At start of re-election year, Beshear says he wants to ‘embrace the promise of tomorrow’
Kentucky is doing quite well, according to Gov. Andy Beshear’s State of the Commonwealth speech delivered on Wednesday night.
Beshear also said, at the start of the year of his closely-watched re-election bid, that it could be even stronger if Kentucky stays the course.
The governor’s speech focused equal parts on accomplishments and goals to do with disaster recovery, education, the economy and more.
In a tenure thus far defined by natural disasters, Beshear said that he was ready to “no longer focus on the difficulties of yesterday, but to embrace the promise of tomorrow.”
“In the Book of Psalms, we’re told: ‘Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning.’ The joy of that morning – a promise of a better Kentucky – means that our children and grandchildren never have to leave this state to pursue their dreams, because no matter how big they dream, they can chase their dreams right here. A tomorrow where people don’t move from our state, but to it, where people and businesses choose Kentucky,” Beshear said. “The promise of a better future has never been brighter, as our commonwealth has emerged from the pandemic as a national economic leader. Every day, we are winning, with company after company picking us – picking Kentucky.”
Specifically, Beshear highlighted “record highs in economic development and record lows in unemployment.” He pointed to recent historic budget surpluses as well as the state’s lowest unemployment rate – at or below 3.9% – for the longest stretch in history last year. He also pointed to major projects that his administration has helped land, like the Ford and SK Innovations plant in Glendale, which was the biggest private investment in state history.
“Put simply: we are winning, and we’re bringing prosperity to every corner of the Commonwealth with the goal to leave no one behind,” Beshear said.
Following disastrous events in Eastern and Western Kentucky, which saw devastation in the wake of historic flooding and tornadoes, Beshear made reference to individual victims as well as plans for the rebuild. He highlighted the administration’s plans to convert 75 acres of former strip mine land into spaces for housing, a park and a school.
“We want the people of Eastern Kentucky to know that we love you, we care about you and we’re going to be there for you – every step of the way, as long as it takes. For those in the West affected by the tornadoes, we know there is much work left to be done. We remain committed, and we look forward to celebrating each milestone with you,” Beshear said.
Beshear pushed forward in the speech on two topics that he believes are political winners for a majority of Kentuckians: legalizing medical marijuana and sports betting. The governor has attempted to use his bully pulpit to push for these measures, but both stopped in their tracks in the Senate after the House passed them last year.
Though few of Beshear’s legislative initiatives have been acted on by the Republican-controlled legislature, Beshear previewed a package that he and newly minted House Minority Floor Leader Derrick Graham, D-Frankfort, would propose as an “Education First Plan” that would give every educator a 5% raise in light of a serious teacher shortage in Kentucky. Beshear has made similar proposals to raise teacher pay in years’ past, but the General Assembly has opted against mandating such raises and has instead left that decision up to local school boards.
He’s also pushing, again, for universal pre-K for all Kentucky children, an idea that Republican legislative leaders have not seriously considered.
“This General Assembly has the opportunity to make great progress on each of these issues we’ve discussed tonight, and you have the funding to do it. If we can just find our way to do what is right for the people of Kentucky, then we will be the generation that changes everything for the better,” Beshear said in closing.
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The governor also took time to address one area of concern that has surfaced recently: the state of Kentucky’s juvenile justice system.
He noted the administration’s recent actions to heighten security in juvenile justice detention centers and to establish a female-only facility in Northern Kentucky. Beshear claimed that problems are prevalent right now in part because of the uniquely violent nature of the population in the facilities.
“The reality is, we are currently housing the most violent population of juveniles in recent memory in our juvenile justice facilities. Our juvenile justice system was put into place 20 years ago and it was not designed to handle this type of offender,” Beshear said.
GOP reaction: Beshear taking too much credit for economic successes
Even before Beshear’s speech began, the Republican Party of Kentucky was on the attack.
“During his tenure, Andy Beshear has threatened Kentuckians, supported higher income taxes during 40-year high inflation, botched basic governing functions, presided over historic learning loss for our students, and championed a radical agenda on race and gender that is out-of-step with our Kentucky values,” party spokesman Sean Southard said in a statement. “This year, our new year’s resolution is to make sure Andy Beshear is no longer in the Governor’s Mansion come December.”
The GOP also released a video recounting the ways “in which he has let Kentucky down during his tenure.”
Senate President Robert Stivers, R-Manchester, said that much of what the governor said sounded good, but that he was taking credit for too much. “I think if the sun rose today he was trying to take credit for it,” Stivers said.
On the subject of teacher raises, Stivers emphasized that the relationship between legislative leaders like himself and Beshear is not exactly great, and that the likelihood of either chamber advancing legislation on that front is very low.
“We’ve never had any conversation with him, he’s never called us about anything related to a pay raise,” Stivers said.
House Speaker David Osborne, R-Prospect, said House education chair James Tipton, R-Taylorsville, is putting together a piece of legislation to address “Kentucky-specific issues” in regards to the teacher shortage, which could include efforts to attract more teachers and attract college students into education degree programs.
Osborne struck a similar tone to Stivers regarding what he framed as Beshear’s penchant to take credit for certain outcomes. He said that the economic successes of which Beshear spoke are linked closely to the Republican-controlled legislature’s decisions.
“Clearly, the successes that we’re experiencing here economically are a result of good, pro-business policies,” Osborne said. “Those are pro-business policies that have been passed over the last six years. And to my recollection, there’s not a single one of those policies that he didn’t either sue us for as attorney general or veto when we passed as governor. So I struggle a little bit with the concept that he’s taking credit for economic success but he’s vetoed every one of those bills.”
On the juvenile justice crisis, Republican legislative leaders said they were looking for more long-term solutions.
Rep. Jason Nemes, R-Louisville, Rep. Kevin Bratcher, R-Louisville, Sen. Whitney Westerfield, R-Crofton, and Sen. David Givens, R-Greensburg, are working on legislation surrounding juvenile justice reform, Osborne and Stivers said. The biggest problem, according to Stivers, in the juvenile justice system is housing youths charged with low-level offenses in the same facilities as minors facing more serious criminal charges, calling it a “recipe for disaster.”
This story was originally published January 4, 2023 at 7:53 PM.
