KY Repugs Turn on Bevin; Demand Investigation

Could just be bullshit, given that the new Attorney General is a repug and might just decline to investigate.

Could be they're just piling on a loser they never liked anyway.

But it could be a sign that some repug legislators are willing to turn on a trump wannabe once he stops being useful.

From the Courier:

Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers is calling on the U.S. Attorney's Office to investigate the pardons issued by former Gov. Matt Bevin.

The Courier Journal first reported Wednesday that Bevin issued hundreds of pardons during his last days in office. Those pardoned included a man who was convicted of raping a 9-year-old in Kenton County and other convicted killers.

"From what we know of former Governor Bevin's extreme pardons and commutations, the Senate Republican Majority condemns his actions as a travesty and perversion of justice," Stivers said. "Our citizens, and especially the crime victims and their families, deserve better."

Stivers' statement came hours after two Democratic legislators, Senate Democratic Floor Leader Morgan McGarvey and state Rep. Chris Harris called on Attorney General-elect Daniel Cameron to appoint an independent special prosecutor to investigate potential criminal wrongdoing involving Bevin's pardon of Patrick Brian Baker.

The brother and sister-in-law of Baker, who was convicted of a homicide and other crimes in a 2014 Knox County home invasion, raised $21,500 at a political fundraiser last year to help retire debt from Bevin’s 2015 gubernatorial campaign. That money could go straight to Bevin since he had loaned his campaign money.

Yeah.  Bevin pardoned a motherfucker who committed a vicious murder by beheading because the motherfucker's family gave him money.

Tell me again how evil and corrupt Democratic officials are.

Bevin Doesn't Know What the Fuck He's Doing, Part 2

Or maybe he does.  These are exactly the lies Sam Brownback spread to justify gutting Kansas' economy to further enrich the obscenely wealthy mooching people and corporations.

Tom Loftus at the Courier:

Gov.-elect Matt Bevin said Tuesday that he is inheriting a "financial crisis" from departing Gov. Steve Beshear.

"According to the Beshear administration, they are leaving Kentucky burdened with a projected biennial budget shortfall of more than $500 million," Bevin said in a news release naming John E. Chilton, of Louisville, as the new state budget director. "The appointment of a highly qualified budget director, therefore is of tremendous importance."

Asked to elaborate on Bevin's comment about a financial crisis, the Bevin transition office released an analysis of the state's 2016-18 budget outlook by the Beshear administration's budget office.

But Beshear said in a statement later Tuesday that there is no shortfall and that Bevin is simply confronting a problem he confronted repeatedly the past eight years of dealing with needs and requests that outstrip available revenues.

"I have had to balance and rebalance the state's budget 15 times," Beshear said. "We are leaving the state's finances in much better shape than what I was presented with my first year in office," Beshear said.

KY's Fucked-By-Fracking Future: Bevin Appoints Oil-and-Gas Motherfucker to Staff

Earthquakes by the hundreds per day, like in Oklahoma.  Groundwater poisoned by toxic fracking fluid, like in Pennsylvania. Farmland permanently ruined by fracking operations and waste disposal, like in North Dakota.

Not to mention the libertarian paradise economy of Haiti.

Tom Loftus at the Courier:

Gov.-elect Matt Bevin on Wednesday announced two appointments to positions in the new Governor's Office: Andrew V. McNeill as a senior advisor, and Adam M. Meier as deputy chief of staff for policy.

"Andrew McNeill has decades of experience in the public and private sector. He will be a key advisor..." Bevin said in a news release. "Adam Meier has been an invaluable resource in shaping our policy agenda and will add a steady hand to the process in the Governor's Office."

 

McNeill, 42, of Louisville, has been executive director for the Kentucky Oil and Gas Association since December of 2012. He worked in the administration of former Gov. Ernie Fletcher as legislative director for the Governor's Office, chief of staff to the secretary of commerce, and executive director for the Office of Energy Policy. He also has worked for ConnectKentucky.

And how very convenient that the new Attorney General, who alone has the power to put a stop to this shit, is himself a mouthpiece for the fracking industry.

Bend over and grab your ankles, Kentucky: the ass-raping hasn't even started yet.

Mayors Fischer and Gray: Are You Going to Let Matt Bevin Push You Around?

Kentucky's governor-elect is a racist, motherfucking moron.  Mayors of Louisville and Lexington are not.  They should follow the excellent example of their counterparts in Michigan and Texas.

Crooks and Liars:

The mayors of Detroit and Austin said Monday they are welcoming Syrian refugees despite pushback by their states’ Republican governors following the deadly attacks in Paris.

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan said his city can support 50 Syrian families annually for the next three years and is “moving down that road.” Mayor Steve Adler said Austin has accepted three Syrian refugees in the past two years and another is coming.

The Democrats spoke during a White House-arranged conference call, a week after numerous Republican governors spoke out against federal refugee policies.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has instructed refugee-resettling organizations to stop helping Syrians. Michigan Governor Rick Snyder, who has lobbied federal officials for refugees and immigrants, urged a pause in the resettlement program until security concerns are addressed.

Duggan, who discussed refugee issues with Obama administration officials last month during a two-day Washington trip, said he remains comfortable with the refugee-vetting process. He said the city has vacant housing that could accommodate refugees, as well as support agencies and a large Syrian and Middle Eastern community in the surrounding area.

He said all mayors are “conscious of this terrorist threat,” which is “very real.” But he called accepting refugees a “very human issue.” Providing “refuge” to victims of terror, he said, “is what this country is all about.”

“We stand in Detroit prepared to do our share,” he added.

Bevin to Bankrupt Kentucky on Refugee Lawsuits

Our repug guv-elect said Kentucky won't accept them. That stupidity is going to cost Kentucky taxpayers millions.

TPM:

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit on Monday against Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) on behalf of the refugee agency that redirected a Syrian refugee family from Indiana to Connecticut at the request of the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration.

The lawsuit seeks an injunction to keep the governor from withholding any state or federal refugee resettlement funds from Exodus Refugee Immigration, Inc., and states that Pence's rejection of refugees from Syria is unconstitutional.

"This lawsuit is calling out Governor Pence on his unconstitutional bluff," Judy Rabinovitz, deputy legal director of the ACLU's immigrants' rights project, said in a statement. "He does not have the power to pick and choose between which lawfully-admitted refugees he is willing to accept. Singling out Syrian refugees for exclusion from Indiana is not only ethically wrong, it is unconstitutional. Period."

Governors do not have the authority to block refugees from living in their states, since the federal government sets immigration policy. And experts say that targeting refugees from certain regions is unconstitutional and could invite lawsuits.

But the lawsuit filed by the ACLU notes that when Exodus had to redirect a Syrian refugee family to Connecticut at the last minute, the agency had to spend its own funds to find the family a new home.

"Exodus Refugee Immigration had expended both staff time and resources in preparing for the Syrian refugee family who did not come to Indiana. These resources were necessarily diverted from other projects and from assisting other refugees," the complaint reads.

SNIP

In a statement issued in response to the ACLU lawsuit on Tuesday, Pence's office said that the state will continue to suspend the resettlement of Syrian refugees in Indiana.

Moron.  Stand up, Hoosiers and impeach this idiot before you lose everything.

Steve Beshear Pulls Cruel Joke with Voting Rights Executive Order

That order will last all of seven 14 days, one hour and 48 minutes from signing. Because one second after Bevin is sworn in on Dec. 8, he'll reverse this order.  Even before he issues his promised "Kim Davis is the jeebusiest jeebus lover in the world" executive order.

Shame on Beshear for giving false hope to people unjustly denied the right to vote.

Gov. Beshear Signs Executive Order Restoring Right to Vote, Hold Office to Certain Offenders

Order excludes persons convicted of violent or sex crimes, bribery or treason

FRANKFORT, Ky. (Nov. 24, 2015) – Governor Steve Beshear today signed an executive order  that automatically restores the right to vote and hold public office to certain offenders once all terms of their sentences have been satisfied.

The order excludes persons convicted of violent or sex crimes, bribery or treason.

“The right to vote is one of the most intrinsically American privileges, and thousands of Kentuckians are living, working and paying taxes in the state but are denied this basic right,” Gov. Beshear said. “Once an individual has served his or her time and paid all restitution, society expects them to reintegrate into their communities and become law-abiding and productive citizens. A key part of that transition is the right to vote.”

Under the terms of the order, for felons who are currently incarcerated or under probation or parole supervision, the Department of Corrections (DOC) will verify prior to issuing a restoration of civil rights that there are no pending criminal cases, charges or arrests, or outstanding court-ordered restitution. Individuals meeting those criteria will be granted automatic restoration and a certificate of Restoration of Civil Rights will be issued.

Individuals who have already left the correctional system may pick up a restoration of rights form at any Probation and Parole office, or by contacting the Department of Corrections at 502-782-2248 or online at corrections.ky.gov, and return it to the address listed. DOC will verify whether they meet the criteria set out in the executive order. Offenders who do will have their voting rights restored “without undue delay” and receive a certificate of Restoration of Civil Rights in the mail.

Offenders who don’t meet the criteria for automatic restoration, including those convicted of federal crimes, may still individually apply to have the Governor restore their civil rights under the current restoration process.

“This approach strikes an effective balance between the need to re-enfranchise thousands of Kentuckians who have paid their debt to society, and the recognition that there are some crimes of such a nature that they require a more deliberative review,” Beshear said.

Under the state’s constitution, persons convicted of a felony are stripped of their rights to vote, hold public office, own a firearm or serve on a jury. Kentucky is one of only four states that does not automatically restore felons’ voting rights upon final discharge of their sentence. An estimated 180,000 Kentuckians have served out their sentence but lack the right to vote.

“Today is a wonderful day for all Kentuckians,” said former state Rep. Jesse Crenshaw, of Lexington. “The steps that Gov. Beshear has taken through this executive order will allow for democracy at its best.”

“Gov. Beshear should be congratulated,” said Sen. Gerald Neal, of Louisville. “Restoring the voting rights of ex-offenders enhances the credibility of the justice system in Kentucky. Kentucky now joins all but a few states in discarding this reactionary, useless restriction.”

“It has long been my belief that once offenders have paid restitution for their crimes, they deserve to have their voting rights restored,” said Sen. Denise Harper Angel, of Louisville. “As someone who has co-sponsored legislation numerous times to restore voting rights, I am very pleased that Gov. Beshear has taken this bold step to move Kentucky forward.”

“This is a major step toward fully re-integrating individuals into society who have paid for their past mistakes,” said Rep. Darryl T. Owens, of Louisville. “I appreciate the leadership of Jesse Crenshaw on this issue and I commend Gov. Beshear for taking this bold action.”

In signing the executive order two weeks before his terms ends, Beshear noted he has consistently supported legislative efforts to permit a constitutional referendum on restoration of rights, and wanted to allow that process to play out. When those efforts failed, he said, he waited under after the November election so as not to politicize the issue during the campaigns.

“The ACLU-KY applauds Gov. Beshear for taking an important step toward breaking down barriers to ballot boxes in Kentucky,” said Michael Aldridge, Kentucky executive director of the ACLU. “We know the Commonwealth’s disenfranchisement policies, some of the harshest in the country, have negatively impacted families and communities, especially those of color, by reducing their collective political voice. Studies have shown that individuals who vote are more likely to give to charity, volunteer, attend school board meetings, serve on juries and are more actively involved in their communities.”

“Today’s order transforms the process for restoring voting rights in Kentucky and makes it accessible to thousands of Kentucky citizens, some of whom have waited many years for this,” said Tomas Lopez, counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law. “Everyone eligible should act now to take advantage of this important reform.”

Repugs Already Taking Over KY House While Dems Lick Wounds

Three Democrats are all that stand between Kentucky and the anti-government catastrophe that will be guv Bevin with a repug legislature. Three more Dem losses and we're fucking Kansas, on our way to being Haiti. 

Jack Brammer at the Herald:

State Rep. Denver Butler, a longtime Democrat from Louisville, filed Thursday to seek re-election as a Republican — a move designed to help the GOP win control of the Kentucky House next year for the first time in about 90 years.

Butler, a retired homicide police sergeant who has been in the state House since 2013, said in an email that he made the party switch “after a great deal of thought, reflection and prayer.”

House Speaker Greg Stumbo, D-Prestonsburg, said he was “surprised and disappointed” by Butler’s announcement, noting that Butler’s father had also been a Democratic state lawmaker.

“In short, I find it hard to believe that he made this decision, but we will field a strong candidate in this district, which has been reliably Democratic,” Stumbo said. “Our caucus remains strong.”

No, Greg: your caucus is falling apart. Filing deadline for 2016 elections is January 29. By then, you may not still have the majority.

Bevin Doesn't Know What the Fuck He's Doing, Part 1

First, you moron, refugee policy is set by the President, not by faux-libertarian bros who think a governor's race makes them king. If President Obama wants to send five million Syrian refugees to Kentucky, there's not a fucking thing Bevin can do about it.

And as has been pointed out by others, ISIS is what the Syrian refugees are running away from.  You want to hurt ISIS and help America?  Welcome the refugees with open arms and make sure they become grateful American citizens.

 

You know, like the immigrant ancestors of every single fucking person in this country.

From the Courier:

As Kentucky refugee advocates worked to calm fears and stave off a backlash against Syrian refugees, Gov.-elect Matt Bevin on Monday joined with a chorus of governors, including Indiana's Mike Pence, calling for suspending the refugees' resettlements to their states.

"The recent terrorist attacks in Paris serve as a warning to the entire civilized world that we must remain vigilant," Bevin said in a statement. "It is imperative that we do everything in our power to prevent any similar attack by evildoers from taking place here in America."

Bevin, who is to be inaugurated Dec. 8, said his primary responsibility as governor would be to protect Kentuckians.

About the same time, Kentucky's outgoing governor, Steve Beshear, issued a statement saying the commonwealth would be following federal immigration laws under him. "In terms of the impact of this violence on refugees, obviously, these are women and children and people who are in desperate need, and if America needs to help out, we will help out," he said. "But we have to be very careful and make sure that we screen people so we only bring folks into the United States who are truly looking for a safe haven.”

No, KY Did Not Elect a Black Lt. Gov.

She was not "elected" to anything, because Kentucky no longer "elects" the Lieutenant Governor.  Governor candidates choose a running mate whose name appears below that governor candidate's name on the ballot. She never appeared on her own ballot line.  If she had, not a single white repug - and in Kentucky, they're 99.9999 percent white - would have cast a vote for her.

Kentucky repugs are racist motherfuckers who never voted for her, but are happy to use her as the personification of their lies.

Adam Beam of AP:

Hampton never made it to space, but she did rise from an unemployed tea party activist who couldn't win a state House race to become the first African-American to ever hold statewide office in Kentucky. Elected lieutenant governor alongside Republican Gov.-elect Matt Bevin, she joins Republican U.S. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina as the only black statewide elected officials in the South.

Republicans view her election as a rebuke to claims by some Democrats that President Barack Obama's dismal approval ratings in the state are driven by race. Kentucky's minority population is less than 10 percent, and the state had divided loyalties during the Civil War while never officially joining the Confederacy. The state Capitol has statues of both Abraham Lincoln and Confederate President Jefferson Davis in its rotunda.

As for you, Jenean: you can be sure that every repug in the state is calling you a ni**er behind your back.  And they'll never elect you to a real office.

How Bevin's Charter Schools Will Make Both Schools and Poverty Worse

Erik Loomis at LGM:

Robert Mann speaks some truth:

Arguing that education is the key to curing poverty is like saying swimming will prevent drowning. Of course, but could the best instructor in the world teach a child to swim if the student showed up for lessons wearing 20-pound weights on each arm?

That weight – the onerous burden of poverty – is what holds back many Louisiana children. It’s what makes the efforts of even the best teachers so challenging. When a child arrives at school unprepared or unable to learn because of circumstances beyond the school’s or its teachers’ control, why would we blame the school and its teachers?

Surely, those seeking public office, especially many now running for governor and the Legislature, understand this. They know that (on average) a sick child, an emotionally or physically battered child or a hungry child cannot learn, in the same way, at the same pace, as a child without those enormous challenges. So, why do so many of our leaders respond to questions about poverty by tossing off mindless, simplistic answers like, “The solution to poverty is a good education”?

I suspect they know it’s evasive and naive, but what else can the average politician tell you? The truth? Imagine a candidate with the courage to say the following:

“Look, I could give you the usual boilerplate answer about poverty. I could blame it on substandard schools and lazy teachers, and you’d nod your heads in agreement. That’s what you want to hear. You want to believe that if our teachers would just work harder, all our problems would disappear.

“Blaming poverty on our teachers and the schools is a cop out. It absolves us of our collective responsibility for the scandal of poverty. We’re scapegoating teachers, which is very much like blaming doctors for an outbreak of the common cold. They are only dealing with symptoms of a problem that existed before the patient arrived.

You know the primary solution for poverty is? Good jobs in the places where people live. Of course saying that we need well-paid jobs in this country is the equivalent to being a moral monster if you are a centrist Democrat. It’s a lot easier to just bust teachers’ unions and send idealistic 22 year old recent college graduates into impoverished schools without any training. That will solve our problems!

Zandar on why black voters punish Democratic candidates for defending public education.

Fletcher Crimes II: Bevin Hires Lawyer of Indicted Repug Governor

Is this some kind of reverse prevent defense?  Is Bevin planning the same kind of illegal shenanigans that sank ol' Ernie?  Do repugs shit themselves in stupidity?

John Cheves at the Herald:

M. Stephen Pitt, a Louisville lawyer who defended Republican Gov. Ernie Fletcher during the state hiring investigation that led to Fletcher's indictment in 2006, will be general counsel to Republican Governor-elect Matt Bevin.

Bevin announced the appointment Tuesday.

"I am pleased to have Steve Pitt join our team," Bevin said in a prepared statement. "He is widely respected and has a deep understanding of the law that is rooted in decades of experience. The office of general counsel is a critical one, and Steve's character, competence and commitment to the commonwealth are beyond reproach."

Pitt, 69, is a member of Wyatt Tarrant & Combs.

Nine years ago, Fletcher hired Pitt to defend him on misdemeanor criminal charges of violating the state's merit system rules. Democratic Attorney General Greg Stumbo, now the House speaker, said Fletcher and his aides awarded state merit jobs to reward campaign donors, relatives, friends and others, regardless of their qualifications. Fletcher pardoned his indicted aides and ultimately settled the case with Stumbo.

"The governor acknowledges that the evidence strongly indicates wrongdoing by his administration with regard to personnel actions within the merit system," the settlement agreement stated.
The next year, Fletcher named Pitt's daughter, Caroline Pitt Clark, to the state Public Service Commission, the agency that regulates utilities.

Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/2015/11/10/4131055/bevin-names-louisville-lawyer.html#storylink=cpy

Matt Bevin Wants You Lose Your Health Care, Peasants

He's listening to your pleas and laughing his ass off.  He knows that you knew he was going to take away kynect and Medicaid, but you voted for him anyway.  You are registered Democrats who always vote repug because babby jeebus hates the buttsex.

Matt Bevin thinks you're too fucking stupid to deserve health care, and it's getting harder and harder to make an argument against that.

Bloomberg News:

The governor-elect also said Medicaid expansion should be repealed, and he would seek a waiver of federal rules for eligibility and coverage with a “Kentucky-specific” version that’s more sustainable.

On Friday, in his first news conference as governor-elect, Bevin said he wants to dismantle Kynect by the end of 2016.

Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/2015/11/08/4127989/kynect-fans-appeal-to-bevin-to.html#storylink=cpy

SNIP

“It’s irresponsible for a governor to be even considering taking it way,” said Joey Harrison, 61, of Louisville, after coming to the Kynect store Thursday. “There are people who can’t get insurance if this weren’t offered, and it’s his job as governor to look after everyone in the state.”

Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/2015/11/08/4127989/kynect-fans-appeal-to-bevin-to.html#storylink=cpy

Bevin Vows to Eliiminate Public Education, Health Care, Accountability for Freakazoids

I hope all you Democratic voters who sat home or who skipped voting in the governor's race because Jack Conway is such a dork are happy.  You're getting exactly what you deserve. Too bad the rest of us have to live with the consequences of your stupidity.

Eliminating public education is what charter schools do.  Besides enriching their corporate owners and Bevin's buddys, of course

Valarie Honeycutt-Spears at the Herald:

Gov.-elect Matt Bevin singled out Fayette and Jefferson counties for "failing schools" in a radio interview Wednesday night in which he again strongly pitched charter schools, according to the Kentucky School Boards Association News Service.

Bevin said he wants to start with public charter schools to replace historically low-performing traditional public schools.

And working people who need kynect and Medicaid get to die in the streets while Bevin makes sure that Kimmy Davis gets to keep drawing her $80,000 in tax dollars without having to do her job.

Jack Brammer at the Herald:

Gov.-elect Matt Bevin said Friday he wants to dismantle Kentucky's health care exchange known as Kynect by the end of 2016.

He also said during his first media availability after his win Tuesday in Kentucky's race for governor that one of his first actions after he is sworn into office Dec. 8 is to sign an executive order to remove the names of county clerks from marriage licenses.

Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/2015/11/06/4125252/bevin-wants-to-dismantle-kynect.html?sp=/99/164/#storylink=cpy

"Keep Fighting, Beloveds"

Molly Ivins knew better than anyone what it is like to be a liberal in a deep-red state, and she never gave up.  We can't either.

First, we need to know what we're facing.

Joe Sonka at Insider Louisville:

Gov. Bevin’s changes likely to be felt immediately

Even before next year’s session of the Kentucky General Assembly convenes, many of Gov. Steve Beshear’s executive orders are now at risk of being immediately rescinded by Matt Bevin once is sworn in on Dec. 8.

Beshear’s executive orders at risk include prevailing wage on construction projects; a $10.10 per hour minimum wage for state employees and contractors; protection of state employees from discrimination in hiring based on sexual orientation and gender identity; and – most significantly – his creation of Kynect and the expansion of Medicaid to those up to 138 percent of the federal poverty rate. Bevin appears likely to rescind most of these, though he at times backtracked during his campaign on a pledge to do away with Medicaid expansion “on day one.”

The hundreds of thousands of Kentuckians who have coverage through Medicaid due to this expansion will be watching Bevin closely to see whether their eligibility will be rescinded with the stroke of a pen – assuming that is legally possible, which is up for debate – or if he will attempt to push for this through the legislative process.

Democrats still have a firewall in the state House… for now

While Bevin becoming governor is a major victory for Republicans and their policy agenda, the big remaining hurdle is the Democrats’ slim majority in the state House. Republicans have long called for so-called “right to work” legislation, tort reform, charter schools, abortion restrictions, fuller privatization of public pensions, and a more regressive consumption-based tax reform in the General Assembly – only to be stymied by Democrats in the House. Though Bevin will now have the bully pulpit of the governor’s mansion, his favored legislation still will face the hurdle of Democrats and House Speaker Greg Stumbo.

Or will he? A serious threat for Democrats over the next two months will be rural conservative House Democrats flipping to the Republican Party, seeing the writing on the wall of their electoral future by having a D next to their name in a region of voters trending solidly Republican. Another threat is Bevin appointing any of these Democratic House members to a position in his administration or a judgeship, which would come along with a hefty boost in their public pension and open up the seat for a Republican to win in a special election. Gov. Beshear tried the same strategy with Republican members of the Senate in order to flip the majority of that chamber, though ultimately failing in that task.

If this happens and the Republicans take over the House, the entire Republican policy agenda likely will pass by this spring. If not, Bevin and his party still have the opportunity to pick up enough seats in next year’s state House elections, delaying their long sought after wish list of policy goals until 2017. Until then, the House remains the Democrats’ only firewall.

Dems to the left, Dems to the right?

Following Tuesday night’s bloodbath, Sen. Ray Jones – the Democratic minority leader of the state Senate – blamed his party’s losses on Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi, saying Kentucky Democrats have to further distance themselves from the party’s national leaders. Pressed on this by Rene Shaw of KET, Jones had difficulty differentiating local Democrats and Obama on policy positions outside of coal regulations, highlighting the challenge of how his colleagues could pull off this familiar strategy that has failed so badly in the past two statewide elections.

Other Democrats have taken the exact opposite lesson from this election, saying their candidates’ insistence on villainizing Obama over the past seven years has managed not only to suppress the vote of progressive Democrats, but made the party’s brand so toxic that no attempts by candidates to distance themselves for Obama – like Grimes in 2014 and Conway this year – can work.

This internal debate among Democrats will not be resolved anytime soon, but it will surely shape the direction of the party going forward.

Voting Republican

From Down with Tyranny:


 

You're the Emperor of Kentucky, Matt: Act Like It

Because our only hope is that this selfish, arrogant idiot without the slightest idea of how government works will piss off everyone to the point that state House Dems will grow a fucking spine and even state Senate repugs will refuse to cooperate with him.

That's what happened to our last repug governor.  Ernie Fletcher and his posse rode into Frankfort determined to flatten the place, and the natives rose up and brought him down.

It's Bevin's turn now.

Yeah, We're Doomed.

Sliding down the repug Slope of Death past North Carolina, past Texas, past Louisiana, overtaking Kansas and heading for Haiti.

Make way for the disaster capitalists, and bend over Kentucky. Best we can hope is that they use lube.

Herald can't bring itself to update its website; here's the Courier.

Yes, Virginia, There's a Big Difference Between Candidates Tomorrow

Yes, Jack Conway is a terrible candidate and a repug-lite Blue Dog.  But I'm strapping on the hazmat suit and voting for him and all the other Democrats anyway because the alternative is catastrophe.

Jack Conway will keep Obamacare and the Medicaid expansion - a Democratic policy that has already lifted thousands of Kentuckians out of poverty and into good health, not to mention thousands of new healthcare jobs and billions of dollars into the economy.

Bevin has vowed to kill Obamacare and Medicaid. Widespread suffering and economic collapse doesn't bother him.

Jack Conway will keep the state pension system.  Yes, it's a clusterfuck squared, and needs a thorough clean-out, but state employee pensions keep billions of dollars in the state economy every year.

Bevin told state retirees flat-out that he would eliminate the pension system, adding insult to injury by labeling it "tough love."

Jack Conway understands how state taxes support the economy, and that slashing them creates an inescapable downward spiral like the one currently killing Kansas.

Bevin thinks Kansas Governor/Destroyer Sam Brownback is an economic genius and wants to implement the same lethal plan in the Commonwealth.

Jack Conway thinks human beings should have human rights, and will uphold the laws ensuring that.

Matt Bevin would put Kim Davis on the State Supreme Court if he could, but since he can't, he'll just put her in charge of his new Department of Only Freakazoid Christians Have Human and Civil Rights.

And so on and so forth on every issue you can imagine.  Get out and vote for Jack Conway.

Sam Youngman at the Herald:

At its heart, this is an election about issues, though it's not easy to tell given the personalities of the candidates, the modern style of politics and the general disinterest (disdain?) displayed by the electorate.

In a state where Democrats often sound like Republicans, the choice voters often face is between night and later that night.

But in this race, Conway and Bevin are night and day — even weeks — apart on major issues of enormous importance to the future of the commonwealth.

Not on coal or guns or some of the commonwealth's traditional battlefields, but on health care, labor union laws, education and many other topics. The two major-party candidates are offering two very different visions of the future.

We've seen the attempts to nationalize this race by Republicans who have painted Conway and the rest of the Democratic slate as presidential puppets, but the issues being debated will have a real-life, practical effect on the lives of the people who live here.

If the people who show up Tuesday are looking to avenge Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis' short stint in jail, then Conway is toast. If Kentuckians go to the polls with the goal of ensuring that the state's health care programs aren't set on fire and left to burn, then Bevin will be on the outside looking in.

Matt Bevin Wants to Make Your Nana Pee in a Cup

OK, now I think Jack Conway has a chance against this asshole.  But never doubt the ability of DINO candidates to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

Which is worse?  That Bevin didn't know Medicare covers everyone 65 and older, including rich white people?  Or that he backed off from his granny-pee plan after he found out it would affect rich white people?

Sam Youngman at the Herald:

During a debate between Republican Matt Bevin and Democrat Jack Conway at Centre College (Tuesday), Conway asked Bevin about his statement from April that recipients of Medicaid and Medicare should be drug-tested.

In April, Bevin said during a Louisville Tea Party forum that he supports random drug testing for recipients of both programs.

"I firmly believe we frankly should drug test people that are on Medicaid and Medicare," Bevin said at the time. "We just should."

During Tuesday night's debate, Bevin didn't back away from that call, saying "there should be expectation of you as somebody who is a recipient, or, as it's often referred to in this state, on the draw."

Conway interrupted Bevin to make clear that he was asking about Medicare and not Medicaid, to which Bevin responded: "Understood." Despite that, Bevin later argued that he was talking about Medicaid.

SNIP

Bevin spokeswoman Jessica Ditto said Wednesday night that "Matt does not support drug testing for Medicare recipients," adding that "what he said in April was a misstatement."

Hey, Matt:  Real libertarians want to get rid of Medicare along with every other government program, including air traffic control.  You're a coward.

Also, the new sign along I-64 next to Kentucky Democratic Party headquarters, the one Matty went crying to the building receptionist about? Twice?  It now reads:

"Matt: Next time bring your tax returns."

Can Matt Bevin Top NC Repugs on Fucking Over the Poor Just For Fun?

National repugs have pulled their money out of the Kentucky Governor's race, so Bevin's probably desperate.  But is he desperate enough to tell the truth about what he'll do as governor to turn Kentucky into Haiti?

Zandar:

Since GOP Gov. Pat McCrory took over North Carolina in January 2013 and Republicans gained complete control of the government, the NC GOP has cut jobless benefits back so far that the state no longer qualifies for federal unemployment dollars, they have eliminated the state's earned income tax credit for the poor, they have purged the state's regulatory commissions and filled them with McCrory cronies, they have ended medical school programs that taught abortion procedures, they have wrecked the state's public education budget, and implemented a regressive tax on repair and maintenance services.

At every turn, NC Republicans are continuing their crusade to smash the state's poor population and give as much money as possible to the wealthiest. And now, their hatred of the poor in the state is so all-consuming, that they are kicking people off SNAP benefits after three months even though the program is 100% funded by federal dollars and the state won't save a dime by doing it.

SNIP

People at this point in their lives would easily qualify for SNAP benefits federally, but NC Republicans are literally turning down federal tax dollars just to hurt the poor.

And they're going to go to college?  With what money, exactly?  They're still going to be poor, and these clowns know it.

No, this is just outright punishment of the poor,  It's what Republicans do.