JUDGE HORNER’S ROUND UP FOR WEEK OF FEB. 9, 2008

GOP Take-over in Mongiardo’s Senate District

Beshear Shakes Off Alexander Loss, Goes on Casino Offensive

Dems Hold Two House Seats in Special Elections

Casinos, Equine Interests Donate $2.2 Million to Attacks on Fletcher

28 US House Repubs to Retire, Shattering 1952 Record

London Bails, Lewis Apologizes

Newspaper Editorial Comments

Political Analysts’ Comments

BACK TO TOP

                    GOP Take-over in Mongiardo’s Senate District

            A political “Siegfried Line” dug by Gov. Steve Beshear to fill his Lieutenant Governor’s former state Senate seat was breached by the opposition party in a close (51%-49%) Feb. 5 special election.  Rep. Brandon Smith (R-Hazard) won a victory by about 401 votes (in final but unofficial returns) over Democrat Scott Alexander for whom Beshear made several trips to the district to campaign.  Lt. Gov. Dan Mongiardo was accused by Republicans of “camping out” in the district to help Alexander – an area that includes Bell, Harlan, Leslie, and Perry counties and where over 20,000 voters cast ballots on an unusually balmy winter day. Both Mongiardo and Alexander are from Hazard.  This was the third time that Smith had defeated Alexander stretching back to 2000 when Smith unseated Alexander who then held the state House seat that includes all of Perry County and a few precincts in Harlan County. 

            Smith will vacate his House seat and finish out a Senate term set to expire in 2010. Smith said that he expected Beshear to campaign for Alexander but said, “I was surprised he waded as deep as he did.”  Smith added that he had no hard feelings toward Beshear and that he was “glad the governor knows how to get to Hazard,” according to a story by The Herald-Leader’s Ryan Alessi that was posted on Feb. 5 at the newspaper’s polwatchers.typepad.com.

            About Beshear’s involvement in the race, Senate Pres. David Williams (R-Burkesville) said, “I advised the Governor early on not to get involved in these races....He made a strategic and tactical error,” according to a story by The Courier-Journal’s Jill Johnson Keeney posted on Feb. 6 at the newspaper’s political blog. 

            The election may have serious negative implications for Beshear as he strives to convince lawmakers to pass legislation to propose to voters on Nov. 4 a change in the state constitution to authorize casino gambling.  Expanded gambling was the central political issue on television in the race between Smith and Alexander, if you throw out the mud-slinging that both candidates engaged in.  With Democrats holding a significant voter registration majority (61%-D, 37%-R, 2%-other) in the district, Smith’s win could be construed as a rejection by many Democratic voters of gambling’s expansion.  Thus, not only has Beshear’s minority party in the Senate lost a seat, but Beshear has seen his party lose the first legislative race when casino gambling was perceived by many as key to the result.  Republicans now outnumber Democrats in the Senate 22-15 with one member, a registered independent, voting with the Republicans for organizational purposes.

BACK TO TOP

            Beshear disagreed with the perception that the race was all about casinos, and that the election outcome means that the casino-authorizing legislation that he will roll out soon will be DOA when it is filed in the House.  “The Senate race was decided on a number of issues,” Beshear said, according to a Feb. 7 story by The Courier-Journal’s Gregory A. Hall and Tom Loftus. “Gaming was discussed, but so were a lot of things. In most of these races all politics is local, as the saying goes.”  

            State House Speaker Jody Richards (D-Bowling Green) said that the effort to bring casinos to the state has not been slowed by Smith’s win.  “I don’t think it changed any dynamics in the House,” Richards told Alessi for his Feb. 7 story in The Herald-Leader.  “People are ready to see a bill and kind of get on with it.”

            However, two House members – one from each party – believe a casino bill’s chances in the Senate have been damaged by Smith’s victory, and might suffer corresponding damage in the House.  “I would think that House members would probably not want to hang themselves out on a vote if it’s not going to go anywhere in the Senate,” said Rep. Bob DeWeese (R-Louisville), according to Alessi’s Feb. 7 story. 

            “Why take a hard vote in the House and have the Senate say, ‘Well, we’ll deal with it two years from now.’ In the meantime, the House members have taken a hard vote on that issue,” Rep. Bob Damron (D-Nicholasville) told Alessi, in explaining that typically a House member won’t want to vote in favor of a controversial issue if it has no chance of passage in the Senate. 

BACK TO TOP

            Although Democrats have a comfortable 63-37 majority in the House, Republicans now – with Smith’s big win – control the Senate 22-15-1, and many GOP senators, like Smith, come from southern and southeastern Kentucky where expanded gambling is believed to be unpopular.  For casino gambling to become a reality in Kentucky, a proposed constitutional amendment to permit it would have to be passed by a 60% majority in both the House (60 members) and Senate (23 members).  Then, voters during the Nov. 4 presidential election would be given the right to vote “yes” or “no” on the issue.  A simple majority of those voting on the issue would then decide it.  If voters approved it, then lawmakers would have to pass certain enabling or implementing laws for the regulation, taxing, et cetera of the industry. 

            (Lawreader.com senior editor Stan Billingsley posted a Feb. 7 editorial, in which he referenced the state constitution, case law, and OAG 05-003, and declared that the General Assembly today could authorize and regulate casino gambling under its police powers contained in the state constitution. See article at: There is case law that supports the conclusion that Kentucky does not need a Constitutional Amendment to permit the licensing of Casino Gambling)

            Williams, who openly expresses opposition to casino gambling, said that any hope is over now for the support of 23 Senate members for the issue.  “There is not sufficient support out there,” Williams told Alessi.  “There’s 15 of them left. Go ask those 15 people if they want to put their seats on the line by voting for casinos.  If there are 23 people who feel strongly enough, and want early retirement, then they can vote for it and the process will correct itself.”

            Senate Minority Leader Ed Worley (D-Richmond), who supports casino gambling, said that it was too early to assess whether Smith’s win will affect chances for casino gambling.  “In the end, any decision on gaming will depend on the budget,” Worley told Alessi.  “When people fully realize how dire it is, they will have to take a hard look at how can the state get more money.”

            Say No to Casinos state director John-Mark Hack, on the anti-casino rippling  effect emanating from Smith’s victory, told Keeney, “I’m not prepared to declare victory yet, but the band is warming up.”

            Mongiardo said that he and Beshear would be willing to work with Smith.  “As Gov. Beshear and I have said, election time is time to fight and the day after the election, it’s time to come together and do the peoples’ work,” Mongiardo told Alessi. “And that’s exactly what we’re going to do.”

BACK TO TOP

                 Beshear Shakes Off Alexander Loss, Goes on Casino Offensive

            By the end of the week, Beshear had shaken off the Alexander loss and was “back on message” – driving the casino “bus” – saying on Feb. 8 that his casino legislation would be introduced during the following week.  Beshear said that, if a casino measure is put up for a state-wide referendum on Nov. 4 and approved by voters, money from casino licensing fees could even be realized during the first fiscal year of the next biennial budget that ends on June 30, 2010.  “The license fees that can be produced by this are significant,” Beshear said, declining to fix a number on a proposed license fee amount. “This would certainly make a difference, even in the first year of the biennium,” he added, according to a story by The Herald-Leader’s Jack Brammer posted on Feb. 8 at polwatchers. 

            Richards, in line with Beshear’s comments, told Brammer that lawmakers could pass a “supplemental budget” contingent upon ultimate approval of casinos and upon the receipt of license fees.  Richards said that laying out in statutory form the proposed uses for the extra revenue would “probably” make the measure more palatable to voters. 

            Beshear, on a specific spending plan for potential casino revenue in the next biennium, said, “It would be enlightening for everybody in the legislature and the general public to know that if this does pass and will generate those revenues, we would have a plan for the spending of those revenues that would relieve some of the significant reductions we have had to propose at this point.”  Beshear has submitted to legislators a proposed biennial budget that cuts funding for most state agencies and higher education by 12%.  State revenues are dropping along with those of the other 49 states as well as the US government.  Official revenue projections for the next two years would make a flat-lined, continuation budget for the next biennium fall about $900 million short of funding.  

BACK TO TOP

                             Dems Hold Two House Seats in Special Elections

            Democrats successfully defended on Feb. 5 two vacant House seats from districts with heavy Democratic voter registration majorities in the far eastern and far western regions of the state.  Former state House Majority Leader Greg Stumbo (D-Prestonsburg) easily won a special election by over 2,700 votes to fill the seat vacated by former Rep. Brandon Spencer (D-Prestonsburg) who resigned in December from the Floyd County district.  Larry Brown, a Prestonsburg lawyer, sort of performed the role of the GOP’s sacrificial lamb nominee. Spencer said that his family responsibilities did not permit the time for him to serve any longer.  Stumbo previously served 24 years – including 19 as Democratic floor leader – from House District-95 before beginning a four-year term as state Attorney-General on Jan. 1, 2004. 

            Symsonia banker Will Coursey blew away his Republican opponent, Eddyville lawyer Marvin Wilson, by over 2,600 votes in a special election to fill out the term of former Rep. J. R. Gray (D-Benton), who was appointed by Beshear in December as state Labor Commissioner.  This was Coursey’s first race, but was Wilson’s third loss for this House District-6 seat dating back to 2004 against Gray.  The district includes all of Lyon and Marshall counties and a few precincts in McCracken County.   Stumbo and Coursey will hold terms set to expire on Dec. 31.         

BACK TO TOP

          Casinos, Equine Interests Donate $2.2 Million to Attacks on Fletcher

            During last year’s gubernatorial race with Beshear, former Gov. Ernie Fletcher suffered a withering TV ad assault that accused him of ethical violations.  The effort was driven by the Bluegrass Freedom Fund (“BFF”), an organization commonly referred to as a “527”organization, because it is sanctioned by Section 527 of the Internal Revenue Code.  BFF’s report to the Internal Revenue Service on Jan. 31 indicated that it raised $3.15 million from 27 donors of which about $2.2 million – or about 70% – came from individuals or corporate entities affiliated with gambling or equine interests. 

            A 527 cannot promote a particular candidate in an election campaign, but it can implicitly criticize an office-holder or a candidate during an election campaign by opposing an issue that the office-holder or candidates stands for or is involved with.  However, it cannot urge support for or against any candidate.  There are also no limitations on the type of donor – individual or corporate – or the amount of a gift by a donor. 

            In fact, William Yung gave the BFF $1 million – by far the largest of all the donations.  Yung is president of Columbia Sussex, a Crestview Hills-based casino operator that owns the Tropicana in Atlantic City and the Aztar in Evansville.  Columbia Sussex’s NJ casino license was suspended in December by state regulators.  The company was fined $750,000 for going nearly six months without having had an independent audit conducted, according to a story by The Associated Press’ Roger Alford posted by The Herald-Leader on Feb. 1 at its Kentucky.com.   Affiliates of Churchill Downs, Keeneland, and Ellis Park each gave BFF $.25 million and Turfway gave $.125 million.

BACK TO TOP

            Williams and state House Minority Leader Jeff Hoover (R-Jamestown) said that the revelation of giant contributions from gambling interests to help get Beshear elected makes it that much more difficult for the Governor to achieve casino gambling in the state – the centerpiece of Beshear’s gubernatorial campaign and a revenue-enhancing device that he says could generate about $500 million annually to the state treasury. In contrast, Fletcher was adamant in terms of his opposition to casinos in Kentucky and ran about six TV ad’s early in the campaign showing what he thought were problems in other states that had authorized casinos.  Fletcher swore that casinos in Kentucky “would never happen on his watch.”

            “The fact that you have individuals donating up to $1 million puts in serious question whether they are after good government or not,” Williams said, according to a Feb. 2 story by The Herald-Leader’s Janet Patton and Alessi.  “It confirms the suspicions that many of us had about the funding of Democrat candidates,” said Hoover, according to the story by Patton and Alessi.  “In my opinion, the expanded gaming issue, with every passing day, will be harder and harder to get passed in the legislature and that may be a knockout blow once all this is exposed,” Hoover added.

            “There is the very real possibility that this Governor has been bought and paid for,” said Kent Ostrander, head of the Kentucky Family Foundation, a Christian group that opposes casinos.  “Our concern is that the governor might be listening only to the gambling industry and those who have contributed to his campaign,” Ostrander said, according to Alford’s story.

            Beshear said that his gubernatorial campaign was entirely distinct and separate from the BFF’s activities, as the law requires them to be.  “I’m sure they were interested in our campaign partly at least because we were interested in getting this issue (expanded gambling) on the ballot,” Beshear said, according to the story by Patton and Alessi.  “We had no connection with their organization, because legally we can’t.”  Beshear acknowledged that he has met with state racetrack officials but has refused numerous requests for a meeting by Las Vegas Sands officials, who were in the state recently to testify before a special ad hoc House committee that is studying casino gambling.  Beshear also said that he has not met with any other casino interests.  “I don’t want anybody in the public to feel that anybody has got an inside track on this,” the Governor said.

            Fletcher ended up losing to Beshear by about 184,000 votes – the largest defeat for an incumbent Governor in state history.  Fletcher and 14 of his administration’s officials had been indicted for political interference into the state merit system – a type of civil service protection for state workers.  They were all accused of allowing politics to influence the firing, termination, or transfer of existing state merit employees, and to hire Fletcher loyalists to open merit system jobs.  Fletcher pardoned the 14 shortly after they were charged in the scandal, but never pardoned himself.  He, too, was finally indicted during the 16-month criminal inquiry, but the charges against him were finally dismissed on Aug. 24, 2006 after the trial court decided that Fletcher’s criminal trial would have to wait until he left the Governor’s office.  Stumbo, whose office led the prosecution,  reasoned that it was pointless to continue the prosecution because he expected that  Fletcher would just pardon himself if he were defeated for re-election or, if he were re-elected, at the end of his second term.

BACK TO TOP

            BFF’s TV ad’s not only criticized Fletcher’s ethics, but called for sweeping ethics reform in Kentucky.  Achim Bergmann, BFF’s consultant, pointed out to Patton and Alessi that the group’s proposal for ethics reform is bearing fruit in that a state House committee passed an ethics reform bill on Jan. 30.   Bergmann said that the bill’s passage “is proof the agenda of the Bluegrass Freedom Fund has overwhelming support among Kentuckians, Republican and Democrat alike, and that the issues work that we did this year and last year is achieving success.”

            The Democratic Governors Association contributed $640,000 to the BFF.  The Republican Governors Association ran ad’s against Beshear under its own name for several weeks in September.  However, when public polling showed that Fletcher was not cutting a 20% deficit to Beshear, the ad’s suddenly stopped and never came back on.  Fletcher eventually lost to Beshear by almost an 18% margin.

            Yung recently purchased for about $7 million a five-acre tract containing the former Bavarian Brewery property on 12^th Street in Covington just west of I-71/75.  He said that he will apply for a casino license there if ultimately such gambling is approved in the state, according to a story by The Cincinnati Enquirer’s Patrick Crowley that was posted on Feb. 5 at the newspaper’s nky.com.  The site is about one mile south of the Ohio River, was last occupied by a Jillian’s entertainment complex, and has sat vacant since 2006. “It’s a perfect casino site,” Yung said. 

            In his first interview on the subject of his $1 million contribution to the BFF, Yung said that he clearly understood the different positions on expanded gambling held by Fletcher and Beshear, and that the BFF would hurt Fletcher’s re-election chances thus improving his own business prospects in the state.  “We are a casino company,” Yung said. “We want to get gaming in Kentucky. This is our business, the casino business, and obviously we want to compete for one of these two sites.”  (Many observers believe that NKY may land two licenses with one probably going to Turfway.)  “We’re the only gaming company in Kentucky,” Yung added. “Believe me, if it comes to a vote, we’ll have to do a lot more than that because the (casinos) in Indiana will be spending millions and millions to stop it.”

            Yung’s remarks drew fire from state GOP chairman Steve Robertson.  “This is the most incredible example of special-interest money I think I’ve ever seen in Kentucky politics,” Robertson said. “I’m really interested in what these people think they’ve bought.”

            Yung not only has casino opponents – like Robertson – but also has casino proponents trying to shoot down his plans.  Turfway president Bob Elliston wants his track to have the only casino license in NKY.  Elliston says that a “destination casino” that his track could offer would best serve the region and that another ordinary casino near the river would dilute the market.  Elliston wants hotels, restaurants, and other forms of entertainment besides casino gambling to be located on excess acreage that he says is available next to the Florence track.    

BACK TO TOP

                      28 US House Repubs to Retire, Shattering 1952 Record

            US Rep. Ron Lewis’s (R-KY2) last minute decision on Jan. 29 to retire at the end of his term this year is not a surprise on Capitol Hill as 27 other US House Republicans are also bailing out – an unusually high number – compared with only six Democrats who are calling it quits, according to a story by The Gannett News Service’s Erin Kelly that was published on Feb. 3 by The Courier-Journal.  Once powerful GOP committee chairmen are now struggling for influence after Democrats regained control of the chamber in 2006 that ended 12 years of Republican dominance.  The total number of 28 retirements shatters a GOP record going back to 1952, according to a Jan. 31 story by The New York Times’ Carl Hulse and David M. Herszenhorn. 

            “It’s a come down,” said Dr. Jack Pitney, a political science professor at Claremont McKenna College. “One day you’re the CEO, the next day you’re cleaning the lavatory.  A lot of members say to heck with this,” Pitney told Kelly. 

            In 1996 Democrats underwent the same transformation after Republicans swept in to power in 1994 under the leadership of former Speaker Newt Gingrich and his “Contract with America” mantra – the year that Lewis was first elected.  Twenty-eight Democrats in 1996 hung it up – twice the average number of retirements, according to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.  That year, the GOP added six more seats from those left open by Democratic retirements.

            Lewis and many of the Gingrich loyalists who were elected on the “Contract” violated one of its key tenets – term limits.  Lewis and most of the others agreed to a three-term limit.  When Lewis began quietly to run for a fourth term in 2000 and was first   questioned about his term limit pledge, he said that his seniority was then too valuable to his constituents for him to quit. His explanation for not keeping his commitment worked, however, and he has been easily re-elected ever since. Lewis was an ordained preacher and Christian book store owner before being elected to the House.

            The mass GOP exodus is shaping up as a chance for Democrats to make sizeable gains.  “The open-seat situation is so lopsided as to deny Republicans any chance of taking back the House in 2008,” said David Wasserman, who analyzes House races for The Cook Political Report, a nonpartisan publication, according to the story by Hulse and Herszenhorn. 

            The parties’ House campaign committees filed Jan. 31 reports that showed a wide disparity between their recent fund-raising efforts.  At the end of the year House Democrats had $35 million in the bank and $1.3 million in debt while Republicans had $5 million in the bank and $2 million in debt.   This is very encouraging for Democrats who for years have trailed Republicans in fund-raising for these committees.  Of course, these House committees’ funds do not reflect fund-raising by individual House members for their own campaign accounts. 

BACK TO TOP

            “It is a challenge,” said US Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma, chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, according to the story by Hulse and Herszenhorn.  “What this does is make it more difficult to have offensive opportunities when you have to defend what you have.”

            Four of the 28 retiring Republicans have already quit, and their districts will face special elections soon to replace them.  Thus, there will be at least, technically speaking, 24 open GOP seats across the country on the Nov. 4 ballot, and there quite possibly could be more because not all state filing deadlines have passed.

            On the Senate side, GOP retirements have zoomed out to a lead over Democrats.  So far six Republican senators will leave at the end of the year, but no Democrats have made that announcement yet.  “We are still nine months away, and things just keep getting better,” Sen. Charles Schumer of New York told Hulse and Herszenhorn.  Schumer is the chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.

BACK TO TOP

                                      London Bails, Lewis Apologizes

              Daniel London became the second high-profile Republican in a week’s time to bail out of a congressional race.  After his wife sneaked into the Secretary of State’s office just before 4:00p on Jan. 29 to file his declaration document and to withdraw Lewis’ prior filing, the chief of staff for Lewis suddenly withdrew his own candidacy on Feb. 7, according to Alessi’s story at polwatchers. 

            On Jan. 29 Lewis had made an immediate endorsement of London after London filed, and described London as like a son to him.  But a firestorm of criticism engulfed Lewis for “gaming” the process by not having informed state Republicans in advance of his decision. Lewis even said then that his excuse was that he had only finalized his decision at the last minute on Jan. 29 to retire.   Simultaneously with London’s withdrawal on Feb. 7, Lewis released a statement that read in part as follows:  “…I would like to publicly apologize for my poor judgment and humbly ask for the forgiveness of all those who I have let down. There are no excuses for how I chose to manage my announcement. I regret it deeply and want to do all that I can to put it right and restore your faith in me during my remaining time in office….”

            State Sen. Brett Guthrie (R-Bowling Green) was apparently tipped off that Lewis might pull the stunt on Jan. 29, had his declaration of candidacy filled out and in hand, and was waiting outside the Secretary of State’s office as London’s wife strolled in.  At that point less than a minute before the 4:00p deadline, Guthrie walked in and filed his declaration.  After he withdrew, London released a statement that read in part as follows:  “…Sen. Brett Guthrie is a good man and as a Republican I intend to get behind him and support him for election and will encourage all my supporters to do the same….”  Lewis also said that he would support Guthrie, according to a story by The Associated Press’ Bruce Schreiner posted on Feb. 7 at nky.com. 

            Lewis said that he prayed about it before deciding at the last minute to not seek another term, and that he prayed before apologizing.  London said that he prayed about both decisions – running and withdrawing. 

            Louisville developer Chris Theieneman filed on Jan. 24 for the GOP nomination to oppose US Rep. John Yarmuth (D-KY3) in November and swore that he would run in the GOP primary against former US Rep. Anne Northup (R-KY3), if she ultimately decided to seek the nomination as she was then considering to do.  After Northup did file  on Jan. 29, Theieneman first complained that he had been threatened to get out of the race by several Northup backers – including Larry Cox, general manager of US Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R-KY) state offices.  Then on Jan. 31, Theieneman  announced his withdrawal, his switch back to the Democratic Party, and his endorsement of Yarmuth.

            (Memo to Lewis:  Hope you can cancel your reservation to the Feb. 16 state GOP Lincoln Day Dinner in time to get your money back.  As a persona non grata, you, your wife, and the Londons might otherwise have to sit at a table off in a corner by yourselves.)

  BACK TO TOP

                                      Newspaper Editorial Comments

            Feb. 3 – The Herald-Leader:  “An inauspicious beginning”

            “In Gov. Steve Beshear’s first state budget, he had to walk away from some campaign promises. His budget fails to provide preschool for all 3- and 4-year-olds, increase teacher pay or stop the underfunding of higher education. We could forgive Beshear if he would walk away from just one more promise: his refusal to raise the tax on tobacco.

            “The government envisioned in Beshear’s budget deals two massive blows to our future. It sets us back in education and advances warehousing an ever-higher percentage of citizens in jails and prisons. If it takes a tax to dodge those blows, so be it.

            “We would love to see true tax reform in Kentucky, but a tax that reduces adult smoking and discourages kids from starting while raising money is an acceptable stopgap.

            “Beshear said the belt-tightening he’s recommending ‘will once and for all start us on a path toward financial stability.’ But it won’t. It won’t break the cycle of poor education and poverty that has brought us to this point…

            “The general public and a growing percentage of the General Assembly support a cigarette tax increase to help pay for the state’s needs. Beshear’s support could put a cigarette tax over the top and keep his actions true to what he says he believes.”

BACK TO TOP

                                       Political Analysts’ Comments

            Feb. 3 – Patrick Crowley in The Cincinnati Enquirer’s nky.com:  “News from Frankfort”

            “…Beshear took some heat last week for campaigning for Democrats running in special statehouse elections in eastern and western Kentucky.

            “It is not uncommon or unexpected for a governor to campaign on behalf of his members of his own party. But Beshear engaged in some of the campaign activities that he and the Democrats criticized when former Gov. Ernie Fletcher did the same.

            “Beshear flew in the state plane to west Kentucky for official duties – meeting with local government and school officials – but also attended campaign events for a Democratic candidate. During last year’s campaign against Fletcher, Beshear said he would not use the state plane for political trips.

            “The Kentucky Democratic Party is paying for the political phase of the trip, Beshear’s office said….”

            Feb. 3 – Al Cross in The Courier-Journal: 

            “…In perhaps the most momentous filing, twice-failed Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bruce Lunsford filed for McConnell’s seat. If Lunsford makes it through the primary, the extravagantly funded McConnell will make a piñata out of him and his record. But Lunsford is probably the only Democrat with the money and party support to make a piñata out of McConnell, who runs as an appropriator and whose voting record has never been effectively challenged. It would be fun to see him arm in arm with John McCain.”

            Feb. 4 – Joseph Gerth’s “Political Notebook” in The Courier-Journal: 

            “…A story on WLKY’s Web site about Chris Thieneman’s decision last week to end his brief campaign for Congress, shun the Republican Party and endorse John Yarmuth was a bit harsh – but funny.

            “It included this quote from Thieneman, a former University of Louisville and professional football player: ‘I might not have been the most talented football players, but I was one of the more smarter football players.’

            “Ouch. As someone whose mouth sometimes works faster than his brain, the Notebook feels for the guy. Whoever has never experienced a bout of inarticulateness, please cast the first stone.

            “But the real kicker was the headline. It read: ‘ “More Smarter” Candidate Quits Congressional Race.’

            “Ouch. Again…

            “As unbelievable as it might seem, no state legislators filed bills or resolutions last week to name anything an official state symbol. So we’ll just make fun of legislators in Maryland instead.

            “According to The Associated Press, Maryland Sen. Verna Jones introduced a bill last week to make walking the state exercise. In 2003, former Gov. Robert Ehrlich vetoed legislation to do just that.

            “ ‘ “It serves no public purpose,” Ehrlich wrote, even as he signed into law a bill making the thoroughbred Maryland’s official horse,’ the AP reported.

            “Walking. Hmmm.

            “Memo to members of the Kentucky General Assembly: You only have until Feb. 25 to request a bill to create a new state exercise. How ‘bout noodlin’?”

BACK TO TOP