Hampton Fires Back Against Bevin’s ‘Partisan Hack’ Chief of Staff

Lt. Gov. Hampton: “I am not surprised by the false allegations and character attacks which have ensued”

GOP family feud has pulled in Senators McConnell, Paul

This past Father’s Day weekend, Matt Bevin’s chief of staff Blake Brickman admitted he is responsible for the mysterious firings of Lt. Gov. Jenean Hampton’s staffers sixteen days after the most recent termination. Today, Lt. Gov. Hampton fired back against Brickman, saying he has “clearly overstepped his boundaries.”
Hampton went on to say, “We came to Frankfort to be public servants, not partisan hacks”—a clear reference to Bevin and his staff.
Over the weekend, Adrienne Southworth, Hampton’s former deputy chief of staff, said Sen. Mitch McConnell was behind removing Hampton from Bevin’s re-election ticket in January. When she was fired last month, Southworth was investigating who was responsible for firing the lieutenant governor’s chief of staff in February.
Brickman explained the firing of Southworth, alleging that she made several efforts to lobby for more lenient laws for sex offenders and misused state property. Hampton responded saying, “I am not surprised by the false allegations and character attacks which have ensued.”
On Father’s Day, Lt. Gov. Hampton tweeted out thanks to her late father who “taught me to handle bullies”—a clear reference to Bevin.
The family feud has even pulled in Kentucky’s U.S. Senators. While Mitch McConnell denied Southworth’s accusation of removing Hampton from the ticket, his spokeswoman refused to say whether McConnell thought Bevin was treating Hampton fairly. Rand Paul said he hopes that Hampton is “treated with respect in the future.”
The fallout from this family feud could spell trouble in uniting the Republican party amid Bevin’s historically dismal primary performance last month. Bevin has a lot of work to bring the Kentucky GOP back together.
“Instead of feuding with his lieutenant governor, Matt Bevin should be trying to court the 48 percent of voters who voted against him in the GOP primary,” said DGA Communications Director David Turner. “The attacks in this family feud are getting nasty and deeply personal. Will Matt Bevin be able to put his party back together by November? Judging how he has spent his time since the primary, the answer looks like no.”