Politics

Lower Tier Candidates May Cause Problems for Democrats in U.S. Senate Race

Kenny Colston — Wed, 22 May 2013 17:41:58 +0000

Now it's Heather French Henry's turn.

The former Miss America has joined a list of half a dozen party activists or leaders waiting for Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes to decide whether she'll run in 2014 against Mitch McConnell for his U.S. Senate seat.

If Grimes run, she's likely to get enough support to clear out the field. Otherwise, the Democrats have potential candidates known within political circles, but who may be not instantly recognizable with the majority of voters—former state Democratic Party Chairman Bill Gorman or environmental activist Tom FitzGerald, for example.

Without Grimes, Democrats may find themselves with a crowded primary—and that would cause problems in a bid to unseat McConnell, who polls suggest is vulnerable, says Dewey Clayton, a political scientist for the University of Louisville.

Former Miss America Latest to Openly Consider McConnell Challenge

Associated Press — Wed, 22 May 2013 14:23:56 +0000

Former Miss America Heather French Henry is the latest Democrat to consider a challenge to U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell next year.

French Henry, a Louisville clothing designer, said Wednesday that she's being encouraged to run, but that she has made no decision.

McConnell is seeking a sixth term in Washington in 2014.

Paul Says GOP Needs More Diversity

WKU Public Radio News — Tue, 21 May 2013 17:51:52 +0000

Kentucky Senator Rand Paul says the Republican Party needs to “look like America.” Paul told the New Hampshire Republican State Committee Liberty Dinner Monday that the GOP needs to become more diverse in order to prosper.

“We need to be white, we need to be brown, we need to be black, we need to be with tattoos, without tattoos, with pony tails, without pony tails, with beard, without," said the Bowling Green Republican.

The Courier-Journal noted Paul’s appearance in New Hampshire also stokes further speculation that he is planting the seeds for a 2016 presidential run.

New Hampshire is the first state to hold a presidential primary every four years. Paul visited Iowa, home of the nation’s first caucuses, earlier this month, and appeared the early primary state of South Carolina in January.

Sen. Paul Says Impeachment Talk Premature

Associated Press — Tue, 21 May 2013 15:20:27 +0000

Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul and the Republican National Committee chairman are distancing themselves from conservatives who suggested in recent days that President Barack Obama could face impeachment for the developing scandal at the Internal Revenue Service.

RNC chairman Reince Priebus said, “There’s a few chapters before we get to the last one.” He says it’s up to Republicans to “connect the dots” before calling for impeachment.

Asked about impeachment, Paul says investigators must learn more “before we go anywhere else.”

The Republican leaders addressed reporters before a Monday GOP fundraiser in Concord, N.H.

Paul is touring early-voting states while considering whether to run for president in 2016.

Kentucky Legislative Leaders Continue Redistricting Fight

Associated Press — Tue, 21 May 2013 11:53:28 +0000

Kentucky House Speaker Greg Stumbo has offered a Senate redistricting plan in hopes of speeding up what's become a drawn out process.

Stumbo said Monday that delaying legislative redistricting makes it more likely that judges will step in to realign political boundaries in the state. Two federal lawsuits have been filed in recent weeks; one seeking to force lawmakers to take action and another asking for a panel of judges to redraw political lines.

House Republican leader Jeff Hoover said Kentuckians may be better off having federal judges draw a redistricting plan that would place people above politics. That, Hoover said, would also eliminate the need for Governor Steve Beshear to call lawmakers back into a special session that would cost $300,000 a week.