It was interesting to note that southern lawmakers who attended the Southern Legislative Conference had easy access to Caesar's Casino in southern Indiana. There were busses waiting outside the Marriott Hotel in downtown Louisville, ready to take them to the craps tables across the Ohio River. Anyone else think it's interesting that the host of the S.L.C., the Kentucky Legislature, hasn't passed a bill putting the casino gambling issue on the ballot in Kentucky, but is all too ready to ship conventioneers to Indiana to spend their money there?

Last note .. .Governor Fletcher cancelled a Monday morning news conference less than 30 minutes before it was scheduled to start because of "scheduling conflicts". At least that's what press secretary Jodi Whitaker was telling reporters. The news conference was scheduled to announce the Homeland Security grant awards to various communities. When Fletcher found out officials in those communities hadn't been notified and hadn't been asked to stand on stage with him at the announcement, he abruptly pulled the plug on the news conference. He wanted to avoid the egg-on-face he got from the "smoking ban" news conference fiasco a few weeks earlier.

And that's what Fletcher said when reporters asked him about it late Monday morning. So why did he or his top staff tell Whitaker the line she was to feed to reporters was that the news conference was cancelled because of "scheduling conflicts." The Department of Homeland Security or the Governor's staff didn't have their ducks in a row and needed some time to make some phone calls and invitations. It wasn't that big of a deal. We get it. Just come clean.