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Political BLOG |
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Joe Arnold
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March 2008 ArchivesChelsea Clinton will be in Lexington and Louisville this week, campaigning for her mother. ...House and Senate leaders are busy calling their colleagues at this hour to tell them the Monday session of the Kentucky legislature has been cancelled. ...Some random thoughts on budget negotiations, including the fact that they've gone back behind closed doors: ...A company that makes cabinets for slot machines and other gambling devices is preparing to open a plant in Kentucky. ...The House and Senate leaders who are trying to hammer out a compromise state budget are back behind closed doors. After saying the conference committee negotiations would be open to the public and KET, Senate President David Williams closed a meeting between 10 House and Senate leaders and Lottery President Arch Gleason on Friday. And according to the Lexington Herald-Leader and >> Continue reading: Back Behind Closed Doors Hillary Clinton did one-on-one interviews with TV reporters after her visit to Manual H.S. on Saturday. Here's the link for her interview with WHAS11 News' Gene Kang. ...House Speaker Jody Richards hinted today that budget negotiators think they'll be able to "adequately fund" education and social services without raising taxes. ...Hillary Clinton is trying to show she's got military folks on her side in the campaign for president. Meanwhile, Obama is opening his Kentucky HQ on the same day Clinton is coming to Louisville. Here's Clinton's e-mail, signed by former military officers followed by details of Obama's HQ opening: ...Louisville developer Chris Thieneman's off and on run for Congress is still on hold. Thieneman's name will be on the May ballot as a republican candidate. But he says he's "still on the fence" about whether to run an all out campaign. ...Kentucky lawmakers are telling the executive and judicial branches of government to tighten their belts in these tough budgetary times, but they're not doing the same. ...Governor Steve Beshear made official what we reported at 5 and 11 p.m. Wednesday, the casino bill is dead. Beshear told reporters today that he's pulled the plug on trying to pass any form of casino legislation because of lack of support in the House. ...About 9,000 who have changed their party registration since January 1st, won't be allowed to vote in the May primary election. ...Her husband was here this week. Now Hillary Clinton is visiting the Bluegrass State this weekend. After a couple of stops in Indiana, Clinton will cross the river into Louisville then travel to Madisonville. Here's the itinerary from the Clinton campaign: ...House Speaker Jody Richards said today that SB 40, which requires abortion providers to show pregnant women an ultrasound before they have an abortion, isn't going anywhere in the House. ...Governor Beshear has set up a state panel to pull together all of the infrastructure and other improvements needed to successfully handle the future influx of soldiers and civilians at Ft. Knox. ...About one-third of American voters apparently think the presidential candidate's selection of a running mate is important in deciding who they'll for. That's according to Survey USA. ...It looks like future funding for the Ohio River bridges and other mega-projects may throw another boulder in the way of a negotiated state budget. ...WHAS 11 anchor Doug Proffitt had a satellite interview with Hillary Clinton today, asking her about her wrong claim that she landed in Bosnia in 1996 under sniper fire. Here's the full interview, which is only about 3 minutes long. Mrs. Clinton may be in Madisonville this weekend after canceling planning for a stop in Louisville last Friday. ...Well, Bill Clinton certainly hasn't changed much. He was a little late for his first speech of the day, then talked for 55 minutes instead of the allotted 20. He glad handed and signed autographs for another 30 minutes before leaving Frankfort around 12:45 p.m. His next event, an hour away in Paris, was scheduled to start at 12:30 p.m. ...The incredibly slow process of hammering a compromise state budget plan has begun, sort of. The budget conference committee couldn't agree on how to disagree so negotiations never really got off the ground today. ...The Republicans do it too. It's those fear mongering e-mails to raise money for campaigns. Reporter Pat Crowley is reporting on the latest from the Mitch McConnell and Geoff Davis camps. ...The Louisville-area college republicans have managed to snare an all-star line up for their big dinner this weekend. Here's the details: ...Governor Steve Beshear may be wondering why he ran for governor about now. His approval rating has dipped below 50% and more Kentuckians now disapprove than approve of the job he's doing as governor. ...All of the high school students in the Franklin County School District are getting a chance to see Bill Clinton at a campaign rally in Frankfort on Tuesday, with parental approval. But that's not sitting well with all parents. ...The Kentucky State Senate has passed a budget that, in total, doesn't look a whole lot different than the one passed by the House. But it has some interesting twists. ...U.S. Senate candidate Greg Fischer is e-mailing folks, hoping they'll pony up some cash before the end of the month financial reporting deadline. Fischer is telling potential givers that he'll match their donations dollar for dollar with his own money. ...Here's the Tuesday itinerary for Former President Bill Clinton from his wife's campaign: ...Maysville may be the center of the Kentucky universe this week.....a boys' state basketball title for Mason County on Saturday, George Clooney in town tonight and Bill Clinton tomorrow. ...Governor Beshear's office has scheduled a news conference for 2 p.m. Monday in the Capitol Rotunda to unveil the democrats' new strategy for passing a casino bill. ...I told you Steve Beshear would finally get a win. He wins the bet with Iowa's governor over the outcome of the WKU-Drake game. ...The David Williams vs. Harry Moberly mudslinging stepped up a notch on Friday, just as the two of them get ready to join the other House and Senate leaders for negotiations on the budget bill ...Republican members of the House Judiciary Committee were fuming today after sticking around for two hours after adjournment for a committee meeting that produced nothing. ...Bill Clinton will be a traveling fool on Tuesday, making three stops in Kentucky on behalf of his wife's campaign for President. ...The C-J political blog is still as hard to find as mine but there are a couple of good stories on there today. ...An audit of the 2006-07 portfolio scores on the CATS test has found nearly half of the scores were inflated, giving critics of the CATS test ammunition to abolish the test or at least the written portion of it. ...
The House Health and Welfare Committee voted down a bill that would bar state agencies, including state universities, from offering health insurance benefits to the partners of gay, lesbian and single employees. But the vote didn't come until bill sponsor Sen. Vernie McGaha was berated by Rep. David Watkins. ...A group of Louisville teenagers is getting lesson in civics, the hard way. They're finding plenty of roadblocks as they try to get lawmakers to pass a resolution recommending Kentucky schools provide the study of the Holocaust in their coursework. ...The Kentucky House of Representatives has passed the payday loan bill that's not quite as tough as many consumer groups wanted. ...Kentucky's First Couple will be attending the opening of George Clooney's new movie in Maysville and Jane Beshear tells Jack Brammer she's really looking forward to it. ...Vice President Dick Cheney will be in Lexington raising money for 2nd District Congressional candidate Brett Guthrie. ...State government employees will once again be able to read this political blog and others courtesy of the new governor. ...Governor Steve Beshear and Democratic House leaders are promising one final push to get a casino bill through the House early next week. ...The Louisville Bar Association has polled its members and come up with rankings for the candidates in the Jefferson County judicial races. It appears former state legislator Louis Guenthner is the only candidate who had more lawyers rate him "unqualified" than "qualified." ...In a head-to-head matchup with Republican John McCain, Barack Obama would get killed according to the latest SurveyUSA/WHAS11 Poll. ...Congressman John Yarmuth has been ordered not to wear his "Article One" button when he speaks on the House floor. The button police have also warned other congressman to avoid wearing the "Article One" buttons. And Yarmuth isn't happy. The Washington Post has the funny story.....funny to everyone but Yarmuth apparently. Hat tip to a reader for finding this one. ...The Kentucky Senate continued its pattern of voting on controversial legislation on the same day they're approved by a senate committee. Today, it's the ethics bill which was quickly peddled through a senate committee and full senate within hours of each other. ...Lexington Herald-Leader political writer Ryan Alessi chats with Governor Beshear about the rough first three months for his administration. ...Reporter Pat Crowley was with U.S. Senate candidate as he campaigned in Northern Kentucky. ...Governor Steve Beshear is having a tough time winning anything in the 2008 Legislative Session, much less a casino gambling amendment. But he's going to get a win on Friday. ...PageOneKentucky is reporting that Gov. Beshear is in the process of lifting the ban on access to political blogs from state government computers. ...Hillary Clinton supporters in Kentucky were all a-twitter on Tuesday afternoon with news that the New York senator would be campaigning in Louisville on Friday. ...One of the most heavily lobbied bills of the 2008 Legislative Session will have a new look when it hits the House floor later this week. ...Rep. Larry Belcher was treated like a conquering king by his fellow democrats during a committee meeting on Tuesday. ...The campaign finance bill that was passed by the Senate is now on its way to the 100 member House. ...The House Appropriations and Revenue Committee surprised everyone on Tuesday by approving a bill to give tax breaks to military families. ...The Governor's office employee who claims he was illegally fired after returning from National Guard training, has been rehired by the Beshear administration. ...The Kentucky Criminal Justice Council was pulled out of mothballs today to begin looking for ways to keep folks out of prison. ...You can write this one down: The state senate is about to pass a state budget that looks an awful lot like the original budget plan proposed by Gov. Steve Beshear. ...Indiana Congressman Baron Hill says he doesn't support using tolls to pay for the Ohio River bridges between Louisville and his district. ...Democrat Scott Alexander outspent Brandon Smith by a 2 to 1 margin in losing the race to replace Lt. Gov. Dan Mongiardo in the state senate. ...Another big labor organization has endorsed Bruce Lunsford's campaign for U.S. Senate. Yes, it's another coalition that worked against Lunsford in his 2007 race for governor. ...Ah, it's spring and the Homeland Security grants are flowing: ...Even though his plan for a 70 cent increase in the cigarette tax is getting the cold shoulder from state lawmakers, Governor Beshear obviously isn't giving up. ...It appears some governors are fighting their own state's open records laws and trying to keep their e-mails, which they wrote on government blackberries or computers, secret. ...Louisville developer Chris Thieneman tells WHAS11 News he's reconsidering his decision to quit campaigning for the republican nomination for Congress. ...A federal judge has ruled that Kentucky can't stop non U.S. citizens from carrying concealed weapons. Here's the story from the AP: ...The chairman of the House Appropriations and Revenue Committee ripped Gov. Steve Beshear today for "whining" and "fear mongering" about the House's budget plan. Rep. Harry Moberly also took Chief Justice Joseph Lambert to task for the same thing. ...While Kentucky lawmakers stew over casinos, where to put them, whether to let Kentucky voters vote, etc. Indiana's two horse tracks are about to install slots at their facilities. ...Governor Steve Beshear invited print reporters into his office for interviews on Thursday, apparently telling them that he doesn't like the House budget plan and may veto it if it's passed by the Senate (it won't be). ...Little Johnny and Little Susie could be in shackles for harassing their classmates under a new "Bully Bill" proposed by Sen. David Williams today. ...Nearly 1,000 coal miners and their families carried signs and raised cain on the Capitol steps today, claiming state lawmakers are trying to kill their jobs. ...The Kentucky Public Service Commission has a new Executive Director with ties to some big names in Kentucky politics. She's the daughter of former gubernatorial candidate and Human Resources Secretary Dr. Grady Stumbo and related to State Rep. Greg Stumbo: ...A longtime employee of the Division of Protection and Advocacy will now head that state agency. ...The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife is spending $10,000 to study archery. And the group that's getting paid to do the study has ties to two former high ranking Fish and Wildlife officials. I'm sure it'll be a terrific study. The H-L has the story. ...If you want to see Greg Fischer and Michael Cassaro answering questions at last night's U.S. Senate candidate debate, click here. ...Bruce Lunsford didn't show up but the Louisville Metro Democratic Club went ahead with a debate featuring the other two democratic U.S. Senate candidates from Louisville, Mike Cassaro and Greg Fischer. Both of the first time candidates were better than I expected. ...Some Kentucky horsemen including Tracy Farmer and Brereton Jones held a fundraiser for disgraced former New York governor Eliot Spitzer. They were apparently hoping to influence some racing license decisions in NY state. I'm not sure why it's relevant now but it is interesting. KyPolitics.org didn't make this one up. ...The Kentucky House of Representatives has barely passed a tax hike plan to pay for the two year state budget plan. The vote was 50-45 and it took a while. ...The divided Jefferson County Republican Party is meeting this weekend and it could be a doozy. ...A group that favors school vouchers and opposes teachers' unions is helping a national group search for bad teachers. The group is promising to pay bad teachers $10,000 to get out of the classroom. Quite a gimmick. ...The state senate has unveiled its own plan for dealing with Kentucky's public employee retirement system problems. It appears to be a hybrid of the senate's plan from 2007 and the plan that's already been approved by the House. ...Boyle County's Judge-Executive is the new head of the Governor's Local Government Office. Here's the release from the gov's office: ...It was a good sign to see Gov. Steve Beshear standing side-by-side with Republican Senate Majority Leader Dan Kelly today. ...I remember a few years ago when Pay Day lenders spent gobs of money lobbying against a bill that would regulate their industry. Well, it could happen again. ...The so-called Stream Saver Bill which is aimed at limiting coal waste in streams failed to get out of the House A and R committee today. ...Really. I mean seriously, there are vultures hanging out in trees over at the Kentucky Governor's Mansion according to the Frankfort State Journal. Insert your own quip here. ...
A democratic blogger has filed a complaint with the IRS claiming the "Say No To Casinos" group is involved in illegal lobbying and political campaigning. ...Prior commitments will keep Bruce Lunsford away from the first debate featuring the democratic candidates for U.S. Senate. That's according to a Lunsford campaign spokesman. ...The Kentucky Division of Water is preparing to test water systems all across Kentucky for levels of pharmaceutical residue. ...Governor Steve Beshear told reporters today that he's putting his push for a casino bill on hold until the House passes a budget. He's also sticking with his 70 cents a pack cigarette tax plan, even though it's been dismissed by House leaders. ...A new Survey USA poll shows that John McCain would beat either of the potential democratic candidates for president in the state of Kentucky. ...For long time Kentucky political reporters, there are always moments when we look at each other and say "what's he doing?" Governor Steve Beshear has had a quite a few of those in his first three months in office, just as his predecessor, Ernie Fletcher did. ...Just when you think your Kentucky or local government is blowing money on dumb stuff, remember, the federal government is always worse. Did you see this story over the weekend? ...Reporter Pat Crowley does a good job of summing up Gov. Beshear's struggles in a short column in today's Kentucky Enquirer. I'm still trying to put my thoughts to cyberspace. ...Governor Steve Beshear's last ditch proposal to raise the state's cigarette tax by 70 cents a pack was summarily dismissed by House democrats today, less than 18 hours after Beshear unveiled the plan. ...The Kentucky Education Association wants to see state lawmakers approve some kind, any kind of revenue increase to help plug the holes in the education budget. ...In a huge political reversal, Governor Beshear says he's supporting a 70 cents per pack increase in Kentucky's cigarette tax. ...On the same day that the Senate Education committee passed SB 1, which would abolish the CATS test, Education Commissioner Jon Draud announed that he's setting up a task force to study the state's assessment and accountability system. ...I'm not sure many people, with the exception of Sen. David Williams, doubted how this lawsuit would turn out. A special judge has ruled that Kentucky can't sent state tax dollars to a private, faith-based university to set up a pharmacy school. ...Gov. Steve Beshear's administration has apparently cut some sort of deal so that the top Public Service Commission staffers who were improperly fired in January, will again be out of jobs at the end of March. ...Kentucky's Democratic Party Chairman has sent an e-mail to supporters, lambasting State Senate President David Williams. Here's the e-mail: ...A conservative blog is reporting that Kentucky's Lt. Governor has paid a fine to the Federal Elections Commission for violations during his 2004 U.S. Senate race against Jim Bunning. ...It looks like the House and Senate are in basic agreement on formation of a new state tolling authority to come up with funding for mega road projects like the Louisville Bridge Project. ...Governor Beshear said today that he will veto Senate Bill 1 if it gets to his desk. SB 1 is the bill that would abolish CATS testing for Kentucky students. It's main sponsor is Senate President David Williams. ...A bill that would open up some family court hearings has been rejected by the House Judiciary Committee. ...
Senate President David Williams said today that he believes the governor's office and House Democratic leaders are offering projects and passage of bills to lawmakers in return for their votes on the casino bill. Here's the video version of the story we aired at 5. ...The UK Board of Trustees is apparently bestowing honorary degrees on two guys who no longer live near Lexington, a former gov and a former UK coach. ...The case of the disappearing Capitol sign in sheets has a new twist. The Kentucky Republican Party Chairman is urging Governor Beshear to copy the visitor sign in sheets to the web and put them on the governor's office web site. ...Governor Beshear is removing some of the barriers to felons voting. The barriers were installed by Governor Fletcher. Here's my story and more: ...It will continue to be talked about and reporters will keep reporting on it, but it appears to me that the casino bill is dead for the 2008 session of the Kentucky legislature. That's what a head count by the Lexington newspaper shows. But House Majority Whip, Rob Wilkey, says otherwise telling the >> Continue reading: Casino Bill Appears to Be Dead Kentucky's newest House member, Rep. John Yarmuth, is also least powerful among the Kentucky congressional delegation while Sen. Mitch McConnell is the 7th most powerful senator according to some rankings put out by somebody. Here's the story on the C-J web site. ...The Kentucky Democratic Party bought lunch for about 20 Frankfort lobbyists on Monday, but chairwoman Jennifer Moore says the visit was just an update on what the party planned to do this year. ...WHAS 11 News has learned that three days worth of visitor sign sheets from the State Capitol building are missing and it might leave casino opponents stirring up scenarios on why they're missing. Here's the video sthttp://www.whas11.com/video/whas11video-index.html?nvid=223840ory and more below: ...Governor Beshear held a brief meeting with a handful of reporters today, mainly to talk about Ford Motor Company's decision to lay off 500 employees at the Louisville Assembly Plant this summer. ...The Republican Party of Kentucky has filed a complaint with the Registry of Election Finance, claiming illegal collusion between the Bluegrass Freedom Fund 527 committee and Steve Beshear's campaign for governor. ...Kentucky's Economic Development Secretary is claiming success in luring new jobs to Kentucky. ...The Louisville Metro Democratic Club is hosting the first debate for the dems three top candidates for U.S. Senate. ...It appears Massachusetts state legislature is going through the same thing as Kentucky's. They're weighing a governor's plan for resort casinos in one of the most liberal states in the country. ...The Lexington Herald-Leader is reporting details of what looks like a pretty shaky deal that taxpayers are involved in to build a new hotel at the Kentucky Horse Park off I-75 near Lexington. ...I feel sorry for Jack Brammer of the H-L and Tom Loftus of the C-J. They staked out the state capitol on a sunday hoping some budget news would break. It didn't. ... |
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WHAS11.com Political Blog
WHAS11 Reporters blog the latest political news from the campaign trail and beyond. 
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