BBQ, bingo and barbs: 142nd Fancy Farm Picnic did not disappoint

“My first Fancy Farm was ’92, and I’ve come almost every year since; so, I’ve been to 20-something Fancy Farms,” Adams said. “The barbecue is great. I love visiting with people; I have a lot of friends here going back a long time. And, of course, if you’re a statewide elected official, you really need to be here. It’s the biggest event of the year in politics in Kentucky.”

“I would expect the percentage here is more people from outside of a 30-mile radius than from inside a 30-mile radius. So, that makes this event in and of itself unique,” State Sen. Jason Howell said. “It’s nice for people to come to western Kentucky that would not otherwise be here. If it was not for this event, no one, probably, east of the lakes would know where Fancy Farm, Kentucky was unless they knew somebody that relocated from there. Now, everybody knows where Fancy Farm, Kentucky is and where western Kentucky is, and the more people we pull from other areas to understand what we have here and what we have to offer, the better it is for everybody.”

For the political speaking, unlike last year when the stage was void of Democrats, two Democratic nominees – Charles Booker, who is challenging Rand Paul for his U.S. Senate seat, and Jimmy Ausbrooks, who is challenging incumbent U.S. Rep. James Comer – as well as Colmon Eldridge, chair of the Kentucky Democratic Party, attended the event.

Nonetheless, Democrats were markedly outnumbered amongst the 10 Republican speakers – Howell; Adams; Comer; Paul’s wife, Kelley Paul, who spoke on behalf of her husband in his absence; State Rep. Richard Heath; State Treasurer Allison Ball; and four 2023 gubernatorial candidates: Agriculture Commissioner Ryan Quarles, Attorney General Daniel Cameron, State Auditor Mike Harmon; and State Rep. Samantha Maddox.

The Republican faction frequently noted the absence of any representation from the commonwealth’s most prominent Democrat, Gov. Andy Beshear. In his introduction of Booker, House Speaker and event emcee David Osborne said, “Charles, I really am glad that you made it here today. As soon as you lose this election this fall, I hope you file for the primary next year because the people of west Kentucky deserve a Democrat that will show up to Fancy Farm.”

Osborne also implied that Booker’s slogan “From the hood to the holler” leaves those who hail from the “flat lands” of western Kentucky out and suggested he change it to “From the hood to the holler to the hay field.” Booker rebutted those remarks in an interview after the event, “A lot of folks tried to mock ‘From the hood to the holler.’ There are ‘hoods’ in the Purchase Area, so they’re ignoring a lot of our community.”

Booker won the coin toss and elected to speak first. As he took the podium, many in the crowd booed, but Booker vowed to fight for quality health care for all Kentuckians, “even if you boo.”

He called Paul a “terrible senator” and said that Paul has introduced “zero bills that have passed in his two terms. He said he would only serve two terms; he was lying.” Booker also accused Paul of having a “love affair” with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Booker also called Paul a clown, an embarrassment, a fraud, a crisis actor, a conspiracy theorist and a liar, adding “that’s just what Donald Trump would say about him.” He accused Paul of voting against infrastructure and health care legislation as well as wanting “big government to make women state property” and opposing the civil rights act because “he does not care about Kentucky.”

“He does not believe in Kentucky, but I do,” Booker said. “I believe that together we can win our future. I’m fighting for a ‘Kentucky New Deal’ that’s life, freedom and prosperity for every single one of you. Even if you don’t agree with everything I stand for, you’ll know I’m standing for you. And in this moment of division, let’s come together as family, y’all. Let’s fight to win our future. Let’s end poverty. Let’s stand up for our veterans. Let’s stand up for our troops. Send a warrior to Washington, and I’m (going to) make you proud every day. Let’s get Randall ‘Remdesivir’ Paul out of office and back to Texas.”

Kelley Paul spent most of her speech railing against the Democratic platform and President Joe Biden’s chief medical advisor, Dr. Anthony Fauci. Referring to gain-of-function research in connection to COVID-19, she noted that her husband successfully persuaded all U.S. senators to vote for an amendment to “immediately stop funding risky experiments in China” and vowed that, following his victory in November, “Rand Paul will subpoena every last document of Dr. Fauci’s.”

Kelley Paul noted that violence is not just on the rise across America but also in Kentucky. She stated that Louisville has more murders per capita than Chicago and suggested that children in the west end of Louisville are not safe at their bus stops. “But what does Charles want to do? Defund the police. … Over 20 children murdered in Louisville this year, and Charles’ response? Defund the police as soon as possible.”

“Kentuckians will reject Charles and his Democrat platform because it is dividing Americans, it is not uniting us,” she said in closing. “Democrats say America is a hateful nation, a racist nation. Republicans, we love our country. We believe every life has value. Yes! That is why Rand Paul will continue to be Kentucky’s great defender of the United States Constitution, which enshrines the right for every American, and if they come from our creator, not from the government. Rand never forgets that he fights for you and for our country, which is the symbol of hope, freedom and opportunity around the world.”

Like Kelley Paul, Comer spent most of his time talking about Democrats in Washington. “Democrats are so liberal and so woke now they can’t even define what a woman is; and, even worse, they say men can have babies. The Democrat party has had complete control in Washington for the past year-and-a-half. They control the House, the Senate and the White House. So, what have they done with this complete control?”

In his closing remarks, Comer spoke about what he and a Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives would accomplish. He said that if he is re-elected, he will become the chair of the House Oversight Committee. “I will lead the fight to keep the government off the backs of private business; work to reduce waste, fraud and abuse; investigate the origins of COVID, and yes, it was the Wuhan virus all along; and, finally, hold this Biden administration accountable. I will continue to be a leader in agriculture by virtue of being one of the only farmers in Congress, and I will continue to be an active, energetic congressman for all of west Kentucky and central Kentucky.”

Comer’s challenger is not well-known in Kentucky politics. Ausbrooks, who sits on the Kentucky Counseling Association board, said he is the first licensed mental health professional to run for federal office; he is also the first openly gay candidate in a general election in Kentucky. Ausbrooks spoke to a variety of issues those in the LGBTQ+ community face, such as discrimination in housing and employment. All the while, the crowd chanted, “Who are you?”

“Thank you for (using your) right to raise your voice because right now, they have muffled and silenced you for way too long,” Ausbrooks said. “You need to make sure your voice is heard. … When I go to (Washington) D.C., I am going to represent each and every one of you. Even though you are biased against me, I still believe in you. You have an opportunity to have someone that’s actually going to listen to you because when I walk into the capital, my party gets set to the side because I am here to represent each and every one of you in the commonwealth. You can laugh at me; you can make jokes at me. I don’t care. But I do care about your rights.”