BluegrassReport.org

The Problem with the MSM: An Illustration

Some ultra-sensitive folks in the mainstream media have interpreted the blogosphere's criticism for them as a critique on reporters alone.

And it's not.

Nor is it a critique about the editorial boards who unfairly bear most of the right-wing's attacks.

In fact, the real problem starts at the very top.  The two dominant newspapers in the state, the Courier Journal and the Lexington Herald-Leader, are owned by huge corporate conglomerates, Gannett and McClatchy, respectively.  Conglomerates that seem to put the bottom line well above the core principles of good journalism.

This is a trend that is all too familiar recently.  In fact, the final season of the critically acclaimed HBO TV series "The Wire" recently focused on the challenges facing the newspaper industry.   

Just last week, these two conglomerates announced huge cutbacks, which will dramatically affect operations at the Courier and Herald in the long run.  In the meantime, these papers suffer from stiff competition with TV news, and now, especially, the Internet and the blogosphere, to where more and more younger readers are turning to get their news and information.

The reaction of the Herald and the Courier?

It should be to support their remaining reporters and produce a news product that is superior to what anyone can get on the Web.

Unfortunately, too often, the choice is to focus on hype, sensation, and innuendo, which I believe will only turn more people away.

I've already opined about how the MSM's coverage toward the Beshear Administration has been distorted to emphasize sensationalism and has tried to create scandals where there are none.

But let's take a more recent example of its failure to prioritize news that is truly important.

Early last week, one of the Herald's smartest and most veteran reporters, Art Jester, uncovered a crisis transpiring in the national student loan industry.  Many state programs were going under, and Jester discovered that Kentucky's student loan program was threatened as well.  It was possible that 110,000 Kentucky students would have to go scrambling to find loans on the private market, and many thousands of them would likely fail to be able to attend classes this fall.

In prime newspaper position, front page, top of the fold, the Herald ran his piece with the banner headline, "Student Loan agency to run out of money,"  Great article, and, of course, it was a scary, bad news piece about government problems that the MSM loves to run.

But then something really positive happened.  Governor Steve Beshear solved the problem.  In a way that not only ensured that every student who wants a loan can get one, but also with an investment vehicle that will get the state a better rate of return than it typically does in the marketplace.  Jester, of course wrote a great piece on this, and gave Beshear due credit.

But where was the follow-up piece to the front-pager that probably scared thousands of families?

It was buried on the bottom of the city-state page.

What got the front page, top-of-the-fold treatment?

"Police to Ticket Cars on Lawns During Game Day."

To be fair, the Courier placed Nancy Rodriquez' excellent piece on the same issue where it belonged, front-page, top of the fold.

And also to be fair, this morning the wise Herald editorial board gave credit where credit is due.  As did their counterparts at the Courier.

But the Herald placement represents a more common trend--the MSM insulting the intelligence of the average reader and de-emphasizing news that really matters in return for sensationalism that they think will sell more papers.

In my opinion, it is a self-defeating policy which will hasten the demise of the newspaper business. 

And that's too bad.

The David Williams Scandal Expands

In the coming days, BGR will explore the web of connections between Senate President David Williams, and the two main targets of the FBI's investigation into alleged illegalities in the Fletcher Transportation Cabinet: road magnate Leonard Lawson and Fletcher Transportation Secretary Bill Nighbert.

Today, let's look at the accounting firm that was named in the FBI affidavit as the alleged conduit for payments from Lawson to Nighbert: Marr, Miller & Myers out of Corbin.

A search of the KY Registry Database shows the following contributions that key members of this accounting firm made.  Look familiar?

MARR, ARCHIE  250 RIVA RIDGE / PO BOX 663 CORBIN, KY, 40701 Employer : MARR, MILLER & MYERS Occupation : ACCOUNTANT	INDIVIDUAL Contribution $1,000.00 on 03/16/2002 WILLIAMS, DAVID for STATE SENATOR - 16TH DISTRICT PRIMARY - 05/28/2002
MARR, KAREN 250 RIVA RIDGE CORBIN, KY, 40701 Employer : MARR, MILLER & MYERS Occupation : ACCOUNTANT	INDIVIDUAL Contribution $1,000.00 on 03/16/2002 WILLIAMS, DAVID for STATE SENATOR - 16TH DISTRICT PRIMARY - 05/28/2002
MYERS, BECKY 2961 FIFTH STREET CORBIN, KY, 40701 Employer : MARR, MILLER & MYERS Occupation : CPA	INDIVIDUAL Contribution $250.00 on 02/27/2002 WILLIAMS, DAVID for STATE SENATOR - 16TH DISTRICT PRIMARY - 05/28/2002
MYERS, JAMES 249 WINNERS CIRCLE CORBIN, KY, 40701 Employer : MARR, MILLER & MYERS, PSC Occupation : CPA	INDIVIDUAL Contribution $250.00 on 03/23/2002 WILLIAMS, DAVID for STATE SENATOR - 16TH DISTRICT PRIMARY - 05/28/2002
MYERS, JAMES 249 WINNERS CIRCLE CORBIN, KY, 40701 Employer : MARR, MILLER & MYERS, PSC Occupation : CPA	INDIVIDUAL Contribution $250.00 on 03/23/2002 WILLIAMS, DAVID for STATE SENATOR - 16TH DISTRICT PRIMARY - 05/28/2002
MYERS, REBECCA P O BOX 663 CORBIN, KY, 40702 Employer : MARRS MILLER AND MYERS Occupation : CPA	INDIVIDUAL Contribution $500.00 on 12/13/2005 WILLIAMS, DAVID for STATE SENATOR - 16TH DISTRICT PRIMARY - 05/16/2006
MYERS, REBECCA P O BOX 663 CORBIN, KY, 40702 Employer : MARRS MILLER AND MYERS Occupation : CPA	INDIVIDUAL IN-KIND Contribution $448.74 on 12/13/2005 WILLIAMS, DAVID for STATE SENATOR - 16TH DISTRICT PRIMARY - 05/16/2006
COMBS, ROBERT 15 ALPINE PASS LONDON, KY, 40741 Employer : MARR, MILLER, & MYERS, PSC Occupation : ACCOUNTANT	INDIVIDUAL Contribution $750.00 on 03/16/2002 WILLIAMS, DAVID for STATE SENATOR - 16TH DISTRICT PRIMARY - 05/28/2002
LOGAN, NANCY 9 SHADY BROOK LANE CORBIN, KY, 407010000 Employer : MARR, MILLER, MYERS PSC Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$1,000.00 on 07/15/2007 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE GENERAL - 11/06/2007
MAHAN, DELMAR 1875 FRANKFORT SCHOOL RD CORBIN, KY, 407010000 Employer : MARR, MILLER & MEYERS Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$1,000.00 on 12/31/2002 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE PRIMARY - 05/20/2003
MAHAN, DELMAR 1875 FRANKFORT SCHOOL RD CORBIN, KY, 407010000 Employer : MARR, MILLER, MYERS PSC Occupation : ACCOUNTANT INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$1,000.00 on 09/18/2006 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE PRIMARY - 05/22/2007
MAHAN, DELMAR 1875 FRANKFORT SCHOOL RD CORBIN, KY, 407010000 Employer : MARR, MILLER, MYERS PSC Occupation : ACCOUNTANT INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$1,000.00 on 07/15/2007 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE GENERAL - 11/06/2007
MARR, ARCHIE 363 OAK GROVE CHURCH RD CORBIN, KY, 407020000 Employer : MARR, MILLER & MEYERS Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$1,000.00 on 12/31/2002 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE PRIMARY - 05/20/2003
MARR, ARCHIE 363 OAK GROVE CHURCH RD CORBIN, KY, 407020000 Employer : MARR, MILLER & MEYERS Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$1,000.00 on 08/30/2005 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE PRIMARY - 05/22/2007
MARR, ARCHIE 363 OAK GROVE CHURCH ROAD CORBIN, KY, 407020000 Employer : MARR, MILLER, MYERS PSC Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$1,000.00 on 09/18/2006 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE PRIMARY - 05/22/2007
MARR, ARCHIE 363 OAK GROVE CHURCH RD CORBIN, KY, 407020000 Employer : MARR, MILLER & MEYERS Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$-556.00 on 10/18/2006 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE PRIMARY - 05/22/2007
MARR, ARCHIE 363 OAK GROVE CHURCH ROAD CORBIN, KY, 407020000 Employer : MARR, MILLER, MYERS PSC Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$1,000.00 on 07/15/2007 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE GENERAL - 11/06/2007
MARR, KAREN 363 OAK GROVE CHURCH RD CORBIN, KY, 407020000 Employer : MARR, MILLER & MEYERS Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$1,000.00 on 12/31/2002 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE PRIMARY - 05/20/2003
MARR, KAREN 363 OAK GROVE CHURCH ROAD CORBIN, KY, 407020000 Employer : MARR, MILLER, MYERS PSC Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$1,000.00 on 09/18/2006 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE PRIMARY - 05/22/2007
MARR, KAREN 363 OAK GROVE CHURCH ROAD CORBIN, KY, 407020000 Employer : MARR, MILLER, MYERS PSC Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$1,000.00 on 07/15/2007 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE GENERAL - 11/06/2007
MILLER, WENDELL P.O. BOX 1202 CORBIN, KY, 407020000 Employer : MARR, MILLER, M YERS PSC Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$1,000.00 on 09/18/2006 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE PRIMARY - 05/22/2007
MILLER, WENDELL P.O. BOX 1202 CORBIN, KY, 407020000 Employer : MARR, MILLER, M YERS PSC Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$1,000.00 on 07/15/2007 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE GENERAL - 11/06/2007
MYERS, REBECCA 2961 FIFTH ST. CORBIN, KY, 407010000 Employer : MARRS MILLER & MYERS Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$1,000.00 on 12/17/2002 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE PRIMARY - 05/20/2003
MYERS, REBECCA 2961 FIFTH ST. CORBIN, KY, 407010000 Employer : MARRS MILLER & MYERS Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$250.00 on 07/31/2003 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE GENERAL - 11/04/2003
MYERS, REBECCA 2961 FIFTH ST. CORBIN, KY, 407010000 Employer : MARRS MILLER & MYERS Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$500.00 on 08/30/2005 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE PRIMARY - 05/22/2007
MYERS, REBECCA 2961 5TH STREET CORBIN, KY, 407010000 Employer : MARR, MILLER, MYERS PSC Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$1,000.00 on 09/18/2006 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE PRIMARY - 05/22/2007
MYERS, REBECCA 2961 FIFTH ST. CORBIN, KY, 407010000 Employer : MARRS MILLER & MYERS Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$-278.00 on 10/18/2006 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE PRIMARY - 05/22/2007
MYERS, REBECCA 2961 5TH STREET CORBIN, KY, 407010000 Employer : MARR, MILLER, MYERS PSC Occupation : CPA INDIVIDUAL Contribution	$1,000.00 on 07/15/2007 FLETCHER, ERNIE for SLATE - STATEWIDE GENERAL - 11/06/2007

Grayson/Simon Controversy - Team Trey Goes Off The Deep End

It's been 17 days since I challenged Secretary of State Trey Grayson to FINALLY renounce the 2007 endorsement he received from Louisville hate-monger Frank Simon.

Well, we've finally heard from Team Grayson.

Unfortunately, it's not the public renouncement that some of Grayson's supporters promised would be forthcoming.  Apparently, Trey has made the stone-cold political calculation that it's better to retain the political support of the far, far right of the GOP, than to be a representative of all of the people of Kentucky.

Nor is it an honorable admission from Trey that he is ignoring our citizen's petition because he's proud of the support of Frank Simon and his extreme type of politics.

Instead, we need to look behind Door 3.

And, there, we see an oldie, but a goodie from the GOP playbook:

Attack the Messenger.

In this case, that's...TADUM, TADUM....

ME!

Sometime in the past day or so, Brad Cummings, one of Team Trey's leaders (Brad served as Trey's former Political Director and Louisville Coordinator), has begun to circulate an I-Petition (hmmm, I wonder where they got that idea?), encouraging people to renounce yours truly.

Why you ask?  Here is the operative language:

As Kentuckians who love the Commonwealth and do not want to be divided by hate and fear, we call on Walter Hawkins to renounce his own unwarranted and illogical smear campaign.

HUH?

Unwarranted?  Illogical?  Smear campaign?

All I have done is ask Trey Grayson to renounce the 2007 endorsement of Frank Simon, and reported that he has not done so.

That's the simple, undeniable, warranted, quite logical truth.

Here is the proof of the endorsement.

And unlike State Treasurer Todd Hollenbach, who renounced Simon, in writing, publicly, as published on this site, no one has ever offered any evidence that Trey has publicly renounced Simon.

And if you have proof of a written or taped or videoed public renouncement, I will be the first to post it, and congratulate Trey for doing the right thing.

Otherwise, Team Trey's ridiculous overreaction to my simple encouragement of a renouncement demonstrates how thin-skinned they must be, and how it is apparent they may not be ready for the prime time.  Adam Edelen and the whole Governor's office are probably laughing in delight.

-----------

If you truly are a Kentuckian who does "not want to be divided by hate and fear," you MUST abhor Frank Simon, who has built his entire career around dividing Kentuckians by hate and fear.

READ THE CLEAR, UNCONTRADICTED EVIDENCE.

So it's time for Trey and Team Trey to quit hiding behind attacks and distortions, and either renounce the hateful tactics of Frank Simon, or admit that Trey is too tied to the far right to disown him.

If you are fed up like me, it's not too late to sign our petition, the only petition on this subject that is based on truth, logic, and the American way.

A Familiar Whine

If there was any phrase that seemed to pop out of the mouth of Ernie Fletcher during his glorious reign as Kentucky's governor it was this familiar whine: "I'm the victim of a political witch hunt."

Here's a fun game: Run "Ernie Fletcher" and "political witch hunt" on Google and you get this: pages upon pages of articles where Fletcher and his peeps stayed on message and strutted their innocence against the Big Bad Greg Stumbo.

Good news: it didn't work.

Bad news: As Senate President David Williams feels the walls crashing in on him, as the MSM does start to look at the connections between Williams, Lawson and Nighbert, Williams is now repeating that familiar whine.  Check out the Herald-Leader yesterday:

Williams, the Republican Senate president, who has clashed with the Democratic governor, said he considered the release to be politically motivated considering rampant rumors that a grand jury would issue indictments stemming from the investigation last week.

”The indictments didn't come, so they released the affidavit and let people know where to find this affidavit."

Here's the problem.  Maybe the whine washed with the GOP faithful when Fletcher uttered it.  The prosecutor in that case, after all, was then-Attorney General Greg Stumbo, a proud Democrat.

But the prosecutors that Williams references now were hired by the US Attorney James Zerhusen, who was appointed by -- guess who?-- President George W. Bush.  Someone can correct me on this one, but I think Bush is a Republican.

Indeed, as Williams struggles to extricate himself from this political scandal, he's looking an awful lot like Ernie Fletcher.

Wait, Williams looking like Fletcher?  Consider these facts:

Ernie Fletcher was obsessed with roads.  One of the reasons for our poor economic state was he spent $1 Billion on roads in his last fiscal year alone.  He was also obsessed by road contractors.  In his reelection bid, he invited them to the upstairs living quarters of the mansion, where he promised to make them millions more by spending another $1 Billion on roads if reelected.  Fletcher's trusted adviser on roads was none other than Bill Nighbert.  Fletcher trusted the twice-indicted Nighbert enough to pardon him and keep him on as a cabinet secretary.

Fletcher was also obsessed with political conspiracy.  In the face of blatant e-mails showing wrongdoing by his administration, he claimed the merit hiring scandal was political.  He continued this claim even after taking the Fifth Amendment.

Flash forward to today.  Since November, Williams has tried to take control of the state's road fund away from the Governor.  He has filed bills and even a lawsuit to wrestle this control.  He has made backroom deals to receive - before the end of the Fletcher administration - what was perhaps the single largest change order in Kentucky history that increased the amount for a road project in his district.  The contractor on that project - Leonard Lawson. 

Williams advisor during all of these shenanigans - his close friend Bill Nighbert, whom he hired to a $70,000 job even though twice-indicted, calling him an "innocent man."

Now, Williams is following in Fletcher's conspiracy theory footsteps. As mentioned above, he called the release of an affidavit by the FBI, currently controlled by a Republican president, a political move by a Democratic administration.  Williams simply has not learned.  The voters demand that this corruption be uncovered and cleaned-up.  It is clear, like Fletcher, that political cronyism is tops on Williams' list.

You would think after watching Fletcher lose a governor's race based on these issues that Williams would have learned.  As it turns out, he appears to merely be taking his place.

Show Horse v. Work Horse

An old saying divides politicians into two types: show horses and work horses.  Show horses are the types that will almost run over their mother if she gets in between them and a camera.  Work horses get the job done; often quietly, behind the scenes, because it's the right thing to do.

There is an interesting contrast between two constitutional officers and the issue of electronic transparency.  You can decide which one is the show horse and which one is the work horse.

Start with State Treasurer Todd Hollenbach.  Todd is serving as vice-chair of the Governor's e-Transparency Task Force.  And while that task force is coming up with a comprehensive solution to provide a one-stop, fully-transparent site by January 1, 2009, Todd has set up his own, innovative pilot Web site, bringing the public a full range of instant data from the Treasury, the Finance Cabinet, and the Transportation Cabinet, among others.  It's called the Vendor Income and Expense Watch (VIEW), and you should check it out, to see how your government's major financial instituions are working.  Here are all the press releases Todd has sent out patting himself on the back for his good hard work.

Contrast that with Secretary of State Trey Grayson.  Trey's press team has made a huge brouhaha about his efforts, claiming that he's Mr. Transparency.  He's written op-ed pieces, held a press conference, even got right-wing nut Grover Norquist to endorse his effort. When they found out that a meeting of the Governor's Task Force was going to take place when Trey was on political travel, instead of notifying the Task Force, his staff took the logical approach -- they sent out a press release.  (Of course, Governor Beshear rescheduled the meeting so that Trey could attend--he puts good policy above political stunts.)

So what is all the self-praise about?  Check out his site.  You can access all spending since May or about the past 3 months.  In the Secretary of State's office.  That's it.

So - you decide.  Who's the show horse?  And who's the work horse?

David Williams' Friends - the Saga Explodes

As loyal readers will remember, BGR 2.0 relaunched with a series of exposes about Senate President David Williams.

Exclusive #1 exposed the personal ties Williams has with the road contracting business, a business that he has shown extraordinary interest in as Senate President.

Exclusive #2 exposed the close political ties Williams has with road magnate Leonard Lawson, who served to profit from Williams' legislative actions.

Exclusive #3 exposed the intense professional relationship Williams has with former Fletcher Transportation Secretary Bill Neighbert.

Even the MSM took note.

And now, the saga explodes.

As you probably have read by now, an FBI affidavit filed in federal court has alleged that Lawson paid $20,000 in cash to a state highway engineer who was helping leak confidential bid information on state contracts to Lawson.

Furthermore, the affidavit alleges that Lawson also made illegal payments to Nighbert using a business as a conduit.

And in a story broken by the Corbin Times-Tribune, it has been confirmed that David Williams was interviewed by the FBI concerning Nighbert.

Until then, BGR will continue to follow this story closely, and continue to do the hard work exposing David Williams' ties to the cast of characters.  We hope the MSM will as well.

Shenanigans at the 75th LD Elections

Last night, the precinct captains in the 75th legislative district (the seat that State Representative Kathy Stein is leaving to run for the State Senate) overwhelmingly voted to nominate Kelly Flood, a community activist and Unitarian minister for State Representative.

It appeared to be an exciting night.  As Mark used to say and I will adopt, a "hat tip" to Taylor Shelton and BluegrassRoots for their excellent live blogging coverage. Just shows the incredible democratic power of the Internet.

An interesting side note.  Apparently about half a dozen delegates received calls yesterday from someone purporting to be a former Governor endorsing one of Flood's opponents.  Except when later called, that former Governor told friends that not only had he not been making calls, he wasn't even aware that an election was going on that night.

If anybody would like to share their first hand stories, please comment below, or feel free to e-mail me at walter@bluegrassreport.org.

Grayson/Simon Controversy - Day 11: Make Your Voices Heard

More than 60 people have already signed the petition asking Secretary of State Trey Grayson to renounce the endorsement he received in 2007 by hate-monger Frank Simon.

In the meantime, BGR 2.0 has received more "hits" and every day we are growing!

Help us keep up the momentum.  If you haven't had a chance, SIGN THE PETITION!

Check out who has already signed it, and the powerful messages they are sharing with Trey.

Better yet, there is a handy-dandy feature that allows you to e-mail your friends and send them the same message.

Help us get the word out, and maybe -- FINALLY - Trey will get the message.

The Disappointing Carroll Hubbard

Because I think Steve Beshear is a good Governor, I have been criticized for being a "cheerleader" or "mouthpiece."

Compared to the intense anti-Beshear sentiment among the MSM and political blogosphere, I think complimenting the Governor's haircut would get me charged with treason.

But while you will never see me do the reflexive, unfair Beshear-bashing that you can find almost anywhere on the Internet, I will let you know when I disagree with him or with the Kentucky Democratic Party.

And today, I will give you my first example.  During the events I attended at Fancy Farm, I was disappointed to see Governor Beshear's constant trumpeting of the state senate candidacy of Carroll Hubbard.

As important as it is for the Democrats to take back the State Senate, is there no one better to run than a convicted felon? 

And from a political standpoint, do we really think a guy can win who lost two years ago IN A DIFFERENT DISTRICT while running against two guys who split up the Republican and conservative vote?

I believe in redemption like any other guy.  But Hubbard had his chance and blew it.  And his attempt to try to reclaim glory for himself is embarassing to him and destructive to the party.  We need new blood.

We desperately need to take back the Senate.  Let's not spare any of our party's scarce resources on a poor candidate who is bound to lose.

That's why the Governor would be much better served in supporting two, fine, new candidates in Kathy Groob and Steve Newberry.  And I hope you will as well.  I urge you to contact the KDP and tell them to support Groob and Newberry, and not Hubbard.

Grayson/Simon Controversy - Day 9: SIGN THE PETITION TO URGE TREY TO RENOUNCE SIMON

Remember how the MSM smeared Al Gore for months by falsely accusing him of taking credit for "inventing" the Internet?

Well, there was not a peep when Trey Grayson took credit at Fancy Farm for "inventing" the four-day work week and electronic transparency.

Give me a break.  State employees have been allowed to work these types of flexible schedules for seven years, five of which Grayson has served as Secretary of State.

And Beshear has been working on e-transparency since the day he walked in office.  He wants to have a site that is user-friendly like this, not something laughably arcane like Trey's site.

Trey did a good job of appealing to the far right wing of his party, however.  He attacked Bruce Lunsford, who has been a strong supporter of Trey's in the past, and even went after Dan Mongiardo's wife.  Pitiful.

But, oh so conveniently, he never got around to denouncing Frank Simon.  Nine days, and nothing but silence from the Grayson camp.

Many of my readers want to know how they can take action.

So, here is what I propose:

I have prepared an i-petition, urging Trey Grayson to publicly renounce his 2007 endorsement from Frank Simon.

Click here to sign the petition, and join me in urging Trey Grayson to do the right thing.

SIGN THE PETITION TODAY!!!

What's The Matter With Kentucky?

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. I intend to get more engaged in the coming weeks, but thought I'd cross-post something I write earlier today at Political Base on a topic that I wore you all about last year -- the dwindling numbers of new Kentucky voters who are choosing to register as Republicans.

-- Mark
========================================================

As some of you know, before partnering with Shelby Bonnie on Political Base earlier this year, I spent the previous four years in Kentucky managing Democratic campaigns for governor and Congress, and then founded the political blog BluegrassReport.org. During my time in Bluegrass Country, I learned a great deal about Kentucky political history and found myself in the state at the apex of Republican power. But there are some unmistakable signs that the pendulum is swinging back sharply to the Democrats, even in a red state like Kentucky.

Some quick history on Kentucky politics.

Democrats had dominated Kentucky's political power structure for most of the past century, but by the middle of the 1990s, the machine built by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) over the previous 20 years had become a powerful bulldozer, taking out nearly any Democratic hopeful in its way (if McConnell hadn't already managed to convince them to switch parties, which many did).

In November 2003, McConnell managed to get his puppet -- then Rep. Ernie Fletcher (R-KY6) -- elected as the state's first Republican governor in 32 years. Fletcher's election followed the Republicans' takeover of the state Senate and now were within reach of the state House. Already, five of the six congressional seats were held by Republicans, as were both U.S. Senate seats.

By the end of 2004, it seemed rather hopeless to be a Kentucky Democrat. Not only did 60 percent of Kentucky voters back a second term for President Bush, but a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage passed by a three to one margin.

During the summer of 2005, Republicans pulled-off another first when more new voters registered as Republicans than Democrats for the first time in modern history. Though a significant majority of the state's electorate were Democrats, new registrants were leaning Republican in ever increasing numbers.

But a funny thing happened towards the end of 2005 -- Kentucky voters started to turn against Republicans, even in this staunchly conservative state.

Some of the revolt was due to the political corruption scandal of McConnell's puppet -- Governor Fletcher. Some was a reaction to the national tide of anger against the Bush administration for the Iraq War and the Republican Culture of Corruption that populated front pages of newspapers across the country. And even with a feckless and corrupt Democratic Party running the show at the time, Kentucky slowly but steadily began to abandon the Republican Party. In the final three months of 2005, Democrats regained the advantage with new voter registrations by a 47% to 42% margin.

By the summer of 2006 with a sour national electorate and a Republican governor under indictment, Kentucky Republicans found themselves defending three congressional House seats. Eventually, they lost one, when John Yarmuth (D) defeated Anne Northup (R-KY3), and had to spend more than $7 million to narrowly save freshman Rep. Geoff Davis (R-KY4). By year's end, new Kentucky voters had registered as Democrats by a 10-point margin over Republicans during the course of the entire year.

Things got worse for Republicans in 2007 when Kentucky's statewide constitutional offices were up for grabs. The embattled Governor Fletcher -- the first Republican governor in 32 years -- lost his bid for re-election by a staggering 17 points. And despite the GOP's efforts to win back the offices of attorney general, auditor, and treasurer, the Republican challengers lost those races by 21, 18, and 15 points respectively. Punctuating this reversal of fortunes for the GOP, new Kentucky voters in 2007 chose the Democratic Party over the Republican Party by a 16-point margin.

It's now 2008, and the Republican death spiral continues.

Amazingly, McConnell finds himself in an epic battle for re-election against businessman Bruce Lunsford (D) and Republicans are fighting to hold on to yet another congressional seat (KY2). Unfortunately, Barack Obama's (D) troubles in rural Kentucky -- particularly in the Appalachia region where he lost the two largest largest counties in the primary by a margins of 91-5 and 91-7 -- most likely keeps this state in the McCain column (though Obama's gap is narrowing considerably). In fact, Kentucky is one of those states that Hillary Clinton (D), no doubt, would have had a solid chance of winning it if she were the nominee. 

But maybe the most dramatic example of the Republican decline in Kentucky is the continued trend in voter registration towards the Democratic Party (now run by a competent and politically smart crew). So far in 2008, more new voters are registering as Democrats (57.5%) than ever during the 13 years that the state has maintained monthly statistics under the Motor Voter Law -- and the margin between the two parties (24%) is the widest ever.

Below is the voter registration data pulled from the Kentucky Secretary of State's website since 1995 (the first year that monthly statistics are available) and you can see the pretty remarkable shift away from the Kentucky Republican Party and towards the Democrats in just the past three years.

In 2009, I won't be surprised if we see the book, What's The Matter With Kentucky, in bookstores across the country.

NEW KENTUCKY VOTER REGISTRATION BY YEAR/PARTY

Year	Dems%	GOP%	Other%	Dem Advantage (Dem%-GOP%)
2008	57.5%	33.3%	9.2%	24.2
2007	51.8%	35.9%	12.4%	15.9
2006	50.2%	40.2%	9.6%	10.0
2005	45.7%	44.1%	10.2%	1.6
2004	47.2%	41.6%	10.8%	5.6
2003	47.1%	42.0%	10.9%	5.1
2002	51.0%	40.8%	8.2%	10.2
2001	47.5%	42.6%	9.8%	4.9
2000	49.1%	40.6%	10.3%	8.5
1999	50.7%	39.4%	9.8%	11.3
1998	55.3%	37.7%	9.8%	17.6
1997	50.0%	38.4%	11.5%	11.6
1996	45.2%	33.6%	21.2%	11.6
1995	42.0%	33.1%	24.9%	8.9

(Source: Kentucky Secretary of State, Motor Voter Statistics)

Grayson/Simon Controversy - Day 8: It's Time for Trey to Follow Todd's Lead

It has now been eight days, and Secretary of State Trey Grayson has still not answered my challenge to publicly renounce his 2007 endorsement from the uber-right wing hater Frank Simon.

In the meantime, some of my readers have been critical of the fact that I have not issued the same challenge to State Treasurer Todd Hollenbach, who received the same 2007 endorsement from Frank Simon.

Well, you know what, they were right.

So you know what?  I did.

And I didn't want to just ask his staff.  And I didn't just want to ask Todd for his private oral confirmation over a cup of coffee.  That's not even close to being enough.  It is one of the dirtiest old tricks of politicians to say one thing to one audience and another to another audience, leaving himself the ability to take both sides of any issue and deny it to people who might object.

Instead, I wanted Todd to give me proof that he renounced Frank Simon's endorsement, and I wanted to make it public.  Just as I have asked Trey to do.

And guess what?  TODD DID.

Here is the actual letter, dated October 23, 2007:

Download Hollenbach_080408.PDF

I excerpt the key sentences below:

"Please accept notification that neither I, nor anyone involved in my campaign wish to promote a message of intolerance and exclusion...Accordingly, I cannot accept the support of Dr. Simon, now or in the future, for so long as his public support is considered to be an affirmative embrace of intolerance or exclusion."

Through writing this letter, and renouncing Frank Simon's endorsement, and MAKING IT PUBLIC, State Treasurer Todd Hollenbach demonstrated he wants to be a public servant for all of the people of Kentucky, not just a select few.  He has also demonstrated that he is not afraid to make his position clearly known. 

So what's next?

Let me quote one of the bright young bloggers in the progressive blogosphere, Taylor Shelton, who wrote in response to a post of mine favorable to the Governor, "it only undermines the work that 95% of us are doing in trying to create a more responsive, accountable and progressive government in Frankfort."

Well, to my fellow bloggers, if you really want to promote responsive, accountable, and progressive government, you must oppose Frank Simon, who stands for all the wrong things.  (If you click this link, you will see all of the horrible, hateful, vile things that Simon has said to divide our communities.  I urge you again, CLICK THIS LINK.)

So, it is time to join together and urge Trey Grayson to publicly renounce his 2007 endorsement from Frank Simon.  For those of you who were hiding behind the unfair attacks against Todd Hollenbach, the jig is up.

(And guess what--if you can get Trey to post his letter on YOUR website, more power to you; I'd be proud to give you props.)

Join me today!

BGR Friday Funny - Kiss & Tell

At the end of a long week, sometimes a good laugh will help set the tone for a good weekend. 

Just in time for your long drive, or short flight, to Fancy Farm, here is the first BGR Friday Funny for your enjoyment. 

MSNBC did this great piece on the Match.com poll about which presidential candidate would be the better kisser.  Despite his dashing good looks, John McCain lost.  Barack Obama won the Match.com kisser vote with a whopping 77% of the vote.  Apparently, the big question is no longer which candidate you would rather have a beer with; it is who you would rather kiss, although admittedly the former oftentimes leads to the latter.   

Well, if this issue is so important in the Presidential race, do Kentuckians think it is important in our State races?  What kind of kissers do people think Kentucky politicians are?  We all remember Gov. Patton's ability to connect with voters, but how would some of the current match-ups rate on the Kiss-O-Meter?

For example:

John Yarmuth v. Anne Northup:  Well, I know how most men would go on this one ... Sorry, Congressman.  But if there were a poll, I'd bet (assuming we have gaming in Kentucky) Yarmuth, though no Brad Pitt, might do very well.  His passion about issues and his willingness to take bold stands has got to make lots of ladies wish he were single.  I call this one a push.

Mitch McConnell v. Bruce Lunsford:  This is a tough one.  In one corner you have our Senior Senator.  Not much to look at, but husband to power-babe Sec. Elaine Chao.  In the other corner, we have happenin' swingin' singles hep-cat Bruce Lunsford with a million-dollar smile and a bank account to back it up.  This could easily be a push, but I'm going to go out on a limb and say Lunsford would win the poll.

David Boswell v. Brett Guthrie:  I'd bet (again assuming we have gaming in Kentucky) that Boswell would win the poll.  Why?  While Sen. Guthrie knows about Corvettes and likes to drive fast, soon Sen. Boswell could be able to comp you to some great food and entertainment at a new casino.

So, what do you think of these match-ups?  What about other match-ups? 

The Kentucky Constitution 73, David Williams 0

The attempt by Senate President David Williams to use apparently unconstitutional means to exert power, reward his contributors, and help those close to him, has been struck down by the courts.

Time and time and time and time again, the courts have reminded Sen. Williams that he is not above the law.

The big question is how long will his Republican colleagues let him continue in his leadership role? 

I ask all good Kentuckians, Democrats, Republicans and Independents, to please join me by working to change who controls the state senate. 

McCain Brings Negative Campaign to Kentucky

Over at our partner site, Political Base, Mark Nickolas has an excellent post about how Senator John McCain's promise to run a "respectful campaign" has turned into one of the dirtiest, most mean-spirited campaigns in American history.

So, it should be no surprise who McCain chose to run his Kentucky operations.  Yep, you guessed it, Senate President David Williams.

As our readers know all too well, Williams has constantly whined about Governor Steve Beshear taking his role of party leader seriously by raising money for Democratic legislative candidates.

And yet, Williams has involved himself in all kinds of political races, including trying to defeat Steve Beshear!.

And we can never forget David Williams' authorship of the worst dirty trick in modern Kentucky political history.  The McCain people had to know of this--it was all over the national news: CNN, the Washington Post, Salon, you name it.

Just another example of the death spiral of the former Straight-Talker.

First Lady is No Plain Jane

Since this blog started,  I have received some criticism from the blogosphere for being supportive of the Governor.  Apparently, political bloggers are supposed to be mean and nasty all the time.

Those of you who don't like nice posts, stop reading now, or you will suffer Anaphylactic shock

For the rest of you....I have something nice to say about our First Lady Jane Beshear.  While some of our recent Governors have had their issues, we have been lucky with our First Ladies.

I think First Lady Jane Beshear is the perfect person for the job she currently holds.

One of my sources who attended the Somerset Town Hall meeting informed me that the First Lady said something quite surprising.  I paraphrase:

State government can and should take meaningful steps to improve the lot of our people.  But we all need to understand that government, especially in these tough times, cannot solve ALL of our problems.  We need to, as individuals, take more responsibility to make our state stronger, and our world a better place.  Each of us needs to pitch in.

How appropriate.  Personal responsibility.  Community action.  If all Democrats thought like that, we'd never lose an election.  And more importantly, we could really fix some of our worst problems.

And it is notable that the projects she has undertaken are right in line with that philosophy.

Take the Green Team for example.  As her Web site states:

We are asking every Kentuckian to join us in making small changes in your own home because together our efforts can make a real difference.

In events across the state, and at greenteam.ky.gov, we will highlight many low-cost measures and simple practices we have implemented at the mansion that may be employed by most homeowners, such as installing low-flow showerheads and energy-efficient light bulbs, washing clothes in cold or warm water, and turning off electronic devices and unplugging them when not in use.

I encourage you, RIGHT NOW, join the First Lady's Green Team and her Facebook Green team. I want the BGR community not just to be about talk, but about action.

Second, take a look at Recovery Kentucky.  The First Lady co-chairs this effort that is setting up drug treatment recovery centers in every part of the state.  Treating those who need help, and at the same time, helping to reduce our overcrowded prisons. And most importantly, giving these folks a hand up (not a handout) to get their lives in order, take care of their own families, and be positive contributors to their communities.

And for those of you yahoos who argue that this Administration is too partisan, check out her co-chair: Yep, it's Don Ball.  The same Don Ball who was one of Ernie Fletcher's strongest supporters.

Apparently, I'm not the only one who's a fan.  Recently, both of Kentucky's most legendary political skeptics, Al Cross and Larry Dale Keeling were raving about the First Lady.  Larry Dale even said:

Jane Beshear's command of such issues as education, tourism and the greening of Kentucky was impressive — so much so that some in the audience might have wondered if they elected the wrong Beshear.

BREAKING NEWS: Leading GOP Senator Endorses Gov. Beshear's Town Hall Travel

Remember last week when BGR reported that the MSM couldn't find anybody but a few wingnuts to criticize the Governor's Town Hall travel?

Now we know why.  It's because reasonable leaders from both parties understand the importance of a Governor listening to people in every corner of the Commonwealth, and don't mind spending a paltry percentage of a $14 billion state budget to bring state government to the people.

Here is how one attendee at the Greenup County event this week put it:

"...More refreshing to me is the fact that you and your Administration have allowed our people--us--to come hear from our constituents.  And to those who would say that we are playing politics when we come and listen to our people, well let them criticize.

For those who would criticize when we take the most efficient way to get here, if we spend $7000, and we go make 12 visits across the state, that would be about the best $84,000 we've ever spent.

And I don't want you putting these people on a bus, and taking them 12 places in 2 days, and they're all worn out and tired...

To those who would criticize any elected official for going out and listening to the people, they either don't understand or they have got some kind of motive that's not real good."

So who said this?  A Democratic consultant?  The Lt. Governor? An Administration appointee?

Nope, it was Republican Senator Charlie Borders.  Yes, a Republican. And not just any Republican: the Senate Appropriations Chair.  A close ally of Senate President David Williams.

Don't believe me?  Listen for yourself: Download borders.mp3

Senator Borders knows that this is not about partisanship.  But for someone who has represented a far corner of the Commonwealth for decades, he understands how real people feel, how they desperately want to have a Governor who will come to them and LISTEN.  Even when they disagree on the issues, they appreciate the good stewardship that Governor Beshear is showing.

And note that no one in the MSM has reported on Borders' quote.  To this point.

A Couple Of Notes

I'm blown away by how quickly the BGR community has reassembled in the past couple of weeks.  Thanks to everybody for sharing your comments and e-mails.  I will try to reply to your e-mails as quickly as I can.

I have had to delete a few comments in the last couple of days because of harsh language and ultra-personal attacks, both of which will not be tolerated here.  Please feel free to share your strongest opinions on any subject, but please tone down the language.

On the good side, a few young folks have agreed to help me with research and some of the technical issues related to the blog.  They also might post news items, or videos, or pictures for me every so often under the moniker "BGR Staff".  Unlike Mark during his heyday, I can only do this part time, so the help will be invaluable.

Rest assured, however, I object to bloggers who post anonymously or under assumed names.  I think people should be informed and stand-up behind their opinions.  So, "BGR Staff" will only handle updates and will not write opinion posts or present extensive investigative reports.

Now, back to business.  BGR will have a breaking news story for you in the next few minutes.

When $70,000 Just Isn't Enough

Shortly after BGR broke an exclusive story about issues surrounding Senate President David Williams and roads, it was reported that the man Sen. Williams hired to help him with transportation issues, Bill Nighbert, resigned.  Though no one seems to know where in southeastern Kentucky Mr. Nighbert is going, I thought a reminder about where Mr. Nighbert has been would be timely.

You may remember that after Beshear defeated Fletcher, David Williams hired Bill Nighbert, Fletcher's former Transportation Secretary, to a $70,000 job "advising" the Senate on transportation issues. When originally asked about that hiring, Williams responded he had no problems hiring people who were "innocent."

So, here is a brief look at the man David Williams paid tens of thousands of your tax dollars for advice.

Indicted Once
We all know about the Fletcher hiring scandal, but as specific to Mr. Nighbert, here are some of the facts: On June 7, 2005 he was called before a the grand jury. Like Governor Fletcher, he invoked the 5th Amendment and refused to testify.  Even without his testimony, however, on June 14, 2005 Nighbert was indicted by a grand jury for the first time for political discrimination, official misconduct, and criminal conspiracy.

Despite already being indicted, in July, 2005, a videotape was produced that was said to show Nighbert ordering the firing, for political reasons, of the Transportation Cabinet's top investigator. In August Nighbert promoted another indicted official in the Transportation Cabinet to fill that position.

Lucky for Nighbert, on August 29, 2005 Governor Fletcher pardoned him and others for any actions related to the merit system investigation.

Indicted Twice
However, Nighbert's brushes with the law were far from over.  On September 20, 2005 Nighbert was again indicted, this time for violating the state whistleblower act by denying a merit bonus to Missy McRay, a whistleblower who worked under him. It was alleged that Nighbert told the female employee "that if it were 20 years ago, 'I probably would have come back there and socked you in the mouth.'"

Current Investigation
Now, it is being reported that the FBI is investigating the practices of Bill Nighbert's transportation cabinet.  Reports indicate that confidential state road project estimates may have been leaked to road contractors.  The estimates are figures calculated internally to ensure road contractors do not overcharge the state.  Leaking such documents would ensure whoever got them could charge the maximum amount the state had considered, thereby fleecing you of more tax dollars. 

Our Current Economic Situation
Let's also not overlook Mr. Nighbert's fault - along with his Governor - in our current economic crisis.  Remember, when Governor Beshear took office, he found the road fund - including the portion for emergencies - completely spent despite half a fiscal year remaining.  Medicaid was also $300 million short.  Where did all this money go?  Nighbert and Fletcher spent it all on roads, spending $1 billion the previous fiscal year. 

Now that he has resigned, Nighbert will still be politically relevant in at least one respect.  In all of the stories about Sen. Williams' bid to take over roads, people seem to forget he sought the advice from the man who was at the epicenter of the Fletcher hiring scandal, was indicted twice, and may be part of an FBI investigation.   

DAY 2 - Grayson/Simon Controversy

Yesterday's post challenging Trey Grayson to renounce his 2007 endorsement from ultra-right-wing-nut Frank Simon has apparently touched a real nerve in Kentucky political circles.

But still, 24 hours later, we haven't heard anything publicly from Mr. Grayson. 

Whispering in a supporter's ear that you renounce Simon's endorsement is not sufficient. 

Simon is one of the most toxic participants in the political scene, and any serious aspirant for higher office must completely disassociate himself with Simon to have the respect of most of the populace. 

There is one person that can put this whole issue to rest, and that is Mr. Grayson.  If he renounced the Simon endorsement in the past, and still renounces Simon, all he has to do is issue a public statement regarding his position.   

The fact that Mr. Grayson has not issued a statement regarding his opinion of Simon and whether he will personally renounce Simon's prior endorsement, shows why the question was originally posited.