All Politics are Local

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.

Kentucky Tea Party groups are planning rallies Tuesday to protest the IRS targeting of Tea Party and conservative groups for extra review. Two of Kentucky's largest Tea Party groups will protests outside IRS offices in their respective areas: the Northern Kentucky Tea Party will protest in Cincinnati and Louisville's group will join southern Indiana groups to protest in Louisville.

A Politico video featuring the chief of staff for Senator Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has been removed by the Washington publication after ethical questions were raised. In a story first reported by Roll Call, an idea was pitched to McConnell chief of staff Josh Holmes to appear in a video endorsing Politico's coverage. It shows Holmes explaining his vision for America, love of public service and why he reads Politico all while sitting in the senator's office.  Read more...

Through a single piece of legislation, Sen. Rand Paul is hoping to cut a corporate tax and get more revenue for transportation projects.

Washington, DC – The U.S. Senate has passed bill which contains Sen. Mitch McConnell’s measure protecting access to critical Kentucky fishing waters, according to a news release from the Kentucky senator's Washington office.

MSNBC host Chris Matthews is predicting the scandal involving the Internal Revenue Service targeting conservatives will benefit Republican Mitch McConnell, and could result in an easy re-election for Kentucky's senior senator. The agency has apologized for flagging political organizations with "tea party" and "patriot" in their name, but Republicans and Democrats have jabbed the Obama administration for not responding forcefully enough.  Read more...

As the scandal surrounding the targeting of tea party groups by the I.R.S. continues, some Kentucky tea party activists are upset with Senator Mitch McConnell's role in the process—even as the state party is asking them to support him. In Kentucky, only the statewide 9/12 project has come forward to acknowledge that they were targeted and that they were rejecting the IRS' apology on the matter.

The City of Frankfort is drafting an ordinance that would seek to protect lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender people from discrimination in housing, employment and public accommodations. But if you were among the more than 40 residents who left after the first two-and-a-half hours of Monday night’s City Commission meeting, you probably missed that. That’s because Commissioner Lynn Bowers changed her mind on the issue after the board took a brief break.

An independent candidate for the vacant 56th House District seat proposed a series of debates Monday leading to the June 25 special election. John-Mark Hack, a founding partner in Marksbury Farm Market in Lancaster and chairman of the anti-gambling group Stop Predatory Gambling, suggested a series of June debates in Franklin, Woodford and Fayette counties and on cn|2’s Pure Politics program.  Read more...

A new poll shows 78 percent of Kentuckians support the legalization of medical marijuana, while others would be fine with widespread legalization. The Kentucky Health Issues Poll has conducted polling on a wide array of issues for the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky over the past few months, from a statewide smoking ban to health insurance coverage. 

A trio of Kentuckians who favor the legalization of hemp says a trip to Washington D.C. to meet with lawmakers and executive branch officials was beneficial. Former state treasurer Jonathan Miller, Agriculture Commissioner James Comer and State Senator Paul Hornback spent three days in D.C. pushing for either the national legalization of industrial hemp, or a waiver to grow it in the Commonwealth.

The Kentucky Humanities Council has named former Congressman Ben Chandler as its new executive director. The non-profit group is not affiliated with the state, but works closely with state tourism and arts organizations. It is affiliated with the National Endowment for the Humanities.