Is McCain already affecting policy?

A North Carolina think tank rips Sen. Elizabeth Dole for supporting Sen. Mitch McConnell's Gas Price Reduction Act of 2008 because the bill doesn't open up ANWR and it limits off-shore drilling to beyond fifty miles from the coast.

The John Locke Foundation says:

"Clearly, this legislation is meant to appease the eco-alarmist John McCain, who has always opposed exploration in the ANWR and continues to do so. That is easily explained by his (and Senator Dole's) support for the massive energy tax known as "Cap and Trade," which exposes his real feelings about actually using more oil."

While The Maverick and Sen. McConnell have everyone's attention and most of us agree that we need to agressively pursue our own energy resource, perhaps they should explain to us why this bill leaves so much undone.

Starting to fight back against citizen-paid bennies

Kentucky still hasn't decided to face reality on our too-rich public employee fringe benefits. We would do well to look at what is happening in Nevada and Indiana for a little insight into what we should do before any more time passes.

Nevada is phasing out paid health insurance for some government retirees.

"The state has offered the retiree health benefits for decades. But with rising medical costs and people living longer, the cost to the state has ballooned. Currently, it has a $4 billion unfunded liability, Johnstone said."

Interesting that here in Kentucky we still aren't motivated to act when our unfunded liability is nearly $30 billion.

And in Indiana, lawmakers last year got rid of the richest pension matching program I've ever seen:

"According to a file leaked to The Indianapolis Star and verified by state officials, lawmakers have contributed $3.6 million to their pension accounts since 1992, when they put the finishing touches on the system. During that same time period, taxpayers contributed $14.2 million to the lawmakers' accounts. (You can go to IndyStar.com to search a database showing how much the state has contributed to each lawmaker's account.)"

"The pension plan is among a set of perks that drew widespread criticism in recent years. In response to the criticism, the legislature voted last year to do away with the 4-to-1 pension match come 2009."

Meanwhile, Kentucky is content to hand parachutes to some lawmakers that are worth more than gold. We really need some more leadership on this.

Shhhhh... be vewwy, vewwy quiet!

The Fayette County Detention Center is trying to keep quiet the fact that they have fired the four indicted employees in the Fayette jail inmate abuse scandal.

Funny thing on the way to high tax Nirvana

Gov. Steve Beshear really doesn't want you to read this blog post, comment on it, or to tell your friends about it.

From the Wall Street Journal:

Beshear needs to stop talking about raising taxes and get serious about making better spending decisions. Tax increases aren't going to save him and they won't help any of us.

Beshear to channel Hillary Clinton

Behind the scenes, Governor Steve Beshear's administration is working up another socialized medicine program.

Brother, can you spare a bailout?

Former Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan said in the Wall Street Journal this morning that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac should have been allowed to collapse rather than receive a taxpayer bailout.

Amen.

By the same token, overspending legislators should have to make up for years of raiding the public employee benefits plans without a taxpayer bailout.

Picture = a thousand words

Supporters of Sen. Barack Obama keep trying to spin his tax increase proposals, but are finding it a little difficult to run from the facts.

Here are the facts:

KDP distracted by Trey Grayson

Secretary of State Trey Grayson sent out an email to supporters this morning urging them to contribute their ideas for the national Republican Party platform:

"I am writing to encourage you to help us develop the Republican Party platform that will be adopted at the 2008 Convention."

"As you may have heard, I have been asked to serve as the Co-Chair of the "Guaranteeing Energy Independence and a Cleaner Environment" sub-committee of the Platform Committee."

"I wanted to let you know that the Party is seeking your input as we develop the policies and principles upon which we should stand for the next four years."

"To do so, we have created a webpage -- www.GOPPlatform2008.com --
where you can share your thoughts, participate in polls, and communicate directly with the policymakers who will be shaping the party's agenda."

"I can personally attest to the fact that all comments and feedback will be reviewed and taken into full consideration as we prepare for our convention in Minneapolis-St. Paul."

Meanwhile, the Jefferson County GOP has put out a petition to urge some blogger to stop his half-baked Bluegrass Report attacks on Grayson.

Since we know the Kentucky Democratic Party backed the site when it was written by Mark Nickolas, maybe we should hear their thoughts on what is being posted to that site now.

Beshear hanging out with Obama too much

Gov. Steve Beshear made clear his support for Sen. Barack Obama's presidential bid earlier this month at Fancy Farm. Now his seems determined to complete his transformation into just another tax-anything-that-moves politician.

From the Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer:

"When asked after the event what other sources of revenue he had heard suggested in the town hall meetings, Beshear only mentioned one other -- increasing the tax on alcohol."

"Beshear said he hadn't decided whether he would reconvene the legislature for a special session to deal with a new revenue measure before the end of the year."

""We also don't know yet whether our revenue projections are going to hold or not to know whether we might need to take any action," Beshear said. "We don't have enough information yet to know whether we'll be doing anything like that.""

Democratic candidates across the state should be made to answer whether or not they support plans to raise taxes after the election. Otherwise, we should probably just assume we already know the answer.

Biting the hand that bites the hand

Jacob Payne of Louisville has the goods on another corrupt Kentucky Democratic Party Chair. So she got him kicked out of the national convention.

Good stuff. Be sure to read the comments.

One-two punch: first oil, next tax reform?

While we are all excited about Speaker Nancy Pelosi and friends losing their religion on environmental extremism, it might be a good time to consider real tax reform. Here's the latest from the National Taxpayers Union:

Jon Draud is full of it

Education Commissioner Jon Draud, fresh off ripping off taxpayers to pimp his ride and pad his pension(details here), is now lying about school funding, too.

What the left tells itself when no one is listening

The latest Social Security "research" is no more reassuring than anything else from the "there is no crisis" crowd than we have heard the last few years:

"Since the early 1980s, Social Security has been taking in more in worker contributions than it has been paying out in benefits. This has resulted in a growing trust fund of more than $2 trillion. These reserves are projected to grow for another decade, and then will decline and run out in 2041. If no action is taken, benefits will have to be cut by about 25%, as they will be funded entirely from current contributions. Even if lawmakers allowed this to happen, future retirees will receive benefits that are more generous than those received by previous generations. Retiring at 65, the typical young adult born between 1980 and 1990 will receive retirement benefits valued at $188,000 in 2007 dollars, up from $181,000 for retirees born between 1960 and 1970."

Yeah, you lost me at "trust fund of more than $2 trillion."

Is the Dem well really this dry?

The partisan slugfest often looks suspiciously like a race to the bottom. In a year in which some civil rights activists are starting to figure out that environmental extremism is a thinly-veiled war on low-income people, though, there is increasing evidence some Democrats are really out of ideas.

Running amok on heating subsidies

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities tried yesterday to make the case for jacking up taxpayer subsidies for heating expenses for low-income Americans. They are upset that President Bush is talking about a veto for a new $2.5 billion for LIHEAP, complaining that an expected 40% increase in home heating costs will cause widespread hardship.

Right. And creating billions more dollars of artificial demand each year will ensure that those huge cost increases keep coming. Then we will have more and more people depending on the government to heat their homes and will need higher and higher taxes to pay for our socialized heat.

Around and around we go...

Now THIS is a great idea

The Ohio Institute is going to put political candidates on the spot if they don't support government transparency:

"A Pledge for Transparency and Accountability in Government will be distributed to all candidates for elective office, at all levels of government, from townships and school districts to the General Assembly. It asks that candidates acknowledge the importance of Internet availability, the legal basis of transparency in the stateand federal constitutions, and the use of practical, current technology, such as searchable databases and relevant cross links."

Kentucky needs spending transparency and, while we are at it, we need to put government notices online.

Clock running out on Fayette jail defendants

Sources report at least two of the four defendants in the Fayette jail inmate abuse scandal will have their employment with the city of Lexington terminated.

In a sane world, this would beg the question of why they continue to leave whistleblower John Vest twisting in the wind after almost two years while they are figuring out quickly how to deal with the people on whom he blew the whistle.

5:13 pm UPDATE: CWA Local 3372 President Joey McCarty confirmed that all four defendants still employed by FCDC -- John McQueen, Clarence McCoy, Kristine Lafoe, and Anthony Estep got letters last week giving them seven days to decide if they wanted to resign or be fired.

Chandler: say little, do nothing

Sage campaign advice from Congressman Ben Chandler in Ryan Alessi's column this morning says it all:

"It's so basic," Chandler said. "That's what the Democrats did in the 2006 elections -- they just talked about change and a new direction and they didn't really say much about anything else."

McCain offers VP advice to Obama

In a radio address Sen. John McCain is going to deliver today, he will suggest that Sen. Barack Obama "should consider someone with a knack for brevity and directness, to balance the ticket."

Here is his speech:

"Good morning, I'm John McCain. As you may know, the Democratic National Convention is just a couple of weeks away. It was four years ago, at the same gathering, that America heard a fine speech from an Illinois state senator named Barack Obama. He's done pretty well for himself since then. And the smart money in Denver is on another celebrated performance."

"But even the most stirring speeches are easily forgotten when they're short on content. Taking in my opponent's performances is a little like watching a big summer blockbuster, and an hour in realizing that all the best scenes were in the trailer you saw last fall. In the way of running mates, Senator Obama should consider someone with a knack for brevity and directness, to balance the ticket."

"In the meantime, let me take a stab at a plot summary of the Obama campaign: America is finally winning in Iraq, and he wants to forfeit. Government is too big, and he wants to grow it. Taxes are too high, and he wants to raise them. Congress spends too much, and he proposes more. We need more energy, and he's against producing it."

"Energy in particular seems to confound Senator Obama, because if there is any problem that can't be solved by words alone it's America's need for secure and affordable energy supplies. So far, he's managed to come up with an energy plan that's so timid only OPEC and a few interest groups in his own party are happy with it. And this week, Senator Obama set about correcting that impression."

"First there was his call for Americans to check their tires -- which is commonsense advice, but hardly has the makings of a national energy strategy. If we can't drill our way out of the problem, it seems even more unlikely that we can inflate our way out of it."

"Next came Senator Obama's mention of offshore drilling -- formerly known in the Obama campaign as a "gimmick" and a "scheme." As more people notice that his answer to most every form of energy production is "no," my opponent tried to simulate a "yes." He pledges a vague willingness to possibly consider limited drilling as part of some hypothetical compromise at an undetermined date. Careful listeners are still waiting for an actual commitment to offshore drilling."

"Apparently, Senator Obama was trying to get credit for changing his mind on drilling, without actually changing his position against drilling. This was the rare case of a politician actually hoping to be accused of a flip-flop. But even that would be giving Senator Obama's energy plan too much credit. As of today, he still has no plan to produce more oil by drilling offshore. And my opponent's most memorable flip-flop remains his frequent criticism of the Bush-Cheney energy policy, despite voting for the Bush-Cheney energy bill in 2005 -- a bill I opposed and voted against."

"Finally, Senator Obama proposed to release oil from our nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve. For those keeping track, this comes exactly a month after he said he was firmly against using the Strategic Petroleum Reserve."

"A serious energy plan involves a lot more yes's than no's. And that is why I say yes to drilling, here and now. Yes to 45 more nuclear power plants to provide our country with electricity. Yes to clean coal technology, so that we can create jobs and use America's most abundant resource. Yes to renewable energy sources, so that we can shift away from petroleum over the long term. Yes to a break from the federal gasoline tax, so that our government helps you in a time of need instead of just adding to your costs. In short, yes to all of the above -- to a bold plan for achieving energy independence that starts today."

"Regaining control over the cost and supply of energy in America will not be easy, and it won't happen quickly. But no challenge to our economy and security is more urgent. And you have my pledge that if I am president, we're going to get it done. Thanks for listening."

Frankfort's big taxers get one more worry

I just got my first post up as a new contributor to the National Taxpayers Union. Hoping to shine a little extra light on the goings-on here in Kentucky.

Please check it out.