Davids dilemma
The response to the State of the Union was somewhat unusual this year.
Alongside the typical rebuttal from the opposition party (this year it was the governor of Iowa), progressive Democrats decided to do their own response to President Joe Biden’s address, prompting criticism from some moderate members of the caucus.
Kansas Rep. Sharice Davids stuck to the standard congressional response: she sent out a statement.
In it, she talked about her desire for the nation to come together to appreciate the policies Congress passed last year. She expressed hope they’d pass new measures to address inflation, fix supply chains and lower costs for every day expenses.
“I appreciated the President’s attention to those issues tonight, and I will hold him accountable to his words,” Davids said, not mentioning him by name. “We need clear and consistent leadership to tackle the concerns that I am hearing from Kansans and build on bipartisan successes like the infrastructure law and our work to bring down health care costs. I stand ready to work with anyone who shares that goal.”
It’s the kind of anodyne quote Davids typically puts out — she is by no means listed among the flashier politicians in Congress — but it’s also a sign of the challenges she faces in getting reelected to a third term in the House of Representatives.
It is safe to say that things are not going well for the Democrats right now. There is a war in Ukraine, inflation and supply chain shortages that are driving up costs for the average American. While there has been an easing on COVID-19 restrictions, the pandemic has fundamentally altered things.
In Congress, they managed to pass two big spending packages last year — an additional round of pandemic relief and a bipartisan infrastructure bill. But the infrastructure measure went through a gruesome process, tied up in the politics of a larger social spending bill. Republicans are blaming the pandemic package for contributing to inflation and fraud from the influx of money.
All of that comes on top of a general exhaustion and anger — as if the country is a lobster sitting in a pot of water as it slowly heats to a boil.
And, oh yes, Davids is being gerrymandered by Republican state legislators who want to add more Republican voters to her district while removing Democrats (their map faces multiple legal challenges).
To convince voters to send her back to Congress, Davids is leaning on her biggest advantage as an incumbent — the largesse she’s been able to get for the district. She’s held several events talking about ways the infrastructure money will benefit Kansans. She’s touted a new law to prevent surprise medical billing and has talked to business owners about a house-passed bill that would attempt to boost domestic manufacturing and ease supply chain issues.
In the meantime, she appears to be distancing herself from Biden, who remains unpopular. While he visited the area as recently as December, Davids statement about being willing to work “with anyone who shares” her goals isn’t exactly a warm embrace of the leader of the Democratic Party.
Still, Davids’ most likely challenger in the general election has been pretty quiet. Former Cerner executive Amanda Adkins, who lost to Davids by 10 points in 2020, put out a statement after the State of the Union criticizing Biden, but has largely left Davids untouched. She hasn’t aired attack ads (yet) or come on particularly strong criticizing the job Davids is doing.
That’s mostly been up to the National Republican Congressional Committee, which churns out emails like “Bye, Bye Taco Tuesdays” and “No one is buying Sharice’s excuse” where they try to tether Davids to Biden and more progressive Democrats like Pramila Jayapal. (The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee does the same thing. One recent email tried to tie Adkins to Florida Sen. Rick Scott’s proposed agenda that included potential tax hikes if Republicans take the Senate in 2022.)
Election Day is still a little more than eight months away and the district lines aren’t even set yet.
But for Davids, the goal appears to be staying out of the political fray, showing off the money she’s been able to secure for the district and touting the bills Democrats have passed that might help people — all while keeping a safe social distance from what’s his name in the White House.
More from Missouri:
A struggle over how much Kansas City should have to spend on police is coming to a head in the Missouri General Assembly. The Missouri Senate this week approved a bill that would force Kansas City to spend 25% of its general revenue on the KCPD, up from the current 20%. Opponents of the legislation say state lawmakers are micromanaging how the city spends its dollars.
Here are headlines from across the state:
Struggle over police funding coming to a head in General Assembly, Jonathan Shorman and Anna Spoerre
- Clay county residents wanted an audit of their government. The final report shows why, Luke Nozicka and Kevin Hardy
- Parson picks a new state health chief after last one was torpedoed in Senate, Jonathan Shorman
MO GOP rejects lawmaker’s re-elect paperwork because she’s facing federal charges, Galen Bacharier, Springfield News-Leader
Filibusters and overalls: Inside the Missouri Senate’s dysfunction, Jonathan Shorman and Jeanne Kuang
And across Kansas:
Conspiracies surrounding the 2020 presidential election continue to circulate. Jon and Katie took a look at several claims of misconduct around Johnson County’s balloting and found that they contain partial and out-of-context information in order to paint a sinister picture.
Claims of Johnson County election fraud based on partial, out-of-context information, Jonathan Shorman and Katie Bernard
- Kansas highway patrol officer pulled a gun on state Rep. Aaron Coleman, Katie Bernard
- Former Kansas Attorney General subpoenaed by January 6 committee, Jonathan Shorman
The Kansas Department of Health stopped airing PSAs asking people to get vaccinated, Katie Bernard
- A coalition of Kansas Republicans endorses Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly for reelection, Katie Bernard
The latest from Kansas City:
In Kansas City....
Here’s where 54 traffic changes are happening in Kansas City, Katie Moore
- A man who forced a plane to land in Kansas City now faces charges of assault, Aaron Torres
- These are the 13 deadliest intersections in the Kansas City area, Robert A. Cronkleton and Bill Lukitsch
Have a news tip? Send it along to ddesrochers@mcclatchydc.com.
Odds and ends
The price of oil
In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, an energy debate has broken out in the U.S. Senate. Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley has argued that the war is a good reason for President Joe Biden to reverse some of his administration’s environmental protection regulations in favor of boosting domestic energy production. On Thursday, he introduced a bill to do that on the Senate floor, paraphrasing former U.S. Sen. John McCain by saying “Russia isn’t so much a country as it is a gas station.”
Republicans have long argued for an increase in U.S. energy production — their mantra in the 2008 presidential campaign was “drill, baby, drill.” But Delaware Sen. Tom Carper, a Democrat, called Hawley’s push for increased domestic energy production “a false choice,” saying that even with increased domestic production, prices would still be affected by global oil and gas markets. Others have used Russia’s standing as an oil and gas exporter to call for the opposite of what Hawley wants — boosted production of renewable energy as a way to wean the country off of its dependence on fossil fuels.
While Hawley’s bill faced objections from Democrats, there may be bipartisan momentum for a proposal by Kansas Sens. Roger Marshall and Jerry Moran to prevent the U.S. from buying any more Russian gas and oil. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday said she would be open to the idea, even though Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer expressed reluctance.
Meanwhile, gas is up nearly 20¢ from last week, according to AAA.
You say you want a resolution
Marshall was able to win two partial victories this week, when attendance issues among Democrats allowed him to pass two resolutions through the Senate. On Wednesday, it was a measure that would block the Biden administration from enforcing a rule that requires healthcare providers to mandate vaccines for employees and volunteers.
On Thursday he called for an end to the national state of emergency for COVID-19, declared by former President Donald Trump in March 2020. For his floor speech on the first resolution he wrapped a stethoscope around his neck. For the second, he suggested Biden take off his kingly robes and equated his call to end the COVID-19 emergency to Moses asking the Egyptian pharaoh to “let our people go.”
Both resolutions need to pass the House of Representatives in order to actually take effect, an unlikely prospect given Democratic control of the chamber. Still, the two resolutions serve as symbolic victories in Marshall’s crusade against COVID-19 regulations.
The price of conspiracy
Kansas state Sen. Mark Steffen held an event this week in Lenexa where he brought in like-minded physicians to talk about off-label treatments for COVID-19. (He is under investigation by the Kansas Board of Healing Arts for, he says, statements promoting such treatments.)
How much did it cost to attend Steffen’s talk, you ask? $35. Though if you take a trip to the Kansas legislature you can probably catch him for free.
Trump-stakes
The Trump-stakes continue in the Missouri GOP senate primary. Hartzler said Trump called her last week to talk about the election. Trump’s PAC sent out a link to an op-ed Greitens wrote in September. Schmitt’s hosting a fundraiser at Mar-A-Lago next week.
Happy Friday
Here’s a long read about a man who made the wrong friend at the wrong time. Have a classic gin and tonic this weekend. Here’s a song by The Secret Sisters for the road.
Enjoy your weekend.
Looking for more?
Think this newsletter is missing something? Think I’m fabulous? Think I’m a moron? Send your reactions to ddesrochers@mcclatchydc.com.
For more politics news, follow @KatieJ_Bernard, @drdesrochers, @jonshorman and @Cortlynn_Stark.
Support local journalists with a subscription.
Did someone forward this newsletter to you? You can sign-up here. If you’d prefer to unsubscribe from this newsletter, you can do so at any time using the “Unsubscribe” link at the bottom of this message.
This story was originally published March 3, 2022 at 10:59 PM.