FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Top Democrats will skip Kentucky’s premier political event this weekend, leaving no one to defend against Republican criticism of President Barack Obama’s policies.
Gov. Steve Beshear is out of the country on an economic development mission that will cause him to miss the always raucous political picnic in the tiny western Kentucky town of Fancy Farm. Other Democratic leaders have cited an assortment of reasons, including birthday and anniversary parties, for their absences.
“Naturally, we’re disappointed,” said Mark Wilson, an organizer of the annual get-together that has drawn politicians from across Kentucky for more than 130 years.
For generations of politicians, the Fancy Farm picnic has been an annual rite that serves as the unofficial kickoff of general election season. It also is a fundraiser for St. Jerome Catholic Church, generating better than $200,000 a year for ministry to the rural farming community, primarily from sales of picnic food, a vehicle raffle and bingo games.
In good years, the event draws more than 10,000 people.
Nearly every family in the parish is involved in the event. Cooking and dishing out food are the biggest chores. Food stands sell hamburgers, hot dogs and hand-dipped ice cream, and tons of barbecued mutton and pulled pork.
A holdover from the days before mass communications when politicians had to seek out crowds, Fancy Farm has historically been the place where candidates kicked off their campaigns. Newspapers, television stations and other media from across the state cover the speeches, making the event important not just for frontrunners, but also for lesser-known candidates who need to get their messages out.
“It is inconceivable to me that anyone would turn down free media,” said Ken Moellman, a northern Kentucky businessman who will speak on behalf of Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson. “I honestly cannot understand the rationale for not going to Fancy Farm. It’s the biggest event in the state, politically.”
Moellman said he will urge Kentuckians to vote for Johnson.
“Given the way this race is shaping up, this state is really not in play in the presidential race,” Moellman said. “Kentucky is a nonfactor in the race, so we in Kentucky have an opportunity to send a message to Frankfort and to DC that we’re not happy, and you can do that by voting for Gary Johnson.”
Political rhetoric is always heated at the Fancy Farm event, as is the outdoor pavilion where speeches will be delivered. Temperatures are predicted to be in the mid-90s on Saturday, but will feel hotter because of the region’s high humidity levels.
After lunch is served and the midday temperature peaks, sweaty politicians gather on a wooden stage from where they take turns trying to shout their speeches over a verbal melee of jeering detractors and cheering supporters.
U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, the ranking GOP speaker at the event, is expected to criticize Obama for his environmental and health care policies at the Fancy Farm event. Meanwhile, another Obama critic, Sen. Rand Paul, opted not to attend.
Polls show Obama remains unpopular in Kentucky, four years after losing the state to Hillary Clinton in the 2008 Democratic primary and Sen. John McCain in that year’s general election. Obama’s popularity doesn’t seem to have improved. In this spring’s Kentucky primary, 42 percent of Democratic voters marked their ballots “uncommitted,” even though Obama was the only Democratic presidential candidate on the ballot.
“I think there is a very real fear of Democrats in Kentucky being associated with Barack Obama,” said state GOP Chairman Steve Robertson. “You really can’t blame them for not wanting to take on the task of defending their president, because, in Kentucky, it’s a pretty tall order.”
Other Democrats, including Lt. Gov. Jerry Abramson, Attorney General Jack Conway, said they have family matters that prevent them from attending the picnic.
House Speaker Greg Stumbo, a Fancy Farm veteran, will stand in for all the Democratic no-shows.
“Kentucky Democrats are looking forward to a great weekend at Fancy Farm,” said Matt Erwin, a spokesman for the state Democratic Party. “Democrats across the commonwealth are ready energized and excited about building on last year’s successes and making 2012 another winning year.”
