In the splendid book Parliament of Whores, author P.J. O'Rourke wrote that allowing politicians access to power and money is like giving teen-age boys car keys and whiskey.
Both are recipes for big problems.
Witness the intriguing power struggle playing out in the Kentucky state Senate in Frankfort, a fight more about control than cash. There's been more jockeying going on than in the final stretch at Turfway Park.
With the parties at near parity in the Senate for the last two years -- Democrats slightly outnumber Republicans, 20-18 -- the atmosphere has been, and continues to be, ripe for deal-cutting, back-stabbing, unexpected alliances and smash-mouth politics. It will all play out in early January, when the often disorganized Kentucky General Assembly meets for its organizational session, a time when the parties choose their respective leaders.
A couple of weeks ago, Sen. David Williams, a moderate Republican from Burkesville in south central Kentucky, announced he had the votes to be elected GOP floor leader.
Mr. Williams has apparently been lighting up the phones across the state in recent months, getting enough support in
his corner to run current floor leader Dan Kelly, a staunch conservative from Springfield, from leadership.
Mr. Williams appears to be motivated by a number of factors. He has an ego the size of Lake Cumberland, which happens to sit in his district.
He has grown frustrated with the GOP's agenda under Mr. Kelly, who at times and with the help of other senators -- Boone County's Gex "Jay" Williams among them -- seemed to make anti-abortion legislation the main and only priority of the Republican caucus. And he has one of the greatest inspirations any politician can find -- revenge. Earlier this year, Mr. Kelly and Gex Williams tried to recruit a Republican to run against David Williams in the May primary.
With Gex Williams serving out his term this month, Mr. Kelly is losing one of his main supporters and political henchmen, leaving himself open to the challenge.
So David Williams is making a power-sharing agreement with Sen. President Larry Saunders, the Louisville Democrat swept into office two years ago by most Republicans and a few Democrats in a coup orchestrated by -- irony of ironies here -- Gex Williams and Mr. Kelly.
Just last week, another Louisville Democrat, pizza parlor owner Sen. Dan Seum, released a letter he wrote to some of his Senate colleagues.
In the letter, Mr. Seum seeks support for a plan to elect a Republican and replace Mr. Saunders as Senate president. Though they are both from Louisville and both Democrats, the two senators have a history and don't get along.
A feud hurts N. Ky.
A decade ago, Mr. Seum ousted Mr. Saunders from the Senate. In 1992, Mr. Saunders returned to beat Mr. Seum, who then returned to the Senate in 1994 when legislative districts were redrawn.
And here's a real rub -- Mr. Seum jumped Mr. Saunders and accused him of selling out to Democrats for dealing with the Republicans to win the presidency.
That's exactly what Mr. Seum is advocating now.
So how does Northern Kentucky fare in all this posturing? Not very well is the quick answer.
The region doesn't exactly exude clout and muscle in Frankfort. But under Mr. Kelly, Northern Kentucky had one member of Republican leadership -- Senate Minority Caucus Chairman Dick Roeding of Lakeside Park -- and was poised to land another seat.
Senator-elect Katie Stine of Fort Thomas, the Republican who last month won the seat being left by the departing Gex Williams, was in line for a slot in GOP leadership.
But if David Williams does ascend to floor leader with the blessing of Mr. Saunders, Northern Kentucky Republicans are out. Mr. Roeding will lose his seat and Mrs. Stine won't get hers.
We're talking Frankfort here, however, where the only thing to count on is not to count on anything.
What hath Gex wrought?
Northern Kentucky's four senators -- Mrs. Stine, Gex Williams, Jack Westwood of Erlanger and Ernie Harris of Oldham County -- probably won't support David Williams, and they could turn on Mr. Saunders. That could make things interesting when the leadership votes are taken next month.
And so we're back to the original point, about how the thirst for power can skew the political and legislative landscape of a governmental body.
Remember, the original coup Gex Williams helped lead was not about as power as much as it was about fairness and opening up the process.
For years, if not decades, Senate Republicans and out-of-favor Democrats were at the mercy of a harsh, powerful committee system. If leadership or the governor or a lobbyist or whoever wanted a bill killed, a Democratic committee chair could -- with the full blessing of leadership -- simply refuse to hear the bill.
Conservative Republicans such as Mr. Kelly and Gex Williams were angered that their bills, particularly those to
curb abortion and change the Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA), expired without a vote in Democratic-controlled committees.
Thus they staged a coup, changing Senate rules so bills had to be heard and voted on. And in the 1998 session, they saw legislation curbing abortions, changing KERA and more finally debated and in some cases even passed.
Now Kentucky's senators have a different problem to deal with. Their bills are heard, but their leaders are battling over who will be in charge.
It's not a pretty sight.
People are calling one another names. Decisions are being impaired by the lust to lead. Arguments are common. The Senate is in a state of volatility, with irrational behavior setting a stage where anything can happen.
P.J. was right. Being drunk with power isn't a whole lot different from just being drunk.
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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