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Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Male legislators in Kansas use women as political pawns and defy the will of voters
Tina Hallenbeck, of Alma, rallies at the Statehouse in Topeka as part of the 50501 national day of action on May 1, 2025. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector) Male legislators in Kansas use women as political pawns and defy the will of voters. In Kansas, the go-to move for some members of the Legislature is to ignore the will of the people and criticize, restrict or oppress the personal, legal behaviors of women. Even with their recent increase in pay, certain state House and Senate members still advocate for rushing through the session despite their own colleagues being critical of this action, or they promote bills contradictory to voters' wants and needs. In the most recent legislative session, women were used as political pawns by inexperienced legislator Sen. Patrick Schmidt, a Democrat, who gambled on women's health care rights because he viewed himself as some kind of political mastermind and champion for women. To be clear, most women do not view men who voluntarily attempt to make their lives harder as their champions. Other legislators, like Republican Rep. Pat Proctor, who recently announced his bid to oversee our state's elections, scrutinized the legal voting behavior of young women he claimed he was watching. Proctor is captured in a video Loud Light posted to Instagram stating: 'There's, like, all these, like, women, like 20- to 30-year-old women who, you know, that you never saw at the polls before.' He adds: 'They're stealing it far and square.' To be clear, it is your fundamental right to vote regardless of your gender or sex as long as you are registered appropriately, according to the laws of your state. If these women were not registered, they would not have been allowed to vote. They stole nothing. It is beyond concerning that Proctor, who also can be seen here discussing how he's chipping away at issues regarding voting rights, does not appear to respect the right to vote, particularly as for young women. These women were exercising their fundamental rights guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution. That legal activity alone does not merit the personal monitoring or the hysterical outcries of a state representative. In Kansas, women face extreme challenges that are unlikely to change without meaningful policy designed to promote the health and well-being of all women, especially women of color. The Status of Women in the States report paints a bleak picture for the women of Kansas. Research on the project's website indicates women in Kansas are not projected to see equal pay until 2074, 30% of women work in low-wage jobs, and women disproportionately experience mental health issues in comparison to their male counterparts. These numbers are even more staggering when we examine the effects on women of color. Where are the bills addressing these issues? Women endure so much, both publicly and privately, and Kansas women deserve legislators who view them as whole people, not dehumanized versions of an archetype produced by a patriarchy bent on subjugating women for their benefit. Women have held the hands of their sisters in the aftermath of rape by men who see us as objects for the taking. We have offered shelter and washed the blood off of our sisters when they've been beaten by men who claim to love them. We cook meals to nourish other women's families in times of illness or crisis. We work multiple jobs, we clean messes we didn't make, we appease, we follow orders, we submit out of fear or survival, we carry the emotional loads for our households and communities — a woman's walk is never to be understood until you walk it. The beautiful, innocent women of Kansas deserve better. Perhaps, moving forward, members of the Legislature should consider consulting with the women they are so hyper-focused on regulating in an inappropriate, terrifying way. What these legislators might find is that policies designed to burden women are unfair and unimaginable to most of the decent, good-hearted women and men Kansas is known for. That is, if legislators are truly interested in helping women. The forced positioning of women as pawns in elected officials' political games is wicked and vile. Either support us appropriately, or leave us alone. Amber Dickinson holds a Ph.D. in political science from the University of Kansas. Through its opinion section, Kansas Reflector works to amplify the voices of people who are affected by public policies or excluded from public debate. Find information, including how to submit your own commentary, here.
Yahoo
13-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Kansas Senate Democrat breaks from party to add tax credit to fetal child support bill
Sen. Patrick Schmidt at a March 12, 2025, meeting of the Senate Committee on Government Efficiency, or COGE. (Grace Hills/Kansas Reflector) TOPEKA — Republican legislation to establish child support payments for pregnancy-related costs — and, in turn, establish 'fetal personhood' — revealed tension among legislators as one Democratic senator inserted a bipartisan tax credit provision. Senate Democrats agreed that House Bill 2062, which requires courts to consider fetuses when determining child support judgments, risked providing legal precedent for treating fetuses as people. But with an amendment that expands eligibility for tax credits for families, Sen. Patrick Schmidt, D-Topeka, said he took an opportunity to make 'lemonade out of lemons,' while his Democratic colleagues disagreed. Most Republicans, initially hesitant, were in favor of Schmidt's amendment Tuesday and approved it in a preliminary vote. On the Senate floor Wednesday, before legislators took final action on the bill, Schmidt said he had 'the most pro-choice legislator' in the delegation. He ultimately voted against the bill along with the rest of the nine-member Democratic caucus. While fielding flack from Democrats and abortion rights advocates, Schmidt told Kansas Reflector he expects his amendment will either kill the bill because of it's added nuance or give families tax credits, both of which he considers a win, especially for his constituents in central Topeka. The amendment created a child tax credit for all pregnant parents, not just those involved in child support judgments. Parents would be allowed to claim 'an unborn child' on their tax returns, and a taxpayer identification number would be assigned to a fetus. 'It's a bad bill, with or without an amendment,' Schmidt said. Melissa Stiehler, a spokesperson with Loud Light Civic Action, said Schmidt made 'serious mistakes' in declining to consult fellow Democrats, advocates and policy experts before proposing the amendment. 'It is pretty disappointing to hear Senator Schmidt declare himself the most 'pro-choice lawmaker' while simultaneously adding the most anti-abortion language I've ever seen a democratic lawmaker intentionally amend into a bill,' she wrote in a statement. Stiehler called the amendment 'bad economic policy,' claiming Schmidt's proposal was a regressive flat tax. She said it was 'bad constitutional policy' because it added a new subject to the bill. She said he utilized 'bad political strategy' in trying to alter the bill without consulting experienced lawmakers and playing into anti-abortion efforts. 'He just gave it to them without a fight and now with bipartisan support,' she said. Schmidt stuck by his strategy. If Democrats want to stop legislation they disagree with, they have to try something new, said Schmidt, who is serving his first year in the Legislature. 'The same tactics are not going to work in perpetuity,' he said. 'They haven't been working.' Senate Minority Leader Dinah Sykes, D-Lenexa, in an explanation of her 'no' vote Wednesday, said the bill was disguised as a child support bill but was 'far more insidious.' 'This bill grants legal recognition to a fetus as a separate person, even providing a state tax ID number, which would have sweeping consequences beyond financial support,' Sykes said. Instead of helping women, the bill makes reproductive rights vulnerable to attack, she said. The bill passed the Senate in a 30-9 vote, with all Democrats voting against it. It passed the House in February in an 85-34 vote, but House and Senate negotiators would have to work out differences in their versions of the bill before sending it to the governor. Anti-abortion organizations were the architects and primary proponents of the legislation during the bill's hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee. The committee's chair, Sen. Kellie Warren, R-Leawood, said Tuesday on the Senate floor that the bill wouldn't change anything about how paternity is assessed or who is required to pay child support. 'It just adds it to the list of the other nine factors that a court shall consider when considering an order of child support,' Warren said. Sen. Cindy Holscher, D-Overland Park, proposed an amendment to remove large portions of the bill's text. Expanding child support obligations establishes 'legal personhood' for fetuses, she said. 'That move is a foundational step to restricting access to forms of reproductive health care,' Holscher said. Her amendment failed.
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Freshman Kansas senator ‘trying to stop bad stuff' while pressing for property tax relief
Freshman Sen. Patrick Schmidt, a Topeka Democrat, appears at a Feb. 28, 2025, recording of the Kansas Reflector podcast to talk about his desire for property tax relief, legislative priorities, and the condensed schedule for this year's session. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector) TOPEKA — The way freshman Sen. Patrick Schmidt sees it, a shorter legislative session isn't necessarily a bad thing. Republican legislative leaders condensed the schedule this year to complete work by the end of March, then come back for just a couple of days in the middle of April to consider any vetoes by Gov. Laura Kelly and make last-minute budget adjustments. That's a significant departure from the schedule most years, where the session bleeds into April and lawmakers return around the start of May for another week or two of action. But Schmidt, a Topeka Democrat, said the shortened timeline for passing bills could work in Democrats' favor. As he put it during a recording of the Kansas Reflector podcast: 'We're trying to stop bad stuff.' 'It might not be the worst thing if we can run out the clock on some of these extremist ideas that they are always presenting,' Schmidt said. Schmidt's journey to the Statehouse was preceded by his time as a U.S. Navy intelligence officer. He said he 'spent a lot of time sailing in circles in the South China Sea,' and served with special forces in Bahrain before going to work in the Pentagon. But after he witnessed the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection while living across from the U.S. Capitol, he was motivated to enter the political arena. 'I was close enough to smell the tear gas and bear spray and to see the people violently assaulting law enforcement officers,' Schmidt said. 'And I'm really saddened, especially by what we saw last month at the pardons of people that violently attacked law enforcement officers. And I think that it's a sad day. I think it's a dangerous day for the country.' Schmidt ran for a U.S. House seat in 2022, when he lost to an incumbent Republican, then in 2024 won an open 19th District seat that stretches from East Topeka to northwest Lawrence. The district shouldn't even exist, Schmidt said. He blames GOP gerrymandering for a disconnect between the priorities of legislators and the needs of Kansans who are hurting. Republicans last fall expanded their supermajority ranks to 31 seats in the 40-member Senate. 'Moses did not come down from the mountain with 40 Senate districts in Kansas drawn exactly so to ensure only nine Democrats and 31 Republicans,' Schmidt said. 'These are wholly artificial creations that I think really distort democracy in this state.' Schmidt said he is disappointed that lawmakers haven't given more attention to providing property tax relief to homeowners, as voters urged them to do last fall. Since the session began in January, Schmidt said, he has heard from people on fixed incomes who are 'crying to me' about the possibility of being driven from their home. He was dismayed that the first vote in the Senate this year was for legislation that would eliminate property taxes for private jets and yachts. Senate Bill 10 passed 37-3. And the only bill the Legislature has passed into law so far, Senate Bill 63, bans gender-affirming care for minors. Another bill that passed the Senate would allow educators to misgender trans kids. Schmidt said Senate Bill 76 equates to 'legalized bullying' of kids who are already struggling with suicidal thoughts. He wondered: 'Is passing these bills worth one more suicide in Kansas?' Also: 'Why are we spending time on this instead of giving Kansans a solution for property taxes?' Schmidt broke from party ranks to support Senate Concurrent Resolution 1603, which would ask voters to consider a constitutional amendment that limits taxable property valuations from increasing by more than 3% annually. An amendment made the adjustment retroactive to 2022, which means some people could actually see an immediate decrease in taxes. The legislation requires two-thirds support in both the Senate and House before it would be placed on the November 2025 ballot. Schmidt was one of two Democrats who voted in favor of the resolution when the Senate passed it 28-11 on Feb. 6. So far, the House has shown no interest in the idea. 'I've spoken with my Democratic colleagues, I've spoken with the governor, I've spoken with my Republican colleagues, and they didn't all agree with me,' Schmidt said. 'But I'm very confident that when it comes to best outcomes for the 19th, and I think best outcomes for the state, the people want to vote on this. And I think if they want to vote on it, if they want to vote themselves to lower their property taxes, we need to give them that opportunity and trust the voters.' His hope is that lawmakers return their focus to property taxes before the clock expires on the condensed legislative session. 'I would love to see real property tax relief for Kansans,' Schmidt said. 'I think that would help the most people all across, you know, regardless of location or socio-economic status. That would help the most people. 'But we need to be having serious conversations about why our population is not growing and why so many people struggle to see their future here. And you know, again, I think it gets back to these issues where we have a pretty good understanding of what people want, and the Legislature owes it to them to start delivering.'
