Posts Tagged ‘Dan Kelly’

By Ray Paulick
It is no secret that the Democrat/Republican team here at the Paulick Report has been pushing for slots to be added at Kentucky’s racetracks since the legislative session earlier this year. It’s a reluctant position, wishing our sport could dig itself out of the hole on merit alone. But with all the other competing factors, it is obvious something must be added to the revenue stream to give racing a fighting chance to survive in this strange new world. Let’s face it, it ain’t 1973 anymore.
 
And so hopefully, this will be the last column I will have to write about David “Blackjack” Williams, the Republican president of the Kentucky state Senate who has steadfastly opposed legislation allowing Kentucky’s racing industry to compete on a level playing field with surrounding states. For those of you tired of this conversation, that possibility alone is enough for this to be labeled a Good News Friday piece.
 
On Tuesday, Kentucky will be holding yet another special election for a vacancy in the 14th Senate District after Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear appointed former Republican State Sen. Dan Kelly to a cushy judgeship. Covering much of Central Kentucky, this district certainly leans Democratic in registration numbers, but, like much of Kentucky, the voters are quite conservative. This is no slam-dunk for the pro-slots movement, but with a dominant lead for Democrats in fundraising, especially when combined with money brought in by the horse industry, there is a very good chance the Republicans will lose another seat in the Senate, and the balance of power will get ever closer to tilting to the Democratic side.
 
Both candidates have experience in Frankfort, with Republican Jimmy Higdon currently the state representative that encompasses a good portion of the 14th Senate District. From what I can tell, he is a hardworking and honest legislator. However, only three paragraphs into the ‘About Jimmy Higdon’ section of his website, Higdon draws a line in the sand on the slots issue. “On gambling, Jimmy Higdon voted against the governor’s slots-in-racetracks bill during the 2009 special session and he is committed to oppose the legislation as it is currently drafted.”
 
On the hand, former Democratic state representative and city councilman Jodie Haydon understands the issues our industry faces. Haydon rightly points out that “over 100,000 people have jobs in the Kentucky horse industry” and does an expert job of explaining the relevance of this number. “If you put Toyota, Ford, Delta and UPS all together, their employees would only amount to 1/3 the number of employees in the horse industry.” That’s a strong statement from a bold leader.
 
In reality, this race isn’t about Jimmy Higdon or Jodie Haydon. Instead, this election needs to be a referendum on the bully politics that David Williams has displayed over the past decade. A win for the Democrats in this election will spell doom for Williams’ once-mighty majority. This final nail in the coffin would most likely awaken the sleeping giant, United States Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who will surely do everything in his power to keep the Republicans in the majority in Kentucky’s state Senate.
 
Why would the country’s most powerful Republican U.S. Senator care about this outcome? Whichever party holds the Kentucky Senate in 2010 also controls the redistricting of the U.S. Congressional seats based on the upcoming census. Currently, Republicans enjoy a 4-2 advantage but if the Democrats grab a majority after the mid-term elections that number could flip. Nothing would be more embarrassing for McConnell in a year that is certainly trending Republican.
 
With that in mind, David Williams is grasping at his last straw on Tuesday. A win and he probably holds on to his position. A loss and the McConnell machine will most likely push another candidate for Senate President during the run-up to this year’s general session. For those of you not familiar with Kentucky politics, McConnell has previously taken this type of matter into his own hands when dissatisfied with his party. He recruited former Louisville Congresswoman Anne Northup to run against sitting Republican Gov. Ernie Fletcher in the primary for the 2007 gubernatorial election. While she lost, the primary delivered a final blow to an already scandal-ridden Republican who then lost big in the general election to current Gov. Beshear.

More recently, McConnell used his power to cut off fundraising to Hall of Fame pitcher and Sen. Jim Bunning, deeming him unelectable in the 2010 Senate elections, opting instead to support Secretary of State Trey Grayson. Bunning decided not to seek reelection.
 
If the bell tolled for a Hall of Fame pitcher and veteran Senator and the first Kentucky Republican governor in 32 years, David Williams will be gone faster than you can say VLT. The clock is ticking on the heavy-handed reign of Kentucky’s current State Senate President, a man who for some reason has taken it upon himself to try and destroy Kentucky’s signature industry. Let’s hope after Tuesday’s results, Williams’ time is up.

Copyright © 2009, The Paulick Report

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By Bradford Cummings
Kentucky Republicans connected to the horse industry will find themselves in an interesting predicament next year. The always-pending slots issue has caused much consternation for those of us on the right that see this as an economic development issue and not a moral one. In a state with legal gambling on horse racing, a statewide lottery and an abundance of charitable gaming, the overused/misused word hypocrisy easily comes to mind when considering the social right’s argument.
 
And yet I have stayed silent on this issue publicly. Until recently, I was the chairman of the Jefferson County Republican Party (Louisville) while also working for the Paulick Report. It was a non-paying 40-hour-a-week volunteer position, and eventually I had to make a business choice and walked away after 16 months served to fully focus on the growth of this website. (Those of you who have served in volunteer political positions can attest it is a love-hate experience if you try to do it right.)
 
While not the reason I resigned, the slot machine issue is a perfect example of why my career will likely never head back in the direction of party politics. (That sound you just heard was the last shred of my political career flushing down the toilet…I sure hope we can turn the racing industry around!)
 
Part of the party game, Republican and Democratic, is to create a platform and get the entire machine to walk in the same direction while beating the same drum. I do not say this to disparage the process. To a certain extent, this sort of singular focus is necessary to get anything done politically or otherwise. Have you ever attempted to get a consensus among 30 people, 10 people or even you and your spouse? The concept of majority rules definitely serves its purpose. But it can also be incredibly destructive for those who feel passionately about an important issue.
 
And this is where I find some sympathy for the likes of state Sen. Damon Thayer, the Georgetown, Ky., Republican who plans to file legislation in support of a constitutional amendment to legalize slot machines at Kentucky racetracks. Damon is a friend of mine and from what I can tell, a good man trying to do right in a difficult position. Anyone who believes his actions are to help himself personally needs to consider a Kentucky state legislator only makes roughly $30,000 a year. I am not sure what his other work pays, but considering his talents and the fact he has a family to feed, the Senate job probably has less short term upside than his Thoroughbred interests.
 
Philosophically, I agree with the constitutional amendment. On large fundamental issues, the people’s voice should be heard from directly and I assume Damon’s intentions are to find an opportunity to give this issue a proper public hearing. But upon further review and especially with the details of his proposed legislation, I have to admit to being wrong. The statutory path is likely the only one to bring expanded gaming to the Bluegrass State.
 
Obviously, much of this rides on how the special election for Republican Sen. Dan Kelly’s now vacated seat turns out. The district has a heavy Democratic registration advantage and their candidate, Jodie Haydon, comes from the most populous region within its boundaries. The Republican, Jimmy Higdon, is well liked and will be a strong candidate but comes from a much less populous part of the region. In many ways, this race shapes up to be a mirror of the election this summer that went to Democrat Robin Webb by a slim margin. If history repeats itself, Kentucky will see a Senate that once had a 23 – 15 Republican advantage slip to a 20 – 18 margin (including one Independent caucusing with the Republicans) in little more than a year. With the commitment from Kentucky’s horsemen obvious, a strong case could be made that this slip may lie primarily at the feet of David Williams’ decision to go down swinging on the slots issue.
 
Assuming the worst for Kentucky Republicans, which is more likely? Republican Tom Buford continues to vote for slots as he did this year and one other Republican is swayed out of fear of an electoral minority after 2010, or an amendment passes by a margin of 23 – 15, meaning that three Democrats throw away the pro-slots momentum their party currently enjoys and allows Republicans to claim a victory for the horse industry? Anyone who believes Democrats will give up that power clearly does not understand the underbelly of the political system.
 
Additionally, the House would have to find eight more votes than it had this year and again ignore the historical boost of momentum Republicans would earn from this legislation. The Democrats who possess a super-majority in the House would have been more likely to publicly admit voting for John McCain in last year’s Presidential election.
 
Even more concerning though is the cost a referendum would put on the horse industry. Millions of dollars would have to be spent to win this referendum, millions of dollars many horse industry folks do not have to spend, especially after the performance of Kentucky’s Thoroughbred sales this year.  The opposition would be well funded by social conservatives and other lobbying interests who would prefer to see Kentucky without slots. So while the slots issue polls well now, the political climate would be impossible to foretell. As they say, a year equals several lifetimes in politics.
 
Assuming this process was a success, Thayer’s amendment proposition requires passage of a local referendum in the counties with racetracks. Likely, most counties would agree to the local referendum but another year would pass, putting us into 2012 before slot machines could be seriously considered. That time frame doesn’t take into account the bidding and licensing process. And if my interpretation of the proposed legislation is correct, racetracks may have to compete with other potential gaming outfits to secure the franchise rights, and might end up without VLTs. While money would still be earmarked for purses, the tracks would suffer if that occurred.
 
But at least you don’t have to worry about that worst-case scenario happening. This would never get out of the Kentucky House. As Senate Democratic leader Ed Worley, it would be “dead on arrival.”