Associated Press
photo by: Associated Press
A Capitol Police vehicle with the Kansas Highway Patrol sits parked outside the Kansas Statehouse Thursday afternoon, Jan. 14, 2021, in Topeka, Kan. (Evert Nelson/The Topeka Capital-Journal via AP)
Story updated at 12:47 p.m. Tuesday
TOPEKA (AP) State office buildings near the Statehouse have been closed to the public and the Legislature has curtailed its meetings due to security concerns ahead of President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration in Washington, D.C.
The closures came in response to an FBI warning about the potential for armed protests nationwide following mob violence Jan. 6 at the U.S. Capitol. Supporters of President Donald Trump, encouraged by unfounded allegations of election fraud, stormed the building, interrupting Congress’ certification of Biden’s victory over Trump.
During the first week of the Kansas legislative session, the No. 1 priority for the Legislature is to extend the state s COVID-19 disaster emergency declaration before it expires Jan. 26.
The urgency has been underscored by the speed lawmakers are moving with to pass two bills ― for some, maybe a bit too fast. I ve not seen, and I don t think we ve seen before, a bill that moved with such expediency, said Sen. David Haley, D-Kansas City. I daresay it is abnormal and it lends a certain question as to how fairly it can be deliberated and considered. This is a very crucial issue in terms of the public health.
Kansas governor promises to beat COVID-19, rips violence and sedition at Capitol Dion Lefler and Katie Bernard, The Wichita Eagle
Jan. 13 Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly promised Tuesday that the end is in sight for the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic disruption it s caused, while calling for healing amid a fractured political landscape including destruction, violence, and sedition at the nation s Capitol. We can not let political fights slow us down, the governor said in her State of the State speech Tuesday night. In the weeks and months to come, we need to get every Kansan vaccinated. We need to get our economy moving. And we need to get all our kids back into the classroom.
2021 State of the State address
Gov. Laura Kelly delivered the annual State of the State address Tuesday evening via a virtual broadcast.
While the speech is typically given to a room full of state senators and representatives, Kelly used the virtual format to “have a conversation” with Kansans about the current circumstances and the plan going forward.
Kelly began her speech with an update on Kansas’s vaccine-distribution efforts, saying that 84,555 Kansans have been vaccinated and that the state is currently in the CDC vaccine tracker’s top tier for “vaccines administered per capita.”
Kansas is currently in phase one of a five-phase plan to distribute the vaccine. Phase one includes healthcare workers and long-term-care workers and residents. Officials hope to enter phase two by the end of January.