In its article 10 to watch in 2010, the Wichita Eagle included short profiles of the candidates in the race for the Kansas fourth district Congressional seat.
For Democrat Raj Goyle, the article describes Goyle as a “blue dog Democrat.”
That’s pretty funny. Maybe it’s the Eagle’s attempt at branching out into comedy.
The term “blue dog Democrat” describes a moderate or conservative Democrat. This doesn’t describe Goyle. He may talk that way, but we need to look at his actions.
For example, consider his voting record in the Kansas House of Representatives. The Kansas Taxpayer Network published ratings of Kansas legislators based on their votes on key issues. For the 2008 session (the last session with ratings), Goyle’s rating was 38%. Only 11 of 125 members had a lower score. This places Goyle at the liberal end of the spectrum in the Kansas House.
Then, what about his work history? Goyle’s campaign website doesn’t mention this, but he worked for the American Civil Liberties Union, one of the political left’s favorite organizations.
Goyle’s site also omits that he was Senior Policy Analyst for Domestic Policy at the Center for American Progress. This organization is one of the most prominent left-wing think tanks in America and advocates for more and larger government. It was initially funded by sub-prime mortgage pioneers Herbert and Marion Sandler, who were tagged by Time Magazine in 2009 as some of 25 people to blame for the financial crisis. Other CAP funders include convicted inside trader George Soros.
To talk of Goyle as a moderate or conservative Democrat overlooks his actions. We may have to rely on news outlets other than the Wichita Eagle for this type of information.
Raj Goyle, a Democratic member of the Kansas House of Representatives, has recently announced that he is a candidate for the U.S. Congress seat for the fourth district of Kansas. That’s the seat being vacated by Todd Tiahrt.
His website, in announcing his candidacy, states: “In addition to his legislative duties, Goyle serves as a lecturer at Wichita State University.”
Past versions of his campaign website have him mentioning “… the same values that guide me every day in my career as a lecturer at Wichita State University, attorney, and active member of the Wichita community.” (emphasis added)
While perhaps satisfying the technical description of a lecturer at Wichita State University, his career as that is spotty. According to records received from WSU, Goyle was a lecturer teaching a single class in the university’s honors program during the Fall 2006 semester. According to the same records, he hasn’t worked at WSU since. He’s scheduled to teach a class in the Fall 2009 semester, again a single class in the honors program.
His work schedule for the semester he was employed by WSU was light. The Fall 2006 class, titled “Politics/Public Policy” met from 1:00 to 2:45 on Wednesdays. The class scheduled for Fall 2009 is titled “White House” and will meet from 1:00 to 3:00, again only on Wednesdays.
Here’s another quote from Goyle’s campaign website: “In teaching at Wichita State I am helping to educate and shape our city’s youth while maintaining a deep commitment to public service and civic involvement.”
The clear intent of these statements is to represent Goyle as someone actively and continuously employed by the university. Someone with a career, in Goyle’s own words. An examination of his record, however, leads to a different conclusion.
