Conway blasts Paul, Jeb Bush at rally for disabled persons
By Jack Brammer – jbrammer@herald-leader.com
FRANKFORT — Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Jack Conway blasted Republican opponent Rand Paul Monday for questioning aspects of a 20-year-old federal act that makes it illegal to discriminate against disabled persons.
Conway said it was ironic that former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, whose father, President George H.W. Bush, championed and signed the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990, was holding a $1,000-a-person private fund-raiser Monday night for Paul’s campaign in Louisville.
The candidate accused Jeb Bush of “tarnishing the family legacy.”
“What a shame it is 20 years after the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, we would have a major candidate for the United States Senate stand up, stand up and say that he is against the Americans with Disabilities Act,” Conway, the state’s attorney general, said to loud cheers from a crowd of more than 100 in the Capitol Rotunda who were observing the legislation’s anniversary.
Paul, a Bowling Green eye surgeon making his first bid for public office, expressed misgivings about the ADA to a liberal blogger days before his May primary election victory. He repeated those concerns to National Public Radio the day after winning the May 18 primary.
“I think a lot of things could be handled locally,” Paul told NPR without specifically calling for repeal of the ADA.
“For example, I think that we should try to do everything we can to allow for people with disabilities and handicaps,” Paul said. “I think if you have a two-story office and you hire someone who’s handicapped, it might be reasonable to let him have an office on the first floor rather than the government saying you have to have a $100,000 elevator.
“And I think when you get to solutions like that, the more local the better, and the more common sense the decisions are, rather than having a federal government make those decisions.”
Conway said Paul is “ignorant” about provisions of the ADA because it does not require most buildings that are two stories tall to have elevators.
Paul’s campaign manager, Jesse Benton, said in a statement that a “desperate” Conway is trying to distort Paul’s views.
As a doctor, Paul “spends much of his time treating the blind, restoring eyesight and treating victims of many types of disabilities,” Benton said. “He is deeply attuned to needs and struggles of the disabled, and to imply otherwise is a cheap political stunt by his opponent.”
Efforts to reach Bush for comment in Miami were not successful.
Pamela Roark-Glisson, executive director of the ADA Action Network of Kentucky and director of Independence Place, a center in Lexington for disabled persons to live independently, said both candidates were invited to the Capitol event but the Paul campaign never replied.
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Jeff Lewis | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
If you made less than $250,000 a year, your taxes went down.
Anybody questioning that?
If you think YOUR TAXES are too high, just tell us what you made and what you paid.
The deficit didn’t make your taxes go up.
The debt problem is no more pressing than the infrastructure problem. A lot of the stimulus went for infrastructure, so it certainly was not wasted.
Joseph Louis | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Has Rand Paul flip flopped on this issue yet?
bebop | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Ayn Rand Paul didn’t even have the courtesy (courage?) to respond to these folks. Do people in this state really want this clown as their US Senator???
prk | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Jesse Benton is like most Republicans- nothing to say, so they resort to weak talking points and straw-man fallacies.
Q:If you vote Republican- what does it say about you? A: “I have no sense of empathy, hypocrisy, or resolution; I am scared of the big bad world and people I don’t understand, so I ain’t budging from my narrow world-view.”
Conway is the only sensible vote in Nov., KY!
Dennis | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
I will definitely be voting for Conway – this state needs to have a Democrat representing it. We have had Mitch McConnell so long that he has no new ideas about anything. I didn’t care so much about Conway at first but I have grown to like him and what he says. He has my vote and my entire family is voting for him.
special delivery | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
only the simple minded believe little rand isn’t racist,and will not stand up for the disadvantaged. the tea party is a joke. they do not understand what the patriots really did stand for. I am patriotic, a member of the sons of the american revolution and am offended by the bigotry of the tea party idiots.
rickshelton | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Sorry, Jack. A vote for you is a vote for Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, and Barack Obama. Not gonna happen. We’ve all learned a painful lesson and I will never again vote for a democrat.
steve | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Has Jack Conway said what he’s for yet or just what he thinks Rand Paul is against??
Chris | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
hahahahha…….more kool-aid,boys?
Early Cuyler | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
“Jeff Lewis | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
If you made less than $250,000 a year, your taxes went down.
Anybody questioning that?”
I outright call that a lie! Beer/Liquor taxes went up….Tobacco taxes went up….our State gas tax was not lowered…..now my wife will have to pay a Tanning Tax if she goes to use the Tanning Bed….my vehicle tax went up…..
How’s that?
jkw1974 | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Aren’t those all optional things? To save the taxes, jsut stop doing them….
jkw1974 | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Just, sorry….didn’t type that very well…
James Pence | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
I hope the folks in Kentucky are ready for Randology: Rand Paul’s theory as to how people should submit to to Big Business or Corporate America. http://tinyurl.com/28jq9zw
Early Cuyler | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Taxes are taxes,duh.
serah | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
I’m just ashamed that Rand and Jack are the best that Ky can produce. Where are our good people.
tom | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Jeff Lewis – your taxes are the lowest they have ever been since world war II – why not go after the republicans for their spending during the last twenty years – the last time we had a surplus was under a democrat – Rand Paul will win this election and it will speak very, very poorly of Kentucky (actually he is a very accurate representation of the majority of citizens of this state. No wonder KY is 49th in everything.
noshow | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Wow! You mean somebody had scheduled Jack Conway to appear and he actually showed up. Shocking!
Daniel F Frey | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Our good people are running for governor and lieutenant governor, Gatewood Galbraith and Dea Riley.
BarryNBG | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
So, Rand Paul, the eye doctor who has a free clinic for the disabled and poor was at the Shriners event in Kentucky Saturday. Meanwhile the holier than thou Jack was with Van Jones, Al Franken, Harry Reid and liberal Bloggers at the Rio Hotel and Casino in Vegas.
So, is Jack really going to sully a man’s image that actually does things for the disabled?
James Pence | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Jesse Benton and Rand Paul believe we need to work for less. This is not just what I believe. We have Rand Paul on video saying “Wages need to fall.” http://tinyurl.com/2bekmfu
Explain that Mr. Benton
Grace L | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
“The danger to America is not Barack Obama but a citizenry capable of entrusting a man like him with the Presidency. It will be far easier to limit and undo the follies of an Obama presidency than to restore the necessary common sense and good judgment to a depraved electorate willing to have such a man for their president. The problem is much deeper and far more serious than Mr. Obama, who is a mere symptom of what ails America . Blaming the prince of the fools should not blind anyone to the vast confederacy of fools that made him their prince.
The Republic can survive a Barack Obama, who is, after all, merely a fool.
It is less likely to survive a multitude of fools such as those who made him their president.
SusieQ | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
If you vote for Conway, you vote for Obama all over again.
Gator | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Both of the above candidates have called me to ask for my support. Jack is a nice fellow, but, he is not the man. Rand is the type of leadership Kentucky needs. We don’t need anymore people in power that are in the union’s pocket. Kentucky needs to cowboy up and pay its way like every other state. Otherwise, we will become like Greece and implode.
Jeff Lewis | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Responses to some of the above commenters:
rickshelton – definitely got the instructions saying “just say “Obama, Pelosi, Reid over and over”. You may have learned a painful lesson, but it doesn’t seem to me that it was hard.
Early Cuyler – are you sure your name’s not Early Times? You accuse the Federal government of raising taxes on beer and tanning beds? Maybe if you spent your money differently you would have understood that the mention of a $250,000 cutoff was a reference to a well-argued campaign issue. You called me a liar for nothing. But it’s apparent you don’t care about your own name, any more than you do mine.
“tom” – you misread me. I agreed with you about taxes. Not about Rand Paul, though. He doesn’t represent Kentucky, and he clearly isn’t going to win.
BarryNBG – no blamed good? Day after day you use the most twisted rhetoric you can come up with. I hope somebody is paying you for it.
Gator – glad to hear you consider Kentucky a rich state that should “pay its way”. Since you feel this way, I know you won’t mind if we just raise taxes on people like you. No, don’t thank me – I can tell you want to serve.
spinnikerca | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Rand Paul never said he was against the ADA, in fact he said he DOES think the disabled need to be accomodated but he prefers local rather than federal solutions so the people impacted could be better represented. Just think, if these laws were local, local police might actually issue TICKETS for snow on a wheelchair ramp, for example, and people might actually clear them.
It is hardly as if Rand Paul were the first person to say most of these should be at the local level, most conservatives prefer local solutions. Why suddenly is this issue contrived as if it were novel?
BarryNBG | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Jeff, no one has to pay me for my words. The Democrats pay for their support through Subsidies, bailouts and welfare.
pat | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
@BarryNBG How did that Shriner appearance go for Rand? What exactly did he say in his previously agreed to speech? Oh wait, that’s right he ditched the event just prior to speaking. The people running the event announced his name to come to the stage and he was no where to be found. It was reported that he appeared very agitated and his staff was going around questioning people with cameras. I guess he realized he was getting ready to raise money for disabled children and realized they should just pull themselves up by their own bootstraps, that is if they have feet at all.
Conway said Paul is ignorant TO THE PROVISIONS in the ADA. Not that he is incapable to perform the eye surgery he has trained for. He has repeatedly lied about one of the provisions regarding elevators, this is WIDELY documented and debunked. People need to wake up and realize that Paul is advocating for an overreaching, predatory Corporate America. When government is weakened and neutered the power void will be filled with profiteers that only have their bottom line as their motivator.
I also find it interesting that Paul doesn’t believe his fellow teabagger Sharon Angle has a snowball’s chance in hell against the most unpopular Senator in America. What does that say about your little movement? According to Paul, Reid is re-elected and Conway has won and already casting votes. Looks like a pretty weak campaign to me. Good thing little Randy is staying away from those mean old shriners and staying closely nestled into the GOP establishment pouch.
GermantownDem | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
NEWSFLASH — Jack Conway lies again. Paul never said he was against ADA, just like he never said he wanted to repeal the CRA.
pat | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
I just want to make sure you people understand that when you say everything at the “local level” that means higher local taxes, higher state taxes. It doesn’t mean that this stuff magically pays for itself. Kentucky receives at least $1.51 for every dollar it sends to Washington. So where’s that extra money going to come from. What local services are you willing to give up so you can keep a few extra dollars: the library,street lights, police officers, county utilities, local parks, blacktop roads, salted roads in the winter. Please tell me what local services do you want to eliminate.
If you thought the state legislature had a daunting task balancing the budget and making up for the huge revenue shortfalls this year, just wait until the mad doctor’s policies take effect. He’s essentially telling KY your free ride is over, let them eat cake policies. He tells the long term unemployed to quit being lazy, lower your standards, and just get a job you loser. Completely dismissing the fact that there is 1 job for every 6 jobseekers. Paul’s Plutocracy will put the final nail in the American coffin, but at least you’ll have a few extra bucks in your paycheck.
snappy | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
JeffLewis loves to tell people to post their pay and taxes but does not do it himself. Like a liberal — it always about other people’s money
pat | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
But the ADA is a federal mandate, Rand wants everything handled on the local level. So how does he have it both ways? So now he supports federal overreach. The ADA is not local legislation! He’s just trying to speak out of both sides of his mouth.
Transcript from NPR, Rands’ words:
SIEGEL: But it’s been one of the major developments in American history in the course of your life. I mean, do you think the ’64 Civil Rights Act or the ADA for that matter were just overreaches and that business shouldn’t be bothered by people with a basis in law to sue them for redress?
Dr. PAUL: Right. I think a lot of things could be handled locally. For example, I think that we should try to do everything we can to allow for people with disabilities and handicaps. You know, we do it in our office with wheelchair ramps and things like that. I think if you have a two-story office and you hire someone who’s handicapped, it might be reasonable to let him have an office on the first floor rather than the government saying you have to have a $100,000 elevator. And I think when you get to solutions like that, the more local the better, and the more common sense the decisions are, rather than having a federal government make those decisions.
When asked if these were overreaching legislation he said “RIGHT” and then goes on to lie about the two-story elevator BS. The government does not force two-story buildings to install elevators! The ADA is the federal government making those decisions. He doesn’t like that, he doesn’t support that. He has made that very clear.
snappy | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
I agree with the post above the mcconnel has no new ideas. I’m sick and tired of that guy.
I have no excitement about paul nor conway. I don’t sense that paul has a clue and will flounder around. Conway is a simple career politician wannabe. he won’t have any new ideas either. he’ll be a lackey for whoever takes harry reid’s place when he loses.
pat | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
MADDOW: But maybe voting against the Civil Rights Act which wasn’t just about governmental discrimination but public accommodations, the idea that people who provided services that were open to the public had to do so in a nondiscriminatory fashion.
Let me ask you a specific so we don’t get into the esoteric hypotheticals here.
PAUL: Well, there’s 10 — there’s 10 different — there’s 10 different titles, you know, to the Civil Rights Act, and nine out of 10 deal with public institutions. And I’m absolutely in favor of one deals with private institutions, and had I been around, I would have tried to modify that.
But you know, the other thing about legislation — and this is why it’s a little hard to say exactly where you are sometimes, is that when you support nine out of 10 things in a good piece of legislation, do you vote for it or against it? And I think, sometimes, those are difficult situations.
What I was asked by “The Courier-Journal” and I stick by it is that I do defend and believe that the government should not be involved with institutional racism or discrimination or segregation in schools, busing, all those things. But had I been there, there would have been some discussion over one of the titles of the civil rights.
And I think that’s a valid point, and still a valid discussion, because the thing is, is if we want to harbor in on private businesses and their policies, then you have to have the discussion about: do you want to abridge the First Amendment as well. Do you want to say that because people say abhorrent things — you know, we still have this. We’re having all this debate over hate speech and this and that. Can you have a newspaper and say abhorrent things? Can you march in a parade and believe in abhorrent things, you know?
It is clear that Paul would not support the CRA provision dealing with private institutions. He considers this to be free speech. He is unsure if he would have voted for legislation if he only approved of nine out of ten provisions. He says he would have modified this provision. To what, I hope we never find out but he does make it clear that this is “still a valid discussion”. While he does not literally say he would repeal the CRA, he clearly doesn’t approve of the provision towards private business and still considers this as relevant discussion.
Personally, this does not represent me and my views and this November I want to vote for someone who represents me and Rand Paul does not.
The General | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
The Paul family doesn’t like anybody: African Americans, Jews, Hispanics, the disabled have no place in a free society.
Cheryl | Jul 26, 2010 | Reply
Jack Conway has my vote.
BarryNBG | Jul 27, 2010 | Reply
Ahhhh. Yes, because a liberal blogger said Paul left and ditched them it must be so, FALSE!
Also, Rand never called for anything about the ADA. It’s settled law and the fact that Jack sent out an email asking the disable to “Stand against Rand” is either a bad joke or shows how ignorant they are.
Hell, even WTVQ pointed out Jack (a freakin’ lawyer) got it wrong at his rally today.
Meanwhile, the guy who shows up to help the Shriners holds a Free eye clinic for the poor is painted the bad guy?
Oh, BTW. Jack keeps mentioning the soldiers. Is he referring to the soldiers he supported sending to war when Rand didn’t. Your right Jack, your vote would of made them disable. Then if they need medical Marijuana you’d jail them.
Jack Conway, your liberal, progressive who wants to send your kids to war and then use them as political fodder when they come home. Not to mention jail them if they smoke a plant Kentucky is known for.
Eric | Jul 27, 2010 | Reply
I see this thing is censoring my comments for no discernible reason.
Big Ben 4 liberty | Jul 27, 2010 | Reply
I see more partisan idiocy being past off as “facts” from our good friend, the flase General.
Gator | Jul 27, 2010 | Reply
Jeff Lewis is an idiot left winger. Every Democrap I have encountered in life is reliant on the Government for something (handouts mainly). He wants to tax anyone who is successful enough to make more than $250K more because they had the guts to go to school for 11 years (that’s college not the other crap). Jeff, get in line at the government trough like the rest of the lazy people. It makes me sick to pay taxes for people like you. Shut down government welfare and let the people compete for goods and services. We would have no debt hanging over us. I’m debt free and proud of it. I earned it, you should try it.
The General | Jul 27, 2010 | Reply
Big Ben,
If you have the facts why do conspiracy debunking websites like conspiracyscience.com activly try to debunk the Paul family?
Also do you agree with Rand’s Uncle Wayne Paul, that we are collateral because of Federal Reserve: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCF_7kspI7Y?
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