Force legislature to focus on state's real needs Editorial by Nancy Jo Kemper, Lexington Herald-Leader, January 13, 2006 The 2006 Kentucky General Assembly offers citizens unique opportunities for positive government and an agenda promulgated by the citizens. It could also be a time of special danger when the lobbyists paid by large corporate interests and professional groups may determine what legislation will be passed. Political leadership for the 2006 session will be spotty at best and, at worst, will be missing altogether. No matter how you view the on-going investigation into the hiring practices of the Fletcher administration, our governor is badly weakened, with very little political power to move legislation or to persuade the citizenry one way or another on various issues. He has declined to take positions on some important matters. Instead, in a recent letter sent to his constituents, Fletcher mentions only: "You have probably heard about some of the items we will address in the next 100 days: Ten Commandments legislation, right-to-work legislation and medical malpractice reform, among others." These are not the critical issues facing Kentucky. I hope Fletcher will dig a little deeper to address the real issues. For its part, the legislature continues to face the situation in which Democrats control the House, and Republicans control the Senate. Political realism says that the Democrats in either chamber are not going to make it any easier for the governor to have any successes in generating revenue for special projects or for the more massive needs of education and health care. Moreover, the Senate Republicans will be worried about spill-over from low public opinion polls of the Bush and Fletcher administrations and are not going to rock the boat very much. All of the state representatives and half of the state senators must file for re-election by Jan. 27. Nothing much of any consequence will happen until legislators determine whether they will face opposition for their seats and from whom. Thus, Kentuckians could find themselves in an unproductive stalemate. I find it far preferable to have politicians willing to take strong stands on matters about which they have convictions, than to deal with waffling public servants whose spines are made of rubber. We do not have significant public discussions about what matters most to all of us when elected leaders are laying low to avoid taking conscientious stands. We all suffer in such seasons of political hibernation. Given this inertia, Kentuckians could also find themselves with laws passed to suit the whims and power of the hundreds of lobbyists who hover in Frankfort from January to mid-April every year. A 10 to 1 ratio of lobbyists to legislators does not bode well for bills that will benefit anyone other than special interests. More important, the torpid political climate also provides citizens with the opportunity and ability to push forward a positive legislative agenda in education, health care reform, economic development and tax reform that would benefit all Kentuckians, from the least and most vulnerable citizens to the strongest and most able. Now is the time for citizens to be more active than ever before. For this state's well-being, Kentuckians should urge legislators to: • Work for legislation that will improve schools, not take us down narrow sectarian paths and arguments about posting the Ten Commandments. Let's post the Commandments in our hearts, homes and churches. Let's not try to micromanage the science curriculum in our schools. Let's leave those matters to scientists and educators. Let's teach our theology and our perceptions of history in our churches and homes. • Not to allow further reductions in care for poor children, the elderly or the disabled. It is important to use the fiscal surplus to fully fund Medicaid. The concern about medical malpractice reform is a tempest in a teapot. There is no evidence that restrictions on malpractice lawsuits reduce premiums or that current premium expenses are reducing the pool of doctors practicing in Kentucky. • Not to fall for the Trojan horse being pushed toward the gate of Kentucky's quality of life. Remember the promises made about the lottery? Pro-gambling forces say, "Keep it in Kentucky," but we ask, for whose sake? Who will benefit? The truth is that the beneficiaries will be racetrack and casino stockholders, and even more money will leave Kentucky than is wagered at the Indiana and Illinois boats to fill the bank accounts of casino stockholders. Why else would they spend millions of dollars trying to persuade us to let them have our money? In 2006, we can let lobbyists determine the legislation, or for a change, the citizens can set the agenda. Let's do the right thing, and practice good citizenship. Kentucky's future depends on it. [Nancy Jo Kemper is executive director of the Kentucky Council of Churches.]