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Political BLOG |
 June 2008
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April 2008 ArchivesNationwide polling shows Hillary Clinton would beat John McCain in the popular vote if the election were held today. But an Obama/McCain matchup brings different results from different polls. ...For you Republicans who are still attached to the Ron Paul bandwagon, you'll get a chance to see him in Kentucky in May. The Paul campaign says he'll be at Bowling Green High School on May 16th for a rally in the gym. ...The Lexington Herald-Leader has published a list of state lawmakers and their potential conflicts of interest on its web page. The list goes along with a John Cheves story detailing how legislators sponsor legislation that would help their own businesses or families. ...
Barack Obama's wife, Michelle, has scheduled a campaign stop in Jeffersonville, Ind. on Thursday morning. A few hours later Hillary Clinton will be stopping in Jeffersonville as well. ...
The Council on Postsecondary Education has called a special meeting for Wednesday morning, apparently to name another interim president and launch a search for a new full time president, as the Attorney General has told them to do. ...Not that Steve Beshear would ever appoint him, but Senate President David Williams is closing the door on any speculation that he might seek the Kentucky Supreme Court seat being given up by Joseph Lambert. ...The Kentucky Republican Party is filing a complaint with the FEC, claiming democrat Bruce Lunsford violated campaign finance laws by failing to properly disclose that his campaign paid for a Lunsford appearance on a Louisville TV station. ...Governor Beshear has appointed the retired lawyer for the Registry of Election Finance to a post on the board for whom she used to work. Rosemary Center is the new appointee, replacing Brent McKim of the Jefferson County Teachers Assocation. Here's the info: ...Greg Fischer has narrowed Bruce Lunsford's lead among democrats who plan to vote in the democratic primary for U.S. Senate. But the new WHAS 11/ Survey USA poll shows Fischer still has a long way to go to catch Lunsford. ...Kentucky Congressman Ben Chandler is announcing his support for Barack Obama, joining Congressman John Yarmuth as democratic superdelegates who plan to vote for Obama at the Democratic Convention. ...A report by the State Auditor's Office says up to $26 million in federal money may have been in jeopardy because state agencies that hand out the money didn't properly oversee it. Here's the release from the Auditor's Office: ...
It got real low real quick. First Greg Fischer's campaign appears to have broken FEC law by not having a proper disclaimer at the end of his latest TV ad. Now an attorney for Bruce Lunsford's campaign is writing TV stations telling them they may be violating federal law if they give Fischer the low ad rate offered to other political candidates. ...Governor Beshear has vetoed the bill that lays out how his administration must spend millions of dollars in state highway funds over the next few years. But Senate President David Williams says the veto doesn't matter because what Beshear is doing is illegal. ...Barack Obama is scheduled to be back in Indiana this week though there aren't any details yet about where he'll be: ...The Kentucky Republican Party thinks the republican-controlled State Senate did such a great job, and Governor Beshear and House Democrats such a lousy job during the legislative session, that they're using it to raise money. ...Governor Beshear has appointed five new members to the Horse Racing Authority. ...Hillary Clinton will be in Louisville next month to headline a fundraiser for the Kentucky Democratic Party. Clinton will be joining Gov. Steve Beshear, who is one of the hosts of the event. ...Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Greg Fischer is really on the attack against frontrunner Bruce Lunsford. Fischer's campaign sent us an envelope containing what appears to be a luggage tag. ...The newest WHAS 11/Survey USA poll shows Hillary Clinton with a 9 point lead over Barack Obama in Indiana, 52%-43%. The poll was taken over the weekend and has a margin of error of 4%. ...The chairman of the Council on Postsecondary Education sent a letter or e-mail to council members last week, questioning Gov. Beshear's motives for trying to block their hiring of Brad Cowgill. ...The State Senate refused to confirm Jason Nemes as the head of the Administrative Office of the Courts, putting Nemes' job status in question, if you believe Senate President David Williams. ...Democratic Senate candidate Greg Fischer has launched the first attack ad of the campaign, bashing Bruce Lunsford's operation of Vencor, the nursing home company Lunsford founded. ...Governor Beshear's job approval rating dropped like a rock this month, falling to 38% according to the latest Survey USA/WHAS 11 poll. That's an eight percent drop from last month. ...President Bush's job approval rating in Kentucky remained steady at 35% this month, above his national job approval rating of 28%. That's according to the latest Survey USA/WHAS 11 poll. ...The Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education illegally hired Brad Cowgill as its new president according to an opinion from the Attorney General's Office. And A.G. Jack Conway says it may have been the second time that the CPE board illegally hired Cowgill. ...Bruce Lunsford has picked up another endorsement from a labor union. ...Kentucky's Long Term Policy Research Center has concluded that Kentucky gets a good bang for every buck it spends on education, but only if one considers the obstacles Kentucky faces in educating a poor, undereducated population. You can take a look at the study yourself. ...Chelsea Clinton will be campaigning on behalf of her mother in southern Indiana on Friday and Saturday. Here's the young Ms. Clinton's schedule: ...Kentucky Chief Justice Joseph Lambert is resigning from the Supreme Court, effective in June. Lambert will be joining the senior judge program which he helped create. That program allows a judge who has retired with full benefits to keep working on a few cases with full pay. That program has been criticized as an expensive "double dipping" program by some state lawmakers. ...You've all seen Mitch McConnell's TV ad where workers at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant praise McConnell for helping workers who may have been exposed to nuclear waste. Well, there's another side of the story according to a former plant worker who quit serving on a committee that was looking at problems in the plant. Here's his blog. ...The former president of Kentucky's Council on Postsecondary Education is worried that the bickering between Gov. Steve Beshear and council members will irreparably hurt higher education reform in Kentucky. ...Former Transportation Secretary Bill Nighbert tells WHAS 11 News he was never consulted by Beshear administration officials about the settlement agreement with former Transportation Cabinet employee Missy McCray. The state is paying McCray $500,000 to settle her lawsuit against the state and Nighbert, though a judge had dropped Nighbert from the lawsuit because he was acting in his official capacity. ...The presidents of Kentucky's state universities met with Governor Beshear but noone's saying much about what they discussed. ...John McCain was in far eastern Kentucky on Wednesday. Here's Greg Stotelmyer's report on WTVQ-TV. ...Barack Obama toned down his attacks on Hillary Clinton during a visit to the Louisville area today. Obama told a crowd in New Albany, Ind. that he and Senator Clinton share many of the same ideas and that's why he's not worried about democrats coming together to beat John McCain in the fall. Here's my story at 5 and more after the jump. ...Bruce Lunsford is still ignoring his primary opponents and picking on U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell and Washington, in general, in his new ad. Here's Greg Fischer's 60 second ad. ...Kentucky's Attorney General is expected to issue an opinion this week on the legality of the Council on Postsecondary Education's hiring of Brad Cowgill as its new president. That opinion was requested by Governor Beshear, who isn't happy with the Council's decision to hire Governor Ernie Fletcher's Budget Director for the high paying higher education post. ...Missy McCray, who told investigators she helped her bosses in the Transportation Cabinet illegally find merit jobs for Ernie Fletcher's supporters, has settled her lawsuit against the state for $500,000. ...I'll be covering Barack Obama's visit to New Albany, Ind. I'll have stories on the 5 and 6 news tonight as well as a wrap up and my impressions on the blog late this afternoon or tonight. ...Governor Beshear signed a slew of crime and justice bills yesterday. Here's the release from the Justice Cabinet: ...Congressman John Yarmuth is taking credit for getting a big federal grant to help with noise mitigation around Louisville's airport. U-P-S jets fly over the city's neighborhoods all night long so any noise reduction efforts will be welcomed by airport neighbors: ...The head of the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education is indicating that the panel might reject some state university requests for big tuition increases. U of L and U.K. are both proposing 9% tuition hikes while the community and technical college system is askng for a 13% hike. ...Barack Obama will be in New Albany and Evansville for campaign events over the next two days. ...U.S. Senate candidate Michael Cassaro says he favors repealing the ban on openly gay and lesbian soldiers in the U.S. military. Here's his news release: ...Governor Beshear is informing two Fletcher appointees that they're being kicked off two state boards because their appointments haven't been properly ratified by the House and Senate. ...The political director for House Speaker Jody Richards and the House Democratic Caucus is now the head of Hillary Clinton's campaign in Kentucky. ...Ryan Alessi has more fingerpointing and fallout from the '08 Session. ...Former Indiana Congressman and 9/11 Commission Chairman Lee Hamilton has done a radio ad for Barack Obama. It's airing in Indiana and on some stations in the Louisville/Southern Indiana market. Click here to hear it. ...Ronnie Ellis' column this weekend says Kentuckians are fed up with the shenanigans in Frankfort. ...The Lexington Herald-Leader has a good story in Sunday's paper about the number of state lawmakers who sponsor and push legislatiion that benefits themselves, their families or their employers. ...A poll commissioned by Gov. Fletcher's former press secretary has found that Kentuckians are not happy with the results of the 2008 legislative session. ...Recent governors have called at least one special legislative session that produced little result and a big pricetag for taxpayers. But Steve Beshear says he's not going to do that. ...A controversial workers comp insurance case has been settled and signed by a Franklin Circuit Judge: ...Anybody esle humored by the idea of Barack Obama opening a campaign office near the most conservative area of the state? Perhaps it says something that the person opening the office is Councilman David Tandy. Tandy is African-American and he's from Louisville. It's not the 1st District but it's close: ...
A Transylvania University student who's facing deportation is getting some help from his new home's congressman and U.S. Senator: ...Attorney General Jack Conway is ticked off that his bill to crack down on internet criminals never got a vote on the Senate floor. Here's the release from Conway's office: ...Since Louisville didn't reap any of the rewards of the last minute addition of water and sewer projects, local lawmakers cut a deal to get some cash for U of L researchers instead. ...Attorney General Jack Conway is continuing his predecessors' pursuit of disputed tobacco settlement money. Conway's decision is included in a news release from his office: ...The Clinton family visits to Kentucky are apparently paying off for Hillary Clinton's campaign for president. ...Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Greg Fischer is telling his supporters that he can pull off a big comeback against Bruce Lunsford if they'll throw a little campaign cash his way. ...The Lexington Herald-Leader is reporting that GOP presidential candidate John McCain will be heading to Inez, Ky. in the near future. ...House Speaker Pro-Tem Larry Clark called it the worst final day of a session he's seen during his more than 20 years in Frankfort. Clark says he's "embarrassed to be a part of a leadership" and embarrassed to be a part of what happened last night in Frankfort. ...Ernie Lewis is calling it quits. The head of Kentucky's Division of Public Advocacy is retiring. ...A conservative group that supports tax cuts and less government spending has punched the U.S. Senate minority leader in the mouth, blaming him for the Senate's failure to rein in earmarks. ...Blogger Ralph Long has his take on Kentucky banks' ability to take advantage of folks who need some up front cash before their income tax refund comes in. ...The state legislature's actions early this morning raise questions about the legality of some of the bills they passed. ...Kentucky lawmakers "stop the clock" but still don't get much done in the waning hours of the legislative session. ...State Senator Tim Shaughnessy is expected to be appointed to a new job tomorrow as head of the Cardiovascular Innovation Institute in Louisville (nice catch by reader). ...After several battles with the Beshear administration, the head of the state Public Service Commission has resigned. ...Hillary Clinton has widened her lead over Barack Obama in Kentucky, according to the latest Survey USA/WHAS 11 poll. ...The congressional campaign of State Senator David Boswell has failed to get off the ground, at least in the fundraising department. ...It's not like the good 'ol days when she could rake in cash from folks interested in getting help from Anne Northup's powerful position on the House Appropriations Committee, but for a challenger, Northup's fundraising totals for the first quarter of 2008 look pretty good. ...Bruce Lunsford has extended his lead over his rivals in the democratic primary for U.S. Senate according to the latest Survey USA/WHAS 11 poll. ...The University of Louisville is about to join U.K. in approving a 9% tuition hike for students. U of L President Jim Ramsey told students today that they shouldn't blame him for the expected tuition hike. ...Here's the text of Congressman Geoff Davis' apology letter to Barack Obama: ...Senate President David Williams has apparently backed down from pushing a pension reform bill that government employee groups oppose. ...The 2008 Legislative Session will finish with a whimper. By mid-afternoon the capitol building was virtually empty as many lobbyists headed home and lawmakers headed to lunch or to listen to banjo and guitar music in the Senate Republican offices. ...Hillary Clinton's campaign is officially opening its Kentucky headquarters in Louisville tomorrow night. It's in the building that last housed Steve Henry's gubernatorial campaign. ...The candidates for federal offices must have their campaign finance reports in to the FEC by the end of the day. The latest to put out a preemptive news release is Reid Haire, who's running for congress in the 2nd District. Haire didn't loan any money to his own campaign, according to his campaign manager. ...Corley Everett had talked about dropping out of the 3rd District republican primary race and supporting fellow long shot Chris Thieneman. But Everett says he's not quitting the race that Anne Northup is expected to win. Here's the e-mail Everett sent me: ...Legislative leaders have agreed to add another $75 million in bonds for water and sewer projects to the state budget. That's on top of the $150 million lawmakers agreed to add before they left Frankfort a week and a half ago. ...A slew of County Judge-Executives were in Frankfort today, lobbying their lawmakers to pass a pension reform bill. But that bill is struggling. ...Kentucky 4th District Congressman Geoff Davis is apologizing for calling Barack Obama "boy" during a speech over the weekend. Reporter Pat Crowley has the story and follow up on his blog. ...The Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education has chosen interim CPE President Brad Cowgill for the full time job and the governor isn't happy about it. ...Ryan Alessi writes in today's H-L about the battle over coal severance tax monies and who should decide how to spend them. Joe Biesk of the AP has already written about some of the projects and pork being funded by the single-county monies. ...Monday and Tuesday are the last days state lawmakers have to pass any legislation and it will be interesting to see what they come up with this week. ...The Hillary Cllnton campaign isn't shy. They've been quick to jump on Barack Obama's comment about small town voters, finding Cllnton backers in key states to bash the Illinois Senator. Here's the e-mail release from the Clinton HQs in Ky: ...Just got back from NYC. Spent four days, three nights in the Big Apple. Thanks to the Graymoor-Devondale Police Department for keeping an eye on the Hebert mansion while we were gone. Apparently my neighbors asked the police if there was trouble since the cops were checking on my house every couple of hours. It's nice to live in a neighborhood where you know the officers and your neighbors!! I'll have something on lawmakers working hard t... Congressman John Yarmuth has reported raising more than one million dollars for his reelection bid. ...I'm outta here!!! You won't see any postings here until I come back from Spring Break. April 14th ought to be entertaining. That's when state lawmakers return to Frankfort. ...Kentucky lawmakers, particularly republicans, who don't want to be accused of raising taxes, are hoping the court system will do it for them. ...Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign is buying time on Louisville TV stations for campaign ads that are scheduled to start early next week. ...I get these mass news releases from Republicans and Democrats in Washington all the time. But this is one I found interesting. The DCCC is blaming former congresswoman Anne Northup, who left office in 2006, for the current economic recession. ...Guess who's now got a job in the Beshear administration? You guessed it, the state representative who abruptly resigned for "family reasons" allowing outgoing Attorney General Greg Stumbo to run for his seat. ...U.S. Senate candidate Greg Fischer implies in an e-mail to supporters that he's raised more than one million dollars in the first quarter. ...I'll be a guest on KET's "Comment on Kentucky" Friday night. ...Governor Steve Beshear told reporters today that if the economic recession keeps hitting Kentucky's tax revenues, he may call lawmakers to Frankfort for a special session. ...The Kentucky Education Department says Kentucky 8th graders have shown improvement in their writing scores on a national test, but still trail the national average. ...His spokesperson calls it "a big deal." It's not that big. But U.S. Senate candidate Bruce Lunsford is expected to get the endorsement of a guy who dropped out of the Senate race earlier this year. ...
Following a promise of $150 million in water and sewer districts spread across Kentucky, the House and Senate approved a 2 year state budget plan Wednesday night. ...The so-called Bully Bill, which requires all public schools to have policies for reporting incidents of harassment and intimidation against students, is headed to the governor's desk. ...The compromise state budget plan that House and Senate members are expected to vote on tonight includes nothing in writing to fund the Ohio River bridges project in Louisville or dozens of water and sewer projects across the state. ...The former chairman of the Kentucky Board of Education has submitted his resignation. Keith Travis was essentially ousted as chairman last year after the board's ill-fated hiring of Illinois educator Barbara Erwin and other questionable decisions by the education policy board. ... |