Do you hear the "Team Kentucky" catchphrase and see the "Team Kentucky" logo that's used every day to promote the state's mandates in response to the Wuhan Chinese virus and think, "Wow, that seems familiar?"
There's a good reason it should. Before "Team Kentucky" became the slogan for the Beshear administration's anti-virus effort and the hashtag for its social media promotion, it was the campaign slogan for the Democrats' run for statewide offices last year.
A trip down the Twitter rabbit hole over the weekend journeyed through 2019 attorney general candidate Greg Stumbo's feed. The former House speaker, who ignobly lost his legislative seat in 2016 as Republicans swept control of the lower chamber, sought a political comeback three years later by running for the statewide office he held to the detriment of the state during Ernie Fletcher's gubernatorial term. As that campaign wound down, the Democrat slate and their surrogates mounted a tour of the state to promote what ended up being, except for Andy Beshear, a lost cause. They undertook this effort under the "Team Kentucky" moniker.
But don't just take my word for it. Let Stumbo and Rocky Adkins, the former legislator and unsuccessful gubernatorial candidate who now works as a key aide to Gov. Beshear, show you in their own tweets.
That was last year. Now, the "Team Kentucky" campaign slogan and logo have been repurposed as some sort of official state initiative.
In simpler terms, every "Team Kentucky" slide that's shown during the daily virus briefings; every inclusion of the logo in the signature of a state email message; every encouragement for Kentuckians to be a part of "Team Kentucky;" is a political statement. Would anyone be surprised if, when Beshear runs again in 2023 and the virus crisis is behind us, the slogan isn't used in that campaign?
It's not unusual for politicians and officials to adopt slogans for campaigns and causes. Fletcher themed his inauguration "Unite Kentucky" but that phrase wasn't used again, for any state program or for his re-election campaign. Plays on words are often used. Witness "Kynect" for the now-resurrected health insurance purchasing exchange, as shorthand for "Kentucky Connect," as in, "we will connect you to health insurance plans."
There's certainly nothing wrong with using a catchy phrase to promote a public effort. "Give a hoot, don't pollute!" "Only you can prevent fires!" And it's understandable that government officials would want to get buy-in to their virus response, especially since that response has taken such a toll on the state's economy and has eroded the freedoms of so many individuals in addition to causing them financial hardships. But the whole "Team Such-And-Such" tag is getting old. Someone needs to find the person who first came up with that phrase and slap them hard across the face. Mitch McConnell uses it for every campaign.
If someone doesn't like the coach or the decisions he's making, it's hard for them to want to be on "Team Kentucky." It becomes even more difficult when the same phrase used to promote government mandates someone opposes was lifted from a political campaign by candidates who promote policies with which they disagree. While we all want the virus to go away, not everyone is onboard with mask wearing, school closures, business restrictions, and everything else members of that team are asked to adopt or endorse.
"Team Kentucky" may have been a perfectly fine slogan for the state's Wuhan Chinese virus publicity efforts had it not been previously used for a political campaign. But one has to wonder where that branding will go from here. When the virus is in the rear-view mirror, will the state use it to promote some other cause? One perhaps more popular and less controversial than the virus mandates and recommendations? And then in three years, will that slogan be transitioned again for an election? Will people be so conditioned to seeing "Team Kentucky" that it's as recognizable a logo as, say, McDonald's Golden Arches?
Republicans have been accused of politicizing the virus. But when the government recycles a political campaign slogan and logo for its official messaging, who's playing politics?
Kentucky media outlets, who have been so eager to cheerlead for the mandates and restrictions the government has handed down, are either unaware of the slogan's history, or they've chosen not to make the public aware of it. You be the judge of which scenario applies. Scant few pundits have dared to voice an opinion in opposition to the lockdowns, the forced business closures, the restriction of elective medical services -- except, of course, for abortions -- and all the other hardships we've been made to endure.
So, the next time you see the "Team Kentucky" logo or hear the phrase, with the urging to be a player on that team, now you'll know the history of that branding.
