Huckabee wins Washington County GOP Caucus

Mike Huckabee was the overwhelming winner of the Washington County GOP Caucus on Saturday morning in Washington.
With a crowd of 152 voters from several counties, plus several observers, Huckabee won with 104 votes, followed by John McCain with 25, Ron Paul with 21 and Alan Keyes with 2. There were also three provisional ballots that will be counted by the state. Organizers (I was one of them) were very pleased with the turnout and we believe the process went very smoothly.

We like Mike

A trip to Topeka was well worth it today when we were able to shake hands with Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee and even had him hold our 4 1/2 month old baby Noah! We had to stand in the room at the Ramada for a good hour (holding hot kids the whole time and my arm still hurts) but we were 16th in so we had a spot on "the rope." After Huckabee gave an inspiring speech, he did the meet and greet and after Jennifer asked him "Picture with my baby?" she threw Noah into Huckabee's arms to the delight of everyone around. Of course, Noah was sleeping so he was kind of tough to handle and I think Huckabee was a little surprised, but it all worked out well. Then we had him sign the bottom of Noah's shoe (we had no paper) and Huckabee said this was the first time he's signed a baby's shoe. Pretty memorable day for all of us. KSNT Channel 27 interviewed me and Acacia, but we didn't make the cut for the evening news. Evidently we were on the 13, 27 and 49 broadcasts at 5 p.m., but we didn't get to see them. Oh well. It was a great experience and well worth pulling the girls out of school!

Kansas GOP Presidential Caucus

Republicans in Kansas have a chance to help send one of three Republicans up against the Democratic challenger for a bid to the White House this fall, by casting their votes at Saturday's caucuses. Our local caucus begins at 10 a.m. at First National Bank in Washington.
For whom should we vote? The military veteran, the Baptist preacher or the millionaire businessman.
When I approach votes like this, I question who most closely matches my views, then I consider who would have the best chance of relating to me – a small-business owner in small town, rural Kansas. Honestly, given this scenario, it is easy for me to cut Mitt Romney out of the running. A multi-millionaire from Massachusetts is probably the least likely to be able to relate to me. Plus, I think the guy has been pandering to every demand he's faced.
I'm not going to vote for "change" just so that we can have change. Change could be from bad to worse. But I don't mind the concept of a change in direction for the President and Congress and honestly, I don't see how McCain offers anything related to change. He's been in D.C. for a long time and while he would offer a change to the position of President, I can't see him changing the way things are done in Congress.
So that leaves me with Huckabee, and I'm actually very comfortable with him as my guy. His values match mine and he seems to be a breath of fresh air in the world of politics. Someone that can relate to life away from the coasts or Chicago and someone who isn't afraid to talk about new ideas. So even though McCain looks like he will receive the GOP nod, Huck is my guy and maybe he'll fall into a vice presidential bid.
So that is an extremely condensed version of my thought process. What is yours? Leave some comments on who you think is most fit for the Republican nomination and best for America. Don't be afraid, maybe you'll influence some readers to support your candidate too! That is what caucusing is all about!

Downtown Washington style

In last week's issue of the News, we had a story about the "Buckaroo Revival" style of awning that is prevalent in both downtown Washington and many other small towns across Kansas. An individual with the Kansas Historical Society thinks this style needs to be removed because it is not authentic. What do you think? Does it add a Gold Rush boomtown style that is good for small towns or should it be replaced or remodeled? What buildings in downtown Washington do you think show small town architecture at its finest? Should the downtown business owners work together for an overall theme and if so, what should that theme be? Blog about it.

Memories of Coach Buller

I never met the great Coach Buller, but I've heard plenty of stories. My favorite is one where his Clyde football team evidently beat up on Clifton pretty well one game night, but evidently they didn't put forth enough effort so when the game was complete, he had his team stay on the field and do some sprints... or something like that. That is how legends are created. And Coach Buller was a legend.
Do you have memories of Coach Buller? Post some funny memories or those that showed his commitment to excellence or anything you care to share about this record-breaking coach.

For this week...

Here is what is planned for this week's newspapers:

Washington County News
Sheering Scheer sheep
County Spelling Bee participant listing
Taddiken and Schwartz give update at Legislative Coffee
Washington City Council

Clifton-Clyde Tribune
Look back at Coach Buller's life
More information on the new computers for the Clifton Library
FBLA district results
CC spelling bee participants