Just a few months ago, Jamie Comer’s staff (three of them, none of which were Holly Harris) were reluctantly telling us how Comer thought he had the Kentucky State Police and other law enforcement agencies in his back pocket. He even held a meeting with Rodney Brewer, after which he claimed everything was puppies and rainbows.
Now we’re hearing from folks at KSP that Comer’s folks allegedly didn’t invite the KSP to yesterday’s Hemp Commission meeting until yesterday morning.
Here’s what Comer says:
Who to believe? And does it matter?
No, it doesn’t matter. Because Comer still hasn’t answered the basic questions so many people are asking. Not even Holly Harris seems to know what’s going on when it comes to explaining the basics to meemaw and poppop on the street. The pros and cons of hemp need to be dumbed down and sold to the public in bullet points.
When everyone from Larry Cox to Comer himself are focused on being confrontational and bull-headed with law enforcement, it sets their cause back. Rather than focus on working behind the scenes, there’s been a concerted effort to attack. That’s beyond counter-productive.
Rather than focusing on getting free press in all 120 counties and going to umpteen high schools a week to talk about agriculture (see public schedule below), maybe it would behoove the Comer crew to focus on this issue that they claim is an economic godsend for Kentucky a bit more instead of watching it slip through their fingertips.
CLICK FOR PDF OF SCHEDULE
We don’t care one way or the other beyond the potential for a positive economic impact. But the bullishness is silly. If this effort fails? It will 100% be because of Jamie Comer and a handful of his staffers.
2 responses so far ↓
1 Jim Higdon // Jan 29, 2013 at 12:08 pm
Jake,
I don’t understand why you would attack Comer for doing the right thing.
JCH-3
2 jake // Jan 29, 2013 at 12:20 pm
He’s being questioned for playing pat-a-cake with police, for not providing solid information that the public can easily digest and for generally half-assing this. That’s hardly attacking.
I won’t break confidentiality but when his own staffers – along with your friends and fellow commissioners – question what’s going on? That’s what I consider a problem.
Instead of foaming at the mouth at reporters when pressed for specifics and overreacting on Twitter, maybe Comer could do things like mention that the Commission yesterday authorized a new study to be conducted by UK? Or maybe have his staffers disseminate actual information to news outlets begging for it instead of treating them (mainstream outlets) as the enemy. Same goes for Democratic legislators and supporters of UNITE.
It also goes for law enforcement. It’s fine to question Rodney Brewer and law enforcement in general on this matter, as funding is clearly a concern of theirs. It’s another to fight them in some ignorant teabagger battle instead of pushing to work with them for a solution. One closed door meeting with Brewer doesn’t it cut it.
I can’t fault him for not having the time to really focus on an issue that is allegedly a monster of an economic godsend, though. He’s got a busy schedule of touring high schools and doling out fair board checks all Jack Conway-style because he’s got a future campaign to prepare for.
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