Welcome to the Kansas reflector. I'm Reporter Tim carpenter. And our special guest today is Governor Laura Kelly. She requires little introduction. But here are a few nuts and bolts. She's a Democrat, she campaigns as a centrist. She's a former senator from Topeka, and was elected governor in 2018, and reelected in 2022. Thanks for being here, Governor.
I'm delighted to be here.
So I want to start by asking about your effort to launch a political action committee. And I presume it's designed to elect more moderate candidates, people perhaps like yourself,
it's exactly what it's designed to do. We're calling it matter of fact, middle of the road pack. And it is a bipartisan effort to elect moderates, to both the House and the Senate, here in Topeka.
And so just to explain to people, why is this necessary, do you feel?
Well, you know, I've been in office now for for nearly four years, or five years, and we've been able to get some amazing things done, you know, we were able to fully fund our schools, we've been able to put together a bipartisan, long range transportation plan, we've been able to build our economy, record breaking speed, been able to do a lot of good things. But there also been some things that we've not been able to get done in probably most prominently Medicaid expansion. And the reason we haven't been able to get that done is because we have not been able to break through the supermajority or the leadership in the Kansas house in the Kansas Senate. So in order to continue to push forward policies that I believe most Kansans agree with, I think anywhere between 70 to 80% of people want Medicaid expansion, it's going to be absolutely necessary for us to break that super majority in the House and the Senate, and send a very loud message to leadership, that they need to give their caucuses an opportunity to vote for medication management.
Could you envision endorsing Democrats as well as Republicans?
Oh, we'll be doing both? Yes. I mean, we really are focused on moderate so many of you. You might even remember, when I did come into the state senate, there were a number of moderate Republicans and I worked very closely with the moderate Republicans to get a lot of good things done, and we need to be able to get back to that kind of operation within a state legislature. Right now we've got a state legislature that really does not reflect the vast majority of Kansans values, and we need to ensure that it does.
On that point, I can see polling done by Fort Hays, that would suggest as much that the legislature is out of step with general Kansas, but you could also see that in the constitutional amendment vote where the legislature by two thirds majority put that amendment on the ballot, and by a landslide margin, Kansas voters rejected it.
They didn't I mean, it was nearly 60%. And what's even more remarkable of that is that that was on the primary ballot, you know, a primary ballot in Kansas is usually nobody goes to vote in primaries, except for usually the rather conservative wing of the Republican Party. Democrats generally don't vote in primaries, because they often don't have any primary elections and independents can't vote, because they're not affiliated with a party. So I think the fact that not only the fact that it was 59%, Kansans, but the fact that it was 59% of Kansas during primaries rose, astounding.
Well, while I mentioned brought it up the constitutional amendment vote, there was a there was a decent representation of youth voting in that August primary on abortion rights. And I think there was a dip in the number of people 18 to 29, that then subsequently voted in in the November general election. Do you have ideas about how to draw more youth voters in because I certainly think they may be underrepresented in the in the voting population?
Well, I think the groups, the advocacy groups for the vote no. On the constitutional amendment, were extraordinarily good at both messaging so that young people understood the issue and how much it would impact them, that they were able to drive out the youth vote. I think we need to take that same idea and turn it around during general elections in particularly as you're going into 2024. I think we Need to learn from what happened with that constitutional amendment and put it into practice.
And this ties back to the formation of the state political action committee. And youth vote the issues that might be that youth might be drawn to could include abortion, but LGBTQ rights, education taxes, there's just different things that the youth vote could be excited about maybe if they were informed in the right manner.
Yeah. And I think I think you're right, Tim, there are a lot of issues that are of great importance to the younger generation. And I think it's just imperative that we work with our candidates to ensure that they are talking to those younger voters, and really making it clear to them why there's so much at stake for them and why they need to come out when
I'm sorry to interrupt it. One final thing about the PAC, you wouldn't be breaking new ground. I don't think I think other governors have had PACs Correct.
I haven't really looked into it, but I'm sure that they have. Yes,
I think they did believe Kathleen Sebelius had one. But But yeah. Interesting. All right. So we're now about a hodgepodge of issues, if you don't mind. You spent a lot of your time highlighting economic development in Kansas. And I'm wondering if you're apprehensive about some of the members of the legislature, thinking about withdrawing perhaps, and administration's power to hand out these incentives? You know, Panasonic, a big major project in eastern Kansas, there's hundreds of millions of dollars in in Kansas incentives there along with the federal. So do you think a governor is more nimble in terms of dealing with these kinds of incentives in terms of the open marketplace like that? Or do you think more legislative insight would be useful?
Well, remember, Tim, that the way that we were able to attract Panasonic was that we did get bipartisan support in the legislature for the apex bill, which allowed us to pursue two of these mega projects, projects that would bring in more than a billion dollars in capital investment, Panasonic was 4 billion. So we have used that up. And we did go back to the legislature last session, to have them take a look at something like the apex bill with some tweaking, but that would allow us to continue to pursue some projects that would never consider Kansas otherwise. We were not able to get that through. But we will continue down that path. I think as we experience so much economic development success, we're getting recognized, you know, with award after award from national groups, I think more and more legislators are coming on board and understanding that you've got to be nimble, you got to be quick, if you're if you're going to compete in this very competitive world. So we will continue to work with them. I think a lot of it is just education. And and then results, giving them the reassurance that they're not being taken for a ride.
Right. Well, let's talk about some of your new colleagues that you brought into the administration. There's a new superintendent of the Kansas Highway Patrol, Eric Smith, brought in from the federal government. And so I believe the DEA or not, he was with the Drug Enforcement Administration. Yes. And so what do you think of that hire,
I'm absolutely thrilled that we were able to attract somebody of the caliber of Eric Smith, to run our highway patrol. You know, he's he's a native Kansan, which was, was one of the reasons that he was sitting at the table interviewing this, because he was interested in coming back to Kansas, but, you know, he's got law enforcement experience right here in the Sunflower State. And I think that's important, particularly important, and he's been accepted, you know, into a role like this. You know, and then his professional experience really gives him a perspective on Law Enforcement Administration. And what works and what doesn't work in it. He understands law enforcement culture. He understands lawn enforcement values, and I think he'll be able to work with, you know, our rank and file in with our leaders within our law enforcement community, you know, both in the QHP, but then also out with the Attorney General's Office, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, I think his credentials, and his his way of operating are very attractive and very inclusive. And I think he's, he'll be well accepted and I think he'll produce some great results and
he starred in Sedgwick County law enforcement, and then kind of rose through the ranks. of the DEA. But he is a, you could call him an outsider, I presume. But somebody, you know, fresh eyes on the Kansas Highway Patrol, which might be this might be an opportune moment for that.
I think I think he's the best of both worlds. He's both a native Kansas. So an insider. But then yes, he brings some other perspective to the state. And I think that's always a way I can say, it's always great to have an outside perspective. But I think in the case of an agency, like the Highway Patrol, bringing that outside perspective, is helpful. Because there are lots of law enforcement has been under the spotlight a lot in the last decade or so, in, including here in the state of Kansas. So I think somebody who's been on the outside looking in, can see what's going on in Kansas, and but knows what's going on elsewhere, and might be able to bring some of those best practices into our state.
You've nominated Calvin Reed, who is essentially started as a bridge engineer at the Kansas Department of Transportation. And he also rose through the ranks, sir, worked a little bit of time in Wichita in the private sector, but you've nominated him to be Secretary of k dot a major job given that you're in the middle of a massive, massive highway improvement program?
Well, you know, we elevated Secretary Reed when the former Secretary LeBrons, retire or left the agency to go back into the private sector. And, you know, I think he thought we thought that that would be an interim, and we would search and we would bring in somebody else. But Calvin Reed really proved himself during that interim, that he, he was up to the job, was good at the job and was very well respected within the industry. And so it sort of became a slam dunk to just hire from within Senate
confirmation committee, there seemed to be bipartisan support for him, and a relationship that those senators felt like they had with him.
Yeah, I think I think he does have a lot of trust amongst the legislature. And that clearly is very important when you're dealing with an agency as large. And as much as steak as Kay
legislature spent a lot of time on LGBTQ issues in the 2023 session, some of it extremely controversial. And there's the Attorney General's involved in some litigation about driver's licenses and birth certificates. I wanted to more generally ask you a question about your constituents, trans people and others who are observing this wrangling that's going on in Topeka. And I imagine they're quite concerned, there will be people that are moving, for example, to a state that might be more hospitable to them and the way they live their lives. Do you have any thoughts about this big picture as as it relates on it to individuals?
Well, this is nothing new. I mean, we were talking about this issue back when I was running for governor in 2018. Because we had seen what happened in states who passed really anti LGBTQ legislation. I mean, my case in point is North Carolina, when they passed the bathroom bill. Overnight, they lost $400 million in convention business. And, you know, I don't think they've calculated how much they lost in capital investment that was on his way to North Carolina and then decided, maybe not, in fact, the impact was so bad, and so immediate, that the North Carolina legislature came back the next year and repealed that bill. So, you know, I would hope that my Kansas legislative colleagues can learn from that. And and while I know, you know, people have their own personal opinions about issues related to LGBTQ that they would look out for not only the best interests of those, the LGBTQ community, but also the best interests of Kansas. That, you know, we we have been making great strides in economic development. If we start being seen, again, as an exclusive state. That could change.
I asked you this question. I asked the Attorney General Kris Kobach, the identical question, and that is, many times in the capitol you have, particularly Republicans but also Democrats who would say that parents are the best at deciding how to educate your kids. How what kind of religious education those individuals children have as well. But there does seem to be a line here where parents no longer have the best idea for how to raise their kids and the LGBTQ issues and is an example of that. You know, gender affirmation surgery and things like this. This is an example of where the people who say, parents know best, and have now decided that legislators know best. And, and Kris Kobach did not have a great answer for it. He, I think he acknowledged there is a bit of a conflict there, ideologically. So, do you have any thoughts about how the legislature seems to be heading in two different directions?
Well, I feel about the gender affirming care. The same point I do about women's reproductive rights, that these are private medical decisions that should be made within the confines of the family and the physician.
Yeah, some conservatives want to let people take care of their own lives and make their own decisions right up until the point where they start reading from the list of ways in which they want to tell folks how to live. One final thing before we wrap up here. A large number of people join Medicaid, the KanCare program in Kansas during the COVID 19 pandemic, people who were eligible for the program were placed in it and received benefits through Medicaid. And they weren't booted from KanCare, during a pandemic, but in April, the federal government says, Okay, now we're going to apply eligibility criteria again. So the state of Kansas and everybody, every other state has been in a process of going through these, these massive lists of hundreds of 1000s of people finding out who's eligible and who isn't. And so there's been a might be a hiccup not unique to Kansas, in which 1000s of people are removed from the benefits because of procedural problems with the applications. And they're not filled out right, or they don't they lack information, I'm really not sure you know much about what's going on here and why Kansas and others might be struggling. I actually just
got a briefing yesterday, from my secretary health environment, and my deputy director for Medicaid. So pretty good idea about what's going on, a lot of what you've read, in reports has been a bit exaggerated. It's not nearly the extent that has been reported. But you know, there are people who are being sort of knocked off the Medicaid rolls. So some because they just no longer meet the criteria, the criteria was a little more flexible during the pandemic, that that flexibility is gone. So those folks are no longer eligible. If we would expand Medicaid, they might be eligible again, so throw that in. But and then there are those who are getting knocked off for procedural reasons. When we realize there was a problem with the post office, not getting notices to folks in a timely manner, we did extend the window that they had to return the materials. But even with all of that, even with all of the work that the agency has been doing with, you know, our community mental health centers, or safety net clinics, you know, and other advocacy groups across the state, inevitably, there will be people who will not get the materials back in at all. And they we have no choice in that case, but to take them off the rolls. So some
people who might otherwise be eligible are going to be excluded under this. I just wonder if some of the some people that are responsible for applying for this find the process bewildering about is bewildering as the application for unemployment benefits in Kansas and other states, you know, it's an honor, it can be an online process and so forth. So I just don't know if there's more more personnel brought to bear on this issue might benefit in terms of call centers and things like that on a temporary basis or if there are other solutions?
Yeah, we have we have addressed all of those issues, looking at those kinds of things. conversation I had yesterday with the Medicaid director was really what, what are our community partners doing? Because, you know, for things like initial enrollment in Medicaid, our community partners are vital in that, you know, they've got navigators there. So when somebody shows up at a safety net clinic and doesn't have Medicaid coverage, you know, they can help them through that process. We have also over the years tried to streamline that process a little bit. It will Is it still cumbersome, but it was ridiculously cumbersome before? So it
was I wonder if the Republicans in office, perhaps conservatives who don't really like giving away benefits like this having entitlements like this, that they make the process more complicated than it needs to be for a reason?
Well, you don't have people like that in the administration anymore. So we are doing everything that we can to ensure that people who are legitimately eligible for Medicaid coverage can get it and can keep it. We're also, you know, in the process, working with Centers for Medicaid and Medicare, we're really looking at ways at making our Medicaid program more user friendly. And we've been successful in moving it forward so that we think it will be more nimble. As we go forward. And in more comprehensive, you might know that we are will be issuing RFPs for the new KanCare contracts, which are Medicaid.
There's three providers now. Yeah, could be more
I expect there will continue to be three, just did our numbers, make it so that three is probably the number that will be when we're all said and done with the RFPs. But what will be different is what those providers we'll be actually offering. I think we'll be moving beyond just the what people will routinely think of is medical coverage into sort of coverage at for some of the more social determinants of health. We'll be looking at some, some issues like housing, you know, which transportation things that you impact somebody's health, but are not. The diagnosis,
I think definitely acknowledged problems with people receiving benefits. And unfortunately, I think we're gonna have to leave it there. Governor, I want to thank Governor Laura Kelly, for being with us today on the podcast and good luck with your packet. We're gonna have to follow that and then 2024 election cycle and see how that works out.
