Pol Watchers

2nd Congressional Democrats largely agree on KET

While agreeing on most policies, the Democrats battling for their party’s congressional nomination in west-central Kentucky offered different takes on removing troops from Iraq as Daviess County Judge-Executive Reid Haire called for withdrawal within two years.

“It is time to bring our troops home,” Haire said on Monday night's KET primary election debate, adding that the Iraqi government also must fend for itself.

His rival in the May 20 primary, state Sen. David Boswell of Owensboro, said during the debate that he favored removing troops as soon as possible but without a target date.

“As long as we have a demand for foreign oil and do not develop our own energy strategy, we have to have some type of presence, whether diplomatic or military in the Middle East,” he said.

But for the most part, the two agreed that Congress should focus on paying down the national debt over doling out earmarks for specific projects and shouldn't suspend the tax on gasoline, even temporarily.

It was the first KET debate for the two, who are sparring for the chance to take on state Sen. Brett Guthrie of Bowling Green in the fall election for the 2nd Congressional District. The winner in November will replace retiring GOP U.S. Rep. Ron Lewis of Cecilia.

The race for the open seat is expected to generate national attention.

So far in the Democratic primary, Haire has out-raised Boswell, $203,099 to $34,100. Haire began running his first TV ad this week.
- Ryan Alessi

Lunsford criticizes Fischer for tardy financial report

Bruce Lunsford criticized Greg Fischer, his chief rival in the May 20 Democratic primary election for the U.S. Senate, Monday for filing his personal financial disclosure with the Senate Ethics Committee 11 days after the deadline.

Lunsford also noted in a news release that Fischer’s report showed he has investments in five publicly traded funds which invest in either Ventas or Kindred -- both corporate descendants of Vencor.

Fischer has attacked Luncord for his management of Vencor.

“Greg Fischer has gone against the will of Kentucky’s voters and Democratic leaders by taking a page out of Mitch McConnell’s playbook, slinging mud at his fellow Democrat Bruce Lunsford rather than focusing on what he would do as senator to improve the lives of Kentucky families,” Lunsford spokesperson Allison Haley said in a statement.

“The fact that all the while, Fischer has investments in the very companies he claims Bruce ran into the ground makes Fischer’s actions the ultimate hypocrisy,” Haley said.

McConnell, a Republican, now holds the U.S. Senate seat up for election.

Senate ethics rules require all candidates in the Kentucky Democratic primary for U.S. Senate to submit their disclosure forms to the Senate Ethic Committee 30 days before the election.

Fischer didn’t sign his form until more than a week after the deadline and then took an additional three days to send it in, Lunsford’s campaign said.

Fischer’s form shows his investment portfolio includes public funds that have a combined total investment of over $26 million in Ventas and Kindred.

Haley said Lunsford’s form was filed on time and in full compliance with Senate rules.

UPDATED AT 6 p.m.:  Ken Shapero, a spokesman for the Fischer campaign, said Fischer's disclosure form was filed late because of "a clerical error."

He also said Fischer has several mutual funds that have investments in various businesses.

"Greg has no direct investments in Ventas and Kindred," Shapero said. "And, anyway, we never talked about them.  Our talk was on Vencor."

Lunsford was a co-founder of Vencor, a multi-million dollar health care corporation that declared reorganization in 1999. In 1998, some of Vencor's nursing homes began turning away Medicaid patients to make room for private-pay patients. It created a stir.

Lunsford said he did not know that staff members at the nursing home were evicting poor patients. He apologized, and he flew to Florida, where one of the publicized evictions was taking place. Eventually those patients -- fewer than 100, according to Lunsford's campaign staff last year  -- were invited to return. The company paid a $270,000 fine in Florida.

--Jack Brammer

Northup reports raising $461,000

Republican Anne Northup, who is seeking to retake the Louisville congressional seat she held for a decade, announced that she will report to the Federal Election Commission raising $461,007 between January and March 31.

Her campaign says she has $428,000 still in the bank.

Northup is facing a GOP primary May 20 for the right to challenge Democratic U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth of Louisville in the November general election.

- Ryan Alessi

Campaign fund-raising roundup

Congressional and U.S. Senate candidates must turn in their fund-raising figures through March 31 to the Federal Election Commission by April 15. Here's a look at what some of the prominent candidates are expected to file:

U.S. Senate 

This is the marquee Kentucky race for the fall. U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell is up for re-election and faces token opposition in the GOP primary from a challenger running a limited campaign with a Tennessee P.O. box. Meanwhile, seven Democrats -- including two millionaire candidates -- are duking it out for that party's nomination.

• UPDATE 12:17 a.m. Tuesday: McConnell's campaign announced it would report raising a total of $12.2 million through March 31, which the campaign says is "a new record for Kentucky." McConnell's re-election fund will have more than $7.7 million in the bank, the news release adds.
  
• Democrat Bruce Lunsford says his report will show that he's raised $280,000 and put in $470,000 of his own money before March 31. (He later said he added $545,000 more from his personal fortune that won't show upon the April 15 report)
• Democrat Greg Fischer says he's raised more than $500,000 and kicked in another $500,000 of his own.

2nd Congressional District

This will the be the race to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Ron Lewis, a Republican from Hardin County. Republican state Sen. Brett Guthrie of Bowling Green is running unopposed in the GOP primary but is amassing a warchest for the fall when he will face the winner of a clash between two Owensboro Democrats.

• Guthrie is expected to reveal raising more than $400,000 after a busy fund-raising period highlighted by a $76,000 event in Washington and a Lexington luncheon featuring Vice President Dick Cheney that brought in six figures.
• Daviess County Judge-Executive Reid Haire, a Democrat, has told Owen Covington of the Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer that he will have raised about $200,000.
• State Sen. David Boswell, an Owensboro Democrat, told a crowd at a rally last week that "he had brought in $38,000 through Wednesday, and was hoping to generate $5,000 or $6,000 in contributions Thursday night," Covington reported.

3rd Congressional District

Democratic U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth of Louisville will face the winner of a four-candidate GOP primary for his bid for a second term.  But the favorite to emerge with the Republican nomination is Anne Northup, who represented that district from 1996 through 2006. A Yarmuth-Northup rematch would be a nationally-watched race.

• Yarmuth has amassed more than $1 million, WHAS-TV's Mark Hebert reports.
• Northup, meanwhile,  could show raising as much as $450,000 since entering the race in January, reports Jefferson Poole of Blue Grass, Red State.

- Ryan Alessi

D.C. Democrats attack "Ann Northrup"

The Washington insiders at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee fired off a critical e-mail today about high gas prices and former U.S. Rep. Anne Northup, the Louisville Republican who hopes to take her House seat back in November.

Except -- they misspelled her first and last names.

Ouch.

From the top of the DCCC e-mail:

Ann Northrup’s Long Support for Big Oil 

This week, the Department of Energy announced that prices at the gas pump reached a nine month high. Yet, when she had a chance to do something about America's dependence on foreign oil, former Representative Ann Northrup voted to give huge tax breaks and increase taxpayer subsidies to Big Oil making record profits, rather than work to ease consumers’ pain at the pump.

-- John Cheves

Cheney in Lexington

Vice President Dick Cheney landed in Lexington a little before 11 a.m. Monday aboard Air Force Two. Cheney, in town for a fund-raiser, was greeted by about 7 people at the private Tac Air service.

The group included U.S. Rep. Hal Rogers and his wife, Cynthia, and two teens from Greenwood High School in Bowling Green.

Cheney was headed to a fund-raiser at the home of Judson and Kelly Knight in Chevy Chase to benefit state Sen. Brett Guthrie, R-Bowling Green, who is running for the 2nd Congressional District seat.

The Greenwood students, Ryan Cummings, 17, and Caroline Howle, 18, have started a Republican Club at their school. They were able to shake Cheney's hand as he stepped off the plane.

Rogers said Cheney is a valuable fund-raiser. He said he has known Cheney for quite a long time.

"He's a man who doesn't say much, but he means what he says," Rogers said.

Cheney spent little time at the airport before leaving with a motorcycle escort for the Knights' home. He is supposed to take off by 1 p.m.

UPDATE 1:15 p.m.: About a dozen members of a Lexington anti-war group walked about half-mile down Richmond Road Monday in an effort to deliver a “Citizens’ Indictment and Arrest Warrant” to Cheney during his fund-raising visit.

The group carried signs from the corner of Richmond Road and North Hanover Avenue to Ashwood and Woodspoint Roads where they were stopped by Lexington police and the secret service.

Anti-war activist Geoff Young of Lexington said members of the group would gladly use their personal vehicle to transport Cheney to the county jail for war crimes and other impeachable crimes.

“We’d like to see justice done,” Young said.

The group then began chanting as Young addressed his concerns to a member of the secret service.

Cheney will be in Lexington to raise funds for Guthrie

Vice President Dick Cheney is coming to Lexington later this month to raise money for Republican congressional candidate Brett Guthrie of Bowling Green.

Cheney will be the main attraction at a morning fund-raiser March 31 at the Chevy Chase home of orthodontist Judson Knight and his wife, Kelly Knight, a U.S. delegate to the United Nations.

Among the other prominent GOP invited guests are U.S. Sens. Mitch McConnell and Jim Bunning, as well as state Senate President David Williams and U.S. Reps. Hal Rogers of Somerset, Geoff Davis of Hebron and Ron Lewis of Cecilia.

Guthrie, in his third term as a state senator, is running to replace Lewis in the 2nd congressional district of west-central Kentucky.

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- Ryan Alessi

London drops out of 2nd Congressional District race

After a dramatic entrance into the campaign as part of a last second switch, Daniel London -- chief of staff to Republican U.S. Rep. Ron Lewis -- has dropped his bid to replace his boss.

UPDATE 4:28 p.m.: Meanwhile, Lewis issued a statement apologizing for what he called his "poor judgement" in his last-minute move to withdraw from running for an eighth term. He said his decision to retire was a "deeply personal decision" but one that was "not thought through in a fair and realistic way." Here's his statement:

I struggled with this decision until the last possible moment. After prayer and consultation with my family, I chose to retire and encouraged a former member of my staff to launch a bid to become my potential successor.

Upholding the trust of those that I represent has always been my primary objective in public office. My decisions last week were not thought through in a fair and realistic way. The political future of the region that I represent weighed heavily on my mind and, in hindsight, clouded my good judgment. I realize now the extent to which I have disappointed my constituents, supporters, colleagues and staff.

I would like to publicly apologize for my poor judgment and humbly ask for the forgiveness of all those who I have let down. There are no excuses for how I chose to manage my announcement. I regret it deeply and want to do all that I can to put it right and restore your faith in me during my remaining time in office.

I am humbled each day by the trust you have placed in me to serve your interests in Washington, DC. I intend to finish the final year of my congressional career fighting stronger than ever for a safer, hopeful future for Kentucky families. And when the 110th Congress draws to a close, I will look forward to leaving the seat that I occupy in good and capable hands, spending more time with my loved ones, and catching up on so many things that I have missed while in public office.

Thank you for your continued understanding and support.

London said in a statement that opportunity came up so fast that he and his family had just gotten a chance to consider the ramifications. He also is throwing his support behind state Sen. Brett Guthrie of Bowling Green, who would have been his opponent in the May 20 GOP primary. Here's London's full statement:

Congressman Lewis’ decision not to run for re-election came very quickly and our decision to run came just as fast. I am quite confident we would have been successful. However, after considering all that was ahead of me and my family, we determined this wasn’t the right time for us.

I am truly honored for the overwhelming encouragement I received early in this effort from supporters across the district.  I am grateful for their support and their belief in my candidacy and vision for central Kentucky.

Sen. Brett Guthrie is a good man and as a Republican I intend to get behind him and support him for election and will encourage all my supporters to do the same.

I want to again thank Congressman Lewis for his great service to our country and the district and for his support and friendship.”

London's wife filed his candidacy papers and forms withdrawing Lewis from the race. Lewis opted not to seek an eighth full term. Lewis and London drew criticism from some Republicans for the move.

Guthrie, the only other Republican in the race, is now the party's presumptive nominee. Democratic voters in the 2nd District will choose between state Sen. David Boswell of Owensboro and Daviess County Judge Executive Reid Haire in the May 20 primary. 

UPDATE 1:22 p.m.: Guthrie released a statement thanking London for his support and pledging to work with him to "build a strong coalition of support that will keep Kentucky’s 2nd District in conservative hands." Here's part of his statement:

Like Ron Lewis, I will fight to lower taxes, create jobs, protect our military families, veterans and the Ft. Knox community, lower the cost of health care, and protect life.

The Republican Party is now united in the critical task of holding this Congressional seat.

- Ryan Alessi

GOP 2nd congressional candidate's top aide quits

Republican Daniel London, U.S. Rep. Ron Lewis' chief of staff who is running to replace his boss, lost his top aide Colby Adams Wednesday.

Adams informed London Wednesday morning that because of a "family health situation," he wouldn't be able to continue on the campaign.

"It came down to a personal situation," Adams said. "I just couldn't give my full attention to the campaign."

Adams said he wishes London well but wouldn't be wading into the race even from the sidelines. "He's a great guy and a good friend. I'm not going to be actively involved. I don't have a vote in the district," he said.

Adams said he spoke with London about a possible replacement, but "that decision is up to Daniel."

- Ryan Alessi

GOP 2nd Congressional candidates tout endorsements

The two Republican candidates for the nomination in the 2nd Congressional District wasted no time in rolling out a string of endorsements from local officials from the region.

State Sen. Brett Guthrie, R-Bowling Green, has amassed support from many of the Republican legislators in the 21-county district that stretches from Shelby County southwest through Elizabethtown and Bowling Green and back up to Owensboro.

His opponent in the May 20 GOP primary - Daniel London, the chief of staff to retiring U.S. Rep. Ron Lewis, has boasted the backing so far of 29 county and city officials in addition to Lewis's endorsement.

Both Guthrie and London jumped in the race Jan. 29 with minutes to go before the 4 p.m. filing deadline as London's wife, Jill Stearman, dropped off Lewis's papers withdrawing the congressman from his bid for an eighth term and London's filing forms. The winner of the GOP primary will face the winner of the Democratic contest between state Sen. David Boswell and Daviess County Judge Executive Reid Haire, both of Owensboro.

Some Republican lawmakers in the district, such as Rep. Dwight Butler, R-Harned, say they're going to remain neutral.

But Guthrie snared endorsements Tuesday from U.S. Sen. Jim Bunning and the following state legislators, according to his campaign press release:

• Sen. Gary Tapp (Shelby, Bullitt, Spencer)
• Sen. Elizabeth Tori (Hardin)
• Senate Majority Leader Dan Kelly (Washington, Marion, Nelson, Taylor)
• Sen. Carroll Gibson (Grayson, LaRue, Breckinridge, Hancock, Hart, Meade)
• Sen. Richie Sanders (Barren, Edmonson, Green)
• Sen. Dan Seum (Jefferson)
• Rep. Jim DeCesare (Warren)
• Rep. C.B. Embry (Grayson, Hardin)
• Rep. Russ Mobley (Taylor)

London, meanwhile, issued a list of nine county magistrates, two county coroners, two county attorneys, two jailers, three mayors, Grayson County PVA Roger Tomes, Grayson County Sheriff Rick Clemons and Green County Fire Chief Lawrence Gupton. Other key names include:

• Lewis, the congressman London has worked for since 1998
• Ray Powers, Breckenridge County judge executive
• Melanie Roberts, Bullitt County judge executive
• Rob Rothenburger, Shelby County judge executive
• Rusty Newton, Shelby County's deputy judge executive
• Former state Rep. Herman Rattliff of Taylor County
• Former state Rep. Gerry Lynn of Meade County
• Former Green County judge executive Morris Goff
• and Scott Ellis, the Bullitt County Republican Party chairman

Other key GOP endorsements in the area that are still up for grabs include Rep. David Floyd of Bardstown, Rep. Brad Montell of Shelbyville, Rep. Tim Moore of Elizabethtown, Warren County Judge-Executive Mike Buchanon and Hardin County Judge-Executive Harry Berry.

- Ryan Alessi