Establishment Republicans are enemies of conservatism

I've long said that I have more respect for radical liberals like Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez than I do for most Republicans.

At least Bernie, AOC, and others on that side are honest about who and what they are. On the other hand, there's very little conservative about establishment Republicans such as Mitch McConnell.

McConnell will brag on his record of confirming conservative judges to the federal bench, and he has to be given credit for that, but what else is conservative in his record? How many times has he opposed continuing government spending resolutions? How often has he voted to increase the federal debt ceiling? Why does he oppose government shutdowns and support expansion of government programs? McConnell has pretended to be a conservative at election time, but his record over the last several years is anything but conservative. His consistent opposition to tea party and MAGA concepts and candidates has rightfully earned him a "RINO" label and the disdain of his party's grassroots voters. He seems to favor process and tradition over results and outcomes.

The entire nation knows of McConnell and those cut from a similar cloth such as Mitt Romney, Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, and others who'd rather capitulate to the left than stand on conservative principles, but Kentucky has a RINO infestation within the Republican Party that goes far beyond the senior senator.

Elected Republicans in the General Assembly have had lots to say about Gov. Andy Beshear the last couple of years, but when it comes right down to it, they have taken very little action to back up their comments.

As early as March 2020, when Kung Flu hysteria was racing across the state, Republicans had an opportunity to take some bold steps to rein in Beshear's authoritarian executive edicts. State Rep. Savannah Maddox was sounding the alarm on what could happen if the legislature didn't act. Unfortunately for the state, legislative leaders didn't listen. Instead, they hastily passed a one-year stopgap budget and got out of town. Everything Maddox predicted came true, and then some.

When the General Assembly returned in 2021 for its 30-day session, it was presented with a unique opportunity to right the ship. A citizen petition to impeach Beshear had been filed. At the time, the governor had lost every lawsuit filed against him in federal court alleging he had violated Kentuckians' rights with various Wuhan Chinese virus edicts, including an order shutting down churches and using the state police to record license plates of vehicles in parking lots of churches that held Easter Sunday services anyway. If his blatant constitutional violations didn't warrant impeachment and removal from office, what did? The GOP-dominated House impeachment committee failed to seize the moment and in the process, failed the people of Kentucky.

One of the individuals who filed the impeachment petition was Andrew Cooperrider, owner of the Brewed coffee shop in Lexington. Cooperrider became a crusader against the government-ordered closures that were destroying small businesses and their owners and employees; so much so that he decided to launch a campaign for state senator.

Cooperrider originally filed to run in the Senate district represented by Alice Forgy Kerr, a Republican who is decidedly more liberal than was her noted brother, Larry Forgy. She's staked out a number of positions that can hardly be called conservative over the years. But two things happened. First, Kerr decided to retire from the Senate and not run for re-election. Then, redistricting put Cooperrider into a district represented by Donald Douglas. Douglas, who happens to be black, won his seat in a special election to replace the late Tom Buford, who died while in office.

Undeterred, Cooperrider has continued his campaign in his new district. And his candidacy has the Republican establishment terrified.

The Republican Senate Caucus Campaign Committee is the political arm of Kentucky's Senate leadership. Those senators are Robert Stivers, David Givens, Damon Thayer, Julie Raque Adams, and Mike Wilson. They are the faces of the establishment. And they have fallen in line for Douglas and against Cooperrider, going so far as to let Douglas sponsor a resolution to end the Kung Flu state of emergency in Kentucky a month before it was scheduled to expire, when Cooperrider had been working against it almost since it began. The move couldn't have been more transparent.

The RSCCC has been doing most of the heavy lifting in Douglas' campaign. They're attacking Cooperrider as some sort of radical and his views and those of his supporters as unhinged.

Seriously? Standing up for individual rights and personal responsibility is radical and unhinged? A Republican working for smaller government is something for a fellow Republican to criticize?

Legislative leaders had an opportunity to do something with bold action, but they paid lip service and took half measures while they were in session.

The two other petitioners who stuck with the impeachment effort all the way until the end, Jacob Clark and Tony Wheatley, have launched bids for House seats. In both cases, they're seeking to oust Republican incumbents who have behaved more like liberals than conservatives.

Clark is running against Samara Heavin, who has supported gasoline tax increases in the past and opposed legislation requiring school boards to allow citizen comment during regular meetings. Establishment figures in that part of west-central Kentucky seem to be supporting Heavrin.

Wheatley's race is especially intriguing. He's running against Kim King, who claims to be a staunch conservative but has a track record proving the opposite.

King was on the House committee that voted not to impeach Beshear. She was also a very vocal opponent of House Bill 28, the legislation proposed by Maddox and co-sponsored by nearly one-fourth of the House that would have prohibited employers from requiring the vaccine. She voted against school choice legislation, calling it "a slush fund for rich parents to send their children to private school." That's a line that sounds like it could come from the group non-lovingly called 120 Wrong, except that they don't like her very much, so it does her little good to curry favor with them. And she's been very condescending to members of the public who have attempted to call her out for her decidedly unconservative positions. She's been perhaps the biggest disappointment of all the Republican legislators.

The epicenter of the conservative movement in Kentucky may be in the north, where these anti-RINO leaders have assumed control of the local parties in some counties and are taking on establishment incumbents. This, of course, has the entrenched interests furious and they've been quite vocal about it. There's been a decent amount of news coverage in the northern Kentucky and Cincinnati media markets, with the takeaway that the old guard is losing its grip on the party in favor of doers, not talkers.

I've long said that conservatives' biggest battle is not with the Democrats, but with the liberals within our own ranks. You can claim to be a constitutional conservative all day long, but if your record while in office says something different, your words ring hollow.

Conservatives must continue to stand strong and battle the elements within their own party that seek to water down and dilute their values, and capitulate to Democrats and other liberals. Some of next week's primary election races provide a great opportunity to let liberal Republicans know that they'd fit in better with the Democrats like which they behave. The establishment needs to be sent a message that it's time to listen to the rank and file within the party, and to answer to the voters and not to the donor class.

A third senator for Kentucky? Vance's Breathitt County ties may be a benefit to the Bluegrass State

In 1984, I was fresh out of college and had just started a job that took me to Breathitt County and its county seat of Jackson three days a week.

That same year, a son was born to an Ohio family with deep Breathitt County roots. You may have heard of him. His name is J.D. Vance, and he's a best selling author, and as of last week, the Republican nominee for the United States Senate from the Buckeye State.

Vance upset liberals with Hillbilly Elegy, his tale of growing up in the Rust Belt community of Middletown, Ohio, a city located between Dayton and Cincinnati and full of Appalachian expatriates, many from eastern Kentucky, who left the hills in search of a better economic future but took their culture -- the good parts and the bad -- with them. They call the book, and its author, "garbage" but have never really been able to articulate a cogent reason why. Vance's biggest sin seems to be his belief that the government can't solve the problems of the poor and the middle class in the industrial midwest or the Appalachian Mountains.

I'm extremely familiar with the Breathitt County of which Vance wrote when he mentions his relatives there and his trips to his grandparents' ancestral home. Nothing he wrote is inaccurate. Many of those cultures and customs persist today in the region.

His grandparents may have left Breathitt County, but they didn't leave rural mountain culture on the south side of the Ohio River. The environment in which he grew up in the late 1980s and 1990s is not dissimilar to the way things were in eastern Kentucky. His mother, who is probably around my age, brought a parade of men into her life through a series of failed relationships, then fell into the black hole of drug abuse. His grandparents basically raised him and his sister, and they hadn't truly left the mountains behind when they migrated north.

It would be inaccurate to say that Vance "escaped" the Rust Belt, as there are many people who love their working class towns and cities, the same way many of us love the rural areas and mountains and would rather stay and try to make life better here instead of leaving, but he did eventually move away. First to the Marines, then to Ohio State University, then to Yale's law school, and then to California, before returning to Ohio a few years ago.

Vance openly considered a political campaign before deciding to run for the Senate to replace the retiring Rob Portman. It was a crowded Republican field with a number of prominent Buckeye Republicans in the race. Vance seemed to be languishing in second or third place before he garnered the endorsement of President Trump. Trump was reported to be undecided between endorsing Vance, who had been critical of him in the past, and Josh Mandel, who had been a Trump fan of long standing. He eventually threw his support to Vance, and it seems the endorsement pushed Vance over the top.

Of course, various Trump-haters have tried to spin the results as something negative for the 45th president, notwithstanding the fact than no candidate he's endorsed has lost yet in this primary election cycle. Some made the case that with Vance only winning the primary with a plurality of around 33 percent, that means Trump doesn't have the endorsement power he once did. The counter argument is that Vance was behind in the polls until Trump endorsed him, and Mandel had the endorsements of conservative heavyweights such as Sen. Ted Cruz and constitutional scholar/attorney/author/talk show host Mark Levin. The truth is, without Trump, Vance probably would have lost.

Democrats are scared of Vance. His working class upbringing makes him a "nightmare" for Tim Ryan's chances, according to no less than a New York Times reporter.  His roots and his successes appeal to two widely different segments of the electorate that Rep. Ryan, who seeks to move up to the Senate, needs to win.

And it's that background that might make Vance not only an effective senator for Ohio, but for Kentucky as well.

It's a safe bet that Vance has more relatives in Breathitt County alone than both Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul combined have in the entire state of Kentucky. I can't say that I personally know someone who knows or is related to Vance, but I probably do. Vance owns his family's homestead in Breathitt County -- which, if I interpreted the book correctly, is somewhere up around Frozen -- and his beloved Mamaw and Papaw are buried in Breathitt. He certainly knows the area and its issues.

Political fortunes can change in six months, but right now it looks as if a red wave is coming to Congress. As long as the economy remains in the toilet and inflation runs wild, anyone associated with President Biden or his party is in trouble in a competitive race. Vance stands an excellent chance of being elected to the Senate from Ohio in November. That might be a good thing for Kentucky, especially the eastern mountains and the folks there who think no one in power understands their issues and strugges.

J.D. Vance understands. He lived with those issues growing up, and was able to overcome them. He can bring a unique perspective to governing that needs to be heard.

Michael Adams in the middle as two of his associates are at odds

 It's no secret that Secretary of State Michael Adams and Attorney General Daniel Cameron are Mitch McConnell's men in Frankfort. McConnell's intervention pushed them to victories in the 2019 Republican primaries, shoving aside candidates who had proven their worth four years prior.

In 2015, two relatively unknown Republican candidates with limited funding came within whiskers of defeating members of two iconic Democrat families in races for those two offices. Stephen Knipper narrowly lost to Jerry Lundergan's daughter, Alison Lundergan Grimes, for secretary of state. And state Sen. Whitney Westerfield fell in a close contest to Gov. Steve Beshear's son, Andy Beshear.

The fact that these two underdog candidates came so close to toppling Democrats from dynastic families in 2015 automatically made them the front-runners for the 2019 races. And indeed, both Knipper and Westerfield launched campaigns for a second shot at the positions that had barely eluded them.

That's when McConnell got involved. He backed Cameron and Adams for their positions. It was generally an unspoken truth among Kentucky Republicans that the GOP leader in the United States Senate was throwing his support and his clout behind those two. Westerfield eventually dropped out of the AG's race, but Knipper stayed in the race, finishing third out of four candidates.

Adams has come under fire from a number of Kentucky Republicans for his work with Gov. Andy Beshear, who served one term as attorney general before winning the gubernatorial race, to change election procedures for the 2020 primary and general elections. They believe Adams was too eager to work with Beshear to implement changes with which they didn't agree. They've also been critical of the way Adams has used his official trappings to attack critics.

Republicans hold all statewide offices except the governorship; Adams and Cameron are the only officials eligible to seek re-election next year due to term limits. Cameron has long thought to be McConnell's favored replacement when he leaves office, but there's been talk recently that Cameron may run for governor instead; preferring to keep his young family in Kentucky instead of making the move to DC. Adams, though, is thought to be planning to run for re-election as secretary of state, and he's sure to draw a primary opponent from the conservative/tea party/MAGA wing of Kentucky Republicans.

But Adams may get caught up in the middle of a feud between two of his closest associates.

Eric Greitens is the former governor of Missouri, who resigned in 2018 in the midst of personal and legal issues. He's now running for the Senate seat being vacated by the retiring Roy Blunt. Greitens has been especially critical of McConnell while campaigning, saying he won't back McConnell's bid to be re-elected GOP Senate leader. McConnell, in his trademark way, has publicly denounced Greitens without explicitly doing so. He hasn't taken sides or made an endorsement in the crowded race, but his comments leave little doubt he's not a Greitens fan.

Adams was a board member and secretary/treasurer of the "dark money" nonprofit at the center of Greitens' campaign finance issues. He's also represented Greitens as his attorney in legal matters relating to Greitens' gubernatorial campaign. The Adams-Greitens association came up during Adams' 2019 secretary of state campaign, but never made huge headlines. The issue never got traction during the primary, nor was it a factor in the general election.

Some Republicans have referred to Adams as "slimy" or "slippery," so it's interesting to see how he might wiggle out of this one. No one in Kentucky media has asked him to address Greitens' current campaign, or to discuss the friction between Greitens and McConnell.

It's not just Adams who is caught in the middle of the Greitens campaign. When new domestic violence allegations were made against Greitens recently, one of the Republicans who called on him to drop out of the race was Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley. Hawley is one of the best-known Donald Trump supporters in Congress. Greitens has been courting Trump's endorsement and already has the support of a number of Trumpworld figures. Greitens' opposition to McConnell is said to be very appealing to Trump, who also has little use for him. Should Trump endorse Greitens, and Hawley in turn criticize Trump, the former president might turn on Hawley.

It's not often that political drama from another state spills over into Kentucky, but in this case it may. Adams is already the least-favorite GOP statewide officeholder. The party base runs hot and cold on Cameron, but if polled, the voters would probably give him higher marks than Adams. It will be interesting to see if Adams gets pushed into taking a side in the Greitens-McConnell feud. McConnell remains deeply unpopular in Kentucky, even with Republicans, while Trump is still widely liked. It may be that Adams has to decide where to hitch his wagon to remain politically viable. Does he stay with McConnell, the man who used his influence to get him onto office in the first place but who is extremely disliked in the state and is in the sunset of his political career? Or does he align with Trump's team and the anti-establishment warriors? Adams is establishment through and through, so it would likely be hard to break with them, but if he wants a political future in Kentucky, he may have to.

Either way, it's good to know that he has to be a little uncomfortable with two of his associates at odds. Adams has made Kentucky conservatives uncomfortable since he has been in office. It's time someone returned the favor.

Liberals aren't the only ones upset after Kentucky legislature adjourns. Conservatives are equally unhappy

If you've paid attention to the news and commentary after the conclusion of the 2022 Kentucky General Assembly biennial session, you know that liberals are extremely unhappy.

The actions taken by the Republican majority legislature have upset the left in this state almost beyond consolation. From abortion restrictions to education and tax reform to protecting women's scholastic sports, the legislation passed by the House and Senate and then confirmed through overrides of Gov. Andy Beshear's vetoes have left liberals wounded and downtrodden. They fail to realize that Kentucky was under control of the Democrats for decades, and their preferred party has caused all of this state's woes, and now the Republicans are trying to fix those mistakes.

Go visit the Lexington Herald-Leader's Web site and read some of columnist Linda Blackford's lamentations during the last days of the session and immediately afterwards. Her distress is evident. She's representative of many who are decrying the legislature's accomplishments as steps backwards for the state, when the reality is we're trying to move forward after years of Democrat rule.

But as unhappy as the liberals are over what the legislature did, conservatives are equally displeased, if not more, over what the General Assembly did not do.

For the majority of Kentucky conservatives, the biggest issue that faced the legislature this year was medical freedom and the end of restrictions on individual freedoms as a response to the Wuhan Chinese virus. The way the majority handled the issue has left a bad taste in the mouths of the grassroots, and the fallout could cause some incumbent GOP legislators to lose their re-election bids in this month's primaries.

In the months leading up to the start of the session in January, the buzz was about something called Bill Request 106. This was a bill prefiled by Rep. Savannah Maddox, who is establishing herself as the best member of the General Assembly. It would have banned Kung Flu vaccination requirements as a condition of employment or service at a business. It had the support of thousands of Kentuckians and ended up with nearly one-fourth of the House membership as co-sponsors.

When the session started, BR 106 became House Bill 28. And then it languished. It was no secret that a number of establishment groups, such as the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, opposed the bill. Some Republican representatives, including Kim King, spoke out against the bill, saying it was not a conservative proposal. (Since when is supporting individual freedoms not a conservative position?)

When the bill finally moved through the committee system, it was gutted. The restrictions on private employers were removed, leaving only a prohibition on public employers requiring the shot. Making that change was the only way House leadership would allow the bill to advance. Sponsors, including Maddox, reluctantly voted for it even though it didn't go far enough.

And then it went to the Senate, where there was even more opposition from the establishment leadership. Damon Thayer and Ralph Alvarado got most of the blame, but those who kept up with the legislative session knew that the Senate's leaders were not in favor of the bill. After the bill finally got a committee vote, the shenanigans pulled to ensure it wouldn't pass out of committee to the Senate floor were shameful. Testimony was skewed in the direction of those who opposed the legislation.

Conservatives were already unhappy with the legislature for not reining in the executive orders when it first had the opportunity, as the 2020 session came to an abrupt halt. The failure of the House to impeach Beshear was another black mark -- indeed, all three of the in-it-to-win-it petitioners are running for office this year, including a challenger to King, who was on the impeachment committee.

The legislators, especially party leaders in both chambers, have been busy congratulating themselves on a momentous legislative session. And they did do some good things to move Kentucky forward. The sore tails of Bluegrass liberals are evidence of that. But conservatives feel let down. They're frustrated at seeing the GOP's veto-proof majorities in both houses not do enough to reduce the power of government and protect individual freedoms. And they're ready to take their frustrations out on the RINOs who have challengers for their seats in the upcoming primary.

It's not often that conservatives and the radical left agree on anything, but they've found common ground in their disdain for the Republican-majority General Assembly as it's currently constituted. If things go well, conservatives will have reason to celebrate, but the Democrats will have even more triggers to wallow in grief and sadness as they continue to lose their grip on control of Kentucky and the state finally advances from the dark years when their party ran things.