"Shine Like Stars In The World" Philippians 2:15

Kentucky pastor
calls for boldness
in gambling battle


By Robin Bass

Frankfort—A former Kentucky Baptist Convention president announced his plan to call an assembly of Christian pastors and form a united front against expanded gambling.

“The governor cannot and will not win a moral debate on this,” said Hershael York, senior pastor of Buck Run Baptist Church in Frankfort.

York said last week he would be organizing a meeting of Kentucky pastors—both liberal and conservative—to accept a “prophetic role” and boldly speak out against Gov. Steve Beshear’s attempts to expand gambling in Kentucky.

The governor again outlined his strategy to improve Kentucky’s financial standing during his budget speech Jan. 17 by clearing the way for casino-style gambling. Beshear said a bill would be introduced in the General Assembly that would allow voters to decide whether to amend the state’s constitution. If legislators approve a bill and the referendum is passed by voters, Kentucky could have up to nine casinos.

York assured he would fight the gambling push at every step.

“If a bill is introduced, I’m going to shame the legislators who call themselves Christians and would inflict this seductive evil on their fellow citizens,” he said. “I’m going to ask their pastors to be bold and to preach on it while the ones who vote on it sit in the congregation.

“And if the legislature ever approves the constitutional amendment and sends it to the citizenry for a vote, I’ll pray that God will confound the enemy, regardless of how well financed he is, and let truth prevail.”


Prayer draws criticism

York has received more attention lately for another prayer he said—the one he gave prior to the governor’s Jan. 17 budget address. In the invocation, York firmly expressed his opinions about expanded gambling and challenged lawmakers to model the compassion and character of Godp.

“May they never resort to leveraging vice and avarice to pay our bills,” York prayed. “Help us to admit that we cannot truly love our neighbors as ourselves and then scheme to get his money by enticing him with vain hope. May they not lead this state to share profits from an industry that preys on greed or desperation. Help us to foster salaries and not slot machines; to build cars and enable jobs and not license casinos and seduce the simple into losing what they have.

“May our greatest concern not be that we get our share of the family’s losses, but that we foster a sense of hope and justice that creates opportunity and leads to success,” he continued. “And may the decisions that they make and the judgments they render be consistent with Your eternal character and truth.”

Sen. Kathy Stein (D-Lexington) called York’s prayer a “disrespectful” political speech, according to the Lexington Herald-Leader.

House Speaker Greg Stumbo (D-Prestonsburg) told the Lexington paper York only said “what was on his heart.”

“I never heard Speaker Stumbo speak as kindly toward me or as overtly reserved about expanded gambling as his comments expressed Tuesday night,” York said. “I was stunned by his support for me.”

York, who also is a professor at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, was invited to give the invocation by Senate President David Williams.

“Williams has asked me to lead in prayer at every State of the Commonwealth address since Beshear came into office,” said York, who noted that he was unable to pray at the governor’s State of the Commonwealth speech earlier this month. KBC Executive Director Paul Chitwood provided the invocation at the Jan. 4 address.

York said he didn’t clear his prayer through Williams or anyone else prior to saying it before legislators.

“My prayer reminded them that not only is this not inevitable, they are going to have to get it done in spite of thousands of praying Christians,” York said.

A video of York’s prayer can be found online at vimeo.com/35229060. (WR)


Western Recorder issue date: January 24, 2012.


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   03york
Hershael York

Group claims governor’s gambling push a long shot


By Robin Bass

Frankfort—Gov. Steve Beshear’s efforts to expand gambling in Kentucky may be futile, according to one family advocacy group, because he is short on support in the state Senate.

“We’ve talked with enough members to know that the governor does not currently have the votes,” said Martin Cothran, spokesperson for the Family Foundation of Kentucky.

Cothran explained that 23 votes—60 percent of Senate lawmakers—are required to pass a constitutional amendment. “We only need 16 and we have more than that,” Cothran said, adding that he knows of at least one Democratic senator who plans to vote “no.”

During the governor’s budget speech Jan. 17, Beshear reinforced his position that there are only two paths to meet the state’s revenue needs: tax reform and expanded gambling. He vowed a bill to amend Kentucky’s constitution by allowing for a referendum would be introduced in this session of the General Assembly. March 1 is the deadline to introduce new bills.


“Get-rich-quick scheme”

Beshear again pointed to Kentucky’s loss of revenue as residents cross the state line to gamble. He quoted a 2010 economic analysis estimating that Kentuckians spent $451 million in neighboring state casinos.

“That same analysis estimates that … our tracks alone would bring in one-time license fees of $266 million and $377 million annually into the General Fund,” Beshear said, calling those estimates “conservative.”

Cothran labeled the governor’s plan a “get-rich-quick scheme.”

“Instead of rolling up his sleeves and doing the hard work of rethinking our tax system, he wants to roll the dice on an unreliable source of revenue,” Cothran said of Gov. Beshear’s plan. “This is just not responsible fiscal leadership.”

Earlier this month Beshear announced his plans to create a Blue Ribbon Commission headed by Lt. Gov. Jerry Abramson to look at Kentucky’s tax code. The commission is expected to spend the next several months examining other tax systems and gathering information from experts and the public.


“Buying votes”

Cothran said there is a way the governor could get the votes he needs to pass an expanding gambling bill in the Senate—by “buying votes and threatening legislators” with the loss of projects. The Family Foundation spokesperson pointed to a similar gambling bill in 2010 that included funds for school buildings.

“We would challenge the governor and advocates of expanded gambling in the General Assembly to stick to the merits of their case,” Cothran said. “If this bill can’t stand on its own two feet, then we don’t need it.”

The governor told lawmakers last week that much has been said about the pros and cons of gambling in Kentucky, but not one person has said why Kentuckians should not be allowed to vote.

“I don’t think there is a legitimate argument,” Beshear said. “Kentuckians have made it clear through numerous surveys that they want to vote.”

Cothran responded by saying the governor seems to be banking that the state budget will appear so bad voters will pass the gambling legislation eagerly. (WR)