I knew Gatewood for many years and always enjoyed running into him, wherever it might be.
He was always upbeat and had something interesting to say. He was the kind of person who could make your day a little brighter just by speaking with him briefly.
His eternal optimism was always refreshing. You have to admire a man who stood up for what he believed was right (not a trait of a lot of politicians) and had no hesitation in expressing to you his opinion.
I remember running into him at Good Foods Co-Op on Southland Drive during the 2007 gubernatorial race, and he gave me an autographed copy of his book. I asked him how his campaign was going, and he said “we’re going to win this thing.”
I remember seeing him during prior campaigns standing on Versailles Road after the races at Keeneland with his campaign sign in hand, waving to everyone, as all of the traffic was going by, and I remember thinking it was a shame he was unable to raise more money so he would have a real shot.
I remember seeing him at Keeneland in October of last year, and I asked him how the campaign was going, and he said it was going well. “We’re going to beat Williams.”
I for one will miss seeing Gatewood, and I am sorry he never won one of his races. I believe he would have done a good job in public office, and he certainly would have “stirred the pot.” I also wish he had lived to run at least one more time.
When I was a senior at UK in 1977, with my roommate, I attended a Halloween party held at Gatewood’s house which was in the old YWCA located somewhere in downtown Lexington.
My roommate’s father was the sheriff of Casey County, so we borrowed two deputies uniforms and attended the party. I recall that there was a goodly contingent of bikers and others in attendance who were not happy with law enforcement, and we got a number of evil stares.
I recall walking into rooms and hearing toilets flushing, small parcels being thrown under furniture, etc. It was big fun, but we were not the hit of the party.
I last saw Gatewood at the Master Musician’s Festival here in Somerset. I told him that he was like Elvis-he was everywhere. We had a good laugh and talked about his Halloween parties.
I will miss him. He was unique. He always had a good story and I smiled everytime I was around him. He will be missed.
I’m mourning the loss, at age 64, of my friend, author and frequent Kentucky political candidate Gatewood Galbraith.
Anyone who wants to be a best-selling author needed to spend time around Gatewood. He had knack for understanding his audience that few others had.
My first book fair event ever was the 2006 Kentucky Book Fair. When I walked into the arena, I found they had me sharing a table with Gatewood, who was promoting his excellent autobiography, The Last Free Man in America.
I was horrified that I was perched next to a perennial gubernatorial candidate who advocated the legalization of marijuana and was known to take a toke or two on his own.
Read the rest of… Don McNay: Book Marketing Lessons from “The Last Free Man in America”
By John Y. Brown III, on Fri Jan 6, 2012 at 9:00 AM ET
I want to share a few memories about Gatewood Galbraith, a KY statesmen, who died Tuesday night in his sleep.
I don’t claim to know Gatewood as a good friend, but he was much more to me than a casual acquaintance. I ran in several statewide races alongside Gatewood.
Political candidates are a bit like athletes traveling together across the state appearing to shake hands and give speeches wherever twoor more registered voters are gathered. There is a camaraderie that develops. And a respect and friendship that lasts.
As a young man I knew Gatewood the way everyone else knew him, as the hilarious, unrestrained, whip-smart, loquacious character who added comic relief and trenchant insights to KY’s governor’s races.
One of the first debates I watched with Gatewood he defended medicinal marijuana by saying something along the lines of “We aren’t talking about people who get drunk, cross state lines and trash hotel rooms. We are talking about people who will mellow out and order a pizza and fall asleep.”
But because he wanted to legalize medicinal marijuana (coupled with the fact he looked like he just dressed himself and shaved from the back seat of his car) he was never taken as seriously as he could have been. And I wondered how seriously he wanted to be taken. Gatewood could have been an able governor had he ever found a way to get elected, but I’m not sure he really ran to win. I think he ran because he couldn’t not run and because he had something to say and people wanted to hear it. And it beat practicing law seven days a week.
And he was at good running for office—extraordinary, in fact. It just made sense for Gatewood to run. And keep running. And because of that, he mattered a lot to a lot of people across our great state.
Read the rest of… John Y. Brown, III: A Few Memories About a KY Statesman
By Jonathan Miller, on Fri Jan 6, 2012 at 8:30 AM ET
The colorful story of Kentucky politics lost a legendary character this week in the passing of Gatewood Galbraith.
Gatewood would have never considered himself a recovering politician — He enjoyed politics too much to ever fully leave. But his candor, aversion to hyper-partisanship and extraordinary sense of humor certainly reflected the values of The Recovering Politician.
So today, we are dedicating this site to his memory, and we’ve opened it up to the RP Nation to share their remembrances.
For our Kentucky readers, this is a chance to say goodbye, and share a few laughs, with someone who was part of our Comonwealth’s political fabric for more than three decades. For our readers outside the Bluegrass State, it’s a chance to learn about a true Kentucky original.
We hope you enjoy this day of Gatewood memories. And if you missed your chance to submit an article, please feel free to fill up our Comments section with your remembrances.
By Jonathan Miller, on Thu Jan 5, 2012 at 10:00 AM ET
The story of Kentucky politics lost a legendary character yesterday in the passing of Gatewood Galbraith.
While Gatewood never recovered from the political bug — nor did he ever want to — his candor, aversion to hyper-partisanship and extraordinary sense of humor certainly reflected the values of this Web site.
Accordingly, tomorrow (Friday), we are dedicating this site to his memory, and opening it up to the RP Nation to share their remembrances.
That’s you!
Please share with us your stories, anecdotes and memories of the one-of-a-kind man. Send them to Staff@TheRecoveringPolitician.com by 7 PM EST tonight, and as long as they are family-friendly, we will post them sometime tomorrow.
Thanks, and share with us tomorrow a day of fun remembrances of a Kentucky original.
By John Y. Brown III, on Wed Jan 4, 2012 at 12:30 PM ET
Post Election Final Thoughts:
I applaud yesterday’s chaotic, surprising, and uniquely American process leading to the narrowest of narrow victories by the front-runner and a near shocking underdog upset–accompanied by a respectable third place finish from an independent and brainy gadfly.
It reinforces my belief in our democratic system. And however messy and unpredictable, it’s still a thing of beauty to behold. And to be grateful for.
Finally, if I had to pinpoint a regret it is that the race didn’t last one more week and have one more candidate with one more wise admonition. The extra week may have allowed Sen Santorum’s sensational surge to run its course ….and see the final candidate I would like to have seen in the mix peak and prevailed at just the right moment, Chance Gardner. And in his acceptance speech, in my fanciful ending, candidate Gardner would admonish Americans in Iowa and beyond by quoting Voltaire from Candide (discussing Chance’s favorite topic, gardening). “Let us cultivate our own garden.”
But I’m a romantic. And it was a Republican primary. Let’s be real. A French quote (even a self-reliant quote) to summarize the moment’s electoral message, was probably too much to ask.
Pray for Maggie and pray for her family as well as all the families who have lost loved ones to this war. Only the Lord can provide them with the comfort, peace and strength to keep going each day. Watching Maggie at the funeral and seeing her strength through a very hard time makes me feel the Lord is already at work comforting her.
Arlington is a moving place. Every American should visit that cemetery. If you ever go to Washingtonand only have time to visit a few things, make sure Arlington is on your list. Yes, the White House and Capitol are important and interesting, but they are not the reason America is strong and free.
There are thousands of little white stones with some of the most important names from all over the country written on them. Those people and their actions are why America is such a great country. Many of those people died so we could be free. I very seldom go to Washingtonwithout stopping at Arlington to look over the graves and see the Marine Corps monument. I always stop at the Vietnam Memorial too, but Arlington is a special place across the river up on a quiet, peaceful hill that seems miles away from the Capitol and politics.
Trane’s memorial service was held at his home church in Alexandria, VA, which is just south of Arlington. The Marine Corps makes you plan out your will and service before you leave for any deployment. After looking at the program, I could tell Trane had it all planned.
Read the rest of… Rod Jetton: Remembering a Hero, Part 4: A Final Farewell to a Real Hero
So far, I have told you a little bit about Trane’s military career and tried to give you an idea of the kind of person he was.
I know we all say nice things about those who have passed on, but with Trane it’s all been true. The worst I can say about him is he was headstrong, but he was always headstrong at the right time for the right reasons.
This is a guy who prayed before every meal, never lost his cool, always had good advice, and never had to be the center of attention. He is the kind of person who makes the very best kind of friend. As I talked to others at his funeral that had served with him, they all felt just like me, that he was their best friend.
As good of a Marine as Trane was, he was an even better husband and father. He loved kids. Cassie and I used to take our kids over and let Trane and Maggie watch them when we were at Camp Lejune. The both loved kids and we were always happy to have someone take them for a few hours and give us a break back then.
He and Maggie had three children; Hayden, Grace, and Meghan. Every minute he was not doing something for the Corps, Trane was with his family. He applied the same work ethic to his family as he did to the Marines. I only wish I had the wisdom to find the balance between career and family like Trane did.
Read the rest of… Rod Jetton: Remembering a Hero, Part 3 – Living, Dying, Remembering
I remember an old Colonel giving a speech to all the young officer recruits back in boot camp. He told us about the Marine Corps and what being a Marine was all about. This talk always stuck in my mind because he said, “There is an easy way and a hard way. Marines always take the hard way. Marines don’t take shortcuts; we work harder, fight harder and think smarter.”
This was new to me and seemed wrong. High school and college was about finding a better and easier way to do everything. Our teachers and society pushed taking the path of least resistance. I didn’t know exactly what he meant at first. The colonel gave examples using past wars where U.S. Marines made tough decisions, and won battles that changed American history. He pointed out that many times their decisions made it harder on those Marines. Sometimes, they even lost more lives when faced with a tough choice, but they always accomplished the mission and followed their orders.
I can’t remember the name of the Colonel who gave us that talk, but it might as well have been Trane. He never took shortcuts. He always knew what the Marine Corps rules and regulations were, and he always kept us on track. He was calm and cool in all situations and nothing ever seemed to ruffle his feathers.
In time, I came to understand better what the Colonel was saying, but I have always been a rebel. The Marine Corps is hard on rebels. They want team players that will work hard, follow orders, be smart and do their duty. That’s why the Corps was so good for me. I learned to depend on other people. I learned that, no matter how good I was, if I worked with others I could accomplish much bigger things. By myself, I was helpless on the battlefield.
By the time I met Trane he already knew these things, and he is a big reason I learned some of these lessons. Now, I don’t want to paint a picture of Trane as some robot that just said, “Yes, sir.” He was far from that. His last name is McCloud, which is Scots-Irish, and he was VERY stubborn. If you were doing things right he never said much, but if he thought you were not doing it the best way he would calmly give you his thoughts.
The thing we loved about Trane was he didn’t care if you were a fellow lieutenant or the commanding general, he wasn’t afraid to speak up and correct you.
We had this captain who wasn’t a very good commander. This drove me crazy, because, back then, I always had a better idea of how to do things and I liked being in charge. This guy made following orders very difficult for all of us.
Read the rest of… Rod Jetton: Remembering a Hero, Part 2 – Trane McCloud, Putting Duty First
