(Syndicated to Kansas newspapers April 29, 2013)
It’s difficult to fly fish when bait isn’t taken…
After years covering the Statehouse, you learn that sometimes what’s not said is as important as what is said in politics and state government.
Because much of conventional journalism is getting quotes from authority figures on topics of interest to news consumers, you learn to essentially fly-fish at news conferences, dangling briefly a phrase or concept that you want the authority figure to respond to.
It’s fishing, to be sure, and it’s also a near-daily test of how quickly that authority figure can respond, or respond interestingly, to questions to which we figure the general public would like to know the answer.
So far, Gov. Sam Brownback has been tough to hook. Especially when it comes to budget and tax issues.