Why Did the Governor Cross the Road?

This is hilarious. I was checking back with BluegrassReport.org to get an update on its availability in state computer (it's still banned), but I noticed a different story Mark Nickolas had found about disgraced (and as Nickolas points out, indicted) Governor Ernie Fletcher.

Gov. Ernie Fletcher finishes a day at the office, but instead of walking through the idyllic scene across the street to the Governor's Mansion, he gets into a Lincoln Town Car to be chauffeured to his door.

Well, it's fair enough so far. I live about seven miles from my job, and I drive to work, so why should Fletcher not have the same option?

In Kentucky, the lawns of the Capitol and the mansion are separated by only a narrow tree-shaded street, but Fletcher routinely rides to and from his office. Meanwhile, his administration is encouraging Kentuckians to walk more as part of a statewide fitness initiative.

Oh, that's why.

Meanwhile, the Fletcher administration has begun running radio announcements across the state, calling on residents to walk or bike more. In his state of the commonwealth address earlier this year, Fletcher announced the kickoff of a fitness program to help combat obesity, diabetes and heart disease.

However, Scorsone, the state senator and marathoner, said the governor's commuting habits may speak louder than his words.

"He has an opportunity to really set a good example for good health, and he's not doing it," Scorsone said. "If anything, he's setting a bad example."

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Lee Jackson, president of the Kentucky Association of State Employees, said driving the short distance to work sends the wrong message to state employees who have longer walks from their parking spaces to their offices.

Yesterday morning, Nickolas linked to a Think Progress post that includes an overhead shot of the drive Fletcher takes to and from the Capitol. Click to get the full picture and note the distance to the Capitol parking lot, too.

So why did the governor cross the road? To give the chauffeur something to do.