Pol Watchers

Beshear warned on higher-ed dispute

By Art Jester
AJESTER@HERALD-LEADER.COM

The former leader of Kentucky's higher education system has warned Gov. Steve Beshear that his dispute with the Council on Postsecondary Education could cripple the state's education reform efforts.

In an April 18 letter, former council President Tom Layzell urged Beshear to resolve his differences over who should lead the council "in a manner that best serves the long-term interests of Kentucky."

"I have been following the articles about the disagreement between you and the Council, and I write out of a profound concern for the potential it has to retard, perhaps even reverse, the progress Kentucky has made toward the achievement of its postsecondary reform goals," wrote Layzell, who now lives in retirement in Springfield, Ill.

The Herald-Leader obtained a copy of his letter through an open records request to the governor's office. Beshear spokesman Dick Brown said the governor was not going to comment on the letter.

Layzell said in an interview Wednesday night that he had also spoken with council members to emphasize the dangers of escalating the conflict.

Beshear has asked Attorney General Jack Conway for a legal opinion to determine whether the council acted in accord with state law when it hired Brad Cowgill as its president on April 14. The former state budget director for Gov. Ernie Fletcher had been the council's interim president since Sept. 1, 2007.

Beshear has argued that the council ignored legal requirements that the council conduct a national search and come up with a president who has an established reputation and experience in postsecondary education.

Cowgill, a Lexington lawyer, had no experience as a postsecondary administrator before being hired as the council's interim president.

Allison Gardner Martin, Conway's spokesperson, said the opinion requested by Beshear might be released Thursday.

"Whatever the Attorney General may decide on the legal issues, I hope that it will be a starting, not an ending, point for you and the Council to discuss and resolve any differences you may have," Layzell wrote.

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Democrat gets unwanted moment in spotlight

INEZ -- Soft-spoken retired bus driver Debbie Blevins could have done without her 15 minutes of fame Wednesday.

Blevins, 55, of Martin County, was struggling to hear as U.S. Sen. John McCain, speaking without a microphone, answered questions from dozens of reporters.

Blevins had come to protest the Republican presidential candidate's presence, but when she politely asked him to speak up, McCain suggested that she come stand by his side.

"I didn't want to go up there," Blevins said. "But how could I tell him no in front of all those people?"

Red-faced and flustered, Blevins made attempts to shy away from McCain, but he kept asking her to stand next to him, saying he needed her help to answer the questions.

Blevins quietly remained by his side, restlessly pulling at her black T-shirt.

Her brush with fame did not change her outlook. She plans to support whichever Democrat -- Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama -- gets the nomination.

"I live paycheck to paycheck and I barely make it," she said afterward. "I can't do this anymore; we can't do this anymore. The people of Eastern Kentucky need a change."

- Cassondra Kirby

McCain stops in Inez and promises to return

By Cassondra Kirby
CKIRBY@HERALD-LEADER.COM

INEZ -- It was an unlikely setting for Republican presidential hopeful John McCain to campaign in Wednesday: the tiny coal-mining town of Inez, where there are only three stoplights and a few hundred residents and you can count the number of fast-food restaurants on one hand.

But McCain says he was not hunting for votes in the Eastern Kentucky town, where Republicans outnumber Democrats nearly 3 to 1 and where even the Democratic judge-executive supports the likely GOP nominee.

At a time when President George Bush is unpopular, McCain says his tour of places that he describes as forgotten by other presidential candidates is part of his strategy to brand himself as a different kind of Republican -- one who cares about all the people, especially those in need.

"I want them to know that I will not forget my responsibility to the American people," McCain said. "I will not make promises I intend to forget and I will not make this my last visit to Inez, Kentucky."

As his campaign bus wound through the mountains into Inez, the Arizona senator saw an area with stubbornly deep pockets of poverty.

He passed the trailers and the curious onlookers who stared from front porches and through screen doors. He saw small gardens that families are raising to help during tough times.

In Inez, it appeared the whole town turned out to see the presidential hopeful. Hundreds lined Main Street outside the old stone courthouse to catch a glimpse of McCain. They included war veterans in uniform, mothers with children clinging to them and coal miners current and retired. One had an oxygen tank by his side.

Inside the courthouse, there was standing room only, as more than 450 people filed in to participate in the town hall meeting. They listened as McCain briefly introduced himself, then they questioned him about his plans and what he could do for Eastern Kentucky.

Lunsford airs new ad in his U.S. Senate campaign

FRANKFORT —  Louisville businessman Bruce Lunsford, a Democratic candidate in this year’s race for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Republican Mitch McConnell, has a third campaign ad starting Wednesday in Lexington and Louisville on cable and network television.

The new ad, titled “Two Sides,” focuses on the differences between Kentucky’s working families and politicians that get "gold-plated health care" and ride in "chauffeured limousines."

The ad features film clips of everyday American families juxtaposed against clips of President George W. Bush and McConnell shaking hands after Bush signed into law controversial bankruptcy reform legislation.

The legislation, which McConnell helped pass in the Senate, has been criticized as favoring credit card companies and millionaires over hardworking American families who already face rising debt, record levels of home foreclosures and the ever looming threat of losing their jobs.

Both the Lunsford campaign’s previous ads, “Real World” and “Bottom Line,” will continue to air outside of the Louisville and Lexington markets.

--Jack Brammer

University presidents say little after meeting with Beshear

The presidents of Kentucky's public universities and community and technical college system said little Wednesday that revealed the specifics of their one-hour meeting with Gov. Steve Beshear.

Beshear  himself declined to comment as aides whisked him  into an official vehicle outside the Capitol. "I'm 30 minutes late for my next meeting," Beshear said.

The presidents had requested the meeting, apparently to discuss their proposed tuition increases and disenchantment with the way the state Council on Postsecondary Education is organized and operates.

The presidents largely answered questions in generalities, with University of Louisville President Jim Ramsey making the most pointed remarks.

"It's unfortunate that the council is not seen to play a key role as advisor to the governor and the General Assembly," Ramsey said.

But he emphasized that the current controversy over tuition increases,  the council's hiring of Brad Cowgill as its president and the  structure and personnel of the council   itself should not obscure the "incredible progress" the campuses have made since Kentucky enacted its higher education reforms of 1997.

Ramsey downplayed the role of the council. "They don't teach any classes, they're not educating students, they don't do any research like that  taking place on the campuses," he said. "As long as the universities are focused and committed and moving forward, reform will continue to happen."

The controversy that has the state's postsecondary system in an uproar stems from several issues.

McCain on Lexington radio

Presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain was on Lexington airwaves Wednesday morning in advance of his 11 a.m. town hall meeting in Inez.

Leland Conway, host of The Pulse of Lexington on 630 WLAP AM, chatted with McCain for about 10 minutes.

The U.S. Senator from Arizona talked about his economic policies, including a proposal to eliminate the gas tax during summer months. He said he would pay for the tax break by cutting back on special-interest earmarks in the federal budget.

On immigration, McCain told the conservative talk show host that America must secure its borders before contemplating any action to legalize immigrants who entered the country illegally.

Click here to listen.

- John Stamper

State settles lawsuit stemming from hiring probe

FRANKFORT — The state has settled a whistleblower lawsuit filed by former Transportation Cabinet worker Sarah Missy McCray for $500,000.

McCray claimed in 2005 that she was retaliated against for cooperating with with former Attorney General Greg Stumbo's investigation of hiring practices in the administration of former Gov. Ernie Fletcher.

McCray will receive a lump-sum payment of $500,000 for damages and be reassigned to the Personnel Cabinet, said cabinet spokesman Chuck Wolfe.

In her lawsuit, McCray named then-Transportation Secretary Bill Nighbert as a defendant.   An indictment against Nighbert, which was later dropped after he was pardoned by Fletcher, alleged he told McCray that, if it were 20 years ago, "I probably would have come back there and socked you in the mouth."

Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear said in a statement about the settlement that he was "happy" to reach "an amicable resolution of this matter."

“I appreciate how difficult this has been for Ms. McCray and applaud her pursuit of justice," Beshear said in the statement. "It’s no secret that many state employees were mistreated over the past four years."

“This case is one of the most egregious examples of how many state workers came to work each day fearing for their jobs," he said. "It left us with the task of cleaning up the mess created by the previous administration.”

--Jack Brammer

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McCain visits Inez to woo rural voters

By Ryan Alessi
RALESSI@HERALD-LEADER.COM

As presumptive GOP presidential nominee John McCain presides over Wednesday's town hall meeting in Eastern Kentucky, he's expected to deliver two messages: an overt promise of economic opportunity, and a subtle nudge that disenfranchised Americans should vote Republican.

McCain, a U.S. senator from Arizona, has embarked on a tour that will stretch through economically depressed areas such as Youngstown, Ohio; the hurricane-ravaged Ninth Ward of New Orleans; and the heart of Appalachia.

McCain's visit to Inez on Wednesday is particularly symbolic.

On April 23, 1964, the town of about 450 people famously served as a launching pad for Democratic President Lyndon B. Johnson's War on Poverty, a campaign initially conceived by John F. Kennedy.

Once again, Inez will find itself in the context of a philosophical battleground -- but this time it's between Democrats and Republicans seeking the presidency by way of rural America.

"We have to earn rural voters in Eastern Kentucky and all over the country," said Republican National Committee Chairman R. Mike Duncan, who hails from Inez. "We do that by the issues and our values. It's significant that Sen. McCain is going to be on Main Street Inez, Kentucky, not Wall Street, talking about these things."

Democrats, however, say they aren't ready to cede great swaths of Middle American voters.

"I think it's time to address the guys with gun racks on the back of their pickups," Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean told reporters on a conference call Monday. "Those are our voters. Those are the folks who make America go. Those folks used to be Democratic voters ... And we need to talk to them.

"Rural America is up for grabs," he added.

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If you go

---

What: U.S. Sen. John McCain's town hall meeting.
Where: Old Martin County Courthouse, 430 Court Street, Inez. Event is open to the public.
When: 11 a.m. Wednesday.

Mrs. Beshear thinks 'green'

FRANKFORT -- Kentucky first lady Jane Beshear is spearheading an effort to help Kentucky families know how to use energy- and cost-saving strategies in their homes.

With the state Executive Mansion as a backdrop, Mrs. Beshear unveiled her plans to make the mansion and homes across the state more energy efficient and environmentally friendly.

Her effort and Web site is greenteam.ky.gov.   It highlights low-cost measures and simple practices that Mrs. Beshear has implemented at the mansion that most homeowners can use.

They include installing low-flow shower heads and energy-efficient light bulbs, washing clothes in cold or warm water and turning off electronic devices and unplugging them when not in use.

She also said the mansion kitchen also will use locally grown and produced foods, whenever possible, saving fuel and money while supporting the local economy.

--Jack Brammer

Fischer's 60-second ad says Lunsford is no change

In a wide-ranging 60-second commercial, Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Greg Fischer presents several campaign messages, including a jab at his rival's Democratic credentials.

The ad, which the campaign has said will run statewide, seems to hinge on Fischer's message of change -- something that the leading contender in the May 20 Democratic primary, Bruce Lunsford, also has adopted as a campaign theme.

Fischer's ad first lays out a list of problems facing the country, then links incumbent Republican Senator Mitch McConnell to President Bush before connecting Lunsford to them. It then ends with Fischer talking about his biography and how he's "not a career politician."

"George Bush and Mitch McConnell haven't served the needs of the people of Kentucky. But replacing Mitch McConnell with Bruce Lunsford is no change at all," he said as the ad shows Lunsford next to McConnell at a 2003 press conference in which Lunsford endorsed Republican Ernie Fletcher for governor that year.

Lunsford has spent the better part of the last 18 months trying to atone for that endorsement with rank-and-file Democrats. Lunsford also has given campaign contributions to McConnell and other Republicans, although Lunsford's campaign typically points out that he has shelled out more to Democrats over the years and almost exclusively to members of that party in the last five.

Visually, the spot features a variety of clips, including one that shows Fischer's campaign signs and a memorable scene from his first commercial where a smiling worker rushes to place a Fischer bumper sticker on a window.

But Fischer says his name in the 60-second ad just once. Name ID remains a key barrier for Fischer, who is making his first run for office against a better-known Lunsford, who has spent more than $14 million of his own money in five years on two state-wide gubernatorial races.

Fischer, CEO of Louisville-based stadium seating company Dant Clayton Co., also is co-inventor of the combination ice-beverage dispenser.

- Ryan Alessi