On the state scene: Our endorsement for Governor, and with a BIG CHEER we salute Steve Beshear!

"The first priority is to clean up the mess in Frankfort. That message is resonating all across the state. Kentuckians have been embarrassed by the waste, fraud, abuse, inefficiencies, and scandals in Kentucky's state government."

Candidate Ernie Fletcher, October 2003

"I am surrounding myself with women and men of integrity, character and self-discipline to work on behalf of the people of Kentucky. That is how to create an ethical government."

"We can pass page after page of ethics laws, but in the end, they will only be honored by ethical people."

Governor Ernie Fletcher, Inaugural Address, December 2003

When Governor Fletcher was elected on a promise to clean up Frankfort and do away with the "good ol’ boy" network that paralyzed our state, Kentuckians of all political persuasions, who wanted a new beginning free of political corruption, were filled with hope – hope that at long last the "good old boy" system that rewards its friends and punishes it enemies in Frankfort would be replaced with an ethical administration free of scandals and ethical lapses. Instead we have seen an administration that is simply a part of that system where politics trumps all. After failing to elect a Republican Governor since Louie Nunn in 1977, we all had great expectations for the Fletcher administration.

Rather than change the culture in Frankfort as he promised us, Ernie Fletcher has allowed the office to change him. Republicans (and Democrats) expected more and deserved better than what has resulted from the actions or inactions of the Fletcher administration. While the Governor has made some modest progress, there was and there STILL is, so much more that needs to be done to address educational, health care, quality of life and economic concerns in Kentucky.

Whatever progress has occurred under the Fletcher administration has been in spite of Fletcher's lackluster leadership rather than because of it.

Quite frankly, we no longer have faith in the Governor and fear that more ethical lapses and/or scandals will occur in a second term that will continue to distract Ernie Fletcher from changing the political culture in Frankfort, and moving the Commonwealth forward.

Unfortunately for him (and for Kentuckians), Ernie Fletcher takes credit for everything, but accepts responsibility for nothing.

Fletcher became the first Governor to be indicted; the first to issue blanket pardons and the first to abandon his appointees after telling us they had done nothing wrong; and the first to take the Fifth Amendment before a Grand Jury.

And it is obvious to everyone who wants to be truthful about it, that our Commonwealth has been on auto-pilot for the 3 years because of distractions related to the merit hiring investigation and other tasteless and unpleasant issues. We need positive and aggressive leadership -- by example -- that cannot, and has not been, provided by the current occupant of the Governor's office.

And we desperately need it NOW.

On November 6th, Kentuckians have a choice between giving a flawed Governor a second chance to repeat or replacing him with Steve Beshear, an experienced leader with proven success in the public and private sectors. Unlike Ernie Fletcher, who almost always chooses to ignore the clear meaning of statutory and case law in favor of his political agenda, Steve Beshear has always followed the law, as written and interpreted by the Courts, regardless of his personal feelings and beliefs.

Steve Beshear is an experienced leader in both the legislative and executive branches of government and has served with distinction and without a single ethical scandal in elective office. Beshear understands the political process and knows how to work in a bi-partisan manner with the legislature in a spirit of compromise to effectuate positive change.

Beshear knows that you must do more than merely propose legislation or programs, but you also must provide positive leadership and work diligently throughout the entire legislative session to move your agenda forward. Here again, unlike Fletcher, Steve Beshear will not want until election time to try to lead. Even Fletcher himself admits that he is not a political street fighter as we have all seen first hand over the past four years.

As a Republican, I urge upon the Kentucky Republican Party and the party faithful to move beyond the failures of the past to a more dynamic and bold leadership. We need to build a new and more vibrant party built on sound conservative principles so that we don't have to wait 30 years for another Republican Governor. We must demonstrate to all Kentuckians that Republicans can not only win elections but can also lead in a positive and ethical manner.

Building that future should not include people like Ernie Fletcher, who has undoubtedly gone out of his way to give our party a “black eye”.

So while it pains us to not support one of our own running for re-election as an incumbent Republican Governor, in good conscience we find that we cannot do so.

We whole heartedly endorse ANYBODY BUT ERNIE.

With a BIG CHEER, we whole heartedly endorse Steve Beshear for Governor on November 6, because we have had enough of Fletcher’s leadership -- or rather LACK of leadership -- and we believe Steve Beshear will do BETTER!

We urge EVERYONE to vote on Tuesday for Steve Beshear as Governor (and to hand him the keys to the Governor's mansion pictured above), and Senator Dan Mongiardo as Lt. Governor.

Editor's note #1: This write up has been heavily edited by the Editor. The contents are both the Editor's and the Writer's.

Editor's note #2: The opinion expressed here represents the opinions of the majority of the Contributors to this blog site.