Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds takes part in a panel discussion during a Republican Governors Association conference, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)

In a recent political ad funded by the Republican Governor’s Association (RGA), Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) is criticized for ordering the early release of convicts during the COVID-19 pandemic. Several Republican governors and politicians, including RGA chairwoman Kim Reynolds, did the very same thing.

Ten seconds into the ad, Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron (R), who is running against Beshear for governor, can be heard bashing Beshear for “throwing open the jails” while a headline about the Governor’s commutations is shown on screen.

During the height of COVID-19’s spread in 2020, Beshear and governors in several other states began to order the early release of nonviolent offenders who were near the end of their sentences. This took place before vaccines had been developed for the virus, and Beshear’s administration iterated the need to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in prisons to protect the lives of inmates and staff.

Republican governors across the nation — including Iowa Gov. Reynolds, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchison, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan — oversaw the release of hundreds of inmates during their terms in office for the same reasons as Beshear. The RGA invested millions of dollars to keep Stitt, DeWine and Hogan in office, and they elected Reynolds as the chair of the organization last November.

Now, the GOP is using the early release of prisoners as a weapon against Beshear despite supporting politicians who did the same thing. The Trump administration also ordered the release of federal prisoners at the direction of former U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr.

Cameron’s campaign did not immediately respond to Heartland Signal for comment on the matter.

Cameron has served under Beshear as Kentucky’s 51st attorney general since 2019. He announced his candidacy in May 2022 and won the Republican primary in May with 48% of the vote. The off-year election will be held on Nov. 7, and Cameron has already secured an endorsement from Trump.