Wednesday, October 27, 1999
Opponents take shots at Patton
State reforms criticized
BY PATRICK CROWLEY
The Cincinnati Enquirer
COVINGTON — Gubernatorial candidates Peppy Martin and Gatewood Galbraith criticized many of the state's recent reforms — including education, health care and workers comp — during campaign visits Tuesday to Northern Kentucky.
For the second time in as many days Ms. Martin, a Republican from Hart County, and Reform Party candidate Gatewood Galbraith used television appearances to take shots at sweeping legislative reform packages passed by past Democratic administrations in Frankfort.
As they did Monday during a KET debate televised statewide, they bashed Democratic incumbent Gov. Paul Patton during separate appearances Tuesday afternoon on the local cable access show Northern Kentucky Live.
Mr. Patton declined an invitation to appear on the program, according to the program's producers.
Mr. Galbraith compared what he called “failed reforms” passed by Democratic administrations to government corruption.
“Corruption is generally not the laws they break, it's the laws that make,” Mr. Galbraith said. “And many times it is momentum for reform ... that they will institutionalize corruption.”
Mr. Patton's administration has used economic development programs to reduce taxes paid by companies that promise to bring jobs and businesses to the state, Mr. Galbraith said.
The companies always promise jobs but don't always deliver, he said.
“That's institutional corruption,” Mr. Galbraith said. “That's the taxpayers' dollar being squandered without any ability for the taxpayer to see they're getting a bang for the buck.”
Mr. Galbraith said education reform has buried teachers in paper work; workers' comp reform has made it too difficult for truly injured workers to collect benefits; and health care reform has driven out competition in the private insurance market, driven up rates and left county health departments without enough money to provide medical coverage to the poor.
As he has done throughout the campaign, Mr. Galbraith repeated his populist mantra that Reformers can tap into the widespread resentment and lack of faith in the Democratic and Republican parties.
“I am running because it became painfully obvious to me that neither of the major parties was capable of producing a candidate that was going to address the chronic problems that Kentucky has been facing through my lifetime,” Mr. Galbraith said.
Ms. Martin made many of the same points on health care, workers' comp reform and the Kentucky Education Reform Act, or KERA, as Mr. Galbraith.
She also called for reducing the property tax on automobiles, a tax rebate of $200 per taxpayer in Kentucky — though she offered no plan on how to pay for it — and a streamline process so day care centers could receive state approval faster and for less money.
And while opposition to abortion is a huge political issue in Northern Kentucky, Mrs. Martin said she does not think government should concentrate on reducing or addressing abortion but that she would sign legislation banning late-term abortions, a procedure known as partial-birth abortions.
Ms. Martin also attacked Mr. Patton for his close ties to business people, many of whom are among his largest campaign contributors.
“Paul Patton is owned by the special interest groups” in this state, she said.
Neither Mr. Galbraith nor Ms. Martin has raised near the money Mr. Patton has and are given little chance of beating him next Tuesday.
But Mr. Galbraith said he is stumping across the state over the next few days in a bus.
“I'm not taking anything for granted,” he said. “Anything can happen, and I really think I'm going to win this thing.”
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