By Jack Brammer
NKyTribune reporter
When it came time Tuesday for Democrat Andy Beshear to take the oath of office at Kentucky’s 62nd Inauguration in front of the Capitol for another four-year term as governor, Kentucky Supreme Court Justice Michelle Keller of Ft. Mitchell noted that he already had his right hand lifted high before she offered instructions.
“I’m ready,” said the governor who turned 46 on Nov. 29. Standing by him on the cloudless, sun-splashed afternoon in the low 50s were his wife, Britainy, and their two children, Will and Lila.
The governor’s parents, former Gov. Steve Beshear and former first lady Jane Beshear, proudly watched on.
When Andy Beshear finishes his second term in 2027, it will mean Kentuckians will have been governed 16 of the last 20 years by a Beshear. Steve Beshear was governor from 2007 to 2015. Andy Beshear secured a second term by defeating Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron in last month’s general election for governor.
Beshear showed he was ready for a second term with an aggressive agenda in wait of a Republican-controlled legislature that tried to whack away at his powers in his first term.
“Over the next four years, we will continue our record-breaking economic win-streak, and create the good-paying jobs that will provide bright and promising futures for every single child,” Beshear said in the ceremony’s theme, “Forward, Together.”
“We will invest in our educators, continue building what were thought to be impossible infrastructure projects, and run high-speed internet to every home.
“We will keep our promise to counties and communities devastated by natural disasters by not just rebuilding, but revitalizing.”
Beshear, who has been mentioned as a possible figure on the national political stage, said, “This is our chance – Kentucky’s chance – to be the difference, to be both an economic and moral leader of this country.
“So, we must face this challenge the way we always do – together. Together, we will not meet hate with hate, or anger with anger, or even frustration with frstration . .”
He called for efforts to work together.
“See, one of the most difficult challenges before us is that politics – and sometimes even our governance – has become poisonous and toxic. What is supposed to be an exchange of ideas has devolved into grievances and attacks,” he said.
“Some appear to think it’s just a game, that no target is off limits, no lie is too hurtful. We see strategies and commercials meant to make one American – one Kentuckian – an enemy of another, trying to accuse them of horrible things in order to dehumanize them, so as to somehow justify anger, even hate, turning people against their neighbors just to have one more elected official with a certain letter behind their name. I ran for office to leave a better world for my children, for all of our children.”
Beshear said he and his returning lieutenant governor, former educator and basketball coach Jacqueline Coleman, “will be there personally, every step of the way,” to improve Kentucky.”
He thanked all his supporters and workers and noted the deaths this year of former Democratic governors John Y. Brown Jr., Brereton Jones and Julian Carroll.
He also noted that two of his friends, Tommy Elliott and Virginia Moore, were missing from the ceremony. Elliott was killed in a mass shooting at a Louisville bank last April and Moore was a sign language interpreter for the deaf during the many news conferences held during the spread of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic.
Some of the accomplishments the governor cited in the last four years were relief efforts for victims of tornados in Western Kentucky and flooding in Eastern Kentucky, getting federal and to build the Brent Spence companion bridge with no tolls, building the two biggest electric battery plans and four-laning the entire Mountain parkway in Eastern Kentucky, and pushing I-69 forward in Western Kentucky.
All of this came, Beshear said, with the best years on record for our bourbon and tourism industries and record high budget surpluses and record low unemployment.
“We’ve created more than 50,500 new jobs and generated a record $28.5 billion in new private sector investment. We passed sports betting and medical marijuana, capped the cost of insulin, and health care is expanding all over the Commonwealth, including the construction of the first hospital in West Louisville in 150 years. Put simply, we are at a moment in time with the true potential to achieve our collective dream: the dream of a better Kentucky.”
Coleman, who recognized that she was the first woman in Kentucky to ever take the oath of office twice, underscored the administration’s push for universal pre-kindergarten, saying the future of Kentucky’s economy is in our classrooms today.
“From cradle to career, education is the key that unlocks doors for every Kentuckian,” she said. “Here’s a perfect example: once we waived the GED testing fee, over 8,000 Kentuckians improved their education to get a job that was once out of reach. So now, let’s turn to the opposite end of the spectrum: our littlest learners.
“We cannot continue this historic momentum if our children’s zip code determines their place in the world by the first day of kindergarten. That might sound hyperbolic, but follow me, here: Prison populations are projected by third- grade literacy rates. Third-grade literacy rates are projected by kindergarten readiness.
“And kindergarten readiness is projected by access to pre-K. Quite literally, we can invest in young people on the front end, or we will pay for it on the back end. The time for universal pre-K in Kentucky is now.”
The swearing-in ceremony for Beshear and Coleman was hosted by Rocky Adkins, senior advisor to Beshear. Adkins highly complimented Coleman for breathing new life into the lieutenant governor’s office. The two are mentioned as possible Democratic candidates for governor in 2027.
An official swearing-in ceremony for Beshear and Coleman was held shortly after midnight in the Capitol. The afternoon ceremony was attended by thousands and was aired on the Kentucky Educational Television network.
Special music at the afternoon ceremony was provided by the 202nd Army Band of the Kentucky National Guard, Kentucky State University Concert Choir, Walker Montgomery, cellist Ben Sollee, Tyler Childers, and tenor Everett McCorvey, and pianist Tedrin Blair Lindsay of the University of Kentucky.
Beshear noted the presence of former Kentucky Gov. Paul Patton and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
Kentucky Poet Laureate Silas House read his poignant poem written for Beshear’s second inauguration titled “Those Who Carry Us.”
The day started with a breakfast reception at the Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History. It was hosted by the citizens of Frankfort and Franklin County. An inaugural worship service was held at First Christian Church with a message by the Rev. Bruce Barkauer of the Christian Church Center for Faith and Giving. Several members of Beshear’s home church, Beargrass Christian Church, in Louisville, participated in the service.
A large parade from downtown Frankfort to the Capitol was held after the service. Grand marshals for the parade were health care workers who guided Kentuckians through the COVID-19 pandemic.
Scheduled for Tuesday night was the Grand March in the Capitol Rotunda featuring the families of the governor, lieutenant governor, and other state officials. A ticketed Inaugural Ball was on tap for the Capitol grounds from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m.
On Wednesday, Beshear is to begin governing again. When he finished his oath of office at the afternoon inaugural ceremony with Justice Keller and swore to the antiquated requirement that he has never fought a duel. he pumped his arm five times.
He was more than indicating that he was ready.
