Director, Commonwealth Policy Center

Everyone knows that Kentucky's pension system is in a crisis. So what's the solution? According to two lawmakers: its casino gambling. Reps. Rick Rand and Dennis Keene filed a bill to change the constitution to allow casino gambling into Kentucky. They promise to bring more than $200 million annually which could be used to fix the pension. So is this the way to go? Gov. Bevin was recently asked on a live talk show about legalizing pot and casinos to bring in more money. He said he didn't "believe the benefits of legalizing expanded gambling would offset "the societal costs." As for legalizing marijuana, he said "is not going to happen while I'm governor." Good leadership resists bad ideas does—realizes that not everything is good for society—even if it might bring in more revenue.