Posts Tagged ‘Don Ball’
Tuesday, July 21st, 2009
By Ray Paulick
The Paulick Report is giving its first annual Chutzpah Award to Don and Mira Ball of Donamire Farm near Lexington, Ky. The Balls, well, they have the balls to be hosting a fundraising reception at their farm July 28, one week from tonight, “honoring Kentucky’s Senate Republican Caucus and benefiting the Republican Party of Kentucky’s Senate Trust.”
 The Senate Republican Caucus the Balls want us to “honor” is the same one that killed legislation desperately needed by the Kentucky horse industry during a special session of the general assembly last month. Don Ball is a good friend of Senate President David “Blackjack” Williams, who orchestrated the death of House Bill 2, which would have permitted slot machines at racetracks and substantially increased purses. The bill was approved by the House of Representatives but killed by the Republican-controlled Appropriations and Revenue Committee in the Senate, denying it a vote before the full Senate.
Williams is the guy who enjoys visiting casino boats in Indiana and Mississippi, according to numerous sources. We don’t know if Ball likes to gamble on the riverboats or in Las Vegas casinos, but we do know he is adamantly opposed to Kentucky racetracks and horsemen having the ability to compete on a level playing field with tracks in states like Indiana, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Florida, Louisiana, New Mexico, New York, Maryland and others, where slot machines are in operation or have been approved to benefit purses and breeding programs.
And because Don Ball is one of Kentucky’s largest political donors (he and his wife have given $243,317 to state and federal Republican causes since 2002), folks in office tend to listen to him. So in some ways, he may be the person most responsible for killing House Bill 2.
The state’s Republican Party shares in this award, because it had the nerve to send the invitation addressed to “GOP Friends” to numerous people in the Thoroughbred industry. Included in the invitation was an urging to “help us to strengthen the Senate Republican Majority and maintain balance in Frankfort.” Can I get an amen on that?
For $500, you, too, can attend. It may actually be worth the money, just to tell the Balls and the Republican State Senators likely to be there what you thought of their opposition to House Bill 2. To RSVP, contact Brittany Dowell at the Republican Party of Kentucky, at (502) 875-5130, or send her an email at Brittany@rpk.org.
On second thought, why not just call that number and send an email explaining why you won’t be supporting most Republican candidates for Kentucky’s state Senate in the near future—even if you’ve been a lifelong Republican. (Please note: Tom Buford of Nicholasville was the only Senate Republican to support the bill in the A&R Committee vote; he deserves industry support.)
This outrageous invitation comes to Kentucky breeders and owners at a time when they are just learning how much of an economic beating they may be taking in the yearling marketplace. The first day of the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky yearling sale on Monday saw 49% of the yearlings catalogued go unsold as buy-backs or withdrawals. Prices for the horses that sold, despite being buoyed by significant spending from Sheikh Mohammed of Dubai (whose associate bought Fasig-Tipton last year), were down 33.3% in median and 23.8% in average. And it’s only the first inning of a long ball game.
Keep in mind breeders are selling yearlings in 2009 that were conceived through 2007 stud fees based on an “up” market. In many cases, the yearlings were produced from mares purchased by breeders in more bullish times.
But the Balls and their Senate guests at the Donamire shindig probably will be oblivious to the pain many Kentucky breeders are feeling. The Senate Republicans will marvel at the architectural beauty of Donamire and its 13,000-square-foot residence. They’ll wonder how the horse business can possibly be struggling when it has such a beautiful showplace farm. Of course, they’ll have no idea that Donamire is the antithesis of a typical Kentucky Thoroughbred farm that is struggling to get through difficult economic times and facing an even tougher economic climate down the road as the industry continues to be weakened by external forces (i.e., states that can offer higher purses and better breeding incentives through slots revenue).
Donamire Farm and its owners do not depend on a healthy Thoroughbred industry to survive; the farm was funded through the thousands of homes built by their Ball Homes LLC. In fact, some suggest Ball Homes will be even more profitable if the Thoroughbred industry fails and farm land is sold cheaply for residential development.
Now a final word about our Chutzpah Award winners, Don and Mira Ball. They’ve won many other, more prestigious awards for the good work they’ve done in the Central Kentucky community. Mira Ball has been active in supporting higher education, substance abuse programs, Kentucky Educational Television, and medical research, among other endeavors. Don Ball is a former president of the Kentucky Thoroughbred Association and is a director emeritus of that organization. They breed to race and support Kentucky racing that way. They’ve opened their farm to many, many other worthwhile causes and fundraisers over the years.
Don and Mira Ball are not bad people, but when it comes to Kentucky politics and the horse industry, you have to give them credit: they have a lot of chutzpah.
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Tags: ball homes, chutzpah award, david williams, don and mira ball, Don Ball, house bill 2, kentucky republican party, kentucky senate, kentucky slots, mira ball, Paulick Report, racetrack slots, racinos, Ray Paulick, vlts
Posted in People, Regulatory Issues, Slot machines, State Government | 24 Comments »
Thursday, July 2nd, 2009
By Ray Paulick
There were several byproducts of the Kentucky General Assembly’s special session called last month by Gov. Steve Beshear to tackle the state’s budget crisis and consider a bill to allow video lottery terminals or slot machines at racetracks.
One of those was anger, an emotion directed largely at Republicans in the Kentucky Senate who defeated House Bill 2, the VLT legislation that would have leveled the playing field with so many other racing states in the region. Another was a feeling of abandonment by the government at a time when people in various parts of the horse industry are hurting. Yet another was a belief among many that the end is near for Kentucky’s year-round racing circuit, with Ellis Park and Turfway Park the tracks most vulnerable to being closed.
The anger many of us felt in the wake of the defeat of the VLT legislation is perfectly normal. The Republicans, led by the bully of the Senate, David “Blackjack” Williams, are the villains in this saga. Williams, who likes to gamble at casinos in nearby states like Indiana and Mississippi, is one of those politicians who wants to “protect us from ourselves” and legislate morality. But Williams can’t, and hasn’t, stopped countless Kentuckians from driving across bridges into Illinois or Indiana or West Virginia and gambling to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars a year, or more—to the benefit of horse racing in those states and to the detriment of Kentucky’s signature industry.
He’s enlisted people like Damon Thayer, the “Senator from Scott” who was jeered during a horse industry rally at Keeneland held after the Senate Appropriations & Revenue Committee voted to kill House Bill 2. I’ve known Thayer for more than 20 years, and like him. We’re about as far apart on the political spectrum as two people can be, but we both want to see the horse industry succeed.
I’m amused that Thayer, who comes from a Republican Party that believes government should stay out of people’s lives, feels Frankfort politicians should keep Kentuckians from gambling on slot machines in their home state to the benefit of the horse industry. He would rather raise taxes on (guess what?) other kinds of gambling, including the lottery and horse racing. In a speech on the Senate floor during the special session, Thayer said he favored raising taxes on these other forms of gambling so the horse industry would get temporary, Band-Aid relief. He was simply hawking Blackjack Williams’ alternative to VLTs, and I’m sure Williams will reward him for his loyalty.
I encourage you to view Thayer’s speech, which can be seen by clicking here, and decide for yourself if he is a friend or foe of racing.
The interesting thing about the inability to get more Republicans behind this bill is that so many powerful horse breeders in Kentucky are major contributors to the Republican Party on the federal level. Perhaps there is a disconnect between people like Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell, the de facto head of the Republican Party in Kentucky, and Blackjack Williams, the strongman of the state Senate. (Williams, according to many sources, takes his direction from homebuilder Don Ball, who as former head of the Kentucky Thoroughbred Association owes an explanation to the horse industry for his opposition to leveling the playing field with VLTs or slots.)
The feeling of abandonment was countered at that same horse industry rally at Keeneland when more than 20 Republicans and Democrats from the state House and Senate came to show their support to the crowd of about a thousand people. As Keenelend’s Nick Nicholson said, people in the horse industry should know that they have more than a few friends in Frankfort. There seemed to be no quit in those who gathered inside Keeneland’s sale pavilion that night, and let’s hope the enthusiasm they showed can carry forward to 2010 and beyond, if necessary.
The industry didn’t have enough friends, though, and it’s more important now than ever to get involved politically, to contact those Senators and Representatives who voted against House Bill 2 and let them know your feelings but to also contact those who supported the industry and thank them for what they did. Respectfully tell the opponents of the VLT legislation that you will work to replace them with people who are willing to support the horse industry in Frankfort.
Finally, there is the issue of how long this industry can maintain a year-round circuit without the economic necessity of slot machines at the tracks. Racing in Kentucky experienced significant growth during the late 1980s and early to mid 1990s when tracks capitalized on in-state and out-of-state simulcasting, but it’s been stagnant in recent years as other states have improved their purse structure thanks to slots.
Ron Geary, the owner of Ellis Park, has said 2009 would be the Western Kentucky track’s final year, but he’s apparently reconsidered that stand after hearing an appeal from local government officials. It’s a good thing that Turfway Park, which sits on land more valuable for development than for racing, is owned in part by Keeneland. Racing will not thrive at either track until the legislature recognizes the need for help, but perhaps it will survive another year or two.
In the meantime, channel the emotions that came out of this special session in a positive way by supporting those individuals in state government that support our industry. And let’s work to replace those who aren’t willing to give racing the tools it needs to compete. Know who your friends are…and aren’t.
Copyright © 2009, The Paulick Report
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Tags: blackjack williams, damon thayer, david williams, Don Ball, ellis park, house bill 2, Keeneland, kentucky slots, kentucky vlt legislation, mitch mcconnell, nick nicholson, Paulick Report, racinos, Ray Paulick, ron geary, turfway park
Posted in Kentucky, Slot machines | 20 Comments »
Monday, June 22nd, 2009
By Ray Paulick
Monday was a sad day in Kentucky for the Thoroughbred horse industry. It wasn’t a great day for democracy, either.
A Senate committee stacked with Republican followers of Senate President David “Blackjack” Williams voted 10-5 not to allow the full Senate to consider VLT legislation designed to close Kentucky’s budget deficit, improve education, and allow the horse industry to compete with other states in the region that have slot machines. The House passed the bill last week under the direction of Speaker Greg Stumbo, but the Senate committee vote went along party lines, with nine of 10 Republicans voting to kill the bill. Four of five Democrats supported it, with one abstaning. (Click here for a live blog including the votes by each Senator.)
Williams, who likes to play blackjack at Indiana and Mississippi riverboats but for some reason opposes Kentuckians gambling in their own state, brought a smokescreen strategy to the special session called by ineffectual Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear. That strategy included a tax-and-spend proposal passed by the Republican-controlled Senate but which never had a chance of getting approved by the Democratic-controlled House. The smokescreen strategy allowed Williams’ Republican yes men/women to say they tried to help the horse industry by voting for the Williams proposal. It would have raised taxes on the lottery, charitable gambling and out of state bets on Kentucky races and provide money for purses and breeders’ incentives. (The out-of-state betting tax increase was a preposterous idea, since out of state tracks would have simply dropped the Kentucky signal on tracks like Turfway and Ellis Park and done more damage than good.)
Some of the Republicans who voted no on the issue probably were representing the strong moral beliefs of their constituents. But others who voted no, specifically the Lexington/Fayette County Senator, Alice Forgy Kerr, were sending a clear message to people in the horse industry that they do not matter.
Kerr is said to be very chummy with Mira Ball, who with homebuilding husband Don Ball is one of the largest contributors to Republican campaign coffers. The widespread belief of many in the horse industry is that the Balls and their Ball Homes want to see the horse industry fail, and the price of Central Kentucky acreage drop so they can build more tract housing. Don Ball and David Williams are closely allied in their opposition to gambling…at least by other people.
The Kentucky Equine Education Project or affiliated political fund-raising groups must now turn their attention to people like Kerr and other elected officials in Kentucky who can be defeated in future elections by well-funded opponents who truly want to help the horse industry.
If Williams was the bully of this aborted effort by the horse industry to level the playing field with other states, Gov. Steve Beshear was the 98-pound weakling. He blew his opportunity in January 2008 to push the same legislation after winning election in a landslide over Republican Ernie Fletcher. And when he called the special session and put the VLT legislation on the agenda, Beshear failed to do what effective politicians do instinctively: call their friends and make sure you’ve got their support, and call your opponents and tell them in no uncertain terms why they need to be with you.
Another politician missing in action on this bill was Sen. Damon Thayer, a Republican who is a consultant in the Thoroughbred industry and is a former executive at Turfway Park and the Breeders’ Cup. Thayer, who like any member of the state GOP who wants committee appointments has to fall in line with Williams, was silent on the slots issue. He isn’t a member of the Appropriations and Revenue Committee, but he could have influenced a more positive outcome and didn’t. Thayer never came out with a position on the bill, to my knowledge.
What happens next? There is only a glimmer of hope that some parliamentary procedures can bring the bill to a vote in the full Senate during this special session. Beyond that, we are looking at the January 2010 legislative session.
The problem is that, by then, Ellis Park will have had a disastrous summer meeting, and Turfway Park will be in a much less competitive position than they are now. The prospects of Kentucky losing its year-round circuit are real. The loss of breeding stock to other states or Canadian provinces is real. The summer and fall yearling sales will be down anywhere from 25%-40%, and the breeding stock will match that or worse.
The downward spiral of Kentucky’s horse business, as Keeneland’s Nick Nicholson pointed out in the Senate hearing, has come faster and harder than anyone could have predicted. And I hate to say this, but it’s not going to get any better without real legislative action.
Copyright © 2009, The Paulick Report
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Tags: alice forgy kerr, ball homes, damon thayer, david williams, Don Ball, greg stumbo, house bill 2, kentucky equine education project, kentucky slots, mira ball, nick nicholson, Paulick Report, racinos, Ray Paulick, steve beshear
Posted in Kentucky, Slot machines | 58 Comments »
Monday, June 15th, 2009
When horse people are told about demonstrations, they probably think about a salesman or company rep showing them how the newest product or gadget works in order for them to improve their business. But in the proud history of the United States, a different kind of demonstration has been a key part of protest movements that have brought about changes in government policy. The Boston Tea Party may have been America’s first important demonstration, and many others have followed to make this great country what it is. The issues championed by these movements have come from the grassroots as an attempt to right an historical wrong or simply as a means to be heard by those in power.
With this in mind, it is understandable that when an industry led by many influential and traditionally entrenched members of society have their moment in the sun to “take to the streets” — as Kentucky’s horse industry will do Wednesday morning at 10 a.m. in the Capitol Rotunda in Frankfort to rally support for expanded gaming at Kentucky racetracks — some confusion as to how to pull off an effective display may ensue.
But don’t worry; the Paulick Report will be your guidebook to protesting. Exhaustive research and a personal flashback to the late 1960s protests for equal rights and against the war in Vietnam have given us a list of dos and don’ts for an effective protest to get legislators to understand the importance of leveling the playing field for Kentucky’s horse industry. We aren’t guaranteeing these tips will bring expanded gaming to Kentucky, but with a little knowledge and hard work, at least Wednesday won’t go down in the annals of history with the saggy pants protest in Milwaukee, the naked cyclists against cars in the UK or anything PETA has done in the last 20 years.
10 Dos and Don’ts for Wednesday’s Frankfort protest rally
10. Do look presentable - This doesn’t mean you have to show up in your finest Hugo Boss suit, but make sure you at least put on a fresh shirt after cleaning up the morning stalls. And please leave your pitchfork at home. It will be confiscated at the security check.
9. Don’t confuse the cause – Wednesday isn’t your opportunity to save the whales or get tax rebates for those solar panels you installed in March.
8. Do call your legislator beforehand and schedule a meeting – After all, they do work for you. To find the name and number of your state representative or senator, click here.
7. Don’t show up at a legislator’s office unannounced – While they do work for you, they also work for the other 20,000 people in your district and so they tend to be a bit busy, especially during a controversial special session.
6. Do be respectful – Our friends from the Family Foundation will be on the very same steps Tuesday and some may stick around Wednesday to counter protest. No one wants to see John Greathouse slugging it out with Don Ball and his anti-gaming followers – except the Herald-Leader.
5. Don’t give ANYTHING to an elected official – You may think presenting David Williams with a horseshoe from your favorite broodmare is just a nice gesture, but Kentucky law strictly prohibits anything that may have the appearance of bribery.
4. Do tell everyone about the Paulick Report – We thought we’d try to slip a shameless plug by you! And in all seriousness, we are committed to bringing you the most up to date news on the expanded gaming issue, among others.
3. Don’t shoot the messenger – If you are angry at your legislator, don’t take it out on their staff. They are just doing their job and it’s a strong possibility they share a different point of view from their boss.
2. Do show passion – No one is going to judge you for shouting too loud or pumping your fist too fervently. Remember, you will be among friends.
1. Don’t give up – The worst kind of protest is one that lasts just a day. Make sure you continue to put pressure on legislators. Send them letters, set up future meetings and organize letter to the editor drives in your local papers. Trust us, they read everything written about them!
Copyright © 2009, The Paulick Report
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Tags: Boston Tea Party, Don Ball, Expanded Gaming, Frankfort, John Greathouse, Kentucky, Paulick Report, Protest
Posted in Industry, Industry Reform, Kentucky, Paulick Report | 18 Comments »
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