better write your congressmen election issue gaining steam

[greenbriar]

http://www.kansas.com/mld/kansas/9140954.htm

BY ALAN BJERGA

Eagle Washington bureau


WASHINGTON - Kansas congressmen were lukewarm Monday toward reports about plans to let the federal government postpone the November presidential election in the case of a terrorist attack.

"I'd want to see the reasons we should change," said Rep. Todd Tiahrt, R-Goddard, responding to a report that the Department of Homeland Security is considering asking Congress to give it the authority to postpone elections should a terror attack happen the day before or day of an election.

The report, published in Newsweek magazine, comes after Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge warned last week that al-Qaida terrorists might be planning a major attack to disrupt the elections this fall.

In response, the agency wants to postpone the Nov. 2 presidential election in the event of an emergency, and may seek congressional approval, the report said.

"I'm not certain we would want to put a political appointee in charge of that decision," such as the Homeland Security secretary, or a partisan group of lawmakers, said Rep. Dennis Moore, D-Lenexa. Doing so would inevitably lead to charges of trying to tamper with an election, he said.

Sen. Pat Roberts and Rep. Jim Ryun, R-Topeka, said that any constitutional questions would have be resolved before a plan could go forward.

Sen. Sam Brownback was not available for comment.

Rep. Jerry Moran, R-Hays, said he was worried about the symbolism of a terror attack changing how Americans select a president.

"Our elections are part of the makeup of the country," Moran said. Postponing them "is one of the last things we'd want to do in the war on terror."

Tiahrt said it was difficult for him to imagine a terrorist attack so large that it would present a nationwide threat to voters.

"When you think of how every township has a polling place, I don't expect such a situation to ever happen," he said. "It's not like we have one central voting place in St. Louis."

But he also said contingency plans make sense.