Kentucky Politics & News
The Daily Signal covers Kentucky politics with reporting on state leadership, energy policy, economic development, and conservative governance in the Bluegrass State.
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‘Tearing the School Apart’: How DEI Changed Kentucky Country Day School
“Despite the occupation, despite the apartheid, Palestine will one day be free,” declared Mahmoud Kutmah, the valedictorian of Kentucky Country Day School’s class of 2021, at the end of his graduation speech. What followed that May 2021 commencement ceremony set off a chain reaction that enabled education consultant Rodney Glasgow to enter the picture and…James Lalino -
Former Kentucky AG Warns About Threat to Business From Woke Corporations
Conservatives must be vigilant about big corporations that seek to “cancel” those with differing political views, former Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron warns. Cameron, a Republican, ran for governor in 2023, but lost to Democratic incumbent Gov. Andy Beshear. He now serves as CEO of the 1792 Exchange, a nonprofit organization that “seeks to preserve…Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell -
Catholic Kentucky Diocese Doubles Down, Praises Woman as ‘Transgender’ Male Monk
The Catholic Diocese of Lexington, Kentucky, issued a statement on Tuesday praising a woman who identifies as a transgender man. The diocese statement not only used male pronouns to refer to this biological female, it also noted that Bishop John Stowe had “accepted” the woman’s decision. The bishop is “grateful to Brother Christian for his…Mary Margaret Olohan -
EXCLUSIVE: Kentucky AG Investigates Company at Center of $200,000 Payment to Bidens
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—Kentucky’s attorney general is investigating a health care company that wired $200,000 to James Biden the same day he wrote a check for that amount to his brother and future president Joe Biden. James Biden worked as a consultant for Americore Holdings LLC, a Florida-based hospital chain that later collapsed. Americore…Fred Lucas -
Andy Beshear Wins Second Term in Kentucky
Democratic Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear won a second term Tuesday after running a campaign where he cast himself as a moderate and distanced himself from his fellow Democrat, President Joe Biden, The Associated Press is projecting. He defeated Republican state Attorney General Daniel Cameron, who would have been the first elected black Republican governor in…Fred Lucas -
Kentucky’s Daniel Cameron Scores Win Against Threat of Banks Cutting Off Conservatives
Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, a Republican who is also running for governor, secured a pledge from JPMorgan Chase that may help protect conservatives from the threat of "debanking"—when banks cut off services over the religious or political stance of a customer, including nonprofits. Cameron slammed the "hypocrisy that we see from big businesses." Speaking…Tyler O’Neil -
Kentucky Democrat Who Lost Bid to Unseat McConnell Fined $10K for Ethics Violations
The Executive Branch Ethics Commission of Kentucky has finally completed its investigation of Democrat Alison Grimes, a former secretary of state who ran an unsuccessful campaign for Senate against Sen. Mitch McConnell in 2014. The commission, in a unanimous vote, has fined her $10,000 for abusing “her position and influence” to provide 18 Democratic candidates…Hans von Spakovsky -
Kentucky Loses Distinction for Education Freedom After Flawed Court Decision
Kentucky long has lagged in giving families access to education choice. However, that changed dramatically in 2021 when, in the wake of school shutdowns over COVID-19, Kentucky joined a wave of states expanding education opportunities by enacting the Education Opportunity Account program. Unfortunately, Kentucky children who stood to benefit from access to a greater number…Jason Bedrick -
Kentucky AG Daniel Cameron: Prioritizing ESG Investments ‘Inconsistent’ With Law
Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron previously warned that the state pension funds cannot legally make environmental, social, and governance considerations when investing the dollars of public employees. This week, Cameron and state Treasurer Allison Ball, both elected Republicans, asked two state pension systems to provide proof that pension funds are primarily focused on return on…Fred Lucas -
In Kentucky, Education Opportunity Accounts Can Give Students Chance to Overcome Hardship
Jan. 23-29 is National School Choice Week. This is the second of a five-part series of commentaries exploring the successes and challenges of educational choice and the people fighting to make it available to all American schoolchildren. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kentucky lawmakers seized the opportunity to pass the state’s first significant…Heather Huddleston -
Kentucky Lawmakers Override Governor, Expel School Mask Mandate
Kentucky’s Republican Legislature overrode the state’s Democratic governor late Thursday and repealed a statewide public school mask mandate. The move, reported by the Louisville Courier Journal, came on the final day of a special session called by Gov. Andy Beshear. The mask mandate was repealed as cases in the state increased for the 10th straight week, and…Andrew Trunsky -
Breonna Taylor Case: Black Kentucky Attorney General Called ‘Sellout,’ Compared to Slavemaster
Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, who spoke at the Republican National Convention, declined to bring murder charges against the three white officers involved in the tragic shooting of Louisville’s Breonna Taylor, a black woman. Contrary to the public assertion made by a Taylor family lawyer, Cameron, who is black, said the Louisville police did not…Larry Elder -
Kentucky Supreme Court Sides With Christian T-Shirt Maker in Free Speech Case
The Kentucky Supreme Court ruled unanimously Thursday that a printer cannot be forced to print T-shirts that violate his faith. In a case that dragged on for seven years, Blaine Adamson, owner of Hands On Originals, a promotional printer in Lexington, declined to print T-shirts for the Lexington Pride Festival, hosted by the Gay and…Fred Lucas -
People Won’t Be Able to Abort Babies Based on Race, Sex, or Handicaps in Kentucky
Republican Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin signed a bill Tuesday banning abortions on the basis of race, sex, or disability despite a pending lawsuit from a legal advocacy group. Bevin signed House Bill 5 “prohibit[ing] an abortion if the pregnant woman is seeking the abortion, in whole or in part, because of an unborn child’s sex,…Grace Carr -
The Full Story About the Kentucky Boys in MAGA Hats Emerges
We watched the original video of the young white Kentucky boys decked out in Make America Great Again gear mocking an old Native American man and, to say the least, we were disappointed. The teens were in the nation’s capital for the March for Life. The Native American man, 64-year-old Nathan Phillips, was on the mall for…Dee Dee Bass Wilbon -
Kentucky Board of Education to Keep God and the Bible in Schools
Kentucky will keep God and religion in schools after its education leaders approved a Bible standard that all public schools in the state must meet. The Kentucky Board of Education approved "Bible literary" standards in a unanimous affirmative vote that allow students to take religion and Bible classes as electives, The Associated Press reports. The classes…Grace Carr -
Repealing Gun-Free School Zones Act Would Make Schools Safer, Kentucky Lawmaker Says
Schools would be better protected from mass shootings if federal legislation enacted in 1990 that bans guns from school zones is repealed, a Kentucky congressman says. “I have used the statistic on ‘Meet the Press’ Sunday that 98 percent of mass public shootings happen in gun-free zones, and I believe that we should put our…Rachel del Guidice -
Kentucky Court Ruling Protects Artist’s Free Speech, Religious Liberty
When should a business owner’s decisions be condemned as illegal discrimination? Imagine a print shop owned by a devout atheist. A Muslim woman, wearing a hijab, walks into the shop and orders a sign saying, “Allahu Akbar! Allah is greater than all!” Scenario A: The shop owner sees the woman’s hijab when she walks through…Samuel Green -
Kentucky Should End All Ties to Obamacare
Newly elected Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin announced his plans to keep the Obamacare Medicaid expansion (and the extra federal money funding it) and to pursue waivers that will introduce reforms to Medicaid. The governor should rethink this decision. Not only will these efforts likely result in only modest reforms, but more importantly, they will put the…Nina Owcharenko Schaefer -
Meet the New Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky. Here Are 15 Facts About Jenean Hampton
Elections were held around the country Tuesday, and results in Kentucky made history. Matt Bevin, the Republican candidate for Kentucky governor, and running mate Jenean Hampton won by a margin of 53 percent to 44 percent over Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway, a Democrat, according to CNN. Conway had been at the top in polls leading up to the…Leah Jessen