October 20, 2025 • 26 mins
Journalists from around the state discuss the news of the week with host Bill Bryant, including internal polling and fundraising numbers for several candidates in the U.S. Senate race. Panelists: Tessa Duvall, Lexington Herald-Leader; McKenna Horsley, Kentucky Lantern; and Hannah Pinski, Louisville Courier Journal.
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(00:11):
chooses a challenger for
Congressman Thomas Massie.
Internal polls and fundraising
numbers give clues about
Kentucky's open U.S. Senate
race. The federal government
shutdown continues to have
impact in Kentucky. The state
Supreme Court considers a tug
of war between the legislature
xt oKE Good evening, I'mal
(00:49):
Bill Bryant, and we welcome you
to comment on Kentucky, a look
back at and some analysis of
the week's news in the
Commonwealth and the guests on
our panel of working Kentucky
journalists tonight are Hannah
Pinsky, politics reporter for
the Courier-Journal. McKenna
horsley, politics reporter for
The Kentucky Lantern. And
joining us remotely is Tessa
(01:10):
Duvall, politics and public
affairs editor for the
Lexington Herald Leader. We
have a lot to discuss tonight.
In just before airtime, we
learned that President Trump
has chosen a challenger for
fourth District Congressman
Thomas Massie, Hannah. That
came out in a social media post
from the president.
>> Yeah. Trump had announced
(01:30):
himself on social media with a
picture of his chosen candidate,
which is Ed Goren. He's a
former Navy Seal and farmer
here in Kentucky. And I think
that one of the general
consensus is this is a bit of a
shock to some folks in some
Republicans, because we had
seen state Senator Erin's Read
thrown around in the headlines
in the recent months. And
(01:50):
what's also interesting is that
this isn't gatherings first
time running in a race. He had
actually run in the state
Senate race that had Erin Reid,
as well as former state senator
Adrian Southworth. And in that
primary, it was a tight race
between him and Reid. So we'll
see how this race plays out,
especially since this is a
federal seat compared to a
(02:11):
state Senate seat.
>> McKenna, what else should we
know about Gowran?
>> Yes. So as Hannah said, he
was in that primary in the
seventh Senate district, which
includes Shelby County area,
which is where a lot of these
candidates are from, including
Aaron Reid. But at Gowran is a
former Navy Seal. In that race,
he was kind of seen as the
establishment Republican
candidate as an alternative to
(02:32):
the incumbent, Adrian
Southworth, who was at odds
with her caucus and faced some
opposition for her reelection
campaign. Gowran was endorsed
by the Kentucky Chamber of
Commerce in that primary, and
he also had a donation from
Republican Senate President
Robert Stivers, so there was
some backing there as well.
(02:53):
>> So we probably could see
this coming. President Trump
and Congressman Massie have
been at Cross Swords for some
time.
>> They have. And this term
we've seen it over foreign
policy. We've seen it over the
Epstein files. The the
president has come out really
strongly against Thomas Massie,
called him a grandstander and
(03:13):
all kinds of other names. And
as really promised, to go hard
in finding a challenger. And
now it seems that he has you
know, Congressman Massie also
has known that this was coming
and just posted a very strong
set of fundraising numbers with
this latest round of filings.
So he he's been gearing up for
this fight and I'm sure he will.
(03:36):
He will say, bring it on. I
know the people of my district.
That's been his his messaging
thus far. And so we'll we'll
see how it plays out. But this
is definitely going to be one
to watch.
>> Yeah, this is literally a
minutes old story. So we have
not had a response from Massie
to his potential challenger at
this point. Right.
>> Not yet. But you know, I
covered Massie when he did tour
(03:57):
the fourth district a couple of
weeks ago, and he was prepared
then to win reelection again.
And he was well received by the
voters on that tour as well.
>> All right. Well, we'll watch
the race now in the fourth and
campaign 2026, obviously off
and running, even though we're
not even to the year yet. We're
not even to the filing, opening
the filing window, which will
(04:18):
happen in November yet. But
candidates are running ads.
They're bombarding us on TV and
on our phones. There's been a
some public polling out there,
very little really what we have
found this week in the Senate
race, candidates Daniel Cameron
and Andy Barr released internal
polls and both showed about the
same thing. Cameron held a 17
(04:40):
point lead over Barr, and both
polls and both surveys showed
that Nate Morris, a distant
third in that polling. So
Hannah polls only give some
guidance at this point,
obviously, but it is perhaps
easy to see that Cameron's
statewide name recognition is
an advantage.
>> Yeah. And like you said,
these polls should be taken
(05:00):
with a grain of salt,
especially since we're so far
off from the May primary. It
does show that he has
significant name ID, but that
doesn't really come as a
surprise because Cameron has
run statewide before, whereas
Barr and Morris haven't. So the
name ID does stem from, for
example, his 2023 gubernatorial
campaign. And I think it's also
(05:21):
important to keep in mind that
name ID theoretically is
something that can be bought.
And we've seen Barr and Morris
over the past few months trying
to do so by investing heavily
in TV ads across Kentucky. And
we'll see going forward, you
know, if those poll numbers
start to get closer and if that
strategy does work for the two
candidates.
>> And this polling advantage
(05:41):
for Cameron prompted Barr to
pull out the electability card,
Tessa noting that Cameron lost
a statewide governor's race in
2023 despite having the
endorsement of President Trump.
>> That's right. But in 2023,
Daniel Cameron was going up. A
popular incumbent with strong
name ID, whose own father was
governor. And that's an uphill
(06:03):
battle and was always going to
be an uphill battle for no
matter who the Republican Party
nominated in 2023. But to also
respond to Congressman Barr's
argument, Daniel Cameron can
say, I'm also the only one out
of the three of us who has won
a statewide election because,
of course, Daniel Cameron was
the attorney general before
running for and during his run
(06:25):
for governor. And what this
polling also shows us is that
Daniel Cameron is maintaining
really strong support across
all these internal polls that
we've seen come out this year,
and that also includes his
favorable and unfavorable
numbers, you know, because he's
been exposed to voters so much,
he's been on their ballots
before. He's had opposition
(06:46):
research dug up on him before.
And, you know, negative ads and
all of that. And despite all of
that, you know, years of
exposure, he remains maintains
really strong favorability. And
a lot of people who would say,
yeah, I'd vote for him today.
So it does kind of beg the
question of what can Andy Barr
(07:08):
and Nate Morris do to bring
down Daniel Cameron? Because
honestly, right now, those two
have been going at each other
more than they've been going at
Daniel Cameron, I think in
large part because he does not
have the fundraising advantages
that they both have. But of
course, eventually you got to
start thinking about, okay,
what are the polls showing?
We're getting closer to
(07:28):
Election Day. These numbers
aren't changing. Maybe it's
time for a change in strategy.
>> And so McKenna, is it some
advantage for Cameron to have
been able to sort of stay out
of this fray between Barr and
Morris so far?
>> I think so in some ways. You
know, that's kind of the trend
we saw with the 2015 GOP
primary for governor, which led
(07:50):
to the election of Matt Bevin
in that race. But as we have
noted, that Cameron has caught
some praise this week from the
Barr campaign when he touted
their poll as agreeing with his
poll. So, you know, we're so
far away from Election Day,
it's really hard to say which
way the race is going at this
moment.
(08:11):
>> We also saw some fundraising
numbers this week. We also we
saw that Morris gave his own
campaign about $3 million. Barr
has the most at about 6.6
million, and Cameron is far
back in. Yet Hannah leads in
the polling. And as we're
saying, if you don't have to
buy name identification, can
you get by with less funding?
(08:33):
>> Yeah. I mean, we'll have to
see. I know in Cameron's social
media posts they are really
highlighting the polling
numbers, whereas Barr and
Morris are kind of going with
the strategy of, look how much
people are investing in my
campaign. Look at they're not
only saying, you have my vote,
they're also investing. We want
to get you elected. So it will
be an interesting strategy to
(08:53):
see if Cameron's poll numbers
do stay the same, regardless of
how much Barr and Morris keep
fundraising.
>> It can be an advantage. But
in some ways the name ID can be
something that or something
that can be built up with war
chests and well-funded
(09:14):
campaigns. And I think that's
something that political
strategists tend to believe. So
because we're so far out from
the primary, these other two
candidates, Morris and Barr,
can use their finances to buy
ads, host events with voters to
get their name out there across
the state.
(09:34):
>> Sorry, Bill, I didn't mean
to cut you off there, but I'm
so eager to jump in. We've also
seen a cautionary tale from the
2023 governor's race in Kelly
Kraft, who was an outsider to
politics very similar to the
way Nate Morris has kind of
positioning himself also
through millions of dollars at
her own campaign, as Nate
Morris seems poised to do. And
(09:56):
that led to a third place
finish. You know, she
ultimately lost to Daniel
Cameron. Ryan Quarles also had
a better performance than her
on Election Day. So we know
that money isn't everything now.
One key difference, though, is
by the time that Kelly Kraft
got into the governor's race
for that GOP nomination,
President Trump had already
endorsed Daniel Cameron. And of
(10:17):
course, the Trump endorsement
is sort of the subtext to all
of this. It can make or break
anyone's campaign, and that
hasn't happened yet. So that
could still be a lane for for
Nate Morris.
>> And yet you see the
auditioning by all three
candidates for that endorsement,
quite obviously.
>> Yes. And they're all going
about it in their own ways. Of
course, we know that Nate
(10:37):
Morris has ties to Donald Trump
junior and Vice President Vance.
We know that Andy Barr is
positioning himself as a
fighter in Congress who can
directly get the president's
agenda done. And, of course,
Daniel Cameron has received
that nomination before. You
know, the president has called
him a star. So they all have
their own connections. It's
just a matter of does the
president pick one, or does he
(10:59):
do what he does sometimes and
say, they're all great, you
can't go wrong remains to be
seen.
>> And these candidates are
hoping to succeed. Mitch
McConnell, who has been getting
some criticism from those who
want to replace him, Nate
Morris, namely, and then
Cameron and Barr have also
distanced themselves from him
some. The state's senior
senator, though at the same
(11:20):
time is being recognized and
being lauded for his years of
service. This was said at the
Kentucky Chamber of Commerce.
>> Senator, your partnership
has strengthened our economy.
It's advanced opportunity, and
it's ensured Kentucky's voice
is heard far beyond our borders.
Tonight, we honor that enduring
legacy.
>> Lightning only strikes once.
(11:42):
It's always said, and it has
struck the state of Kentucky.
And Mitch McConnell his. Impact
on the United States will last
30 and 40 years beyond his term.
>> McKenna. How much of a wild
card is McConnell in this race
(12:04):
to succeed him?
>> I think that he might be
more of a factor in the general.
Once a Republican candidate is
chosen by voters because it's
hard to find a Kentucky
Republican that hasn't had some
influence by Mitch McConnell,
particularly within party
leadership, elected officials.
You know, the headquarters for
(12:24):
the party is named after Mitch
McConnell. So I think in some
ways, the party does owe a lot
to his legacy. And that's kind
of what we saw here at the
chamber event and things like
that. But, you know, maybe the
candidates don't want his help
right now, but maybe when it
comes time to the general, you
(12:45):
know, they will want help from
him, maybe publicly or maybe
more on campaign donations.
>> Yeah. We'll note Senator
suffered another fall this week
in Washington. Said to be doing
okay, in fact, was expected at
an event in Kentucky on Friday
night. Democrats have their own
crowded contest with Amy
McGrath entering the race last
(13:05):
week. House Minority Leader Pam
Stevenson is in. You have
former CIA agent Joel Willett,
former Secret Service agent
Logan Forsythe actively
campaigning Hannah. We keep
hearing that even with this
crowd, it may yet grow more.
>> Yeah, and like we said
earlier, you know, the filing
deadline isn't until January,
so we could see more people
(13:27):
jump into this race. I do think
it's interesting that, you know,
at the beginning it was just
State Representative Pamela
Stevenson. There were questions
of, are any other Democrats
going to jump in this race? And
it seems like throughout this
fall we've just had one after
another. And the more crowded
this Democratic primary gets,
you know, it'll be interesting
to see which individual
strategies works, because we
(13:47):
have four very different
candidates here so far and
potentially more.
>> Tessa, has Amy McGrath's
entry change the dynamics in
any perceptible way in the last
week and a half?
>> I think so, because love or
Hate are excited about this
candidacy or not. She's going
to come into this contest on
the Democratic side and have
the most name recognition
(14:08):
because, again, she's been a
candidate, she's been on the
ballot for people before.
Whereas, you know, Pam
Stevenson being a state
lawmaker, that's drawing from a
very small district
comparatively to, you know,
either the sixth or the Senate
race that McGrath has
previously won in or, I'm sorry,
not one run in. And, you know,
we have candidates like, like
(14:30):
Willett and Forsythe who are
really also going to have to
make a name for themselves. You
know, probably a lot of people
couldn't pick them out of a
lineup right now, and they're
going to have to work hard to
differentiate themselves. That
being said, all four of these
Democrats have a history of
public service. They're all
sort of carving out their lane.
But as of now, you know, Amy
(14:51):
McGrath, I would have to think
has the advantage in name
recognition and also has proven
that she can raise a lot of
money. Now, does that happen
after the defeat that she had
in 2020? You know, does that
happen again? Or do folks kind
of look at that race and say,
we tried that once, it didn't
work out, you know, on to a
different one. It remains to be
(15:12):
seen, but you cannot deny that
she's going to have the most
name ID out of those Democrats.
>> All right. So close watch on
the US Senate race. Now to the
race to replace Barr in the
sixth district House seat in
central Kentucky also crowded
on both sides. Hannah is the
campaign finance reports have
rolled in. We know that former
Senator Ralph Alvarado and
(15:34):
State Representative Deanna
Gordon have had big quarters.
State Representative Ryan
Dodson occupies a social
conservative lane. Could that
mean he could get by with less
money?
>> You know, I think it depends
because the the sixth district
is diverse. So I think the
social conservative messaging
could work, let's say in a more
red area. But keep in mind you
(15:56):
still have Fayette County,
which has Lexington, which
tends to be more moderate and
have more moderate Republicans.
So that strategy might not work
there. So we'll have to see
moving forward, if his lower
fundraising numbers is
something to be cautious of, or
if his social conservative
messaging does work out.
>> Sixth district Democrats.
Tessa, we're also watching
(16:18):
limbo, a name that no one had
heard of before. This is
raising money pretty fast.
>> He is. He's posted a really
strong showing as well. But of
course, former state
representative Sherilyn
Stevenson is is well positioned
in that race because she has a
deep set of political
connections in Kentucky. She's
(16:39):
got the endorsement of
Lieutenant Governor Jacqueline
Coleman. We also see a couple
of other candidates in that
race. And on both sides, you
have a number of candidates
running in the primary. The
Republican side just picked up
Greg Pucinski this week, so we
don't have his fundraising
(16:59):
numbers yet. But when you start
dividing up the vote, you know,
three, four, maybe even more
ways, you know, it's a little
harder to predict how exactly
might things might turn out. So
these are both certainly
contests to be watching closely
on Primary day, because of
course, this is one of the
districts that Democrats are
hopeful that they can pick up
(17:19):
in the midterms.
>> Do you think the government
shutdown will still be a factor
by the time we get to May or
will that? Does the news cycle
move along so quickly? People
will forget it?
>> Oh man. I think there's a
lot of people who hope that we
are not still shut down in May,
but of course we are seeing
that in the messaging now with,
you know, blame going back and
(17:40):
forth for that. So I did it
this side did it because again,
people are are trying to get
their message out. You know,
how they're going to be a
fighter, how they're going to
stand up for the constituency.
And this is an opportunity to
to distinguish themselves.
>> Kentuckians will have a big
ballot next year. In addition
to picking a new U.S. senator,
members of the U.S. House, the
races for the state House and
Senate seats, locals will pick
(18:01):
mayors and councils and decide
who will run their courthouses.
The filing deadline runs from
early November to January 9th,
and comes during the
distraction of the holidays.
Well, Secretary of State
Michael Adams says there's a
political reason for that.
>> The window is much longer.
It was until, I think, the end
of January, and that's been
dialed back to now, early
(18:21):
January. And the thought behind
that was there are legislators
who it's believed, don't want
to cast tough votes in January
because they're watching to see
who comes to my office and
files against them. And they
may incentivize an opponent if
they cast a tough vote. So the
idea by the General Assembly
was to move that filing window
backward and leave more of
January open earlier, but also
(18:43):
cut off earlier. And the idea
was that it will make it easier
to make public policy without
people peeking over their
shoulder.
>> McKenna. In other words, the
early filing deadline keeps
down opposition that might form
out of an issue or two that
could come up early, right?
>> That's true. I also think
there's some other reasons, or
at least an effect of that,
that we see sometimes we see in
(19:06):
the General Assembly, bills be
filed in support of candidates
to kind of make an issue in the
Capitol for their campaign.
That's something we definitely
saw in the 23 governor's race
with Senate Bill 150. That was
that omnibus anti-trans bill
that was filed by Kelly Crafts
then running mate, Senator Max
(19:27):
wise. But that led to it being
a large issue in that
governor's race for the rest of
the year.
>> Sometimes constitutional
amendments are used in that way
as well. And so we could see
some of those on the ballot
next year.
>> Because I just saw an agenda
for a committee meeting that I
believe is next week. Senator
McDaniel once again going to
talk about his issue to
(19:49):
restrict the governor's pardon
power, power. And that would
scale it back to, I believe, no
pardon. Starting 30 days before
a gubernatorial election. Of
course, this is been a passion
project of his for a while. And,
you know, it's one that if it
ever does make it to the ballot,
could have some bipartisan
(20:10):
support, because of course,
Matt Bevin's pardons were quite
controversial. And of course,
President Trump came in and
pardoned everyone on January
for January 6th. So, you know,
maybe that is something that
Republicans could put on the
ballot and have passed, because,
of course, there have been some
very high profile defeats for
amendments that the legislature
(20:32):
has put on the ballot in recent
years.
>> There could be up to four, I
think, on the on the ballot.
Louisville could have some
spirited races. Next year, the
mayor's race will be
nonpartisan for the first time.
Hannah Mayor Craig Greenberg is
running for reelection. Will he
have strong opposition?
>> So right now we don't see
any visible opposition or
anyone else who has filed yet.
(20:53):
I think to keep in mind, though,
there is an opportunity. It
could be competitive. We could
see a more leftist candidate
per se. I think there are some
issues that Greenberg leans
kind of toward more the center
on and more moderate, which
doesn't resonate with all of
the Louisville community. But I
think right now what we are
seeing is some recent moves of
(21:15):
moves of his seem to be
politically calculated heading
into an election year. So, for
example, he recently
reappointed Ed Harness as the
inspector general. There's kind
of uncertainty whether or not
that was going to happen. But,
you know, harness was seen as
really popular with the
Louisville community. And could
Greenberg be using his
reappointment as a strategy and
(21:37):
as something to tailor to
voters next year? We'll have to
see. And if he continues doing
similar moves moving forward.
>> But he's trying to broaden
his appeal. Exactly. Yeah. All
right. Some other news of the
week. Kentucky State University
is making a case for new
agricultural doctoral programs.
>> We train master's level
students in year after year. We
(21:58):
see them leaving the state and
apply for PhD program elsewhere.
If Kentucky is going to remain
the premium state in terms of
producing highly skilled
workforce, we have to train
highly specialized PhD holders.
>> McKenna, tell us about CSU's
(22:18):
push.
>> Right. So we've seen
colleges across Kentucky,
particularly the public
universities, make the push for
new graduate programs to the
Kentucky legislature. The way
the process works means that
they need some an approval from
lawmakers before they begin
these programs. But we did see
a bill last year that got
(22:40):
passed that would pave the way
for a few programs,
particularly EKU and Murray
State. But KSU is kind of
trying to take that same route
with these two new doctoral
programs that are focused in
agriculture, and they argue
that this could help expand the
workforce here in Kentucky and
keep academic talent here in
(23:00):
the Commonwealth as well.
>> Once again, the Kentucky
Supreme Court is dealing with a
tug of war. This is between the
state's legislative and
executive branches. And Tessa,
this has to do with separation
of power and the power to
appoint members of key boards.
>> It does. And something that
we've seen is a recurring theme
throughout Governor Beshear's
(23:21):
time in office is the
legislature looking at ways to
sort of claw back some of that
power that is vested in him or
in the office of the governor,
rather, and redistribute it,
whether it's to other
constitutional officers or
otherwise shuffling things
around. And so that's really
what is at the heart of these
two cases that were heard this
week. It's it's a power
(23:43):
struggle between a Democrat in
office and a Republican
legislature. And, you know,
there has been the question of
would these changes even have
been made if we had a
Republican governor? And, you
know, that is a question that
maybe will be addressed by the
(24:04):
outcome of these cases.
>> Or would it be changed back
if there were Republican
governor? The Republicans
control the legislature as they
do. We'll see if that occurs.
Also, Governor Beshear has been
on a European trip. McKenna.
We've seen some pictures posted
and videos and so forth, but no
news on that yet. On that trip.
>> There has been some from his
(24:27):
social media posts, we've
learned that he's in a lot of
economic development talks with
companies abroad in trying to
get them to relocate or bolster
their operations here in
Kentucky. So this is definitely
an economic driven trip for him.
>> State Representative Jason
Nema says the Jefferson County
public school system needs the
business community to help dig
out of a financial crisis.
(24:49):
Hannah steep shortfall for
J-c-p-s the business owners
have a stake in trying to help.
>> Yeah, and in that post, he
had said that JCPS failing also
means it pushes what he calls
high earners out of the county,
and that will hurt Louisville
in general, whether it means
people aren't supporting
supporting local businesses,
whether local businesses are
(25:11):
seeking, you know, people to
employ and they just can't
because people are just leaving
Jefferson County to search for
another school district. I
think it's also interesting
that Nemis has also previously
said the General Assembly won't
let the board raise local taxes
in the next session to solve
this issue. So I think he's
(25:31):
turning to the business
community to kind of step up as
we're going into the 2026
session next year.
>> I got the feeling meeting
with superintendents and
lawmakers this week and a forum
that I did, that there will be
a lot of education discussed in
the upcoming session. Of course,
naturally, with it being a
budget year, Fayette County
also with that $16 million
shortfall. So there's been a
(25:53):
lot of dissention, internal
discussion about that and
audits ongoing. All right.
Before we go, many are
remembering former Kentucky
first Lady Jean Ford. She was
the wife of former governor and
former Senator Wendell Ford.
Governor Beshear said on social
media that Jean and Wendell
Ford made an enormous impact
(26:13):
across the Commonwealth and
won't be forgotten, and many in
central and eastern Kentucky.
Remembering TV reporter Jerry
Sander in his long television
career, Sander covered
everything, but his focus was
on health and medical reporting.
Many credit Sander with giving
them credible information that
helped them take charge of
(26:34):
their own health. Jerry Sander
was 79. That's comment on
Kentucky. Have a good week
ahead. You hear us, Tessa.
(26:58):
>> I can now yeah, yeah.
>>
chooses a challenger for
Congressman Thomas Massie.
Internal polls and fundraising
numbers give clues about
Kentucky's open U.S. Senate
race. The federal government
shutdown continues to have
impact in Kentucky. The state
Supreme Court considers a tug
of war between the legislature
xt oKE Good evening, I'mal
(00:49):
Bill Bryant, and we welcome you
to comment on Kentucky, a look
back at and some analysis of
the week's news in the
Commonwealth and the guests on
our panel of working Kentucky
journalists tonight are Hannah
Pinsky, politics reporter for
the Courier-Journal. McKenna
horsley, politics reporter for
The Kentucky Lantern. And
joining us remotely is Tessa
(01:10):
Duvall, politics and public
affairs editor for the
Lexington Herald Leader. We
have a lot to discuss tonight.
In just before airtime, we
learned that President Trump
has chosen a challenger for
fourth District Congressman
Thomas Massie, Hannah. That
came out in a social media post
from the president.
>> Yeah. Trump had announced
(01:30):
himself on social media with a
picture of his chosen candidate,
which is Ed Goren. He's a
former Navy Seal and farmer
here in Kentucky. And I think
that one of the general
consensus is this is a bit of a
shock to some folks in some
Republicans, because we had
seen state Senator Erin's Read
thrown around in the headlines
in the recent months. And
(01:50):
what's also interesting is that
this isn't gatherings first
time running in a race. He had
actually run in the state
Senate race that had Erin Reid,
as well as former state senator
Adrian Southworth. And in that
primary, it was a tight race
between him and Reid. So we'll
see how this race plays out,
especially since this is a
federal seat compared to a
(02:11):
state Senate seat.
>> McKenna, what else should we
know about Gowran?
>> Yes. So as Hannah said, he
was in that primary in the
seventh Senate district, which
includes Shelby County area,
which is where a lot of these
candidates are from, including
Aaron Reid. But at Gowran is a
former Navy Seal. In that race,
he was kind of seen as the
establishment Republican
candidate as an alternative to
(02:32):
the incumbent, Adrian
Southworth, who was at odds
with her caucus and faced some
opposition for her reelection
campaign. Gowran was endorsed
by the Kentucky Chamber of
Commerce in that primary, and
he also had a donation from
Republican Senate President
Robert Stivers, so there was
some backing there as well.
(02:53):
>> So we probably could see
this coming. President Trump
and Congressman Massie have
been at Cross Swords for some
time.
>> They have. And this term
we've seen it over foreign
policy. We've seen it over the
Epstein files. The the
president has come out really
strongly against Thomas Massie,
called him a grandstander and
(03:13):
all kinds of other names. And
as really promised, to go hard
in finding a challenger. And
now it seems that he has you
know, Congressman Massie also
has known that this was coming
and just posted a very strong
set of fundraising numbers with
this latest round of filings.
So he he's been gearing up for
this fight and I'm sure he will.
(03:36):
He will say, bring it on. I
know the people of my district.
That's been his his messaging
thus far. And so we'll we'll
see how it plays out. But this
is definitely going to be one
to watch.
>> Yeah, this is literally a
minutes old story. So we have
not had a response from Massie
to his potential challenger at
this point. Right.
>> Not yet. But you know, I
covered Massie when he did tour
(03:57):
the fourth district a couple of
weeks ago, and he was prepared
then to win reelection again.
And he was well received by the
voters on that tour as well.
>> All right. Well, we'll watch
the race now in the fourth and
campaign 2026, obviously off
and running, even though we're
not even to the year yet. We're
not even to the filing, opening
the filing window, which will
(04:18):
happen in November yet. But
candidates are running ads.
They're bombarding us on TV and
on our phones. There's been a
some public polling out there,
very little really what we have
found this week in the Senate
race, candidates Daniel Cameron
and Andy Barr released internal
polls and both showed about the
same thing. Cameron held a 17
(04:40):
point lead over Barr, and both
polls and both surveys showed
that Nate Morris, a distant
third in that polling. So
Hannah polls only give some
guidance at this point,
obviously, but it is perhaps
easy to see that Cameron's
statewide name recognition is
an advantage.
>> Yeah. And like you said,
these polls should be taken
(05:00):
with a grain of salt,
especially since we're so far
off from the May primary. It
does show that he has
significant name ID, but that
doesn't really come as a
surprise because Cameron has
run statewide before, whereas
Barr and Morris haven't. So the
name ID does stem from, for
example, his 2023 gubernatorial
campaign. And I think it's also
(05:21):
important to keep in mind that
name ID theoretically is
something that can be bought.
And we've seen Barr and Morris
over the past few months trying
to do so by investing heavily
in TV ads across Kentucky. And
we'll see going forward, you
know, if those poll numbers
start to get closer and if that
strategy does work for the two
candidates.
>> And this polling advantage
(05:41):
for Cameron prompted Barr to
pull out the electability card,
Tessa noting that Cameron lost
a statewide governor's race in
2023 despite having the
endorsement of President Trump.
>> That's right. But in 2023,
Daniel Cameron was going up. A
popular incumbent with strong
name ID, whose own father was
governor. And that's an uphill
(06:03):
battle and was always going to
be an uphill battle for no
matter who the Republican Party
nominated in 2023. But to also
respond to Congressman Barr's
argument, Daniel Cameron can
say, I'm also the only one out
of the three of us who has won
a statewide election because,
of course, Daniel Cameron was
the attorney general before
running for and during his run
(06:25):
for governor. And what this
polling also shows us is that
Daniel Cameron is maintaining
really strong support across
all these internal polls that
we've seen come out this year,
and that also includes his
favorable and unfavorable
numbers, you know, because he's
been exposed to voters so much,
he's been on their ballots
before. He's had opposition
(06:46):
research dug up on him before.
And, you know, negative ads and
all of that. And despite all of
that, you know, years of
exposure, he remains maintains
really strong favorability. And
a lot of people who would say,
yeah, I'd vote for him today.
So it does kind of beg the
question of what can Andy Barr
(07:08):
and Nate Morris do to bring
down Daniel Cameron? Because
honestly, right now, those two
have been going at each other
more than they've been going at
Daniel Cameron, I think in
large part because he does not
have the fundraising advantages
that they both have. But of
course, eventually you got to
start thinking about, okay,
what are the polls showing?
We're getting closer to
(07:28):
Election Day. These numbers
aren't changing. Maybe it's
time for a change in strategy.
>> And so McKenna, is it some
advantage for Cameron to have
been able to sort of stay out
of this fray between Barr and
Morris so far?
>> I think so in some ways. You
know, that's kind of the trend
we saw with the 2015 GOP
primary for governor, which led
(07:50):
to the election of Matt Bevin
in that race. But as we have
noted, that Cameron has caught
some praise this week from the
Barr campaign when he touted
their poll as agreeing with his
poll. So, you know, we're so
far away from Election Day,
it's really hard to say which
way the race is going at this
moment.
(08:11):
>> We also saw some fundraising
numbers this week. We also we
saw that Morris gave his own
campaign about $3 million. Barr
has the most at about 6.6
million, and Cameron is far
back in. Yet Hannah leads in
the polling. And as we're
saying, if you don't have to
buy name identification, can
you get by with less funding?
(08:33):
>> Yeah. I mean, we'll have to
see. I know in Cameron's social
media posts they are really
highlighting the polling
numbers, whereas Barr and
Morris are kind of going with
the strategy of, look how much
people are investing in my
campaign. Look at they're not
only saying, you have my vote,
they're also investing. We want
to get you elected. So it will
be an interesting strategy to
(08:53):
see if Cameron's poll numbers
do stay the same, regardless of
how much Barr and Morris keep
fundraising.
>> It can be an advantage. But
in some ways the name ID can be
something that or something
that can be built up with war
chests and well-funded
(09:14):
campaigns. And I think that's
something that political
strategists tend to believe. So
because we're so far out from
the primary, these other two
candidates, Morris and Barr,
can use their finances to buy
ads, host events with voters to
get their name out there across
the state.
(09:34):
>> Sorry, Bill, I didn't mean
to cut you off there, but I'm
so eager to jump in. We've also
seen a cautionary tale from the
2023 governor's race in Kelly
Kraft, who was an outsider to
politics very similar to the
way Nate Morris has kind of
positioning himself also
through millions of dollars at
her own campaign, as Nate
Morris seems poised to do. And
(09:56):
that led to a third place
finish. You know, she
ultimately lost to Daniel
Cameron. Ryan Quarles also had
a better performance than her
on Election Day. So we know
that money isn't everything now.
One key difference, though, is
by the time that Kelly Kraft
got into the governor's race
for that GOP nomination,
President Trump had already
endorsed Daniel Cameron. And of
(10:17):
course, the Trump endorsement
is sort of the subtext to all
of this. It can make or break
anyone's campaign, and that
hasn't happened yet. So that
could still be a lane for for
Nate Morris.
>> And yet you see the
auditioning by all three
candidates for that endorsement,
quite obviously.
>> Yes. And they're all going
about it in their own ways. Of
course, we know that Nate
(10:37):
Morris has ties to Donald Trump
junior and Vice President Vance.
We know that Andy Barr is
positioning himself as a
fighter in Congress who can
directly get the president's
agenda done. And, of course,
Daniel Cameron has received
that nomination before. You
know, the president has called
him a star. So they all have
their own connections. It's
just a matter of does the
president pick one, or does he
(10:59):
do what he does sometimes and
say, they're all great, you
can't go wrong remains to be
seen.
>> And these candidates are
hoping to succeed. Mitch
McConnell, who has been getting
some criticism from those who
want to replace him, Nate
Morris, namely, and then
Cameron and Barr have also
distanced themselves from him
some. The state's senior
senator, though at the same
(11:20):
time is being recognized and
being lauded for his years of
service. This was said at the
Kentucky Chamber of Commerce.
>> Senator, your partnership
has strengthened our economy.
It's advanced opportunity, and
it's ensured Kentucky's voice
is heard far beyond our borders.
Tonight, we honor that enduring
legacy.
>> Lightning only strikes once.
(11:42):
It's always said, and it has
struck the state of Kentucky.
And Mitch McConnell his. Impact
on the United States will last
30 and 40 years beyond his term.
>> McKenna. How much of a wild
card is McConnell in this race
(12:04):
to succeed him?
>> I think that he might be
more of a factor in the general.
Once a Republican candidate is
chosen by voters because it's
hard to find a Kentucky
Republican that hasn't had some
influence by Mitch McConnell,
particularly within party
leadership, elected officials.
You know, the headquarters for
(12:24):
the party is named after Mitch
McConnell. So I think in some
ways, the party does owe a lot
to his legacy. And that's kind
of what we saw here at the
chamber event and things like
that. But, you know, maybe the
candidates don't want his help
right now, but maybe when it
comes time to the general, you
(12:45):
know, they will want help from
him, maybe publicly or maybe
more on campaign donations.
>> Yeah. We'll note Senator
suffered another fall this week
in Washington. Said to be doing
okay, in fact, was expected at
an event in Kentucky on Friday
night. Democrats have their own
crowded contest with Amy
McGrath entering the race last
(13:05):
week. House Minority Leader Pam
Stevenson is in. You have
former CIA agent Joel Willett,
former Secret Service agent
Logan Forsythe actively
campaigning Hannah. We keep
hearing that even with this
crowd, it may yet grow more.
>> Yeah, and like we said
earlier, you know, the filing
deadline isn't until January,
so we could see more people
(13:27):
jump into this race. I do think
it's interesting that, you know,
at the beginning it was just
State Representative Pamela
Stevenson. There were questions
of, are any other Democrats
going to jump in this race? And
it seems like throughout this
fall we've just had one after
another. And the more crowded
this Democratic primary gets,
you know, it'll be interesting
to see which individual
strategies works, because we
(13:47):
have four very different
candidates here so far and
potentially more.
>> Tessa, has Amy McGrath's
entry change the dynamics in
any perceptible way in the last
week and a half?
>> I think so, because love or
Hate are excited about this
candidacy or not. She's going
to come into this contest on
the Democratic side and have
the most name recognition
(14:08):
because, again, she's been a
candidate, she's been on the
ballot for people before.
Whereas, you know, Pam
Stevenson being a state
lawmaker, that's drawing from a
very small district
comparatively to, you know,
either the sixth or the Senate
race that McGrath has
previously won in or, I'm sorry,
not one run in. And, you know,
we have candidates like, like
(14:30):
Willett and Forsythe who are
really also going to have to
make a name for themselves. You
know, probably a lot of people
couldn't pick them out of a
lineup right now, and they're
going to have to work hard to
differentiate themselves. That
being said, all four of these
Democrats have a history of
public service. They're all
sort of carving out their lane.
But as of now, you know, Amy
(14:51):
McGrath, I would have to think
has the advantage in name
recognition and also has proven
that she can raise a lot of
money. Now, does that happen
after the defeat that she had
in 2020? You know, does that
happen again? Or do folks kind
of look at that race and say,
we tried that once, it didn't
work out, you know, on to a
different one. It remains to be
(15:12):
seen, but you cannot deny that
she's going to have the most
name ID out of those Democrats.
>> All right. So close watch on
the US Senate race. Now to the
race to replace Barr in the
sixth district House seat in
central Kentucky also crowded
on both sides. Hannah is the
campaign finance reports have
rolled in. We know that former
Senator Ralph Alvarado and
(15:34):
State Representative Deanna
Gordon have had big quarters.
State Representative Ryan
Dodson occupies a social
conservative lane. Could that
mean he could get by with less
money?
>> You know, I think it depends
because the the sixth district
is diverse. So I think the
social conservative messaging
could work, let's say in a more
red area. But keep in mind you
(15:56):
still have Fayette County,
which has Lexington, which
tends to be more moderate and
have more moderate Republicans.
So that strategy might not work
there. So we'll have to see
moving forward, if his lower
fundraising numbers is
something to be cautious of, or
if his social conservative
messaging does work out.
>> Sixth district Democrats.
Tessa, we're also watching
(16:18):
limbo, a name that no one had
heard of before. This is
raising money pretty fast.
>> He is. He's posted a really
strong showing as well. But of
course, former state
representative Sherilyn
Stevenson is is well positioned
in that race because she has a
deep set of political
connections in Kentucky. She's
(16:39):
got the endorsement of
Lieutenant Governor Jacqueline
Coleman. We also see a couple
of other candidates in that
race. And on both sides, you
have a number of candidates
running in the primary. The
Republican side just picked up
Greg Pucinski this week, so we
don't have his fundraising
(16:59):
numbers yet. But when you start
dividing up the vote, you know,
three, four, maybe even more
ways, you know, it's a little
harder to predict how exactly
might things might turn out. So
these are both certainly
contests to be watching closely
on Primary day, because of
course, this is one of the
districts that Democrats are
hopeful that they can pick up
(17:19):
in the midterms.
>> Do you think the government
shutdown will still be a factor
by the time we get to May or
will that? Does the news cycle
move along so quickly? People
will forget it?
>> Oh man. I think there's a
lot of people who hope that we
are not still shut down in May,
but of course we are seeing
that in the messaging now with,
you know, blame going back and
(17:40):
forth for that. So I did it
this side did it because again,
people are are trying to get
their message out. You know,
how they're going to be a
fighter, how they're going to
stand up for the constituency.
And this is an opportunity to
to distinguish themselves.
>> Kentuckians will have a big
ballot next year. In addition
to picking a new U.S. senator,
members of the U.S. House, the
races for the state House and
Senate seats, locals will pick
(18:01):
mayors and councils and decide
who will run their courthouses.
The filing deadline runs from
early November to January 9th,
and comes during the
distraction of the holidays.
Well, Secretary of State
Michael Adams says there's a
political reason for that.
>> The window is much longer.
It was until, I think, the end
of January, and that's been
dialed back to now, early
(18:21):
January. And the thought behind
that was there are legislators
who it's believed, don't want
to cast tough votes in January
because they're watching to see
who comes to my office and
files against them. And they
may incentivize an opponent if
they cast a tough vote. So the
idea by the General Assembly
was to move that filing window
backward and leave more of
January open earlier, but also
(18:43):
cut off earlier. And the idea
was that it will make it easier
to make public policy without
people peeking over their
shoulder.
>> McKenna. In other words, the
early filing deadline keeps
down opposition that might form
out of an issue or two that
could come up early, right?
>> That's true. I also think
there's some other reasons, or
at least an effect of that,
that we see sometimes we see in
(19:06):
the General Assembly, bills be
filed in support of candidates
to kind of make an issue in the
Capitol for their campaign.
That's something we definitely
saw in the 23 governor's race
with Senate Bill 150. That was
that omnibus anti-trans bill
that was filed by Kelly Crafts
then running mate, Senator Max
(19:27):
wise. But that led to it being
a large issue in that
governor's race for the rest of
the year.
>> Sometimes constitutional
amendments are used in that way
as well. And so we could see
some of those on the ballot
next year.
>> Because I just saw an agenda
for a committee meeting that I
believe is next week. Senator
McDaniel once again going to
talk about his issue to
(19:49):
restrict the governor's pardon
power, power. And that would
scale it back to, I believe, no
pardon. Starting 30 days before
a gubernatorial election. Of
course, this is been a passion
project of his for a while. And,
you know, it's one that if it
ever does make it to the ballot,
could have some bipartisan
(20:10):
support, because of course,
Matt Bevin's pardons were quite
controversial. And of course,
President Trump came in and
pardoned everyone on January
for January 6th. So, you know,
maybe that is something that
Republicans could put on the
ballot and have passed, because,
of course, there have been some
very high profile defeats for
amendments that the legislature
(20:32):
has put on the ballot in recent
years.
>> There could be up to four, I
think, on the on the ballot.
Louisville could have some
spirited races. Next year, the
mayor's race will be
nonpartisan for the first time.
Hannah Mayor Craig Greenberg is
running for reelection. Will he
have strong opposition?
>> So right now we don't see
any visible opposition or
anyone else who has filed yet.
(20:53):
I think to keep in mind, though,
there is an opportunity. It
could be competitive. We could
see a more leftist candidate
per se. I think there are some
issues that Greenberg leans
kind of toward more the center
on and more moderate, which
doesn't resonate with all of
the Louisville community. But I
think right now what we are
seeing is some recent moves of
(21:15):
moves of his seem to be
politically calculated heading
into an election year. So, for
example, he recently
reappointed Ed Harness as the
inspector general. There's kind
of uncertainty whether or not
that was going to happen. But,
you know, harness was seen as
really popular with the
Louisville community. And could
Greenberg be using his
reappointment as a strategy and
(21:37):
as something to tailor to
voters next year? We'll have to
see. And if he continues doing
similar moves moving forward.
>> But he's trying to broaden
his appeal. Exactly. Yeah. All
right. Some other news of the
week. Kentucky State University
is making a case for new
agricultural doctoral programs.
>> We train master's level
students in year after year. We
(21:58):
see them leaving the state and
apply for PhD program elsewhere.
If Kentucky is going to remain
the premium state in terms of
producing highly skilled
workforce, we have to train
highly specialized PhD holders.
>> McKenna, tell us about CSU's
(22:18):
push.
>> Right. So we've seen
colleges across Kentucky,
particularly the public
universities, make the push for
new graduate programs to the
Kentucky legislature. The way
the process works means that
they need some an approval from
lawmakers before they begin
these programs. But we did see
a bill last year that got
(22:40):
passed that would pave the way
for a few programs,
particularly EKU and Murray
State. But KSU is kind of
trying to take that same route
with these two new doctoral
programs that are focused in
agriculture, and they argue
that this could help expand the
workforce here in Kentucky and
keep academic talent here in
(23:00):
the Commonwealth as well.
>> Once again, the Kentucky
Supreme Court is dealing with a
tug of war. This is between the
state's legislative and
executive branches. And Tessa,
this has to do with separation
of power and the power to
appoint members of key boards.
>> It does. And something that
we've seen is a recurring theme
throughout Governor Beshear's
(23:21):
time in office is the
legislature looking at ways to
sort of claw back some of that
power that is vested in him or
in the office of the governor,
rather, and redistribute it,
whether it's to other
constitutional officers or
otherwise shuffling things
around. And so that's really
what is at the heart of these
two cases that were heard this
week. It's it's a power
(23:43):
struggle between a Democrat in
office and a Republican
legislature. And, you know,
there has been the question of
would these changes even have
been made if we had a
Republican governor? And, you
know, that is a question that
maybe will be addressed by the
(24:04):
outcome of these cases.
>> Or would it be changed back
if there were Republican
governor? The Republicans
control the legislature as they
do. We'll see if that occurs.
Also, Governor Beshear has been
on a European trip. McKenna.
We've seen some pictures posted
and videos and so forth, but no
news on that yet. On that trip.
>> There has been some from his
(24:27):
social media posts, we've
learned that he's in a lot of
economic development talks with
companies abroad in trying to
get them to relocate or bolster
their operations here in
Kentucky. So this is definitely
an economic driven trip for him.
>> State Representative Jason
Nema says the Jefferson County
public school system needs the
business community to help dig
out of a financial crisis.
(24:49):
Hannah steep shortfall for
J-c-p-s the business owners
have a stake in trying to help.
>> Yeah, and in that post, he
had said that JCPS failing also
means it pushes what he calls
high earners out of the county,
and that will hurt Louisville
in general, whether it means
people aren't supporting
supporting local businesses,
whether local businesses are
(25:11):
seeking, you know, people to
employ and they just can't
because people are just leaving
Jefferson County to search for
another school district. I
think it's also interesting
that Nemis has also previously
said the General Assembly won't
let the board raise local taxes
in the next session to solve
this issue. So I think he's
(25:31):
turning to the business
community to kind of step up as
we're going into the 2026
session next year.
>> I got the feeling meeting
with superintendents and
lawmakers this week and a forum
that I did, that there will be
a lot of education discussed in
the upcoming session. Of course,
naturally, with it being a
budget year, Fayette County
also with that $16 million
shortfall. So there's been a
(25:53):
lot of dissention, internal
discussion about that and
audits ongoing. All right.
Before we go, many are
remembering former Kentucky
first Lady Jean Ford. She was
the wife of former governor and
former Senator Wendell Ford.
Governor Beshear said on social
media that Jean and Wendell
Ford made an enormous impact
(26:13):
across the Commonwealth and
won't be forgotten, and many in
central and eastern Kentucky.
Remembering TV reporter Jerry
Sander in his long television
career, Sander covered
everything, but his focus was
on health and medical reporting.
Many credit Sander with giving
them credible information that
helped them take charge of
(26:34):
their own health. Jerry Sander
was 79. That's comment on
Kentucky. Have a good week
ahead. You hear us, Tessa.
(26:58):
>> I can now yeah, yeah.
>>
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CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist
It’s 1996 in rural North Carolina, and an oddball crew makes history when they pull off America’s third largest cash heist. But it’s all downhill from there. Join host Johnny Knoxville as he unspools a wild and woolly tale about a group of regular ‘ol folks who risked it all for a chance at a better life. CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist answers the question: what would you do with 17.3 million dollars? The answer includes diamond rings, mansions, velvet Elvis paintings, plus a run for the border, murder-for-hire-plots, and FBI busts.