Saline County Commissioner Jim Gile’s racial slur was featured on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart on Comedy Central, Thursday night.

Reference to Gile’s comment is featured at 2:38.

A northwest Kansas rancher has dropped a lawsuit claiming the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association is illegally using “beef checkoff” funds for lobbying.

St. Francis feed yard operator Michael Callicrate filed a notice of voluntary dismissal Thursday in federal court in Kansas.

Callicrate sued the U.S. Department of Agriculture and other entities seeking a court order prohibiting any beef promotion program dollars from going to the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association.

His legal move comes a week after the Agriculture Department’s Office of Inspector General released a report finding no evidence that the association board’s activities did not comply with legislation.

The inspector general’s office said it examined more than a thousand invoices amounting to more than $20.5 million in reimbursement payments from the beef checkoff fund.

U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) continues to work to provide as much relief to drought-impacted producers as possible. NRCS State Conservationist Eric B. Banks announced the agency will assist producers through a new Drought Recovery Initiative. NRCS will use two application cutoff dates for the initiative: May 17 and June 21, 2013.

“We know farmers and ranchers around the state have been hit hard by the drought,” said Banks. The drought has caused serious degradation to many natural resources in Kansas including wildlife, wildlife cover, livestock forage, livestock water, and soil quality. The Drought Recovery Initiative will be supported through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and may be a source of assistance to mitigate the short-term or long-term effects of drought.

Livestock producers have been especially hard hit and NRCS has grazing specialists that provide recommendations about range and pasture management and options to consider for forage and water management. “It’s important for producers to have a contingency plan which addresses drought in ways such as deferred or rotational grazing, alternative water sources, combining herds, or possibly reducing livestock numbers,” said Banks. Conservation plans can include decisions made which address the impacts of drought, or better yet, alternatives to prepare land for drought when climatic conditions are favorable.

EQIP offers financial and technical assistance to eligible participants to install or implement structural and management practices on eligible agricultural land. Conservation practices must be implemented to NRCS standards and specifications. In Kansas, socially disadvantaged, limited resource, and beginning farmers and ranchers will receive a higher payment rate for eligible conservation practices applied.

Additional information about drought resources is located on the Kansas NRCS drought Web site at www.ks.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/drought/index.html or stop by your local USDA Service Center and visit the NRCS office.

U.S. retail sales fell in March from February by the most in nine months, indicating higher taxes and weak hiring have made consumers more cautious about spending.

The Commerce Department says retail sales declined a seasonally adjusted 0.4 percent last month. That followed a 1 percent gain in February. Both February and January’s figures were revised lower.

Consumers cut back across a wide range of categories. Sales at auto dealers dropped 0.6 percent. Gas station sales dropped 2.2 percent, partly reflecting lower prices. The retail sales figures aren’t adjusted for price changes.

Excluding autos, gas and building materials, core sales dropped 0.2 percent in March. That followed a gain of 0.3 percent in January. Department stores, grocery stores, electronics retailers and sporting goods stores all reported lower sales.

The U.S. Navy plans to name a combat ship after the City of Wichita.

The USS Wichita will be the third to bear the name and honors the largest city in Kansas.

“I received a call from the Secretary of the Navy delivering exciting news: the Navy will recognize the city of Wichita with a new Littoral Combat Ship bearing its name. Two great ships have already carried Wichita’s namesake, and its re-selection is a real honor for the city and for Kansas.”

The ship is designed to be fast and agile with the flexibility to execute missions close to shore in mine, anti-submarine and surface warfare.

The USS Wichita will be built by Lockheed Martin for delivery in February 2017. It will be 378 feet long and able to travel at more than 40 knots.

The last USS Wichita was a replenishment oiler decommissioned in 1993. The first USS Wichita was a heavy cruiser used during World War II in the invasion of Okinawa.

The single terminal idea for Kansas City International Airport has been cleared for take off.  The City Council has passed a resolution to move forward with rebuilding of the airport with just one terminal. The new terminal would be built where terminal “A” currently sits. The estimated cost for the project is just over 1 billion dollars. Construction will take about 5 years.

Senator Moran meets with University of Kansas Congressional Interns