Carlin, John W. Archives - Page 3 of 5 - Kansas Oral History Project

Interview of Mike O'Neal, April 16, 2021

Interviewed by Alan Conroy

Former Speaker Mike O'Neal's interview covers his 28 years in the Kansas House and his impact as Chair of the House Judiciary Committee on the Kansas legal system, both criminal and civil. In fact, O'Neal chaired the House Judiciary Committee three different times totaling 13 years and also served as Chairman of the House Education Committee and a redistricting committee in 2002. He has been involved with workers compensation issues and medical malpractice. O'Neal explains his own evolution in thinking as he, and his constituents, became more conservative. He candidly discusses his race for Speaker of the Show MoreHouse and compares the leadership styles of other speakers with whom he served. O'Neal left the House in 2012 after finishing his second term as Speaker to take a position with the Kansas Chamber of Commerce as its chief executive officer. After four years with the Kansas Chamber he retired to open his own legal consulting and governmental relations firm, O'Neal Consulting, LLC. Show Less

Interview of Ardena Matlack, April 8, 2021

Interviewed by Joan Wagnon

Ardena Matlack described the Kansas House of Representatives in the 1970’s when few women were in the Kansas Legislature. During her second term she experienced being in the majority as a Democrat—something that seldom occurred in Kansas. While in the majority, she served on the Federal and State Affairs committee as Vice-Chair, and moved up to chair the committee the second year of her term. The committee dealt with the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), abortion, liquor, and other controversial issues. She also served on the House Judiciary Committee. Her discussion of gerrymandering shows the Show Moredifficulty of dealing with redistricting that led to her husband losing his Senate seat and encouraging her to run for the House. She also dealt with environmental and water issues, particularly in Sedgwick County. Matlack worked with Treasurer Joan Finney to get the first Unclaimed Property law passed. Show Less

Interview of William (Bill) Reardon, August 2, 2019

Interviewed by Jim McLean

Bill Reardon is a story-teller, famous in the Democrat caucus for his jokes, stories and anecdotes, told with great enthusiasm. This entertaining interview is filled with some of those stories. Reardon talks about how he was inspired by seeing John F. Kennedy in Kansas City and also by his brother and father, both political figures in Wyandotte County. Reardon divides his legislative service into two periods—the bipartisan problem-solving work of the first 15 years, and a more ideologically driven, partisan era in the last 15 years. His descriptions of developing and passing the 1992 school finance bill are consistent Show Morewith other interviews of legislators serving at that time. Reardon tells stories about how leadership worked and discloses his observations about the Brownback years when he was serving as a lobbyist for the school district. Show Less

Interview of Alicia Salisbury, October 23, 2020

Interviewed by Patty Clark

Former Senator Alicia Salisbury grew up in a political family--both father and grandfather served in the legislature--so her sixteen years of service as a Kansas Senator continued the family tradition. She also was a serious legislator who believed in community service as witnessed by the numerous boards and committees on which she served, both volunteer and elected. Salisbury's driving interests were improving the economy of Kansas and bringing growth in wealth to her community and state. Salisbury's 2020 oral history interview chronicles her work ethic. With her children no longer at home, she had the Show Moretime and the interest to dive into a wide assortment of issues, from workforce development, to interstate banking, to telecommunication reform, to a blue ribbon panel on workers compensation. Salisbury worked long hours and focused on constituent services. She boldly asked for the committees that interested her and championed changes where necessary. Salisbury succeeded in changing the Labor and Industry Committee into the Commerce Committee to handle everything from economic development strategies to workers compensation. She tackled tough issues with a sense of humor and the skills of collaboration learned as a volunteer leader. This interview describes her determination, her commitment, and her legacy to the state of Kansas as Vice President of the Senate. Show Less

Interview of August (Gus) Bogina, February 6, 2018

Interviewed by H. Edward (Ed) Flentje

In this 2018 oral history interview, Gus Bogina discusses his service in the Kansas Legislature, focusing on his 14 years in the Senate (1981-1995). Bogina reflects on his relationships with Senate leaders and governors during 11 sessions as Chair of the Senate Ways and Means Committee. Bogina also describes his storied ride with the Highway Patrol when he was brought back from Johnson County following bypass surgery to cast the deciding vote on the water plan funding.

Interview of Robert (Bob) Storey, February 5, 2015

Interviewed by Burdett Loomis

In his 2015 oral history interview, Bob Storey recalled his service in the Kansas Senate from 1969-1976. His recollection is of a Senate that was in transition in terms of urban-rural influence on policymaking due to the one-person, one-vote principle enunciated by the U.S. Supreme Court in the mid-1960s. He recalled intricacies of interactions among Senate leaders and governors and occasional intrigue in Senate leadership elections. He also reflected on improvements in the functioning of state government during the years when reorganization and modernization of many state functions took place.

Interview of H. Edward (Ed) Flentje, June 14, 2019

Interviewed by Rex Buchanan

During this 2019 oral history interview of Ed Flentje, he recalled the intricate work of developing a water planning process and applying good governance principles to a highly contentious issue that involved a variety of entities both inside and outside state government in the 1970s. The innovations in water regulation that grew out of the agenda of Governor Bennett, for whom Flentje served as Planing Director, were carried out and implemented by succeeding Governors, Carlin and Hayden. Flentje's description of water policy rising to prominence in the Bennett administration demonstrates how governors benefit from Show Morelistening to a variety of voices when developing policy agendas. Show Less

Interview of Joan Wagnon, May 11, 2018

Interviewed by H. Edward (Ed) Flentje

Ed Flentje's interview of former Representative Joan Wagnon covers her 12 years in the state legislature, four years as Mayor of Topeka, and eight years as Secretary of Revenue. She talks about the work of the House Taxation Committee in implementing legislation after passage of a constitutional amendment classifying property for tax purposes. Wagnon discusses the 1992 school finance lawsuit which produced massive change in the school funding formula, including how the concepts were developed and what strategies were used to get them passed. Wagnon describes how the House Democrats interacted with Governor Finney in the 1991 session, when Show MoreFinney vetoed the major tax bill and the Supreme Court found the school finance formula to be unconstitutional. Wagnon served as facilitator for the Children's Initiatives Committee which Speaker Marvin Barkis chaired. That committee produced 14 bills that affected children and families. Wagnon discusses economic development issues in the last part of the interview. Those issues link Wagnon's legislative interests to her work as Mayor of Topeka: neighborhood revitalization, spreading the tax base from city to county for Washburn University and the Topeka Public Library, and developing economic development infrastructure to attract growth and new business for Topeka. She also discusses some of her eight years as Secretary of Revenue, particularly her involvement with the Streamlined Sales Tax. A version of this interview is also posted on KansasMemory.org, the website of the Kansas Historical Society. Show Less

Interview of Robert (Bob) Frey, August 2, 2019

Interviewed by Jim McLean

Robert Frey had considerable impact on the legal system after he arrived in 1975. Court unification had passed as a constitutional amendment; now the legislature had to implement it. Early in his legislative career Frey took on some controversial issues, such as the hearings he held in the House Judiciary committee on the Posse Comitatus to ban paramilitary training and legislation ensuring every county had a judge. This interview does not deal with the plethora of issues which originated in the House Judiciary committee under Frey's leadership, such as codification of the sexual crimes including marital rape, Show Morebut it does reveal his philosophy about the law, the courts and judges. The interview also provides a glimpse into the rise of the conservative influence from a group know as "the Cowboys." The interview concludes with a discussion of activities on the Board of Tax Appeals. Show Less

Interview of Donna Whiteman, January 19, 2018

Interviewed by H. Edward (Ed) Flentje

Former Representative Donna Whiteman's 2018 oral history interview provides detail about how the legislature functioned from 1983-1991. She describes the culture as less demonizing, more collegial and civil than is generally assumed by the public. Whiteman rose to a leadership position fairly quickly and became Majority Leader when the Democrats gained the majority in the House in 1991. One of Whiteman's assigned roles was to work with a group of Republicans called "The Rebels" - seven to nine members who would vote with the Democrats on certain bills. Whiteman also describes in some detail her Show Moreexperiences as a member of Governor Joan Finney's cabinet, particularly on issues such as foster care, long term care, and children and families. She observes that "after all the struggling in the 1991 session, the 1992 session is the shining star of progressive activity" and that the Children's Initiative produced visible, tangible, and beneficial legislation. A version of this interview is also posted on KansasMemory.org, the website of the Kansas Historical Society. Show Less

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