By Lisa Autry
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The 2011 governor's race in Kentucky now features a republican team. Louisville businessman Phil Moffett announced his bid Thursday afternoon along with state representative Mike Harmon of Danville as his running mate.
"What motivates me to get in the race is really I'm just tired of being 30-something or 40-something in everything we do when you compare us to the other states in the union. I think there's some common sense changes that can be made to make Kentucky a lot more competitive. It's not a leader in the nation."
Moffett says his priorities would be reforming Kentucky's tax laws, reducing the size of state government, addressing the state's unfunded pension liability, and bringing school choice to Kentucky.
Moffett says democratic Governor Steve Beshear has been void of any creative ideas for tackling the state's budget woes.
"I thought it was a laugh-out-loud moment when he included in his original budget proposal roughly 800 million dollars in gambling revenues. You know he tried to get a law passed and it was denied twice and he tried to add it into the budget."
Despite an impressive fundraising start, Moffett thinks Beshear is vulnerable as he seeks a second term.
Moffett is making his first run at political office. He serves on the board of directors for the Bluegrass Institute, a conservative think tank.