Thursday, July 19, 2007

It's Raining Subpoenas!

It's a mess down at the Fayette County Detention Center tonight after federal authorities dumped subpoenas on several suspects and witnesses in the prisoner abuse scandal.

And the city's lawyers are scrambling to drop soon-to-be defendants and to make them get their own legal representation.

The Isaac/Newberry cover-up has just about run its course.

Honor Among Thieves In Indiana

No word yet on how many Kentuckians are among those who may face criminal charges because a big casino in Indiana put the wrong software in one of its slot machines.

Someone should ask Jack Conway what he would do to protect Kentucky consumers in the case of such a screw-up here. And will AG Greg Stumbo do anything to protect his constituents from such a malicious prosecution by another state?

Jack Conway, Consumer Protector Or Not?

Attorney General candidate Stan Lee is on the Leland Conway show in Lexington this morning asking his opponent, liberal activist Jack Conway, to join him in opposition to Steve Beshear's casino gambling scheme.

Jack can't seem to do it, though. All he can manage to do is call Stan Lee names.

For someone who keeps talking about wanting to raise the level of anti-business activism in the Attorney General's office, Jack Conway's continued silence on the casino issue is illuminating. This issue should be a complete non-starter for everyone but Steve Beshear.

Where are you, Jack?

Lightweight Love

The Louisville Courier Journal gets stupid propping up John Edwards.

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Time For A New Topic In Gubernatorial Debates

Governor Fletcher and Steve Beshear debated again today and got the most attention for arguing about Beshear's casino gambling "plan."

A more important area of difference to highlight is Beshear's plan to expand government's role in the doctor-patient relationship. Of course this might necessitate a stronger free market position from Governor Fletcher.

He really, really needs to push for repeal of Certificate of Need. Seriously, ask Terry McBrayer.

Short of that, he could start talking about eliminating mandates in health insurance policies. And if he can't do that, at least point out how expensive health coverage will be for all of us when Steve Beshear makes it "free."

Now This is More Like It

Tomorrow the legislature's Interim Joint Committee on Education will meet at the Galt House-West in Louisville. Dr. Robert Barr, author of "How To Create Alternative, Magnet, and Charter Schools That Work" will be there to speak.

Kentucky really needs charter schools.

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Getting It Right This Time

I'm hearing good things about Dr. Penney Sanders as a candidate for Kentucky's education commissioner.

Much more on this soon...

Meanwhile, check out John Edwards' fake education reform.

Lexington Jail Scandal Rolling Now

Beth Musgrave at the Lexington Herald Leader is working on the story.
FBI officials later said that they were investigating whether officers at the jail used excessive force on inmates. A Covington federal grand jury has heard testimony in the criminal case. No one has been charged. David Beyer, a spokesman for the FBI, said the investigation is ongoing and he could not say more about the status of the case.

This is about to get very fun...

Kentucky Economic Developers Take Note

The Democratic Party's standard bearer, Senator Hillary Clinton, says as president she will "eliminate incentives for American companies to ship jobs and profits overseas."

Well, we know she is isn't going to lower taxes on any evil corporations. She must be talking about forcing companies to keep operations here or risk facing punishment.

Given that Queen Hillary and Steve Beshear are two politicians who do better only by saying less, it sure would be fun to get them both talking about how they would keep employers from fleeing their respective domains.

Enjoy The Gridlock While It Lasts

It would be pretty hard to deny that House Democrats will come around and support everything on Governor Fletcher's special session call after the election.

Talking On Tuesday

I'll be on the radio this morning talking about pre-filed bills for the 2008 Kentucky General Assembly. Tune in to 630 AM at 10:30 this morning or catch "The Pulse of Lexington" show with Leland Conway on the internet at wlap.com. Just click on "Listen Live" in the top-right portion of the page.

If you haven't already, you might like to go to www.kyvotes.org and sign up for regular updates on what the legislature is doing. They are working on the laws today that you will have to live with tomorrow and Kentucky Votes is a great way to stay on top of their current activities and check up on some of the things they have already done.

Monday, July 16, 2007

Worm Turning On Jim Newberry

The city of Lexington today cancelled a July 18 civil service hearing that Mayor Jim Newberry called previously in order to fire federal whistleblower Corporal John Vest.

Newberry's actions have already led Vest to sue him for violating the Whistleblower Act, official misconduct, and abuse of power.

Marathon Oil Case Back In News Soon

Attorney General Greg Stumbo's primary election gambit to draw attention with a poorly conceived attack on gasoline suppliers is in a holding pattern as both the AG's office and Marathon Oil await a ruling on whether the case belongs in state or federal court.

Meanwhile, we need to get straight on the idea that bad laws are no solution to market price fluctuations. And overly ambitious prosecutors don't help anything, either.

"Why Are You Asking Me?"

Steve Beshear's comprehensive plan for public pension reform:

Fight Government's Milkflation Now

Federal policies on milk are absurd.

The Congress should get out of the way of competition and lower prices. They are working on a new farm bill right now.

What's Next, Casinos Funding Space Exploration?

Sunday, July 15, 2007

Are House Dems Ready To End Their Strike?

When the monthly meeting of legislative leaders scheduled for July 11 was cancelled during the special session fight, it wasn't supposed to be rescheduled.

In fact, Senate President David Williams and House Speaker Jody Richards have exchanged little publicly but harsh words.

So it was a bit of a surprise when the announcement was made this afternoon that their July meeting of the Legislative Research Commission is back on and is set for this Friday at 1:30.

Jessamine County Sanctuary For Illegals

Jessamine county politicians changed a policy earlier this year to essentially grant amnesty to illegal aliens apprehended by law enforcement authorities.

If you are here illegally and get arrested in Jessamine county, you are probably headed home without so much as a slap on the wrist.

If you are a Jessamine county politician, you have some work to do.

(Clarification: local judges apparently requested limiting involvement by federal immigration officials in local cases.)

Saturday, July 14, 2007

Next Target: Ron Bishop, FCDC

Can't help but wonder how many hundreds of news stories the MSM would have dropped on the Fayette County Detention Center since the FBI raid last October if the jail or the city of Lexington were run by Republicans.

Nevertheless, several officials at the jail have lawyered up under questioning and, rather than a slow bleed it appears we are in for an explosion perhaps as soon as a few weeks.

Interesting...

Here is a plan to wipe out several welfare bureaucracies and, in exchange, expand Earned Income Tax Credits.

The idea is to spend less running programs and just give the money to the people. If we could ensure that there were consequences for recipients wasting the money on drugs -- which we probably can't -- it would be a no-brainer.

On the other other hand, wiping out the individual programs and making the aid easier to see and track could be a good way to wean able-bodied people off the dole.