Tea Party embarrasses itself in Campbell County

Lately, the local Tea Party has mostly been reposting Franklin Graham interviews and beating the drum for "right-to-work" - and public officials have been happy to help. But Team Tyranny remains unappreciative of government officials who aren't quick enough on the right-wing draw.

A few days ago, the Tea Party sent out an e-mail newsletter boasting that Campbell County Fiscal Court would have its first reading of a local right-to-scab bill at yesterday's meeting. "It is time for the first reading," the Tea Party gloated.

I saw this and alerted several Facebook groups frequented by Campbell County labor activists. It turned out the Tea Party was being even dumber than it first appeared. Funnier perhaps. But dumber. Later, someone replied that they had contacted county officials, and they said the Tea Party was full of shit. They said right-to-scab was nowhere on yesterday's agenda. I believe this, and there's no evidence that right-to-scab was introduced yesterday. It's possible that it was, but if so, the Tea Party would probably be bragging about it now.

So I have to assume the Tea Party e-mail was just an attempt to commandeer Fiscal Court. Read it again: "It is time for the first reading." By order of who? Did Fiscal Court say it was time, or was the Tea Party trying to decide for them?

"It is time for the first reading." How arrogant. The Tea Party doesn't get to decide these things. We didn't vote for the Tea Party.

This e-mail suggests that the second reading and possible passage of right-to-scab in Kenton County will be at that county's Fiscal Court meeting on Tuesday, March 24. Is this another attempt to commandeer the court? Every other source says Kenton County has already tabled the proposal, and court officials said today that it probably won't be on the agenda that day.

After learning about the reaction against Boone County's work-for-less law, I doubt a similar law would go over very well in more urban counties. Oh, you know the Tea Party is trying. They want a right-to-scab law in the worst way. But the Tea Party's 3 members are dwarfed by the countless local residents like me whose lives were literally saved by organized labor.

The Tea Party is nothing if not persistent, but maybe sometime they'll move on to obsess over another issue to be on the wrong side of. If they do, I'll still be on the forefront of the fight against them.