Mr. President, take a lesson from your friend Bob Dole as you visit Kansas City

President Joe Biden is expected in Kansas City on Wednesday. Welcome, Mr. President, to our community. We trust you’ll enjoy your stay.

Our flags will be at half-staff, because we’re mourning the death of your friend Sen. Bob Dole, as you know. We know you’ll acknowledge his legacy, and his work for the people of the Kansas City region. (On Sunday, Sen. Roy Blunt called Dole Missouri’s “third senator,” which sounds about right.)

Bob Dole’s career reminds us that real accomplishment, not mindless rhetoric, is the yardstick by which all public figures should be measured. We wish Sens. Josh Hawley and Roger Marshall would learn that lesson.

By the yardstick of accomplishment, your first year has been a success despite the excessively negative coverage you’ve received. The COVID-19 rescue plan put money in people’s pockets. It helped make schools safer. It helped small businesses.

The rollout of the COVID vaccines has helped the nation recover from the pandemic. But there is much more work to be done, because the danger hasn’t gone away, and may soon get worse.

Our state governments have bitterly resisted almost every effort to reduce sickness and death from COVID. That opposition has been regrettable and dangerous, and will undoubtedly prolong the suffering from the pandemic.

Don’t give in. Well-tailored mask and vaccine requirements will save lives, and you have to continue to pursue them. If the omicron variant worsens the situation, more stringent measures may be needed.

Like most Americans, we, too, are bothered by the growing cost of everyday items — food, energy, health care. There is little you or any president can do about the global supply chain, as even your critics know. And while the White House is working hard to keep prices as low as possible, don’t forget about the workers at the lower end of the pay scale who are finally starting to get paid better for their labor. It’s a welcome trend, and long overdue, even though it may make inflation worse.

We can hardly complain about low pay at the hamburger stand and then whine about the cost of a hamburger.

You’re coming here to talk about the recently-passed infrastructure bill. We’re all about infrastructure here, as you’ll be told. Our streets and highways need work. Missouri just enacted a gas tax increase to improve roads and bridges across the state.

We’re happy to pay for broadband internet for our rural neighbors.

At the same time, you may be asked to support hundreds of millions of federal dollars for sketchy projects, like a deck over part of the downtown loop. Feel free to resist that pressure. A covered highway would be nice, but it’s down the list from other needs, like sustainable energy at our new airport terminal, and flood control.

Human infrastructure is just as important as brick-and-mortar stuff. We have too many shootings and murders; the need for federal gun legislation is as high as ever. We share your support for rank-and-file police, but believe officers should be accountable, too.

Early childhood education remains a critical need, and the tax credit for families with children is essential. Climate change is a major challenge (don’t forget mitigation in the urban core: a “million tree March” would be nice.) Expanded Medicaid has come to Missouri; you should ask Kansas lawmakers to take a similar step.

Finally, the need for affordable housing is overwhelming. Washington can help, and should.

This region voted for you in 2020, Mr. President, in large part because your predecessor left them exhausted and disillusioned. You’ve done much in the first year to help the nation recover from those sorry years.

But the job is far from finished. Bob Dole was known for his hard work. Let him be an inspiration for you, and for all of us.