A censure and 'cheap political points' highlight GOP divide in Kentucky

Ed Massey would seem to be an ideal Republican candidate in a primary: Trump-supporting, "pro-life through and through" in his own words, a lawyer who has held a statehouse seat and before that served years on school boards.

But now Massey, 56, has watched as his local county Republican party has not only backed his opponent, but censured Massey for what the resolution described as his, “long-standing support for left-wing politics, politicians, and policies.”

The District 66 state House race is the latest example of the divide in the Republican party, pitting establishment-style Republicans who thrived in a pre-Trump era against more conservative candidates, some of whom have dubbed themselves "Constitutional Republicans."

Massey doesn’t get support from the latter. Back in 2008, he donated $250 to Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign and has donated to a few other Democrats over the years.

Massey said that money was the cost of admission to hear Clinton speak at an event. He said he’s never voted or campaigned for her.

“I think she's appalling. I think she's disgraceful. But at the time, I was just trying to meet a presidential candidate. I'm an informed, I would like to think, intelligent, educated voter," he said, adding that donations to other Democrats were also for ticketed events.

Massey now finds himself in a tough race against first-time candidate T.J. Roberts. The 26-year-old has been loosely linked to antisemitic comments online, shook hands with neo-Nazi Richard Spencer, and made an insulting online post about guns the day after the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.

Roberts apologized for the online post about the shooting and has denied ties to white supremacy.

“I resent that because of what it does to communities in Kentucky where it creates a culture of fear that people are now worried that there are members of their political class who hate them based on immutable characteristics,” he said. “I think it's just scoring cheap political points off of the fear of other people.”

Whoever wins the primary on May 21 will face Democrat Peggy Houston-Nienaber in the general election this fall.

For more information about sample ballots and polling locations, visit the Kentucky Voter Information Portal.

A Republican district for over 40 years

The open state House seat has been Republican for over 40 years.

Massey had held the seat, but lost it in 2022 to another first-time candidate, Steve Rawlings, who was part of a group of insurgent candidates who ousted fellow Republicans in the primary that year.

They were branded as “Liberty” candidates who often opposed COVID vaccines, support book bans, and are determined to oust what they call "RINOs", Republicans in name only.

Longtime representatives Adam Koenig and Sal Santoro lost their primaries alongside Massey and it cost Northern Kentucky three influential chairman seats in the House.

Rawlings is now running for an open state Senate seat, leaving the House seat open.

Roberts is part of the same class of more conservative Republican politicians. He sued Gov. Andy Beshear for the Democrat’s lockdown policies during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic and won.

The Enquirer interviewed both candidates to see where they stand on some of the most important issues to Republican voters in Kentucky.

Who’s running for office?

Name: Ed Massey, of Hebron.

Employment: Attorney for about 30 years.

Political Experience: Boone County School Board for more than two decades, president of the Kentucky School Board Association in 2007 and president of the National School Boards Association in 2012.

Education: Eastern Kentucky University; Salmon P. Chase College of Law at Northern Kentucky University.

Family: He’s been married to his wife Anita for almost 36 years, has three daughters, two grandchildren and two dogs. His parents also live in Boone County.

Name: T.J. Roberts, of Burlington.

Employment: Attorney.

Education: Transylvania University; Salmon P. Chase College of Law at Northern Kentucky University.

Family: Roberts lives with and cares for his grandparents in Burlington. He has a dog named Piper who they credit with alerting the family of a fire that destroyed their home last year. His mother lives in Walton, Kentucky.

Where do you stand on abortion access?

Massey: "I am pro-life through and through. I will say that I would not necessarily be opposed to (permitting abortions in) certain situations where the mother's life was in danger, incest, rape."

Roberts: "I do not believe that the circumstances of one's conception defines their value as a human being. Anytime we stray further from (protecting) the life of the mother, we get away from the notion of a right to life."

If Trump is convicted of a crime, should he hold office? Would you vote for him?

Massey: "If he is convicted, he has his rights to run his appellate procedure to the end. We're not going to know for a long time whether that conviction is going to stand or not. If he's the nominee ... I will support him and I will vote for him."

Roberts: "I would support President Trump even if he was convicted because, frankly, the lawfare demonstrates how much the uniparty is terrified of him."

How would you describe what happened at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6?

Roberts: "For a whole lot of people, that was just a protest. But now, I think that it's largely been manipulated and distorted by looking at the actions of a few bad actors, many of whom are suspected as federal agents."

Note from The Enquirer: There has been no evidence that federal agents played a role in instigating violence on Jan. 6.

Roberts: "The individuals who are actually plotting to commit acts of violence, absolutely, definitely go after those individuals. (But prosecuting) those everyday Americans who were just following the crowd … I thought that was not a good use of prosecutorial resources."

Massey: "I think what happened on January 6 is a travesty. I'm not blaming President Trump for that. He wasn't there. He had no control over the people that chose to assault our capital."

Do you think any groups suffer from discrimination? What groups? What can be done to address it?

Roberts: "We have institutions that, frankly, blatantly discriminate against conservatives, that blatantly discriminate against anyone to the right of Elizabeth Warren. I think that the most common instances of discrimination are either ideological or economic. What do we do to actually limit discrimination? I would say limit government. I think government is the biggest violator of civil rights and civil liberties in human history."

Massey: "I think racial discrimination is still very real. I think gender discrimination is very real. I think sexual orientation discrimination is very real. I believe in equitable treatment for all but I don't believe in preferential treatment. Part of the reason I struggled with the death penalty is not because I don't believe people should be accountable. They should. I struggle because it's a fact that more African American men are executed for the same or similar crime than Caucasian men. I have a problem with that because that's racial disparity."

What if any changes would you make to the current immigration system and pathways to citizenship?

Massey: "I think we have to have a secure border. I think there are ways that we can help people that are legally applying for immigration. Legal immigration might take five to 10 years. They have to put things in place or funding in place in order to expedite that process to make sure all those checks and balances occur."

Roberts: "One, I do believe that we need a wall at the southern border. But second, I think we need a merit-based immigration system. I'm not against legal immigration if you are going to come here and offer something to this nation."

Roberts: "You can see now, how important the National Guard is to securing our border when we have a federal government that refuses to do so."

Where do you stand on school vouchers?

Massey: "If they (lawmakers and voters) want to fund private schools or charter schools, then fund them. Just don't take away from what you're constitutionally required to do. The law is you have to equitably and adequately fund public schools. My fear is creating a system where rich kids have an advantage over poor kids. … and we want those kids, all kids, to have equal opportunities."

Roberts: “I fully support school choice because I think that parents know what the best decision to make is and, frankly, parents do not pull their kids out of schools that are working for them. The public schools that I attended, they worked great for me. But I just foundationally believe that the choice should rest with the parents while you're a minor child.”

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Kentucky primary 2024: Ed Massey vs. T. J. Roberts in Boone County