MADSON, Wis. (AP) – Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker says embattled Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens should step down if allegations he blackmailed a woman are accurate.
Greitens is scheduled to stand trial next month on a felony invasion-of-privacy charge related to the woman’s claim that he took a photo of her partially nude body and threatened to make it public if she disclosed their relationship. The woman has said Greitens slapped, shoved and threatened her during sexual encounters in 2015.
Greitens has repeatedly denied being violent and says the affair was consensual. Legislators are weighing whether to impeach him.
Walker campaigned for Greitens in 2016. Walker told reporters Monday that he doesn’t know how someone can continue serving as governor if the allegations are true, saying it would be difficult if not impossible to govern.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — The Wyandotte County District Attorney’s Office says it will not file charges against a member of the Kansas Board of Regents who was arrested in a domestic battery case.
Brandau-Murguia -photo Wyandotte Co.
A spokesman for District Attorney Mark Dupree says an investigation into allegations against Ann Brandau-Murguia resulted in the decision not to charge her. Brandau-Murguia is also a member of the Unified Government in Wyandotte County and the University of Missouri-Kansas City Board of Trustees.
She was arrested Feb. 16 on suspicion of domestic battery. She said at the time that the dispute happened after a confrontation between her and a long-time friend resulted in an argument and physical contact.
Her attorneys, Robin Fowler and Tricia Bath, said Monday Brandau-Murguia would not comment further on the issue.
Vehicle blocking U.S. Route 36 ramps at Route 759. Photo by Austin Diggs.
(UPDATE 5:03 p.m.) After several hours and the efforts of several partner agencies, all ramps at U.S. Route 36 and Route 759 are now open.
According to MoDOT, a commercial vehicle is now clear from where it became stuck on the ramps around noon. Special equipment was brought in to help remove the commercial vehicle. The situation closed both the on and off ramps between Route 759 and eastbound U.S. Route 36.
Crews from the Missouri Department of Transportation and the Missouri State Highway Patrol worked to clear the vehicle.
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ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – A commercial vehicle is stuck on the ramp from eastbound U.S. Route 36 to Route 759.
According to the Missouri Department of Transportation, special equipment is being brought in to help remove the commercial vehicle, but the ramp could be closed for several hours until the vehicle can be freed. The ramp from Route 759 to eastbound U.S. Route 36 is also closed to accommodate the removal equipment and emergency personnel.
MoDOT crews are assisting the Missouri State Highway Patrol at the scene.
Until the ramps reopen, motorists must find an alternate route.
Being the incumbent may give Jeff Colyer a leg up in the Republican race for governor, but it also makes him a target.
Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, left, faced off in a Republican governor candidate’s forum with Gov. Jeff Colyer, above, and Ken Selzer, the state insurance commissioner. SCREENGRAB / KANSAS REPUBLICAN PARTY FACEBOOK PAGE
His chief rivals, Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach and Insurance Commissioner Ken Selzer, used a forum sponsored by the Kansas Republican Party In Atchison to characterize Colyer as a poor manager and weak leader on conservative causes.
“We need a governor who is going to seize the conservative flag and march into battle with it,” Kobach said in the Friday night event.
Kobach continued to call himself a “full-throttled”conservative and criticized Colyer for supporting a school funding bill backed mainly by moderate Republicans and Democrats.
“That $500 million bill should not have been passed and should not be signed,” Kobach said, insisting it can’t be funded without a tax increase.
“That bill is a house of cards,” he said.
Colyer hailed the bill as a good compromise. He said it increased the state’s investment in education while holding schools more accountable for improving student performance.
“I am proudly going to sign a bill that puts more money into the classroom and actually makes sure that we have outcomes,” Colyer said.
If elected, Kobach said, he would assign every Kansas school a grade based on student performance. Students attending failing schools would receive state vouchers so they could transfer to the public or private school of their choice, he said.
All three candidates expressed support for a proposed constitutional amendment that would remove the Kansas Supreme Court from the funding debate.
Kobach said it’s time that lawmakers and the executive branch “stop getting rolled” by the Supreme Court.
The school funding debate has spanned the terms of 10 governors, Colyer said, and “it’s my goal to be the last governor under this litigation.”
But heading into the final week of the legislative session, the amendment appears a longshot to pass. Two-thirds of House and Senate members would have to vote to place it on the November ballot.
Colyer attempted to shore up his conservative credentials by referring several times to his stint as a White House fellow during the Reagan administration.
“I learned about good Republican leadership from Ronald Reagan,” he said in his opening statement.
He also addressed an abortion case pending before the Kansas Supreme Court that could decide whether the right to an abortion is protected by the state’s constitution.
“Does anybody in this room believe that the 1859 Kansas Constitution had a right to a ‘dismemberment abortion?’”Colyer asked, prompting a chorus of “no” from many in the audience.
“I will only select judges to the Kansas Supreme Court who will interpret the Kansas Constitution as written,” he said.
Colyer, a physician, said the privatization of Medicaid that he led as former Gov. Sam Brownback’s lieutenant governor has substantially reduced costs while producing better health outcomes.
Selzer said the rocky transition to managed care shouldn’t be touted as a success story.
“We implemented a new Medicaid program and we didn’t manage it,” Selzer said.
That KanCare program has draw frequent complaints from both providers and Medicaid patients about increased red tape and reduced services.
Selzer, a certified public accountant, said he would use his business background to improve the efficiency of state government. He said years of mismanagement have resulted in a lack of innovation and investment across state government, from education to economic development and infrastructure.
“This state has been poorly managed,” he said. “We’re going to fix it all.”
Jim Barnett, a former state senator, was not included in the GOP-run event because he refused to sign party debate rules. That unwillingness to promise no attacks on the opposition also kept him out of a Wichita debate in February.
Jim McLean is managing director of the Kansas News Service. You can reach him on Twitter @jmcleanks. Kansas News Service stories and photos may be republished at no cost with proper attribution and a link back to the original post.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Gov. Eric Greitens’ two nominees to the Missouri Ethics Commission say they did not promise anything to anybody in exchange for their nominations.
The governor nominated former Democratic state representative Wayne Henke and retired financial analyst and Republican Bill Birkes to the ethics commission Friday.
Concern that their nominations came at a price stemmed from Greitens’ decision last year to stack the state Board of Education with people willing to fire the education commissioner.
The ethics commission is one member shy of a possible quorum and cannot act on any complaints, including one pending against Greitens.
Senate President Pro Tem Ron Richard, a Republican of Joplin, said the Senate likely will not be able to confirm the nominees before the ethics commission’s next meeting on April 25.
SEDALIA, Mo. (AP) – Authorities say one man has been killed and another wounded in a shooting in Sedalia.
The Sedalia Democrat reports that the shooting happened early Sunday. Sedalia police identified the victim in a news release as 42-year-old Maurice Harper Sr. Police say the surviving victim was taken to a Sedalia hospital in a private vehicle. He was in stable condition there before he was transferred to a larger Columbia hospital.
The person who initially reported the shooting said a stranger came to his door and asked him to call 911.
Harper had been scheduled to go on trial next week on charges that he helped hide someone after a 2016 shooting in which a man and woman were injured.
A suspect in Harper’s death hasn’t been identified.
Temperatures will begin their warmup today, but the real day to get outside and enjoy the spring will be Tuesday, when temperatures will climb at least into the 60s and winds will remain light. Windy conditions and enhanced fire danger is expected Wednesday. Here’s the 7-day forecast from the National Weather Service:
Today: Sunny, with a high near 51. Northwest wind 9 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 22 mph.
Tonight: Clear, with a low around 31. North northwest wind 5 to 9 mph becoming calm in the evening.
Tuesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 64. East southeast wind 8 to 13 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
Tuesday Night: A slight chance of showers after 1 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 44. East southeast wind 11 to 17 mph becoming west after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 30 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Wednesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 56. Breezy, with a west northwest wind 21 to 29 mph, with gusts as high as 39 mph.
Wednesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 35. Breezy.
Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 58.
Thursday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 37.
Friday: Partly sunny, with a high near 57.
Friday Night: A chance of showers after 1 a.m. Cloudy, with a low around 44. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
Saturday: A chance of showers. Cloudy, with a high near 56. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
Saturday Night: A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 43. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
(UPDATE 11:06 a.m. Monday) A man injured in a shooting Sunday night has died.
According to Capt. Jeff Wilson with the St. Joseph Police Department, at approximately 9:08 p.m. Sunday, officers responded to a call in the 1100 block of Highly Street reporting a shooting with a person down. Officers arrived to find a man, identified as 49-year-old William L. Talbott, outside in front of the residence with an apparent gunshot wound to his torso area.
Talbott was transported to Mosaic Life Care by ambulance where he was later pronounced deceased.
According to Capt. Wilson, they are investigating it as a homicide. No suspects are in custody at this time.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police or call the TIPS Hotline at (816) 238-TIPS.
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St. Joseph police are investigating a shooting Sunday night that resulted in a man being injured.
According to the St. Joseph Police Department, officers responded to a report of shots fired shortly after 9 p.m. Sunday in the 1100 block of Highly Street. A man in his late 40s was injured from a gunshot wound and transported to Mosaic Life Care for treatment. There are no details yet on the extent of his injuries.
According to Sgt. Brett Kelley with the police department, there are no suspects at this time.
City and airline officials announced Thursday that the new airport will have 39 gates rather than the 35 originally proposed. They said growth in passenger traffic prompted the design change.
The change in terminals will delay the opening of the airport, which was originally scheduled for November 2021. A new opening date was not announced. It also will increase the estimated cost of the project, which was originally $964 million.
The new design will allow for future expansion to 42 gates.
images courtesy FlyKCI.com
Taxpayer money will not be used for the new terminal, which will be financed by the developer, Edgemoor. The company will be paid back by revenue from airlines and other airport users.
