Moving Kentucky Forward

This week we’re talking with Honi Goldman and Talley Russell about a new effort to get more people to vote, called VoteNowKY. Their tag line is “It’s your right to fix what’s wrong,” and they’ve got some great info and some solid partners. Listen in to learn more about this important work!

This is an early and shortened MKF episode, as we were able to line up an interview with Congressman John Yarmuth (KY-03) on the same day that hearings began on the whistleblower complaint. We ask Cong. Yarmuth he was hearing from both Democrats and Republicans, and where he thought this was headed. We also asked him about warning signs, and he gave us one eventuality to watch for.

This week we talk with Krystal Ball, who’s well-known to folks across Kentucky, and is now co-hosting a new show called Rising. We talk with her about her new show, the Democratic race for president and what’s going to happen there, about what the Democratic party should be doing to get back to its roots, and about a little thing called UBI. If you haven’t heard of that, just listen and we’ll explain it!

Every election season, Kentucky Democrats put together a "coordinated campaign." People are saying that this year's CC is really doing well. We talk with Michael Bowman, candidate for state treasurer, and Lisa Tanner Norkus, long-time political consultant, to see how well things are REALLY going.

In this week's show, we talked with Jacqueline Coleman, the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, running with Andy Beshear. We talked with her about education, the race, and why people should vote for her and Andy this fall. It's a shorter episode than usual, but even so, we covered a lot of ground. Give it a listen!

We're joined by Dr. Alexandra Owensby, a candidate for Congress in Kentucky’s 4th district with an inspiring personal story who is not afraid of a challenge — and that includes taking on the incumbent, Thomas Massie. I really enjoyed getting to know her, and I bet you will too!

This week we're joined by Chuck Eddy, founder of the group "Republicans for Andy Beshear and Jacqueline Coleman." Mr. Eddy is a lifelong Republican who nevertheless is fed up with Matt Bevin, and is working to get the Beshear/Coleman ticket elected. Listen to our interview to learn more about the issues that drive his passion to get Beshear elected and Bevin out.

As part of our Fancy Farm coverage, we got a five-minute stand-up interview with AG Andy Beshear, just outside the Marshall County Bean Dinner on Friday, August 2, 2019. We asked Beshear, who is running for governor, about how the campaign is going, what he thinks of Matt Bevin's strategies in the race, and how he would answer the question "Why should I vote for you?" It's five good minutes with lots of info, so give it a listen!

Rep. Cherlynn Stevenson joins us this week to talk about the new Commonwealth Caucus, a group formed to find "commonsense solutions for the common good." We ask her why she helped form the group, what they hope to accomplish, and what her Republican colleagues think of the whole thing. And, at the end, we've got an announcement about a new event coming to Forward Kentucky this fall. Be sure to listen all the way to the end to learn what it is!

In this week's Moving Kentucky Forward podcast, we're joined by Matt Morrison, executive director of Working America. We'll bet that most of you have never heard of this group, but if you listen to this episode, you'll learn about their work, and how they may make a significant impact on this year's gubernatorial race and on Kentucky politics.

This week we're doing a group interview with five women running on the Democratic ticket in Bullitt County. We learn how that local party found enough candidates to fill up their slate, including a number of women, and what sort of experiences these women candidates are having as they campaign. And, we ask if there are lessons from what's happening in Bullitt County that can be applied across the state.

Our guest is Sam Quinones, reporter, and author of "Dreamland," the best-seller about the opioid crisis. Sam talks about the causes of the crisis, including the drug companies and the doctors, and shares the solutions people are finding across the country. And, he gives a surprising answer to our closing "magic wand" question.

Sometimes, in order to get where you want to go, you have to look back at where you've been and learn from it. This week, former Attorney General and Speaker of the House Greg Stumbo helps us do just that, with advice on how to take back the state, as well as advice for those persons thinking of running for governor. And that list might include Stumbo himself! Finally, we ask him what he would do with our proverbial magic wand, and he lays out a compelling vision for dealing with the opioid crisis.

This week we’re joined by Kentucky’s attorney general, Andy Beshear. We discuss the judge’s decision in the pension case and where the Attorney General thinks the case will wind up. We look at the work of his office, including how the AG’s office works with the rest of state government. And, we get his thoughts on his relationship with Governor Bevin, and what that might mean for the future. Finally, of course, we ask him whether he is going to run for Governor in 2019, and what might motivate him to do that. It’s Sunday, June 24th, and time to move Kentucky forward. Let’s get started!

This week we talk with Blair Haydon, executive director of Emerge Kentucky, the organization devoted to getting more Democratic women elected to office. We talk about all the women that are running, the training they go through and what it costs, and what Blair is seeing as she travels the state. It’s Sunday, June 10th, and time to move Kentucky forward. Let’s get started!

This week's guest is Tom Fitzgerald, the director of the KY Resources Council (KYRC.org). He talks about the good and the bad of this year's legislative session, including the difference between the fight with the electrical utilities versus the collaboration with the oil and gas companies. We talk about whether the environment matters in our elections. And, at the end, he identifies a coming threat that we are not paying enough attention to, but that needs to be on our radar.

The primaries are over, and there is much excitement among Dem voters across the state. We talk with Mary Nishimuta and Ben Self of the KDP about the primaries and what they mean, as well as what KDP is doing to get ready for the fall elections. We also explore running as a progressive in Kentucky, and how KDP works with other groups to move the state forward.

Brent McKim, the head of the Jefferson County Teachers Association, joins us to talk about the proposed takeover, the upcoming contract, and what he thinks of the comments and emails that have been made public in the past few weeks.

We're joined this week by Rep. Rocky Adkins, the Democratic leader of the Kentucky House of Representatives. We’re going to see what he thinks of the legislative session that just finished, including the way the Republicans ran it. We’re going to find out about Democrats across the state, and what he thinks is going to happen this fall. And, we’re going to ask him if he’s running for governor.

This week we talk with Linda Belcher, fresh off her landslide win for state House in the Bullitt County special election, and Rebekah Witherington, the chair of the Bullitt County Democratic Party. We talk about how they won so convincingly, about the future of the Dems in Bullitt and across the state, and about the issues that resonate with the people in their county. We also talk about the opioid crisis, and about the surprising amount of unity around medical marijuana.

In this week's Moving Kentucky Forward, we're joined by Gay Adelmann, founder of Dear JCPS and Save Our Schools Kentucky, and a strong advocate for public education in Louisville and in Frankfort. She helped recruit many of the educators running for office this year, and that led to a new form of activism – she's now a candidate herself!

We're joined this week by Ben Self, the new chair of the Kentucky Democratic Party who was elected last fall. Ben got his start in campaign politics working on the Howard Dean campaign, helping to build that famous digital operation. Now he's taking on building up the KDP in time to make a difference in 2018 and beyond. We ask Ben what he sees as the challenges and solutions, and what he sees happening in this year's elections in Kentucky.

Long-time state rep Jim Wayne joins us, and tells us the best and worst bills of the past General Assembly, and what he thinks is going to happen on pensions and tax reforms. He also is direct in his thoughts on Governor Bevin and the Republican majority. And finally, he shares the two things he would do if we gave him a magic wand to wave over the state!

Join us as we interview Nicole George, candidate for Louisville's Metro Council in 2018. Nicole talks about the issues in her district, and at the end, we give her a magic wand to fix the things SHE thinks are most important. Listen to see her top priorities for the district and for the city of Louisville!

Ryan Eller of Define American joins us to bring us up to speed on immigrants in Kentucky, both documented and undocumented ... and we covered a lot of ground! We can almost guarantee that you will learn things you didn't know, including the financial impact of immigrants on our state, AND what the current deportation program means to both the families involved and to you and me. In addition, we get into DACA, and talk about promises our country made to these young people, and how those promises are being broken.

The PFM pension recommendations caused strong reactions on all sides of the pension issue. So we went to Jason Bailey of KCEP to get his calm, fact-based analysis.

While everyone is talking about Trumpcare, let's not forget that draconian cuts are also proposed for Medicaid. These cuts will affect not only the poor and elderly, but our entire state, including causing the loss of over 80,000 jobs. Emily Beauregard and Dustin Pugel join us to lay out just how bad these cuts are, and the effects they will cause across our state. Links for More Info Kentucky Voices for Health About Emily Beauregard Medicaid Articles Kentucky Center for Economic Policy About Dustin Pugel Medicaid Articles  

Right after the 2016 election, Krystal Ball wrote a HuffPost essay titled "The Democratic Party Deserved to Die." As you can imagine, the post went viral ... and out of it came a new book AND a new political project. The book is entitled Reversing the Apocalypse: Hijacking the Democratic Party to Save the World, and it has drawn widespread praise for its honest assessment of the state of the party AND what to do about it. Here's our review of the book. And here's where you can order it on Amazon Kindle. The new project is The People's House, a project to challenge incumbent Republicans throughout Appalachia and the Midwest. The project is just launching, and you can visit the web site here. In our interview, Krystal Ball discusses her move to Kentucky, the People's House project, and her insights into the party and how to rebuild it. She also spends some time talking about the economic plight facing so many of our citizens, and how automation is going to make their situation even worse, and we take some time to talk about Social Security for All as an answer to the coming loss of jobs caused by automation. This is a wide-ranging and rich interview -- give it a listen!

Adam Edelen joins us to talk about his exciting new solar project on a mountain outside Pikeville, and the impact it could make on our state. He also updates us on his political work with the New Kentucky Project, and shares some candid and insightful thoughts about politics and the progressive movement in Kentucky. There is much to think about in what he says, so give a listen – and take notes!

In this week’s episode, we’re joined by Representative Attica Scott, fresh off her first session of the General Assembly. We’ll ask her about her impressions of serving in Frankfort, as well as what she thinks of the bills that passed AND the bills that didn’t. It’s Sunday, April 2, 2017, and time to move Kentucky forward. Let’s get started!  

One of the most exciting developments since the election is the Indivisible movement! In this episode of Moving Kentucky Forward, we're joined by Kim Hibberd and Dawn Cooley, the co-founders of Indivisible Kentucky, as they share with us what it's like to be leading this fast-growing group, and where they see it going.    

We're joined this week by Rep. Joni Jenkins of Louisville, who shares an update about this years' General Assembly, and helps us understand how to have a bigger impact in Frankfort!

In this episode, we’re joined by Amy Shir, who shares about her work doing “financial empowerment.” She also tells us about a recent event in Louisville where she volunteered to share a personal story, only to wind up going to Washington and hanging out with Senator Al Franken! Join us to learn more about her inspiring work.

Join us as Bruce Maples, publisher of Forward Kentucky, shares some thoughts on how to stand for justice without adding to our polarization or Othering your opponents. Also, we've got updates on events of the week, as well as new features coming to Forward Kentucky. Enjoy!

We attended the annual conference of the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy, and interviewed four interesting people while there: Joe Grady of Topos, on how to get people to think differently about taxes Clark Williams, an IRS agent turned minister, on why our state budget is a moral document MacKenzie Cantrell, on her experiences as a new state legislator Jason Bailey, the director of KCEP, on what he is most worried about, and what he would do with a magic budget wand Join us for four varied and interesting interviews!  

We interview Matt Wyatt, chair of the Elizabethtown School Board. The E-town school board recently passed a resolution opposing charters, and Matt lays out the reasons why. In addition, we take a look at news, fake news, and propaganda, the differences among them, and the standards Forward Kentucky has set for itself when it comes to our news work. It's important for you that we get this right; listen and learn why.

Our first interview, and who better than Congressman John Yarmuth! He has been working for progressive causes for decades, and represents Kentucky's Third District with determination and clarity. The Congressman shares with us the current mood in Washington, how Republicans feel about the incoming President, and some things WE can do to Move Kentucky Forward.

Our new podcast! Bruce Maples, publisher of Forward Kentucky, talks briefly about our goals for the Moving Kentucky Forward podcast, and some of the content we hope to include. He finishes with a request for YOUR help: people, topics, and stories we can use for the show.