Gubernatorial Debate Analyzed

From OSI Speaks:

Kentucky Republican gubernatorial candidates, Anne Northup, Ernie Fletcher and Billy Harper, went on the offensive during their second and last televised debate. Watch the KET video debate last night and share your thoughts with us. You can also read Ryan Alessi's piece and Joe Gerth's excellent report on the debate. In the debate, Fletcher touted his accomplishments, Northup (sometimes joined by Harper) demurred. Northup accused Fletcher of presenting an "embellished record" in campaign ads and speeches and of "... perfect example[s] of not having a personal ethical standard".

When Harper and Northup accused Fletcher's 2005 tax plan (the Alternative MAXIMUM Tax -- according to Billy Harper!) of raising taxes on small businesses, cigarettes, alcohol and cable television, Fletcher fired back and noted that Northup voted for (the largest tax increase in Kentucky history, according to Fletcher) as a part of the 1990 Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA).

Billy Harper repeated his assertion of a need for greater leadership from the governor's office -- accusing the Governor of ignoring people but "trotting around the state" during an election -- and criticized Fletcher's record on taxes, noting that he signed off on $4 billion in debt over his term -- more than any governor in state history!

Continuing, Harper mentioned that he is the only candidate to sign the Washington-based conservative group -- Americans for Tax Reform's -- no tax pledge, which Fletcher said he signed in the past and has honored (though the group, Americans for Tax Reform, found that he broke the pledge and added him to its "Hall of Shame") and Northup replied that she had a conservative record on taxes and didn't want "any outside group from Washington dictating Kentucky's policies".

I think Northup did particularly well in this debate by succeeding in putting her opponents on the defensive. What do you think?

From On the Right:

Excerpt from the Courier Journal's coverage of the debate last night:

Fletcher said he chose to keep secret the fundraising for his legal defense fund, which he is using to pay off lawyer bills from his indictment, because he didn't want to release the names of donors while Attorney General Greg Stumbo, whom he has accused of a political witch hunt, remains in office.

"I'm not going to expose them to any retribution that might be there," Fletcher said.

State law doesn't require Fletcher to report the names of donors and how much they contributed until after the November election. But Northup hammered him, saying that "everything should be disclosed" and that Republicans deserve a candidate who won't be the focus of Democratic attacks on ethics throughout the election.

Even Harper, a Paducah businessman who has tried throughout the race to stick to his message of lower taxes and educational initiatives, was mildly critical.

"I think it's important that any fundraising that's used directly or indirectly for a candidate be under public scrutiny," he said. "Whatever you call a fund, whatever it's developed for, we need to be totally open with the public so they can see where the money is coming from."

The Herald Leader:

The two Republican rivals of Gov. Ernie Fletcher aggressively challenged him last night on his ethics and the fiscal record of his administration in their last statewide televised debate before the May 22 primary.

Former U.S. Rep. Anne Northup hammered Fletcher for failing to deliver on his 2003 campaign promise of "changing the culture of Frankfort." Instead, she said, he got mired in a state hiring scandal and has campaigned using taxpayers' money. "This administration has not been without scandal, and because of that the Democrats are lined up to run against us," she said during the debate televised from KET studios in Lexington.

Paducah businessman Billy Harper repeatedly spoke of a need for greater leadership from the governor's office and criticized Fletcher's record on taxes, noting that he signed off on $4 billion in debt over his term -- more than any governor in state history.

Comment: I know that I am biased but I thought both Northup and Harper did very well last night by sticking to the issues and hitting Fletcher hard on the ethics of Fletcher not disclosing the names of donors to his legal defense fund. The Governor looked like a whipped puppy and was constantly on the defensive. With only 2 weeks until the primary I think the momentum is shifting to Northup!

Fletcher Era Ethics

From the Lexington Herald-Leader:

Before he became a leading opponent to a new water treatment plant on the Kentucky River, Franklin County Magistrate Ira Fannin was willing to sell land for a similar plant in almost the same location. Last July, Fannin accepted $10,000 from the Bluegrass Water Supply Commission for an option on 118 acres he and his wife, Patricia Fannin, own on the river north of Frankfort.

The site is about two miles south of the spot where Kentucky American Water wants to build a plant. The option document was obtained from the commission Wednesday through the state’s Open Records Act. If the option had been exercised, the Fannins would have been paid $835,000 for their property. The commission represents several towns around Lexington. It had hoped to build a plant and sell water to its members, and to Kentucky American through a grid of pipelines that connected water utilities.

But those plans have been dropped, and the commission now is considering buying a share in the $160 million plant and pipeline Kentucky American wants to build. And Fannin now argues against any new plant on the Kentucky River. He did not return several calls from the Herald-Leader Wednesday, but has recently argued for a "two rivers" solution to augmenting the region’s water supply.

He also has introduced a resolution to the Franklin Fiscal Court opposing Kentucky American’s plan. A vote on the resolution was postponed last month so the court can get more information from the Louisville Water Co. If passed, it would be sent to the Kentucky Public Service Commission, which is considering Kentucky American’s proposal. At an April 19 fiscal court meeting, Fannin argued that Kentucky American should go back to an old plan to build a pipeline to bring treated Ohio River water from Louisville to Lexington.

Kentucky American officials who attended that meeting said a plant on the Kentucky River would be somewhat cheaper. They also pointed out the Louisville pipeline plan faced strong opposition in the 1990s, and Lexington’s Urban County Council passed a resolution in 1999 saying it wanted a "Kentucky River solution" to the region’s water supply needs. Kentucky American did not immediately return calls about Fannin’s option Wednesday. The company wants to build its plant on a parcel in southern Owen County, with intake pipes on a parcel in northern Franklin County. It paid $685,000 for the two parcels, which cover 110 acres.

Many people in the part of the county that Fannin represents object to the 42-inch pipeline that would carry water from the plant to Lexington and perhaps other towns. On a trip through his district with other magistrates last month, Fannin said he opposed not only the pipeline, but also the idea of the region relying on another Kentucky River plant. "One reason is safety," he said, according to an article in The State Journal, a Frankfort newspaper. "A chemical spill could shut down everything in Central Kentucky."

He said that the Ohio River is a much larger source than the Kentucky. Don Hassall, the executive director of the water supply commission, said Fannin’s property was chosen for a potential water plant for its location, not because it belonged to a public official. Hassall downplayed the importance of Fannin now opposing a plant on the Kentucky when he was earlier willing to profit from one. "It sounds like he’s had a change of heart," Hassall said. "He’s got constituents out there and I’m sure his phone is ringing."

Who Can Ford Trust?

From the Louisville Courier-Journal:

Kentucky Truck Plant workers will vote today and tomorrow on a Ford proposal that guarantees that Super Duty truck production remains exclusive to Louisville and promises investment to adapt the plant for future F-Series models. In trade, workers will lose overtime, some skilled union jobs through attrition, and adhere to stricter attendance rules at the Chamberlain Lane plant. As Ford struggles to recover from more than $12billion in losses last year, ratification of the competitive operating agreement, or COA, will help the company "stay competitive" and "transform our plants," Ford spokeswoman Anne-Marie Gattari said.

Ford workers have endured declining sales, unemployment, and uncertain futures. Their plight has been ignored. Now, additional unemployment, rules and wages concessions have been requested. As reciprocation, Super Duty production has been guaranteed. Promises, promises…

Obviously Troubled, Fletcher Approved

From the Lexington Herald-Leader:

The school council at Clinton County High has recommended the disgraced former superintendent to become the next girls’ basketball coach, ensuring that Sam Gibson will get the job.

Superintendent Mickey McFall said a letter of intent to hire would go out to Gibson, who will make about $7,000 a year. "The council has spent a lot of time on this, and they’ve given me a recommendation that they think is the best one," McFall said. "I respect the council’s members, and if they say he’s the best person for that job then I respect that."

Clinton County High School Principal William David Warriner referred all calls to the superintendent. Gibson’s home phone is unlisted. He was suspended from his job in 2002 for having sex with a co-worker on school property, and then indicted for forging expense receipts related to the affair. He later resigned as part of a court order that also dismissed the charges against him. However, Warriner said Monday that Gibson had coached some teams to state championships when he lived in Tennessee.

One parent said the public would not be pleased. "I think they’re insane," said Sherry McWhorter, who has three children in Clinton County schools. "Parents don’t want their kids to be exposed to him, they don’t want those kind of morals to be taught to them."

Con Edge Crosses Parties, Bases Northup

Governor Fletcher should send a bouquet of roses to Jonathan Miller. At his press conference today, announcing that he was dropping his bid for Governor, Miller drove a stake through the heart of Anne Northup's reason for running for Governor. Here's what Miller had to say: But the odds are, if I stayed in the race, there is a real possibility that the Democratic primary would produce a nominee who was unelectable in the fall.

A nominee whose baggage would be picked apart and exploited by the Fletcher media machine. The reality of the situation is that there is a likely possibility that no matter who wins the Democratic nomination, that person will not win the election.

The very fact that Miller acknowledges that Governor Fletcher is not "unelectable" as Anne Northup and her supporters insist, is huge. For more than a year, the Democratic establishment has tried to finish off Governor Fletcher through death by a thousand cuts.

Now, with two weeks to go until the primary, one of the Democratic establishment stalwarts admits that at least one of the top Democratic nominees will have great difficulty beating the Governor. It's a tacit admission that only one Democrat has a real shot, because Lunsford and Henry have all kinds of baggage, and no one else has a chance besides those two and Beshear. It will be interesting to see the Northup reaction.

Republicans Engage in Final Debate

From the Pol Watchers:

The two Republican rivals of Gov. Ernie Fletcher aggressively challenged the governor on his ethics and the fiscal record of his administration in the final statewide televised debate before the May 22 primary. Former Congresswoman Anne Northup hammered Fletcher for failing to deliver on his 2003 campaign promise of "changing the culture of Frankfort."

Instead, she said he got mired in a state hiring scandal and campaigned using taxpayer’s money. "This administration has not been without scandal and because of that the Democrats are lined up to run against us," she said.

Paducah businessman Billy Harper repeatedly referenced a need for greater leadership from the governor’s office and criticized Fletcher’s record on taxes, noting that he signed off on $4 billion in debt over his term — more than any governor in state history.

Both Northup and Harper said Fletcher — and any governor — should disclose donors to funds that benefit him during an election year, such as a legal defense fund set up to help Fletcher pay his lawyer fees from the 16-month-long hiring investigation. Harper also said the law should bar people whose companies have state contracts or work with the state from donating funds to an incumbent’s campaign.

While Fletcher found himself on the defensive for much of the night, he clung to his message, touting his 2005 plan for lowering taxes on corporations and crediting it for boosting the economy, as well as filling the state coffers. "The true mark of leadership, again, is results," he said. "We’ve had four years of surpluses.

"We’re providing better benefits," Fletcher continued "We’ve done a lot to increase health care. As we’ve begun to tell the story, the support is growing."

Northup then countered that the governor has regularly trumpeted an "embellished record" in ads and speeches.

Fletcher’s campaign has repeatedly claimed he turned a $1 billion deficit into a budget surplus. When Fletcher took office in 2003, the deficit was $262 million and went up to $303 million before the governor instituted budget cuts and tapped reserve funds to cover it. Fletcher said again last night that he considered a report by former Gov. Paul Patton that called for an extra $700 million in new revenue as his defense for using the $1 billion deficit figure.

In another notable exchange, Fletcher was forced to defend his pattern of attending campaign events during publicly-funded official trips across the state. "When the Herald-Leader brought up some questions about my travel and using the state plane, we stepped back and took another look and said, ‘Yeah we’ll share those costs,’" Fletcher said.

On Friday, Fletcher’s campaign agreed to reimburse the state coffers for $19,359 in travel costs. "This administration, until they were caught, did not offer to pay it back," Northup shot back. "This is a perfect example of not having a personal ethical standard."

More concerning to her is Fletcher’s practice of holding campaign fund-raisers to solicit money from donors who were seeking some of the state projects for which Fletcher was providing state money on the same day.

Fletcher also said he has no plans to disclose donors to his legal defense fund, despite calls by his opponents. "I’m not going to expose these folks who came to me and wanted to help because of the ordeal that was unprecedented," Fletcher said, referring to the state hiring investigation.

He said the same people who have helped donate $3 million to his campaign have contributed to the legal defense fund, which he said he will disclose after Attorney General Greg Stumbo — who led the probe — leaves office in December. Northup later fired back, "If these were just the same people who were contributing to the campaign, what possible reason could there be not to disclose it and make it available to the public?"

Fletcher said he offered transparency by volunteering his tax returns to the public’s view, unlike past governors. Harper, the contractor, has been the only candidate to sign a pledge not to raise taxes offered by a Washington-based conservative group, Americans for Tax Reform. Fletcher said he signed that pledge in the past and has honored it, while Northup said she had a conservative record on taxes and didn’t want to cede decision making power to an out of state group.

Both Harper and Northup said they believed Fletcher’s 2005 tax plan did raise taxes on small businesses, cigarettes, alcohol and cable television. Fletcher then went on the offense, noting that Northup voted for tax increases as part of the 1990 Kentucky Educational Reform Act.

Fletcher Era Education

From the Lexington Herald-Leader:

Former Clinton County School Superintendent Sam Gibson was suspended from his job in 2002 for sleeping with a co-worker on school property, and then indicted for forging expense receipts related to the affair. He later resigned as part of a court order. But his career with the school system may not be over -- Gibson is a finalist for the job of girls' basketball coach at Clinton County High School. Principal William Warriner said the school council was "mulling it over."

Gibson applied for the position based on having coached teams to three state championships in Tennessee, Warriner said. However, given his scandalous past, parents are very divided over the possibility. "That brings on the mulling," Warriner said.

The school council is supposed to vote on the matter some time next week. Gibson's problems started back in 2002, when he was suspended without pay for 30 days for having sex with a female secretary on school property. The woman later filed a harassment claim, which led to an investigation. The board said there was no evidence of harassment but suspended Gibson for what it termed an ethical lapse.

Then the grand jury indicted him on two felony charges of forgery and one felony charge of theft for forging expense forms and using a school-owned cell phone for personal use. One of the forged "receipts" -- scrawled on a Post-it note -- was from a hotel in order to hide the affair with the secretary, a school board investigation found. However, in an agreed order with the court, those charges were amended to misdemeanors in exchange for Gibson resigning and paying back the school district. The charges were then dropped.

Gibson was permanently stripped of his superintendent license, and his teaching certificate was suspended for six months, according to the agreed upon order from the Education Professional Standards Board. The board oversees teacher certification. Julian Tackett, an assistant commissioner at the Kentucky High School Athletic Association said the first preference for coaches is faculty, but if they can't find a staff person, they can hire someone with 64 hours of college credits.

They must also pass a criminal background check. Clinton Judge-Executive Lyle Huff said the possible hiring had caused an uproar, most of it against hiring Gibson. "They've been bending my ear regular about that," said Huff, whose wife, Beth, is a school board member. "Whoever the site base (council) chooses, I wish they would look at moving our school system and athletics forward."

Beth Huff declined to comment. Superintendent Mickey McFall said the position was posted, and the council had interviewed several candidates. According to state law on school-based positions, the principal must consult with the council. The principal makes a recommendation which must be accepted by the superintendent. A superintendent can withhold names but the council can request all other names be submitted as well. McFall said he could not disclose whether the council had requested all the applicants.

Fletcher’s Minimalism

From NKY Politics:

Gov. Ernie Fletcher has reimbursed the state for campaign trips he made on a state-owned plane. Here is the campaign's statement. Today the Fletcher Campaign announced that a check is being issued to the Commonwealth of Kentucky to pay for a pro-rated share of the Governor’s campaign travel. This action is not required by Kentucky law. The campaign is going above and beyond its legal obligations.

Campaign Manager Marty Ryall said today, "We have authorized a check in the amount of $18,840.46 to be issued from the campaign to the Commonwealth of Kentucky. This covers a pro-rated share of the Governor’s travel when political events were included in the itinerary." Ryall said, "This covers all of the Governor’s travel from July of 2006 through April of 2007.”

Anyone notice, Governor Fletcher only reacts? The Lexington Herald-Leader reprimands him. He reimburses travel expenses. Fletcher never acts sans prompting. Once again, this was the least he could do.

As the World Watches… Fletcher Fails

This issue was visible. This issue affected individuals, businesses, and Kentucky’s crown jewel. Amidst the controversy, Governor Fletcher remained silent. Why? This issue begged involvement. This issue coveted leadership. Once again, why was our Governor absent?

From the Lexington Herald-Leader:

The leather couches and flat-screen televisions at Bentley's sports bar were all in place for the Derby weekend rush, but only a handful of customers showed up. Robert Mitchem opened the bar a year ago after investors spent more than a million dollars renovating the red-brick building in Louisville's west end. But on the city's most lucrative weekend of 2006, he said his place turned a lousy $25 profit. "It is the one day that the city itself is on the map and makes money," said Mitchem, the bar's manager. "But we took a tremendous pounding."

Owners of fast-food restaurants, bars and barber shops say a city blockade in their neighborhood will keep them from sharing in the $200 million that's poured into the local economy on the weekend of the Kentucky Derby. The police shutdown of a portion of Broadway - a wide downtown thoroughfare just a few miles from the world's most famous horse race - targets a predominantly black area, business owners said. The business owners filed a lawsuit last month asking a federal judge to ban the police plan, but the court ruled it will stand, at least for this year's Derby. "Supposedly Derby is good business, but we haven't gotten any of it," said Jessie Green, the owner of Big Momma's Soul Kitchen along Broadway.

Louisville police began the blockade to discourage the thousands of shiny, souped-up cars and revelers who had flocked to the area in recent years to hang out and be seen. Broadway's six lanes resembled a parking lot as gridlocked traffic stretched for dozens of blocks.

The unofficial tradition grew in popularity and brought a boon to neighborhood businesses but culminated in violence two years ago. "In '05 when we experienced such violence, the community at large said, 'Hey, this is not acceptable,'" said Lt. Col. Phil Turner, an assistant Louisville police chief. "And that's why we took the position that there would be no cruising and no violence along Broadway. Our goal is to eliminate that."

But business owners said that closes them off from the bonanza most other Louisville businesses enjoy on Derby weekend. The main race and its Friday predecessor, the Kentucky Oaks, attract more than 250,000 people to Churchill Downs over two days. An economic impact study from 2001 found that fans, horse owners, trainers and corporate sponsors spend more than $137 million over the three-day weekend, and that spending generates another $80 million in indirect expenditures. The group of west end businesses that sued said last year's shutdown cost them at least $150,000 in sales, and many ended up closing on what should have been the busiest day of the year.

"Last year, I made no money," said Marilyn Bland, who has owned Lee's Famous Recipe on Broadway for 23 years. Bland said she made so little the night before Derby that she ended up sending her workers home and closing the restaurant for the rest of the weekend, losing about $15,000. "I realize the city's got to do what they got to do to control the crime, but I don't think that making me suffer is the answer," Bland said.

Bland and other business owners met with Dick Gregory, a national civil-rights activist, before a court hearing on the suit this week. Gregory called the police plan heavy-handed and racist. "You have two standards, one for the black community and one for the white community," Gregory said.

The court ruled that the police shutdown "imposed financial and intangible injuries to local residents and business owners," but the public safety issue outweighed those concerns. Louisville's police chief, Robert White, said the city's anti-cruising plan - which uses hundreds of officers - is flexible but the latest method "has the potential of saving someone's life."

Other tactics in past years included relaxing enforcement of minor offenses and alternate events to try and draw cruisers away from Broadway. In 2001, the city spent $325,000 to organize concerts on the other end of town, but attendance lagged and the plan was scrapped. Last year's shutdown was announced after a fatal shooting and rape occurred in 2005. Police have scaled back the plan this year, closing off a smaller portion of Broadway. That will leave Green's restaurant outside the blockade. "I was going to close, but they say they're going to open it up down here, so I'm hoping people will come," Green said.

Again, From Their Lips…

Another promise? Governor Fletcher promised aid. He delivered Fordfare. Why should Ford workers believe official’s assurances?

From the Louisville Courier-Journal:

Union workers at the Kentucky Truck Plant are due to vote Wednesday and Thursday on company-proposed concessions that slash overtime by converting the workweek from five days to four and eliminate some jobs. In the agreement, Ford assures that Super Duty truck production will remain in Louisville and promises plant investments.

Many of the concessions sought by Ford from 4,800 union workers at the Chamberlain Lane plant resembles one passed last March by UAW members at the Louisville Assembly Plant on Fern Valley Road. Similar deals have also been approved by most of Ford's North American plants in the last 18 months as the troubled automaker seeks to pare costs.

"It is a changing world and we have got to accept these changes. We have got to do this to have a future," United Auto Workers Local 862 president Rocky Comito said this morning. "The whole idea is to do more with less," Ford spokeswoman Anne Marie Gattari said. "We are trying to make our plants more efficient."