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Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback apologized Monday for what he called his staff's "overreaction" to a disparaging tweet directed at him by a high school senior during a state Capitol visit.

Emma Sullivan, 18, said late Sunday that a Brownback staffer had notified her school's principal about the tweet, and the principal told her she had to write an apology to the governor. On Monday -- the deadline for the letter, according to the teen -- the Shawnee Mission School District issued a statement stating that "she is not required to write a letter of apology to the governor."

A statement issued by Brownback on Monday did not reference Sullivan by name or mention the prospect of any apology letter. He did emphasize his support for "freedom of speech," while thanking "the thousands of Kansas educators who remind us daily of our liberties, as well as the values of civility and decorum."

"My staff overreacted to this tweet, and for that I apologize," the governor said. "Freedom of speech is among our most treasured freedoms."

The teen made national headlines last week for a tweet she said was intended just for her friends.

During a Kansas Youth in Government field trip to the state Capitol on November 21, Sullivan wrote: "Just made mean comments at gov brownback and told him he sucked, in person #heblowsalot."

The Shawnee Mission East senior said she did not actually talk to Brownback, and the post referenced a joke she had with a student on the trip.

The next day, she was called into high school Principal Karl Krawitz's office.

"I had no idea what it was about or why I was being called into the office," she said. "I had never been in trouble before."

Sullivan claimed that the principal "told me he needed to do damage control and was really upset."

"He said I was an embarrassment to the school and the school district and that I had been disrespectful," she added.

The principal then asked her to write a letter of apology to Brownback and his staff. He set Monday as the due date for the letter. CNN contacted Krawitz's office but received no response.

Sullivan said Sunday night -- when she still thought the apology letter was due -- that she wouldn't write it, adding that her parents and many of her peers supported her decision.

"I don't think I should write the letter, and I don't think it would be the best move for me," she said. "At this time, I do not think an apology would be a sincere thing for me to do."

But that appeared to become a moot point when "district officials" in Shawnee Mission reviewed the case and asserted Monday that no apology was required and that no "further action" is expected on the issue.

"The district acknowledges a student's right to freedom of speech and expression is constitutionally protected," the district said in its statement. "The district has not censored Miss Sullivan nor infringed upon her freedom a speech."

"I hope that the governor realizes the power of the people and how people can make things happen," she said. "I also hope he will spend his time doing more productive things."

At the least, the student said that she hopes the controversy surrounding her tweet will bring attention to the issue of free speech.

"I hope there won't be any consequences and that my principal and the governor's office can move on," she said. "The issue is relevant and, if anything, is a starting point of dialog with the governor about his policies and how our First Amendment rights can be taken away."

The school district likewise framed the matter as something that could be educational.

"The issue has resulted in many teachable moments concerning the use of social media," the district said. http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/28/us/kansas-high-schooler-tweet/index.html
?hpt=hp_bn3 like this girl; she's smart and has it right. A sane person in a sea of insanity, ass-kissing and fear.

She sounds more mature than most of our politicians:

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Sullivan said it would have been nice to personally hear from Brownback.

"I'm disappointed that he didn't say anything directly to me or my parents or my family that he sent out this vague we overacted statement, but I am glad that they acknowledged the situation," said Sullivan.

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I'm proud to hear that som of our kids aren't buying into the bullshit.

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There is a new scandal breaking involving an elected official, a young woman and Twitter. And, nope, it's not what you think.

This one involves 18-year-old Kansas high school senior Emma Sullivan, who was on a school trip last week to the Kansas state Capitol as part of the Youth in Government program. On her way back from the event, she jokingly tweeted to her then-65 followers on Twitter the following about Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback: "Just made mean comments at gov. brownback and told him he sucked, in person #heblowsalot."

When you tweet to 65 people on Twitter, it usually just ends there, quickly evaporating into the cybersphere -- tweets are truly the epitome of ephemeral.

That is unless you happen to tweet about the governor of Kansas. In a move that would have undoubtedly impressed Richard Nixon, the Kansas governor's director of communication, Sherriene Jones-Sontag, is charged with the daily monitoring of any negative comments about Brownback on social-media websites.

Jones-Sontag, finding this 73-character tweet by a high school student a threat to the good name of the governor, bolted into action. She contacted the Youth in Government organizers and expressed her outrage over the tweet. In turn, the event administrators, no doubt concerned that the governor's director of communication had taken the time to contact them, informed Sullivan's high school principal.

Sullivan soon found herself in her principal's office being scolded for nearly an hour. Bottom line: The principal has mandated the student write a letter of apology to the governor that is due Monday.

Sullivan, who says she was making a political comment on Brownback's conservative policies that she disagrees with, announced her refusal to apologize for criticizing the governor.

To me, there are a few issues that quickly jump out:

• Who else has the governor confronted for making negative remarks about him? Recent polls indicate that Brownback has a 52% disapproval rating -- with a majority of Kansas residents unhappy with his work. Responding to these type of tweets could become a full-time job.

• Is the governor spending taxpayer dollars to monitor his critics on social media?

• Which websites does his office monitor? Obviously Twitter, but what about Facebook and Foursquare? What about MySpace or Friendster? You never know -- someone stuck in 2007 could still be using those websites and making disparaging remarks about Brownback.

• Why is it that a conservative such as Brownback -- who generally opposes government regulations -- wants to regulate free speech? Is there an exception to his philosophy of less government when it is a regulation he likes?

• Can Brownback demand an apology from me because I tweeted this: "Rep Governor Brownback of Kansas demands that teen apologize for tweeting he sucks. #Brownbacksucks" -- and because I'm one of the people who boosted Sullivan's Twitter follower count to more than 7,000 since this story broke?

But the biggest question to me: Does the First Amendment apply in Kansas?

The message of Brownback's office and of the high school principal is alarmingly clear: If you criticize the governor, you could suffer consequences. That is something you hear about in a Third World nation that does not guarantee freedom of speech, not the United States of America.

We need to be especially vigilant in protecting freedom of speech when it involves commenting on the actions of our elected officials. That is one of the cornerstones of our democracy. Having to apologize to an elected official for criticizing him or her, however, undermines our nation by creating a chilling effect on free speech.
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He should be applauded for that. It sends an unequivocal message that criticism of our elected officials must not be limited in any way, and in fact, should be encouraged -- especially by the younger generation of Americans learning about our government.

However, it is still troubling that state funds are used to monitor social media websites to determine if anyone is mocking the governor. It has an eerie Big Brother feel, not to mention that it's a waste of tax payer dollars.]

Brownback should end that practice today, making his focus solely the issues facing all the residents of Kansas -- not whether he's popular on Facebook and Twitter. http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/28/opinion/obeidallah-brownback-tweet-apolo
gy/index.html?hpt=hp_bn9 on all counts, especially the ones I underlined.

And I say again what every news article seems to have missed: He didn't apologize, he threw his staffers under the bus.