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dontmeantobepoliticalbut · 10 months

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When Kentucky Attorney General turned Republican gubernatorial candidate Daniel Cameron discovered that an elected state Judge had accepted a campaign contribution of $250 from an attorney in a case before him last month, Cameron cited the donation as a reason that the judge had to recuse.

“These facts, individually and together, could cause a reasonable observer to question the impartiality or bias of the presiding Judge,” Cameron said.

But previously unreported public records information obtained by The Daily Beast shows that Cameron was in the same position at the same time—he just never acknowledged it.

In March and April, Cameron accepted $6,900 from officials at an addiction recovery center tied to an ongoing state investigation. Despite the donations, Cameron did not recuse himself from that investigation before he attacked the Judge. Instead, he waited until an open records request threatened to reveal the existence of that investigation, personally withdrawing from the case two days after the request came in.

The full timeline of events raises questions about Cameron’s conflict of interest, what he knew, and when. It will also almost certainly add fuel to bipartisan accusations that the outspoken, politically polarizing, Trump-supporting Republican has abused the power of his office during his tenure.

The company in question is Edgewater Recovery Center, a Kentucky-based addiction resource provider. According to the open records correspondence obtained by The Daily Beast, Edgewater is currently party to an investigation run by Kentucky’s Office of Medicaid Fraud and Abuse, a division of the Office of Attorney General. The Cameron donors include Edgewater’s owner, its general counsel, and directors for the recovery center’s medical, human resources, and clinical practices.

No Edgewater employee has given to Cameron previously, Kentucky campaign finance records show. And the donations appear to have come in the late stages of the investigation, which was opened sometime in 2022, according to a public records response obtained by The Daily Beast.

The donations all came in March and April, per state campaign finance records. But Cameron only recused himself from the investigation on May 19—those two days after his office received a May 17 request for a list of his recusals, and one week after his conflict-of-interest broadside against the Judge. It then took another week for Cameron’s office to answer the request, which included a copy of Cameron’s notice of recusal, dated May 19. To explain the recusal, Cameron’s office cited “an abundance of caution.”

But the recusal came three days after Cameron won the GOP primary, which the donations were designated to support, according to state campaign finance filings. (The Judge he’d attacked earlier that month was eventually removed, but not for the political donation—he had also “liked” a political post on Facebook in support of Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear.)

Additionally, records reviewed by The Daily Beast show that while Cameron recused himself from other cases in the time after receiving the Edgewater donations, he didn’t recuse from that case until the public records inquiry.

The campaign eventually returned the money from Edgewater donors on June 14, campaign finance filings show—nearly a full month after winning the primary election that the donations helped fund. But those refunds came five days after Cameron’s office received a follow-up request for more details about the probe. The OAG didn’t reply to that June 9 request until June 16—two days after the Cameron campaign issued the refunds.

According to the public records information, the Edgewater donations appear to have come late in the probe, after the OAG had already completed extensive investigative work and was contemplating punitive action.

In its response to the records request, the office claimed that the case file was exempt from public disclosure because the release might “harm an ongoing criminal investigation.” The reply also cited “information to be used in a prospective law enforcement action or administrative adjudication” and “documents prepared for or in anticipation of [criminal] litigation or a trial.”

The OAG noted that the withheld information includes witness interviews, subpoenas, correspondence with Medicare Managed Entities, financial information, and documents still under court seal.

The case number indicates that Cameron’s office opened the probe sometime in 2022. It is not immediately clear whether any Edgewater officials are targets. Edgewater did not immediately reply to an emailed request for comment. Neither Cameron’s office nor his campaign replied either.

This wouldn’t be the first ethical quandary Cameron has faced while running Kentucky’s law enforcement operations. Cameron first drew national attention—and condemnation—after he defended the “no-knock” police shooting death of Breonna Taylor in 2020, calling the killing “justified.”

But the Edgewater investigation wouldn’t even be the first ethics dilemma tied to Cameron's campaign contributions this year.

In April, Cameron’s campaign and office defended a combined $100,000 in political donations from a gaming company that is currently suing the state, with Cameron named as one defendant.

The money came from gaming company Pace-O-Matic and two of its executives, and it went to a PAC backing Cameron’s campaign, called “Bluegrass Freedom Action,” the Louisville Courier-Journal reported at the time. Pace-O-Matic had just spent months throwing cash at lobbyists, seemingly in a failed attempt to ply the Kentucky legislature to block a bill that would have restricted its gambling activity in the state.

When the bill passed, Pace-O-Matic sued the state. The $100,000 gift to the pro-Cameron PAC came in the weeks after the bill was blocked and before the company filed the lawsuit. Additionally, Pace-O-Matic executives and their family members—16 people in all—also gave nearly $30,000 directly to Cameron’s campaign, according to the Courier-Journal. All 16 contributions came on March 27—the day before the company filed its lawsuit.

The donations prompted a lawyer and donor to Cameron’s primary opponent, Kelly Craft, to file an ethics complaint. But Pace-O-Matic, the Attorney General’s office, and Cameron all rejected suggestions of impropriety.

“In this specific instance, the Attorney General’s office has already been defending the legislation passed by the General Assembly. No matter who asks, he does the same thing, which is that he will stand up for what’s right and defend the laws of Kentucky,” Cameron's gubernatorial campaign manager Gus Herbert said in a statement at the time.

Last year, Kentucky Democrats alleged that Cameron violated state ethics rules when he announced his gubernatorial campaign while his office investigated sitting Democratic Gov. Andy Beshears. An ethics complaint at the time cited rulings that prohibit the Attorney General from investigating a sitting Governor. (In January, Cameron’s office ruled that Beshears had violated open records laws by withholding information related to school closures during the COVID pandemic.)

But Cameron, who denied wrongdoing in that matter, has also cried foul when it comes to investigations against Republicans. This month, he attacked the federal indictment against ally Donald Trump, saying that “Kentuckians continue to be concerned about the political weaponization of government power.”

Other ethics concerns linger among Democrats. This Thursday, the Cameron campaign lashed out at a political ad attacking him for his connections to efforts to score controversial pardons from former GOP Gov. Matt Bevin, who in his final months in office issued pardons to people convicted of grisly crimes, including murder and rape.

While Cameron initially vowed to investigate the pardon scandal, he handed it off to the FBI. He later hired two top officials who advocated for controversial pardons while working in Bevin’s office.

Cameron also has donor ties to another major player in Kentucky GOP politics who pushed Bevin to pardon a friend of his. That megadonor—Kentucky financial and nursing home magnate Terry Forcht, a longtime ally of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell—contributed to Bevin while advocating for the pardon of the son of a Forcht family friend.

But the Forcht family also donated to Cameron himself—in 2019, according to state filings.

Earlier this month, Cameron was photographed meeting personally with the Republican financier at Forcht’s office.

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cannabisbusinessexecutive · 2 years

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Kansas Governor clears way for cannabis research center to open

Gov. Andy Beshear cleared the way Tuesday for a cannabis research center to open as he reviews whether he has the executive authority to singlehandedly legalize medical marijuana in Kentucky. The governor revealed his action on a bill authorizing the research center at the University of Kentucky. The measure won overwhelming approval from lawmakers on the final day of this year’s legislative…

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#Gov. Andy Beshear #kentucky marijuana #Legal Marijuana #Marijuana research #medical marijuana #University of Kentucky

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codesquire · 6 months

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Cool, I'll have a Beshear yard sign soon.

#kentucky politics #kentucky gubernatorial shit show #andy beshear #gov. andy beshear #armchair punditry #armchair political commentary #me

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rapeculturerealities · 1 year

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Kentucky governor vetoes sweeping GOP transgender measure

Kentucky’s Democratic governor issued an election-year veto Friday of a sweeping Republican bill aimed at regulating the lives of transgender youths that includes banning access to gender-affirming health care and restricting the bathrooms they can use.

The bill also bans discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in schools and allows teachers to refuse to refer to transgender students by the pronouns they use. It easily passed the GOP-dominated legislature with veto-proof margins, and lawmakers will reconvene next week for the final two days of this year’s session, when they could vote to override the veto.

Gov. Andy Beshear said in a written veto message that the bill allows “too much government interference in personal healthcare issues and rips away the freedom of parents to make medical decisions for their children.”

In his one-page message, he warned that the bill’s repercussions would include an increase in youth suicides. The governor said, “My faith teaches me that all children are children of God and Senate Bill 150 will endanger the children of Kentucky.”

#Kentucky #Beshear #Trans #Transgender #Lgbtqia #lgbtq youth

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afeelgoodblog · 1 year

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The Best News of Last Week - April 3, 2023

Kentucky Legalizes Medical Marijuana in Bipartisan Vote After Decade of Failed Attempts

The state of Kentucky has legalized the use of medical marijuana. The bill received final passage on Thursday. Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear signed it into law Friday morning after a decade of failed attempts in the state legislature.

The news makes Kentucky at least the 38th state in the U.S. to legalize medical marijuana.

Now Indiana is surrounded by weed states. The encirclement is complete 😂

2. The Maryland House of Delegates voted Saturday to approve the Trans Health Equity Act

The Maryland House of Delegates voted Saturday to approve the Trans Health Equity Act — a bill that just a year ago disappeared from the chamber’s agenda ahead of a floor vote.

The bill would require Maryland Medicaid, beginning on Jan. 1, 2024, to provide coverage for additional gender-affirming treatments, which are currently disallowed in the state’s plan but commonly covered by private insurance. The expanded treatments include hormone therapy, hair alteration, voice therapy, physical alterations to the body, and fertility preservation.

3. FDA approves over-the-counter Narcan. Here's what it means

The approved nasal spray is the best-known form of naloxone. It can reverse overdoses of opioids, including street drugs such as heroin and fentanyl and prescription versions including oxycodone.

Making naloxone available more widely is seen as a key strategy to control the nationwide overdose crisis. Effects begin within two minutes when given intravenously, and within five minutes when injected into a muscle. The medicine can also be administered by spraying it into a person's nose.

4. Boston expands tuition-free community college program to all residents

Boston has expanded its tuition-free community college program to include all city residents regardless of age, income or immigration status.

Starting this fall, any city resident will be eligible to pursue an associate’s degree or certificate at one of six partnering local institutions without paying to attend. The program also includes a $250 stipend for incidental expenses each semester for up to three years, and up to $2,500 of debt relief for students whose account balances are keeping them from re-enrolling.

5. First cheetah cubs born in India since extinction 70 years ago

India has welcomed the birth of four cheetah cubs - more than 70 years after the animals were declared officially extinct there.India's environment minister announced the good news, calling it a "momentous event".

The country has been trying to reintroduce the big cats for decades, and last year brought eight cheetahs over from Namibia as part of the plan. Another 12 cheetahs were brought to India from South Africa last month.

6. BBC education show in Afghanistan helps children banned from school

The BBC has launched a new education programme for children in Afghanistan who are banned from school.It is aimed at children aged 11 to 16, including girls whose secondary education has been stopped by the ruling Taliban.

The weekly programme is called Dars, which means lesson in Dari and Pashto, Afghanistan's official languages. It is hosted by BBC Afghan female journalists who were evacuated from Kabul during the 2021 Taliban takeover.

Each new weekly half-hour episode of Dars will air four times a day, Saturday to Friday, on the newly launched BBC News Afghanistan channel.

7. A Trans Creator Has Raised Over 1.5 Million for Trans Healthcare on TikTok Live

Transgender TikTokers are celebrating Trans Day of Visibility by raising over $1.5 million for gender-affirming care around the world.

Mercury Stardust — a DIY TikToker and trans advocate who calls herself the “Trans Handy Ma’am” — raised $120,000 last year in a livestream for the mutual aid nonprofit Point of Pride, which maintains funds for surgeries, hormone therapy, and free binders and gaffs. This year, Stardust and cohost Jory, a.k.a. AlluringSkull, set themselves a goal of raising $1 million in a planned 30-hour live stream…and then smashed that milestone less than six hours after starting the stream Thursday evening.

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metalheadsforblacklivesmatter · 1 year

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Another person I'd support for president

-fae

#black lives matter #blm #black lives still matter #pamela stevenson #people i support for president

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bfpnola · 1 year

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kentucky representative pamela stevenson speaks in opposition of overriding gov. andy beshear’s veto of senate bill 150, which bans gender-affirming care for trans youth

#reaux speaks #kentucky #andy beshear #pamela stevenson #american government #trans #gender affirming #health #black lives matter #jewish #white supremacy

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tomorrowusa · 6 months

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« Think of that: a red-state Democrat running on abortion rights and winning. Only in a post-Roe world.

[ … ]

Beshear has now won two races in a state that favored Trump by 26 points in 2020. The first could have been dismissed as a fluke, given that in 2019 he faced an unpopular Republican incumbent in a tough environment for the GOP. But he significantly expanded his margin of victory this time. He’s also just 45 years old.

He’s not the only governor to win multiple times in an unfavorable state for his party. Such governors tend to have little hope nationally because of how much they have to moderate and even criticize their party. But in Beshear, Democrats could actually have someone potentially acceptable to their base. He’s largely in line with his national party on key social issues. »

— Aaron Blake at the Washington Post writing about Kentucky Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear.

Gov. Beshear won by a bigger margin in 2023 than he did in 2019 when he ran against a deeply unpopular and corrupt GOP incumbent governor. And his opponent this year was endorsed by both Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell who had racked up big margins in Kentucky.

#kentucky #andy beshear #democrats #abortion #roe v. wade #reproductive freedom #election 2023 #aaron blake

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republicansaredomesticterrorists · 6 months

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#republican assholes

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dontmeantobepoliticalbut · 1 year

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KY. SUPREME COURT RULES AGAINST REPUBLICAN-BACKED SCHOOL CHOICE LAW

In a unanimous ruling, the Kentucky Supreme Court has declared unconstitutional a controversial school choice law passed in 2021.

The bill, known as the Education Opportunity Account (EOA) Act, narrowly became law in 2021 with the support of a majority of Republicans in the state legislature. The act created a privately funded needs-based assistance program to cover educational expenses for families. The law also created a pilot program that would offer tuition assistance to help students attend pre K-12 non-public schools in counties with more than 90,000 people, which proponents of the law argued would help students to be able to choose the best school for them regardless of family income.

Those who donated to the accounts were to be eligible for potentially sizable tax credits, a provision that sparked some controversy. The tax credit portion of the program, among others, drew criticism for essentially funding private schools with public dollars in a roundabout way through the tax credit system. Under the law, Kentucky taxpayers who donated would have received “a nearly dollar-for-dollar tax credit against their income taxes” according to the ruling.

Kentucky Supreme Court Justice Lisabeth Hughes, who wrote the majority opinion affirming Franklin Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd’s ruling against the law, wrote that the program violated Section 184 of the Kentucky Constitution, which limits the raising or collecting of “sum[s]” for “education other than in common schools.”

“Applying the plain language of this section, the income tax credit raises money for nonpublic education and its characterization as a tax credit rather than an appropriation is immaterial,” Hughes wrote.

There were other challenges to the law aside from the one related to Section 184, but Hughes wrote that “the remaining constitutional challenges to the EOA Act are rendered moot” by the court siding with the initial challenge.

Shepherd had also ruled that the law violated the state constitution’s limitation of “special legislation” that only applies to certain communities in the state due to its provision singling out counties with populations over 90,000 at the time of the 2010 U.S. Census.

As a bill, the initiative was sponsored by Rep. Chad McCoy, R-Bardstown, who also pushed through a controversial education bill in 2022’s House Bill 9, which set up a funding mechanism for charter schools in Kentucky.

Though Republicans were the ones who helped push the bill over the finish line in Frankfort, support within the party was not unanimous. The bill made it through the House on a razor thin 48-47 margin, with many rural Republicans voting against it.

Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto of the bill was overridden with a slim 51-member majority in the House.

In his veto message, Beshear said the bill would “harm public education in Kentucky by taking money away from public schools.” In a post to Twitter on Thursday, the Governor took his message a step further. He compared the EOA law to the newly passed law funding charter schools in Kentucky.

“Today’s ruling by the Kentucky Supreme Court couldn’t be more clear: state funding for private or charter schools is unconstitutional – period. It’s time for the General Assembly to invest in our public schools, our teachers and our children,” Beshear wrote.

Fayette County Public Schools argued against the law, saying that it stripped resources away from its schools and students.

Republican House Speaker David Osborne said he was disappointed.

“Our priority with HB 563 was to ensure all Kentucky children have access to the educational opportunities they deserve and require to reach their potential, particularly in light of the learning loss and setbacks caused by shutdowns and limited access to necessary services,” Osborne said.

“While we are disappointed and respectfully disagree with the Court’s decision to strike down this section, we remain committed to this. We will continue our efforts to empower parents and families despite pushback from an education administration more interested in satisfying self-serving union interests,” he said.

The Bluegrass Institute for Public Policy Solutions, a libertarian-leaning think, was one of the biggest cheerleaders for the law. It released a statement expressing disappointment at the court’s ruling.

“Contrary to the court’s ruling, Kentucky’s Constitution doesn’t prohibit educational alternatives for parents; it simply requires that the commonwealth 'provide for an efficient system of common schools throughout the State,'” a statement from the organization said.

The Kentucky Education Association, the state’s largest teachers union, celebrated the ruling.

“This decision protects the power of the people to decide important questions of public education policy and holds the legislature to account to uphold their oath to support and defend the Kentucky Constitution... We simply can’t afford to support two different education systems — one private and one public — on the taxpayers’ dime, and this ruling supports that concern. This decision is proof that the courts continue to serve as an important check against legislative overreach,” KEA President Eddie Campbell wrote.

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