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May 8, 2008
Speakers:
Senator Nick Jordan, Candidate for Congress from the 3rd District
Steve Howe, JD, Candidate for JoCo District Attorney
Guests:
Ken Smith, Candidate for Johnson County Sheriff
Representative Ben Hodge-Confirmed his resignation as Representative
from District 49. His future plans were not complete at this time.
Key Points from Nick Jordan:
This
is a critical election. We need to make Congress accountable for their
actions as well as their inaction. The general feeling in the country
is negative towards Congress and for the first time in a long time
voters see their Congressman as part of the problem. Voters are looking
for new ideas and vision.
Nick’s background is in tourism and hospitality. He was a founding member of the Overland Park Convention and Visitors Bureau. Nick has been in the Kansas Senate for 12 years. He has a proven record of being Pro-Life, fiscally responsible and has earned taxpayer advocacy awards. Nick co-authored the Kansas Economic Growth Act that created the Kansas Bioscience Initiative and the Kansas Entrepreneurship Initiative to bring more business and jobs to Kansas.
Dennis Moore votes 97% of the time with Nancy Pelosi. He was one of the architects in the $600+ billion budget and will raise taxes to pay for it. He will also vote to roll back the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts, resurrect the death tax and roll back the marriage tax break. He blocked the approval of FISA that supports counter-terrorism surveillance. He voted against the moratorium on earmarks.
Jordan’s campaign beat Moore in net fundraising in the first quarter of 2008. Nick has received attention from Republican lawmakers in Washington. Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) came in August of 2007 for a fundraising event and President Bush is coming for a fundraising event on May 29th. Jordan also has the financial backing of 40 members of Congress. Jordan has support from the entire spectrum of Republican leadership and voters. The Jordan campaign staff includes Dustin Olson and Katie McBreen. They are focusing on voter ID and micro-targeting that can benefit all Republicans in the district.
Q&A:
Key Points from Steve Howe:
Steve went to law school at
Washburn. He has 18 years experience as an attorney. He worked as a
prosecutor in the JoCo DA’s office for 15 years. He has prosecuted over
90 jury trials while at the JoCo DA’s office. In addition to his duties
in court he has always been active in the community at large, i.e.
giving speeches, drafting legislation/amendments, specifically around
elder abuse and disaster ordinances. He believes that it is the duty of
the District Attorney to prevent crime as well as prosecute the
offenders. Unlike his opponent and previous DAs, Steve is a Republican
through and through and would never consider switching parties.
Steve’s campaign has garnered broad support across Republican leadership and voters. This support includes both US Senators, local legislators, 4 mayors and 3 county commissioners. Steve has solid relationships with cities, the county and law enforcement.
Key points of the campaign: 1) public safety, 2) professionalism, 3) public trust – the right decisions for the right reasons.
Q&A:
- Morrison Affair: No, he didn’t know about it; worked on a different floor and was swamped with work; doesn’t engage in office gossip.
- Law vs. Justice: Justice
- Prosecution: Follows the evidence, works with the crime lab and law enforcement to build a case based on evidence.
- Lawsuit against DA Kline: He and others were let go with the turnover of the new administration. All he wants is a letter that says he was let go “without cause” meaning that he was not fired because he wasn’t able to do his job. It is important because it is a negative on his reputation and impacts his ability to register for the bar in other states.
- Planned Parenthood case: Yes, as there is evidence ruled by a judge, he would continue to prosecute the case. He does not feel a special prosecutor is needed as the office of the Johnson County District Attorney can handle the job.