Published: October 29, 2009 01:15 pm      

Power play — 10/30/09

Appointment part of Beshear's plan to gain control of Senatebate

Think of Gov. Steve Beshear’s appointment of state Sen. Dan Kelly as circuit court judge for Green, Marion, Taylor and Washington counties as the start of Round 2 of the governor’s effort to regain control of the Kentucky Senate for the Democratic Party. Just how successful the governor will be in this round will depend on whether a Democrat or a Republican wins the Senate seat vacated by Kelly in a special election set for Dec. 8 in the four counties.

On the same day voters will be choosing the replacement for Kelly, the former Senate majority leader, voters in Carter and Lewis counties will be electing a replacement for Robin Webb in the Kentucky House of Representatives. Webb resigned from her 96th District seat when she was elected to fill the Senate seat vacated by former Sen. Charlie Borders when Beshear appointed him to the Public Service Commission.

The appointment of Borders, a Republican from Grayson, to the PSC and his replacement in the Senate by Democrat Webb was Round 1 of the governor’s plan to help Democrats regain control of the Senate — and it nearly backfired.

Many assumed that Webb, who was in the midst of her sixth term of representing two of the six counties in the 18th Senate District and had not even been opposed in recent elections, would have little trouble defeating Republican Jack Ditty, who was making his first run for political office. But Ditty, a Russell dermatologist, came within a whisker of defeating Webb after a brief campaign during which both candidates spent freely.

The race was so close that we would not be the least bit surprised if Ditty does not again challenge Webb for a full term in the Senate in November of 2010. The last word has not been spoken in the race to replace Borders.

The seat that was held by Kelly, who resides in Springfield, is in a district that is considered more solidly Republican than the 18th District. That makes replacing Kelly with a Democrat that much more difficult.

Frankly, if it were not for the manner in which Senate President David Williams, R-Burkesville, manages that body, we have no objections to the GOP controlling the Senate body. At a time when the far left and far right wings seems to control the two political parties, there is an advantage to having Democrats control the House and Republicans control the Senate. If done right, the two parties can work together to find a middle ground in which they can agree.

Unfortunately, Williams often has played the role of obstructionist in the General Assembly. Bills approved by the House with strong bipartisan support have been killed by Williams in the Senate without a vote being taken. While Williams’ refusal to advance in the Senate the governor’s efforts for expanded gambling was the major issue that called the governor to announce his strategy to weaken GOP strength in the Senate, there have been many, many bills approved by the House that have never been discussed in the Senate because of Williams’ refusal to advance them. That needs to stop.

However, the Democrats may not have to regain control of the Senate to curb Williams’ power. The GOP first flexed its muscle in the Senate when five Democrats, including Walter Blevins, D-Sandy Hook, joined the then Republican minority to unseat John “Eck” Rose as Senate president. Two years later the GOP gained control of the Senate not at the ballot box but by having two Senate Democrats switch to the Republican Party. Since then, the GOP has strengthened its position in the Senate by unseating Democrats.

Even if a Democrat is elected to replace Kelly, the GOP still will have a 19-18 edge in the Senate with Independent Bob Leeper usually siding with the Republican Party. For the sake of a good government, our hope is that Beshear’s strategy will result in the election of senators that will spend a lot more time on advancing good government and a lot less time in playing partisan politics. The political games that have dominated Frankfort in recent years have not been a positive for the state.