By Artur Davis, on Tue Aug 6, 2013 at 10:00 AM ET
Having written favorably about Chris Christie in the past, and having taken to task Rand Paul on other occasions, it won’t be surprising that I lean toward the governor and not the senator in the much discussed back and forth between the two over national security and electronic surveillance. I am also in the camp that views an internal dust-up between presidential level Republicans as a good thing that promises that the party is headed toward a 2016 field that is decidedly less one-note than the one in 2012.
In fact, it’s worth hoping that the conversation between the two current Republican front-runners (as subject to change as Cory Booker’s claim that he won’t run for president in 2016) rapidly expands to encompass the domestic side of the equation. To date, it hasn’t, and the vague, far from congruent, alignments of center-right conservatives and libertarians around various economic and social issues has made this week’s tensions seem artificially stark. In fairness, the non-congruent, hazy nature of these domestic divisions has prevented any coalescing into the kind of binary lines that might lead to more clarity.
So, rather than a coherent libertarian v. center-right debate, the 60 percent of Republicans who endorse some revamp of the party have splintered into social moderates who prioritize expanding the party’s appeal to suburban professional women and 18 to 29 year olds; right leaning populists who want to recast the party as a skeptic of crony capitalism and oversized banks, and who reject amnesty for illegal immigrants as a threat to downscale workers; establishment types who want to revive the Bush vision of “compassionate conservatism” and pro-immigration reform; social conservatives who also see merits in amnesty and more emphasis on poverty and education; to libertarians who want to reconcile a move to the center on gay marriage (although generally not abortion) with a hard right turn on entitlements and domestic spending. And the soft borders between these camps mean that in some respects, a Paul has as much of a claim to a reformer mantle as a Jeb Bush.
 It is not altogether clear where Christie falls on that grid. And to be sure, for the same pragmatic reasons that Republicans are transitioning swiftly from “Hillary never would have made Obama’s mistakes” to criticisms of Benghazi and the old Clintonian penchant for influence peddling, liberals can be counted on to temper their praise of Christie as a “responsible adult” with jabs at his resistance to gay marriage and his “demonization” of teachers. For equally clear tactical reasons related to nomination politics, Christie would be foolish to wear the label as the moderate trying to upend the conservative grip on the party. (In fact, one assumes that Christie appreciates that his long standing toughness on anti-terror tactics also shores up his conservative credentials in a party where to most, Edward Snowden resembles a subversive more than a patriot).
But there are reasons to think, and to wish, that Christie offers a potential of shaping at least some of the disparate elements of reform into the kind of conservative vision I have praised: one that takes middle class economic anxiety seriously, that is not allergic to market based strategies to address the chronically poor and the uninsured, and that treats a more cohesive, less fractured society as a valid goal of the political right. Some of that promise is rooted in a gubernatorial record that has been impressively attentive to education reform, and that whether he ends up being wrong or right on Medicaid expansion, at least acknowledges the moral dilemma of a low wage poor population that lack health care through no fault of their own. And some of the case for Christie as the best prospective champion of reform is admittedly derived from atmospherics, like his penchant for rebuking some of the less becoming traits on the right, i.e., a NRA web attack ad that featured Barack Obama’s daughters.
Read the rest of…
Artur Davis: What The Next Christie/Paul Fight Should Look Like
By RP Staff, on Tue Aug 6, 2013 at 8:30 AM ET From Glamour magazine:
 When I heard there was a pop-up cafe in NYC intended to serve up great coffee and matchmaking services, it was obviously my responsibility as your dutiful dating blogger to check it out and report back. (Lindy requested I bring back a round of blonds, as in a coffee and a man.)
Here’s a little background: Nancy Slotnick, the mastermind behind the pop-up, is a life coach who specializes in dating and marriage issues. Back in the late ’90s, before online dating was the Thing with a capital T it is today, she founded a dating cafe called Drip on the Upper West Side of NYC. Now, she’s launched a matchmaking site on Facebook called Matchmaker Café; hence, the pop-up shop of the same name (serving Brooklyn Roasting Company coffee, yum).
Last night I was meeting some friends in the neighborhood, so it seemed like the perfect time to drop by. Unfortunately Nancy was out of town, but the two ladies working the coffee stand were delightful to chat with and might be my new best friends. (CALL ME, YOU GUYS!) They set up a profile for me right then and there, snapping some pics on their iPad and entering my basic information. While it’s a little weird to be posing for a profile pic in the middle of a crowded beer garden (the pop-up cafe is sort of in the middle of one), it totally helps that the girls were all like, “You’re beautiful!” and encouraging and helpfully shouted out “This is for professional research, people!” when I mentioned I was kind of embarrassed to be doing this in public.
Now I’m tasked with searching through the database of profiles they’ve collected, and the team said they’d definitely want to follow up to help me set up an awesome date. The idea of the Matchmaker Café is to get people offline and onto real dates, so hopefully you’ll be hearing about that in the future. In the meantime, if you’re in NYC you should totally stop by for fun! It combined all my great loves: delicious iced coffee, potentially getting dates, and oversharing my entire life story with strangers.
Has anyone else checked this place out? Would you? It’s outside of the Andazs hotel on Wall Street, if you’re interested!
By Rod Jetton, on Mon Aug 5, 2013 at 3:00 PM ET Rod Jetton appeared on KSMU Radio to discuss The Recovering Politican’s Twelve Step Program to Survive Crisis.
Click here to listen to the interview.
Here’s the summary:
 Click here to purchase Two former Missouri politicians who were once mired in scandal have now written a book together. As KSMU’s Jennifer Davidson reports, the book is garnering some national attention.
Rod Jetton, former speaker of the Missouri House, and Jeff Smith, a former state senator, co-authored “The Recovering Politician’s Twelve Step Program to Survive Crisis.” Several other former politicians contributed chapters as well.
Jetton pleaded guilty two years ago to a misdemeanor assault, admitting he struck a woman in the face and choked her during rough sex. Smith spent a year in prison after pleading guilty to lying about a campaign violation.
Jetton says he was approached by the book’s editor, Jonathan Miller, about taking part.
“And he said, ‘You know, I think you really ought to tell your story. And we could put a nice little book together that could really help some folks who may be going, or going to go through some kind of crisis or scandal. [They could] have some concrete plans and techniques on how to handle it, and also learn that, no matter how their situation turns out, they can overcome it and still lead a happy, successful life,’” Jetton said.
Jetton’s chapter is about how to apologize for the mistakes you made. He says his troubles started when he spent all of his time working, and put his family on the back burner, which led him to make poor choices. Today, Jetton lives in Poplar Bluff and works for a surveying and engineering company that specializes in rural communities. He says his faith and family are his top priorities now.
By Erica and Matt Chua, on Mon Aug 5, 2013 at 1:30 PM ET As I enjoyed the mountain views and cool breeze off the lake I had to remind myself I was in Argentina, not Switzerland. St. Bernard’s walked along the sidewalk and the A-frame chalet style buildings kept tricking me into thinking that I was in a Swiss ski village with plans to hit the slopes. The surroundings aren’t the only thing in Bariloche that reminded me of Switzerland, the abundance of chocolate shops had me convinced that somehow I had wandered into a portal that had transported me to Europe.
 You could easily be in a small Swiss ski village rather than the Lakes District of Argentina
It seems the European immigrants that brought chocolate to Argentina were not traditionalists. The chocolate on offer at the many shops on Mitre Avenue were not of the Lindt variety, the combinations were creative and distinct. Chocolate bars included fruit, nuts, liqueurs and came in a wide array of shapes and sizes. Just window shopping and drooling over the truffles and bars was enjoyable, the beautiful packaging and delicious looking ice cream were enough to keep me occupied.
However, the real fun began when I used my broken Spanish to request a sample at the first shop I went into. When I was rewarded with a generous taste I decided that chocolate tasting was the best way I could think of to spend an afternoon. I spent hours wandering in and out of chocolate shops trying everything from chocolate fondue to chocolate ice cream. After consuming an entire meals worth of chocolate I finally chose my favorite and purchased a box to eat later when chocolate withdrawal inevitably kicked in.
Read the rest of…
Erica & Matt Chua: Bariloche Chocolate
By John Y. Brown III, on Mon Aug 5, 2013 at 12:00 PM ET My big little idea. And the importance of mentoring–a dying art.
Several years ago Leadership Louisville and the Courier-Journal spearheaded a project to identify the 128 “Connectors” in our community. These are the people who are descri…bed as often the unsung heroes but also the glue in a community to help bring people and groups together and help get things done. They are energetic, trusted and enthusiastic and play an integral leadership role but aren’t necessarily in the most visible leadership position. And they exist in a variety of fields— profit and non-profits, commercial and public sector.
I was honored to be selected as one of these 128 “Connectors” (the concept came from Malcolm Gladwell’s breakthrough book Tipping Point).
The most important byproduct of this program was that it highlighted the idea of so-called connectors in our community as a role that is important and worth doing. I think in some small but important ways it “upped our city’s game” in this department. It inspired those identified connectors —and those who could or should have been on that list— to embrace this role that they play and to try to do it even better. It gave a name to this vague art and identified it as important and worthy of development.
The downside of this exercise is the “Now what?” conundrum. What do we do with this group now that they’ve been identified to improve the community. So that it doesn’t end up appearing to be little more than a high school senior superlative exercise. There was a study done and suggested, among other things, that connectors don’t necessarily work at their best with a group of other connectors. And so it was difficult to galvanize the group in some formal way…but it was a worthy project that was more than just a self-congratulatory yet probably didn’t leave as deep or as broad a legacy benefiting our community as its sponsors had originally hoped.
Which brings me to my big little idea.
Does Louisville have another group of individuals who are integral to our community’s growth and future but too often fly under the public radar and aren’t encouraged or thanked enough for the important role they play? And–here’s the pivotal question– if a similar project to the “Connectors” was established for them could leave a significant and lasting legacy?
I think the answer is yes! And I propose we have a project identifying and celebrating “Mentors” in our community. Those who take the time to show their younger eager counterparts the ropes and serve as role models and sounding boards and touchstones and are relied on for the sound sober guidance so critical when the stakes are high and emotions running higher.
 By identifying and cultivating our city’s mentors everyone wins. We don’t value our wiser and more experienced elders enough in our world today–and it is to our detriment. And these mentor-types derive great personal satisfaction in giving back and helping facilitate new and better leaders for the future. But there is no formal mechanism to identify and encourage this practice. At least right now.
Louisville has a lot of great natural resources and is blessed with a central location and rich history. But perhaps our greatest resources is the fund of experiences so many accomplished people in our community have —and have in a host of different fields and professions. And our other great resource is we have some highly energetic, dynamic and ambitious young people who have more confidence than experience and more smarts than judgment. Their shortcomings begin where the untapped expertise of the mentors in our community begins.
Think of the underutilized mentors in our community as an internal brain drain we can’t blame on our sister states bleeding from us. We can only blame ourselves.
Wouldn’t it be great if we found a way to connect these two powerful but currently fragmented forces? I think so.
By Jonathan Miller, on Mon Aug 5, 2013 at 10:00 AM ET The RP had the number one clicked piece in Sunday’s The Daily Beast: “McConnell’s Fancy Farm Monster Comes Back to Haunt Him.” Here’s an excerpt:
For those uninitiated in Bluegrass State politics, the Fancy Farm picnic is neither fancy nor on a farm. The picnic, held annually on the first Saturday in August in a tiny, far-Western Kentucky hamlet called Fancy Farm (population 458: Salute!), is hosted by St. Jerome’s Catholic Church, which bills the event as the “world’s largest one-day BBQ.” While the day’s menu features bingo, 5k runs, and some of the world’s most savory sandwiches (Try the mutton… seriously), the main event begins at 2:00 PM when the state’s most powerful politicians (and occasionally a few national figures such as George Wallace and Al Gore) take the stage for five to ten minute riffs on the year’s hottest campaigns.
Over the past few decades, the picnic’s celebrity has generated a full long-weekend’s worth of satellite activities all over the Jackson Purchase: four days of small-town meet-and-greets, skeet shooting competitions, watermelon smashes, bean suppers and country ham and egg breakfasts. It’s politics just the way the old-timers remember it: plenty of hand-grabbing and bear-hugging and back-slapping and tall-tale-telling. Best yet, it’s the one weekend that the most remote area of the state (and one of the country’s most economically-struggling regions) receives the full respect and attention of the big city slickers, capital politicos, and budget-debilitated Frankfort press corps. This is grassroots politics at its finest.
The Fancy Farm political speaking forum used to have a similar old-fashioned feel. Al Cross, the dean of Kentucky political journalists, remembers that Fancy Farm used to be a “traditional community gathering with the focus on the interests of Western Kentucky,” with a small-town, state-fair sort of ambiance.
But that all changed dramatically in the 1980s, when the picnic’s political forum devolved, according to Cross, into “a piece of political theater”: a hyper-partisan, name-calling screaming match, a microcosm of everything that Americans hate about politics.
The primary culprit? Cross points squarely at Mitch McConnell, and few would disagree. Al Smith, a retired journalist who’s such a Kentucky legend that the state’s major journalism award bears his name, argues that the Senator must assume significant responsibility for the precipitous decline in civility at Fancy Farm: “McConnell was the first with the idea to bus in hundreds of noisy supporters from the rest of the state, and maybe out-of-state as well…[and he] was the first to use the stage as political theater,” cutting down his opponents with elaborately designed, choreographed productions, dressing up his staff to make fun of his opponents.
By Saul Kaplan, on Mon Aug 5, 2013 at 8:30 AM ET Today’s concept of work, employment, and jobs are an outgrowth of an industrial era that is long gone. The industrial era is not coming back and it is time to rethink the basic concept of work. Despite what politicians say most of the jobs lost in the current downturn aren’t coming back. Work takes on new meaning in the 21st century and it is time to change our conversation. The real wake-up call of this downturn is the enormous skill’s gap between the requirements of a 21st century economy and the skills and experience of the current workforce. Waving our hands and political rhetoric will not close the gap. Our education and workforce development systems must be transformed. Now. The nature of work and the way we think about jobs must change dramatically. Labor Day seems like a good day to start.
Here are 20 random thoughts on the future of work. Add yours.
1) Work becomes more about meaning and impact than repeatable tasks.
2) 9 to 5 is so yesterday.
3) Global sourcing goes on steroids enabling third world opportunity and growth.
4) Free Agent Nation becomes a reality.
5) Projects are more important than jobs.
6) Teams assemble and reassemble based on the job to be done.
7) Changing nature of work transforms our daily commute and transportation systems.
 8) Industrial era organizations give way to purposeful networks.
9) Everything we think and know about professions will change.
10) Education is no longer K-16 but a life long commitment.
11) Workforce and economic development are transformed and become indistinguishable.
12) Work becomes more self organized and less institutionally driven.
13) Job titles are more about what you can do than meaningless status monikers.
14) Compensation is about performance outcomes not seniority.
15) Entrepreneurship becomes democratized and the key economic driver.
16) Work and social become indistinguishable.
17) Getting better faster is imperative.
18) Art and design become integral to work and value creation.
19) Making things becomes important and interesting again.
20) Passion drives meaningful work.
By Jonathan Miller, on Sun Aug 4, 2013 at 9:09 AM ET Subscribe FOR FREE to The RP’s KY Political Brief – an email prepared every weekday morning by former journalist Kakie Urch – with links to all of the day’s Kentucky political news. Click here NOW.
Kakie Urch, the longtime Kentucky journalist who prepares The RP’s KY Political Brief every weekday morning, has outdone herself and found everything that was written, taped and videoed about yesterday’s Fancy Farm picnic, and compiled it for our growing list of KPB subscribers. Enjoy your free sampling below:
FANCY FARM *EXTRA*
On Saturday, Aug. 3, the 133 annual Fancy Farm Picnic was held in Graves County, Ky. The annual event features BBQ, crazy hats, cars, signs, costumes and rowdy crowds. It sets the tone for the Kentucky political season, which this year features the heavyweight bout for the U.S. Senate 2014. KPB’S IN-DEPTH ROUNDUP OF COVERAGE:
PRE-GAMING: PARTY BREAKFASTS, BEAN SUPPERS ARE THE UNDERCARD
ON THE BUS: ALISON LUNDERGAN GRIMES ON ISSUES, FINALLY
One of the calls from the press throughout the pre-Fancy Farm festivities was “When Will Alison Take A Question?” The candidate glided past press lines without addressing issues. But in this pre-FF interview, she tells HuffPost’s Howard Fineman that she is pro-choice down the line and would delay the implementation of the Affordable Care Act for small businesses. She also talks about female mentors. And the Chippendale Dancers. [HuffPost]
THE MAIN EVENT: MUTTON, PORK BBQ, EIGHT STUMP SPEECHES, 12,000 PEOPLE
CANDIDATES SPAR AT ANNUAL PICNIC
Jack Brammer and Beth Musgrave report from Western Kentucky. McConnell says “This is an election about where America is going to go.” Lundergan Grimes says, “Come 2015, you can call me “Senator.”
[H-L]
MCCONNELL: ‘I TAKE KENTUCKY’S FIGHT TO THE LIBERALS EVERY DAY’
Sen. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, in his Fancy Farm speech, highlighting the strength of his leadership position and the way it allows him to represent Kentuckians against the Obama agenda. [The Daily Caller]
COURIER-JOURNAL: FANCY FARM PACKAGE
The Courier-Journal pulls its special package layout for its Web presentation of Fancy Farm coverage. Includes several strong videos by Matt Stone, coverage by Joe Gerth, et al. [www.courier-journal.com]
QUIPS, JABS, RIPOSTES, SMACK: CALL IT WHAT YOU WILL, IT’S FANCY FARM
Ronnie Ellis of CNHI News Service rounds ups what you really came for – the quotable quotes. The bon mots. Whose kidding whom, there’s very little “bon” going on. But it’s the red meat they came for. [CNHI in Ashland Independent]
MCCONNELL TALKS TOUGH ON OBAMA AT FANCY FARM
Ronnie Ellis of CNHI reports from the picnic. {CNHI News Service in Ashland Independent]
THE SENATE RACE SPEECHES: GRIMES, BEVIN, MARKSBERRY 3-on-1 AGAINST MCCONNELL
Ryan Alessi takes a comprehensive look at the Senate speeches. With speech highlights video. [CN|2}
MCCONNELL, BEVIN, LUNDERGAN GRIMES TRADE BARBS AT FANCY FARM
Jonathan Meador takes the trip to Fancy Farm. Here’s his take. [WFPL]
MCCONNELL NATIONALIZES HIS RE-ELECTION: A VOTE FOR MY OPPONENT IS A VOTE FOR REID
Looking at the way Mitch McConnell went on the offensive, but not at all specifically against challenger Alison Lundergan Grimes. [CN|2]
FANCY FARM PUTS KY IN THE POLITICAL SPOTLIGHT
Scott Wartman reports from Fancy Farm [KY ENQUIRER]
IN KENTUCKY, MCCONNELL AND GRIMES TRADE BARBS AT QUIRKY CAMPAIGN STOP
Here’s the account of Fancy Farm running in today’s Washington Post. {WaPo]
MCCONNELL, LUNDERGAN GRIMES TEE OFF IN KENTUCKY SENATE RACE
A look at Fancy Farm from USA Today. [USAT]
KENTUCKY’S SENATE RACE OFF TO A WILD START AT ANNUAL PICNIC
Buzzfeed’s Kate Nocera makes the scene in Graves County to take a look at Kentucky’s annual political tradition. [Buzzfeed]
KENTUCKY TEA PARTY CANDIDATE BEVIN OFF TO A GOOD START
Matt Bevin, of Louisville, is a challenger for the GOP nomination for U.S. Senate in 2014 and made his Fancy Farm debut on Saturday. Looks like a thumbs up from Howard Fineman. [HuffPost]
MCCONNELL, SENATE CHALLENGERS SHARE STAGE IN KY
Sen. Mitch McConnell and the challengers for the Kentucky U.S. Senate seat took the stage in Fancy Farm, Ky. [AP in Boston Herald]
FANCY FARM INTRODUCES START TO POLITICAL SEASON
Report with video [WDRB]
GATEWOOD GALBRAITH’S SPIRIT CARRIES ON AT FANCY FARM
When perennial gubernatorial candidate and Lexington attorney Gatewood Galbraith passed away in 2012, Kentucky lost one of its most unique political voices. Known for running on the legalization of marijuana, for riding in Willie Nelson’s hemp oil powered Mercedes, for a big cigar and a big hat, Gatewood embodied the spirit of Fancy Farm. “Gatewood’s Army” carries on the memory. [C-J Blog]
ANALYSIS: NOTHING IN KENTUCKY HAPPENS OUT OF CONTEXT
TOM EBLEN: MCCONNELL’S DAY AT FANCY FARM SHOWS LONG 15 MONTHS AHEAD
Herald-Leader columnist Tom Eblen was on the scene at Fancy Farm and puts what he saw there through his long experience with Kentucky politics. His finding: Mitch McConnell may have gotten a glimpse how rough his road back to the Senate may be, with two challengers on the stump. [H-L Eblen]
BURNT ENDS, TWEETS AND SWEET TEA
The RP site hosted a live tweet feed, which you can review from the website if you missed the real-time fun. Includes some great one-off photos from politicians’ and reporters’ Twitter and Instagram feeds. [The Recovering Politician]
IMAGES: PICTURES
HERALD-LEADER PHOTO GALLERY [H-L Photo]
C-J PHOTO GALLERY [C-J Photo]
VIDEO: INSTAMENTARY, SOUNDBITES, COLOR
STATE REPRESENTATIVE DOCUMENTS FIRST FANCY FARM ON “INSTAMENTARY”
State Rep. Jonathan Shell (R-Lancaster) used his Instagram feed to create an “Instamentary” of his first Fancy Farm. [http://instagram.com/jshellky]
THE PEOPLE MAKE FANCY FARM
Links to a great people feature and player for all other C-J Fancy Farm video. [C-J Video]
RP ON THE SCENE WITH :30 VIDEOS OF MOVERS, SHAKERS
The Recovering Politician Jonathan Miller (former Treasurer of KY) was at Fancy Farm covering the action as a “civilian” for the first time. He got video comment from many of his former government colleagues. [The Recovering Politician]
GOVERNOR’S RACE:2015 GOVERNOR’S RACE HEAVILY OVERSHADOWED AT FANCY FARM
With several potential candidates in attendance and several others not making an appearance at 2013 Fancy Farm, the usual hinting and hat-tossing about the real power position in Kentucky politics – the governor’s chair – took a back seat to the marquee Senate race. But with big names like Abramson, Conway, Comer, Edelen, Luallen and others in the hopper and Alison Lundergan Grimes’ name out because she is in the Senate fight, it won’t be long. [C-J]
TRIO GETS OFF TO A START ON 2015 GOVERNOR’S RACE
Come for the Senate race, stay for the governor hints. Ronnie Ellis takes a look at some of the people at the annual Fancy Farm picnic who may be eyeing the 2015 governor’s race. [CNHI News Service in Ashland Independent]
AG JACK CONWAY (D) AND AG COMMISH JAMES COMER (R) ON GOVERNOR HOPES
Herald-Leader video. Asks two possible candidates the question that is often answered at Fancy Farm: Will you run for governor next time? [H-L Video]
ON THE KENTUCKY SHOWS:
“One To One with Bill Goodman,” KET 1 p.m. Sunday Aug. 4: Guest, David Gergen
“Fancy Farm Highlights Show,” (with Renee Shaw and Bill Goodman) KET 8 p.m. Monday Aug. 5
.
DAYS UNTIL : Next fundraising deadline: 57 … Primary Election filing deadline: 177… Ky. 2014 Primary Election day: 289 … Fancy Farm 2014: 363 … 2014 General Election day: 457
TODAY’S FRONT PAGES: The Courier-Journal … Lexington Herald-Leader … The Kentucky Enquirer …Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer … Bowling Green Daily News … The Winchester Sun … Danville Advocate-Messenger … Maysville Ledger Independent … Madisonville Messenger – Note: Some front pages are not available daily.
TODAY IN POLITICAL HISTORY: 1987: Repeal of the FCC Fairness Doctrine which required equal coverage in political races by broadcast radio and television.
BIRTHDAYS – Blowing out candles today: President Barack Obama, 52…Jeff Gordon, 42…Billy Bob Thornton, 58…Actor Richard Belzer, 69…Author Dennis Lehane, 42.
JOHN Y’s MUSINGS FROM THE MIDDLE – John Y. Brown III: ICYMI Check out John Y.’s Fancy Farm reflections, a beautiful account of his moment in the (hotter than expected) sun, on The Recovering Politician site in Fancy Farm Memories. (It goes with the “boxing” theme we’re using today.)
COMING MONDAY: Your regular edition of KPB – right to your inbox. Click here to subscribe,
By Jonathan Miller, on Sat Aug 3, 2013 at 10:50 PM ET At this year’s Fancy Farm picnic, The RP cornered nearly all of Kentucky’s major political players — elected officials, campaign strategies, and media experts — and interviewed them for 30 seconds. While no earth-shaking news was broken, these videos are a lot of fun, and show a glimpse behind the curtain of some of our state’s most influential people. Enjoy:
Where Attorney General Jack Conway Teaches His Lessons of Cursing:
Where Agriculture Commissioner James Comer Denies Smoking Hemp:
Where State Auditor Adam Edelen Defends His War with Mississippi:
Where Melissa Edelen Shares the Most Annoying Thing About Her Husband:
Where State Treasurer Todd Hollenbach Discuss the Mess He inherited from his Predecessor:
Where Republican State Party Chairman Steve Robertson Deals With an Intruder:
Where Democratic Party Chairman Dan Logsdon Denies a Bell-Bribe of Matt Bevin:
Where House Majority Leader Rocky Adkins Advises Alison Lundergan Grimes on her Basketball Technique:
Where Former Secretary of State Trey Grayson Announces His 2015 Intentions:
Where Potential Attorney General Candidate Andy Beshear Denies a Fetish with Uniforms:
Where Former Bush White House Aide Scott Jennings Shares the Nickname the President Gave Him:
Where the Dean of Kentucky’s Political Journalists, Al Cross, Gets to Finally Ask Alison Lundergan Grimes a Few Questions:
Where Comer Chief of Staff Holly Harris Denies Slashing Democratic Tires:
Where Political Consultant Turned Filmmaker Mark Nickolas Names the Top Three Political Films:
By Jonathan Miller, on Fri Aug 2, 2013 at 12:05 PM ET Subscribe FOR FREE to The RP’s KY Political Brief – an email prepared every weekday morning by former journalist Kakie Urch — with links to all of the day’s Kentucky political news.
This year’s Fancy Farm picnic promises to be a doozy — the political speech-a-fying will mark the unofficial launch of perhaps the top 2014 political battle in the nation — as U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell fights to hold his seat against the dual challenges of Democratic Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes, and Tea Party businessman Matthew Bevin.
The RP and a cast of Kentucky political and media luminaries will be tweeting from the events in far Western Kentucky, and you can follow them LIVE below. You will especially love all of the fun, 15-second video interviews of the state’s top politicos that The RP will be posting.
And you too can join the fun. Simply go to your normal Twitter account and use the hashtag #fancyfarm. Your tweets will appear below LIVE!
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