BY PATRICK CROWLEY
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Here are a couple of cliches that apply to today's political environment in Northern Kentucky.
"What goes around comes around."
"Paybacks are hell."
Just a few short years ago, when Democrats ruled the local political roost, Republicans took great and frequent pleasure in jabbing their campaign counterparts at nearly every turn.
Some of the sniping wasn't purely political and addressed true policy questions:
Republican state lawmakers, led by Northern Kentuckians, said Gov. Brereton Jones' health insurance reform package would fail. And it did on many counts, so badly in fact that the legislature has twice had to revisit the issue to make changes.
GOP members of the region's delegation to Frankfort have long said the Kentucky Education Reform Act is flawed and, particularly, that the testing component needed to be thrown out.
Again, they were correct on many counts. A new test is being drafted and more emphasis is being placed on "the basics."
This, however, is politics, and some of the Republican positions and initiatives appeared to be largely partisan. Like when GOP lawmakers stood in the way of funding for the $35 million convention center now close to completion in Covington. Or like how, no matter what the issue, some Republicans find a way to interject the subject of abortion -- with all its emotional and religious overtones -- into the debate.
Democrats have held, accurately to a point, that because Republicans were in the minority much of their carping and complaining was politically motivated.
"They can't support anything," the Democratic cry went, "and they aren't in control, so they just shoot at us Dems as we try to lead the region."
So what is the Democratic posture now that the Republicans have the political advantage in Northern Kentucky?
One guess.
Some of the very same Democrats who used to be on the receiving end of the grief are now handing it out. And having fun doing it.
The Republicans aren't quite dominating politics like the Democrats did for so long. After all, Democrats still control all three courthouses and hold majorities on the Boone, Kenton and Campbell county fiscal courts.
But the Democrats also look stunningly similar to the Republicans before the GOP rise really took off in the '94 statehouse elections. There is infighting and disorganization in some of the county parties. Money is harder to come by. There are serious GOP challenges in all three county fiscal court races.
And in a real measure of GOP muscle, the Democrats didn't bother fielding candidates for seats they used to routinely win.
So now it is the Democrats playing guerrilla politics. One need look no further than the tweaking the Kenton County Democratic Party did to former Judge-executive Clyde Middleton this past week.
The Democrats think Mr. Middleton, a Republican, should turn over to the county the $65,000 he still has in unused campaign funds. The money could then be used to help pay for legal costs in the courthouse bidding controversy that has landed the county in court, while costing taxpayers an $850,000 settlement and Mr. Middleton his job.
The Democrats are aware they don't have much legal standing in their crusade. But they are having a ball watching the Kenton County Republican Party sweat.
You see, the county party is counting on a big chunk of that money for its fall elections and its campaign to win the fiscal court.
"Watching this is kind of fun," chuckled one Democrat. "It's what they used to do to us."
Then there is the scandal du jour aimed at state Sen. Gex "Jay" Williams, the Republican candidate for Northern Kentucky's congressional seat.
Mr. Williams, who has played some political hardball in his time, has been questioned and attacked on a variety of fronts the past several weeks.
Some of the barbs have come from the campaign of his Democratic opponent, Ken Lucas. Some have not, though party activists and leaders have had a hand in almost every incident.
There is nothing wrong with turning the spotlight on Mr. Williams' background and history. There are still lots of unanswered questions about a land deal in which he took in $60,000 without having to give up use of the land, and about some phone calls made from the state Capitol to his campaign team.
But there comes a point where reasonable scrutiny gives way to "the sky is falling."
How many more times will the Democrats roll out the tired flap about Mr. Williams' resume and allegations (which he has denied) that he tried to pull a fast one by claiming to graduate from the U.S. Naval Academy, while he merely attended for two years?
And how about last week, when the Lucas campaign promised "a big story" and then came up with the fact that Mr. Williams must be against the type of auto racing Jerry Carroll wants to bring to Northern Kentucky because he didn't vote to honor a race car driver from Kentucky?
Mr. Williams does not help himself by sometimes failing or refusing to take responsibility for some of his actions, blaming others -- legislative staff, people using the phones in his state office and "clerical errors" -- when he does make a faux pas.
For as laughable and somewhat silly as the Democrats' attack was on Mr. Williams for not supporting NASCAR driver Darrell Waltrip, it's just as shallow for Mr. Williams to say he cast the votes against Mr. Waltrip because of "clerical errors."
Saying the votes were somebody else's fault and not his own makes Mr. Williams look like he is passing the buck and not standing up for his own actions. That just gives the Democrats fodder and keeps such issues alive.
The bottom line is the Dems are a little hypocritical for doing what they used to accuse the Republicans of doing -- that is playing politics with just about every issue. And some Republicans are getting a dose of the same medicine they used to give out in barrels. That Democrat was right. This is fun to watch.
Patrick Crowley covers Kentucky politics for The Kentucky Enquirer. His column appears Thursdays and Sundays. He can be reached at 578-5581, or 502-875-7526 in Frankfort
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