STAE SENATOR ED WORLEY USES TAXPAYER MONEY FOR PERSONAL GAIN: POLITICS AS USUAL IN FRANKFORT

According to Kentucky.com State Senator Ed Worley, D-Richmond, has made a deal arranged by Madison County Judge-Executive Kent Clark, Worley's friend and political ally, to rent property co-owned by Worley to the State for Madison County's family Courts division. The rent will be a whopping $410,000 a year.

Of course that is 166% more than the current rent for that division now. $410,000 versus $154,050 they currently pay.

You can read here for more: http://www.kentucky.com/latest_news/story/851887.html.

Are we sick of these shenanigans yet? Worley and his partner, Richmond lawyer Michael Eaves, began buying up most of a downtown Richmond block full of 19th-century, Italianate-style buildings, which he demolished, for $765,000 over a two year period that now just happens to be the only qualified property available for this project.

Coincidental huh? Nah just business as usual. A project of this magnitude does not happen overnight. Worley knew from his position they needed the space and set up a scenario he would benefit from. In my opinion anyway.

"Worley said his position in the General Assembly doesn't make his development deal with the county and state court system a conflict of interest when he takes state money in his private life."

Yeah right. Keep singing the same old tired song most of us know is garbage.

Wonder why our taxes are so overloaded? Because of deals like this among political friends that benefit themselves at our expense. The article goes on to state this:

"He said his development companies sometimes get work from local and state governments, including Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond, all of which he has power over as a legislator who helps craft the state budget."

Can we say CONFLICT OF INTEREST?

Seems that only is allowed as an argument when it concerns any business besides ones run by elected officials.

Initially, Worley said, he couldn't find tenants for the large office building he planned to erect on the spot.

Wow go figure huh that this deal just coincided with what he needed.

And of course Kentucky Chief Justice John Minton did not respond to a request to comment on the deal.

Gee I wonder why. Maybe because a supposed non partisan job has a partisan person in it. What say you Chief Justice? The fact is that as much as even our judiciary in this State are supposed to be non partisan they are nothing more in general than the same partisan hacks they get support from.

And we expect and demand that we get better from our legal community. Of course they write the laws and judge them so how can we achieve that? By electing people to positions that are not lawyers and have the interests of their constituents as their number one priority.

Worley and Clark are friends and Democrats who have supported each other's re-election efforts and shared campaign aides. Clark publicly credits Worley for the millions of dollars in state funds Worley steers to Madison County, using his clout as a Democratic leader who regularly sits with the governor and other top lawmakers.

And of course the spin from Clark:

"Ed and I have been good friends for a long time, but that has nothing to do with it," Clark said. "This is just a good business deal."

Good business deal for whom Mr. Clark. Your pocket or the taxpayer's whose money your good friend Worley is using. Certainly as it stands you will recoup half of your investment in the first year's rent agreement alone. At taxpayer's expense of course. How many private business that do not get contracts from the State wish they could recoup that fast on their investment?

A good deal for the State would be a lower rent agreement closer to what they pay now that would allow you to recoup your investment, at a reasonable profit of course over a longer extended time period, thus aiding the State and your pocket at the same time. I mean admittedly by Worley NO ONE wanted the property to begin with right?

So Mr. Clark?

It has everything to do with it. You gambled on a project that did not pay off so your partner Ed Worley finds a way to use his position to rape the taxpayers. It really is that simple and one thing most of us are getting sick of.

At least one person went on record stating the obvious:

Cecile Schubert, chairwoman of the Richmond Board of Ethics and a member of other public watchdog groups, said she recognizes Worley's right to make a living. But Worley should not take state money while he sits in the legislature, she said.

"This has been a problem across the board in Kentucky, where we have people in government who suddenly own the land where the government plans to build something," Schubert said.

"It's hard to see how that's not a conflict of interest," Schubert said. "He needs to step back."

The deal needs to be thrown out and Worley sent packing from his State job.

The abuse by legislators in this State are well known and documented in some cases like this.

Will We The People finally stand up and force accountability from these so called leaders? Leaders who are leading our tax money to their pockets and bankrupting our Commonwealth and our local communities?

Psst Jerry this may involve the State but I never forget you and your Cordish deals. Especially since you are trying to get a State job with Beshear. ;-)

Thanks Kentucky.com for helping us find these deals and working towards accountability.

Your thoughts?