Whither the Conservative Movement?

I'm not too upset about the Harriet Miers nomination. I think too many conservative pundits are forgetting that a half dozen Republican U.S. Senators are admittedly pro-abortion and not part of the conservative movement. That leaves the President with the challenge of getting Supreme Court nominees through a chamber ruled by liberals.

I was eager for a fight over a serious conservative jurist as well, but Miers will get confirmed. Better to get a so-so candidate through than to see the perfect nominee squashed by our own Judiciary Committee Chairman.

More important is the work going on behind the scenes at the President's Advisory Panel on Tax Reform. Yesterday, the panel voted to discard the Fair Tax from consideration. Short-sighted partisanship has so far prevented elected Democrats from getting on board with this, but a lot of normal people registered as Democrats (and are less interested in empowering liberal politicians than in getting government off the backs of the middle class) are climbing on board.

The 2004 election cycle saw a lot of Democrat "leaders" lie about the Fair Tax. The interesting thing to me is that as we watch the President's people coming up short on another issue, we have the prospect of a Reaganesque conservative revolution seemingly building up a head of steam as a revolt against a Republican administration.

That Karl Rove really is a genius, isn't he?

A Fight Worth Fighting

You thought 2005 was not going to be an election year in Kentucky. You may still be right, but if the KY Supreme Court caves in to some kooky Lexington xenophobics' desire to steal Kentucky American Water Company, Fayette county voters will head to the polls November 8.

It probably won't happen. The elected city council already decided early this year to end the condemnation effort of a handful of sclerotic leftists and their dutiful supporters. The Supreme Court should be able to quash their kibitzing based solely on this fact.

But the overreaching power grab of a dangerous opponent must be addressed quickly and decisively. This latest outrage by the people who call themselves Let Us Vote Lexington deserves swift retribution whether or not this issue comes to a vote four weeks from today.

Cuddly little muddle-headed Kentucky liberals have tried feebly for years to prop up their brand of public policy initiatives through judicial fiat. Their current day media-savvy comrades draw blood with bare knuckles, snappy slogans, and tight-fisted media control.

Their brand of persuasion works when most people aren't paying attention and get off the main issue.

The main issue here is that eminent domain abusers on the left have sought to overturn the 2004 Lexington city council races with an unconstitutional court battle to spend more public dollars for an unneccesary extra election to promote their political careers. Teresa Isaac and Ben Chandler are the two heads of this monster.

If you live in Lexington, go here and learn how you can help turn these people back. And if you don't live in Lexington but do live in Kentucky's Sixth district, call Ben Chandler and tell him to tell the FLOW people to quit crying and try to promote their government takings during election years. He won't do it, but he should be forced to talk about why he is on the unconstitutional side of this issue.

The Republican Opportunity For 2006

Primaries aren't a lot of fun, but they can help a truly dominant political party reload for future victories. Before its rapid decline, the Kentucky Democratic Party understood this. The old line about fighting like cats in May and having more cats by November has been told over and over as the reason for a nearly unbroken string of Democrat electoral wins.

KDP Chairman Jerry Lundergan doesn't want to play it that way any more. Lundergan told the Courier Journal that he is encouraging potential 2006 Democrat candidates not to engage in primaries. That sounds good to me.

I'm not saying that the GOP should actively seek primaries. We will be better off when widespread Republican primaries are more the rule than the exception, but it will have to develop on its own. I am just enjoying the fact that Democrats are having to come to grips with their erosion of support that is causing them to admit to fixing primaries. Your county clerk may still tell new voters that they have to register Democrat to vote in the primaries, but the reality is that those days are over.

The simple fact remains that the far-left segment of our society is propped up by the more sane Democrats. We can rage against Ernesto Scorsone and Mary Lou Marzian all we want to, but their districts keep sending them back. The Republican party will only reach majority status in Kentucky by pointing out that "conservative" Democrats are the real problem. Continuing to take those of sensible middle-American values out of the Democratic Party causes the anti-war, anti-capitalist goons lose their voice and their influence.

The target for 2006 in Kentucky must be disaffected conservative Democrat-registered voters. The message is that the middle-of-the-road Democrat office holders are lending credibility to those with the worst ideas. Giving so-called "conservative" Democrats a pass because they "aren't so bad" misses the point and stands as the major roadblock to real progress in our state. Problematic Republicans will become much easier to deal with in a single-front effort.

KDP is holding the door open for us. We just have to bust on through.

Go Ahead: Overturn Roe V. Wade

Maybe you have heard the liberal talking point that conservatives don't really want to overturn Roe V. Wade because we would then no longer have the "abortion issue" to campaign on.

That's bunk.

While I don't doubt that some Republicans may subscribe to this line of reasoning, it couldn't be further from reality.

Overturning Roe, first of all, won't make abortion illegal everywhere. It would just return the decision to the states. Secondly, the phantom "privacy rights" used to interpret abortion on demand into the Constitution could just as easily be interpreted back in if a conservative Supreme Court were to one day be reversed. The battle would rage on unabated.

President Bush may well get a third Supreme Court nominee. After out-flanking the Democrats again with the Miers nomination, we may well see some progress on this front. I hope we embrace it.

Capitol Hill sources say that the President's initiatives will pop up in rapid-fire succession just after the middle of this month. Conservatism itself faces a put up or shut up moment. Do not flinch.

The Rep. Carr party switch is nice, but little more. Saying that the Democratic Party is no place for a conservative Christian is true, but it is merely stating the obvious. Now is not the time to take our eye of the ball by cheering a minor victory. Social Security reform, Medicaid reform, and federal tax reform are coming very soon. Democrats will be out to wreck the 2006 Ky. General Assembly session just as their Washington counterparts have done on the federal level. These are historic times. May we take full advantage of them.

Is The Lexington Herald Leader A Racist Paper?

Two Lexington H-L articles jumped out at me today. One was a news story based on an African American state legislator's concerns about increasing academic standards and the resulting decrease in the admission of black freshmen. The other was an editorial that criticized the University of Kentucky for not graduating a sufficient number of African American students.

I knew in college several African American students who benefitted from special admissions preferences. They got help getting in the door, but those who got degrees earned them.

Community colleges, private schools, and online courses make higher education available to just about anyone. I think that a case can be made, however, for racial preferences in the admissions process at public universities. In any event, I'm not much interested in that fight here.

What is astounding to me is that the Lexington Herald Leader would, in 2005, suggest that UK President Lee Todd deserves punishment for not handing out more degrees to African American students.

Another fine example of the "soft bigotry of low expectations" indeed.

Rare Bipartisanship Shines Light On Frankfort

A raging battle between the Bowling Green think tank Bluegrass Institute (the Courier Journal called them a "conservative propaganda mill") and Frankfort's Legislative Research Commission over online publication of legislators' voting records seems to have broken in favor of the public interest.

Legislators who have hidden behind phony labels for years will soon have to face greater scrutiny for their official actions.

The LRC today agreed to make complete voting records publicly available on their website January 3, 2006. This action comes after weeks of LRC intransigence in the face of repeated requests from the Bluegrass Institute to make the records available electronically. BI has put up a website at www.KentuckyVotes.org that will give citizens unprecedented ability to analyze their representatives' actions.

It took both Senate President David Williams and House Speaker Jody Richards to get this done. Kudos to both of them.

Bringing Delaware To Kentucky

The Kentucky Democratic Party is bringing in Senator Joe "Howard Dean does not speak for me" Biden to the Bluegrass State October 22 to raise money.

So it's official. Republican-lite is in and Smash-mouth Deaniac ranting is out. While that is welcome progress for a state party that refused to renounce Dean's screams this summer, bringing in America's most famous plagiarist surely won't do anything to inspire the party's "Surrender Now To Terrorists Abroad And Raise Taxes At Home" base.

The slogan for next year can be "Vote Democrat: We're Like Little Republicans."

Kentucky's GOP must not miss this great opportunity to bounce these bozos to permanent minority party status.

Socialized Medicine Goes For Smoke

These are ugly times for those who want to drain taxpayers to fund a government takeover of the healthcare industry.

Federal legislators from both parties are getting the message from constituents that government spending has gone too far. That would make it a bad time to try to sell HillaryCare to a public who knows better.

So here comes Plan B.

A group called Tobacco Free Alliance is pushing a scheme to get states to mandate coverage of smoking cessation products by health insurers.

The mandated coverages that have been forced on Kentucky's health insurers have kept premiums high here. This one is being sold as a cost-saver because of the social costs of smoking that, proponents assume, would decrease if only non-smokers are forced to pay for smokers' patches and nicotine gum. It's just another half-step toward a Canadian-style healthcare system.

No thanks. We need fewer mandates, not more.

There is a bill before Congress that would allow Kentuckians to buy health insurance from other states. That is what we really need. The slim Democrat House majority we are stuck with through the 2006 General Assembly session will cling to what remains of their disastrous 1994 reforms that destroyed the Kentucky health insurance market.

Time To Act On Merit Hiring Scandal

If you are not sick of hearing about the Merit Hiring Scandal, you haven't been paying attention.

The developments in this episode have reached a critical mass; news stories are writing themselves nearly every day and political opponents get to look smart by saying nothing.

And while the best legal defense strategy may well be underway, denying that there are serious problems with the political strategy is getting to be a little tough.

I know that the public hasn't been fully engrossed in this debacle yet, but the Governor's own people have already written the Democrats' fundraising letters, speeches, and campaign commercials for them. Under normal circumstances, I'm all for waiting for the pendulum to reverse course, but this isn't your garden variety failure to communicate.

Lots of people are whispering about what might happen next. Here's a likely scenario: the 2006 legislative session is going to include several bills on merit hiring. Public discussion of each will dredge back up the whole thing. The environment for the 2006 elections can be saved, but not at the rate and in the direction we are going now. The scene in 2007 could be even worse.

The governor's race for 2007 has indeed started. The '06 House and Senate races will be impacted by all this too. Actually, it has already happened. GOP candidate recruitment is way down from this time in the last cycle, when first-time candidates were jumping up to get involved in the conservative revolution in Kentucky.

Making a clean break from recent events is looking more imperative every day.

I worked hard to help get Governor Fletcher elected. I would do it again. In fact, if he is the nominee in 2007, I will support him again. But I would be hoping for a very weak Democrat nominee. Governor Fletcher was very brave to attempt a fumigation of Frankfort. Smoking out the insurgents left over from previous administrations and set on destroying his was a battle he could have won, perhaps, but didn't.

Clumsiness and overeagerness may have been the primary culprits in this scandal. Maybe it was worse than that. I don't know. But it really doesn't matter much anymore, does it? The damage has been done and repairing it must begin immediately.

Maybe Governor Fletcher thrives on the chaos. Maybe he can cobble together enough of a list of accomplishments to garner support and win re-election. Maybe.

The Kentucky GOP Executive Committee did the right thing in refusing to throw Darrell Brock overboard when Governor Fletcher asked them to. It didn't take a great deal of insight to see that coming. Too many active Republicans are too disgusted over this whole mess to play along when given the opportunity to express discontent. Not that Darrell has cause to rest easy. But this isn't about him yet.

Kentucky Republicans' greatest strength right now is that Democrats have no coherent vision and no ideas. That may help Republicans win an election or two more, but it doesn't help us regain the moral authority to govern. Only Ernie Fletcher's resignation can do that.

Louie Nunn couldn't run for re-election, but the aftermath of his term was thirty two years of Democrat domination. The current situation is much more applicable to Richard Nixon. He resigned before his troubles destroyed his party. Ernie Fletcher should do the same.

Or... quit fighting Greg Stumbo and start fighting for Kentuckians. The widespread perception that this isn't happening is the real reason for the depth of the current mess. The Governor may have one last chance, but the window is closing very quickly.

Senate's Top Democrat Stuck On No

Harry Reid's threat to vote against John Roberts for the Supreme Court is merely the first shot in the battle for the next nominee. As it becomes increasingly likely that Chief Justice Rehnquist will be replaced by another conservative, the left has to hope that they can force President Bush to nominate a moderate next.

Bush won't play Reid's game. The fireworks that result from this clash will likely bring back up the filibuster. And that re-opens the door for his second term agenda to go into high gear. That's Social Security reform and Tax reform, folks.

And now that Tom Delay has everyone talking about cutting spending, expect some big news on that front very soon as well.

Who Is Bill Thomas?

Kentuckians who cheered passage of the tobacco buyout owe it all to a quiet policy wonk from Bakersfield California. As Republican Chairman of the House Ways And Means Committee, Rep. Bill Thomas used his favorite strategy of working outside of the limelight to draft important legislation. He combined it with unrelated initiatives to cobble together sufficient support.

The bad news for liberal interest groups is that he is working on Social Security reform now.

Expect to hear a lot more about this. And remember that Ted Kennedy railed against the tobacco buyout.

Don't underestimate Bill Thomas.

What We Stand For

The left is going to have a ball with Saturday's events at the Republican Party of Kentucky. They should enjoy it while it lasts.

Governor Fletcher had asked the GOP Executive Committee to fire Chairman Darrell Brock. The fact that the Committee didn't comply on Saturday is ultimately meaningless, but that won't stop the crowing from Democrats counting their unearned good fortune.

Governor Fletcher had his reasons for asking for Brock's head and party leadership had good reason not to go along with that plan. Much will be made of the "divide" or "internal friction" but that is just noise that real people don't care anything about. A governor is an elected official, not a royal figure whose every decree must be quickly obeyed. There is meaning, however, in what happens next. The onus is on both men to produce positive results and to do it quickly and publicly. Brock's job is to raise money. If he is successful there, little else matters. As the Democrats understand by now, no one is going to change party allegiance because of fuzzy ethical concerns about a party chairman. Governor Fletcher is a different story, but he can still be effective. Remember that the 2006 legislative session requires a budget agreement. How that shakes out will far surpass the admitted seriousness of the merit system situation.

Rank and file conservative people care about having a government that functions efficiently and will not insert itself where it doesn't belong. The Republican party is far from perfect. It should come as no surprise that its candidates and elected officials aren't either. Fortunately for the GOP, like the old story about the two hunters running from a bear when one stops to change into his running shoes, we don't have to outrun the bear, just the Democrats. Compare the two party platforms. That should make it abundantly clear why the Dems will be unable to capitalize on this opportunity.

Political conventional wisdom states that you ignore your base and spend your efforts wooing the persuadable portion of your opponents' base. Governor Fletcher needs to turn that old saw upside down and tend to the issues of the people who want to support him the most. Remember what we stand for, Governor. The rest may, in time, take care of itself.

Make the hard choices on Medicaid. Those who will blast you for stemming the tide of red ink would blast you anyway.

Left Still Out To Destroy Healthcare

Liberals know that the only way to force socialized medicine onto American citizens is to obliterate the current system.

Senator Denise Harper Angel (D-Louisville) yesterday pre-filed a bill that would force the governor to demand re-importation of drugs from Canada.

Last year was one in which every Democrat primary candidate for President campaigned in favor of some form of HillaryCare. I think Kentucky Democrats really believe that attempting to extract capitalism from our system of health care will present them with some kind of wedge issue in the 2006 elections.

They are counting on voters' inattention to details.

In this particular case, Senator Harper Angel's bill would, if fully enacted, allow the state of Kentucky to order drugs for Medicaid recipients, at least on paper. To date, re-importation of prescription drugs from Canada has been a way for some individuals to purchase drugs at lower Canadian prices. This has long been illegal, but the Bush Administration made a point of not enforcing that law until last year. Now individuals can try to purchase Canadians drugs, but they are somewhat likely to be confiscated in transit. The Canadian government has yet to intervene in the process because ordering from the U.S. hasn't been substantial enough to noticably impact Canadian supplies. If we encouraged large-scale ordering like this and it caused shortages in Canada, then the Canadian government would quickly shut the process down by making exporting illegal. This gumming up of the works would ensure renewed calls for pricing regulation on American drug makers. With a citizenry becoming increasingly dependent on the life-saving qualities of drugs made in the last bastion of pharmaceutical innovation (the United States), we should understand that more socialism is one thing our healthcare system cannot afford.

But the Democrats don't expect this to get that far. They just want to paint Republicans as protecting the interests of the evil drug companies over the little grandmothers who need their purple pills. That will be fairly easy to do after Republican Senators kill Senator Harper Angel's little piece of socialist utopian dreaming.

Fletcher Versus Brock

Darrell Brock isn't going to lose this one.

KY Supreme Court Justices ELECTED By The People

Anyone watching the confirmation process of John Roberts to the U.S. Supreme Court has to supremely underwhelmed by the lack of intelligence shown by liberal Senators. In Kentucky, we elect our state Supreme Court justices and that is a good thing.

Justice John Roach goes before the voters next year. Two things are already known: he is a conservative and will face liberal opposition.

We MUST support strong conservative candidates to our state's highest court.

Any questions?

Steve Henry in 2007: Can't Help Being Typical Dem

The Democratic Party's highest profile candidate for 2007 could well be former LG Steve Henry. In an interview over the weekend, Henry pointed to "cuts" in education and health care by the Fletcher administration as major causes for getting him into the race.

That is where this thing is headed.

Spending more money on education isn't going to get us anywhere. That we can't get beyond this simple fact is a testament only to the vast resources that we waste empowering the teachers' union.

And if what Henry really wants to do is dump more and more money into Medicaid without reforming the program, he needs to come clean on whose taxes he wants to raise and by how much.

Henry had his chance. His Patton administration's screwing around for eight years is precisely why we have many of the problems we are dealing with now.

No Class: Clinton Snarks At Bush Over Katrina

Bill Clinton just couldn't resist.

When asked during a BET telethon how his administration would have handled the hurricane differently, Clinton let loose with another whopper: "We always thought faster was better than slower," Clinton said.

Right. Obviously Clinton hasn't gotten the latest memo which states that the Democrat lie about how awful the Bush administration handled the tragedy's aftermath is unravelling quickly.

Do The Right Thing, Governor

Despite recent efforts by Kentucky's Educational Industrial Complex to misrepresent statistics on spending for public education, all honest people should know by now that more money isn't the answer.

Innovation is the answer.

The method is school choice. I've found a website dedicated to bringing about this innovation. Democrats and their teachers' union thugs are out to shut this down.

The teachers' union thugs already hate Governor Fletcher. He should do the right thing and embrace the school choice movement. Our children deserve that.

This Man Wants More Power

Rep. Adrian Arnold (D-Mt. Sterling) has pre-filed a bill that would extend the term of state Representatives to four years. Just what we need! Less accountability for liberal politicians!

Too bad he lives in the People's State of Mt. Sterling and can't likely be voted out. But we can win elsewhere and put him in the minority. Bills like this just strengthen our hand.

Why We Can't All Just Get Along

A University of Louisville student and chairman of the school's Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee has attracted the attention of the Secret Service by calling for the assassination of President Bush.

Phillip Bailey writes on a website called The SOULution and, in addition to his non-violent activities, has written essays with titles like "I Really, Really Hate White People."

Bailey's comments were made in reference to looters in New Orleans. He said "I say shoot every cop, national guard and politician who stands in your way, INCLUDING GEORGE W. BUSH if need be."

If charged with making threats against the president, Bailey could face five years in prison.

I doubt this 21-year old kid will go to jail. Merlene Davis and Betty Baye will doubtless be welcoming him to the wonderful world of professional race-baiting all too soon.

While we all know normal people who can deal with racial differences without inciting riots, young people like Phillip Bailey help keep alive the bitter flame of hatred.

African Americans in increasingly larger numbers already know that selling out to the Democratic Party won't advance anything that matters. That's all these cartoonish verbal attacks on George Bush are about: whipping up the loyal Democrat base to hate Republicans.

This young man should wake up and realize that he can use his obvious talents to be much more than a token black columnist sell-out.

Just As Bad As The Klan

Louisville Courier Journal columnist Betty Baye ups the ante on Bush-bashing today by stating that many African Americans already thought President Bush "doesn't care about black people" before Hurricane Katrina "confirmed" it for her and her buddy Kanye West.

Baye's race-baiting (she claims that 74% of all Republicans -- those who support the President's efforts -- wouldn't be supportive if more of New Orleans' beleaguered citizens were white) is thoroughly disgusting and has no place in a major newspaper.

There is an answer to racism, but Betty Baye wouldn't be interested in that. Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. preached that answer. Love those who abuse you, he said.

I guess the race-baiting pays better, though.

The Kiss of Death?

Senator John Kerry is injecting himself into the 2006 mayoral Democrat primary in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Any chance we could get him to bring his socialized medicine, tax-raising, defense cutting, Communist party-supported act to Kentucky for some of our 2006 races?

Yeah, I know. The Communist Party of the United States didn't actually endorse Kerry last year, but they didn't run their own candidate and they were adamant that defeating George Bush was critical to the achievement of their goals. Do the math.

The Courier Journal's Reefer Madness

U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist died Sunday and the Louisville Courier Journal editorial board can hardly contain its hallucinogenic-inspired glee.

Must be smoking some pretty strong stuff to come up with the typo (not to mention false) headline "Rehnquist's legacyPovery on the rise" and the contention that the 7-2 vote to end the Gore recounts in 2000 was not only the "most notable" decision of his tenure, but also "a low point for the Court and its reputation."

How embarrassing that the most literate liberals in our state wasted their long Labor Day weekend smoking dope and typing recklessly. What's worse, they promise to have "more to say" about Rehnquist in the days ahead.

Here's a better idea, dudes: sleep it off instead.

A Great Opportunity For Governor Fletcher

The number that jumps out from the page is 17%. That is the number that the Louisville CJ's Bluegrass Poll says represents Kentucky registered voters who say they think they will vote for Governor Fletcher in 2007.

My first thought was to look for problems with the methodology of the poll. My only possible problem is with the question that generated the 17% answer. Here it is:

In 2007, voters will decide whether to re-elect Ernie Fletcher as governor of Kentucky. As you feel today, do you think you will vote to re-elect Ernie Fletcher, or will you consider voting for someone else, or do you think you will vote to replace Fletcher?

Nevertheless, as far as any poll more than two years out from election day (and more importantly one that doesn't list even one possible opponent) could have meaning, this one does. But the number that holds the most meaning is 44%. That is the job approval rating for Governor Fletcher. At what is likely the low point of the merit hiring debacle, that is not a bad number. The Impeachment Six group of legislators and their favorite lefty blogger will, I think, continue to ride the Beat Ernie Now train right off their own cliff.

The opportunity for Governor Fletcher is to tighten up his organization for a productive 2006 legislative session. If he and the Senate can line up needed reforms and if the loudest detractors stay loud (a pretty safe bet!) he may find Kentucky's voters ready to send a majority of Republican State Representatives to Frankfort to drown out the bickering.

This opportunity is a fragile one and if it is mishandled it could cut the opposite direction quickly and decisively. I suggest taking on the Business Forum On Kentucky Education recommendations immediately and then quickly and publicly addressing the Medicaid situation. Tough and easily demagogued moves are required there. Engage the public on the important issues and, please, don't mention the Attorney General by name in regard to the merit investigation ever again.

The radio shows and newspaper columns are a great idea. I hope using these vehicles to address real issues will prove beneficial to the entire state.

Ky Native Links Katrina With War

Sure it was a dumb question. And it will probably lead some on the left to detour from blaming Republicans for the actual hurricane itself to claiming to have yet another excuse for surrendering to the terrorists. But this morning when ABC's Diane Sawyer asked President Bush about continuing to spend money on the war in Iraq when there are so many people suffering here, she veered dangerously close to this.

Straighten up, Diane. You are supposed to be on our side.

Senate Race Headed To Supreme Court

Dana Seum Stephenson will have her case heard before the Kentucky Supreme Court.

She beat Democrat Virginia Woodward last year, but a lawsuit has prevented her from taking office so far.

Another Liberal Myth Debunked

Most educational establishment folks can't talk about their work without bitterly lamenting the "unfunded mandate" foisted upon them by President Bush's No Child Left Behind Act.

Next time you hear that talking point, you can ignore it. The man who is in a better position than anyone else in the state to know about it says there is no such unfunded mandate.

Kentucky's Education Commissioner Gene Wilhoit was asked yesterday at the Elementary and Secondary Education Subcommittee meeting about this common criticism by opponents of the President.

In front of reporters, Wilhoit said there is no such condition in Kentucky schools. You won't see that in the mainstream media, though.

Merit Probe Far From Over; Time To Do Real Work

Governor Fletcher has issued pardons, but I can't imagine he hopes this will do much more than kick off the 2006 elections early and with a bang. This action does create a little breathing room to get some things done, though. How about some real tax reform? How about some health insurance reform? Here I mean for the individual and group markets. Grab the bully pulpit, Governor. Quickly.

Take a look at the Kentucky Democrats' "Family Agenda." Two points jumped out at me as good things to say, though a skeptic might say they had their chance. The first is a promise: "We will support reductions in the regulations, red tape, and some mandates that hamper (health insurance reform). If they really understand how well this would work, seriously, then why are they just now getting around to a more market-friendly approach to health insurance? If they had only listened to the Republicans saying this is 1994 we could have avoided more than a decade in the insurance wilderness.

The second is an attack on Tax Modernization that I couldn't agree with more. It has been a disaster for small business and clearly has to be changed. But again, the Dems all voted for it too.

So the Democrats seem to have punted on yet another opportunity to rise above the partisan tussle. And this is why, when the dust settles, Governor Fletcher should be able to gain re-election. I just hope he and his administration take full advantage of the next legislative session to advance conservatism and further strengthen the state.

One pretty funny thing: take a look at how this always-goofy leftist site goes from trying to make hay out of the merit system debacle for Democrats to infighting about racism and their own stereotypes of rampant Appalachian incest. It is beyond hilarious.

On Gas Prices And Income Taxes

You are probably getting several emails urging a citizen revolt against higher gas prices.

You know the routine: if we all boycott the same company or all swear off gasoline for one day, the oil companies will get the message. What these would-be Crusaders are missing is that we can run our gas guzzlers on fumes all week and blow the whole thing walking to the grocery store and spending $100 on food. In short, we can all cut up our Chevron cards in protest if we want to. The shippers who bring the goods we buy will not participate. The statement is muted as soon as we buy an apple.

It isn't a giant leap from the realization that gasoline consumption plays a role in the availability (and the price) of everything from Cheerios to chaise lounges to the screaming need for federal income tax reform.

It stands to reason that three dollars a gallon for gas -- which now seems inevitable and imminent -- will not only eat into your take home pay, but will take a bite out of shippers' and truckers' bottom lines as well. So if your kiwis come from Chile, you can probably expect the price of them to be headed north as well.

Did it ever occur to you that when your favorite plumber's growing business puts him in a higher tax bracket, the same dynamic applies? And that is for a service, which isn't taxed directly at the retail level.

A "flat tax" doesn't begin to address the issue of income taxes passed along from providers to consumers. Only the Fair Tax does that. Congress goes back into session in one week and tax reform will be on the agenda. Done properly, this reform could have an enormously positive impact on the U.S. economy.

Every Economics 101 textbook refers to a "multiplier effect" that ripples through an economy as the result of certain actions. Just as gasoline price increases reverberate through layers of providers and get passed along to consumers, nearly one-third of the price of all goods and services flows back to the federal government to pay income tax liabilities incurred by those same providers. The difference is that we can actually have a meaningful impact on income taxes.

We need the Fair Tax now. If you want to affect change, join this Crusade (with apologies to our Islamo-fascist readers, of course.)

Smacked Down: Miller Tastes Defeat On KAPT

The KAPT board decided Thursday to abandon Treasurer Jonathan Miller and his lawsuit over $13.7 million he wants to take from the General Fund to prop up the KAPT program. This move was widely expected.

Instead of supporting Miller's money grab, the board resolved to "work vigorously with the General Assembly to pass legislation that will ensure that all currently held KAPT contracts will be honored when an unfunded liability arises." Contrary to Miller's wishes, this language echoes the sentiments expressed by members of the General Assembly.

In fact, the language of yesterday's resolution was very similar to that of a March 18, 2005 letter sent out by Senate President David Williams to KAPT contract holders which stated "The Kentucky Senate intends to live up to our commitment to the KAPT families."

Miller struck a defiant posture nonetheless, claiming unconvincingly that not only was the board's decision "a symbolic victory" for him, but that President Williams "reversed course and has announced that he supports the rights of KAPT families."

Miller's reputation for petulance is well-deserved. He slipped into name-calling mode in an email to contract holders, labeling Williams "formerly KAPT's most ardent foe."

The only person to ever suggest that the General Assembly wanted to harm contract holders' investments has been Jonathan Miller. Without provocation, Miller has attacked repeatedly the members of the State Senate for seeking to put a cap on Miller's unsustainable scheme. When the Democratic House members became convinced of the necessity for action to stem the tide, he attacked them too.

No one can know how Miller's lawsuit will turn out other than to waste more taxpayer dollars.

Every politician knows the hack's version of the sucker punch. It's called the straw man: accuse your opponent of saying something he didn't say, then attack him for saying it. This is Miller's favorite trick. He does it twice in the same paragraph of his statement on government email to contract holders. He said KAPT families were "attacked as undeserving rich people" and that legislators wanted to "shut down KAPT and force refunds (without interest)." The only person to make these claims has been Miller himself.

And he wants you to elect him Auditor of Public Accounts in 2007. Given his New Liberal Math techniques, I don't think we can afford much more of Mr. Miller.

Stan Lee Sponsors Good Business Bill for 2006

Rep. Stan Lee (R-Lexington) pre-filed a Right To Work bill in Frankfort yesterday. This would simply prohibit unions from forcing membership or support on individuals as a condition of employment. It's a good bill for a "conservative" Democrat to steal and push through the House.

Chandler: We Must Destroy Embryos To Beat China

Rep. Ben Chandler spoke to the Richmond Chamber of Commerce and his two topics were how strong China is getting and how terrible George Bush has been.

Most of his comments were nothing new, but one jumped out as odd. Chandler said "As the current administration turns its back on promising scientific research, China is working very hard to develop the know-how to develop and exploit new technologies."

Looks like the left is getting their talking points mixed up. Is China really going to toss us in the dustbin of history on the strength of their embryonic stem cell research?

Calling Howard Dean: Class Warfare Hits China

If any circumstance ever called for a good Dean Scream(Mandarin version), this would have to be it. A very strange Associated Press story today from Shanghai explains how growing income "inequality" will "likely undermine social stability" in China very soon.

What? In Communist China? You mean just as their experiment with capitalism is starting to work, they start getting all DNC-squishy on us? This story is actually a perfect example of why people on the left and right don't see eye to eye. We just keep score differently. Conservatives don't generally view equalization of outcomes as the role of government and liberals see unequal outcomes as their clarion call.

A priceless nugget: "reforms have also largely ended cradle-to-grave social support, forcing Chinese to pay far more for health care, education and other basic services. Millions have also slipped into poverty after being laid off from moribund state enterprises and rural incomes have largely stagnated as wealth fails to trickle down into the countryside."

Sounds like circumstances would improve in China if they gave up on their economic reforms and went back to "cradle-to-grave social support." Nice touch throwing in the "trickle down" part there at the end. What is the world coming to when peaceful agrarian reformers go for Reaganomics?

One might think that the next thing we would hear from the AP is how the explosive economic growth in China is causing homelessness. It probably won't happen, but it does raise an interesting question: if a man goes homeless in Shanghai but no Republicans are there to blame, does the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities still get to write a weepy research report?

I found the original article from China Daily.

And from straight-faced Chinese economic planners, some good quotes that Sen. John Kerry would never see the humor in:

"The government's top priority is to make those farmers still in poverty earn more," the team concludes in a report. "

(And if that doesn't work, Beijing will just shoot them.)

"He said incomes of laid-off workers are decreasing while the wallets of private business owners have been fattening at incredible rates."

(Imagine getting less money for not working. Expanded Unemployment Benefits, anyone? Let's send a delegation and teach them how!)

Democrats Taking Ho Chi Minh Trail To Lose Iraq

Read all about it in the Washington Post.

Update: Looks like John Edwards wants the joint next.

Meanwhile, Evan Bayh is having a bad trip. He thinks he is Jimmy Carter.

Gary Hart says Dems aren't trying hard enough to sabotage the war.

Even if We Don't Build It, They Will Come

... so connect U.S. 27 in Jessamine county to Interstate 75 to improve traffic flow and save lives.

Liberal Freakout Over A Rock

Just like a bunch of naked people in a field trying to save the world, the folks over at Ben Chandler's blog are going bananas and making a spectacle of themselves.

Mark Nickolas, Chandler's mad-as-hell campaign manager, is inconsolable over what he wants to believe is a Fletcher administration sleight to his man's grandfather. And he wants you to be just as worked up as he is.

Don't be fooled.

Nickolas reports, with Congressman Chandler as his only source, that the "petty and dishonest" Fletcher administration is planning to remove a historical marker honoring the late Happy Chandler from its current location in Corydon, Kentucky.

Have you ever seen this thing? It is about four tons of rock. It is huge and less than ten feet from the road. And the truth is the Transportation Cabinet is looking into moving the marker to a place where people can more safely look at it, not getting rid of it. The city park and the school system remain possible new custodians, but my money is on scrapping the whole idea and leaving it where it is.

Still distraught over the election loss of their man John Kerry, the folks at Bluegrass Report are perhaps letting their disappointment get the best of them.

Senate Minority Leader Captured By Space Aliens!

The plausible excuse above might be a good one for Ed Worley (D-Richmond) to try when his latest scandal emerges.

War Strategy Questioning By Chandlers

The story goes like this: Chandler of Kentucky stands on Capitol Hill and attacks the President for pursuing a "diversion" rather than going after America's attackers.

Interesting article about this today in USA Today. But the Chandler isn't Ben, the president isn't Bush, the "diversion" isn't Iraq, and the year isn't 2005. It was Senator A.B. "Happy" Chandler, President Roosevelt, Germany, and 1942.

While we can be grateful that the current president won't succumb to whims of those like the current Chandler, we must be eternally thankful (along with millions of Europeans over the years) that FDR had the good sense to ignore Sen. Chandler when he criticized the move to support our western Allies in the wake of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Had we left them to their own devices then, we might well have been rebuffed by PM Tony Blair when we asked for help against terrorists.

In fact, I suspect Blair would have said something like "Hau ab, Yankee!"

The article is here.

Liberals Bite Wrong Dog Over School Spending

The latest media attack on Governor Fletcher (and Republicans in general) has been easy to debunk. This attack attempts to cast Fletcher as uncaring about education.

On Monday, AP reporter Joe Biesk's article in the Lexington Herald Leader reported that Kentucky was found to be last in the nation in per capita spending on education. He reports that Governing magazine's 2005 State and Local Source Book is his source for the figures he quotes, but neglects to point out that the numbers are based on 2002 Census Bureau statistics. The timeliness of the story is appropriate in that Governing magazine just released the report this month, but has nothing to do with the current resident of the Governor's Mansion.

This fact has not stopped liberal pundits from going rabid, and barking that Republicans just don't care about kids.

The hard, cold fact is that a two minute phone call to the Kentucky Department of Education revealed that Kentucky's spending on K-12 education in FY 2006 is 44.1% of General Fund expenditures and that is UP from FY 2002's 41.2%.

We won't lose sleep waiting for David Hawpe, Mark Nickolas, et al to apologize for nipping at Governor Fletcher's heels when they should have in fact been chewing on Paul Patton, but spreading the word on this attempt at spin from the left should provide some perspective on other charges leveled by them.

War Protestors Should Talk To Islamics, Not Bush

Cindy Sheehan's run is not nearly over, but when it is what's left of the Democratic Party will be.

Sen. George Allen has said President Bush should meet with her. I disagree. The conventional wisdom would be that sitting down with her would end her fifteen minutes. There is no chance of that. Either way, this will wind up being the biggest war protest of all time.

Let it run until next year and then campaign against it.

Success in the war is not only good public policy, it is good politics. It would seem that everyone would understand that.

Democrats Show Cards On Immigration: Bluff!

... and the Wall Street Journal nails them on it.

I think we should eliminate the minimum wage and enforce the law against hiring illegals.

Obstructionists Hint At Coming To Reform Table

President Roosevelt knew the value of private investment and the available evidence suggests that he feared Social Security would become the ponzi scheme that it is. But no one can doubt FDR would have been mortified by what passes for talking points from his once-proud party.

"Stopping privatization and dropping partisan demands for private accounts," Rep. Jon Salazar (D-CO) whined in response to President Bush's Saturday Radio Address.

Why are the Dems still talking about this? I thought Social Security reform was as popular as leprosy and that the President's "plan" was dead in the water.

Well, of course it isn't dead. Only Nancy "Social Security has never failed to pay promised benefits" Pelosi's most zealous followers really believe the program is just hunky-dory as it is. Optional private accounts had better not pass, from the partisan Democrat point of view, or the younger generations will be lost to them forever.

This fall is going to be a lot of fun to watch!

Washington's August Recess Portends Success

President Bush continues the battle to save Social Security, while the hapless opposition continues the same nose-into-door jam sleepwalk routine that passes for return fire against Karl Rove in the 21st century.

Of course, the Administration could put both feet in the increasingly crowded pool party celebrating the Fair Tax proposal and wipe out the struggles to avert Social Security's bust in 2041 and Medicare's in 2020 in one big splash.

Government Smoking Bans: Just Say No

We all know smoking does wonderful things to your body. Just ask Keith Richards. But as bad as smoking is, government smoking bans are worse.

As Louisville continues to argue whether to ban smoking in restaurants and bars, Lexington and Georgetown are already gone. The spread of government smoking bans should concern anyone with even a single civil libertarian bone in his body.

The momentum is clearly with the pro-ban folks. The argument always shakes out the same. They start talking about public health and the anti-banners respond that a ban would be disastrous for business. This is a bad approach, especially now that pro-banners can point to evidence that the economy doesn't come crashing down under the weight of a smoking ban.

Kentuckians are protective of their freedoms. We would do well to fight future smoking ban initiatives with the argument that success on this front will only embolden do-gooders to ban other activities they don't like. Drinking alcohol, eating fat-laden foods, or consuming soft drinks would be easy steps from here. The real question is what would they be on to from there? I'm pretty sure we don't want to find out. Better to kill this little movement before it builds up a head of steam.

The question is: what are you going to ban next?

Kentucky Progress on Lexington Radio

I will be on Sue Wylie's show (WVLK 590 AM in Lexington) at 10 AM Wednesday. The subject is federal tax reform.

"I should have had a Club Gitmo Cocktail!"

One year before 9/11, four of the terrorists of that fateful day had been identified as Al Qaeda members by U.S. military intelligence, the New York Times reports.

Interestingly, the intelligence unit recommended that this highly valuable information be shared with the FBI, but the recommendation was rejected by the Clinton administration. The man pictured in this post is Clinton National Security Advisor Sandy Berger, recently noteworthy for having been caught stuffing classified documents into his pants. Our friends at www.anklebitingpundits.com wonder if this very serious scandal was the subject of the documents in Mr. Bergers tighty whiteys. We don't know.

While it is unreasonable to speculate that a suite at Club Gitmo -- complete with prayer rugs, gourmet meals, and urine-stained Qurans -- could have prevented 9/11, perhaps a little FBI scrutiny would have raised a flag or two, perhaps even before Mohammed Atta and friends headed off to the airport with boxcutters in their pockets.

Senator Bunning Eases Lexington Traffic Woes

Senator Jim Bunning (R-KY) arranged for funding of a feasibility study for building a connector between US-27 (Nicholasville Rd) and I-75. This project, when completed, will clear up many traffic jams on this main artery through south Lexington and save lives.

No-growth zealots will scream bloody murder. In fact, it's already started with this goofy diatribe from a guy who seems to be incapable of making his point without exaggerating profusely.

Terrorists? No, Abortionists!

Planned Parenthood has come out with a wonderful new cartoon that includes brilliant satire like a pro-choice "hero" drowning a pro-lifer in a trash can full of anal lubricant, blowing up abortion protestors, and (above) a condom decapitating a man.

A Lie That Polls Well With Swing Voters

Rep. Ben Chandler claimed falsely in a March 23 press release that he had been appointed to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly by Republican House Speaker Dennis Hastert. Actually, Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) had four appointments for Democrats and gave Chandler one of them. Stating that the Republican Speaker was paying attention to him must have polled well, though, because Chandler has done it again in his monthly column:

In March, I was honored with an appointment to the Assembly by House Speaker Dennis Hassert. Since that time, I have become even more convinced of the importance of our country’s membership in NATO and the valuable role NATO plays in the War on Terror.

Right.

Having a Congressional Representative so ineffective that he is reduced to making up silly little (and easily discovered) distortions as this is extremely frustrating.

Pre-emptive Strike Beats Empty Threats, Again

During an argument about the war effort, a Manchester, Ky. man who opposed the war died from a bullet wound to the chest after threatening to kill another man who supported the war effort.

Harold Smith, the war opponent, pulled a small pistol and threatened to kill Douglas Moore of Martin, Ky, the war supporter. Moore responded pulling out his .38-caliber pistol and shooting Smith once in the chest.

The Kentucky State Police determined that Moore was acting in self-defense and did not arrest him.

The Associated Press released this story today.

Never Forget Why We Are Fighting

We often lose sight of the fact that wars are political events. Without public support for our war effort, we wouldn't be able to muster a defense. We must remember what is at stake.

HB 516: The Elect Me Governor Act of 2005

House Speaker Jody Richards filed HB 516 last session in an obvious attempt to create taxpayer funding for a Louisville arena regardless of how bad a deal it is for the actual taxpayers.

The bill would allow cities to finance 100% of the cost of building a professional sports stadium with local property tax revenues and without the possible hindrance of a net positive impact review that would otherwise be required.

A shiny new building for a sports venue is nearly always a fun thing to visit, but also quite often it is a good deal for a small handful of powerful people and a lousy one for taxpayers.

Ask George W. Bush.

Fortunately, the bill died in the Economic Development Committee, but that probably had more to do with time running out than the most powerful Democrat in Frankfort being snubbed by a vulnerable member of his own party.

Richards may well try to bring this back. He should be stopped.

Incidentally, the way I found this bill was through the www.kentuckyvotes.org site. It is not fully operational, but it is an extremely helpful tool and will be huge when it is done. Check it out. You can comment on bills.

Another Campaign Finance Scandal

Working on details, but it is related to this.

Details: The problem started on October 20, 2004 when a pro-abortion group called Physicians for the Positive Choice (PPC) placed a full page ad in the Winchester Sun newspaper advocating for the candidacy of Democrat Rep. Don Pasley. Under only the smallest amount of scrutiny (the group is not registered with the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance so we don't even know who they are or what other left wing issues they may support), PPC claims to be able to hide behind the smokescreen that they did not "expressly advocate" for Pasley or against his opponent, Dr. Ralph Alvarado, a Republican. This is confusing, then, because according to his own testimony, Rep. Pasley liked the ad so much that he went down to the newspaper office on October 25 and made arrangements to run substantially the same ad (one-half page and with the "paid for" line indicating that he in fact paid for the second ad).

Several of the people listed in the PPC ad had already made the maximum contribution to Pasley's campaign, so the likelihood that they contributed further to design and place the October 20 ad (and that Pasley didn't report the contribution) would clearly be against campaign finance laws. PPC has refused to provide information about who actually paid for the ad in question.

This matter is presently before the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance and it bears watching. If an unregistered pro-choice group is allowed to produce ads that are so effective for a Democrat candidate that he duplicates the ad and runs it himself and they all get away with it, Republican candidates would do well to set up multiple off-the-books "groups" to advocate for themselves in 2006. Or are only liberals able to get away with this?

Republican Wins Special Election in Ohio

Jean Schmidt beat Democrat Paul Hackett in a close one. Dems are already talking up ways to rig a recount.

This one was just across the river in Ohio, so a lot of our active liberals from here went up there. They will be juiced because it was a close race in a Republican dominated district. They have a right to be excited and Republicans had better be paying attention. Hackett ran in a conservative district as a conservative on the airwaves and as a liberal on the net. Watch for that to be duplicated in 2006 and beyond.

The hilarious thing was that the computers went down leaving nearly 10,000 votes to be counted by hand. Must have been Karl Rove flipping the switch on that one, right?

Chandler Goofs Again

Congressman Ben Chandler is congratulating himself for securing $3.1 million to plant grass in Wilmore, Kentucky. What's worse, he quotes Mayor Harold Rainwater thanking the Congressman for his largesse, saying "we have wanted this for years."

In fact, Mayor Rainwater says he never asked for the landscaping from the federal government, and that he was surprised when the Congressman's office called to tell him what they were doing. Jessamine county has numerous road needs and could benefit by upgrades to our roads. Landscaping is far from being one of our priorities.

Chandler claims "after a hard fight, the people of Jessamine county are still receiving the important funds they need."

Give me a break.

Check here to for Chandler's announcements in other 6th district counties.

Five Years After Hyde Park

On August 1, 2000, some elected Democrats (including Sen. John Kerry) gathered to Hyde Park, New York to express ideas for Social Security reform such as personal accounts, which they were in favor of at the time.

Read this account. Would be funny if it weren't so sad. Well, okay. It's a little funny.

Getting Tough With The United Nations

New Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton should prove to be another nail in the coffin of obstructionist Democrats. Bolton will serve on the President's recess appointment until January of 2007.

Senator Joseph Biden said "I think the president would make a truly serious mistake if he makes a recess appointment."

Say no more, Senator. That tells me we are on the right track. Now let's get back to Social Security reform. HR 3304 is a good first step, neatly underscoring the duplicity of "fiscally responsible" Democrats.