In Massie country, Cameron and congressman go on promotional (and makeup) tour
All was well between GOP gubernatorial candidate Attorney General Daniel Cameron and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) at a Cameron campaign gathering in Massie’s native Lewis County Thursday.
That’s a contrast to two months ago, when Massie was publicly criticizing Cameron’s campaign for its plan to attend an event hosted by an outspoken opponent of his. But to a crowd gathered in the pew-style meeting hall on the third floor of the cavernous Lewis County Courthouse, Massie lavished praise on Cameron and scorn on Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear.
Massie, Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District representative and a long-time defier of COVID-19 mitigation restrictions, called Cameron the cure for the “Andy variant” of the “Beshear virus.”
“We need to get rid of Andy Beshear,” Massie said. “We had Steve Beshear for eight years, then we had Matt Bevin as a small reprieve for four years, and then we get Beshear again. I call him the ‘Andy variant’ of the ‘Beshear virus.’ We’ve got long Beshear and we need to cure it, and Daniel Cameron is the cure for that.”
The enthusiastic tone comes after Massie had offered harsh words on Cameron’s previous decision to attend Freedom Fest, an event hosted by far right conservative figure and fourth-place GOP gubernatorial primary finisher Eric Deters in Northern Kentucky. Deters now claims he’ll give Massie a primary challenge in 2024.
Cameron’s campaign canceled his planned appearance there shortly after being asked about Deters’ past racist comments.
The campaign told the Herald-Leader Thursday that Cameron will instead attend the annual GOP dinner in Henderson County, where his lieutenant governor running mate Sen. Robby Mills (R-Henderson) is from.
Massie emphasized to the Herald-Leader that he would have supported Cameron regardless, but Cameron pulling out of Freedom Fest made going on a tour of counties in Massie’s district “more fun.”
“I gave that advice to the campaign and they took the advice, and I think it’ll serve him well. I mean, that guy (Deters) is a crank and a crackpot,” Massie said.
Cameron told the Herald-Leader the issue between Massie’s camp and his was less a “public disagreement” and more Massie “stating his opinion.”
“I have the greatest respect for Thomas and am grateful for his friendship. I’m certainly honored to have him here today to support this campaign,” Cameron said.
Massie says Cameron fits the bill
Massie said in his speech to the crowd – while wearing his infamous ‘debt clock’ lapel, tracking the country’s debt in real time – that Cameron’s version of Republicanism fits well with his own, given his emphasis on a 10th Amendment-centric federalism that leaves many powers to the states as opposed to the federal government.
“What terrifies me is when I’m in Washington, D.C., and I say ‘leave it up to the states,’ and I’m like ‘’wait, Andy Beshear is in charge of our state. Maybe we don’t want to leave it up to the state If we’ve got somebody like Andy Beshear in that position.’ When I say ‘leave it up to the states’ I mean ‘leave it up to Daniel Cameron.’ This guy has what it takes,” Massie said.
He also lauded Cameron’s challenges to Beshear on COVID-19 as well as his support to law enforcement. And he said Cameron’s brand of pro-public schools Republicanism could broaden his support as well.
In an interview, he noted Cameron’s pitch to raise base salaries for teachers and to invest more dollars into a learning loss-targeted “catch-up plan” was a smart one. It could bring public educators and their families into the fold – an area where former GOP Gov. Matt Bevin faltered. The strategy could also get the votes of Lewis County residents who rely on public schools, Massie argued.
“I can say Daniel has a very good message for this area,” Massie said. “With Bevin, although I loved what he did ideologically and practically, his messaging was off especially for this region of Kentucky. I’m a product of public school K-12, some of my teachers are here in this room, and the public school system is the biggest employer in Lewis County, His message was ’we’re going to fix public schools,’ and I saw teachers in here nodding their heads.”
In 2019, Bevin underperformed in Lewis County – which, Massie boasted, has been Republican-aligned since the Civil War. In his 2019 loss, Bevin beat Beshear by 42.5 percentage points in Lewis County. In his 2015 win, he bested Democratic contender Jack Conway by 50 percentage points.
Votes from Republicans in conservative counties like Lewis County are often needed for Republicans to overcome Democratic margins in urban areas like Louisville and Lexington. Cameron called on those in attendance at the courthouse to get on board.
“Let’s leave it all on the field. Let’s knock doors, let’s make phone calls, let’s walk neighborhoods. This is the moment, this is our opportunity in time to say that our values matter, that our kid and grandkids matter, and that we’re going to fight for them,” Cameron said.
