As if...

Yahoo News has been talking all day about Barack Obama wanting to spend hundreds of billions of dollars to "save" the economy.

The silliness cuts both ways because, tonight, George Bush had this one:

"I'm not going to let this economy crater in order to preserve the free market system."

Sure would be nice to get a president with a realistic view of his office's powers and abilities.

And how the free market works.

Buying the cow when the milk could be free

Kentucky taxpayers are still paying lots of money for local governments to buy newspaper advertising space to display public notices. Sounds pretty 20th century to me.

And at first blush it seems the Kentucky Press Association, the state's newspaper trade association agrees. They are working to put all the state's public notices online and available to the public for free (click to expand):

But when anyone starts talking about repealing the law that requires local governments to purchase newspaper advertising, the newspaper folks go ballistic. David Thompson, executive director of the Kentucky Press Association said:

"A part of the public notice law allows smaller cities to mail their notices by first class mail, if the city can show it’s cheaper than publishing in the local newspaper. In the 22 years that’s been part of the law, not one single agency has found it cheaper to mail a notice by first class than by newspaper publication."

Well no kidding! Fortunately, there's this little thing called the internet that has come along in the last few years. It's much cheaper than sending out individual letters or buying expensive newspaper advertising.

The public notices law should be changed to stop requiring governments to buy advertising and instead require them to post public notices and all budget and spending data online.

"Time to lean"

Anyone who ever worked at McDonald's has been told many times "If you have time to lean, you have time to clean."

I'm guessing if President Barack Obama ushers the Service Employee International Union in behind the counter at the home of the Golden Arches, such an admonition will be deemed an abusive management tactic.

And Happy Meals will cost $12. And you will get yours when they are good and ready to give it to you.

The Obama/Pelosi/Reid effort to expand unions with the card check bill will whack our economy like a union thug whacks a scab.

Why Republicans have lost Bailout Jam 2008

You may not have seen this ad on Kentucky blogs, but it's clear that this is why Republicans in Congress have already lost any political ground they might have gained by stopping the bailout train.

As each week brings another story of bailed out financial firms behaving badly, Democrats can complain for each constituency they want to throw money at by ripping Republicans for larding up the money guys.

No, no, no, no, no, no, NO!

Rep. Darryl Owens is pre-filing a bill to pour an extra $2 million into the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program.

No one in Kentucky is going to freeze to death living indoors this winter. We are going to have to get past the point of these feel-good appropriations should times really get hard in America.

Will someone please call Rep. Owens and tell him to quit sending this garbage up and instead look for spending to cut?

Who needs the lesson here?

Looks like Rep. Jim Glenn (D-Owensboro) wants to try again in the 2009 session with his 2008 bill that would require colleges to hand out personal finance materials to students.

Seems like a better idea to require legislators and Gov. Steve Beshear to get a clue about spending taxpayer dollars more wisely before they try to tell our students anything about managing their finances.

Since young people learn much more from behaviors they observe than from words they hear, I'm guessing what's being picked up on campus now by those who pay attention to Frankfort is to spend all you have as soon as you can and start immediately whining for more.

Who they are protecting now

Lexington police complaints to the Fayette County Detention Center administration about an ex-convict working in pre-trial services at the facility continue to be vigorously -- and inexplicably -- ignored.

Francis Lee Baker (D.O.B 7/27/1962) appears to be a small-time criminal with a few return trips to the gray bar motel. With as many honest people out of work as there are right now, it is certainly a mystery why the city of Lexington needs him making decisions inside the jail.

This came to my attention today because an officer in the jail who complained about Mr. Baker was not only repeatedly ignored, but wound up being punished herself as a result of making the complaints.

Looks like another lawsuit for FCDC Director Ron Bishop and friends.

Has anyone seen our education spending?

The Bluegrass Institute has just released Part 1 of a two-part study on education spending in Kentucky.

The first part lays out how funding has increased since KERA but hasn't quite made it into the classroom very well. The worst part is that we don't know for sure because the Kentucky Department of Education is so secretive about what it does with our money.

Part 2 of the report will focus on how much education our money is actually buying.

WWBJD?

Read an interesting article this morning about the likelihood of a General Motors bankruptcy even with an auto bailout and it occurred to me that I'd like to see what a bankruptcy judge would do to Kentucky if the state had to seek protection from its creditors.

Would a bankruptcy judge allow Kentucky to pay employees more than taxpayers get paid in the private sector? Would a bankruptcy judge throw out the whole merit system? Would a bankruptcy judge allow the school systems to continue spending money without being accountable for every dime? Would a bankruptcy judge allow public projects to be built under current prevailing wage laws? Would a bankruptcy judge allow the state to limit healthcare services under the current Certificate of Need laws? Would a bankruptcy judge allow the court system to build oversized temples for itself on borrowed money? Would a bankruptcy judge allow state government to pay off local newspapers by mandating local governments to buy ad space for public notices? Would a bankruptcy judge allow any government entity in the state to go another month without posting all of its expenditures on the internet?

Food for thought...

Is Beshear triangulating himself again?

Casino interests crashed and burned in Kentucky earlier this year to the delight of those who don't support making government bigger on a fool's gold promise.

Beshear got stuck between competing interests who both want casinos: interest groups who want more revenue to spend and horse industry people who want them to save their business.

Call it triangulation in reverse.

Beshear appears to be putting himself in the same spot between those who want to spend a cigarette tax increase and those who want to price Kentuckians out of smoking's bad health effects.

The easy way out for Senate opponents to the tax hike is to show evidence of the negative revenue impact of raising the tax higher than five of our neighboring states. Further opportunity could be realized by cutting Medicaid benefits for smokers.

Will you support bailout of Frankfort politicians?

Make no mistake, Gov. Steve Beshear's proposed cigarette tax increase affects everyone in Kentucky.

Here's the deal: the cigarette tax increase won't "work" for normal Kentuckians, but it will be very effective in forcing us to bail out politicians.

The tax hike is very unlikely to bring in $81 million between now and June 30, as Beshear says it will. Cigarette taxes are notorious for failing to produce hoped-for revenues in other states. And it is probably worse in Kentucky, where a seventy cent increase would stop residents of five surrounding states from crossing state lines to buy cigarettes and other things here. It's pretty likely we would lose at least that much revenue from that lost business.

And if they were really worried about health of smokers, they would be using the "extra revenue" to help people quit smoking, wouldn't they?

What the cigarette tax would accomplish, if it were to pass the legislature, is to open up the door for more tax increases. It's a test case, that's all.

Even if you don't smoke, you probably understand that raising taxes on Kentuckians right now is a terrible idea. If we miss this opportunity to force government to wring out some of its wasteful spending, we will have only ourselves to blame.

You've seen the signs at campgrounds: Don't Feed the Bears. Same goes for the big spenders in Frankfort. If we don't stand up to them on this, they will only come back for more.

Just say no to Gov. Steve Beshear

If we are going to set anything right in Kentucky state government, we must get this one right. Gov. Steve Beshear wants to make government bigger by raising taxes and he has to be stopped.

From the Lexington Herald Leader:

"Cutting alone, though, only gets the state about a third of the way to the nearly half-billion mark."
"To make even this slim budget work, there's got to be more revenue, and Beshear is looking to a 70 cent a pack increase in the tax on cigarettes to make up about half the shortfall."
"We have long supported increasing this tax, to improve both revenue and public health. When the price increases, some people quit smoking and a lot — especially young people — don't start."

The budget hasn't gotten "slim," yet. Keeping bureaucrats fat and happy is not the taxpayers' responsibility. Until we force them to cut back on their government lifestyles, nothing will change in Kentucky.

The cigarette tax is merely a gateway drug for Gov. Beshear and the Frankfort big-spenders. Stopping that and then cutting off the excessive borrowing will get us on the road to smaller, less intrusive government and a freer Kentucky.

You'd better not cry, I'm tellin' you why...

All the big-spending babies in Frankfort may be headed for the naughty list if they don't get serious about showing Kentucky taxpayers what is really going on with their money.

The Kentucky spending transparency group on Facebook appears to have picked up at least one very powerful member:

Destroying the Bush legacy completely

If George Bush uses TARP money to bail out General Motors and Chrysler, I hope they put his Presidential library in a FEMA trailer.

A better plan

The Louisville Courier Journal quoted Sen. Tom Buford issuing a challenge to Gov. Steve Beshear's critics. The challenge should be taken seriously:

""It's is extremely difficult to criticize the governor on what he wants to do," said Sen. Tom Buford, R-Nicholasville. "And anyone who would want to criticize the governor, I would ask them to lay out a better plan.""

Okay, let's do it.

Lowering healthcare costs by repealing Kentucky's certificate of need laws would help with the Medicaid deficit. If we really want to lower smoking rates in the state, let's take welfare benefits away from people who abuse drugs or smoke cigarettes. Repeal prevailing wage laws that artificially inflate the costs of public building projects. Allow charter schools to be established, force school districts to post all spending to the internet, and consider closing the Kentucky Department of Education. Close the Economic Development Cabinet and lower business taxes.

Any other ideas?

Barney Frank's "right to be overpaid"

Rep. Barney Frank is just about out of spin on the car bailout if this is the best he can do:

"No. We’re not propping up companies. That’s your mistake," he tells Stahl, who had asked him about taxpayer money going to prop up companies that had made bad decisions. "We’re propping up individuals. The world doesn't consist of companies. The world is people. The country is people."

When Stahl points out that Frank is then talking about welfare, he responds, "Yeah, I’m for welfare. You’re not? Are you for letting people starve?"

Starving on $73 an hour? Keep talking, Barney.

Responses coming in on Beshear tax hike scheme

Rep. Bill Farmer knows taxes. In addition to his legislative duties, he is a tax accountant in Lexington. Farmer isn't impressed with Gov. Steve Beshear's plan to raise the cigarette tax and empty out the Rainy Day Fund rather than cut spending enough to match projected revenues:

"The Governor's proposal is horrible policy. It fails to address the underlying problem and if things don't get better immediately he will have used all of the tricks in the bag."

Further "tricks" at that point, of course, would be further tax increases.

House Minority Whip Stan Lee says Beshear's plan is "hypocritical."

"They say that it's about getting people to stop smoking, but it's really just about the money. If they wanted people to stop smoking, they would try to make smoking illegal," Lee said.

Speaker Jody Richards said:

"The House has a record of strong leadership in these matters. Last session, we expressed our support for additional revenue by passing a cigarette tax to avoid disastrous cuts in education and human services. We in the House have not shied away from the tough decisions when it means doing what is best for Kentucky."

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We need a "getting out of the way" Cabinet

Just noticed the blurb at the bottom of yet another Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development press release:

Wonder how many jobs and how much investment government would "create" if, instead of shuffling around tax dollars from people who are already here, they stuck to making Kentucky a right-to-work state, lowered or eliminated taxes on business income, and got really serious about public education?

No relief from welfare for illegals in Kentucky

U.S. District Court Judge Karl Forester has dismissed Dr. David Duncan's lawsuit against LFUCG and the state of Kentucky for illegally providing welfare benefits to illegal aliens.

Dr. Duncan is considering an appeal, but similar efforts elsewhere have gotten stuck in the same bureaucratic web.

Dr. Duncan said:

"The LFUCG and state will not enforce illegal hiring practices. Neither government will enforce federal immigration laws as demonstrated by Beshear's, Newberry's and Conway's stated policies. Now the door has been closed for one citizen's request for relief from the District court to enforce the laws restricting public benefits to ineligible recipients. My interpretation of these collective practices is that Kentucky and Lexington clearly fit the definition of Sanctuary status and are determined to be safe havens for illegal immigration."

"I've taken this to its logical conclusion for being one voice, one citizen."

"On the local, state, and now the federal level there is the not the political will to stop illegal immigration into Kentucky or address the drug cartels, prostitution, human trafficking, or gangs. I've spoken out on all three levels. The point has been made. There are 4,241,000 Kentuckians and 271,000 Lexingtonians who need to address the issues if they see an existing problem. I think I've carried the water about as far as I can. It would seem that there isn't the majority who will stand up on the issues and carry the water any further. Sadly, we will all suffer the long term negative consequences. Our politicians, at all levels, are content to betray their duty to protect the citizens."

"The cowardice of hiding behind the excuse, "its a federal issue," is both unpatriotic and treasonous. They would, of course, need to know the definition of these two concepts to understand them but, after all, those in Kentucky are products of the failed Kentucky education system. What can you expect?"

"I'll need to give careful consideration to my options but for now I plan to enjoy the holidays with my family. Fortunately, I am fluent in Spanish so the transition to our new Hispanic culture won't be too hard."

Chandler and Yarmuth screw large KY employers

Hal Rogers, Geoff Davis, and Ed Whitfield voted against the auto bailout bill.

Ben Chandler and John Yarmuth voted for the auto bailout bill.

If you're keeping score at home, this bill stands to hurt Ford (which appears to be uninterested in participating in the bailout) and Toyota.

Nice work, guys.