BluegrassReport.org

Priorities

From a Republican reader:

I don't know if you've been following the the fellow who was charged  with murder in Lexington, got a medical furlough, then fled the state and was caught in Wisconsin. Wisconsin was ready to send him back, but couldn't because it hadn't received the formal request to return him to Kentucky. Guess who's job it was to send the Governor's Warrant for this murderer to be returned to custody? Guess who couldn't be bothered to actually send a piece of paper to Wisconsin?

Come on, guess.

He must have been too busy trying to find soft landings spots for his cronies on boards and commissions, some of which no longer exist, and just couldn't make time for such trifles...

Fletcher's Taxpayer-Funded Campaign Continues: After Two Years On The Back Burner, Fletcher To Rollout His Faith-Based Office This Week (UPDATED)

How transparent is this, coming just 49 days from Election Day:

Two years after it was created by the General Assembly, Gov. Ernie Fletcher's Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives is having its public debut this week.

The office -- set up to work with religious and nonreligious private social-service providers -- will be host to a conference at General Butler State Resort Park in Carrollton.

So, after sitting on the back burner for two years, Governor Fletcher (R) trots out his faith-based office less than two months from the election where he trails by 20 points. Maybe he'll have a chance to present an oversized check for maximum effect.

By the way, will this office teach our ordained-minister-turned-politician about that commandment concerning "bearing false witness" given how much lying he's done during the past four years?

Fletcher is incredibly shameless.

UPDATE (10:29 AM): Given the following additional story in today's Courier-Journal, I wonder how much longer before Fletcher goes ahead and just promises cash bonuses to voters if he gets re-elected? After four years of record-setting state spending and debt, why is Fletcher only now making such a promise?

Gov. Ernie Fletcher said yesterday that if re-elected, he would invest $100 million in the state's Bucks for Brains program as part of the next two-year budget.

Ernie Fletcher = miserable failure.

This Looks Really Really Bad

Following-up my previous post about contracts going to financial backers of Governor Fletcher (R), I wanted to point out another matter that really doesn't look good in my opinion, regardless of whether or not all of the contracts were legally and properly bid on.

This is from the website of Kenar Architectural which is owned by Harold Fletcher, Jr., the brother of Governor Fletcher. Given this administration's pathetic history of doling out contracts to cronies, it's so hard to read this and not question whether our corrupt governor's brother got all this business in an above-board manner.

Some of our notable projects are:
Kentucky History Center
Marshall County Detention Center
Martin County Community Center
Sedalia Mo. Detention Center
Linear Accelerator at Pikeville Memorial Hospital
Fulton County School additions and renovations
Graves County School additions and renovations
Energy conservation projects at 10 different school systems and hospitals
Multifamily housing projects
Swimming pools and community centers
Church projects: new, renovations and additions
Industrial additions and modifications

Current Projects
Leslie County Detention Center 156 beds
Knott County Atheletic Center
King's Daughters Medical Center - Renovate Executive Offices - Ashland
Jackson County Jail Study
Hodgenville/LaRue County Parks Study
Kentucky River Jail Addition
Knox County Regional Detention Facility
Paintsville Radio Station Facility

Keep in mind that Kenar isn't some big firm where there are dozens of partners where Fletcher could remove himself from contracts involving the state. This is a very small operation with Harold listed as President and his wife, Rachel, as CFO. The most recent corporate filing lists just three people: Harold Fletcher, Rachel Fletcher, and James True. That's it. See for yourself.

In fact, it might be worthwhile to see who else bid on these state and county projects and how much Fletcher's firm was paid for his work.

This from the governor who vowed in 2003:

Dear Fellow Kentuckian:

I am running for governor to end the bygone era of good old boy politics that has held our great Commonwealth back for too long. Kentuckians are hungry for change in Frankfort. We need new leaders of rock-solid values and integrity in Frankfort to end wasteful spending and fiscal irresponsibility. It’s time to change the culture of state government so that our leaders are focused on solutions that benefit all Kentuckians, and not just a few political insiders....

Sincerely, Ernie

Yeah, right.

Fletcher Administration Still Taking Care Of Their Cronies With Personal Service Contracts?

Remember the story back in June 2007 when Transportation Cabinet official Sam Beverage reached a deal with prosecutors on his perjury case related to the Merit System investigation? In exchange for pleading guilty to a lesser charge Beverage agreed to help shine light on road contracts steered to political supporters of Governor Fletcher (R). According to stories, Beverage apparently pointed the finger at two top Fletcher cronies: Transportation Secretary Bill Nighbert and Highway Commissioner Marc Williams.

Specifically, according to a story written at the time by the Courier-Journal's Stephenie Steitzer, Williams was under investigation by the feckless Executive Branch Ethics Commission for "allegedly trying to steer a state engineering contract" to a company later revealed to be DLZ Kentucky, Inc., (its president William May is a top Fletcher contributor).

Well, after browsing the state's Personal Service Contract List for September 2007, guess which firm managed to get the $100,000 personal service contract by the Transportation Cabinet (still run by Nighbert) to inspect the state's bridges (still run by Williams) in the aftermath of the Mississippi River bridge collapse?

(click image for larger version)

Fletcher would tell us this is just another coincidence, I'm sure...(the contract shows-up on page 6).

P.S. -- I encourage you to browse all the archived personal service contracts that are available for examination online. A treasure trove. Click here.

Bluegrass Freedom Begins Television Ads On Fletcher's Ethics

There's nothing worse than a lying, cheating, hypocritical governor running for re-election. This is deadly and right on target:

Follow-Up On UK Board Of Trustees Debacle -- ACTION NEEDED

In follow-up to this morning's post concerning the efforts by Governor Fletcher (R) and his cronies to seize control of the University of Kentucky Board of Trustees, I implore each you -- particularly UK grads and current students -- to e-mail each current trustee to voice your strong opposition to the Fletcher slate that has emerged -- particularly the nomination of Fletcher's own business partner and close buddy, Stephen Branscum, to be Chairman of the Board.

Aside from how incredibly unfit Branscum is to be board chairman (frankly, I question whether he's even qualified to serve on the board at all), now is not the time for UK to be led by a chairman whose only known public interests have been to the university's athletic department and the Republican Party, especially at a time when UK is striving to be a Top 20 national school.

Aside from Branscum, the Fletcher slate is backing top political contributors Mira Ball to be vice chair and the re-election of Pam May as board secretary (May was one of two trustees that voted against the benefits package last year). All three are Republican appointees of Fletcher, not to mention prominent campaign contributors.

I'm told by folks on the inside of this fight that Fletcher's fingerprints are all over this election and some are asking whether Fletcher has his sights on being the next president of UK following his widely-anticipated loss to Steve Beshear (D).

Act now. Join the ongoing effort to kill this attempt to pack the UK board with Fletcherites. Send e-mails. Let your friends and family know. Fletcher has gone too far this time.

UK BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Officers of the Board

• James F. Hardymon, Chair (e-mail: botchair@email.uky.edu)
• JoEtta Y. Wickliffe, Vice Chair (e-mail: jwickliffe@statebanktrust.com)
• Pamela Robinette May, Secretary (e-mail: ptmay@bellsouth.net)
• Barbara W. Jones, Assistant Secretary

Members of the Board

• Mira S. Ball (e-mail: mira@ballhomes.com)
• Stephen P. Branscum (e-mail: sbranscum@branscumconstruction.com)
• Penelope A. Brown (e-mail: penny@r1-brown.com)
• Dermontti F. Dawson (e-mail: ddawson@bellerivepark.com)
• Jeffrey B. Dembo (e-mail: dembo@email.uky.edu)
• Ann Brand Haney (e-mail: abhaney@yahoo.com)
• Billy Joe Miles (e-mail: bjm@milesnmore.com)
• Phillip R. Patton (e-mail: Patton@glasgow-ky.com)
• Sandy Bugie Patterson (e-mail: sandybugiepatterson@yahoo.com)
• Nick Phelps (e-mail: nick.phelps@uky.edu)
• Erwin Roberts (e-mail: eroberts@fbtlaw.com)
• Charles R. Sachatello (e-mail: CRSachatelloMD@yahoo.com)
• C. Frank Shoop (e-mail: cfrankshoop@yahoo.com)
• Myra Leigh Tobin
• Billy B. Wilcoxson
• Russ Williams (e-mail: Russ.Williams@uky.edu)
• Ernest J. Yanarella (e-mail: ejyana@email.uky.edu)

The Cancer Of Cronyism Metastasizing Inside UK's Board Of Trustees

With just 61 days left before the political career of our corrupt Governor Fletcher (R) comes to a well-deserved end, he is working at full-speed to pack every nook and cranny of state government with his favorite cronies and political hacks.

While this is nothing new as we've suffered through Fletcher appointments of John Roach to the Kentucky Supreme Court (before voters resoundly threw him off the bench), his former personal assistant, Crystal Ducker, elevated from essentially a secretary to becoming the #2 official at Transportation, and let's not forget those contributors and county contacts that were appointed to the state ethics commission to enforce ethics laws against Fletcher (and then they didn't).

But now it's gotten even more absurd, and if you thought Michael Brown running FEMA was cronyism run amok, you're going to love what Fletcher is trying to do to the state's flagship school -- the University of Kentucky.

If you haven't heard, Fletcher is working hard to get his business partner, bosom buddy, and top contributor -- Stephen Branscum -- to serve as Chairman of the Board of Trustees at UK.

It's one thing to put a crony in a top job. It's entirely another thing when that crony is so wholly unqualified for the crucial job of chairman of the board of the state's top university. A quick look at Branscum's UK bio shows that not only did he not graduate from UK but it seems he hasn't graduated from any school. His educational background is identified as "Attended Western Kentucky University."

Then there's this part of his bio:

Career Summary: President and Chief Executive Officer, Branscum Construction Company, Inc. (present); Vice President/Treasurer, Branscum Construction Company; Developer, owner, and president of Key Village Shopping Center in Russell Springs.

Talk about unimaginably unqualified.

And then there was this disturbing item in today's Herald-Leader:

Nothing in Stephen Branscum's record distinguishes him as someone who would be an effective leader for a sprawling educational institution. Nor has he shown a particularly keen commitment to elevating teaching and research.

His past interest in UK lies principally in sports.

When he became a trustee three years ago, he had given $180,000 to UK athletics. Contrast that with outgoing chairman James Hardymon, whose financial contributions to the university have paid for such things as an endowed chair in medical research and an information-systems building and helped restore the administration building.

As a trustee, Branscum is best known for undermining the UK administration's funding priorities during the 2005 General Assembly.

He did this by directly lobbying his friend and former business partner, Gov. Ernie Fletcher, to include $15 million in bonds for a basketball practice facility in the state budget. State funding for the facility was cut in half after university objections.

"When people think of Kentucky," Branscum explained at the time, "they think of two things: UK basketball and our horse industry."

Finally, check out the story in yesterday's Kentucky Kernel to see how the entire slate for leadership of UK's board is being engineered from the inside.

What a disgusting exercise in cronyism at the highest levels of Kentucky's higher education. While we know Fletcher will be out of office in a matter of weeks, allowing his cronies to run the show at UK -- at the same time the school is trying to attain Top 20 status -- will ensure the stink of his sordid and incompetent legacy will linger for years to come -- in the worst place possible: UK.

Every UK alum and current student should be outraged by what is on the verge of happening at their school. Now is time to scream about this effort and stop this farce from happening. It's time to WAKE UP and do something about this travesty before it's too late. If you don't, then shut the f*ck up the next time you get pissed off about future decisions by UK's board. It's that simple. Put up or shut up.

If you're a big donor, consider letting the school know that the gravy train comes to an abrupt halt if the board is turned over to Fletcher's unqualified cronies. If you're a student, organize a protest demonstration on campus or start a letter writing campaign ASAP. If you're not affiliated with UK, be sure to e-mail this post to everyone you know who is. Now isn't the time to simply stew. It's time to take action. Immediate action. Let's stop this freaking insanity.

Why Has Governor Fletcher (R) Allowed Transportation Cabinet To Design And Launch New Logo, While Discarding "Unbridled Spirit", Which State Spent Millions To Create?

I want to revisit an item that I wrote about two weeks ago because after some further research I was stunned by how outrageous it was.

As we all know too well, in 2004 Governor Fletcher (R) launched an exhaustive effort to re-brand the state. After spending millions of dollars, the "Unbridled Spirit" brand and logo was announced with great fanfare. A website (www.KentuckyUnbridledSpirit.com) was developed and guidelines on how to utilize the logo was prepared. In fact, Fletcher can't talk about his "accomplishments" without mentioning the new brand.

At the time the brand was released, Fletcher stated:

I’m pleased to introduce the Commonwealth’s new brand, “Kentucky Unbridled Spirit.”

For the first time in history, all branches of Kentucky government will speak with the same unified voice. I also encourage every local and regional governmental agency, state-supported institution and private corporation and business to join in this effort.

This is not simply state government’s brand. This is Kentucky’s brand. It was created as the result of an unprecedented research effort and was selected by Kentuckians themselves via a statewide vote.

The brand is more than just a logo and slogan. It is a new way of thinking about Kentucky.

Fletcher also made clear that all parts of state government would be using this logo:

Example #1:

Governor Fletcher said the brand is about Kentucky's future.  "It stands for who we are and who we want to be," he said.  "The more the brand is shown and talked about, the more people outside this state will realize that Kentucky is something special.  That is why we will have it on our advertising, our signs, our stationery, our brochures, our Web site and virtually everything that comes from the Commonwealth of Kentucky."

The branding process is also saving the state money.  Kentucky had been spending $12 million to $14 million per year for all advertising and marketing.  As much as $2.5 million of that had been agency fees and commissions to more than a dozen different advertising agencies used by various cabinets within state government.

Example #2:

Q:  How is “Kentucky Unbridled Spirit” being used?

A:  The brand is being incorporated into everything the state creates – from license plates, state Web sites and advertising to state signage, brochures, stationery, and other materials.  As advertising messages are developed, “Unbridled Spirit” is the underlying theme.  If we’re using photography, the images used graphically portray “Kentucky Unbridled Spirit.” In short, everything we do acts to reinforce the look and meaning of our brand.  It provides a consistency and an expectation of quality to have all state information having a common appearance.

In addition, hundreds of Kentucky cities, counties, tourism and economic development organizations also have adopted the brand on their materials.  That includes road signs, stationery, web sites – even posters on their walls.

Seems perfectly clear that Unbridled Spirit was to be the ubiquitous brand for the state, particularly state government.

So why in the hell did the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet move forward this summer with a new logo design???

(click image below for larger version)

This runs completely counter to everything Fletcher has been saying about Unbridled Spirit -- not to mention the millions spent in creating that brand.  As I wrote two weeks ago, it seems that the brainchild of the new logo idea was Crystal Ducker, the unimaginably unqualified Deputy Secretary who's only relevant experience was to have served as the personal assistant to Chief of Staff Stan Cave and then Fletcher.

The reason I raise this now is that I couldn't help but notice that this new Transportation logo is on the over-sized checks that Fletcher has been handing out lately -- click here, here, and here.

This is just amazing and there are so many questions that need to be asked:

• Who approved dumping the Unbridled Spirit logo from the Transportation Cabinet and replacing it with a new one?
• How much state money was spent designing a new logo?
• How much money was spent to promote Unbridled Spirit that has now been undermined by a logo for the state's largest cabinet?
• How does Fletcher explain this decision?
• How come the media isn't all over this unbelievable episode of waste, fraud and abuse?
• How was Crystal Ducker allowed to serve as the #2 person in the state's largest cabinet with no relevant experience?

I encourage you to get on the phone and your e-mail and contact members of the media and implore them to examine this latest Fletcher boondoggle. What a waste of public money, once again...

GOP Districts Got Disproportionate Share Of Road Bond (Loftus, Courier-Journal)

Pay-to-play rears its ugly head once again with Fletcher & Crooks.

Though, this certainly isn't the first time there have been suggestions that Fletcher and his Transportation Cabinet have been rewarding counties where their leadership is supporting their corrupt ways. Recall this Madisonville Messenger story from last November, not to mention similar allegations made by former U.S. Rep. Anne Northup (R) during this year's gubernatorial primary. And don't forget Ryan Alessi's story earlier this year about the $13.9 million in local development funds were doled out to just those counties with strong supporters.

Shameless crooks.

GOP Districts Got Disproportionate Share Of Road Bond
Defenders: It offset decades of neglect
By Tom Loftus, The Courier-Journal

FRANKFORT, Ky. -- The districts of Republican state legislators got a disproportionate share of the $311 million generated by a 2005 road bond issue.

If the spending were charted using Senate districts, about 75 percent went to those represented by Republicans, though they control only 55 percent of the 38 seats in the Senate.
   
Charted by House districts, 55 percent went to those held by GOP lawmakers, though they hold only 44 percent of the chamber's 100 seats.

The Courier-Journal examined records detailing the projects after former state Highway Engineer Sam Beverage made allegations that politics influenced how the 2005 bond money was spent.

In a statement given last year to investigators, Beverage charged that Gov. Ernie Fletcher, a Republican, had used the bond-funded road projects to reward senators who voted for his legislative agenda.

More Public Funding Of The Fletcher-Rudolph Campaign

Governor Fletcher (R) just can't get enough of that taxpayer-funded campaign travel, can he?

As mentioned in Tuesday's post, after doing just three check presentations during 2006, Fletcher has crammed in 26 of them since the first poll in the gubernatorial primary (March 2007) showed him leading Anne Northup (R) by just two points. (Note: And those are just the presentations that are on his official website's photo gallery. Who knows how many more never made it to the website).

And he's not letting-up, particularly with polls showing him 20 points down.

Here are the updates for August, so far.

August 25, Taylor Mill:

August 21, Olive Hill:

August 3, Graves County:

August 2(?), Pikeville:

And these were just check presentations. There are dozens more ribbon-cutting and other fluff events that Fletcher has been criss-crossing the state of late to get the public to pay for as much as his re-election campaign as possible.

We should start matching-up official events and campaign fundraisers. I encourage you to visit his official website and leave a comment if you can show that fundraisers coincided with these events.

Also, I've updated our publicly-funded-campaign-travel-scrapbook with the new photos. I'll keep updating this post as new photos come in.

Thank you governor for living-up to your promise of ending waste, fraud and abuse. We're doing a heck of a job, Ernie. We all appreciate it...