The incumbent Republican, Ernie Fletcher, got thumped:
Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher, a Republican whose lone term was dogged by a hiring scandal, lost badly Tuesday despite an election-eve effort to woo conservative voters by displaying the Ten Commandments in the state Capitol.
Democratic challenger Steve Beshear, a former attorney general and lieutenant governor, pulled off a political comeback 20 years after last holding office.
On to Mitch McConnell. Matt at Ditch Mitch KY is analyzing the results and had these reports:
20.45: Beshear doing EXTREMELY well so far in western Kentucky, which is arguably the state’s most socially conservative region. Gay-baiting didn’t work here, it appears. Troubling sign for Sen. Mitch McConnell (R) next year?
21.00: Ladies and gentleman, one image is striking fear into the heart of Mitch McConnell tonight, and it’s western Kentucky going dark, dark blue.
21.30: Ernie Fletcher did best where Republicans hate Mitch McConnell the most.
21.45: I am going to get some nachos and salsa. And I am going to chill for a bit and soak it all it. Good stuff. Good, good stuff.
21.55: Waiting on Henderson County to report. Should go dark blue.
22.10: Henderson County reports. That’s all she wrote.
22.15: What did we learn tonight? Kentuckians are thinking hard about their votes. That’s bad news for Mitch McConnell.
The sitting Governor of Kentucky is considering calling the state legislature into a special session to pass a law preventing the University of Kentucky and the University of Louisville from providing domestic partner benefits for unmarried and same-sex partners of their employees. The Governor is in a difficult primary (he was indicted last year) and is apparently holding this out as a reward for the mouth-breathing, knuckle-dragging base if they support him. It's ironic that he used the Terri Schiavo "special session" excuse for addressing yet another religious right "emergency." (How about a special session to address the emergency that a guy under indictment is leading the state under the guise of a moral crusade?)
The University of Kentuckys Board of Trustees voted yesterday to provide DPBs. U of L did so a few months back. A conservative republican candidate for Attorney General called the move patently unconstitutional, since Kentucky voted on a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage in 2004.
Ironically, that AG candidate looks an awful lot like a porn star from the 1970s (hey, he made it personal first). His name is Stan Lee.
I do find it amazing that the religious right claimed that these anti-gay state constitutional amendments (and the federal one) would have no impact on anything else other than gay marriage. Now we're finding out otherwise, from the horses' own mouths. Now they're telling us that when the states banned gay marriage they also banned providing health insurance, inheritance, hospital visitation and more to gay couples. Funny, but I don't recall hearing any of that when the religious right was pushing these things. Of course, we also know from Ohio that these state amendments have also outlawed domestic violence laws. I'm not kidding. Women who have been abused by their boyfriends, fiancees, etc., can now no longer seek the protection of domestic violence laws because in Ohio you can't be given rights unless you're married. Now we're talking targeting straight women who are victims of violence.
This is who the Republican party has sided with. And this is what the anti-gay marriage crew is all about. They're about taking away every single right gay people, and even straight people, have in America today. All as a part of their personal Baptist jihad against every other Christian, every other faith, and every other American.
