' editorial appears to have been written by the Kobach campaign itself, as it buys Kobach's faulty logic and flawed facts lock, stock and barrel on the matter of his questionable campaign supporters.

The Pioneer Fund contributions were in 1994, not 1938. You can't make the same links between Tanton and Moore unless you're on LSD. And yes, ODN writers, Kobach's new friend Vernon Robinson is black, but we're pretty sure he doesn't like Hispanics either.

They also buy Kobach's flawed analysis of Moore's voting record. Yeah, voting with President Bush half the time sure is "partisan."

We think newspaper editors should do endorsements. But we also think they should do research. Heck, maybe even read what stories some other newspapers in their area are reporting.

Who knews, they just might learn something...and avoid getting bamboozled in the process.

Coalition of the Lying

We got an e-mail from someone who received an automated call purporting to be from the Mainstream Coalition.

Only it wasn't from the real Mainstream Coalition.

The call was actually from conservative activist Dwight Sutherland, Jr., who joined with fellow right-wingers in a junior high-esque act to register the name "Mainstream Coalition" after the actual group let its registration lapse.

Our e-mailer reports Sutherland is making calls claiming to be from the Coalition, a group that promotes religious tolerance, and claiming that Dennis Moore is running advertisements that criticize Kris Kobach's religious beliefs.

Of course, Sutherland isn't with any group that promotes religious tolerance or moderate values, and no such Moore ad exists.

But that doesn't stop Sutherland for decrying bigotry and hatred and calling upon people to "say no" to Moore, who of course isn't the candidate who has connections to questionable groups that serve as the public face for a movement which has both such traits festering just below the surface.


UPDATE 2:15 p.m. -- The Mainstream Coalition has sent out an e-mail to its supporters denouncing Sutherland's tactics and providing an easy way to fight back:

"The best we can do to counter this blatant attack on our integrity is to spread the news to as many as we can. Use your email list today to forward this message and ask others to do the same.

"Oh, and it wouldn't hurt to call Sutherland (we hate to call him Mr.) at his home and office to register your disappointment. Home: 913-384-1418 and Office: 913-782-2350."

Bush whacked

Automated calls for Kris Kobach are going out and they're causing some confusion. Why? Because the "President Bush" doing the calling isn't the W. one would expect -- it is actually George H.W. Bush.

Sounding about as energetic as Bob Dole does in the latest Kobach TV ad, Bush reads his script about Kobach sharing his values of "a compassionate and conservative agenda." Well there is an agenda there and it is conservative. Not so much on the compassionate.

You can listen to Bush (or Dana Carvey, we really can't tell) by clicking here.

Off the air

Kris Kobach won't be beamed into the homes of Kansas Citians on Sunday morning, as the Rev. Jerry Johnston's 30-minute infomercial for Kobach has been pulled by the TV stations set to air it, so reports Brad Cooper of The Kansas City Star.

Kobach was scheduled to appear in a taped interview with the Rev. Jerry Johnston, pastor of First Family Church in Overland Park, at 7:30 a.m. on KMCI-TV and 10 a.m. on KSHB-TV. Another broadcast scheduled for 10:30 p.m. on PAX TV also was canceled.

The general managers for the three stations said the political nature of the broadcast would have required the station to provide equal time to Kobach's Democratic opponent, U.S. Rep. Dennis Moore.

With the election Tuesday, they said their stations did not have the time to give Moore the equal access that is required under the rules set by the Federal Communications Commission.

From reading the article, it appears as if Johnston tried to bait and switch Moore repeatedly, first claiming the show would be shown on KCPT, then -- lo' and behold -- discovering the station was booked, he just taped it at the church instead.

The Star reports that the show focused largely on gay marriage, Kobach and Johnston's obsession, with Johnston saying he was "so proud" of Kobach.

Congressman Moore, meanwhile, sees something fishy going on.

“It seems to me as if they have an agenda,” Moore said of the Johnston interview. “I'm not sure it's going to be very productive for me to be on the show, honestly.”

An agenda? Why would someone who has devoted his time and his church's resources to the defeat of anyone who doesn't agree with him on social issues have an agenda? It isn't like he is favoring Kris Kobach by having him speak repeatedly at his church or by going on tour with Kobach and Jerry Falwell.

Oh, wait...

Kobach, who has meanwhile has apparently become an expert at FCC law, was upset.

“This is not a candidate use, which would trigger equal-time provisions under the FCC rules,” Kobach said. “Even if it were a situation that triggered equal-times provisions, Dennis Moore was offered equal time and he declined to accept it."

“It's truly bizarre what is happening here.”

Surely it can't be a "candidate issue" -- it only involves two people who both just happen to be running for Congress and it just so happens the show would be aired the Sunday before the election.

Just a "bizarre" coincidence, we're sure.

Mock the vote

The Johnson County Election Office has released the results of the student mock election and Dennis Moore was the only Democrat in Kansas to win:

4456 - Dennis Moore (D)
3986 - Kris Kobach (R)
312 - Richard Wells (Ref.)
286 - Joe Bellis (L)

Fan Mail Friday

Last Friday before the election. And we were just getting started...

L writes in about the new Bob Dole for Kobach ad:

Have you seen the Dole ad for Kris? Bob hasn't lived in Kansas since he left office and face it, for many many years before then. He never lived in the 3rd District. Seems really odd for Bob to tell us who is or isn't good for us here. He should stick to being funny. His Kansas Tourist Commission ads on the radio were funny. Pitching Kobach to the masses, not funny.

And he didn't even have Britney in the ad, which would have made it moderately worth watching.

Rachel of KJHK's "Politics with Rachel" writes in to plug tonight's show, which we recommend listening to if you're in the listening area.

Finally, we'd like to thank all of you who have written in with tips, stories, and messages egging us on. We appreciate your readership and support. We've had fun and while it isn't over until the polls close November 2, we're already getting nostalgic and a little misty eyed.

Then we see the Republicans comparing taxes to slavery and we get mad again, so it all evens out.

The Kobach Enquirer is Rich

Only four days to go, and still so many unanswered questions about Kris. We'll wrap up the Enquirer next week. Can you guess what the title will be? Anyway, here we go...

We wanna know!

Corporations as Slaves - Will Tom DeLay be seeking slavery reparations for Halliburton?

The Kobach Stealth Truck - still running? Seriously, this is a major campaign finance violation. Add to that his major tax fraud. The rest of the Kansas delegation pays them, so it's not like he's taking advice from his would-be colleagues.

The Kobach Lawsuit - How much is FAIR paying him? Or do their campaign contributions cover it?

Kris Kobach - almost an Olympic rower? Kris Kobach says he almost made the team. That's pretty impressive, it just hasn't ever been verified. Greetings to folks who are Googling "Kobach" and "rowing."

Pro-Kobach mailer: Taxes = Slavery

The latest of a barrage of NRCC mailers on behalf of Kris Kobach arrived at a reader's home recently and even we were shocked.

The front depicts two hands in chains as a representation of American business being tied down by taxes and regulation. Ok, kind of over the top, but nothing too bad.

Until you look on the back, and get the full message from the last line:

"If it is corporate greed that has sparked the move of jobs overseas, it is the slavery of taxation and regulation that has fanned the flames."

So taxes and regulations equal slavery, huh? And Kris Kobach is the only person to end this tyranny?

Apparently consumer safety laws are just like the crack of the master's whip, environmental laws are just like selling humans as property, and and the corporate income tax is just as bad as working a man, woman or child to death.

We don't care how onerous the regulation or high the tax, it is outrageous to compare either to the enslavement and servitude of an entire race.

Look away, Dixieland Kansas. Look away.

FAIR play (the sequel)

From a news release today by the National Council of La Raza regarding efforts to disenfranchise Hispanic voters:

In some cases, this outrageous abuse appears to be spearheaded by anti-immigrant groups, particularly the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), which has been identified by the Southern Poverty Law Center as a hate group. For example, the state director of FAIR in Michigan sent “testers” to try to register to vote at a Wisconsin Hispanic community-based organization (CBO) to “prove” that the CBO was registering non-eligible persons. Their effort was so unsuccessful that it prompted an investigation and a warning from the Milwaukee County District Attorney against future “testing” projects. In North Carolina, a press release by FAIR accusing immigrants of plotting to commit fraud led to a misguided attempt by a local sheriff to single out for harassment registrants who identified themselves as Latino.

Yeah, sure sounds like there's no racial bias whatsoever on the part of FAIR, Kris Kobach's employer/supporter.

NPR had a story on yesterday about a man in a Georgia county who challenged the citizenship status of anyone who had a Hispanic-sounding last name. Those people now have to attend a hearing to prove they are citizens and should be allowed to vote.

These Americans were born here or went through the long process to become legal citizens, yet they still face challenges from others who think anyone with a last name like "Rodriguez" or "Hernandez" or "Garcia" has to be an illegal immigrant.

Sunshine

In today's Sun, Dennis Moore is one of only two Democrats to earn the newspaper's endorsement (the other is State Rep. Sue Storm) and Steve Rose offers some parting thoughts regarding this and other races today.

Rose's personal story about Kobach's refusal to shake his hand or speak with Rose ever since Rose wrote a mildly critical sentence about Kobach is astounding. That "Kris Kobach was very impressive, but I was not impressed." would set Kobach off to the point that he would play the silent game ever since says a lot.

Meanwhile, this is what Rose has to say about Congressman Dennis Moore:

DENNIS MOORE: You can agree or disagree with Dennis Moore, but the "liberal" label does not stick. On all the major issues facing this nation, Dennis Moore has been with the President. Dennis Moore, whom I have known for almost three decades, reflects the views of most Johnson Countians. That's why they elected and re-elected him as their district attorney and Community College trustee before he was elected to Congress. The commercials running against him are slanderous.

Second Front

Joshua continues his analysis of Kris Kobach's ties to questionable groups and of Kobach's latest advertisements and mailings here: http://jgrr.blogspot.com/

Check it out.

Constitution Kris

Kris Kobach is a constitutional law professor, which means he studies the document a lot. But just reading and talking about the Constitution gets boring. What Kris really wants to do is to rewrite it, or at least add a few parts he thinks were left out by the Founding Fathers.

By our reading of this and past articles*, Kobach wants at least five new amendments to go along with the 17 that have passed since the original Bill of Rights:

1. Amendment banning abortion
2. Amendment banning gay marriage
3. Amendment keeping "Under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance
4. Amendment banning flag burning
5. Amendment making English the official language of the United States

That is an awful lot of changes to a document that has stood for two centuries with few revisions.

But, you know Kris, not only does he know more than President Bush, Secretary Tom Ridge, and the 9/11 Commission on homeland security, but he also knows more than James Madison and the other framers of the Constitution regarding what rights really need to be protected banned.

* The first three Kobach amendments come from today's Star article, the second from an article where Kobach attacks Moore regarding the flag burning amendment, and the fifth from today's article as well, since a constitutional amendment is the most often suggested vehicle for such a declaration.

Reach out and touch someone

Kris Kobach's Catholic calls are making news, this time in a story by Dave Ranney of the Lawrence Journal-World.

We reported the details here last weekend, but the story does have some interesting additional information.

"If it's not illegal, it certainly goes against the principles of keeping religion out of politics," said [Mainstream] coalition executive director Caroline McKnight.

Abrajano disagreed.

"That's ridiculous," he said. "There's no expressed separation of church and state in the Constitution."

He's apparently been reading out of the Kristitution, which is missing this little part:

Amendment I: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Anyway, Abrajano claims that the lists weren't obtained improperly from churches, but that the campaign bought the list from a database warehouse.

Abrajano said the campaign bought the calling list from a national company that works with databases.

"You can buy all kinds of data, sorted by age, gender, income, magazine subscriptions, favorite television shows -- whatever," he said.

With these lists in their hands, what other calls could the Kobach campaign be planning?

"Hi, I'm Kris Kobach, calling with an important message about your favorite TV show. Did you know Dennis Moore voted against keeping Friends on the air for another year, hurting you and others in the under 35 demographic?"

"Hi, this is Kris Kobach. Did you know that Dennis Moore voted against allowing Guns & Ammo subscribers age 45-55 with incomes of $40,000 or more from enjoying the benefits of grenade launchers?"

"Hi, I'm Kris Kobach, calling with a message for all Cat Fancy readers. Did you know that Dennis Moore is a dog owner? It's true."

"Hi, I'm Kris Kobach, with an important message for readers of Out magazine. Did you...oh, wait, forget it."

We're guessing they didn't even bother buying the list of viewers of Sábado Gigante...

Borrowed time and money

The well is drying up.

Brad Cooper of The Kansas City Star today reports that Dennis Moore outraised Kris Kobach by $120,000 during October, continuing his record-shattering pace.

Meanwhile, Kobach has started paying back his loans to his campaign...even though his campaign listed the multiple transactions as contributions, rather than loans.

You can pay back a loan, says the FEC, but not a contribution. Just another misunderstanding, says the Kobach campaign.

You know, there are lawyers who specialize in election law. May be a good idea to look one up.

FAIR-play

The Federation for American Immigration Reform yesterday issued a response to the charges of connections with white supremacist groups, including the Pioneer Fund.

Our favorite one of the reasons they can't be extremists is #2:

"FAIR spokespeople have been featured well over 1,000 times on national network television."

"We can't be racist, we've been on TV." Which is a valid point, since no white supremacists have ever appeared on television.*


* Check out tomorrow's show (10/28/04) for a hilarious coincidence.

Betting your arm

...and leg

The Washington Post yesterday ran an article on Kris Kobach's desired replacement for health insurance: the health savings account (a.k.a. medical savings account).

Bottom line:

"You're betting that you won't get sick enough to exhaust the account and have to draw on other funds to pay for further care."

The article goes beyond what we had been saying regarding how HSAs are essentially useless for anyone who doesn't have enough money to save anyway.

Not only are the poor left out, but the elderly and less healthy are left behind...with higher insurance costs.

"One risk, of course," said Ron Pollack, head of the Washington advocacy group Families USA, "is that a patient might forgo necessary medical care, opting to save the money, until the problem becomes more serious, and much more expensive."

Another risk, he said, is that healthier consumers will choose HSAs, leaving an older and sicker pool behind. "Without a younger, healthier pool of people among whom to spread risk, I'd expect to see insurance premiums skyrocket among older, sicker consumers over the next few years," Pollack said.

The article is ultimately designed for employees who are offered the choice between standard health insurance and an HSA, but for us it serves as yet another example of how Kobach's policies favor those that fortune has already smiled upon, at the expense of everybody else.

Lower wages, higher taxes

Kris Kobach's prescription for what ails working Kansans

If anything came out of the third and final Moore-Kobach debate, it is that Kris Kobach still hasn't bought a thesaurus to find a word other than "utterly."

The talk focused on topics we've already covered, such as ergonomics, but we did get some new information regarding the minimum wage. Congressman Moore supports raising it, Kobach doesn't, reports Brad Cooper of The Kansas City Star.

Kobach said he opposed increasing the federal minimum wage of $5.15 an hour. He said pushing up the minimum wage would cause lost jobs.

"The minimum wage causes inefficiencies in our economy," Kobach said.

Sorry, millions Americans who earn the minimum wage, paying you the lowest inflation-adjusted minimum wage in decades already creates "inefficiencies." No raise for you.

Besides, can't your family get by on $10,712 a year?* Maybe you could cut out some "inefficiencies" like heating...or food.

Kobach also restated his support for a national sales tax, which he said would be "fairer" to Kansans. Or at least rich Kansans. Everyone else would pay more. A lot more.

The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy estimates that a federal sales tax would have to be set at between 45 and 53 percent to break even with current tax law and forget about a progressive tax system.

Put another way, on average the 80 percent of Americans in the middle- and lower-income ranges would pay 51 percent more in sales taxes than they now pay in the federal taxes that the proposed national sales tax would replace.

For Kansas, the ITEP estimates that the bottom 80% -- with a combined average income of $32,200 -- would pay $2,587 more per year.

The top 5% -- with a combined average income of $298,900 -- would pay $44,622 less per year.

Kobach also claims such a tax would "possibly" double the amount of economic growth compared to the current tax system.

Ignoring the fact that to balance the budget, any such tax would have to raise as much money as the current tax system, adding 40 or 50 percent to the cost of an item probably wouldn't spur sales. And businesses small and large surely wouldn't mind collecting a tax on behalf of the federal government.

That's a taxing effort and a tough sell.


* That's what $5.15 an hour works out to if multiplied by a 40 hour work week and 52 week year. No vacation time allowed, of course.

Schoolhouse Kobach

It should come as no surprise, but Kris Kobach continues to make false statements about Congressman Moore's record.

First, it was his false claim that Moore had never gotten any federal money for the district, now it is his continued charge that Moore has only passed two bills, both of which name post offices.

That's just one of those exaggerations.

Once again, we looked at the record and either way you look at it, Kobach is wrong.

If you use the logical definition that includes a bill becoming law on its own or when it is incorporated into another bill that is passed, Moore has more than two bills that have become law. These include his IRA contribution limit increase -- which another member of Congress confirmed was included in a tax package bill -- and his estate tax reduction, which the bill search lists as part of H.R. 1836 that passed.

If you use Kris Kobach's narrow definition that the actual bill has to pass on its own, then Moore has only one bill naming a post office that has passed, not the two that Kobach claims, because H.R. 3255's Senate version was the one that was passed.

So either way, Kobach is wrong.

Kobach seems awfully concerned about whose name is on the piece of legislation, as opposed to what good is actually done. If he thinks the "Kobach Border Security Act" is going to pass his first year -- or first decade -- in Congress, he is sadly mistaken.

Good legislators are measured by their results, not by how many bills with their name on it they can get passed.


UPDATE 1:33 p.m. -- Savvy KrisWatch reader JF writes in to point out that another person involved in the Third District race passed only two bills during his 11 year House career. Yep, Vice President, former Congressman from Wyoming, and big Kobach fundraiser Dick Cheney.

Now we don't know how many Cheney bills were rolled into other pieces of legislation, but we do know Cheney introduced far fewer bills (31) over six terms than Moore did in the last two (40).

Assuming Kobach would apply his strict test to Cheney's record, JF is surprised that Kobach would accept support from such a "do nothing" Congressman. Our thoughts exactly.

No Overtime

The headline doesn't refer to our hopes that this election doesn't go into OT like the primary or the 2000 presidential election. Rather, it refers to Kris Kobach's position on overtime for six million American workers. (Check the list to see if you could be one of them.)

Dan J. Smith of The Olathe Daily News has a story on this rarely discussed topic in this race: the Bush Administration's changes to overtime laws.*

The changes make it possible for employers to deny workers "time and a half" pay for work beyond the 40 hour work week. Overtime pay is an important part of many low-income families' budgets, particularly since some would still qualify for food stamps even if they made the maximum allowable under the new threshold.

While more low-income workers supposedly become eligible for overtime under the new rules, the Bush Administration published tips for employers on how to avoid paying overtime to these workers.

Kobach supports these new rules. Dennis Moore opposes them.


* The ODN uses the same link for their stories each day, so this story may be about something completely different by the time you go there.

Sinking ship

Kansas City Star poll of 600 registered voters, as reported by Brad Cooper:

Dennis Moore -- 50%
Kris Kobach -- 38%
Undecided -- 11%

Kobach's response?

“I am delighted with those results. That's exactly where we want to be at this stage,” Kobach said.

Really? You wanted to be losing by 12 points with nine days to go? You really need to raise your expectations.

“Those results show that it is anybody's game, because undecideds tend to break very heavily for the challenger.” [Kobach continued]

True, but usually only about 2 to 1. Meaning that Moore would get 3 percent, and if we're generous to Kobach, he would get 8 percent. So, Moore wins 53 to 46.

Assuming this poll is accurate, Moore would hypothetically only need to get one undecided voter to get the magic "50% + 1" to win.

Plus, this poll apparently didn't take into account the third party candidates, which usually draw 2-3 points. Given the conservative issue stances of the two third party candidates this year, those points are unlikely to come from Moore.

Moore's lead is significantly larger this year than in 2002 or 2000, when The Star conducted polls showing him in tight races with Taff and Phill Kline, now Kansas' attorney general.

As a point of reference, Moore had a three point lead over Adam Taff in the Star's poll in 2002 and a two point lead over Phill Kline in the same poll in 2000. So, yes, 12 points is "significantly larger."

The margin in the new poll surprised some experts, who think the race will ultimately be much closer than the margin indicated in the poll. But if Moore is already at 50 percent, it is not a good sign for Kobach, they said.

“You would clearly want Moore to be under 50 at this point,” said Johnson County
Republican strategist Kevin Yowell. “I would not say that this race is over, but Kobach is going to have to get busy if he's going to pull this out.”

Eighteen percent of Republicans are backing Moore. Looks like that "rally the base and screw the moderates" strategy is really paying off.

Allan Cigler, a political science professor at the University of Kansas, said Kobach had made no apparent attempt to move off his conservative message to appeal to more moderate Republican voters. He said the poll indicates that strategy appears to be backfiring.

Well, look at the bright side. Kris has nowhere to go but up. And the NRCC's ad buy has nowhere to go but home.

(Speaking of ad buys, has anyone seen a Kobach ad on broadcast TV lately? Not cable, but one of the networks: ABC, NBC, CBS...Fox? We haven't.)

End of health insurance as we know it

The first thing you notice about the responses to the questions posed by The Kansas City Star and printed today is that Kris Kobach has a hard time answering a question, shall we say, succinctly.

The second thing we noticed was this hidden gem in his answer on health care:

I favor two fundamental changes in the health-care system. First, we must enact legislation allowing tax-free medical savings accounts to be made available to all Americans. This will help transform our system from a third-party-payer system to a first-party-payer system.

Do you know what the "third-party-payer system" is? Health insurance.

Apparently, Kris Kobach wants to end health insurance, or at least dramatically overhaul it so that you have to use your "medical savings account" -- i.e. a tax-free bank account -- to pay for services instead of insurance.

Of course, you have to save up in your account to be able to spend it. This poses a problem for people who can afford health insurance, but can't sock away tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars for retirement, let alone health costs.

What, you mean you don't have $100,000 for major surgery?

Well, maybe you should have taken "market forces" into account before you got sick, loser.

Silly season

The silly season has definitely started.

Kris Kobach is alleging voter fraud in Wyandotte County, saying that advance ballot applications are being "forged." Meanwhile, auto-calls to Catholics are going out from his campaign.

The Kansas City Star's Melodee Hall Blobaum reports on Kobach's allegations, saying that "several" advance ballot applications were received where the signatures didn't match.

Kansas law doesn't require that the office check signatures on applications, though [WyCo Election Commissioner Pat] Rahija's office does. On one such application, other information was incomplete, and when Rahija's office contacted the voter, she said she hadn't filled out an application.

Wow, one ballot application -- sure sounds like widespread systemic fraud to us. Because you know what they could do with that application? Well, the voter could get a ballot...mailed to them! And they could cast their vote from home! Oh my.

Kobach says any voter with concerns about their ballot should contact the election commission...or the Kobach campaign, where we're sure they'll get impartial advice.

This is all going on at the same time as the Mainstream Coalition reports Kobach's campaign is sending out automatic phone messages to Catholic voters after somehow obtaining a church or parish directory.

The calls are apparently going to Catholic voters from "a fellow Catholic voter" named Ruby. Mainstream has set up a line where you can hear the call. Just dial 913-693-5001* and it will play automatically.

The calls hit Moore on "values" votes, such as on abortion, gay marriage, the Pledge of Allegiance, and a vote that would "remove the Ten Commandments from our schools" -- which is interesting, since the Ten Commandments aren't supposed to be in schools anyway. Ruby then says she'll be voting for Kris Kobach.

Mainstream points out that there is no FEC-required disclaimer on these calls and that church directories are proprietary, requiring them to either be paid for or provided to any campaign.


* UPDATE 10/25 -- We called the line again today and it is now a different automated Kris Kobach phone call, this time complaining about Dennis Moore supposedly calling Kobach a racist because Kobach wants strong borders.

Of course, Moore hasn't called Kobach a racist (the only person we've heard use that word is Kobach himself) and the questions are swirling around Kobach not because of his views on border security, but because of the groups he associates with.

Anyway, as a political tactic, calling up voters and telling them that you were called a racist and white supremacist is probably not the best use of resources.

Star endorses Moore

The Kansas City Star has endorsed Congressman Dennis Moore for re-election. Now that isn't terribly surprising -- not nearly as surprising as if the Lawrence Journal-World endorsed him -- but it does always provide good quotes for campaign literature.

U.S. Rep. Dennis Moore is an energetic and fair-minded lawmaker with a thorough understanding of the many challenges facing the country at home and abroad. He has represented the 3rd District in Kansas well for the past six years and deserves re-election.

What is surprising is the emphasis the Star places on Moore's national security acumen, given the fact that Kris Kobach is the one who has made security a centerpiece of his campaign.

On national security, the country needs more lawmakers like Moore who can keep their eye on the ball. Too many people in Washington have grown complacent; weak spots in homeland defense have been ignored and millions of dollars have been frittered away on low priorities. Moore supports proposals that would address these problems and ensure that enough money goes to the right places.

Unlike some members of his party, he has no trouble taking tough stands against countries that could pose serious threats to the United States and its allies. But he also understands that our country is strongest when it works closely with its allies.

Unlike Steve Rose's endorsement of Moore, the Star doesn't pass up a chance to talk about Kobach, if only for a paragraph.

Republican Kris Kobach, a law professor and former member of the Overland Park City Council, has mounted a vigorous challenge against Moore. But there have been several troubling aspects to Kobach’s campaign, including a heavy emphasis on immigration issues and gay marriage. He has also embraced the irresponsible idea of replacing the federal income tax with a national consumption tax.

The rest of the endorsement is finally online so we can link to it here.

Fan Mail Friday

Next to the last Friday before the election. The clock is winding down...

L writes in to say that she watched the debate with her mom and dad and Kris' attitude didn't wear well. "He was as my mother said, a pit bull, only rabid," she writes.

Others apparently agreed. This is from a letter in today's Kansas City Star:

Throughout the debate, I found myself agreeing with Moore's standpoints. However, this is not the primary reason I will cast my vote for him. The condescending, ugly, arrogant and plainly hateful attitude of the challenger did not win my vote; it turned my stomach.

Joshua writes in to let us know about some more posts on his blog, this time dealing with Kris Kobach's ties to questionable groups. He goes above and beyond most bloggers, contacting a journalist who tracks these groups for more information. Joshua has put together a good collection of information in a short amount of time. His blog is at: http://jgrr.blogspot.com/


And finally, R writes in to say that Kris wasn't telling the truth about stem cell research during the KCPT debate, saying that tissues from embryonic stem cells don't face the rejection risk that tissues from adult stem cells do, hence they are more promising in terms of therapies.

Kris Kobach twisting the facts? That reminds us of a song.

Everybody! Sing along with David!

Facts are simple and facts are straight
Facts are lazy and facts are late
Facts all come with points of view
Facts don't do what I want them to
Facts just twist the truth around
Facts are living turned inside out
Facts are getting the best of them
Facts are nothing on the face of things

Lyrics from Crosseyed and Painless by Talking Heads

Powers of prediction

We don't know if we can agree with the first line of Jonna Lorenz's article in today's Sun.

Moderate Republicans in the state's 3rd Congressional District are once again the object of a tug of war in the race for Congress.

We think one candidate is going after moderate voters, but the other seems to be following the Rovian "rally the base" strategy. Unless Jerry Falwell has some hidden pull in Prairie Village that we don't know about.

The Sun story revolves around the announcement of this year's crop of Republicans for Moore. This year's group is 800 strong -- more than any previous year, the article points out.

Kobach, meanwhile, points out that local moderates support him too. Such as...Adam Taff. And...well...um...Dick Cheney and Dennis Hastert also support him and they've been to Kansas before.

And why wouldn't they when Kris demonstrates his ability to read the President's mind and/or predict the future, in this case saying that President Bush -- who recently said he won't send troops to guard the border -- will, in fact, send troops to the border...after the election.

Kobach said that Bush demonstrated a willingness to put troops on the borders from March through September 2002.

"I fully expect he'll be willing to do so again in a longer term deployment after the election," he said.

Yes, it was such a success to send those 1,400 National Guard soldiers to guard both the Canadian and Mexican borders that the program was ended after seven months.

We have to wonder what the world would be like if Kobach's powers of prediction could be used for good, not politics.

Star struck

We're going to have to have a talk with our crack research staff*, because we weren't alerted to these two columns that ran yesterday and today in The Kansas City Star.

The first is by Mary Sanchez who calls out Kris Kobach for "defaming a dead man."

All in the name of political gain

Politics can be a dirty game; that is no surprise.

But just how far will a candidate go to get elected?

Defaming an opponent? Unfortunately, this is common during the waning days of most elections.

But defaming a dead man?

Most voters, regardless of party affiliation, would be offended by such a ploy.

Yet this is what Republican Kris Kobach has done. Kobach is a U.S. Congressional candidate for the 3rd Kansas district.

Sanchez delves into Kobach's use of the late Steve Endean, founder of the Human Rights Campaign, in his recent call for Moore to return contributions from HRC. As The Note would say, it is a "must read."

Then in today's Star, Wyandotte County columnist Mark Wiebe discusses why Hispanic activists are up in arms over Kobach-ally Project USA's posting of anti-immigration billboards in Hispanic neighborhoods.

There appears, then, to be nothing about the ads that suggests the racially motivated innuendoes and fear tactics too often embraced by those who promote a strict nativist agenda. Nothing, that is, until you consider that the billboards (there are three of them) appear in an area heavily populated by Hispanics and Hispanic businesses. Placed in this context, one can understand why some might read the ad as saying, essentially, “This is what your neighborhood could look like if we don't enforce immigration laws.”

Wiebe also counters Project USA's insistance that race isn't an issue, by quoting from passages of their website where race is clearly an issue. This gives "critics reasons to doubt the organization's true motives." Wiebe continues...

So does this: ProjectUSA has received $25,000 in a three-year span from the Pioneer Fund, an organization whose original charter included “race betterment” as one of its goals. According to the organization's Web site, its president, J. Philippe Rushton, has “documented” evidence that descendents of Africans are, on average, less intelligent, less socially organized and practice less sexual restraint than East Asians, Europeans and their descendents.

Those facts raise serious questions about ProjectUSA's purposes. But just as important, they raise an equally serious question about Kobach's campaign: Why would he want to risk accepting ProjectUSA's support?

Yes, why indeed?


* We originally used Google News Alerts, but after hearing about how ABC's The Note relies on "Google Monkeys" to find its stories, we all pitched in to get one of our own. Unfortunately, we could only afford an unemployed Rally Monkey. It doesn't really find very many stories, but it helps keep our spirits high.

Fee-lings, nothing more than fee-lings

Kris Kobach has made a big deal about not voting for tax increases while on the Overland Park City Council. But fees, well...Brad Cooper of The Kansas City Star has the story...

“I think I've shown that I have a record of voting for tax cuts and voting against regulations on our businesses. I will carry the same commitment to Congress,” Kobach recently told the Johnson County Bar Association.

An examination of Kobach's record from 1999 to 2001 reveals his assertions to be true, to an extent. But instead of taxes, the Kansas 3rd District congressional candidate voted to raise fees nine times over a 2½-year period.

He also supported new regulations on restaurants, car dealerships and church construction. Among them, he supported a law requiring new or some remodeled restaurants to have separate ventilation systems if they wanted to allow smoking.

There were a variety of fees, but one in particular stuck out, since it is called a tax...

In October 1999, Kobach voted to raise the price of a season pool pass for Overland Park families by $10. At that same meeting, he supported a 25 percent across-the-board increase in fees for rezoning applications and special-use permits, often paid by developers and businesses.

In 2000, Kobach voted to raise annual fees for health permits by $25 for restaurants. He also voted to increase the price of a round of golf by $5 on the weekends. Kobach also voted for an approximately 31 percent increase in the city's so-called excise tax on new development. He described it as a fee after Republican rival Adam Taff accused him of misleading the public about his record on taxes.

Yes, the "so-called excise tax" which is also known as the "excise tax."

We're not planning on opening a restaurant or buying a family pool pass, so we're not too concerned about these fees. But, we have to agree with one of Kobach's fellow council members...

“I think for him to go out and trot out the record and say, ‘I've never voted for a tax increase' is not telling the entire story,” said former councilman Mike Lally, who served for two years with Kobach. Lally said he was a registered independent and was neutral in the race.

“Whether it's a property tax increase, a sales tax increase or a user fee increase, they're all revenue enhancers. The reality is, that means there is more money being asked of the citizens to pay for a certain service.”

The Kobach Enquirer Redux

We wanna know!

Fact Checking - who needs it when you have Kriswatch? Is there anything Kobach said at the KCPT debate The Turks hadn't already debunked? We suppose there was the bit about Iran firing its missles at us, though to hit Kansas City they would have to set up their launch pad in Utah. And now we've debunked that, too. Twice.

The Kobach Stealth Truck - still running? Speaking of fact checking, visit the FEC page for Kobach and see if you can find where his campaign is reporting the expenditure. If you can't find it, you'll agree with us he is breaking the law. For man who wants to write laws because he's a lawyer, that's bad.

The Kobach Lawsuit - How much is FAIR paying him? Or do their campaign contributions cover it?

Kris Kobach - almost an Olympic rower? Kris Kobach says he almost made the team. That's pretty impressive, it just hasn't ever been verified.

KCPT debate recap

First, Kris, calm down. Take a deep breath. Try decaf. Do something, because the fast talking and shouting isn't helping.

In fact, Kobach's demeanor was such that one of the Mrs. Turks got so fed up with the shouting, and the gesturing, and the fast talking that she turned the TV off after about 15 minutes.

But fortunately, there are multiple Turks and we came together to assemble this recap. This is a long post, so you may want to get a cup of coffee. (Not you Kris.)


Values

The first question (there were no opening statements) was about what three values each candidate held dear. Kobach's answer?

National Security
Tax cuts
Moral values

While tax cuts are an interesting value, the answer really didn't produce anything new, though it did give Kobach a chance to name drop a reference to Iran's Shahab-3 missile and how we need a space-based missile defense system to defend against it. Considering the Shahab-3 has only a 1,300 kilometer range, we have some time, since it is 10,198 kilometers between Tehran, Iran, and Washington, DC.

Of course, some people think we should focus on more immediate threats, like nuclear weapons smuggled in via unchecked containers, but you know Kris, he likes to aim high.


Iraq

"We were right to invade Iraq when we did" even though no WMDs were found, says Kobach. He touts the flypaper theory, claiming we're fighting terrorists in Iraq instead of here. We've heard a good analogy for that theory: creating a "really dirty hospital" so "we can fight the germs there, not in the other hospitals" -- forgetting that there isn't a finite number of germs...or terrorists...and that the invasion only served to incite more Muslims to violence, not peace.

Kobach says Moore doesn't go far enough in giving our troops the equipment they need, citing Moore's votes against "bunker busting" nuclear weapons. Yes, because the solution to our Iraq problem is nuclear weapons. (Ironic since nuclear weapons -- or at least the supposed threat of them -- are the cause of our Iraq problem.)


Education

Kobach says he wants to eliminate the federal education mandates, but keep the money flowing. Kobach claims Moore had a chance to vote to lift mandates, but he voted no.

Guess what: So did a majority of Congress.

The amendment Kobach cites sought to strike the requirement for annual state reading and math tests for grades 3 through 8 and retain current law for state assessments -- gutting the accountability standards of No Child Left Behind. That is why it was voted down.

So in the end, Kobach opposes accountability for federal spending, preferring to do what Republicans used to criticize liberals for: throwing money at the problem with no accountability for how it is used.


Taxes

"I will not raise taxes on any sector of the American public," says Kobach.

Poor Lilly. A huge debt is her reward.


Social Security

Kobach says he is against cutting benefits or increasing Social Security taxes. "If you are against those things, you have to find a better way to get a greater return on your investment," he says.

As a solution, Kobach advocates a plan where "less than half" of Social Security benefits go into private accounts. He then claims that the only way to avoid Social Security going into deficit is private accounts, trying to mislead voters since the return on investment for individuals in their private accounts would do nothing to lengthen the overall solvency of Social Security (unless the remaining standard benefits are cut.)

Kobach also has no answer for the multi-trillion dollar transition costs involved in even partially privatized accounts. In fact, he doesn''t even mention those costs.

Kobach again trots out the "Social Security only gets a 2% return" canard, ignoring that -- unlike an investment -- Social Security is essentially a lifetime annuity that is inflation adjusted, making comparisons with regular retirement accounts specious at best.

Finally, Kobach claims that Moore flip-flopped on this issue, but again his evidence is faulty. He cites a CQ story about Moore supporting investing overall trust funds in the market -- not private accounts -- and a Kansas City Star column by conservative writer Thomas McClanahan which says Moore wasn't opposed to private accounts "in concept."

The Turks aren't opposed to getting a million dollars "in concept" but if that money came from a bank robbery, we don't want it. Concept and reality are often a long ways apart, particularly in the minds of those who want to begin to dismantle Social Security.


Health care

Kobach pushes the bounds of reason, claiming Moore has been "the worst" in Congress on medical malpractice. We've dealt with this issue time and again, so click the links if you want to hear how medical malpractice "reform" would do little or nothing to solve health care costs.

Kobach also claims that there is no proof that Moore's plan to let Medicare negotiate for bulk discounts on pharmaceuticals will work. It works for the private sector, the Veterans Administration and the Defense Department, why wouldn't it work for Medicare? Even the American Medical Association thinks it would work.


National Security

After attacking Moore for a vote on the intelligence budget, Kobach says he wants to disclose "only the overall budget amount and nothing more" -- but that is exactly what the vote Kobach cites did! As we have previously reported, it only disclosed the total intelligence budget. Kobach has made so many outrageous claims that he is starting to lose track of reality.

Kobach again cites the "11 suspected terrorists" caught by NSEERS -- a claim that the 9/11 Commission staff already debunked.


Kobach's ties to extremists

Kobach trots out the supposed Sierra Club, LCV, and Planned Parenthood ties to John Tanton, despite knowing full well that those connections are virtually nonexistent -- particularly compared with Kobach's own ties to John Tanton, Larry Pratt, and their respective organizations. It is all here.


Immigration

Regarding the lawsuit he filed for FAIR, Kobach once again forgets about Google and now tries to push off the 2,000 figure onto The Kansas City Star, even though it was a letter from Kobach himself in the Star that first started the "2,000 illegal aliens" figure.

From letter to the Star by Kris Kobach, May 27, 2004:
It is estimated that 2,000 illegal aliens will take advantage of this law, costing Kansas taxpayers more than $15 million."

And after an exchange where Kobach accuses Moore of "utterly lying" -- (Christmas gift idea for Kris: a thesaurus so he can find a word other than "utterly") -- we learn that -- in Kobach's mind -- pretty much any immigration vote that doesn't seal the border is a vote for amnesty.


Stem cells

Finally, there is a discussion of stem cell research, where Kobach seems to come out against any form of embryonic stem cell research and claims there are not enough embryos frozen at invitro fertilization clinics to find cures. Yet on October 7, the Republican Mainstream Partnership director wrote to The Hill and said that 400,000 embryos are created at IVF clinics every year. Compare that to the 19 cell lines touted by the President as more than sufficient.


Wrap-up

Overall, we didn't think either candidate landed a knockout blow. Moore was effective, but not spectacular against the fast-talking former college debater. Neither one had a gaffe or moment that stands out that could be used in TV ads, and at this point, with this type of race, that's all that these debates are really good for.


Update 4:31 p.m.: In reference to a post on a Phog.net message board (yes, we will admit we read it), we never said we thought the debate was a draw. We think Moore won, largely because he came across as more reasonable than Kobach in both words and overall manner. Moore had a steady presence, while Kobach seemed manic.

Kobach needed to demonstrate to voters why Moore should be fired and he didn't do it. His attacks were ones that have been heard in this district for years and largely discounted by voters. Plus, Kobach likely turned off a lot of swing voters (i.e. independent and Republican women) with his manner and would have turned off more if they could have followed what he was saying more than half the time. Add in the multiple Kobach distortions and faulty assertions we detail above and Kobach's position weakens further.

So, it wasn't a draw, but we still insist that neither candidate landed a "knockout blow" and his performance was certainly not effective enough for Kobach to be boasting on 1510 yesterday about cleaning Moore's clock or some other such nonsense.

Also, Jayhawkmom rules.

Scout's honor

Tenth in the "Kris Kobach is wrong 10 ways from Sunday" series

Kobach's final attack on Moore in his lit piece is that Moore voted "against the Boy Scouts," forcing them to accept homosexual Scoutmasters.

As we've said previously, Moore voted against an amendment in 2001 that would have reversed a ruling by the District of Columbia Human Rights Commission regarding the reinstatement of two scoutmasters into the Boy Scouts.

The reason? Moore apparently doesn't believe that 535 senators and representatives should be meddling in the city's business.

Republicans like Kris Kobach advocate local control...until they're the ones who want to exercise the control.

Ask yourself: Which decision will your local government make next that Kris Kobach will want to override from Washington?

Also, in his piece Kobach says that as an Eagle Scout, he'll "always protect the values of the Boy Scouts."

Look at their Scout Law. Ask yourself if you think he's doing a good job.

Fan Mail Monday

Joshua writes in to call our attention to a post on his blog that we felt needed to be recommended today, rather than waiting until Friday.

The information about the 9/11 Commission recommending release of the top-line figures of the intelligence budget is first-rate and goes beyond what we knew about the issue, as well as what Kobach and the NRCC apparently know.

The Late Afternoon Show Post

Kris called in to a friendly audience this afternoon, The Late Afternoon Show on 1510 AM. The Turks were among the 10 or 15 people listening to 1510. We admit, we were hoping for the Red Sox-Yanks, but this was almost as entertaining...

Kobach blathered on about his "big debate victory" last night. Again, we'll post after we watch it again on tape this evening. However, he tried to make his biggest points on the issue of Congressman Moore's legislative track record.

According to Kobach, in Moore's six years in DC, only two of his bills have become law, both of which re-named Post Office buildings. Kris was adamant about this, telling the 10 or 15 of us listening to "look it up." He and the show's host, Chris Stigall (though they seem to keep calling him Seagal...) weren't impressed with the Congressman's response. As quoted in the KC Star, “When he says that I've only had two bills that were post offices, that is absolutely not true. Either your computer is not working or you just don't know where to look.”

Again, Kris dared us to "look it up." We did. For the 108th Congress, he's right. Of course, a Congress is two years. What about the 107th Congress, Kris? Uh-oh... And maybe they thought "Steve," the last caller of the day, was the only one with Internet access.

And, frankly, let's not even get INTO the bills with Congressman Moore listed as a co-sponsor. You see, Kris, that's how Congress works...


Update 10/19: Yes, you have to click on "Bill Summary & Status" to see that Moore's bill was rolled into the larger tax cut bill which became law. We wanted to challenge you. As with a 10/19 post, it is a Phog.net poster who points this out, much to the chagrin of the Kris-supporters who inhabit the Phog Phorum.

And the fact that the Kobach supporters are debating us -- we're lovin' it. The "rally the base" strategy? Good luck with that.

Utterly arrogant

"I'm Kris Kobach and I approved this message because I'm smarter than you are."

We want to watch the debate again tonight before going in-depth, but we have to say that Kobach's know-it-all attitude really came through in The Kansas City Star's coverage this morning.

Republican challenger Kris Kobach attacked full bore Sunday, calling U.S. Rep. Dennis Moore “utterly out of touch” with Kansas morals, “utterly ineffective” and, at one point, “utterly ignorant.”

And that was just the first paragraph.

Today, we want to focus on the "utterly ignorant" comment, because it referred to Moore's criticism of Kobach's National Security Entry/Exit Registration System (NSEERS), which we promised last week to discuss.

Moore said NSEERS hurt U.S. cooperation with other countries in the war on terror and that the administration had to send a message to allies assuaging their concerns about the program. Kobach rebutted by calling Moore "utterly ignorant."

Apparently, Kobach thinks the 9/11 Commission, State Department, and FBI Director Robert Mueller are "utterly ignorant" too...

There was significant opposition to the NSEERS program from some U.S. government officials, who feared the program would offend countries that were U.S. allies in the global war on terror. State personnel we interviewed said that NSEERS did harm our relations with foreign countries whose citizens were subject to its registration requirements. FBI Director Mueller said it came at a cost.

The footnotes of the 9/11 Commission staff report describe some of this opposition from allies, including the fact that one of the few things the leaders of feuding India and Pakistan could agree on is their mutual distate for NSEERS.

Kobach has also claimed that 11 suspected terrorists were caught. But the 9/11 Commission staff report disagrees.

DHS asserts that 11 persons out of approximately 140,000 registrants have been shown to have a connection to terrorism. Of these, six were NSEERS call-in registrants, though it is not clear from information we have received whether the registration process led to their arrest; two were denied entry at the port of entry following a hit in the TIPOFF watchlist, and thus their identifications were not attributable, in other words, to the NSEERS program; one failed to appear for a call-in registration and was encountered and arrested in the field on grounds that are not clear to us; one was arrested, and we have no information whether he was required to participate in the NSEERS program; and one is currently "at large."

The counterterrorism benefits from the NSEERS program are unclear. (emphasis added)

So the evidence isn't quite what Kobach claims.

Add in the comments of Asa Hutchinson, former Republican congressman and the Department of Homeland Security's undersecretary for borders and transportation, when NSEERS was shut down in December 2003:

Hutchinson said in an interview that the domestic portion of the program "didn't yield sufficient leads" to justify the money being spent. The government will focus more on individuals rather than "whole categories" of people, he said.

Kris Kobach created a program that wasn't cost-effective, that angered foreign governments, and for which the benefits were "unclear." That's quite the track record.

So, we now know that, with regards to border security, Kris Kobach thinks he knows more than the...

9/11 Commission

Undersecretary of Homeland Security for Borders and Transportation

Secretary of Homeland Security

President of the United States

Did we miss anyone?

Laying the foundation

Ninth in the "Kris Kobach is wrong 10 ways from Sunday" series

The second attack on Congressman Moore in the social issues section of Kris Kobach's literature piece is that Moore voted against the "Laci and Connor Peterson Law" that Republicans named after the case that is a staple of CourtTV and other media outlets.

We've discussed this issue before, but will once again point out that this law gives the embryo/fetus the same legal rights as the mother -- regardless of the stage of development -- and is primarily designed to lay a legal foundation for banning all abortions by overturning Roe vs. Wade.

After all, that is Kobach's ultimate goal: to ban abortion, even in cases of rape or incest.

Sunday Conversations

Two messages needing replies this evening...

RL --

Thanks for the kind words. We'd love to hear what you thought of the debate -- drop us a line.

YDT


Second, we received this message today:

RatherGate proved that bloggers are the best fact checkers. That is why we are writing to a few bloggers asking for help.

Yes Bush Can has collected several documents that are clearly suspect. But we need your help to prove they are fake: http://www.yesbushcan.com/falsedocs.shtml

Let's spring to action before these documents needlessly tarnish the reputation of our Commander and Chief. You know the drill: analyze the handwriting, search for factual errors, and post your discoveries.

And keep us posted by sending email to FakeDocs@yesbushcan.com.

Thanks in advance for your help.

YesBushCan

We think it is of vital importance to our nation and to the cause of satire that all of our readers review the aforementioned documents.

Our question: Will Kris take their Patriot Pledge?

Dollars and sense

The October quarterly reports were due to the FEC yesterday and we have our first look at how both campaigns have been doing.

Brad Cooper of The Kansas City Star focuses on the cash-on-hand figures, which at this point are less useful as indicators of a campaign's strength than the total raised figures since the COH figures are impacted by advance spending, such as on TV buys and other advertising.

Libby Quaid of the Associated Press, meanwhile, focuses on Moore's record-breaking total raised figure.

Dennis Moore raised $437,189.50 for the quarter, bringing his total to a record $1,846,404.57 for the cycle.

Kris Kobach raised $453,749.75 for the period plus a $53,000 contribution from Kobach himself.* His total for the cycle is $867,993.53 -- almost a million dollars less than Moore.

And showing he really doesn't give a damn what people think, Kobach accepted more money from groups he has been under fire for associating with: $2,500 from the U.S. Immigration Reform PAC and $2,400 from Gun Owners of America.

In the disbursements, Kobach shows that he still isn't obeying federal law with regards to tax withholding and the stealth truck continues to go unseen, unfueled, and unpaid for


* Kobach paid himself back for $11,000 of his contributions, so we have to wonder how much -- if any -- of this $53,000 is actually available to spend, as opposed to just being there to pump up his total raised figure.

The Krush

We're not sure, but we think Pitch writer Nathan Dinsdale may have a bit of a crush on Kris Kobach thanks to the "Rock for Kobach" event in Lawrence.

Then Kobach arrived. And the angels sang.

He was dreamy, a chiseled hunk of man with a firm jaw and firmer principles who was only some puka shells and a pair of flip-flops away from being the Kappa Sigma social chair. He proceeded to make mildly lame allusions to his campaign as a football team and his staffers as his band members. Then he said:

"On November 2, when Dan Rather is announcing that the president has won -- you know Dan Rather, the man who put the BS in CBS -- he's [also] going to be talking about the 3rd District race in Kansas."

But all I could think about was stuffing Kobach's ballot box. It didn't matter that both Kobach and I were married -- to women. He was going to make an honest man out of me.

Yikes. Talk about a swing voter.

Digging deep

Kris Kobach is mad.

At least that's the impression we get according to an e-mail sent to his supporters today.

Kobach is mad about a Kansas Democratic Party mailing that details the contributions Kobach has received from groups with ties to white supremacists.

Kobach claims "Moore gave $136,000 to the Kansas Democratic Party in order to finance this mailing" -- which is an insanely high amount to be for just a mailing. Was the mailing printed on $10 bills?

Kobach tries to defend his contributions from Gun Owners of America and the U.S. Immigration Reform PAC in multiple ways.

Kobach says that the Immigration Reform PAC "has only given maximum contributions to two candidates this cycle - Kris Kobach and Vernon Robinson, a candidate in North Carolina. Vernon Robinson is an African American."

Yes, he is. And Robinson also hates illegal aliens. (Seriously, listen to this ad -- especially the tagline for "gringos")

We're not so sure it is a good idea for Kobach to tie himself with Robinson. He's called himself the "Black Jesse Helms" and is so extreme that 1996 Republican VP nominee Jack Kemp withdrew his endorsement of Robinson.

Kris Kobach and Vernon Robinson -- both standing up against the "illegal Mexican immigration invasion."

Yes, clearly Robinson shows the Immigration Reform PAC has no racial motives whatsoever.

When you find yourself in a hole: stop digging.

But Kobach's defense only gets weirder. He blatantly lies about the funding from the pro-racial purity through eugenics Pioneer Fund that went to the Federation for American Immigration Reform, Kobach's current employer/supporter.

Kobach claims that FAIR recieved Pioneer Fund money 75 years ago. Try 1994, Kris. That's when FAIR took the last of $1.2 million from the Pioneer Fund.

Kobach also tries to tie FAIR founder and current board member John Tanton -- the center of a web of anti-immigrant groups -- to Congressman Moore.

Moore got money from Planned Parenthood, the Sierra Club and the League of Conservation Voters, Kobach says, and Tanton was involved with all three groups.

Well, sort of.

Tanton was involved with the Northern Michigan chapter of Planned Parenthood... from 1965 to 1971. The LCV? He was a Michigan district organizer from 1970 to 1974. Sierra Club? Planning committee member from 1969-1971. Tanton was recently unsuccessful in his attempted takeover of the Sierra Club -- the culimination of a decades long fight he waged to infiltrate the group.

Wow. Pretty strong ties there, Kris. A couple of jobs in the late sixties/early seventies and an unsuccessful takeover. Tanton must be in control of all three!

And while there is no evidence of contributions from Tanton or his wife to any of these three groups in the past 14 years (OpenSecrets.org's records go back to 1990), the Tantons have given thousands directly to the U.S. Immigration Reform PAC -- $7,000 this election cycle alone -- $5,000 of which found its way directly to Kobach.

Like we said: Stop digging.

But he doesn't. Kobach continues his defense by reprising his story of Larry Pratt's speech to what Kobach now calls a "preparedness expo."

According to author Leonard Zeskind, this speech by Pratt was given at the invitation of Pete Peters, author of a pamphlet called "The Death Penalty for Homosexuals" to a "meeting of Aryan Nations leaders; former Ku Klux Klansmen; and adherents of so-called 'Christian Identity,' a doctrine in which Jews are literally considered Satanic and persons of color are referred to as 'mud people.'"

After all of this, Kobach decries these "desperate" attacks as being "through nine degrees of separation" as though he weren't the one desperately trying to find ways to link Moore to groups Kobach doesn't even think it is wrong to associate with.

But nine degrees? Surely it can't be nine...

John Tanton -- FAIR -- Kobach
John Tanton -- US Immigration PAC -- Kobach
White supremacists -- Larry Pratt of GOA -- Kobach

Nope. Less than nine.

Stop digging.

Hindsight preview

The Kansas City Star's Brad Cooper and Matt Stearns have a lengthy article on Kris Kobach's Justice Department project, the National Security Entry/Exit Registration System (NSEERS).

We're going to take the weekend to review the article, but in the meantime the very last paragraph raises a question:

Kobach said the Justice Department tried to cultivate sources with undocumented immigrants. He said the Justice Department set up an initiative in early 2002 in which the government would allow people to stay in the country legally if they provided information that was useful to combat terrorism.

And that's not the dreaded "amnesty" because...?

Driving Kris Kobach

We've always wondered if poor driving can impact voters when the car being driven poorly has a candidate's bumper sticker on it.

Apparently so...at least for The Kansas City Star's Joe Posnanski.

People often ask, “What the heck are undecided voters thinking about?”

Well, I'm here to tell you.

Last Friday, I was driving around town, running errands, listening to a Ray Charles CD, when a car with a Kris Kobach bumper sticker almost backed into my car. Kobach is running against Dennis Moore for the seat in Kansas' 3rd Congressional District.

I did not think much of it at the time. I am thoroughly undecided about Kris Kobach and Dennis Moore. I have not thought much about them. But a little later on, I was driving in a different part of town and a car almost ran me off the road. As the car drove away, I noticed something curious: That car also had a Kris Kobach bumper sticker.

And suddenly I had a strong opinion: I was not going to vote for Kris Kobach.*

Posnanski wrote two messages to Team Kobach and got no reply. Dennis Moore, on the other hand, wrote back immediately, expressing his relief that Posnanski wasn't injured by the Kobach supporters and making the case for driving down the middle, not too far left or right.

But we don't think Moore went far enough in connecting Kobach with his supporters' driving habits.

Earlier this week, The Hill ran a story that we didn't write about because it really didn't feature anything new...except for a now-relevant paragraph on Kris Kobach's driving...

For Kobach, the campaign consists of a morning meeting at campaign headquarters, which is nestled between Chinese and kabob restaurants. It’s driving while munching on a mini-candy bar, monitoring the radar detector and nearly running a stop sign. It’s telling his mother she can come to a fundraiser even though she’s “maxed out” to him. It’s pricking his finger with a needle to monitor insulin levels while driving.

Only someone who is speeding needs a radar detector. What happened to the "law and order" candidate?

Clearly, Kobach supporters are only driving like their candidate. We can only hope he mends his reckless ways...for the children.


* Posnanski reveals at the end of his column that he doesn't actually live in Kansas, so this statement is technically true.

28th Amendment

Eighth in the "Kris Kobach is wrong 10 ways from Sunday" series

Kris Kobach's lit piece's eighth attack on Congressman Moore is the first in the social issues area. It is on gay marriage and says that Moore opposes the Federal Marriage Amendment.

Just like Vice President Dick Cheney.

And 27 Republican members of the House of Representatives where it fell well short of passage.

And 50 members of the Senate, where it couldn't even garner enough votes to end debate.

Fan Mail Friday

One special reply to a correspondent we'd like to make...

BG --

Hopefully we only have to worry about the AG's lists for a few more weeks. Thanks for writing and good luck with your studies!

The Turks

A Rose by any other name

Steve Rose of the Sun could be considered one of the de facto leaders of moderate Republicans in the Kansas City area. He is perhaps the most visible moderate, given his column's prominent position and its wide distribution throughout Johnson County.

His endorsement for President and Congress is online and it is quite simple:

Bush and Moore

Moore is a man of conviction, and his highest priority is safety and security for his nation. Dennis Moore does not hesitate to support President Bush, no matter the party differences, because on major issues he votes his convictions, which are deeply ingrained from his deep roots here in Johnson County. ...

I have known Dennis Moore for almost 30 years, since he first served as District Attorney for Johnson County, later as a Trustee of the Johnson County Community College, and then as a U.S. Congressman, elected in 1998. He has been a part of this community for a lifetime. He knows the needs of Johnson County. He knows his constituency. And he cares deeply about the people he represents.

Meanwhile, Kris gets lucky...

I have nothing to say about Kris Kobach, however. My parents always told me if I didn't have anything nice to say about someone, it is better to say nothing at all.

Also in today's news, Brad Cooper of The Kansas City Star has an article about Moore's voting record, which the headline says "defies easy labeling."

You mean he isn't a radical left-wing ultra-liberal like Kris Kobach says?

An analysis using Votetracker.com, a for-profit nonpartisan database service, shows that Moore has voted with the president about 52 percent of the time during the 108th Congress in 2003-04. During the 107th Congress, Moore voted with the president about 48 percent of the time.

Apparently not.