GOP 2007: Is There Any "There" There?

Take a look at Billy Harper's campaign website. Under "Polls" is a survey asking what Mr. Harper's top priority should be if he is elected Governor.

The top choice so far is "end corruption in Frankfort."

Seventy nine people had voted when I looked at the site.

MSM Shoots But Can't Hit Barn On Draft

Given nearly 24 hours to provide some kind of coverage of Rep. Charlie Rangel's (D-NY) military draft proposal, the best the MSM can come up with is a response from Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina).

Where's Nancy Pelosi on this? She is going to have to be against this stupid idea, but reporters can't manage to ask the one question that matters.

AP London Reporter Manufactures A Wedge

Henry Kissinger did not say the war in Iraq is hopeless, but that -- of course -- didn't stop the Associated Press from reporting "Kissinger: Iraq Military Win Impossible."

In an interview, Kissinger stated that surrendering Iraq would cause "disastrous consequences" and cautioned against "total withdrawal."

The money quote was: "If you mean by 'military victory' an Iraqi government that can be established and whose writ runs across the whole country, that gets the civil war under control and sectarian violence under control in a time period that the political processes of the democracies will support, I don't believe that is possible."

This means that Kissinger doesn't think just about the narrowest possible definition of victory in Iraq is going to happen. I agree with him. But the the presence of al Qaeda campers in Iraq who keep killing and getting killed there suggests that narrow definitions of victory aren't the standard anyone on our side needs to be waiting for.

I know the liberal meme is that the war is just some Republican political scam, and I appreciate that they won the election, but these propaganda tactics are beyond the pale.

Do Liberals Hate Homosexuals?

Hypocrisy, thy name is income redistributor.

Scott Alexander Pulls A John Kerry

Sen. John Kerry made headlines recently when he questioned the intelligence of our troops in Iraq. Now Democrat Scott Alexander of Hazard, who lost his election to Rep. Brandon Smith by 40 votes, thinks he would have won if his name had been listed first on the ballot.

"I definitely think it (ballot position) made 21 votes of difference," he told the Courier-Journal.

Some political science professor in California thinks he has a lawsuit, but I'm not buying it. Mid-term election voters don't just stumble into the voting booth and hit the first name. Shame on what's left of the Courier-Journal for playing along on their "news" pages.

Running McCain

Sen. John McCain makes his case for 2008.

I'm still quite skeptical, but I am watching him on This Week now. Not too bad.

What do you think?

No More Fake Solutions, Please

Most minimum wage workers are not poor by any standard. Stating this fact makes me a hateful s.o.b., I know, but even such clever rebuttals as that don't make mandated wage increases for the lowest paying jobs any kind of tool for fighting poverty.

If the minimum wage peddlers really wanted to help low-income workers, they would push for for expanding the state earned income tax credit. That way high school students wouldn't be the primary beneficiary of the poverty-busting crusade. The EITC can be targeted to families. Since there are so few of them who actually depend on the minimum wage, the public costs would be much smaller and the desired effect would be achieved.

It's a win-win unless your real goal is just politics.

Irregularities In Madison County

Madison county Magistrate Roger Barger won a close one this year against challenger Wayne Long. Barger prevailed by twenty votes.

Well, they keep "finding" votes in the courthouse and now have the margin down to six votes.

It's time for Trey Grayson to take a look at this one.

Williams Tackles 2007 Top Issue

Senate President David Williams' advice to Governor Ernie Fletcher couldn't be better. Now is the time to take a leadership role in killing off casino gambling in Kentucky.

Athletic Supporters, Rubber Pants, Hair Notions

I don't know what compels Rep. Bob Damron (D-Nicholasville) to re-file his "sales tax holiday" bill every year. Maybe it was a desire to make a laundry list of items which, unfortunately, includes those named above.

It certainly doesn't have anything to do with good public policy.

One of the wrinkles in this year's version of Damron's favorite bill is a provision to force businesses who can't remove sales taxes for a weekend to pay them without passing them along to customers. In other words, the way around one of the paperwork burdens of previous versions of this bill is to actually make this a tax increase for some merchants.

Shrewd.

What a terrible bill.

Inspiration From Playstation Generation

Caught a little tv news at noon today and saw interviews with exultant Playstation buyers who had camped out overnight to buy their toys. The common theme running through the comments of several of them was that they had overcome great difficulty to "earn" the right to buy their toys.

Good grief.

As fantastic as our economy is going right now, this is what passes for climbing steep mountains. What on earth are we going to do if this country is faced with hard times?

Heavy Name-Dropping Injures Politician

Former Sen. John "Breck Girl" Edwards sounds distraught in a story about a campaign volunteer of his shopping for him at a Wal-Mart and dropping his name while doing so.

The really funny part is that some electronics clerk decided to alert the media because the Presidential wannabe, now a full-time Wal-Mart critic, is going to have a Playstation game from Wal-Mart under his Christmas tree.

Let's hope his kids don't read the papers.

And then, to top it all, instead of blowing this off as a really stupid story, Edwards turns it into his own macaca moment.

It-gets-better UPDATE: Another news story quotes Edwards using his own six-year-old son as a prop in his war against Wal-Mart, claiming he castigated a classmate for wearing shoes purchased at Wal-Mart. (It's in the next-to-last sentence of this story.)

We can't all take our six-year-old sons to Brooks Brothers, Senator. I think you owe some first graders an apology for teaching your son to be such a snob.

More Kentucky Budget Follies

The folks at the Bluegrass Institute have been talking for a long time about the state budget being unconstitutional. Not many of the talking heads have picked up on the scandal, but I have yet to hear anyone make a good case for the legitimacy of Kentucky's biennial budget.

UPDATE (for some): A lawsuit was filed in Franklin Circuit Court in May, which is pending. If it is successful, as many as another two dozen could be filed.

Still Waiting For A Democrat Idea

Democrat legislators today punted on economic development again. The best they could come up with was a hike in the minimum wage.

School Choice's Unexpected Champions

Democrats usually don't support school choice.

But some are starting to.

No Big Deal: Merit Grand Jury Report

The Fletcher Grand Jury has issued the report they were completely expected to issue. The political carnage for this is already figured in. But what lots of people aren't thinking about now is this: if Governor Fletcher is nominated in May, the liberal blogosphere across the country will go crazy raising gobs of money against the Governor who blocked blogs.

It's stupid, I know. But that is what's coming.

Some people won't be able to resist calling me disloyal for mentioning this, but I didn't think of it first.

Who Is Ben Chandler Representing Now?

Rep. Ben Chandler is about to extend his month-long vacation by a third day, as it is expected he will be a no-show for the House session starting at 10 AM.

Lions, And Tigers, And Bears! Oh My!

Of all the challenges facing ex-convicts in Kentucky, does anyone really think restoring their voting rights is a meaningful priority for them (or us) worthy of legislative action?

Medical Cover Up In Kentucky

The truth about Kentucky's Certificate of Need program is getting harder and harder to hide.

Where In The World Is Ben Chandler?

Louisville Mayor Jerry Abramson isn't running for governor, Auditor Crit Luallen isn't running for Governor, and Rep. Ben Chandler hasn't shown up for work the last two days.

Chandler's spokeswoman didn't return my call this afternoon so I don't know, but it is a little curious that Ben would need a couple of days off after his month-long vacation. With all this gubernatorial speculation going on, you just have to wonder.

Oh, Goody!

Meet your new House Majority Leader.

Hey John, say something stupid for the cameras about the war!

Taking Another Shot At Eminent Domain

There is a bill before the U.S. Senate that would ban the abuse of eminent domain by municipalities who take property from one private owner and give it to another.

One small problem -- Bill Frist is against it.

Typical.

Rolling Heads In Frankfort

A shake-up is in the works in House Republican leadership in Kentucky's General Assembly.

Any guesses?

Mayor Jim Newberry, Liberal or Conservative?

A rumor circulating around City Hall in Lexington has Mayor Jim Newberry scrapping the old budgeting process and going to a zero-based budget. This would involve justifying every expenditure individually rather than just taking the existing budget, raising everything five percent, and hiking taxes or fees to make it all work.

Take Another Look At Term Limits

Yeah, I know I'll take some abuse for picking the week after this election to champion Congressional term limits, but it could be worth the effort.

Nancy Pelosi has already chosen a wimpy, campaign finance reform approach to rooting out official corruption. She says gifts from lobbyists shouldn't be allowed. Sure, that will end any conflicts of interest.

If we really want to change the way Congress does business, ending the seniority-based spoils system on Capitol Hill deserves a good hard look.

I'm sure it doesn't poll very well and politicians will lie about their support for term limits in order to get elected, but it is a better idea than trying to stop legislative agents from picking up the tab for dinner. And with our finely-tuned b.s. detectors turned on high, it may be more difficult for lawmakers to shout it down.

Don't Pay Any Attention To That Civil War Going On Behind The Curtain

Media types are having a lot of fun with the idea of the Republican party struggling with the idea of going toward the center or toward the right.

But the Democratic ideological power struggle we aren't supposed to notice will be no less entertaining.

In fact, I think it will be objectively much more so because the Democrats have (slim) majorities and are supposed to be in charge.

How long before they start calling Republicans "obstructionists?"

KCFG: Liberal GOP'ers Rejected

The long-awaited launch of the Kentucky Club For Growth comes today with a press release from executive director Brian Richmond:

"The Kentucky Club for Growth will find, support and endorse candidates for elected office who are committed to free-market principles, lowering taxes, reducing spending and decreasing the size of government. Additionally, we will hold Frankfort accountable by monitoring legislation and providing scorecards to our members and the press after each legislative session."

Richmond says too many in the Republican party have "abandoned the principles that guided Ronald Reagan."

Casino Surreality

A big-government politician's dream -- casino gambling -- is playing out in absurd fashion in Indiana.

Despite ample evidence casinos cost governments more than they generate, politicians like cutting ribbons for new projects. Casino revenue generates lots of ribbon cutting. It generates even more in welfare costs, but no one calls a press conference for that.

Anyway, politicians in Indiana counties without casinos suffer a dearth of ribbon-cuttings and they are doing something about it.

Watching legislators fight to keep gambling boats here or there -- or move them, or license new ones -- is not something we want to get involved in here in Kentucky while we still have the choice. Sponsoring Senator Mudwrestling events on Friday nights would be more productive for the Commonwealth.

As Brereton Jones seeks to ride the casino gambling gravy train back to Frankfort, we should be encouraging people to take a closer look. We already rejected campaign "welfare for politicians." Casino gambling is nothing more than ribbon-cutting enhancement for politicians with a hefty price tag for taxpayers. Viewed properly, the casino gambling scam would be swiftly rejected by the people who will be buying the ribbons.

"They Think They Won"

I remember the heady days of November 2000, when a new day of conservative dominance seemed to be dawning.

It didn't mean anything to me at the time, but I remember eavesdropping on a couple of Democrats who were talking about the difficulty the newcomers were going to have advancing any kind of agenda.

"They think they won," one said to the other.

Now I understand this sentiment. It seems liberals will come down from their euphoria and quickly realize their razor-thin majorities will not get them very far on their agenda.

The first test, Iraq, will happen very soon.

Do The Right Thing, Steve Pence

An early indicator for a pretty meaningless Governor's race next year is this limp noodle column from liberal columnist John Nelson who said, basically, "Waaaaah, we don't want divisive Republicans!" Ironically, he is talking about Gov. Ernie Fletcher, who has gone above and beyond the call of duty to give in to Democrats.

I don't care who runs for Governor next year. It's a terrible, dead-end job. The only way to get along with the legislature is to go along with massive amounts of borrowed spending and stealth tax increases. The biggest challenge facing the next governor may well be pension deficits necessitating impossible-to-hide tax increases.

The race to watch for next year is the one for Attorney General. What we need is a serious, no nonsense prosecutor to protect the taxpayers.

Steve Pence's independence could make him a strong choice for that role.

This Story Probably Makes More Sense If You're Stoned: "We're All One In This World"

The executive director of the Sierra Club came to Louisville and it sounds like everyone had the munchies.

Democrats For Fair Tax?

A rumor is swirling among Fair Tax activists that Congressional Democrats are making plans to push for passage of the Fair Tax Act.

This would be a great move for the nation, for Democrats and would serve Republicans right for dragging their feet on this reform.

Party Re-organization Starts Now

All the talk about the 2008 Presidential horse race overshadows the fact that the Republican and Democratic parties will likely see some important changes to how they operate over the next two years.

Starting in the spring of 2008, both parties will re-organize from the local precincts up to the national level. This involves potentially new faces and also fine-tuning of the parties' platforms.

If you have ideas about how things should be done for either party, you should get involved now. The Republicans must reassert their fiscal conservatism. Democrats need to be clear about where they are on the war on terror.

All to often, the same people run the county, district, and state conventions about like they always have. If you have an interest in changing that, now is the time to start gathering like-minded friends who will show up and vote with you.

The opportunity for new individuals to gain greater influence is enhanced by the shake-ups in both parties. Dem Chair Jerry Lundergan is very likely to face challenges to his leadership and the much-publicized power struggle in the Ky. GOP could create quick opportunities for new blood.

GOP Straw Poll Looks Good For Romney

It's just a straw poll I can't figure out how to link to, but it shows Giuliani and Gingrich running ahead of Gov. Mitt Romney. Seems reasonable to expect their zipper problems to knock out one or both of the front-runners, so that should benefit Romney.

McCain is fourth.

Here is the straw poll.

Constitutional Officer Reform For Kentucky

We don't need any more evidence that the office of Treasurer in Kentucky is completely worthless, do we?

After Jonathan Miller rides out his second term of auditioning for a higher elected position, we should just do away with Kentucky Treasurer as a constitutionally elected office.

No one doubts the Senate would pass such a measure. The fun thing would be to watch the House Democrats go along, as they surely would.

Give Me Benefits Or Give Me Death

Kentucky state social workers are pushing for re-classification as hazardous duty employees. They say this is necessary because they risk life and limb to remove children from dangerous home environments and often face threats themselves.

At issue if whether we are just throwing money at the problem or actually trying to solve it. Adding them to the hazardous duty category only changes eligibility for a full pension from twenty seven years of service to twenty years.

Social workers are unarmed and often walk into dangerous situations without a police escort. They say that when they do have police support on a call, the officer stands behind the social worker.

Making them hazardous duty employees does nothing to alleviate the physical risks. It just pays them more for enduring the risks and pays them from a woefully insufficient pool of funds.

Wouldn't it be better for the safety of the social worker and cheaper for the state to send a police officer with every social worker who requests one and have the armed officer stand in front of the social worker at the door? It seems the officer could stay as long as a threat is perceived. Usually that wouldn't be very long.

Just seems that if I were in a very dangerous job, seven more years of pension would be small compensation for risking my life. Given a choice, I would rather see the job made more safe.

It is curious, then, that the social workers are so fired up for the seven years and won't listen to suggestions for cutting the safety risk instead.

Welcome To The Club

With their narrow electoral victory on Tuesday, liberals Like Sen. Barbara Boxer are fired up to change the world in their image.

It won't happen.

President Bush has already shown a willingness to bend on some things -- his entire presidency -- but I don't expect him to give in on disasters like the Kyoto accord.

People on the left will soon understand the frustration conservatives have felt the last twelve years. We thought we won then, too.

2007 Target: "Who's Your Daddy" Stumbo

While pundits are busy talking up the race for the Governor's Mansion, the contest that really matters in Kentucky is the one to determine which straight-arrow will replace scandal-tarred Attorney General Greg Stumbo.

Stumbo narrowly won a three-way primary in 2003 and then squeaked out a plurality in a cartoonish three-way general election.

Frankly, if the Republicans can't put up someone better, I would love to see former Auditor Ed Hatchett send Stumbo home. He would make a good AG.

Bill Clinton (1998): "Save Social Security First!"

In his 1998 State of the Union address, President Bill Clinton uttered the admonition to "Save Social Security First."

Now that Democrats are in charge of Congress, they might want to look into that.

Let's Box Their Earmarks

If Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Harry Reid want to get things started off right, they should end the practice of earmarking.

Fiscal Conservatism: Let's Try It

Wasteful and/or unnecessary government programs don't get straightened out or eliminated by accident. They have to be picked out, examined thoroughly, worked over, argued -- and even then they are usually left alone because each government program has a built-in constituency determined to see it survive.

The public pension crisis in Kentucky is the largest drain, has the largest constituency, and risks every other state program like a time bomb in your bedroom risks your ability to get a good night's sleep.

It isn't the easiest place to start politically, but it can't wait. Kentucky didn't feel Hurricane Katrina in the usual sense. But if you can imagine a Category Five hurricane of red ink demolishing our cities and towns, you have the idea.

We have to keep our promise to past and current state and municipal workers. But it is no exaggeration to say if we don't do something to limit future liabilities fast, we will get wiped out.

U.S. Senate Minority Leader 2007

If Rep. Mike Pence is going to be the House Republican leader, does it really make sense for Sen. Mitch McConnell to wind up as the Senate Republican leader?

I say no.

How about Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK)?

Top Kentucky Issue For 2007: Casinos

This is a horrible idea Democrats are going to ride toward the Governor's mansion.

If Kentucky Republicans refuse to stand up against the effort, 2007 will be as bad for them as 2006 was.

And "let the people decide" is not a viable stand against casinos. Legislators who understand casino gambling isn't the answer need to get off the fence and explain what is wrong with that plan.

Defense Sec. First Test For Senate Dems

Rumsfeld is out and Senate Democrats will have a major role in determining who replaces him. The hearings will be very interesting.

Who will be the one ask Bush nominee Robert Gates for a timetable on getting out of Iraq?

"Minimum Wage" Scam Can't Stand

It was nice to see Lexington turn back the water company condemnation last night. A "Yes" vote would have just prolonged agony and the expensive court battle.

Candidates found it difficult to refute the faulty reasoning that raising the minimum wage would somehow reduce poverty in Kentucky and all over America. Now, we need to take that issue head-on.

There is nothing about the notion of price-fixing that suggests that it might produce positive results. Fixing certain wages above the market rate is not some magically different issue.

For Heaven's sake, if you want to give something more to the poor than a mere talking point, raise the Earned Income Tax Credit.

Merely A Flesh Wound

Now let's see Speaker Nancy Pelosi surrender the war, raise taxes, impeach the President for telling the truth, socialize health care, and raise the minimum wage to eradicate poverty.

Careful What You Wish For?

Larry Kudlow raises a good point that even if Dems pull a narrow House majority, the Blue Dog Democrats will usually support the President.

That would be good for taxes and good for the economy if they move away from Nancy Pelosi and her far left positions.

That's the opposite of the U.S. Senate the last few years, in which liberal Republicans have given Democrats a de facto majority. It would be ironic if the Democrats took over the House and wound up with less power there than they have in the Republican "controlled" Senate they have been running in circles for years.

A Little Surprised By The Results?

This one was too funny to pass up.

Faith Hill was darn sure she was going to get some country music award. Her reaction when she didn't get it will be on a lot of faces tonight.

Kentucky Election Prediction

Election day 2002 was fantastic for Kentucky Republicans on the county level.

Election day 2006 will be that kind of fantastic. The get-out-the-vote effort will make the difference again.

Justin Dobbs: Space Ranger

Remember in Toy Story when Buzz Lightyear didn't realize he was a toy -- a child's play thing -- and thought he was a real Space Ranger tasked with protecting the galaxy from the evil Emperor Zurg?

Well Justin Dobbs is the 2006 Buzz Lightyear. He thinks he is a real Lexington city council candidate, sent to planet Earth to make the universe safe for unemployed young adults.

His latest adventure involved stealing yard signs and making up a phone call from a fictitious attorney when he got caught.

To infinity, and beyond!!