October 6, 2025

Amy McGrath officially launches her second Kentucky Senate bid for Senator Mitch McConnell's seat, the Kentucky criminal case that has caught the attention of the White house, and the growing crisis for Kentucky soybean farmers. 

Episode Transcript

(00:09):
Amy McGrath reenters the
ring. More on her second bid to
capture U.S. Senator Mitch
McConnell's seat in Washington.
>> You have to put food on the
table and you don't really get
paid much for it. And most of
the time you're losing money.
So how do you how do you figure
out how to do that? I guess
that's the hard part.

(00:30):
>> The growing crisis for
Kentucky soybean farmers and
what's giving them some hope,
>> I literally did not feel
good at all whenever I was
eating the way I did. I was
always tired.
>> How this Kentucky teen and
her family got on the path to

(00:50):
good health.
>> Production of Kentucky
Edition is made possible in
part by the KET Millennium Fund.
>> Good evening and welcome to
Kentucky Edition on this brand

(01:12):
new week. It is Monday, October
the 6th. I'm Renee Shaw, and we
thank you for spending some of
your Monday night with us. The
field of candidates vying for
U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell's
Senate seat is widening. The
latest candidate, someone who
has run for the seat before,
Amy McGrath, the retired marine
fighter pilot, announced this
morning she's making a second

(01:34):
Senate run. McGrath, who is a
Democrat, lost to McConnell in
2020. She also ran
unsuccessfully for the U.S.
House in the sixth district
back in 2018. McConnell
announced earlier this year he
was retiring, leaving his seat
open in a video for her
campaign launch, McGrath says
the stakes are too high for the
seat to be filled by someone

(01:56):
who will align themselves with
President Donald Trump.
>> I know what courage looks
like right now. Way too many
politicians don't, and
Americans are being thrown
under the bus by cowards in
Washington. Without the moral
backbone to serve our nation
with honor.
>> Three other Democrats and
three Republicans are also

(02:17):
running for Senator McConnell's
seat. Senator McConnell wants
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth
to keep the Friday night lights
on at some Kentucky high
schools. In a letter sent to
Hegseth last week, McConnell
asked that athletic and
extracurricular activities be
allowed to continue during the
federal government shutdown at
high schools located on Fort

(02:39):
Campbell and Fort Knox Army
bases. McConnell says the
cancellation of football games
at the schools could risk the
student athletes ability to
compete at the college level.
No word on whether Hegseth has
responded to McConnell's letter.
A criminal case in Kentucky has
caught the attention of the
white House. It involves the

(03:00):
release of Ronald Exantus,
sentenced for the fatal
stabbing of a six year old boy
in Woodford County back in 2015.
He was found not guilty of
murder by reason of insanity.
He was found guilty of assault
and sentenced to 20 years.
According to the Lexington
Herald leader, Exantus started
supervised parole earlier this

(03:21):
month and is scheduled to be
released from supervision next
year, the Herald Leader reports.
The white House press secretary,
Caroline Leavitt, reshared a
post by a conservative media
personality who expressed
outrage over the release.
Leavitt commented on the post,
saying the administration was,
quote, looking into this end
quote, the former Louisville

(03:44):
Metro police officer convicted
in the Breonna Taylor case is
asking to have the date he
scheduled to report to prison
delayed. That's according to
the Courier-Journal newspaper.
Brett Hankison was convicted of
violating Taylor's civil rights.
He's scheduled to report to
prison October the 9th to begin
serving a 33 month sentence.

(04:06):
Hankison has appealed the
conviction and, sentencing his
lawyer, say a 60 to 90 day
extension is needed to allow
the court to rule on the appeal
and for them to appeal to a
higher court if the ruling
doesn't go in their favor.
Turning now to some big news
it's harvest time for
Kentucky's grain farmers, but

(04:27):
they'll be hard pressed to turn
a profit because China is not
buying American soybeans. It's
gotten so bad. President Donald
Trump says a government bailout
for farmers could be announced
as early as tomorrow. Our June
Lefler reports that some
farmers say they need help now.
>> It's warm and dusty in the

(04:48):
soybean fields for two months
round the clock, Matt Gieseke
will run the combine. It cuts
the stalks and separates the
beans from the pods. His
farmhand collects the beans and
carries them over rolling
fields towards the road.
>> Put it on a truck and send
it to Jeffersonville, Indiana
to consolidate grain and barge.

(05:09):
They put it on a barge and ship
it down to the Gulf.
>> But the going price for
soybeans is low and likely
won't rebound soon.
>> It's a free market, and so
the price is decided by trading.
And, you know, it's just like
anything else. You've got too
much supply and not enough
demand. The price is going to

(05:29):
be low.
>> Why the low demand? China
isn't buying.
>> So 25% of our soybeans in
general from the United States
are exported to China. And
basically this entire year,
China has not bought a single
soybean.
>> President Donald Trump's
trade policy has meant
reciprocal tariffs between
China. So the soybeans China
needs to feed its pigs are

(05:51):
coming from Brazil and other
South American countries.
Instead.
>> Running quick calculations
on Soybean Acre this year, I
estimate losses for each
producer to be somewhere
between 100 and $200 per acre.
>> With that math, Isaac could
be missing out on more than
$100,000.
>> So that's causing a lot of

(06:11):
stress in farm country across
the US, because the prices are
just depressed right now, to a
point where a lot of people
aren't making any money.
>> Prominent Kentucky
Republicans do not support
Trump's trade war. U.S. Senator
Mitch McConnell says it's
hurting customers and
businesses, including farmers.
But Kentucky's top agriculture

(06:32):
official supports Trump's moves.
Commissioner Jonathan Schell
says, quote, for decades, our
trade deals left America at the
mercy of countries that didn't
always have our best interests
at heart. When you look at
China, for example, it's not
just about buying soybeans,
it's about intellectual
property theft, buying up

(06:53):
farmland and creating
instability around the globe.
The president's approach is
about protecting our
sovereignty while still working
to expand markets for our
farmers. This farmer says he
can't wait for a trade war to
become a trade deal.
>> Whether you support him or
not, there's things that you
can agree with and disagree

(07:13):
with. And I'll say that that,
you know, a lot of his trade
policies right now because it's
hurting the farm country so bad.
I'm kind of I'm at a point
where I'm, you know, I'd say
disagree with them. I know
President Trump had put out a
tweet or whatever you call it,
that he's going to meet with
China in four weeks. Four weeks

(07:34):
is a long time away.
>> The strains of farming are
here and now. Inflation is high
and so are loan interest rates.
>> Because we buy things and
our input costs are up 60%
since 2017. And our and then
we're receiving prices for the
crop that, you know, are back
in the 70s, 70s and 80s kind of

(07:55):
prices.
>> Farming associations are
looking for more soybean
markets at home. That means
expanding biofuel consumption,
something that's in progress.
>> But every other country that
bought beans in 2022 only made
up 61% of China's demand. So
China is the large player. If
we're trying to piece a bunch

(08:16):
of exports from different
countries, I don't think we
ever get to the demand we saw
from China, or at least not
this year. It would have to be
the long term gain. We'd have
to see demand from those
countries increase over time.
>> The future of agriculture
weighs on the farmers of today
and tomorrow.
>> You know, people want to be
a doctor and I want to be a
farmer. And they're like, oh,

(08:37):
that's easy. It's a lot harder
than it looks. I that's exactly
what I want to do. That's the
only thing I want to do.
>> Sebastian Giglio is a high
school senior debating taking
up a trade, going to college or
farming.
>> You have to put food on the
table and you don't really get
paid much for it. And most of
the time you're losing money.
So how do you how do you figure

(08:57):
out how to do that? I guess
that's the hard part.
>> Farmers in Trump went
through a trade war before in
his first term as president,
the government bailed out
farmers then, and Trump has
suggested doing that again.
>> Well, we don't want
government payments. We need
some help at this point.
>> U.S. Secretary of Commerce
Scott Bassett told farmers to
expect an announcement Tuesday

(09:20):
for Kentucky Edition. I'm June
Loeffler.
>> Thank you, Jen, for that
report. Last year, Kentucky
farmers sold more than $1
billion worth of soybeans, just
below the revenue made from
corn. Blue Oval SK is facing
another class action lawsuit
over worker pay, the

(09:40):
Courier-Journal newspaper
reports. The second lawsuit
alleges workers were not paid
for Pre-shift and post-shift
activities, or for work
performed during their meal
breaks. The first lawsuit
against the electric vehicle
battery maker was filed last
month by workers at its
Michigan plant. The
Courier-Journal also reports
the plant has faced numerous
health and safety complaints

(10:02):
from workers, including
chemical exposure and blocked
emergency exits. Some major
companies in Louisville are
being led by out of state CEOs.
The Derby city is not alone, as
other mid-sized cities are
struggling to recruit leaders
who want to put down their
roots in their hometowns. That

(10:22):
was the conclusion from an
examination by Louisville
Business First senior reporter
Joel Stennett, who spoke with
me last week about his
enterprising piece, more in
tonight's Business Beat segment.
Joel Stennett, who is a senior
reporter for the Louisville
Business First publication.
Thank you so much for a few

(10:44):
minutes of your time.
>> Thanks for having me, Renee.
>> I do want to talk to you
about a piece that you penned a
few weeks ago that talked about
Louisville's largest companies
have CEOs that live elsewhere.
They don't live in the Derby
city many times. They don't
even live in the state of
Kentucky. And this is creating
a leadership vacuum, as was
described in the Derby City. In

(11:05):
today's global business
environment, why does this
matter and what companies are
we talking about? Who are have
CEOs who live elsewhere?
>> Yeah, for Louisville, it's
some of our largest and really
most exciting companies you
think of and companies that you
think of when you think of
Louisville. We're talking about
Humana, whose executive team

(11:26):
lives mostly in Washington,
D.C. we're talking about yum
brands, whose CEO and
executives mostly live in the
Dallas area. We're talking even
smaller companies like Waystar
and Confluent Health. The
reason this matters is just
that oftentimes, wherever CEOs
or executives live kind of
creates a center of gravity in
a company. So that can cause

(11:48):
talent to want to move closer
to where the CEO is. But it
also creates a vacuum in
leadership at home. For example,
leaders, nonprofit boards,
having leaders to be able to
join their board. It also
creates an economic vacuum.
Usually, CEOs are the largest
earners inside of a company.
And so that kind of disposable

(12:09):
income to be able to have here
in Derby City is really
important.
>> Did your work uncover why
CEOs are deciding to live
outside of the city and state
in which they're they're
leading?
>> Well, part of this is a
larger trend. There is a Boston
College and Arizona State study
that found that even before the
pandemic, about 18% of public

(12:30):
companies had their CEO living
somewhere else than their
headquarters. So it's not just
a Louisville problem. And of
course, that number has
increased post-pandemic as
companies have gotten more
comfortable with remote work.
But this really kind of started
even before then. For
Louisville, executives have
lived outside of Louisville for
several years, and there's
several reasons why executives

(12:50):
might choose not to live here.
I think the number one reason
is probably the reason I've
heard most when I was doing
this story was a state income
tax. Kentucky state income tax
right now is at 4%, goes down
to 3.5% next year. But you look
at states like Texas where
executives live, and they have
a 0% state income tax in
Nashville, Tennessee, where I

(13:11):
used to be a reporter, they
also have a 0% income tax. And
you see, while I was there,
there were hundreds of
companies and executives that
were moving from states like
California. And it always came
down to when I asked them why
they came, it was because the
state income tax, because even
3% is a lot when you're earning
as much money as a CEO does.
But there's also other, other

(13:31):
obstacles Louisville has to
overcome, you know, the ease of
air travel and then just
certain amenities that other
cities larger than Louisville
have, such as professional
sports teams and some luxury
shopping.
>> Yeah. Interesting. I want to
go back to those latter points
there, Joel, and talk about the
air travel and the fact that
Louisville may not have as many
or accessible daily flights to

(13:53):
really important business hubs
in the nation. So that really
is a factor. We've heard it
anecdotally for a while, but is
that really a big driver for
why these CEOs live out of
outside of Louisville?
>> I think for some companies
and executives it is if you
look at em, Dallas is one of
the largest airports in the

(14:15):
country, and yum has
restaurants literally all over
the world. And so when you're
trying to get out to Asia or to
Europe and you have to have a
connecting flight, since
Muhammad Ali International
Airport doesn't have any direct
commercial international
flights, that adds adds to your
travel time. So our airport has
grown a lot in recent years.

(14:36):
It's definitely not, you know,
entirely because of that that
executives aren't living here.
But I think it is a factor for
some companies.
>> Yeah. You mentioned too,
about the state income tax that
even though Kentucky has made
strides with recent laws to
gradually lower the state
income tax, with the with the
optimism to get to a flat 0%

(14:58):
over time, that's still not
good enough that we're working
our way down, but just not
quite there yet.
>> It's I don't think, for some
of the top executives, it is. I
think eventually it will be,
especially if we get to the
flat zero. But, you know, if
you're making millions and
millions of dollars, like a lot
of these CEOs are, I mean, some

(15:20):
top of my head what yum CEO
earned last year. But it was,
you know, north of $20 million,
3% of that is a lot or 3.5% or
4%. And if you can save that,
that amount of cash, most
executives are going to take
that chance if they if they
have the opportunity.
>> Joel, you just said a number
that many of us can't really

(15:40):
imagine or put our hands our
head around $20 million
executive level salary for a
CEO. Is that the average?
>> Well, usually the, you know,
not speaking about a specific
company, but usually most CEOs
that I see on SEC, at least
public companies, when I look

(16:00):
at SEC filings, the CEOs
usually get a base salary of
somewhere around $1 million or
so, say, where they really get
a lot of executive compensation
is is in stock options and
perks and benefits and things
like that, and bonuses. That's
where they really see their
their average salary raise. So
yeah, some of these larger
companies like Humana or Yum or
Papa John's, their CEOs are

(16:23):
making multi-million dollars a
year.
>> Yeah. Well, I want to also
go back to a point you made
about the community impacts of
CEOs that don't live in
Louisville, where they're
running these large companies,
the philanthropic endeavors,
how are they hampered, or even
just community engagement
efforts that we know really do

(16:43):
drive a level of philanthropy
and community engagement and
charity in a city, if the
leaders are there to kind of
push that along.
>> Some of the sources I spoke
to for the story even spoke
about when they talked to
nonprofits. Now they're not
able to get the executive level
leadership to join their board

(17:05):
like they used to be able to.
Some of some people told me
that's not really a Louisville
problem or a new problem. It's
kind of something that's been
going on for a while now, just
because of the demands that
executives of these large
companies have on their time
already. And so a lot of times,
they'll try to send someone

(17:25):
from maybe middle management to
go join a board in lieu of them
doing it themselves. But yeah,
I mean, corporate giving and
individual giving to these
nonprofits definitely takes a
hit when the CEO is not in town.
But, you know, you look at some
of these other companies like
Humana, I mean, they're still
they just had their their day
of service here in Louisville
that they started last year.

(17:46):
You know, they still have the
Humana Foundation, which does
give a lot of money to
nonprofits and organizations
here in Louisville. One of the
people we did speak to for the
story was John Schnatter, the
former founder and CEO of Papa
John's. And he talked a lot
about him and David Jones, the
founder and former CEO of
Humana. You know, maybe 20 or

(18:07):
30 years ago when things needed
to get done, like, say, the
Floyds Fork Parks or say Papa
John's Cardinal Stadium, now
Elon Stadium, you know, they
were able to to to
singlehandedly get a lot of
these projects done because
they were here, they were based
here and those kind of projects.
We don't really have that type
of leadership right here now in
Louisville that lives here at
least to be able to get some of

(18:28):
those projects done. In his
opinion, which is partly
leading to that leadership void.
>> Yeah. Well, Joe, thank you
for your work. It's a
fascinating piece and I
encourage people to read it.
Louisville Business first
online, and we can keep track
of all your great work for the
community there. So we just
appreciate you sharing some of
it with us today.

(18:49):
>> Thanks, Renee.
>> Some health news. Almost 38%
of Kentuckians are considered
obese, according to the
American Diabetes Association.
That rate is projected to
increase to 54% by the year
2030. The struggle to maintain

(19:10):
a healthy weight often starts
in childhood. A Bowling Green
pediatrician was able to help
one family adopt healthier
habits that led to weight loss
and other positive health
outcomes. Our Laura Rogers
shared their story as part of
our special program, The
Wellness Shift, a KET forum.
>> Five six. In many ways,

(19:31):
Karly Ingram is your typical
teenager.
>> I just want to lay in my bed
with my cats and watch YouTube.
>> And like millions of other
kids, Karly has struggled with
childhood obesity.
>> I used to stress eat a lot.
School was kind of difficult. I
had a lot of bullies in school.
>> That stress eating led Karly,

(19:53):
now 17, to a concerning
diagnosis.
>> I literally did not feel
good at all whenever I was
eating the way I did. I was
always tired.
>> At a well-child checkup, we
did some labs that came back
and Karly was pre-diabetic and
she was a little on the heavier

(20:14):
side.
>> Karly and her aunt, Leslie
Basham, discussed those labs
with pediatrician Doctor Casey
Miles.
>> Doctor Miles recommended
some diet changes, small
changes that we could do at
home, dietary changes, some
exercise.
>> They heeded that advice.
Karly lost 20 pounds and
reversed her pre-diabetic
diagnosis.
>> By the time we got to that

(20:36):
doctor, we didn't even need the
doctor, so that was really
awesome.
>> Over the last 20 years,
we've seen obesity rates in
pediatrics rise significantly.
>> And that's a big concern for
pediatricians who say healthy
habits should begin early in
life.
>> Children's brains are
developing and they are very
adaptable, and they can form
habits a lot easier than we can

(20:59):
as adults.
>> Those habits include
reaching for healthy foods that
provide good nutrition.
>> We've stopped buying so much
processed foods, and I've
traded it out for just apples,
oranges, that kind of thing.
>> Many kids have their taste
and texture palettes set by
about nine months of age, so
it's important for parents to
model good eating behaviors
before that and expose their

(21:21):
children to different tastes
and textures.
>> Leslie says their family
used to resort to fast food out
of convenience, especially with
a busy schedule revolving
around cheerleading, but now
they opt for home cooked meals.
>> Alfredo noodles that she
really likes. That's something
that we cook a lot at our house
now. We cook those very often
in the oven and then we'll put

(21:41):
vegetables with it. That's been
one of the biggest changes that
we've made as a family. That's
really helped us.
>> It's a lot easier and it's a
lot more fun if everybody in
the family is motivated and
participating in these healthy
habits.
>> I think it was really
helpful that she wanted to join
in with me, and I think it
helped me a lot to make better

(22:02):
decisions.
>> Cheerleading is also a
family affair. Leslie is the
coach and Carly loves the
physical activity.
>> Cheerleading is definitely
her passion. I've got to say.
That's definitely her passion.
That's her, her thing that she
loves the most.
>> I feel a lot better. I feel
a lot more energetic.
>> She attributes that to her
more active lifestyle and
smaller portion sizes at the

(22:24):
dinner table.
>> Not coming back for seconds,
just eating what I already had
and drinking a bunch of water
also helped because it makes
you like more full doctor.
>> Miles says these changes are
beneficial for kids in many
areas of their life.
>> These kids are much better
at concentrating at school
performance, at having physical

(22:45):
endurance, being self confident
in their better at regulating
their emotions.
>> They can also be shared with
the next generation.
>> Whenever I become an adult,
if I ever choose to have kids,
that would help me know what
they should be eating so they
can also have a healthier life.
>> For KET. I'm Laura Rogers.

(23:06):
>> Thank you Laura, and you can
watch the Wellness Shift at KET
forum Online on demand at the
address you see on your screen.
And speaking of health, there
is a program note for tonight.
Vaccines and medications are
the topics on Kentucky Tonight.
This evening, as a panel of
four doctors discuss the Trump
administration's vaccine

(23:26):
policies and the recent debate
over Tylenol use and autism,
join us for that discussion,
which should be interesting.
Send us your questions and your
comments. That's tonight at
8:00 eastern, seven central,
right here on KET. We look back

(23:46):
at one of Kentucky's biggest
civil war battles. Man o war's
last race, and a meteorite seen
in Kentucky. Our Toby Gibbs has
it all in this Week in Kentucky
history.
>> 58,000 Union troops clashed
with 16,000 Confederates at the

(24:07):
Battle of Perryville on October
8th, 1862. Casualties were high
on both sides, but the battle
was considered a tactical
victory for the Union since
Confederate forces left the
state. Kentucky State
University opened on October
11th, 1887, in Frankfort. At
first, it had three teachers

(24:28):
and 55 students. Man O'war ran
his last race on October 12th,
1920, defeating Sir Barton, the
first Triple Crown winner, at
Kenilworth Park in Canada. Man
O'war retired and eventually
ended up at Faraway Farm
outside Lexington, where he
died in 1947. Queen Elizabeth

(24:48):
the Second started her first
visit to Kentucky on October
7th, 1984. She arrived at
Bluegrass Airport and stayed
six days. That same day,
October 7th, 1984, presidential
candidates Ronald Reagan and
Walter Mondale debated at the
Kentucky Center for the Arts in

(25:08):
Louisville. The Peekskill
meteorite was seen over
Kentucky and other states on
October 9th, 1992. It's called
the Peekskill meteorite because
it finally landed on a 1980 red
Chevy Malibu in Peekskill, New
York. And that's a look back at
This Week in Kentucky history.
I'm Toby Gibbs.

(25:29):
>> Thank you. Toby. Primary
care providers can be the first
line of defense when it comes
to detecting serious health
issues. But less than half of
all Americans have one. Coming
up tomorrow on Kentucky Edition,
some of the health problems
primary care providers often
find in their patients. Plus,
what to look for when you're
choosing a provider. That story

(25:51):
and so much more coming your
way tomorrow night at 630
eastern, 530 Central on
Kentucky Edition, where we
inform, connect, and inspire.
We hope that you'll connect
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Instagram to stay in the loop.
You can also send us a story
idea by email at PublicAffairs
at ket.org. And look for us on

(26:13):
the KET and PBS app that you
can download to get all the
great content and public
affairs and everywhere else. We
have great programing on KET.
Thanks so very much for
watching. Hope you'll tune in
tonight at 8:00 for Kentucky
tonight as we talk about
vaccines and Tylenol. That's
coming your way in a bit. Until