My Old Kentucky Podcast

Interview with Rebecca Blankenship, Plus Legislative and Supreme Court Updates

This week we welcomed Rebecca Blankenship, the first openly trans elected official in Kentucky, to the show. She told us about her experiences seeing the legislature move anti-trans legislation this year, her thoughts about the future of trans rights in Kentucky, plus she told us about the various other things she's doing to organize for progress in Kentucky.
Robert talked early in the show about Kentucky's Supreme Court opting to leave the abortion ban in place while the merits of the case are considered, and Jazmin provided updates about how the legislature is moving on anti-trans legislation and on juvenile justice legislation.
 
Rebecca also asked us to share that Ban Conversion Therapy Kentucky has a rally in the capitol rotunda on March 2 at noon. Come if you can!

An Interview with CivicLex

This week on the show, Jazmin and Robert interviewed Richard Young and Adrian Paul Bryant, the Executive Director and Communications Strategist for CivicLex, a very unique civic education group in Lexington. They talked about the organization's roots, how it operates, and it's future. CivicLex is an important part of the civic fabric in Kentucky's second largest city, and we are thrilled to bring you such a robust interview.
On the first part of the show, Jazmin runs down the mass of anti-trans legislation making it's way through the legislature, and Robert talks about Jamie Comer's very interesting 2023.

Tornado Relief in the News

There were two recent stories about Kentucky's tornado relief efforts that we talked about this week: one about canceled checks that went out to people unaffected by the storm, and another about the under utilization of a fund the state sent to counties for use to meet unmet needs. We dig into these stories and discuss their impact on the 2023 election. Also this episode, plenty of quick hits.

Jason Bailey of KY Policy on Tax Cuts, and Craig Greenberg’s Plan For Homelessness

Jason Bailey joined Robert and Jazmin this week to talk about 2023's HB 1, which is a tax cut. The conversation was specifically about that bill and the issues it could create for Kentucky's budget, but also about tax issues in general, and how KY Policy works with the legislature.
Robert talked about the Greenberg administration's new plan to address homelessness, which includes several parts.

Kentucky Moms for Medical Cannabis

This week we welcomed Lauren Morgan Bratcher and Kristin Wilcox to talk about marijuana. Ms. Wilcox is one of the founders of Kentucky Moms for Medical Cannabis, and she shared about her experience raising a child with a disease which has a treatment that isn't allowed in Kentucky. We also spoke about the prospects for medical cannabis in this year's session and the role the issue might play in the fall elections this year.
Before speaking with them, Jazmin and Robert spoke about several smaller stories, including about Jonathan Mattingly's appearance in Bowling Green, an update to the Department of Juvenile Justice story from last week, more info about the special election coming up, and many more.

Nueva Fuerza Interview & What’s Going On in the Juvenile Justice System

This week Jazmin and Robert welcome David Lopez and Diana Duran of Nueva Fuerza on the show. They shared about the organization, including its purpose, its insights in Louisville's Latin American population, and its goals for the future.
Jazmin spent most of the first part of the show talking about Kentucky's juvenile justice system, which has been plagued by very serious scandals for quite a while. We've talked around this issue several times on the show, but here we really dig into what is going on, why it's happening, and what solutions exist.

Filing Day 2023

This week Robert and Jazmin talked about the 2023 filing deadline -- who is in, who is out, and what are the matchups in the primary and general elections this Spring and Fall. Then, the pair discuss the first week of the legislative session.

The Legislature Is In Session

The legislature kicked off their 2023 session, and we talked about everything happened on Day 1. Jazmin also has details on an appeal of a lawsuit in which SCOKY ruled against Governor Beshear, plus updates about a special election and the swearing in of several officers in city government.

Buddy Wheatley Is Running, Savannah Maddox is Not.

This week Robert and Jazmin discussed Buddy Wheatley running for Secretary of State, Savannah Maddox dropping out of the race for Governor, the death of Henry Berg-Brousseau, and Governor Beshear's visit to Eastern Kentucky.

2023 Session Preview

What will the Kentucky legislature tackle in the short 2023 session? Robert and Jazmin dive into this question. Robert looks at the only guaranteed thing: a reduction in the income tax, and also looks into what else the legislature might do around tax reform. Jazmin talks about marijuana reform; a perennial topic in Frankfort, but will this be the year that a bill is actually passed? In addition, Robert and Jazmin discuss several other topics that are likely to come up such as bills attacking trans kids, bills about abortion, "gray machine" regulation, and more.