Cameron lays out his vision for Kentucky during campaign fundraising stop in Corbin

Republican gubernatorial nominee Daniel Cameron told the crowd of nearly 100 people in Corbin Monday evening that he has a vision for Kentucky that “reflects your values.”

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron addressed about 100 supporters inside the Corbin Center Monday night during a special fundraising event that was hosted by Terry and Marion Forcht. Cameron is the Republican gubernatorial candidate, and will challenge sitting Governor Andy Beshear this fall.

“I am proud to be part of a party that isn’t ashamed of the name Jesus Christ. Like most of you in this room, I assume that you don’t identify yourself as your title at work,” Cameron told the audience. “You think of your identity as a Christ follower, and as a husband or wife, or as a parent. That is certainly the way that I relate and walk in life.”

The crowd was gathered at the Corbin Center for a campaign fundraising event, which was organized by Corbin businessman Terry Forcht and his wife, Marion.

Cameron said that what we have seen the last three and one-half years from his opponent, incumbent governor Andy Beshear, has been values that reflect anything other than the values of people in Whitley County or in any of the other 119 counties in the state.

“What we have seen from Andy Beshear has been a value system that says he would rather stand with Joe Biden and the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence than stand with the hard working men and women of Kentucky,” Cameron said.

Cameron noted that there are 27,000 fewer Kentuckians working since Beshear took office.

In 2020, when the pandemic struck, Beshear decided to lock down schools to keep students out and to unlock our jails. Beshear released about 2,000 inmates from jails and prison, and about one-third of those went on to re-offend, Cameron said.

The Biden administration has repeatedly said that it wants to get rid of the fossil fuel industry by 2035, which Cameron notes would destroy the competitive advantage Kentucky has with reliable and low cost energy, thanks to coal and natural gas.

AG Daniel Cameron poses with Marion and Terry Forcht, who hosted the special fundraising event for the gubernatorial candidate at the Corbin Center Monday evening.

“The Biden administration wants to get rid of all that and Andy Beshear is absent and silent,” Cameron said.

“We should make sure that any ideas that would try to destroy or undermine our coal and natural gas industry do not make their way here to Kentucky,” Cameron said to a round of applause.

Cameron noted that Beshear claims to be compassionate, but there was nothing compassionate about shutting down Kentucky’s churches during the pandemic.

“There was nothing compassionate about a governor that tells big business that they can play by one set of rules, but that small businesses have to shut down and be considered non-essential. That is not compassion. That is not leadership,” Cameron contended. “This is why I think Kentuckians are ready for a new direction, a course correction, if you will, come November.”

When Cameron took the attorney general’s job nearly three and one-half years ago, he pledged to do it with neither “fear nor favor.”

“It has been an honor to serve as the 51^st Attorney General of Kentucky and fighting human trafficking, fighting child abuse, standing up for the unborn, looking out for our most vulnerable in our communities and bringing in nearly $900 million into this state to fight the opioid epidemic,” Cameron said.

“It has been an honor to serve in that capacity and stand up for constitutional rights. It is a great honor to be here tonight as your Republican nominee for governor to carry the mantle of the party of Lincoln, to carry the mantle of a party that is advocating constantly for small businesses, for teachers, for law enforcement, for every single Kentuckian across our 120 counties.”

Cameron said that a recent poll has him and Beshear tied with each of them having 47 percent of the vote, which he feels like is a good position to be in at this point in the race.

“I think if you are an incumbent governor and you are tied with a challenger that just came out of a 12-person primary, if you are tied with that person – regardless of whether you are a Republican or a Democrat – you should be concerned,” Cameron said.

“We feel like we are in a good position to win. I think, in my judgment, that it has very little to do with me. It has everything to do with you all in this room. It has everything to do with you all wanting to see your vision and your values reflected in the leadership of this state.”

Cameron took questions from the crowd at the close of the event, but he only received one from Corbin Mayor Suzie Razmus, who asked who Cameron’s lieutenant governor running mate was going to be.

Cameron replied there are several good potential running mates out there, and that his campaign is actively working on that.

He anticipates making an announcement soon, possibly next week.