Posted by
KentuckySteele on Tuesday, January 30, 2007 12:36:43 AM
From the
Wolf’s Den:
They came from the four corners of the state, near and far. They came from as far as Frankfort and Paducah and as near as Louisville itself. Some of them had well-known names in Kentucky politics: Fletcher, Beshear,Miller, and Henry. Others not so well known, now: Harper, Galbraith. They all came to the Kentucky Press Association's winter meeting in Louisville, KY to make their case why they should be governor. By all accounts, it was a bust!!! On a side note, I read that my good friend, Steele, at http://steeleskentucky.townhall.com/, was a might perturbed that our favorite RHINO, Anne Northup, was absent from the summit meeting. Not to worry.
Everyone who knows anything about RHINOs knows that on Friday RHINOs get their hair coiffed, nails done and Botox injected so they are ready to campaign for the weekend. So the six who would be king came and talked. The end result was about the same as any campaign stop. It was all style and no substance. The Demobats kept up their "Had Enough" mantra. Far more disturbing to me than their worn out slogan is the new Demobat idea of how to raise revenue for schools , health care and all those unconstitutional state goverment give-away programs.
Demobat candidate Steve Beshear wants to push for a state amendment that would expand legalized gambling.( I wonder if I'm the only one who thinks "legalized gambling" is an oxymoron.)This might play well to the folks up along the northern half of Kentucky, especially with those who own and operate gambling venues, and have a lot of money to buy professional politicians such as Mr. Beshear, but I guarantee you it wont play well down here in Baptist country.
The last time I checked the Bible, gambling was still considered a sin. Billy Harper, to his credit, knows Kentucky needs a better education system than it has now, but opposes expanding legalized gambling not only on moral grounds but also for practical reasons. As a business man he understands that you can't plan an economy based on gambling. He knows that if the state repeals the Alternative Minimum Tax on businesses, more companies will invest in Kentucky, which will increase state revenues. Gov. Ernie, of course, follows the time honored professional politician's course of waffling.
He's personally opposed to it which he believes should satisfy the Baptists, but he wont "stand in the way if it were to be put to the voters to let them decide." which should satisfy the gamblers. In addition, it's a pretty safe bet(if you're a gambler) that Gov. Ernie will wait until after the November election to tell us all what he plans on doing with the state's surplus. Anne Northup's stand on expanding legalized gambling is that she may or may not be for it, adding:"Of course I am a gambler, I gamble everytime I order Chinese food". Ok, Ok, only kidding.
She's taking the safe road like Gov. Ernie: let the voters decide. So the six giants of Kentucky politics met on Mount Louisville and set the tone for the governor's race. Gov. Ernie painfully tried to defend the past actions of his administration with a simple "We're not perfect. But I will say this: We brought the state out of some very difficult times..." The Demobats were, like rats on cheese, crawling all over themselves trying to prove one was more ethical than the other. Those candidates with actual plans and real working ideas were lost in the melee.
Already politicians across the state are predicting run-off elections for both parties. This summit could have been so much more. It could have given the voters actual insights into what platforms the candidates really trully support. Instead it was, to quote Mr. Beshear, where: "many of the policies and plans being talked about ... were merely retreads of promises politicians made in the past." Personally I think we in Kentucky deserve better than that.....