A man with six decades of public service in the Commonwealth was remembered for both his political and personal traits. The lying-in-state ceremony took place Friday for former Kentucky Governor Julian Carroll.
Carroll, who served as speaker of the Kentucky House, lieutenant governor, governor, and then in the state senate years later, died last Sunday at 92. One of those offering remarks in the Capitol Rotunda about the democratic stalwart politician was former State Auditor and Lieutenant Governor Crit Luallen.
“No one could have imagined that that little baby boy born in 1931 to Buster and Eva Carroll in West Paducah would go on to have one of the most successful political careers in Kentucky history,” said Luallen.
Senate President Robert Stivers spoke about how, as a seatmate years ago, Carroll would recall in great detail state government business. And the GOP leader said the former governor was one of a kind orators who was a pure speaker on the political stump.
Also paying tribute to Carroll was former Senate Minority Floor Leader Ed Worley. Worley said there are two characteristics of a “great politician.”
“They have to like people. They have to truly like people and that has to be a natural characteristic. That cannot be learned behavior. You have got to like people naturally. And then you got to like yourself. Julian Carroll loved being Julian Carroll,” said Worley.
During his remarks, Governor Beshear said with Carroll’s passing three of Kentucky’s former governors have now died in the last 14 months…John Y Brown, Brereton Jones, and now Carroll.
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