Could Kansas Democrats face censure if they say Republicans have blood on their hands?

Democratic legislators in the Kansas Legislature could face reprimand if they use language that Republicans deem inappropriate.

As part of sharing information with the House GOP caucus before gaveling in for the Legislature's first day of the 2024 session, House Speaker Dan Hawkins, R-Wichita, urged his colleagues to be respectful of each other, stick to the issues and not make personal attacks.

"We can disagree without being mean-spirited," Hawkins said. "Does that mean that we won't be tested this year? I guarantee we will be tested. We have a few folks out there that really want to try us and see just how far they can push us. But let's always stay above the fray. I know we will, because we're the majority in this House of Representatives."

Rep. Owen Donohoe, R-Shawnee, asked how Republicans should respond if they take offense to comments by Democrats.

"One of the things that I'm curious about is the fact that sitting there listening to the other side go and talk about blood on our hands and we're responsible for this and we're responsible for that, which I think is out of line," he said. "What is the procedure?"

Speaker Pro Tem Blake Carpenter, R-Derby, called it a great question.

"Last year, there were some comments made on the final day of session that I think are still stuck with a lot of us here today," Carpenter said.

He said it is up to Republican and Democratic legislators to step up when there is an infringement of decorum to make a point of order. The presiding officer then stops the debate.

"If there is a legitimate reason for why that point of order was issued, then at that point, corrective actions can then take place," Carpenter said. "If you go read Mason's (Manual of Legislative Procedure), there's the ability to censure from the floor if something rises to that level.

"So just keep an ear open. The presiding officer is not going to be the one that calls the point of order. It has to be members of the body. So you guys have to be listening to any infractions or anything else that might be happening as we debate these issues. But that is the way that you can help prevent certain issues like that moving forward."

Bloody hands?

Donohoe didn't mention any specific instances when Democrats on the House floor said Republicans have blood on their hands.

At the very least, some Democrats did express similar sentiments last session when the Legislature overrode Gov. Laura Kelly's veto of a transgender athlete ban. Rep. Susan Ruiz, D-Shawnee, gave one such speech where she blamed past anti-LGBTQ legislation for child suicides.

"These kids are killing themselves," Ruiz said on the floor on April 5. "They are taking their own lives. At the end of session of last session, two months later, two kids killed themselves."

Kansas political rhetoric has occasional seen one side accuse the other of having blood on their hands due to policy stances, including in testimony from supporters of anti-abortion legislation and when protestors in support of Medicaid expansion unfurled banners in the Capitol rotunda.

"Leadership doesn't like when we point out the blood on their hands, but they are solely responsible," House Minority Leader Vic Miller, D-Topeka, said in a written statement last month on Medicaid expansion.

His spokesperson declined to comment for this story.

What happened on the last day of last session?

Carpenter didn't elaborate on what he was referring to, but the last day of the 2023 session saw a controversial floor speech by Rep. Ford Carr, D-Wichita.

Carr's speech seemed to suggest that $250,000 in funding for the Quindaro Ruins was a reward for Rep. Marvin Robinson, D-Kansas City, siding with Republicans on overriding Gov. Laura Kelly's vetoes.

"I would never trade my vote so the people in my neighborhood, the people who I support, would never look at me and think I might be one of those house (derogatory term)," Carr said, referring to a distinction between slaves who worked in the field and those who worked in homes.

More: Top Kansas legislative Republicans warn Democrat over controversial floor speech

At the time, Carpenter admonished Carr but allowed him to continue speaking.

But Carpenter and Hawkins later sent Carr a letter about his comments being "not in conformity with House rules on order and decorum while addressing the House." House rules do not specify what conduct by a legislator is considered a violation of decorum. The letter also said Carr ran afoul of Mason's manual, which bans legislators from attacking the motives of others.

At the time, Carr said the letter was "no more than a futile attempt to silence my voice as a Black lawmaker."

Ford Carr stands by what he said and isn't afraid to speak up again

Carr told The Capital-Journal that he believes Carpenter was talking about him, and said some people remain "butthurt" over his comments last session, even though "everything that I stated was factual."

"If that's how they feel, then fine," Carr said when told about the censure-related remarks at the Republican caucus. "I keep my boxing gloves on 24/7. So if they want a fight, they've got one with me."

Carr said he still stands by his comments, "as solid as a rock."

"If the situation arises, you would hear a similar statement again," Carr said.

If he makes such a statement, and should Republicans try to censure him, "I would think that any effort that they would bring to me that would have some sort of a negative connotation directed towards me, any of that I think would be extremely counterproductive."

He said he has had no communication since the letter.

"It was a situation where they attempted to bully someone who can't be bullied," Carr said. "And so because of that, they are yet upset and are looking desperately for ways to get back at me in retaliation. In fact, they've gone as far as denying me the opportunity to have an intern."

He said the reason he was given for not getting an intern was "something else that they couldn't share because of confidentiality," which he said is (expletive). "Until they prove otherwise, that's exactly what it is."

"In my opinion, this is 100% unequivocally racially motivated," Carr said. "We still have individuals who are of the majority, Caucasians, who cannot stomach the fact that there will be someone who is of the minority, specifically Black, who would stand before them and defy them and dare them to do whatever it is that they would want to do."

Carr spoke with a reporter after a Martin Luther King Jr. celebration at the Statehouse, which followed a committee hearing on banning discrimination based on ancestral hair styles. While that legislation has been discussed in the Statehouse before, Carr lamented the past failures of the bill not becoming law.

"The Crown Act simply means that, as a Black man, I can wear my hair the way my ancestors wore their hair for as long as time can be remembered," Carr said. "Yet we have to pass legislation to say that it's OK. These are the kinds of things that we deal with within this building. This is not the first time that this bill has been before committee, but we're back again."

"I would say that hotdogs and apple pie are as American as you get," Carr said. "Well, cornrows and straight backs are as African-American as you get — and those are hairstyles if you didn't know. So yeah, that air of discriminatory behavior is here."

Speaker pro tem vows to maintain decorum

In a statement to The Capital-Journal, Carpenter didn't confirm or deny whether he had been referring to Carr's comments about Robinson.

But he did say that this session, "Decorum will continue to be a cornerstone of our legislative proceedings, fostering an environment where every member, regardless of party affiliation, is treated with fairness and respect."

"Building on the positive feedback from the previous session, where my commitment to impartiality was acknowledged by many minority and majority party members, I am dedicated to upholding this principle," Carpenter said. "Our democratic process thrives when individuals from diverse political backgrounds collaborate constructively, and I am committed to ensuring that every representative has an equal opportunity to contribute to the discussions that shape our state's future."

He didn't provide a reason for why Carr was denied an intern.

"I am unable to provide comments or details on personnel issues, however, I can assure you that we did not make any decisions based on past conduct on the House Floor," he said.

Tennessee and Montana legislature have taken controversial actions against legislators

Last April, Tennessee House Republicans expelled two Democratic members, both of whom are Black men, for a gun-reform protest on the chamber's floor following a school shooting in Nashville. A third Democrat, a white woman, was narrowly not expelled.

Both expelled members were reelected in special elections.

Also in April, Montana Democratic Rep. Zooey Zephyr was censured by Republicans after she said they would have "blood on your hands" if they voted for a bill to ban gender-affirming care for minors.

"In politics and legislatures, the majority gets to decide those things," Washburn University political science professor Bob Beatty said of when rhetoric crosses the line. "We saw what happened in Tennessee last year, where two Democrats were thrown out.

"It's really the purview of the of the majority to decide where the line is drawn. ... It's up to the Legislature to police themselves."

Beatty said he couldn't recall a time a censure has happened in Kansas, noting the lack of official reprimand for legislators accused of drunken driving, domestic violence and assaulting students. None of those legislators, who were a mix of Republicans and Democrats, were censured or expelled.

More: Lawbreaking lawmakers remain in Kansas Legislature. Colleagues want to kick an accused one out.

"There's a potential that it could backfire," Beatty said of censuring a Democratic legislator for their speech, "if that then results in people bringing up the misbehavior of some members of the majority party over the last couple of years in other realms."

"I think among the general public, what's most frustrating is behavior of legislators," he said, noting DUIs and physical assault charges. "I think voters, that is more disturbing often than rhetoric. Because the rhetoric, if you censure that, you're starting to get into the free speech realm, which can be really tricky."

Jason Alatidd is a Statehouse reporter for the Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached by email at jalatidd@gannett.com. Follow him on X @Jason_Alatidd.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas Republicans suggest Democrats could be censured for comments