BY PATRICK CROWLEY
The Cincinnati Enquirer
FANCY FARM, Ky. -- The temperature was down, but the heat was definitely up Saturday at this year's Fancy Farm political picnic.
The western Kentucky picnic, the traditional start of the campaign season, has long been known for its humorous stump speeches, biting barbs and funny, yet sometimes nasty, exchanges between candidates and their opponents' supporters.
During the 1995 governor's race, things got out of hand when busloads of partisans used noisemakers, vicious heckling, props and hurled objects to disrupt the speakers. Ever since, the picnic's organizers have tried to quell some of the venom.
One of the people affiliated with the event implored the crowd Saturday not to use "artificial noisemakers, large signs or unsightly heckling," whatever that is. And for the most part, those listening to the political speeches complied.
But there were still some gems at Saturday's picnic.
The object is to get under a politician's skin, and many of the gimmicks and comments seemed to do the trick:
A busload of labor union members and miners came after Gov. Paul Patton at every opportunity.
The miners are miffed with Mr. Patton's workers' comp reform bill that the General Assembly passed two years ago. The bill made it difficult for miners to collect workers' comp benefits for a breathing malady associated with coal mining known as black lung.
Recently, Mr. Patton actually mentioned the teachings of Karl Marx, one of the founders of communism, in explaining the workers' comp reform. That gave his opponents plenty of fodder here Saturday.
The miners joined with a group of Republicans chanting "Comrade Paul" when Mr. Patton spoke, and Boone County Republican Party Chairman Jay Hall held up a huge picture of Mr. Marx under the caption "Patton's boy."
"I'm not easily intimidated," Mr. Patton said of the miners. "I prefer to deal with the facts."
Mr. Patton, who plans to seek re-election next year, was welcomed with a chant of "four more years" when he took the speaker's podium.
U.S. Senate candidate Scotty Baesler, a Democrat and former Lexington mayor, landed in some controversy last week that haunted him Saturday.
It was recently revealed that a city worker injured his knee while moving some furniture at Mr. Baesler's Lexington farm.
Three people wearing work clothes and phony knee braces limped in front of the speaker's podium Saturday before, during and after Mr. Baesler's speech.
Mr. Baesler's U.S. Senate opponent, Southgate Republican Jim Bunning, took some barbs for flying into western Kentucky Saturday morning on a private jet.
"That's the biggest darn jet I've ever seen," said U.S. Sen. Wendell Ford, the Owensboro Democrat whom Mr. Bunning and Mr. Baesler want to replace in the Senate.
"I came here in a pickup truck, not a private jet," Mr. Baesler said.
Kentucky's other senator, Louisville Republican Mitch McConnell, landed some blows at Mr. Baesler.
Mr. Baesler is a member of a group of moderate Southern Democrats in the U.S. House known as the Blue Dogs, but Mr. McConnell repeatedly called Mr. Baesler a "lap dog" and said he will march in lock-step with those "big spending, bureaucracy-loving national Democrats."
Mr. Bunning and other Republicans also picked up on the dog theme in haranguing Mr. Baesler.
Mr. Bunning rattled off Mr. Baesler's record, emphasizing votes the Democrat made that the GOP opposed. After each mention, Mr. Bunning and the Republicans hollered "bad doggie."
Lt. Gov. Steve Henry came after Mr. Bunning for some votes the Republican made as a member of the U.S. House, where Mr. Bunning has served for 12 years.
Mr. Bunning, a member of baseball's Hall of Fame, voted against funding and programs for working people, senior citizens and children, Mr. Henry said.
"(Mr. Bunning) doesn't belong in the Hall of Fame; he belongs in a Hall of Shame," Mr. Henry said.
Bill Clinton wasn't here, but some Republicans still went off on the president.
When Democrats mentioned Mr. Clinton, the Republicans in the crowd chanted "DNA," referring to the genetic tests that could be performed on a dress worn by Monica Lewinsky.
The tests could help determine if the president had a sexual relationship with the former White House intern, it was reported this week.
Mr. Ford wasn't smiling or laughing when Mr. McConnell poked fun at him during a speech -- he sat stone-faced, looking away as Mr. McConnell addressed the crowd.
But Mr. Ford became more animated when Mr. Bunning was talking about his own voting record in Congress. More than once Mr. Ford yelled "come on, Jim," and "that's not how it happened" as Mr. Bunning spoke.
A little wild. A little crazy. A lot of politics. That's what Fancy Farm is all about.
Patrick Crowley covers Kentucky politics for the Enquirer. He can be reached at 578-5581, or (502) 875-7526 in Frankfort.
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