Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
McClatchy Washington Bureau
McClatchy Washington Bureau
National
Bryan Lowry

Deals, quips and Wally Ballou: Kansas' Pat Roberts exits Capitol Hill after a half-century

WASHINGTON — After Sarah Little watched her former boss of 20 years, Sen. Pat Roberts, deliver his farewell speech on the Senate floor Dec. 10 after 40 years in Congress, she left a voicemail to express her appreciation.

Later that day, she got a call from a man claiming to be Wally Ballou. Little knew immediately who it was.

Wally Ballou was a creation of Bob and Ray, a radio comedy team whose career spanned the 1940s to the 1980s. Roberts, a former journalist, adopted Ballou, a bumbling “man on the street” reporter, as his alias when he’d call his office and pose as an angry constituent.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.