Archive for September, 2010

Mongiardo puts Franklin County farm and house on the market

FRANKFORT — Lt. Gov. Daniel Mongiardo’s Franklin County farm, which became an issue in last spring’s Democratic U.S. Senate primary, is for sale.

Mongiardo bought the 54-acre farm in July 2009 for $753,069 with the help of a $30,000-a-year state housing allowance.

Carolyn Edwards, a Realtor with Creative Realty in Lexington, said the asking price for the land and a large farm house has not yet been determined.

‘Comment’ will discuss U.S. Senate race; 4th District candidates on ‘Kentucky Tonight’

Kentucky’s U.S. Senate race will be a major topic on this weekend’s “Comment on Kentucky,” a public affairs show on the Kentucky Educational Television network.

Joining host Ferrell Wellman will be three journalists — Bill Estep of the Lexington Herald-Leader, Joe Arnold of WHAS-TV in Louisville and Tom Loftus of The Courier-Journal’s Frankfort bureau.

Fox News’ Chris Wallace aims to give Paul and Conway ‘a fair shake’ in debate

By Jack Brammer – jbrammer@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace said his goal is to give Kentucky U.S. Senate candidates Jack Conway and Rand Paul “a fair shake” during their first debate Sunday on national television.

“That’s all I care about at the end, that both sides got the opportunity to express their views and that it was fair,” Wallace said Thursday during a telephone interview.

Wallace, who has never met either candidate, said his job moderating the discussion should be easy.

“There couldn’t be a sharper contrast between Paul and Conway on almost every issue,” Wallace said. “It should be easy to get them talking and expressing their differences on a variety of issues.”

The show, to be aired live at 9 a.m. on most Fox affiliates and again at 2 p.m and 6 p.m on Fox News, will broadcast from the studios of WDRB-TV in Louisville. The show will air live on WDKY-TV in Lexington.

Campaign Watchdog: Tax claims about Ben Chandler ‘mostly false’

MORE: Read previous Campaign Watchdog reports

By John Cheves – jcheves@herald-leader.com

The statement: “Chandler took a pledge to vote against tax increases, but then broke it by voting over and over again to raise your taxes.”

– Americans for Tax Reform, criticizing U.S. Rep. Ben Chandler, D-Versailles, in a commercial running this week on Lexington television stations

The ruling: Mostly false

The facts: Americans for Tax Reform, a Washington non-profit led by former corporate lobbyist and Republican Party activist Grover Norquist, has booked more than $170,000 worth of air time to attack Chandler, who stands for re-election Nov. 2 against Republican lawyer Andy Barr of Lexington.

In its current ad, the group tells Central Kentuckians that Chandler voted “over and over again to raise your taxes.” It cites five House votes from 2007 and 2008 as evidence.

Voting to raise taxes — as those bills did — violated Chandler’s pledge with the group to not raise taxes on any individuals or businesses. Chandler signed the pledge on Dec. 18, 2003, during his first run for Congress.

But the votes did not “over and over again” raise the taxes of Central Kentuckians, as the ad alleges, unless they were an oil or natural gas company, the U.S. subsidiary of a foreign parent company or made more than $500,000 a year.

Andy Barr and Ben Chandler debate immigration issues

Welcome to the Bluegrass Politics Debate. Each Wednesday and Thursday through the end of September, the candidates for Kentucky’s 6th Congressional District seat — U.S. Rep. Ben Chandler, D-Versailles, and Republican lawyer Andy Barr of Lexington — will debate a topic chosen by the Lexington Herald-Leader.

The candidates ask and answer the questions. Questions are limited to 35 words. Answers, which will be posted online by 6 p.m. on Wednesdays, are limited to 75 words. Rebuttals, which will be posted online by 6 p.m. on Thursdays, are limited to 35 words.

The entire debate will appear in the Sunday City|Region section of the Herald-Leader, as space allows.

Week 8 topic: Immigration

Barr’s question for Chandler: Since 2007, you’ve approved enough spending to increase the publicly-held debt from $4.9 to $9 trillion. Why did you oppose a May 7, 2009 committee amendment to provide an additional $200 million for border security?

Chandler’s answer: Because protecting America is my top priority, I’ve consistently opposed amnesty for illegal immigrants and supported building a fence and sending additional troops to the border. Your attack is deceptive. I’ve repeatedly supported dramatic funding increases to secure our borders, and voted against this amendment because it would have stripped funding from our troops’ rebuilding of Iraq and Afghanistan and from our response to the deadly H1N1 virus outbreak. Are you against these important efforts?

Barr’s rebuttal: We need more than lip service. We need a Congressman who will consistently vote for border security and enforcing our immigration laws so states don’t have to do the job for the federal government.

Chandler’s question for Barr: In these tough economic times, illegal immigration takes critical jobs from American citizens. Will you pledge to support increased funding as I have for the E-Verify program which checks the work eligibility of potential employees?

Barr’s answer: On June 24, 2008, you voted against extending the E-Verify program. On June 12, 2009, you voted against an amendment that would have made the E-Verify program permanent. Then, on July 17, 2009, you voted against a ban on funds being used to delay the implementation of a requirement that federal contractors use the E-Verify program. You talk about supporting E-Verify, but unlike you, I will actually vote consistently in favor of it.

Chandler’s rebuttal: Funding I supported improved E-Verify, slashed the error rate and reduced costs. Before these improvements, you would’ve been irresponsibly locking in a system that hurt small businesses and let illegal immigrants slip through the cracks.

Lexington mayor candidates debate city worker issues

Welcome to the Bluegrass Politics Debate. Each Wednesday and Thursday through the end of September, the candidates for mayor of Lexington — Mayor Jim Newberry and Vice Mayor Jim Gray — will debate a topic chosen by the Lexington Herald-Leader.

The candidates ask and answer the questions. Questions are limited to 35 words. Answers, which will be posted online by 6 p.m. on Wednesdays, are limited to 75 words. Rebuttals, which will be posted online by 6 p.m. on Thursdays, are limited to 35 words.

The entire debate will appear in the Sunday City|Region section of the Herald-Leader, as space allows.

Week 8 topic: City workers

Newberry’s question for Gray: To avoid damaging layoffs and save millions, I’ve reduced government payroll by 250 plus positions and cut the Mayor’s Office budget 32% since 2008. Why is council budget down less than 1% under your watch?

Gray’s answer: Once again you’ve ignored our city employees. I continue to support responsible management of Lexington’s resources but most importantly our tax dollars and I’ve had to intervene to stop your wasteful spending. All four public employee membership organizations endorsed my election, including those who supported you in the past. Firefighter Chris Bartley says, “We’ve been under attack the past three years. Jim Gray’s open-door policy will be a refreshing change.” Read more at www.jimgray.org/cleansweep.

Newberry’s rebuttal: Throughout this debate, you’ve failed to answer virtually every question I’ve asked. Just like your record as vice mayor, you just criticize. You’ve offered no real leadership or solutions. What have you been waiting for?

Gray’s question for Newberry: City employee Pam Brandenburg has said, “We just want our voices heard again. We simply cannot afford another four years of Jim Newberry.” Why not talk with and listen to city employees?

Newberry’s answer: City employees helped me make changes that now enable our government to operate faster, better and cheaper. While other cities suffered massive layoffs, I protected essential city jobs during the worst national recession since the 1930s. But I work for the entire community, so I’ve made tough decisions. I tightened government’s belt, saving at least $15 million annually and cutting the bureaucracy by 250 positions. My staff and I took two-week furloughs. You did nothing.

Gray’s rebuttal: Your attitudes expressed here demonstrate the significant differences in how we value employee contributions. Building Gray Construction I’ve learned to value employee opinion and leadership. Public employees recognize the difference and support my election.

Campaign Watchdog: Union’s claims about Rand Paul and Social Security ‘mostly true’

By Jack Brammer – jbrammer@herald-leader.com

The statement: Rand Paul “supports privatizing Social Security and reducing benefits by raising the retirement age to 70.”

— Kentucky State AFL-CIO, in a mailer supporting Democrat Jack Conway’s campaign for the U.S. Senate against Republican Paul

The ruling: Mostly true

The facts: Privatizing Social Security would allow workers to control their own retirement money through personal investment accounts. It is a proposal to prevent Social Security’s predicted financial shortfall in the future.

Although the AFL-CIO mailer leaves the impression that Paul might want to privatize social security for everyone, he told the Herald-Leader in May that he will not “abolish Social Security for retirees or near retirees, nor will I cut benefits.”

However, he has advocated allowing younger people to “opt out” of Social Security and said the retirement age “probably” needs to go to 70.

The AFL-CIO mailer notes a Feb. 22, 1998, Kentucky Educational Television show and a May 24, 2010, Huffington Post column as sources for its claims.

On the 1998 edition of “Kentucky Tonight,” Paul said younger workers should be allowed to “opt out” of Social Security and “get a better investment.”

“Social Security is a bad investment for the working man,” he said.

The Herald-Leader could find no evidence that Paul’s position on partial privatization of Social Security for younger individuals has changed since that time.

In the Huffington Post article, syndicated columnist Mark Miller said Paul’s solution for Social Security’s long-term solvency problems “is boosting the retirement age to 70.”

Nate Byer, a spokesman for the state AFL-CIO, said this week that the labor union also used as a source for its mailer a May 15, 2010, report by cn|2 Politics.

“At a March 29 meeting with voters at the Manchester Pizza Hut, however, Paul said the Social Security eligibility age ‘probably has to’ go up to 70,” cn|2 reported.

“It’s hard to go around campaigning on that, it’s about as unpopular of an issue as there is, but it probably has to happen,” Paul said at the time. “We moved it to 67 gradually. Probably that’s what you need to do again to 70.”

When asked this week on the campaign trail if the AFL-CIO mailer was accurate and if he supports privatizing Social Security and raising the age to receive benefits, Paul responded by saying “there are a lot of solutions out there to try to fix it.

“All I’ve said is that a lot of these solutions will have to be discussed and difficult decisions will have to be made,” he said. “The exact policy decisions are best done through a bipartisan commission.”

State Democratic dinner will feature Senate Majority Whip Durbin

FRANKFORT — U.S. Senate Majority Whip Richard “Dick” Durbin, D-Illinois, will be the keynote speaker at the 2010 Kentucky Democratic Dinner Oct. 9 in Louisville.

“We’re thrilled that Sen. Durbin has chosen to visit the Commonwealth and address the Kentucky Democratic Dinner,” said state Democratic Party chair Dan Logsdon in a news release.

Conway takes aim at Paul on Medicare

UPDATED AT 8 P.M.

By Jack Brammer – jbrammer@herald-leader.com

HAZARD — In a new TV ad designed to win over senior citizens, Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Jack Conway shows Republican Rand Paul saying “the real answer to Medicare would be a $2,000 deductible.”

Paul called the 30-second ad “a lie” and “politics at its lowest form” during a news conference held on the second day of a three-day campaign swing in Eastern Kentucky.

The spot is the latest attempt by Conway, the state’s attorney general, to use Paul’s own words to portray him as out-of-step with voters. Until now, Conway primarily has been using TV ads to portray Paul as soft on crime and drug abuse.

The latest ad shows several seniors condemning the idea of a $2,000 deductible for Medicare, a federal health insurance program for people who are 65 and over, or who meet other special criteria.

Unions for city workers choose Gray over Newberry

By Karla Ward – kward1@herald-leader.com

All four unions representing city employees have endorsed Vice Mayor Jim Gray in the upcoming mayor’s election.

The International Association of Fire Fighters Local 526 and Gray’s campaign announced the group’s support for Gray on Monday.

The city’s two Fraternal Order of Police lodges, which represent police and corrections officers, and the Civil Service Employees Association already had endorsed Gray.

“This is very encouraging,” Gray said in a telephone interview. “The way I look at this is the way I look at this in our business. Any good business and any good manager needs the support of their employees, and that’s what leadership is all about.”