Kansas First District Republican Congressman Tracy Mann was in Emporia Friday.
Mann stopped at the Lyon County History Center as part of a two-week town hall tour across the Big First to gauge local residents’ thoughts on a number of both foreign and domestic affairs. During Friday’s conversation in Lyon County, the topic of Afghanistan was brought up by local voters.
Mann referred to the issues in Afghanistan as an “operational and intelligence failure on a massive scale.” The conversation would later shift focus to more localized matters including employment and industrial development.
Mann says he has heard discussions of local job growth which is encouraging, however, he says the continuation of federal unemployment benefits is a concern to him at this time.
Mann’s visit to Emporia came just hours after Kansas Governor Laura Kelly’s morning news conference regarding the COVID-19 pandemic during which time she made a number of requests including for Kansans to get vaccinated and for school districts across the state to institute masking regulations of some kind.
Mann states while he was unable to tune in for the news conference, he stated vaccinations and other mitigation practices need to be left up to the individual.
A common feeling that has been expressed in recent weeks is that the topic of COVID-19 and certain mitigation practices have become “overly-politicized.” When asked his thoughts on the subject Mann responded, “politics are political.”
Throughout his tour, Mann says he has received a range of questions from individuals both like-minded and of differing opinions. He says the conversations and dialogue over the past two weeks has been highly informative as he returns to the nation’s capital.
Prior to his stop in Emporia, Mann also visited Morris and Wabaunsee counties before concluding his tour of the district in Chase County late Friday afternoon.
