If you're looking for a real-life example of what government waste and fraud can mean, look no further than the rusting Roebling Suspension Bridge that links Covington and Cincinnati.

Last week, the Enquirer reported plans to repaint the historic Ohio River span, already delayed since 1998, will be put off for several more years. Kentucky officials say the state can't afford its $6 million cost, a third of the state's entire yearly bridge maintenance budget.

Guess why it can't afford the $6 million?

Last week, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet officials approved a $17.8 million bid to repaint the Interstate 65 Kennedy Bridge across the Ohio at Louisville, the Associated Press reported.

But that's not the half of it - literally. The state already has squandered more than $20 million on the Kennedy Bridge repainting because of a bribery scandal involving state inspectors, and the ensuing lawsuits by bridge painting companies.

Cleaning out the Transportation Cabinet was one of the principal reforms on which Gov. Ernie Fletcher focused during his gubernatorial campaign. The Kennedy Bridge fiasco demonstrates why Fletcher was on target. Fletcher's transportation secretary, Clay Bailey, is straightening out the mess.

Still, you've got to wonder about the state's priorities. A lovely new green, beige and chestnut brown coat covering the Kennedy scandal may play well in Louisville, but the Roebling should have been on the front burner. The 139-year-old bridge is a national treasure, a prototype for the Brooklyn Bridge. It is a key historic and symbolic link to the Civil War era, especially with the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center set to open yards away.

The Kennedy Bridge, a mere 31 years old, was new when the Roebling last got a paint job, in 1980. As bridge engineer Rob Hans told the Enquirer, "Every year (the Roebling) goes without repainting, you're going to get a little more of it exposed and a little more rusting."

Even worse, the state also has awarded contracts to design two new Ohio River bridges at Louisville, with construction to begin in 2008. Meanwhile, the desperately needed replacement for the Brent Spence Bridge here is barely past the thought stage, as the priceless Roebling keeps rusting away.