Are teacher comments biting Bevin? He's grilled in E. Ky. as poll shows low approval
For most of his time in office, when Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin went to Eastern Kentucky to talk about jobs, he heard praise. That wasn't the case Thursday.
When Bevin appeared in Hazard Thursday to tout the newest Kentucky Opportunity Zone, an initiative that provides incentives to businesses to locate to areas of the state with high poverty and unemployment, he instead had to answer questions about his comments about teachers.
According to a video of the event from WYMT, when Bevin asked the Perry County audience if they had any questions, he was instantly asked about his comments about teachers.
"Yeah, why do you disrespect teachers and public education so much?" someone called from the audience.
"Love teachers, love public education," Bevin responded. "I have more children in public school probably than the average family in Kentucky. That seems to be lost on people."
Bevin sparked public outrage after he "guaranteed" that a child in Kentucky was sexually assaulted because several school districts in the state canceled school to rally in Frankfort. He apologized Sunday in a video that many teachers have said did not go far enough. He offered a similar apology Thursday.
"I truly am sorry to have offended, whether you or others as well, based on words I have said and how they have been understood," Bevin said. "The intent I know was not to insult people... As somebody who has a lot of family who are teachers and have been teachers, I can personally apologize to you and it doesn't bother me. It's the right thing to do."
Bevin pointed out that he has made a point to fully fund Kentucky's pension systems and that he has put money into educating and training people for jobs that actually exist.
"This is not the group that created this problem," Bevin said. "We have the worst funded pension system in America and that has happened over decades."
Bevin's comments against the teacher protests were merely the latest to raise the ire of teachers. In October, he implied that Kentuckians weren't sophisticated enough to understand the pension crisis. In November, he said teachers were hoarding sick days. Last month, he said protesting teachers had a "thug mentality."
Not only did all of those statements end up on the signs of thousands of protestors as they've descended on the Capitol the past two weeks, they've also apparently affected the public opinion of Bevin.
According to the Big Red Poll released by Western Kentucky University, 32 percent of Kentuckians approve of the job Bevin is doing as governor while 56 percent disapprove. The poll of 531 Kentuckians has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.2 percentage points.
The poll was conducted between April 11 and 15, so it is unlikely that his comments about students being sexually assaulted, which he made on April 13, would have significantly affected the results.
Bevin still ranked above the state's General Assembly, which had a 25 percent approval rating.
The Western Kentucky Poll, which is conducted by students, recorded a more severe outlook for Bevin than a Morning Consult Poll released on April 12. Bevin's ratings have slowly dipped in the Morning Consult Poll. In February, he was at an even 41 percent approve, 41 percent disapprove. In October of 2017, 45 percent of Kentuckians approved of the job he was doing.
When Bevin was criticized for some of the comments he has made in recent months by a member of the audience Thursday, including calling teachers "thugs," he said it was not true.
"I would encourage you again sir," Bevin said. "Understand the things that are said. Not what you're told."
This story was originally published April 19, 2018 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Are teacher comments biting Bevin? He's grilled in E. Ky. as poll shows low approval."