Newsletter Archive
March Roberts Report
Mar 31 2008
First Lady Visits Olathe
Senator Roberts hosted First Lady Laura Bush this month at Rolling Ridge Elementary School in Olathe to highlight the importance of reading and volunteerism in our schools. Sen. Roberts and Mrs. Bush visited Mrs. Glenda Aguilar’s 4th grade class and participated in a vocabulary lesson with the students. Afterwards, Mrs. Bush and Senator Roberts honored several students who received awards for completing community service hours.
As a key member of the Senate Education Committee, Senator Roberts said, “Our Kansas schools are one of our greatest assets. It is an honor to bring Mrs. Bush who is a teacher and librarian to see our best and brightest in Kansas. After graduating from K-State and serving in the Marines, I started out working as a teacher and basketball coach. I understand the opportunities and challenges educators face and hope this visit showcases their dedication and commitment to our kids.”
Dillon Lecture Series in Hutch on Bipartisanship
Senator Roberts delivered a speech in the importance of bipartisanship at Hutchinson Community College as part of the Dillon Lecture Series this month.
Here’s an excerpt: “Bob Dole, Nancy Kassebaum, George Docking, Bob Docking – all successful elected officials understood that on an issue, today’s opponents can become tomorrow’s allies, and agreeing to disagree on one issue did not mean they could not find common ground in other areas.
“In my own work for Kansas, it is surprising to some that one of my most recent legislative victories came while working with Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy. My legislation to expand child care opportunities for working families took a giant leap forward thanks to Senator Kennedy. The bill, which creates a grant program for small businesses to join together so they can offer their employees day care, could only win passage last year with Education Committee Chair Kennedy’s assistance, and now the legislation is law and we are working on the second step of securing funding for the program...Yes, politics can make for strange bedfellows...but I appreciated that Senator Kennedy would reach across the aisle to work with me for our working families.
“Agriculture, as you know, is an issue in which I have a long history. I would often point out, as Chairman of the House Ag Committee, that in farm country, ‘we have to hang together or hang separately’ It does not matter whether it is a Republican from Illinois or a Democrat from Nebraska, those of us from farm states must work together to pass farm policies that make sense for production agriculture.
“Right now, we are in the middle of writing another farm bill and I find myself making that same speech – some days I am more successful than others. I am not saying it is easy – but I am saying it’s important. No matter how tired you get, no matter how frustrating the debate can be – and yes, I do get frustrated – you have to try to work with others to achieve your goal. You simply cannot do it alone...and if you cannot work with people on the other side of the aisle, you are not going to get very far. It is as simple as that.”
Click here for full text of this speech: https://www.roberts.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressRoom.Speeches&ContentRecord_id=066d106f-802a-23ad-41f6-c2362a5e8744&Region_id=&Issue_id=
Air Force Tanker Decision - A Bipartisan Commitment to Boeing workers
Outraged by the U.S. Air Force’s decision to choose Northrop Grumman/EADS over Boeing to make the critical new aerial refueling tanker, Senator Roberts and a bipartisan group of lawmakers are standing united for Boeing workers.
Senator Roberts said, “If this decision by the Air Force holds, it will be at the cost of American jobs and American dollars, if not our national security. Every member of the Kansas and Washington state congressional delegations, our Governors and our state lawmakers support Boeing. We are all very concerned about the criteria the Air Force used in awarding the tanker contract and we have asked the Department of Defense to suspend the KC-45 tanker contract until both Boeing and the Congress have the ability to review the decision.” That request was made jointly by Senators Roberts and Brownback, and Representatives Tiahrt, Moore, Moran and Boyda.
After receiving a detailed brief from the Air Force, Boeing filed an official protest with the Government Accountability Office. Senator Roberts and his colleagues now await the GAO response, which must come before June 19th. For more information on the tanker decision and for the latest updates, please visit https://www.roberts.senate.gov and click on “TANKER NEWS.”
Fighting for Homecare - especially important to seniors
Senator Roberts delivered remarks to the American Association of Homecare at the invitation of several outstanding Kansas home health advocates: Velma Goertzen, JD Rein, Gerald Sloan, and Adrian Knight. Roberts is a key member of the Senate Health Committee, and he understands that “many families take great comfort in knowing that home health providers are there to take care of loved ones when they cannot be there.”
Roberts was inspired to lead the effort on this issue several years ago after visiting a health shop in Hutchinson where he learned firsthand how important it is to seniors, in particular, in rural areas who live alone or miles away from a hospital or doctor’s office. Unfortunately, the federal government is considering some administrative changes that may force some home care companies out of business. Senator Roberts is working to ensure the government changes do not impact home care’s ability to serve its patients.
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Senator Roberts hosted First Lady Laura Bush this month at Rolling Ridge Elementary School in Olathe to highlight the importance of reading and volunteerism in our schools. Sen. Roberts and Mrs. Bush visited Mrs. Glenda Aguilar’s 4th grade class and participated in a vocabulary lesson with the students. Afterwards, Mrs. Bush and Senator Roberts honored several students who received awards for completing community service hours.
As a key member of the Senate Education Committee, Senator Roberts said, “Our Kansas schools are one of our greatest assets. It is an honor to bring Mrs. Bush who is a teacher and librarian to see our best and brightest in Kansas. After graduating from K-State and serving in the Marines, I started out working as a teacher and basketball coach. I understand the opportunities and challenges educators face and hope this visit showcases their dedication and commitment to our kids.”
Dillon Lecture Series in Hutch on Bipartisanship
Senator Roberts delivered a speech in the importance of bipartisanship at Hutchinson Community College as part of the Dillon Lecture Series this month.
Here’s an excerpt: “Bob Dole, Nancy Kassebaum, George Docking, Bob Docking – all successful elected officials understood that on an issue, today’s opponents can become tomorrow’s allies, and agreeing to disagree on one issue did not mean they could not find common ground in other areas.
“In my own work for Kansas, it is surprising to some that one of my most recent legislative victories came while working with Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy. My legislation to expand child care opportunities for working families took a giant leap forward thanks to Senator Kennedy. The bill, which creates a grant program for small businesses to join together so they can offer their employees day care, could only win passage last year with Education Committee Chair Kennedy’s assistance, and now the legislation is law and we are working on the second step of securing funding for the program...Yes, politics can make for strange bedfellows...but I appreciated that Senator Kennedy would reach across the aisle to work with me for our working families.
“Agriculture, as you know, is an issue in which I have a long history. I would often point out, as Chairman of the House Ag Committee, that in farm country, ‘we have to hang together or hang separately’ It does not matter whether it is a Republican from Illinois or a Democrat from Nebraska, those of us from farm states must work together to pass farm policies that make sense for production agriculture.
“Right now, we are in the middle of writing another farm bill and I find myself making that same speech – some days I am more successful than others. I am not saying it is easy – but I am saying it’s important. No matter how tired you get, no matter how frustrating the debate can be – and yes, I do get frustrated – you have to try to work with others to achieve your goal. You simply cannot do it alone...and if you cannot work with people on the other side of the aisle, you are not going to get very far. It is as simple as that.”
Click here for full text of this speech: https://www.roberts.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressRoom.Speeches&ContentRecord_id=066d106f-802a-23ad-41f6-c2362a5e8744&Region_id=&Issue_id=
Air Force Tanker Decision - A Bipartisan Commitment to Boeing workers
Outraged by the U.S. Air Force’s decision to choose Northrop Grumman/EADS over Boeing to make the critical new aerial refueling tanker, Senator Roberts and a bipartisan group of lawmakers are standing united for Boeing workers.
Senator Roberts said, “If this decision by the Air Force holds, it will be at the cost of American jobs and American dollars, if not our national security. Every member of the Kansas and Washington state congressional delegations, our Governors and our state lawmakers support Boeing. We are all very concerned about the criteria the Air Force used in awarding the tanker contract and we have asked the Department of Defense to suspend the KC-45 tanker contract until both Boeing and the Congress have the ability to review the decision.” That request was made jointly by Senators Roberts and Brownback, and Representatives Tiahrt, Moore, Moran and Boyda.
After receiving a detailed brief from the Air Force, Boeing filed an official protest with the Government Accountability Office. Senator Roberts and his colleagues now await the GAO response, which must come before June 19th. For more information on the tanker decision and for the latest updates, please visit https://www.roberts.senate.gov and click on “TANKER NEWS.”
Fighting for Homecare - especially important to seniors
Senator Roberts delivered remarks to the American Association of Homecare at the invitation of several outstanding Kansas home health advocates: Velma Goertzen, JD Rein, Gerald Sloan, and Adrian Knight. Roberts is a key member of the Senate Health Committee, and he understands that “many families take great comfort in knowing that home health providers are there to take care of loved ones when they cannot be there.”
Roberts was inspired to lead the effort on this issue several years ago after visiting a health shop in Hutchinson where he learned firsthand how important it is to seniors, in particular, in rural areas who live alone or miles away from a hospital or doctor’s office. Unfortunately, the federal government is considering some administrative changes that may force some home care companies out of business. Senator Roberts is working to ensure the government changes do not impact home care’s ability to serve its patients.
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