Facebook comment draws fire from Kansas Democratic leaders

House Minority Leader Tom Burroughs of Kansas City, Kan., Friday called on Gov. Sam Brownback to dismiss the spokeswoman at the Kansas Department for Aging and Disabilities Services.

Burroughs said Angela de Rocha’s comment about a proposed voter registration course violated the “dignity clause” of the department’s mission statement.

“There is no room in state government for insensitive and disrespectful comments, especially when directed at one of our most vulnerable populations,” Burroughs said in a news release.

Senate Minority Leader Anthony Hensley of Topeka said earlier that de Rocha’s comment was “highly inappropriate.”

De Rocha had written a comment on Facebook poking fun at the voter registration course. The League of Women Voters is partnering with several Kansas universities to develop a lesson plan that would help college students register to vote and to help them teach others. Kansas law now requires residents to provide a proof-of-citizenship document such as a birth certificate to register to vote.

“So it take an entire semester to learn how to register to vote. Really?” de Rocha wrote. “Do we want these slow learners voting? Or is this a stealth course paid for by taxpayers to train left-wing ‘community organizers’ like the League of Women Voters on how to agitate?”

This story was originally published October 30, 2015 at 7:30 PM with the headline "Facebook comment draws fire from Kansas Democratic leaders."