Jefferson Review

"Your Liberty is Our Interest"

Home /  Archives / Search / Links / Quotes / Book Reviews / Advertise /Contact us / Subscribe / Calendar

Gatewood Galbraith Stumps As Candidate for Kentucky Attorney General

By Theresa Fritz Camoriano

Gatewood Galbraith threw his hat into the ring in the Attorney General’s race, but then he promptly put that trademark hat back on his head so everyone would recognize him as he goes forward with his campaign.  Galbraith addressed the Louisville Libertarians on August 14, telling them that, shortly after both the Democrat and Republican parties nominated unsavory characters for the Attorney General’s race, he was approached by high level people from both parties urging him to make the run as an independent.  He said this is a rare case in which an independent candidate has a good shot at winning, and he plans to make the most of this opportunity.

Galbraith introduced his new campaign manager, who also managed Jesse Ventura’s successful campaign for governor of Minnesota, and he spoke about the two issues on which he apparently plans to campaign. 

1.  Corruption:    

Galbraith says he is the best candidate to take action against the corruption in Frankfort.  Since he does not owe allegiance to either party, he will be free to investigate every allegation and to prosecute corruption wherever he finds it. 

2.  Drugs:

Galbraith wants to sue the pharmaceutical companies that supply drugs such as Oxycontin, which are widely abused in Kentucky.  He says these pharmaceutical companies are responsible for people’s addictions, because they should have made the pills more difficult to grind into powder form.  Galbraith says that, since the pills are easily converted to powder form, they are easy to abuse, and therefore the pharmaceutical companies should pay the state $2 billion to be used for treatment of drug addicts.  This position appears to come from Galbraith’s desire to help drug addicts, from his dislike of large businesses, and from his need to counter his reputation as a law-breaking pot-head in order to become electable. 

One traditional role of the Attorney General has been to take action to protect consumers from products that are unsafe.  Galbraith says his proposed lawsuit would be within that tradition.  However, his proposal would go far beyond that traditional role, because it would not only make manufacturers legally responsible for the quality and purity of their products but also for social problems caused by consumers who abuse or misuse those products if the manufacturer has not taken every possible step to prevent misuse. 

Such a shift in legal liability would create an enormous potential liability for a wide range of manufacturers.  For example, there is a serious alcoholism problem, so Galbraith or other Attorneys General could use this precedent to attack Kentucky’s bourbon industry, demanding that, since they have not taken every conceivable step to prevent abuse of their product (maybe drunk-proof caps?), they must pay billions of dollars to treat alcoholics.  There also is a serious obesity problem, which could be used as the basis for an attack on the fast-food industry, such as YUM Brands, headquartered in Louisville, demanding that, since they promote “super sized” meals, they must pay billions of dollars to treat obese people.  There also is a serious crime problem, and many criminals use guns in the commission of their crimes, so Galbraith’s precedent would also be a basis for attacking the gun industry, demanding that, since they have not taken every conceivable step to keep guns out of the hands of criminals, they must be legally responsible for every crime committed with a gun as well as for the cost of prosecuting and jailing the criminals who misused their products.  Criminals also use cars as getaway vehicles, so Galbraith’s precedent could be used as a basis for attacking Toyota, Ford, and other automobile manufacturers, who do not perform background checks on automobile purchasers and therefore arguably should be held liable for all crimes in which automobiles are used.  Once the law shifts onto this slippery slope, no manufacturer will be safe.

Perception certainly is more important than reality in politics, so perhaps Galbraith will be able to shed his image as a law-breaking pot-head by proposing a popular attack on the pharmaceutical industry.  On the other hand, Galbraith might at least consider the possibility that, instead of  promoting a precedent that would facilitate attacks on a wide range of law-abiding businesses, a good first step for improving his reputation might be to actually stop being a law-breaking pot-head. 

Galbraith said he plans to raise campaign funds by selling products, such as T-shirts and bobble-head dolls through his website http://gatewood.com/ . 

Kentucky voters will have an interesting choice in the election for Attorney General this fall.  Will they vote for Jack Wood, who is an embarrassment to the Republican party, having been reprimanded for engaging in fist fights with attorneys in his courtroom when he was a judge; will they vote for Greg Stumbo, who denied fathering a child in order to avoid paying child support for 14 years; or will they vote for Gatewood Galbraith?

Weather (Louisville) / Mapquest / Search / White Pages / Business Search / CNN / Dictionary / E-card / MSN