The race for the governorship in Kansas is one of the most important in the nation for a couple of major reasons. First of all, Kansas has stood tall as a base for conservatism regardless of how the political winds swing. Second, Republican candidate Kris Kobach is one of the best conservatives to run for the office in years. Beyond the backing from President Trump, Kobach holds a record of standing for conservative values throughout his political career.
The race between Kobach and his opponent, incumbent Governor Jeff Colyer, is one of the closest in a long time on a state or a federal level. Less than 200 votes separate the two men, giving credence to the way that things might have gone if President Trump had not entered his opinion into the public fray.
Experts are saying that the race is too close to call. There are simply too many variables, including issues of voter fraud that Kansas Democrats repeatedly overlooked.
President Trump backed Kobach against the wishes and advice of entrenched Republican interests, which is never really news when it comes to Trump. The news is why the president is choosing to back this candidate so openly.
Kobach branded himself the “consistent conservative,” which his record over time in the state backs up. As Kansas’ Secretary of State, he held hardline positions on the issues of immigration and terrorism. There is a reason that you never heard news out of Kansas on either of these two issues – the leadership there simply did not have time for the nonsense.
Kobach was also a huge advocate of Constitutional voting rights and a staunch opponent of voter fraud. His strong positions helped to bolster the legislature and the executive branches on these issues. Kansas runs more smoothly because they do not have the same amount of statewide “office politics” that come from listening to every needless opinion, regardless of how qualified the source or the data backing that opinion.
As Governor, Kobach promised to uphold the conservative values of mainstream Kansas. This promise is well placed, coming on the heels of the censorship of Alex Jones. Jones is one of the largest conservative media outlets in the state of Kansas, and his removal from nearly all major digital media platforms set off a firestorm of support for conservative and libertarian clauses near voting time.
Trump was able to make the endorsement despite the loud cries of the Republican Governors’ Association. There were also many top level Republican political consultants that advised the president against the move. However, Trump’s usual bluster comes with the added power of Kobach’s unwavering viewpoints and policy implementations. Regardless of what the Republican bureaucracy thinks of the candidate himself, there is no viable argument that can be made against his staunch support of conservative values. His supporters can be chastised for being too forward thinking or brash, but they cannot be touched for going too far left or away from the issues that we have all taken as our political banners.
Even Trump’s political opponents have to concede that he has been making noise in state races, especially in the Bible Belt South. The president’s endorsements definitely made waves in the Florida and Georgia primaries. They are having the same effect in Kansas. The Republican establishment is most likely upset that Trump is showcasing just how much power he has in state races despite national fake news efforts meant to denigrate him.
Kobach’s opponent in the Kansas race is the state equivalent of Dr. Ben Carson. Although quite accomplished in his day job as a plastic surgeon, Dr. Coyler is seen as much weaker on core conservative issues than Kobach. In the same way as Carson’s experience as a surgeon did not prepare him for his current job at HUD, Dr. Coyler has not shown the hardline leadership that real Kansas conservatives have been looking for.
Kobach is a bellweather for the rest of the nation when it comes to state races. Does Trump really have the power to get true conservatives in office? We will see.
~ Patriotic Freedom Fighter
