Interview with Joseph Prather, July 6, 2006
Project: Kentucky Legislature Oral History Project
Interview Summary
Prather (House 1968-1972, 26th district; Senate 1974-1986, 10th district; Democrat) discusses his education, going to school in a one-room schoolhouse, his real estate, auctioneering and banking businesses, how he got into politics. He compares the legislature he entered in 1968 to the legislature in 2006. Other topics include the committee system, interim committees, legislative independence, the decision to televise proceedings of the General Assembly, his philosophy of government, the difficulty of building political consensus, political partisanship, the impact of money on campaigning, the importance of education, the community college system, the University of Kentucky. He describes the relationship between the University of Kentucky and the state's community colleges and remarks on the relationship between University of Kentucky athletics department and the legislature. He praises the Legislative Research Commission, discusses his opposition to regional factionalism, reflects on his relationship with Julian Carroll, explains his views on the ascendency of the Republican Party in Kentucky and the nation. He talks about lobbyists and the function they serve in the legislative process.Interview Accession
Interviewee Name
Interviewer Name
Interview Date
Interview LC Subject
Brown, John Young, Jr., 1933- Carroll, Julian Morton, 1931- Chandler, Happy, 1898-1991 Committees Community colleges Education Eisenhower, Dwight D. (Dwight David), 1890-1969 Hardin County (Ky.) Kentucky. General Assembly--Committees Kentucky. General Assembly--Reform Kentucky. Governor (1974-1979 : Carroll) Larue County (Ky.) Legislators--Kentucky--Interviews Lobbyists Lobbyists--Kentucky Prather, Joseph Prather, Joseph--Interviews Regionalism Republican Party (U.S. : 1854- ) Singletary, Otis A. Truman, Harry S., 1884-1972 Universities and colleges--Administration--United States University of KentuckyInterview Rights
All rights to the interviews, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred to the University of Kentucky Libraries.Interview Usage
Interviews may be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, Special Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries.Restriction
Interviews may be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, Special Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries.
All rights to the interviews, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred to the University of Kentucky Libraries.
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Prather, Joseph Interview by Erik Tuttle. 06 Jul. 2006. Lexington, KY: Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries.
Prather, J. (2006, July 06). Interview by E. Tuttle. Kentucky Legislature Oral History Project. Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries, Lexington.
Prather, Joseph, interview by Erik Tuttle. July 06, 2006, Kentucky Legislature Oral History Project, Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries.
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