Each year around Christmas, my family rents a cabin at Lake Barkley State Park in Kentucky. The lake is beautiful, the park is beautiful, the cabins are spacious, and if I reserve in time, it’s possible to get one that where they tolerate the none-too-gentle presence of our … let’s say “enthusiastic” … dogs. The park is close enough to make a visit to relatives in my old home town much more tolerable. Also, if I feel like taking the cardiac risk, the lodge kitchen will fix me a decent hot brown, which is hard to obtain outside the bounds of the Bluegrass State.

But this week, I got a surprise email from Lake Barkley park. That email informed me that my reservation had been “successfully cancelled.” Immediately, I went in search of my phone, intent on telling them that someone had made a mistake. Thankfully, before I found it, I had a chance to think for a second. There’s a very good reason why we’re not going to the park this year, as WLWT explains.

That generosity is coming on the orders of Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, who announced on Tuesday that seven state parks are standing by with both lodging and food for families displace by tornados. It’s another reason why, as President Joe Biden arrives in Kentucky on Wednesday, he’s not just surveying the damage, but doing so with a governor who has, again and again, displayed incredible grace and compassion under the worst circumstances.

Contribute to support relief efforts in aftermath of Kentucky tornadoes

As WLKY explains, Biden is being accompanied on his trip from Washington by Rep. James Comer. Comer is a Republican, and represents Kentucky’s 1st Congressional District. That’s the district that includes the devastated town of Mayfield, as well as several other areas affected along the path of the incredible long-track F5 tornado that stayed on the ground for over 200 miles last Friday evening.

When it comes to Jan. 6, Comer voted against an independent commission to investigate the assault on the Capitol, then called for an independent commission while voting against the House select committee. Comer also happens to be the author of a bill that would prohibit federal agencies from requiring employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19. None of this stopped Biden from inviting Comer onto Air Force One and flying with him to Fort Campbell near the scene of the destruction in western Kentucky.

On the ground, Biden was joined by Beshear and his family. The group then travelled to Mayfield, where Biden told state and local leaders “not to hesitate to ask the federal government for anything.”

Since taking office at the end of 2019—after defeating Republican incumbent Matt Bevin, who had made destroying public education his signature issue—Beshear almost immediately found himself dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. He moved swiftly to end public gatherings and institute mask mandates, risking the wrath of some of the state’s most powerful interests by even ordering the arrest of church leaders who violated a ban on in-person worship. Those actions paid off in a significantly lower rate of cases and deaths when compared to neighboring states.

However, Beshear hasn’t just had to fight the virus. He’s also had to struggle with a Republican-dominated legislature and a Republican state attorney general. As a result, Beshear has found himself fighting court cases launched against his actions by his own state, and bills from the legislature meant to limit his power. He’s also presided over a state capitol that, in February 2020, was invaded by militants waving assault rifles, one of a number of such state-level assaults that helped white supremacists build their networks, and confidence, before Jan. 6.

This spring, the Republican legislature overrode Beshear’s vetoes with a series of punishing steps that not only prevented Beshear from acting to protect citizens of Kentucky, they actually prevented the state from spending money that came to the state through the American Rescue Plan. At the same time, those legislators ended the state’s commission on women, weakened worker safety rules, specifically gutted mine safety laws, and handed the Republican attorney general an unlimited budget with which to carry out attacks on the governor.

As a result, 18 months after Beshear led the state to some of the best COVID-19 numbers in the country, Kentucky has been pressed right down the list to nestle against its neighbors when it comes to deaths by population.

Given all that, it might seem Beshear must be facing a revolt from the citizens of Kentucky. He’s not. In fact, recent polls put Beshear at 54% approval. That’s a big drop from the 79% he enjoyed on Election Day in 2019, but it’s a whole lot better than the 36% approval rating that’s all Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has to show for his efforts to be the most MAGA of all.

With his state facing a new crisis, Beshear isn’t using this moment to campaign against his political opponents, or to divert attention with some nonsense order designed to bolster his own credentials with his base. He’s just taking care of his people, and doing so with innovative moves like the one that means my Christmas vacation plans are getting scotched this year.

Godspeed, Beshear. Godspeed, families who desperately need those cabins, not for a vacation, but for a place to simply live. 

Godspeed, Kentucky. I’ll see you next year.