Kentucky governor
pressured to withhold funds from antigay school

Under growing pressure from Kentucky legislators to veto state funding for a university that expelled a student last week for being gay, Gov. Ernie Fletcher said Thursday he has not yet made a decision. Two state senators and a state representative are urging Fletcher to not appropriate $10 million for a proposed pharmacy school at the University of the Cumberlands in Williamsburg, where 20-year-old Jason Johnson was kicked out, The Lexington Herald-Leader reports. Pharmacy schools are prevented by national accreditation rules from discriminating against gay people. Democratic state senator Julian Carroll called that a "major obstacle," adding that he believes giving state money to a religious institution--the University of the Cumberlands is a Southern Baptist school--violates Kentucky's constitution. Democratic state senator Ernesto Scorsone, who is gay, and Democratic state representative Kathy Stein also oppose the $10 million grant. Fletcher has said he's concerned about increasing state debt through capital projects like the proposed pharmacy school. (The Advocate)