KS Meadowlark: Junction City Daily Union Publisher Contributes to Democratic Party and Candidates,

Friday's Junction City Daily Union published endorsements for Kansas Governor and Kansas Attorney General. Shouldn't the public be told about the publisher's political involvement and political contributions at the time such endorsements are printed? Why hide this information from the public?

Junction City Daily Union publisher, John G. Montgomery, has given the Kansas Democratic Party at least $1250 this year, and has given considerable political money to both Kathleen Sebelius and Paul Morrison. But, Montgomery chooses to hide his own political leanings and contributions from the public when he endorses these same candidates in his newspaper. Why shouldn't a publisher disclose such a conflict of interest at the time endorsements are made so the public can properly discount any bias in the endorsements?

John G. Montgomery

Should readers of the Junction City Daily Union be told of all these connections between Publisher John Montgomery and Governor Kathleen Sebelius at the time the paper endorsed Sebelius?

Contribution Information from KS Governmental Ethics Commission

Date	Contributor	Dollars	Recipient	Office
3/20/1996	MONTGOMERY, JOHN G	100	SEBELIUS, KATHLEEN	Insurance
11/10/1997	MONTGOMERY, JOHN G	100	SEBELIUS, KATHLEEN	Insurance
9/3/1998	MONTGOMERY, JOHN G	250	SEBELIUS, KATHLEEN	Insurance
11/4/2000	MONTGOMERY, JOHN	2000	SEBELIUS, KATHLEEN	Gov
8/21/2002	MONTGOMERY, JOHN G	2000	SEBELIUS, KATHLEEN	Gov
12/31/2003	MONTGOMERY, JOHN G	1000	SEBELIUS, KATHLEEN	Gov
9/14/2005	MONTGOMERY, JOHN	1000	SEBELIUS, KATHLEEN	Governor

Also, does Montgomery favor Sebelius because she will appoint him to various boards? Sebelius appointed John Montgomery to the state finance board, Lawrence Journal-World, Feb 10, 2006. In Jan. 2004 Sebelius appointed John Montgomery to the Governor's Strategic Military Planning Commission.

Junction City Daily Union Endorsement:
Kansas Governor: GOV. KATHLEEN SEBELIUS

Kathleen Sebelius is concluding a successful term in office, and she deserves re-election. In four years she has displayed both competence as a leader and effectiveness in advocating her priorities.

Though Democrats are vastly outnumbered in the House and Senate, Sebelius has used guile and the threat of her veto to promote her moderate policies.

She followed through on her promise to have a "top-to-bottom" review of state government, which has improved the efficiency at which the state operates and saved taxpayer dollars.

She also played an important role in helping state military installations survive the latest round of base closings. She expanded and re-energized the Governor's Military Affairs Council and assigned her highly effective lieutenant governor, John Moore, to lead it. Not only were all the bases saved -- they were all expanded.

Sen. Jim Barnett is a good man and by all accounts an excellent physician, but he has aligned himself with the right wing of the Republican Party. He would not represent the majority of Kansans who hold more moderate views.

Should readers of the Junction City Daily Union be told their publisher endorses Democratic candidates for Attorney General -- no matter who the Republican challenger is?

Contribution Information from KS Governmental Ethics Commission

Date	Contributor	Dollars	Recipient	Office
9/3/1998	Montgomery, John G	250	Lykins, Dan	Attorney General
8/1/2002	Montgomery, John	250	Biggs, Chris	Attorney General
10/31/2002	Montgomery, John	100	Biggs, Chris	Attorney General
9/6/2006	Montgomery, John	500	Morrison, Paul	Attorney General

Junction City Daily Union Endorsement:
Kansas attorney general: PAUL MORRISON

The differences separating incumbent Phill Kline and the challenger, Paul Morrison, couldn't be more dramatic.

Some voters may want the top law enforcer in Kansas to be a social activist who has questionable relationships with the churches that agree with his extreme political views. Those voters will support Kline.

Anyone who wants the attorney general to be first and foremost a qualified and competent prosecutor should vote for Morrison.

If you like candidates who piously preach Christian morality but then stoop to the worst form of mud-slinging that Kansas has seen in decades, then vote for Kline.

If you want a prosecutor who has been effective in high-profile cases, such as the Robinson serial murders, and who also has successfully prosecuted hundreds of lesser-known cases, then vote for Morrison.

If you want an attorney general who will put politics ahead of justice, vote for Kline.

For the rest of us, Morrison is the clear choice.

I quoted the whole Junction City Daily Union endorsements above to prove that no admission of connections to the Democratic Party, or Democratic candidates was made by publisher, John G. Montgomery, at the time his paper made public endorsements of the same candidates.

Why doesn't John Montgomery just say his Daily Union endorses all Democrats for Governor or Attorney General no matter what the issues are, or who the Republican candidate is? Ten years of consistent political contributions seem to prove this point.