subscribesubscriber servicescontact usabout ussite mapBuy a Classified
Sat, May 17 2008 

Published: May 02, 2008 09:06 am    print this story   email this story  

Tell 'em about the past to divert 'em from the present

By Ronnie Ellis
CNHI News Service

FRANKFORT, Ky. Okay, you’ve got out-of-state Derby guests who are nursing hangovers and asking you to explain Kentucky government and politics.



Good luck.



Distract them. Direct their attention to the wonders of spring in Kentucky. Talk of redbuds and dogwoods and give them some hair of the dog, both to ease their pain and to dull their curiosity about Steve Beshear, Jody Richards and David Williams.



If they persist, talk about Kentucky’s political history. Start with James Mulligan’s poem, IN KENTUCKY, which concludes: “The landscape is the grandest – and politics – are the damndest in Kentucky.” Entertain them with the story of William “Boss Bill” Goebel, who lost the 1899 race for governor, was shot on the old capitol grounds and then sworn in as governor on his death bed. Proceed to Thomas Rhea and Happy Chandler and Kentucky’s first and only run-off primary. Explain the development of the Rhea/Earle Clements and Chandler wings of the Kentucky Democratic Party, making Kentucky a two-party state even before Mitch McConnell raised Republicans to respectability and relevance.



Don’t confuse them with the races for Senate John Sherman Cooper won and lost between 1948 and 1956. (If you must get into that, be sure to remind them Cooper helped pass the 1964 Civil Rights Act and had a young intern named Mitch McConnell. Both facts might come in handy later.)



Tell them about the interminable speech Bert T. Combs gave at the 1955 Shelby County Fair, the one that began and ended his campaign against Happy Chandler, who told voters to “be like your Pappy and vote for Happy.” Yes, him again. (Tell them Chandler was baseball commissioner when Jackie Robinson joined the Dodgers, that in his second term Chandler sent the National Guard to enforce desegregation of schools in Union and Webster counties. But be careful. That could lead to questions Chandler’s use of a racial slur in his old age and the reaction to his grandson Ben Chandler’s endorsement of Barack Obama.) You can remind them Chandler stood as a favorite son candidate at the 1956 Democratic national convention and that Mike Barry responded with this: “Any time Chandler is referred to as Kentucky’s favorite son, it should be made unmistakably clear the sentence is incomplete.”



Chandler was involved again in races for governor in 1963 – he lost to Ned Breathitt in the primary – and 1967 when he helped elect Republican Louie B. Nunn. Tell your guests how Nunn almost became president. (Richard Nixon is said to have discussed naming Nunn as his vice presidential running mate at the 1968 Derby. If true, and if Nunn had accepted, he instead of Gerald Ford would have assumed office when Nixon resigned.) Tell them Nunn instead raised the sales tax and never won another election. Tell them about Nunn’s brother, Lee, the only member of Nixon’s 1972 Committee to Re-Elect the President (deliciously called CREEP) who was never charged with a crime.



Tell them about McConnell’s 1984 hound dogs that brought down Dee Huddleston and remind them McConnell is now Republican leader in the U.S. Don’t bother with the $14 million Bruce Lunsford spent to be governor or why he thinks he can defeat McConnell. Avoid Tina Conner, Ernie Fletcher or Beshear. In fact, I’d advise that after about 1967, you just ply guests with more mint juleps, talk about horses and basketball and let it go at that.



Ronnie Ellis writes for CNHI News Service and is based in Frankfort, Ky. He may be contacted by email at rellis@cnhi.com.

print this story   email this story  



Photos


Ronnie Ellis /Journal-Times (Click for larger image)

monster
wheels
Premier Guide
Find a business

Walking Fingers
Maps, Menus, Store hours, Coupons, and more...
Premier Guide
Premier Guide
Premium Jobs

Accounts Receivable Clerk
Community Alternatives Kentucky, a leading provider of support for persons with mental retardation & developmental disab...>MORE

Accounts Receivable Clerk.
Community Alternatives Kentucky, a leading provider of support for persons with mental retardation & developmental disab...>MORE

SUMMER JOBS!!
Now hiring summer staff for local Girl Scout Camps. Lifeguards, Business Manager, Unit Staff and Food Managers needed. I...>MORE

Now recruiting
now recruiting
For Full and Part-Time
We are looking for friendly, motivated, responsible, team players who en
...>MORE

NOW HIRING
Companies desperately need employees to assemble products at home. No selling, any hours. $500 weekly potential. Info. 1...>MORE

General Laborer
needed for scrap metal recycling and processing center. Duties include unloading material from customers, sorting, proce...>MORE

See all ads

Deals on Wheels

Motorcycle
For sale. 2006 Honda Rebel, CMX 250. Black, 2100 miles, great condition. Asking 2,100. Call 606-356-0904....>MORE

Pontoon boat
1997, 90 Hp, trailer, good condition, marina slip included $8,000. Call 784-2434....>MORE

GRAND AM 1999
4 cyl. 99K. Good condition $4,000, 784-2434....>MORE

See all ads

Premium Real Estate

Brand new
3 bedroom, 2 bath home with paved d-way, attached garage, whirlpool tub, and much more. $110,000. Call 780-8844....>MORE

Level 1/2 acre lot
For sale (singlewides OK) 5 miles form Morehead. $9,900. Call 780-8844....>MORE

Stop renting!
You can own a brand new 3 bedroom, 2 bath doublewide with land for less that $199 per month for a limited time!! Call no...>MORE

HOUSE FOR SALE
4 bedroom, 3 bath. $89,500. 1/2 acre+/- 310 Bluebank Rd. 784-7035 or 356-3662....>MORE

2003 16X70
2 bedroom, 2 bath in park on Rt. 60. (Has Ky utilities). Can stay, big porch. Appliances, $28,000. Financing available....>MORE

Reduced
Reduced
Attractive 3 bedroom 2 bath brick ranch, Located on Knapp Avenue. Sun room, large garage, fireplace in den
...>MORE

FLANNErY ESTATES
Has beautiful 1/2 acre + home lots with under ground electric, phone, cable, water, sewer services available on Starligh...>MORE

Brand New
3 bedroom, 2 bath home with paved d-way, attached garage, whirlpool tub, and much more. $110,000. Call 780-8844....>MORE

A Dollar and A Deed
is all you need! Call Luv Homes of Ashland Today! 606-928-7575....>MORE

Reduced Attractive 3 bedroom
2 bath brick ranch, Located on Knapp Avenue. Den with fireplace, sun room, large garage, nice landscaping. Call 784-860...>MORE

See all ads


 

Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc.CNHI Classified Advertising NetworkCNHI News Service
Associated Press content © 2008. All rights reserved. AP content may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Our site is powered by Zope and our Internet Yellow Pages site is powered by PremierGuide.
Some parts of our site may require you to download the Flash Player Plugin.
View our Privacy Policy
Advertiser index

rc