Tag: Kentucky

Kentucky, Ohio Officials Start to Identify Contractors for $2 Billion Brent Spence Bridge Project

The Center Square

Transportation officials in Kentucky and Ohio continue to work in concert on a new Ohio River bridge connecting Cincinnati with Northern Kentucky, and they hope construction on the more than $2 billion megaproject could start by the end of next year.

Besides building a companion bridge to the existing Brent Spence Bridge, officials in both states want to widen the interstate highways connected by the bridges. A 5-mile stretch in Kentucky and a 1-mile stretch in Ohio each would get one new lane in each direction across a 6-mile stretch.

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Federal Judge Blocks Kentucky Law That Made the State Abortion-Free

Susan Berry, PhD

A federal judge has temporarily halted a new Kentucky law that blocked the state’s last two remaining abortion clinics from performing the procedure.

Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings, a Donald Trump appointee, of U.S. District Court of the Western District of Kentucky, Louisville Division, ruled Thursday in favor of Planned Parenthood and other abortion rights groups by issuing a temporary restraining order that blocks Kentucky officials from enforcing its new law that would block the state’s only two abortion clinics from performing the procedure.

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Kentucky Lawmakers Override Dem Governor on Women’s Sports and Abortion

Ohio Star Staff

Kentucky legislators banned males from women’s sports and restricted abortions Wednesday, overriding the Democratic governor’s veto.

Lawmakers overrode Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto of Senate Bill 83, which bars males from participating in girls’ sports from elementary through secondary education. Beshear preferred a policy allowing males to compete in girls’ sports if they underwent certain medical sex change treatments rather than an outright ban, he explained in his April 7 veto letter.

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21 States Join Lawsuit to End Federal Mask Mandate on Airplanes, Public Transportation

The Center Square

Twenty-one states have filed a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s continued mask mandate on public transportation, including on airplanes.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Attorney General Ashley Moody are leading the effort. Moody filed the suit in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida along with 20 other attorneys general. DeSantis said the mask mandate was misguided and heavy-handed.

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Three More States Consider Bills Banning Men from Women’s Sports

Admin

Arizona, Kentucky and Oklahoma are the latest states considering bans on biological males participating in girls’ and women’s sports, with all three states passing legislation Thursday addressing the issue.

The Arizona legislature passed two bills addressing transgender issues that currently await Republican Gov. Doug Ducey’s signature. If enacted, one bill will ban biological males from girls’ sports teams while the other will ban gender reassignment surgeries for minors.

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Sixteen States File New Lawsuit Against Federal COVID Vaccination Mandate

The Center Square

Sixteen states again are challenging a federal COVID-19 vaccination mandate for health care workers who work at facilities that receive Medicare and Medicaid funding.

Friday’s filing in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana comes after the issuance of final guidance on the mandate from the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid (CMS), arguing the guidance is an action that is reviewable.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled by 5-4 vote Jan. 13 against the original Louisiana challenge to the mandate and a similar Missouri filing.

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Biden, Influential Climate Scientist/Activist Use Deadly Tornado to Push Climate Change Narrative

Admin

President Joe Biden surveyed the damage from a deadly weekend tornado in Mayfield, Ky., on Wednesday and said, “We’ve got $99 billion worth of damage just this year — just the year — because of foul weather and climate change.”

In Dawson Springs, Ky., he reiterated the cost of damages and then, in a possible reference to his Build Back Better Act, he said: “I promise you: You’re going to heal. We’re going to recover. You’re going to rebuild. You’re going to be stronger than you were before. We’re going to build back better than it was.”

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Dr. Christopher Weiss, Professor of Atmospheric Science at Texas Tech, Talks Tornados in Out of Season December

Julie Carr
Dr. Christopher Weiss of Texas Tech

Monday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed Professor of Atmospheric Sciences at Texas Tech, Christopher Weiss to the newsmakers line to talk about last Friday’s out of season tornados that ravaged Kentucky and parts of Middle Tennessee.

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State Attorneys General Launch Investigation into Instagram’s Effects on Kids

Admin
Young person on Instagram

A bipartisan coalition of state attorneys general launched a probe into Instagram on Thursday to examine whether the company violated state-level consumer protection laws.

The states are investigating whether Meta (formerly known as Facebook), which owns Instagram, promoted the image-sharing platform “to children and young adults” despite being aware of its negative effects, according to statements from the attorneys general. The probe cites internal Facebook communications and research leaked by former Facebook employee Frances Haugen and published by The Wall Street Journal showing Meta was aware that use of Instagram could contribute to body image and mental health issues among teens.

“When social media platforms treat our children as mere commodities to manipulate for longer screen time engagement and data extraction, it becomes imperative for state attorneys general to engage our investigative authority under our consumer protection laws,” Republican Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson said in a statement.

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Flooding Could Wipe Out 25 Percent of Critical Infrastructure: Report

Admin

About 25% of critical infrastructure in the U.S., or 36,000 facilities, is at serious risk of being rendered inoperable as a result of flooding over the next three decades, according to an industry report released Monday.

American infrastructure such as police stations, airports, hospitals, wastewater treatment facilities, churches and schools were all considered in the analysis, according to First Street Foundation, the group that published the first-of-its-kind report. The U.S. is “ill-prepared” for a scenario where major flooding events become more commonplace, the report concluded.

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State Lawmakers Strip Four Democrat and Two Republican Governors’ Power After Overreach During COVID-19 Pandemic

Admin

State legislatures in six states limited their governors’ emergency powers wielded during the COVID-19 pandemic, arguing executives have overextended their authority.

As of June 2021, lawmakers in 46 states have introduced legislation stripping governors of certain emergency powers, according to USA Today. Legislatures justified their actions as necessary to restore a balance between the branches of state government, pointing to examples of executive overreach and the centralization of power in the hands of governors.

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Commentary: Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear is the Poster Child for School Choice Hypocrisy

Ohio Star Staff

Last week, Kentucky was the first state legislature to pass a new program to fund students instead of systems this year. The proposal, House Bill 563, would allow eligible students to access scholarships to use at approved private education providers of their families’ choosing. But the Bluegrass State’s Democratic governor, Andy Beshear, blocked educational opportunities for thousands of children by vetoing the bill on Wednesday.

Kentucky requires a constitutional majority in both the House and Senate to override Beshear’s veto, and that vote is expected to happen Monday.

During his press conference announcing the decision, Beshear said that the bill “would greatly harm public education in Kentucky by taking money away from public schools and sending it to unaccountable private organizations with little oversight.”

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21 States Sue Biden Admin for Revoking Keystone XL Permit

Ohio Star Staff

A group of red states sued President Biden and members of his administration on Wednesday over his decision to revoke a key permit for the Keystone XL oil pipeline, The Hill reported.

The lawsuit is led by Montana and Texas, and backed by 19 other states, including Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

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Kentucky AG Files Restraining Order to Block Religious School Closures

Ohio Star Staff

“Kentucky’s attorney general is suing his own governor in an attempt to keep private religious schools open, despite the state ordering virtual classes during the coronavirus pandemic, “according to Fox News.

Attorney General Daniel Cameron and the First Liberty Institute on Friday asked a federal court to issue a temporary restraining order that would block Beshear’s order from being implemented. An emergency hearing took place on Monday. In the petition, Cameron argued that Beshear’s latest executive order infringed on Danville Christian Academy’s and other religious schools’ constitutional freedoms.

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Kentucky Democrats Still Looking for the Winner in Last Week’s Primary

The Associated Press

One of Kentucky’s most unpredictable political races in years is headed toward the wire Tuesday, but it’s taking a full week after the June 23 primary to sort out a possible photo finish in the Democratic U.S. Senate contest.

Absentee ballots that stacked up amid the coronavirus pandemic have delayed the vote count in the neck-and-neck race between progressive candidate Charles Booker and establishment-backed Amy McGrath. Both are vying for the chance to take on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who coasted to victory in the GOP primary in his bid for a seventh term.

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Black Candidates Tap Protest Energy to Challenge Incumbent Democrats

Ohio Star Staff

Amy McGrath and Eliot Engel live hundreds of miles apart in states with dramatically different politics.

Yet they’re the preferred candidates of the Democratic Party’s Washington establishment as voters in Kentucky and New York decide their congressional primary elections on Tuesday. And both may be in trouble.

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Kentucky Governor Beshear Participates in Jefferson Davis Statue Removal from State Capitol

The Associated Press

  FRANKFORT, Kentucky (AP) — Having led the push to take down a statue of Jefferson Davis from the Kentucky Capitol, the state’s governor had a ceremonial role Saturday in its removal from the place it stood for generations. Gov. Andy Beshear pushed the button to a rig that lifted…

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Louisville Police Chief Fired in Aftermath of Fatal Shooting

The Associated Press

Louisville’s police chief was fired Monday after the mayor learned that officers involved in a shooting that killed the popular owner of a barbecue spot failed to activate body cameras during the chaotic scene.

David McAtee, known for offering meals to police officers, died early Monday while police officers and National Guard soldiers were enforcing a curfew amid waves of protests over a previous police shooting in Kentucky’s largest city. Police said they were responding to gunfire from a crowd.

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Democrat Governor of Kentucky Orders Police to Take Down Tag Numbers of Church-Goers, Other Easter Gatherings So Government Can Impose Two Week Quarantines on Citizens

Jason M. Reynolds

Democratic Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear told police to take down tag numbers of people attending churches and other gatherings on Easter so the government could go to their homes and impose a 14-day quarantine over COVID-19 concerns.

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Senator Rand Paul Tests Positive for Coronavirus

Chris Butler

Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) has tested positive for COVID-19, according to a statement his staff released on his social media accounts Sunday afternoon.

“He is feeling fine and is in quarantine. He is asymptomatic and was tested out of an abundance of caution due to his extensive travel and events. He was not aware of any direct contact with any infected person,” according to the statement.

“He expects to be back in the Senate after his quarantine period ends and will continue to work for the people of Kentucky at this difficult time. Ten days ago, our D.C. office began operating remotely, hence virtually no staff has had contact with Senator Rand Paul.”

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New Democratic Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear Gives Nonviolent Felons the Right to Vote, Run for Public Office

Jason M. Reynolds

New Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear isn’t wasting time enacting liberal agendas, having signed an executive order Thursday restoring the right to vote and the right to run for public office to hundreds of thousands of felons convicted of nonviolent crimes, according to a story by Jurist.

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American Inventor Series: Garrett A. Morgan, a Son of Slaves Who Invented the Traffic Signal

Anthony Gockowski

Garrett A. Morgan was born on March 4, 1877 in Claysville on the outskirts of Paris, Kentucky to two former slaves. He was one of eleven children and his family was forced to live in a segregated portion of the city, so Morgan left for Cincinnati, Ohio at the age of 14 in search of better opportunities.

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Rand Paul Offers to Buy Omar Ticket to Somalia So She Would ‘Appreciate America More’

Anthony Gockowski

  Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) said he’s willing to contribute to travel expenses for Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN-05) to visit Somalia so she would “appreciate America more.” “I’m in a town where we have a lot of people who are refugees. Some come from Somalia, some from Bosnia. I’ve never…

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Ohio River Commission Opts to Introduce New Standards, Drawing Ire of National Wildlife Federation

Ohio Star Staff

by Steve Bittenbender   A multistate organization in charge of improving the quality of one of the country’s most important rivers voted on Thursday to adopt a new plan on how to ensure states meet water pollution standards. By a 19-2 vote, with one abstention, the Ohio River Valley Water…

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Cincinnati Food Truck Association Reportedly Suspends Company for Insensitive T-Shirts

Anthony Gockowski

A northern Kentucky-based barbecue food truck that frequents the Cincinnati area is facing backlash for what some are calling “bigoted” T-shirts. Belle’s Smoking BBQ sells t-shirts that state: “I support LGBTQ: Liberty, guns, bible, Trump, and BBQ.” Owner Jamie Smith said he has been selling the shirts for nearly two…

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Senator Rand Paul Will Vote Against Trump’s National Emergency Declaration

Ohio Star Staff
Rand Paul

by Henry Rogers   Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul said he will vote against a resolution in an attempt to terminate President Donald Trump’s national emergency for border wall funding. Paul will join a group of three Republicans who have expressed their concerns with Trump’s declaration for a national emergency, saying…

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Tennessee Man Allegedly Pulled Gun On Sam’s Club Customer For Wearing MAGA Hat

Ohio Star Staff

by Andrew Kerr   A Tennessee man faces a charge of first-degree wanton endangerment after allegedly pulling a gun on a Sam’s Club customer in Kentucky for wearing a Make America Great Again hat. James Phillips, 57 (pictured above), told police he made an obscene gesture with his finger towards…

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Report: Vaccination Company’s Poor Safety Protocols Cause Infections Across Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana

Andrew Shirley

The Kentucky Department for Public Health has announced that Location Vaccination, a company that provides vaccinations for businesses, is currently being investigated for causing an untold number of infections across Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana. According to the Department of Public Health (DPH) Report, there is no issue with the actual…

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Democratic Rep Wants to Ban Teens from Wearing MAGA Hats after False Reports of Harassment

Ohio Star Staff

by Neetu Chandak   House Budget Committee Chairman John Yarmuth called for banning teens from wearing Make America Great Again (MAGA) hats after a video circulated on social media of an encounter between some Kentucky high school boys and an American Indian group after the March for Life rally Friday.…

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