Opinion: Can Andy BAE-shear and other top governors save America from itself?

Ricky L. Jones

Opinion contributor

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear has become somewhat of a national political celebrity. Andy Beshear? Celebrity?! Wow! Who saw that one coming?

NPR recently did a story on Beshear and the popularity resulting from his daily coronavirus updates. Morning Edition host Noah Inskeep reported, “an ocean of memes and videos celebrate Beshear — Beshear as Mr. Rogers, as Captain America, as Ryan Gosling.” People with less desirable governors are making “trade offers” for him on social media. Apparently, you can even buy “Andy BAE-shear” T-shirts. BAE! Really?!

I know and like Andy Beshear... oh, I’m sorry... BAE-shear a lot, but he isn’t the most charismatic fellow in the world. So, what the hell is this all about?

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“I want to make sure nobody is cut off” of utilities, says Gov. Andy Beshear during his daily coronavirus update to the state from the state capitol. He says this is not the time to kick people off or into the streets. He says the “bottom line” doesn’t matter right now. "It's going to take us being real good people." March 21, 2020

I guess the “Gov. Bae phenomenon” isn’t really hard to explain if one pays attention. We’re living through an actual time of crisis now, not a hypothetical one, and poor political leadership is rearing its head on multiple levels.

The president of the United States has largely abdicated his rightful political point-position in this moment of national crisis and left governors to stand in the gap. Some have done better than others. Along with Beshear, California’s Gavin Newsom, New York’s Andrew Cuomo, Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer and Washington’s Jay Inslee are among the standouts. Meanwhile, Texas’ Greg Abbott, Florida’s Rick DeSantis, Oklahoma’s Kevin Stitt, Tennessee’s Bill Lee and others have left a lot to be desired.

To be sure, the love currently heaped on Gov. Bae isn’t because he is flashy. He’s not! He’s just a responsible, sane leader in a country that’s gotten too comfortable with madmen. He’ll have to work hard to maintain that sanity as he tries to move the state into the future, because his Republican opponents in Kentucky are feverishly working to keep it in the past.

As COVID-19 descended upon the country, Kentucky’s Republican-dominated legislature passed a ballot measure to add language to the state’s Constitution declaring women do not have a legal right to an abortion by a 71-21 vote on March 10. Republican Rep. Joe Fischer said the proposal will help to “finally end the legal slaughter of unborn children" in Kentucky.

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A little over a week later, while citizens hunkered down in their homes, Kentucky’s Republicans spearheaded and passed a new voter ID bill. Secretary of State Michael Adams reiterated the long-standing GOP argument that voter fraud is a great threat to election integrity and this bill would “restore confidence in the voting process.” Of course, that is a lie.

A few years ago, the New York Times conducted a national study after ongoing conservative claims of rampant voter fraud. Their conclusion on how much actual fraud exists? “Next to none.”

The findings told us what we already knew. Voter fraud isn’t a problem in America; low voter turnout is. As Gov. Bae said, “Voting should be made easier, not more difficult.” But Republicans don’t want that, and this is just the latest chapter in their long book of voter suppression. The approach makes sense if one understands Republicans usually lose when voter turnout is higher.

It gets even crazier.

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While some celebrate Bae, others see his current efforts to save lives in Kentucky as “dictatorial.” Republican Rep. Savannah Maddox actually pushed a bill that would limit the governor’s powers in times of crisis and allow people to sue if his mandates damage their businesses.

Gov. Bae coolly smiled and responded, “Isn’t this silly?”

Speaking of silly. Bae has to lead a state that considers umbrellas more dangerous than guns. Don’t forget, Kentucky is the place where a horde of men (some masked), organized by “We Are KY Gun Owners,” paraded through the state’s capitol building armed to the teeth with pistols and high-powered rifles in January. The Courier Journal’s Joe Gerth reported umbrellas or sticks that are used for protest signs are banned in the capitol because “they can be used as weapons,” but guns are just fine. Go figure.

While portions of America may be cuddling up to Gov. Bae, we would also be wise to remember that he wasn’t widely loved in the Bluegrass state not so long ago. Maybe he still isn’t. He only beat unlikable former Gov. Matthew Bevin by less than half a percentage point (49.2% to 48.8%) last November.

But maybe, just MAYBE, this crisis will teach Kentucky and other states that good leadership and sensible approaches to the world actually matter. Maybe Andy Beshear and other mentally stable governors can save a country that continues to defend political maniacs from itself. Then again, maybe we’ll simply go back to “business as usual” when this thing passes. Who knows?

Either way, enjoy the love while it lasts... BAE!

Ricky L. Jones is a professor and political philosopher with degrees from Morehouse College and the University of Kentucky. His column appears bi-weekly in The Courier-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @DrRickyLJones.