Please sign the petition below to remove the statue of Jefferson Davis currently in Kentucky’s Capitol Rotunda, and replace it with a tribute to Muhammad Ali, “the Louisville Lip” and “the Greatest of All Time.”
I just heard from the Ali family: It is the Champ’s belief that Islam prohibits three-dimensional representations of living Muslims. Accordingly, I have adjusted the petition to call for a two-dimensional representation of Ali (a portrait, picture or mural) in lieu of a statue.
UPDATE (Tuesday, December 2, 2014)
In this interview with WHAS-TV’s Joe Arnold, Governor Steve Beshear endorses the idea of honoring Muhammad Ali in the State Capitol (although he disagrees with removing Davis). Arnold explores the idea further on his weekly show, “The Powers that Be.”
Click here to check out WDRB-TV’s Lawrence Smith’s coverage of the story.
And here’s my op-ed in Ali’s hometown paper, the Louisville Courier-Journal.
UPDATE (Saturday, June 4, 2016)
In the wake of the 2015 Charlestown tragedy, in which a Confederate flag-waving murderer united the nation against racism, all of the most powerful Kentucky policymakers — U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell, Governor Matt Bevin, Senate President Robert Stivers and House Speaker Greg Stumbo — called for the removal of the Davis statue from the Rotunda. Today, as we commemorate last night’s passing of Muhammad Ali, there is no better moment to replace the symbol of Kentucky’s worst era with a tribute to The Greatest of All Time.
UPDATE (Wednesday, June 8, 2016):
Great piece by Lawrence Smith of WDRB-TV in Louisville on the petition drive to replace Jefferson Davis’ statue in the Capitol Rotunda with a tribute to Muhammad Ali.
UPDATE (Thursday, June 9, 2016):
Excellent piece on the petition drive by Jack Brammer that was featured on the front page of the Lexington Herald-Leader.
Highlight of the article:
Miller said he has received a few “angry comments” on his call to honor Ali.
“One of them encouraged me to kill myself,” he said. “You can quote me that I have decided not to take their advice.”
UPDATE (Friday, June 10, 2016)
The petition drives continues to show the Big Mo(hammed): check out these stories from WKYU-FM public radio in Bowling Green and WKYT-TV, Channel 27 in Lexington:
UPDATE (Saturday, June 11, 2016):
Still not convinced? Check out this excerpt from today’s New York Times:
By Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, on Tue Oct 11, 2011 at 8:30 AM ET
While I admire Sarah Palin for breaking ground as a woman candidate, we don’t agree on many policy issues. But her tirade in Iowa a few weeks ago against what she called “corporate crony capitalism” captured my attention. She said, “It’s not the capitalism of free men and free markets, of innovation and hard work and ethics, of sacrifice and of risk. No, this is the capitalism of connections and government bailouts and handouts and influence peddling and corporate welfare.”
Good for Sarah Palin.
Naturally she singled out President Obama, but, to her credit, she also took on her own party. Republican candidates “who raise mammoth amounts of cash,” she said, should be asked what their donors “expect in return for their investments.”
I admire Sarah Palin for speaking out loudly and forcefully against crony capitalism. It’s all too common for the rich and powerful to bend government to their own purposes and get contracts, tax and legal breaks, and other preferential treatment through their political connections. This cronyism distorts our markets and promotes distrust of Washington.
People with less money can’t get these special privileges. This at a time when the richest 1 percent already receive 25 percent of all income and control 40 percent of the country’s wealth.
In her speech, Palin blamed the president for the help he gave the auto industry and for the bank bailouts that actually occurred under George Bush. As far as the auto industry goes, I think President Obama made a gutsy call that saved thousands of jobs and one of the most important businesses in our country. Eventually the government will be paid back in full.
Read the rest of… Kathleen Kennedy Townsend: Why I Agree With Sarah Palin
By Zack Adams, RP Staff, on Mon Oct 10, 2011 at 3:00 PM ET
The Politics of Pigskin
Peter King wraps up the weekend’s NFL action in his weekly Monday Morning QB cloumn. [Sports Illustrated]
After subbing in Tim Tebow on Sunday it will be hard and maybe impossible, for head coach John Fox and the Denver Broncos to go back to being a team that doesn’t play its most popular player. [ESPN AFC West Blog]
Now that Al Davis, the long-running owner of the Oakland Raiders, has passed away will the Raiders be the franchise that makes the move to Los Angeles to re-take their place as LA’s NFL representative? [IBT]
Definitely check out the Football Outsiders’ first 2011 data on sacks in the NFL. Some of their conclusions might surprise you. [Football Outsiders]
Here is the fantastic fake punt executed by LSU against Florida this weekend. Unfortunately, it was called back based on this year’s new rule on taunting. [Youtube]
By Sandra Moon, RP Staff, on Mon Oct 10, 2011 at 1:30 PM ET
The Politics of Faith
After decades of debate in the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. over the inclusion of gays and lesbians in ministry, the first openly gay minister was ordained by the denomination on Saturday. [JS Online]
Yom Kippur is the Jewish day of atonement and it is the holiest of Jewish holidays. This year, a Friday night Kol Nidre service was held in Zuccuotti Park, site of the Occupy Wall Street protests. [Religion Dispatches]
In Egypt, clashes between Christians and Muslims over a recent church attack leave 24 dead. [NPR]
By Patrick Derocher, on Mon Oct 10, 2011 at 12:45 PM ET
Expected to begin full operation in 2012, the GlobalFoundries facility in Malta, New York has already cost that state's taxpayers a large amount of money, much of which has gone to luxuries.
In a mildly Solyndra-esque moment, the $1.4 billion that the State of New York granted to semiconductor manufacturer GlobalFoundries to build a plant in suburban Albany was found to have included more than $600 million in cash. This cash, as it so happens, went in large quantities to such luxury items as flat-panel TVs, catered meals, and supermarket gift cards. Albany’s Times Union has a full investigation. [Albany Times Union]
The Senate Bill 5 drama continues in Ohio, as Alliance for America’s Future, a Virginia-based group, has begun funneling money into anti-collective bargaining legislature. The group, headed by the former chief of staff to Republican US Representative Jean Schmidt, counts Mary Cheney, daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, among its members, is initiating a mail program targeting Ohioans who will vote on the SB5 come November. [Columbus Dispatch]
In an interesting, unexpected maneuver, the Michigan State Senate has voted to end health benefits for retired state legislators, in a perhaps even more surprising 37-1 vote. This will apply to all legislators who have not served six years by 2013, including numerous members of the State House and two members of the State Senate. [Lansing State Journal]
A study by a smart growth advocacy group in Wisconsin contends that the state’s gas tax would have to nearly triple in order to cover new road construction there. This is in opposition to common claims that new road construction pays for itself via gas taxes and other natural revenue increases. [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]
According to a Silicon Valley-based watchdog, California Common Sense, the California State Assembly is reporting staff salaries inaccurately, in particular as regards the source of the money. The group found that some 170 personal staffers were being paid out of committee budgets, while another 70 benefited from leadership stipends received by top-ranking assemblymen and women. [Sacramento Bee]
The Tea Party has office space in the Florida State Capitol- at least temporarily. Through a rule that allows State Senators to secure conference room space for their constituents, the Tea Party Network has been occupying room 227 at the Florida State Capitol, which the organization is calling its Tallahassee headquarters. The space was obtained through the office of Republican Senator Greg Evers, who represents the western portions of the Florida Panhandle. [St. Petersburg Times]
In the latest front of Republican-labor union fights, Indiana has seen fierce, vocal opposition to a right-to-work bill currently under consideration by the General Assembly. The bill would make it illegal in Indiana, as it is now in 22 other states, to make union membership or dues a precondition of employment. Although governor Mitch Daniels and the Republican-controlled state Senate and House of Representatives have generally been on better terms with unions than nearby states like Wisconsin and Ohio, there is nevertheless tension that has begun to creep to the surface in recent months. [Indianapolis Star]
Next July, more than 10,000 Americans will join together in Orlando, Florida to make their voices heard.
Democrats, Republicans, Independents — liberals, conservative, moderates — each with their own distinct views on matters of public policy. What they have in common is the joint belief that on occasion — particularly during moments like these when our nation is in economic crisis — it is critical to shed our labels, to work together, and to do what is right for the country.
If you are fed up with politics as usual, with the hyper-partisanship and polarization that has driven the country into the proverbial ditch, please consider joining 10,000 proud citizens in Orlando next July. No Labels has gotten off to a promising start, but it will be at the national convention when the movement will gel and emerge as a new, vital force in American politics.
You can be there at the beginning.
To learn more about the No Labels movement, click here.
And to join 10,000 strong in Orlando next summer, click here.
Blog this!
The RP just taped an interview with Abigail Romaine of 
