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AND NOW IT'S TIME FOR KLIKA AND PRESTA. SOUNDS LIKE A COMEDY TEAM, BUT
AS FAR AS I KNOW IT'S NOT. STEVE KLIKA AND TERRY PRESTA ARE THE TWO CANDIDATES RUNNING TO
REPLACE RETIRING JOHNSON COUNTY COMMISSIONER DAVE LINDSTROM. BOTH HAVE BEEN ELECTED TO PUBLIC
OFFICE. KLIKA SERVES ON THE BLUE VALLEY SCHOOL BOARD AND PRESTA IS A
FORMER STATE REPRESENTATIVE. ONE KEY AREA OF DISAGREEMENT BETWEEN THE TWO INVOLVES PUBLIC
TRANSPORTATION. YAEL, YOU FOAL -- FOLLOW THIS CLOSELY.
STEVE KLIKA KNOWS SOMETHING ABOUT IT, AND TERRY PRESTA DOESN'T.
NO. THIS CAMPAIGN IS ONE OF THOSE THINGS, STEVE KLIKA, A LONG TIME
JOHNSON COUNTIAN, WORKED ON THE TRANSIT ISSUE, BUT ALSO THE BLUE VALLEY BOARD OF EDUCATION.
IN OTHER WORDS, HE'S KIND OF IN THAT MODERATE WHEEL HOUSE JOHNSON COUNTYIANS LOVE.
AND TERRY PRESTA, WHOM I'VE TALKED TO, FORMER STATE REP, BEEN IN JOHNSON COUNTY FOR A
WHILE. HE SENT OUT DESPICABLE MAILERS, ABOUT KLIKA, ONE OF THEM LINKING
HIM TO OBAMA. IT'S A NONPARTISAN RACE, RACE, N MAILINGS ALONE, I'M VERY
DISAPPOINTED IN PRESTA, AND THE STAR HAS ENDORSED KLIKA. I'M VERY DISAPPOINTED WITH TERRY
PRESTA. IN THAT RACE, I THINK KLIKA IS THE OBVIOUS CHOICE.
YOU HAVE A SECOND ONE, TOO. LET ME ASK YOU ABOUT PRESTA, BECAUSE I BELIEVE YOU WROTE IN
ONE OF YOUR ARTICLES ABOUT THE RACE THAT PRESTA IS VERY CONCERNED ABOUT WORKING ACROSS
COUNTY AND STATE LINES, DOESN'T WANT TO WORK WITH JACKSON COUNTY OR KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI.
ACTUALLY, THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS THAT HE CLAIMS KLIKA WANTS TO DO, WHICH IS KIND OF
LIKE, WELL, THAT MAY PLAY WELL WITH THE REALLY CONSERVATIVE JOHNSON COUNTY CROWD, AND I
UNDERSTAND WHY TERRY IS SAYING THAT, BUT I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE SOMEBODY ELSE IN JOHNSON COUNTY,
LIKE PETERSON IS AND SOME OTHER PEOPLE IN THE COMMISSION, WHO ARE WILLING TO WORK ACROSS
COUNTY AND STATE LINES WITH PEOPLE, NOT AUTOMATICALLY SENDING TAX DOLLARS OVER THERE,
BUT WORK WITH PEOPLE. MARY, ARE YOU SUPPORTING PRESTA?
WELL, NO, I HAVE REALLY NOT EVER MET HIM. I MET STEVE KLIKA ONCE.
HERE IS WHAT HE BRINGS, MIKE. WE DON'T HAVE CURRENTLY -- ALTHOUGH PETERSON IS VERY
SUPPORTIVE TO EDUCATION, AS ARE THE OTHERS ON THIS COUNTY COMMISSION, BUT HE IS AN
AUTHENTIC, STEVE IS, EDUCATION EXPERT. HE, I THINK, HAS CHAIRED THE
BLUE VALLEY SCHOOL BOARD. WOULD YOU THINK THAT'S A CONTRADICTION IN TERMS OR
OXYMORON? NO, IT ISN'T. LOOK AT THE TIMES THE COUNTY
COMMISSION HAS COME TO THE AID OF JANUARY SON COUNTY SCHOOLS, AND THEN A BACK WAVE WHEN A
CRISIS IS OVER. STEVE HAS AN IMMENSE CAMPAIGN THAT IS GRASSROOTS, AND IT COMES
FROM THE SCHOOL DISTRICT OF BLUE VALLEY, AND HE IS AN AUTHENTIC LEADER IN SOUTH JOHNSON COUNTY.
IT IS KIND OF INTERESTING TO ME, THESE KINDS OF RACES THAT ARE IMPORTANT.
THEY DON'T GET TONS OF COVERAGE BY THE NEWS MEDIA ANYMORE. ANOTHER COUNTY COMMISSION RAISIN
CUMBENT CALVIN HAYDEN AGAINST FORMER COMMISSIONER, THEY HAVE RUN AGAINST EACH OTHER BEFORE,
HAVE THEY NOT? THEY HAVE. OBVIOUSLY THE ONE FOUR YEARS AGO
WHERE CALVIN HAYDEN'S CAMP -- THEY WERE CAUGHT STEALING SIGNS, AND IT'S FUNNY, BECAUSE HAYDEN
HAS BEEN FAIRLY CONSERVATIVE, REPRESENTING OLATHE OUT THERE. BASICALLY TOPLICA IS EVEN MORE
TO THE RIGHT. WHEN HE WAS ON THE COMMISSION, BECAUSE HE WAS A FORMER
COMMISSION, HE WAS REALLY VERY UNHELPFUL IN BUDGETS. HE WOULD SIT THERE MUTE AND WHEN
IT CAME TIME TO VOTE, HE WOULD BE LIKE, I'VE GOT SOME PROBLEMS WITH THIS BUDGET, WANTED TO CUT
IT EVEN FURTHER. YOU REALLY NEED TO WORK ON THINGS TO HAVE A POSITIVE IMPACT
ON STUFF. THE STAR AGAIN HAS ENDORSED CALVIN FOR REELECTION.
HE'S A GOOD CANDIDATE. CALVIN IS A VERY CONSERVATIVE REPUBLICAN, NONPART SON, --
NONPARTISAN. HE WORKS OUT ARRANGEMENTS FOR GOOD LEGISLATION AND KEEPING
JOHNSON COUNTY IN POSSESSION OF A HIGH QUALITY COUNTY GOVERNMENT.
HE'S AN EXCELLENT CANDIDATE. YOU BOTH SAY IT'S NONPARTISAN, AND I GATHER THESE
ARE ALL REPUBLICANS, AND THE DISTINCTION IS ONE CONSIDERS HIMSELF MORE MODERATE AND THE
OTHER MORE CONSERVATIVE IN BOTH CASES. MORE COMPLICATED THAN THAT.
IT SHOULD -- IN KANSAS CITY, 25 YEARS, THEY ARE NONPARTISAN, AND EXCEPT FOR A COUPLE LIKE
*** BERKLEY WHO IS REPUBLICAN, I'M SURE MOST ARE DEMOCRATS N THOSE RACES, YOU DON'T SEE THEM
TRYING TO OUTDEM EACH OTHER. WHEN THE COUNTY COMMISSION IN ITS CURRENT FORM WAS CREATED 10,
11 YEARS AGO, THE IDEA IN PART WAS TO HAVE THE ELECTED CHAIRMAN SERVE AS SORT OF A JOHNSON
COUNTY MAYOR AND BE THE SPOKESPERSON FOR JOHNSON COUNTY TO JOHNSON COUNTY, AND THE REST
OF METRO AREA. HAS THAT HAPPENED? ED HAS LOST THAT THAT
MINDSET. HE ONLY SPEAKS FOR ONE PORTION OF JOHNSON COUNTY, AND I'M NOT
ONLY GOING TO SAY CONSERVATIVE, KIND OF THE LET'S JUST KEEP THINGS AS THEY ARE, NOT
AGGRESSIVE ON TRANSPORTATION AND OTHER THINGS. AND I UNDERSTAND THAT.
THE PREDECESSOR WAS MORE INTERESTED IN WORKING WITH OTHER PEOPLE.