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For those of you watching television in the Topeka media market this morning you've probably already seen it, but Jim Ryun's newest campaign commercial takes credit for keeping Kansas military bases from being closed during the last round of the Base Re-Alignment and Closure program (BRAC).Here's the ad:

Bottom line, the lame-duck Congress didn't pass a fiscal 2007 budget last fall. Instead, the 109th Congress approved a continuing resolution, financing the Base Realignment and Closure Commission at 2006 levelsbut eliminating money for projects at both Fort Riley and Fort Leavenworth.

By late January, with the second continuing resolution on the verge of expiring, the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives passed another resolution that actually raised BRAC funding by $1 billion.

Honest-to-goodness, it's music to our ears:

A GOP House leadership aide told the Politico last week that "if we don't win in Mississippi, I think you are going to see a lot of people running around here looking for windows to jump out of."

A third loss in Tuesday's 1st District special election would prompt new predictions of electoral doom in November, hurt the party's already flagging morale and usher in a new round of public finger-pointing among an already fractured GOP. Politico.com

After another report from General David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker before Congress, Congresswoman Nancy Boyda's public statements seem to be very similar to the statements she made after their last update.

"When it comes to Iraq, I think everyone is rejoicing that we have increased stability," Boyda said. "The question is, what does that mean to our strategic readiness? What does it mean to our ability to defend our homeland?"

Boyda said military leaders were also increasingly concerned with the situation in Afghanistan. About 10 months ago, a National Intelligence Estimate reported that al-Qaida had regained its pre-9/11 strength in the border regions of Afghanistan and Pakistan.

"When we ask why we aren't addressing that more, we are told that Iraq is our number one priority," Boyda said. "But why and when did Iraq become the number one priority? It wasn't the number one priority on Sept. 12-13."

Boyda said she wasn't in favor of a large withdrawal, rather a slow and steady progression that would allow the U.S. to reset its military readiness. Boyda cited a quote from General George Casey, Army chief of staff, who said there was an "invisible red line" that would indicate the current operations can no longer be sustained.

Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said April 2, "I think we're close to (the red line) now."

"While everyone rejoices in some stability in the region, the questions are two-fold," Boyda said. "One, will we be able to stay and hold on to that stability and two, at what cost could we do it? It's clearly having an affect on readiness moving forward.

"We're on uncharted ground," Boyda said. "There's no doubt in my mind that if we had another 9/11-type incident, we would be able to have an overwhelming and immediate response. The Air Force and Navy are ready (to respond quickly). The problem is sustaining that response. That's what we're hearing from senior military leadership."

"We are in a volatile, dangerous situation," Boyda said. "The American people are waking up to the fact that having all our eggs in Iraq is not keeping us safer."

We kind of thought he was just being tongue-in-cheek yesterday on the Raubin & Megan radio show when Jim Ryun said the stimulus package passed by Congress should have been increased by ten fold.We thought it was sarcasm, because how in the world could a self-described "fiscal conservative" advocate for a $12,000 payout to every single American taxpayer? How could a self-described "fiscal conservative" advocate a $1.5 TRILLION jump in the deficit?He wasn't being tongue-in-cheek and he wasn't being sarcastic, because former Congressman Jim Ryun just said again, this time on the Jim Cates Show on KMAJ 1440, that he wishes the Congress would have passed a stimulus package that would have given American taxpayers a $12,000 check.Here's the exact quote from yesterday:

Ryun: Let me just say this- if the amount of money coming back, lets say to the to the typical average family, if $1,200 was good, why not $12,000? You know, let's really stimulate the economy and make it go forward.

On Friday, Congresswoman Nancy Boyda did something courageous. She did something brave. She did something historic.And she did what was right.On Friday, Congresswoman Nancy Boyda voted for an update of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillances Act, or FISA. She voted, in every procedural motion, to send the House version of the bill- the version without retroactive immunity for the phone companies- to the floor for a vote. It's exactly the way she voted in August, too.Through it all, her position stayed the same. In newspapers up and down the district she laid out her case:In her own Op-Ed that ran in the Ottawa Herald she said:

To my mind, "wiretap first, get permission later" makes perfect sense. It gives the executive branch the power it needs to fight terrorism, and at the same time, it preserves the checks and balances our Constitution guarantees. It ensures that the U.S. intelligence community has every tool it needs to fight terrorists. And, by providing judicial oversight, it ensures the privacy of Americans who travel overseas for business or pleasure. It is simply wrong to wiretap Americans without a warrant.Very unfortunately, the president has drawn a line in the sand. He has sworn to veto any FISA bill that includes court oversight. Instead, he wants the executive branch to oversee itself; he wants all FISA programs to fall under the jurisdiction of the Attorney General and the Director of National Intelligence.That is a flagrant violation of checks and balances, and what's more, it won't help America fight terrorism more effectively. The FISA court is extremely generous with its warrants. Through 2004, the court had granted 18,761 wiretap requests. It had rejected only five.

"I am adamant about protecting the Constitution. They're giving nothing in return for it. We're not getting any more security and they're shredding the Constitution," said U.S. Rep. Nancy Boyda, D-Second Dist.[...]"What shocks me is how members of Congress from Kansas would so readily give up 230 years of our Constitution without gaining any additional security," Boyda said.

"The foundation of our democracy : is at stake in the House of Representatives," she said. She said Bush's attempts to stifle inquiries into wiretapping and the role of telecom companies was "a massive cover-up : because he doesn't want you to know that the Constitution has been shredded and he doesn't want you to know how long" wiretapping has been happening.

Congresswoman Nancy Boyda announced yesterday she had signed a pledge to not conduct robocalls of her constituents who have signed the new National Political Do Not Contact (NPDNC) registry at StopPoliticalCalls.org during the 2008 campaign season.

"The foundation of our democracy is the belief that voters should be in control," Boyda said. "Voters should be able to choose not to receive political 'robo' calls."

"We are extremely pleased that Representative Boyda has agreed not to robocall constituents that sign up on the National Political Do Not Contact Registry," said Shaun Dakin, founder and CEO. "She has taken the first decisive step in what I believe to be the crucial effort of giving voters back their privacy and peace and quiet in their own homes. Her constituents are fortunate to have her fighting for this cause in Washington."

Our newest "fancy" YouTube vid:

In a story this blog broke weeks ago, the Kansas City Star has finally reported on State Treasurer Lynn Jenkins and her unethical ties to a firm running TV ads in Kansas featuring her smiling face.The ads, paid for by a company called American Century, tout the college savings program "Learning Quest" which is administered through Lynn's office. While none of us are convinced Jenkins actually has anything to do with the program's operation in Kansas, we will say it's important, and we're happy Kansas families have access to it.With that said, the TV ads are nothing more than campaign spots.Ah, but splashing her face all over her district isn't the only thing American Century has done for Lynn Jenkins:

American Century's then-CEO also donated to Jenkins' campaign to be re-elected treasurer shortly before Jenkins extended the company's contract in 2006. A lobbyist for American Century has contributed to Jenkins' congressional campaign and her state treasurer bids. [Emphasis ours].

"It raises serious ethical questions of outside corporate interests in a federal election," said Kyle Robertson, the campaign manager for Jenkins' GOP primary opponent, former U.S. Rep. Jim Ryun.

Understand how much it pains us to say this, but Robertson is right. This is blatantly unethical, and a outright violation of the spirit of every campaign finance reform law passed in the last decade.