 The first legislative session of Fields' term was marked by infighting within his own party.His agenda was opposed by a Democratic faction led by former governor J. C. W. Beckham, "Louisville Courier-Journal" publisher Robert Worth Bingham, and political boss Percy Haly.Fields' signature issue, a $75 million bond issue to construct a state highway system, passed the legislature in 1924, but the electorate refused to approve it in November of that year.