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Who saw this coming?
The arrest Friday morning of the world’s best golfer entering the PGA Championship complex in Louisville is quickly becoming a potential political headache for that city’s mayor and Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear.
A long-troubled police department, a city looking to revive the PGA Championship and the highly visible arrest and questionable release of Scottie Scheffler: It’s a story that will top digital sites across the country on Friday , and even on some international media.
It also didn’t take long for Republicans and other political observers to link the incident to Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear, whose star in the party is rising after his decisive re-election in November over the Republican attorney general and close Senate ally. Mitch McConnell.
This is happening despite the fact that the governor has no involvement in the situation.
Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg and the Louisville Metro Police Department have also been caught up in critical posts and commentary on social media, with many coming to Scheffler’s defense over the reported confusion at the scene.
After allegedly trying to drive past a police officer to get onto the course after a fatal early morning crash halted traffic, the world’s best golfer was led away in handcuffs.
The officer involved in the incident was hospitalized with injuries to his wrist and knee after Scheffler’s vehicle dragged the officer to the ground, according to the Louisville police report.
The 27-year-old Texas resident was arrested and booked into jail and faced four charges stemming from the incident: second-degree assault on a police officer, third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving and disobeying signals from police officers directing traffic . .
Scheffler was arrested at 6:20 am. He was booked, given an orange jersey, had his mugshot snapped and was released between 8:30 and 9:00 a.m., arriving at Valhalla Golf Club around 9:15 a.m.
He made his start time of 10:10 am.
Sean Southard, a former spokesman for Daniel Cameron, the Republican gubernatorial candidate who lost decisively to Beshear in November 2023, posted a “personal apology” on the social platform formerly known as Twitter that Cameron lost to the incumbent Democrat.
The insinuation: the situation would be different under Cameron.
“I would like to personally apologize to Scottie and the country,” Southard wrote. “We did our best to beat Andy Beshear. But this is Kentucky under Andy Beshear. Violent criminals are released from prison and the world’s number one golfer is arrested for trying to make the PGA.’
Beshear’s record on releasing certain prisoners during the COVID-19 pandemic has been a talking point of the Cameron campaign.
Alison Wiseman, president of Kentucky Young Democrats, called the response from some Republicans “laughable.”
“For people to try to blame the governor and the mayor for this is really laughable. That’s not how this works, number one. Second, it’s not like the governor just sits there at 5 a.m. calling LMPD officers when a situation like this arises, or even the mayor, for that matter.
“Trying to connect it with all these parties is really laughable to see that the party that pretends to hold the blue back so often comes to be angry at the blue.”
Beshear has not issued a statement on the matter.
Greenberg offered his condolences Friday morning to the family of a pedestrian who was struck and killed by a shuttle bus.
Scheffler was arrested after allegedly trying to drive past a police officer to get onto the golf course after the incident brought traffic to a standstill.
In a statement to the Herald-Leader, Louisville’s mayor said he was focused on the loss of life, but that LMPD is “fully investigating” the Scheffler incident.
“It is unfortunate that an incident occurred between an LMPD officer and Mr. Scheffler while he was attempting to enter Valhalla,” Greenberg wrote. “LMPD is fully investigating this incident and legal proceedings will continue. We appreciate everyone’s cooperation.”
Kentucky Democratic Party Chairman Colmon Elridge posted in X in response to Southard that the anger over Scheffler’s arrest was white privilege.
“If the Library of Congress ever saves tweets so that future generations can understand white privilege, this would be a strong contender,” Elridge wrote.
The Louisville Police Department has long been under scrutiny. In the wake of the police killing of Breonna Taylor on March 13, 2020. In the wake of the tragic shooting, waves of criticism and countless questions arose about the department’s biases and other shortcomings.
Ultimately, the Justice Department ruled that Louisville police violated federal law and the U.S. Constitution for, among other things, excessive use of force, unlawful arrest, unlawfully arresting people of color and unlawfully executing no-knock warrants.
The discussion comes as Beshear’s five-point victory over Cameron has catapulted him into the national conversation.
Sometimes mentioned as a contender for higher office (some have even suggested a presidential run or a spot on a future ticket as vice president), Beshear recently made a high-profile stop on marijuana policy alongside Vice President Kamala Harris.
He has also been invited to speak in Tennessee against that state’s abortion ban.
Scott Jennings, a former aide to McConnell and CNN political commentator, said the criticism of both Beshear and Greenberg is rooted in their lack of responsibility for the situation.
“If I were in a leadership position, I would want as much direct transparency as possible — for example, bodycam footage — and I would want to reassure people that Louisville, Kentucky, can handle an event like this without it being a fiasco,” Jennings said.
“Politicians love to take credit for it, go on interviews and talk to everyone about it,” he added.
“But the real leadership comes when and if something bad happens. I mean, anyone can hand out a trophy, but who can actually manage the crisis?”
Scottie Scheffler was arrested Friday before the PGA Championship and then went off in the second round
Second round of the 2024 PGA Championship in Louisville postponed after pedestrian deaths
