LEXINGTON — Thomas Massie is not Dalton Henry’s congressman.

But the Floridian still stood outside KET on May 4 to show his support at Massie’s appearance.

Henry, who traveled hundreds of miles, has followed the race closely, and understands that because Trump has taken aim at Massie by endorsing his opponent, he could be in trouble.

“It’s definitely a referendum on whether or not a congressman can be true to his constituents instead of the party,” Henry said of the upcoming primary election.

Massie later told the Lantern during a festival in his native Lewis County on Saturday that he had heard of people from states such as Florida, Arizona and Michigan, traveling to Kentucky to campaign for him.

“Some people are coming in to volunteer, because they feel like — not to be too dramatic about this — but they feel like the future of the country is at stake,” Massie said.

The Republican congressman has represented Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District since his election in 2012, but this year, he is facing one of his closest battles yet to retain his seat. In October, after months of slamming the congressman in social media tirades, President Donald Trump endorsed a candidate to run against Massie — Shelby County Republican and former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein.

Kentucky Republican voters in the district will decide on Tuesday next week whether to give Massie another term, or replace him with Gallrein. Though there will be a Democratic challenger on the ballot in November, the seat is widely seen as a safe one for the GOP. The 4th Congressional District spans from Appalachian Eastern Kentucky to Louisville suburbs in the west. Metropolitan Northern Kentucky, just under Cincinnati, Ohio, has become an increasingly Libertarian stronghold in recent years.

But recent polling suggests the race has tightened considerably, with one independent poll from earlier this week putting Gallrein slightly ahead.

One Republican in Gallrein’s home of Shelby County, Judge-Executive Dan Ison, said that this primary election is the “toughest that Massie has had” in his time in Congress, but questioned if “the president did his homework on his endorsed candidate.” Ison supports Trump, he said, “but I do question some of his actions,” and believes other Republican voters do as well.

“I think he just wanted somebody to run against Massie,” Ison said of Trump. He later added that he had not met Gallrein until he decided to run for the local state Senate seat in 2024. Despite having Republican Senate leadership support, he lost the three-way primary to now state Sen. Aaron Reed, and also faced then-incumbent Sen. Adrienne Southworth.

Ison also questions what issues Gallrein would address if elected to Congress.

When asked what bill would he propose if elected to Congress in a Monday telephone interview with the Lantern, Gallrein said his first step in Congress would be to “go up there and build relationships, because (Massie’s) burned every bridge to our district, burned the bridge factory down, ran everybody off that would build a bridge except for the Democrats who hate us.”

Earlier on in the interview, Gallrein said that the race has national implications.

“If we do not take advantage of this narrow window of opportunity, history is going to punish us, and the way it will do that is through our kids and our grandkids and thereafter,” he said.

Gallrein believes the biggest issue in the race is that most voters in the district have repeatedly elected Trump to the White House — a sign that they support his agenda.

“In other words, the voice of this district and the voice of the American people was clear,” Gallrein said, adding that Massie “stands against us.”

Massie has repeatedly said he largely does vote with Republicans, but he breaks on key issues, which often matter to hard-right voters. For example, he voted last year against Trump’s megabill, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, saying at the time it would “significantly increase U.S. budget deficits in the near term, negatively impacting all Americans through sustained inflation and high interest rates.” He also led the charge to release the federal investigation files on convicted sex offender and financier Jeffery Epstein — an idea that Trump campaigned on but cooled to after winning a second term.

Massie told the Lantern that he views this race as a referendum on a few things, including those few times he’s voted against the larger Republican agenda.

“And I think I’ve got a national following, because people are paying attention,” he said.

‘Burned bridges’

Steve Frank, a former vice mayor of Covington, the largest city in Northern Kentucky, told the Lantern that he had donated to Massie in the past, but has since soured on him.

“He’s a nice enough guy, but totally ineffective,” Frank said. “That’s my biggest beef with him. I mean, I have others, but lone wolves in legislatures don’t get anything done.”

Frank said that he feels Gallrein will be more effective in office simply because of his relationship with the Trump administration. He also feels like the “the ground shifted” in Gallrein’s favor in recent days, with Trump backing some successful challengers to Republicans in the Indiana statehouse who had opposed midterm redistricting, and Massie not going to the Kenton County Republican Lincoln Day Dinner — the kind of event that brings out party faithful.

Link NKY reported that Massie had sent a surrogate, state Sen. Gex Williams, because Massie was in Washington for a floor vote. However, Frank was skeptical, saying that another Kentucky U.S. Rep. Andy Barr, attended. Barr is Trump’s endorsed candidate in Kentucky’s U.S. Senate primary.

“Thomas could have been in the same damn car and made it to our dinner, but instead, he didn’t, and that just p----- a lot of people off,” Frank said.

Barr endorsed Gallrein against Massie in February.

Massie has also attacked Gallrein for skipping debates, including the KET appearance last week. In April, Massie posted online a photo of himself shaking hands with an empty seat during what was supposed to be a debate sponsored by conservative groups. Gallrein has been reported as saying that he’s “debating him every day” on the campaign trail instead.

Despite the president’s public tirades against the congressman within the last year or so — like calling his second wife a “supposedly a Radical Left ‘flamethrower’” on Truth Social or saying he is a “moron” during the National Prayer Breakfast — Massie sees hope for some reconciliation.

After the KET debate, Massie told reporters that after Trump called Massie a “third rate Grandstander” in 2020 and vowed to oust him from office, he later endorsed him in 2022. Massie said that as part of the endorsement, he told someone on Trump’s political team “it’d be really nice if he called me a first-rate defender of the Constitution.”

And Trump did just that.

Turnout race

Massie told the Lantern that he feels like it is a “close race, but we’ve got a bunch of momentum here.” He said that his campaign’s recent “moneybomb” drives on social media will aid in sending mailers and getting ads up on TV ahead of the primary on Tuesday.

“I think in the last week, it’s going to be about turnout,” the congressman said, adding that it will vary by county.

In some cases, local races, like the competitive judge-executive race in Lewis County, could bring out more Republican voters, he said. Massie’s home county has been a Republican fortress for more than a century; Lewis County hasn’t been won by a Democratic presidential nominee since 1876.

“What we need to do is to get younger people to turn out,” Massie said. The 55-year-old clarified that for him, that means “anyone under the age of 65” and his campaign does well with that demographic.

In recent years, Kentucky primaries often have abysmal turnout. Statewide turnout in 2024 and 2023 was 12.7% and 14.5% respectively. When Massie was last on the ballot in 2022, the statewide turnout was 20.4%.

Frank, the former vice mayor, said that Northern Kentucky often has “very poor” turnout in primaries and “Massie’s got an army of fanatics.”

Even with Trump’s blessing for Gallrein, that “army” behind Massie could decide the outcome of the race.

“I don’t know how big that army is. I think it’s a lot smaller than it used to be, but those folks will crawl over broken glass to vote,” Frank said.

LEXINGTON — Republican U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie — who has become a target of President Donald Trump this election cycle — took to KET’s debate stage alone Monday night to pitch himself to voters ahead of the state’s primary two weeks away.

Massie, who represents Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District, was interviewed on air by KET’s Renee Shaw for nearly half an hour. Afterwards, he spent another half-hour taking questions from reporters in the studio’s lobby.

Trump’s endorsed candidate, Shelbyville Republican Ed Gallrein, did not accept an invite to debate Massie on the state TV network. His campaign did not respond to a Kentucky Lantern inquiry asking why.

With Trump’s political tirade against Massie, the primary in the district has become a referendum on whether the president’s endorsement will be enough to defeat a popular Congressman who has defied him.

“I don’t think you’re well served by a rubber stamp,” Massie said on KET in his closing remarks. “The problem with congressmen that I serve with in Washington, D.C., is they make promises while they’re campaigning, and then they go up there to go along, to get along. The guy I’m running against promises to go along, to get along. Nobody is well served that way. The founders never intended for the legislative branch to be a rubber stamp.”

Massie also reiterated throughout the night that he largely does agree with Republicans and Trump, but said “in the few times that I do disagree with Trump, I’m voting for the voters of Kentucky, for the constituents here,and for our future and to put America first.”

Some issues that Massie has drawn the president’s ire for include leading the charge to release the federal investigation files into the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffery Epstein. Another was Massie’s vote against the GOP megabill, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, saying it would increase federal deficits and the national debt.

Trump has hurled online insults against Massie over the past year, like calling him a “Third Rate Congressman” and even taking a jab at Massie’s wife, Carolyn Grace Moffa. During a March Northern Kentucky rally to support Gallrein, Trump said Massie was “disloyal” to Republicans, Kentucky and the country, before declaring that “somebody with a warm body” could beat the seven-term incumbent.

On KET, Massie said he doesn’t take the put-downs personally.

“I know why I’m getting attacked — it’s to keep the other congressman in line. He’s under no illusion that I’ll abandon my principles if he calls me a bad sounding name,” Massie added before saying Trump has called him a “sharp cookie” when they’ve talked on the phone before.

Afterwards, Massie told reporters he last spoke to Trump over the phone in July “when I tried to negotiate some kind of truce, and it didn’t work,” but said it was a genial conversation.

Asked on KET about how he could be effective in Washington if he wins reelection and has to work with the president and his allies, Massie pointed to a policy that he’s advocated for, the PRIME Act, being included in this year’s Farm Bill. The PRIME Act, or Processing Revival and Intrastate Meat Exemption Act, would allow states to facilitate farmers selling meat directly to consumers. Massie said he’s worked on the policy for 11 years, and through that, “eventually, the president will sign that bill, and that will become law, something that will help Kentucky.”

Another policy Massie spoke about was a package proposing federal gun laws, including a federal standard for permitless carry, as well as a previous bill that would repeal gun-free school zones.

On the permitless carry standard, Massie said the U.S. Constitution already sets the standard with the Second Amendment, but some states “don’t acknowledge your uninfringed right to bear arms.”

Debate attendance

Keeping score of who has and hasn’t attended a debate has become a point of contention in the 4th Congressional Republican primary. Massie has frequently berated Gallrein for not attending debates on X, and tweeted a photo of himself shaking hands with an empty chair in an April forum. Gallrein criticized Massie for not attending the Kenton County Republican Party’s Lincoln Day Dinner last week and sending state Sen. Gex Williams as a surrogate, who said he was in Washington.

Republicans have declined other invites to recent KET debates. Ralph Alvarado, a 6th Congressional District candidate who is a former commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Health and a former Kentucky state senator, declined last week due to a scheduling conflict, but was “grateful to Renee Shaw and the entire KET team for the invitation and for consistently providing fair, balanced, and professional coverage to both Republicans and Democrats,” his campaign said.

For the U.S. Senate debate, U.S. Rep. Andy Barr and Lexington businessman Nate Morris declined an invite, leaving former Attorney General Daniel Cameron a half hour to make his pitch to voters. Barr’s campaign questioned why Republicans would “appear on PBS, a left-wing outlet that Andy Barr and President Trump defunded?”

Trump endorsed Barr and Alvarado in their primaries on Friday. Morris dropped out of the Senate race after the president announced he would give him an unspecified ambassador role.

Kentucky’s primary elections will be held on Tuesday, May 19.

The night before the Kentucky Derby, Republican President Donald Trump placed his bets on two Republicans facing crowded primaries — U.S. Rep. Andy Barr for U.S. Senate and Ralph Alvarado for a U.S. House seat in central Kentucky.

Trump said he was backing “Proven Political Winner” U.S. Rep. Andy Barr in a race for Kentucky’s open U.S. Senate seat Friday night roughly two weeks out from the primary election.

The president gave Barr his “Complete and Total Endorsement” in a post on Truth Social.

“Andy is the only Candidate who will easily defeat the Democrat in what will be one of the most important Elections in American History,” Trump said. “He will help ensure Victory against these Radical Left, Country Destroying, THUGS. Andy Barr has my Complete and Total Endorsement to be the next United States Senator from Kentucky – HE WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!”

Barr thanked the president in a statement.

“Just like the President said at his Northern Kentucky rally in March, I’ve been with him all the way and I always will be,” referring to Trump’s March event in Hebron. “As our next Senator, I’ll stand with President Trump 100% to deliver for Kentucky and to keep Making America Great Again.”

Barr has been facing off against former Attorney General Daniel Cameron and Lexington businessman Nate Morris in a heated Republican primary race for the seat, which is currently held by longtime U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell. The senator said early last year he would not seek reelection.

Before endorsing Barr, Trump said on Truth Social he would make Morris an ambassador and said that he would “be announcing Nate’s new role soon.”

Following the news of the endorsement, Morris dropped out of the race. He posted on X he was endorsing Barr — after the two have traded jabs on the campaign trail.

“I’m incredibly proud to join President Trump in endorsing @BarrForSenate,” Morris said. “Like President Trump said, Andy knows what it takes to get things done and deliver BIG for the America First agenda.”

While he was in the race, Morris had support of Trump allies. Tech billionaire Elon Musk donated $10 million to a pro-Morris PAC earlier this year. Plus, Morris announced his candidacy on Donald Trump Jr.’s “Triggered” podcast last year.

Barr thanked Morris in a statement, calling him an “an accomplished business leader and patriot who loves our commonwealth and our country” and said he looks “forward to continuing to work with him to do everything we can to make Kentucky, and America, even greater.”

PACs backing Barr and Morris have attacked the other candidate for months before Trump’s endorsement on Kentucky airwaves. The candidates also didn’t shy away from criticisms in public appearances either. In a March debate in Louisville, Barr and Morris clashed a few times, talking over each other while rebutting the other’s attacks. At last summer’s Fancy Farm Picnic, an event known for fiery political speeches, Barr called Morris’ campaign a “dumpster fire” while Morris said Barr and Cameron were “McConnell boys,” referring to their ties to the state’s senior senator.

Trump’s endorsement comes after the Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week that Trump was considering endorsing Barr.

The top three GOP candidates had spent most of their campaign so far trying to tie themselves closer to the president and his policies, hoping Kentucky Republican voters would rally behind them and ultimately elect them in the primary, which is on May 19.

Cameron’s political consultant, Brandon Moody, said in a statement responding to Trump’s endorsement: “Congrats to Mitch McConnell for getting his guy.” Cameron told the Lexington Herald-Leader earlier this year it was the “worst-kept secret in town” that McConnell’s team was backing Barr.

In the 2023 governor’s race, Cameron won the Republican nomination with Trump’s endorsement. However, he lost to Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear that fall. Cameron has his own connection to McConnell, as he once served as his general counsel.

Trump also endorsed a candidate for Barr’s congressional seat in the state’s central 6th district — Alvarado, a former commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Health and a former Kentucky state senator. Alvarado is currently facing a Republican primary there against state Rep. Ryan Dotson and retired pharmaceutical executive Greg Plucinski.

Calling Alvarado a “true friend to MAGA,” Trump said on Truth Social that Alvarado had “BEEN WITH US FROM THE VERY BEGINNING!”

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear unabashedly showed how his style of governance differs from Republican President Donald Trump at the World Economic Forum Wednesday.

The forum annually held in Davos, Switzerland, brings together world leaders and corporate CEOs to talk about the global economy. Trump spoke to the conference after Beshear’s appearances Wednesday morning, and in it ruled out using force for the U.S. to gain control of Greenland from Denmark.

In a conversation with fellow Democrat, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, and Republican Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, Beshear was critical of the president’s governance, including his recent threat of military action to quell protests in Minnesota following a federal agent killing a woman and the insistence of U.S. control of Greenland.

“This Greenland play by the president is dumb as hell,” Beshear said. He added that the policy proposal “is so damaging, so concerning, and this is not who we are” and was unfavorable with Americans.

Beshear was also part of a discussion on closing manufacturing gaps in the U.S. and globally through education on Wednesday. He is also scheduled to discuss the middle class’ lack of growth since the pandemic in a Thursday panel.

Seen as a possible candidate for the 2028 presidential election, the appearance at the forum gave Beshear a chance to highlight his knowledge on international policy in front of a global crowd.

Following Trump’s speech to the forum, Beshear posted on BlueSky that the president’s remarks were “dangerous, disrespectful and unhinged.”

“From insulting our allies to telling struggling Americans that he’s fixed inflation and the economy is amazing, the President is hurting both our families’ financial security and our national security,” Beshear wrote. “Oh, and Greenland is so important he’s calling it Iceland.”

In response to a comment from Stitt defending Trump’s America first policies when it comes to bringing jobs back to the U.S. and Whitmer saying “it’s going to take us a long time to recover from” the president’s first year back in office, Beshear said: “An American first president wouldn’t be saying, we’re going to make Venezuelans rich. We’re going to pay people in Greenland $100,000 while our people struggle to pay their bills.”

Beshear also lauded lawsuits he joined that successfully brought federal funding back to Kentucky after the Trump administration revoked it. The lawsuits have been led by Democratic attorneys general, but some Democratic governors in states with Republican attorneys general, like Beshear, have joined them throughout the past year.

“Yes, he tries, because he’s willing to be that bully on the playground, but we push back, we stand up, and we’re winning,” Beshear said.

The panel’s moderator, Richard Quest of CNN, introduced Beshear by saying ChatGPT had called the Kentucky governor “the future hope” and “the next leader” when asked for background information about Beshear.

Nevertheless, Beshear also took the opportunity to highlight the Bluegrass State on an international stage. He touted Kentucky’s economic strengths, such as logistics as the state can reach many Americans within a night’s drive and has two of the largest cargo airports in the world.

Back in Kentucky

Beshear’s international travel in recent months, including attending last year’s World Economic Forum, has been criticized by Kentucky Republicans.

Earlier this week, the Republican Party of Kentucky issued a statement saying Beshear was “once again off rubbing elbows with global elites in Switzerland.”

“The Governor loves to lecture everyone else about bipartisanship, transparency, and focusing on the ‘real issues,’ but when it’s time to lead, he disappears,” RPK Communications Director Adam Hope said. “Kentuckians deserve a governor who shows up and does his job.”

The GOP-controlled General Assembly began the 2026 legislative session this month. Among bills filed so far, Rep. T.J. Roberts introduced House Bill 86, which would require Kentucky governors to request tax dollars for international travel from the state treasurer, who is currently Republican Mark Metcalf. Roberts filed similar legislation last year.

Roberts told the Lantern Wednesday morning that he wants to “make clear” to Beshear and those who follow him in office that they “have to be good stewards of tax dollars” and should make a case for international travel to someone who is not appointed to them. The process now requires the governor’s office to submit requests to the Cabinet for Economic Development.

When asked if he sees the value of elected officials in general traveling internationally for economic development, Roberts said that should be reviewed on a “case by case basis.” He added that in his view, it would be more beneficial for businesses considering investing in the state to travel to Kentucky instead and “get a feel for our culture” and the people they would be investing in.

“I just think that there’s an appearance of impropriety whenever the governor’s going on trips that cost more than the average Kentuckian makes in a year right along the time where it’s abundantly obvious that he’s going to run for president, and when you look at what the World Economic Forum has become, it’s clearly a political institution,” Roberts said.

The Lantern filed an open records request with the governor’s office for receipts of international travel for Beshear and his staff in 2025. According to records provided, the office spent $125,700 on travel for the governor, First Lady Britainy Beshear and staff across three trips abroad.

The cost of attending last year’s forum was $44,400, which followed a $36,450 trip to Madrid, Spain, to meet representatives of Acerinox, the parent company of North American Stainless Steel, which is in Carroll County.

In October, Beshear and his entourage traveled to the United Kingdom, France and Ireland, which cost $44,850. A press release from his office ahead of the trip said the governor and other members of his administration would meet with business and trade officials to discuss future opportunities for growth in the state. Airline ticket confirmations for that trip showed Beshear and those with him flew premium economy on British Airways.

Asked about the criticism, Beshear spokesperson Scottie Ellis defended the governor’s travel, saying international trips have “helped secure some of Kentucky’s most significant economic development investments in our history.” Late Democratic Gov. Martha Layne Collins’ trip to Japan led to automaker Toyota building a Georgetown plant in 1986, which is now the company’s largest vehicle manufacturing plant in the world.

Ellis said “strong international partnerships have played a significant role” in the economic successes Kentucky has seen under the Beshear administration.

“Every Kentucky governor has traveled internationally for economic development trips, as has almost every constitutional officer and members of the General Assembly,” Ellis continued. “Targeting only Gov. Beshear shows the political motivation behind this bill, which would make Kentucky less competitive and risk our current economic success and job creation. In a recent international trip, a company said it would have moved to a different state but for the visit.”

“The Kentuckians who still have those jobs today certainly support international travel,” she said.”

Ellis added that the governor’s children only traveled on the October trip last year, and the Beshears paid for their travel personally.

A recent press release from the governor’s office said that while traveling to Switzerland, Beshear will also discuss other economic opportunities in Finland and Sweden this week.

FRANKFORT — Democratic Gov. Andy Besehar warned Thursday that Kentucky’s economy would suffer in a trade war and said the state’s Republican U.S. senators also disagree with President Donald Trump’s threatened tariffs.

“When you have the two Republican senators and the Democratic governor all saying something’s a bad idea, it’s because it’s a bad idea,” Beshear said during his weekly news conference.

Hours later Trump announced that he was suspending new tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada until April 2. The tariffs had taken effect Tuesday, and on Wednesday Trump exempted automakers from having to pay them for a month.

Beshear said he’s been having conversations with Canadian officials, urging them to spare Kentucky and focus any retaliatory measures “on places and areas where people aren’t speaking up.”

Canadian provinces already have responded to Trump’s actions by pulling U.S.-made liquor off store shelves — a move that Kentucky-based Brown-Forman called “worse than tariffs.”

U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell said in a recent CBS interview that “tariffs drive the cost of everything up” and would “be paid for by American consumers.” U.S. Sen. Rand Paul said on X last month that Republicans “won the last election by complaining about Democrats’ policies, which gave us high prices. Tariff lovers will be forced to explain the persistence of high prices …”

Trump campaigned on a promise to enact tariffs as leverage to stop the flow of immigrants and fentanyl across the U.S. border.

Beshear expressed less concern about Republican state lawmakers’ efforts to replicate the efforts of billionaire and special government employee Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency in Kentucky.

The Senate passed a bill on Wednesday to launch KOGE, or the Kentucky Office of Government Efficiency, in the auditor of public accounts’ office.

Beshear called KOGE “a Kentucky version of DOGE, except it can’t do any of the things that the federal version does.” DOGE has been firing federal employees and freezing government payments.

Beshear was concerned about the bill’s addition of subpoena powers to the auditor’s office. “I’ve heard some comments coming out of that office that have seemed pretty political, and so my hope is that any changes that we make, especially that confers more power to any constitutional office, that we’re being careful in how we’re doing it and that it’s going to end up being used for the betterment of the people of Kentucky and not as a political tool.”

Beshear pointed to a conflict between his administration and Republican Auditor Allison Ball’s office that resulted in a court order over the ombudsman’s office. Last year, the legislature moved the ombudsman to Ball’s office from the Cabinet for Health and Family Services.

Around the same time as Beshear’s press conference, the House Committee on State Government passed a resolution from Rep. T.J. Roberts, R-Burlington, to establish the Kentucky Discipline of Government Efficiency, or KY DOGE.

Kentucky Lantern is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Kentucky Lantern maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jamie Lucke for questions: info@kentuckylantern.com.

A group of Republican attorneys general — including Kentucky’s Russell Coleman — is pressuring Costco “to end all unlawful discrimination imposed” by the retailer’s diversity, equity and inclusion policies.

The 19 attorneys general sent a letter to Costco CEO Ron Vachris this week citing Republican President Donald Trump’s executive order that encouraged “all agencies to enforce our longstanding civil-rights laws and to combat illegal private-sector DEI preferences, mandates, policies, programs, and activities.”

Writing that Costco “should treat every person equally and based on their merit, rather than based on divisive and discriminatory DEI practices,” the attorneys general asked Vachris to either repeal Costco’s DEI policies or explain why the company is keeping them in place within 30 days.

Costco shareholders recently rejected a proposal from a conservative think tank to examine risks posed by its DEI policies. Nearly 98% of shareholders voted against the measure. Costco’s board had recommended rejection of the proposal.

At the Jan. 24 shareholders meeting, Costco board chair Tony E Curtis said the company’s commitment to inclusion “does not and has never included quotas or systematic preferences, nor does it mean compromising merit. The demands of our business and our steadfast commitment to serve our members mean that we cannot afford to do anything but hire and promote the most qualified individuals.”

Costco has not publicly responded to the letter. A spokesperson for the company did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.

Kentucky AG Coleman said in a statement, “Costco has a motto to ‘Do the right thing,’ but their DEI business practices are all wrong. By pushing a DEI agenda, Costco is out-of-step with the Kentuckians who just want affordable prices.”

Costco has four stores in Kentucky, according to its website.

Nationwide, some companies are rethinking their commitment to DEI, while others are standing by their diversity practices. Brands like Walmart and Meta have rolled back DEI policies while tech giants Microsoft and Apple reaffirmed their policies within the last week. Last year, Kentucky-based whiskey maker Brown-Forman suspended its DEI policies.

DEI policies are often aimed at removing bias and promoting fairness in areas like employment and education.

Former Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron crusaded with other Republican attorneys general to curb DEI in the private sector, including issuing a letter to Fortune 100 CEOs calling on them to use “race-neutral principles in your employment and contracting practices” following the U.S. Supreme Court’s reversal of affirmative action in higher education.

After losing a race for Kentucky governor in 2023, Cameron became CEO of the 1792 Exchange, a group that aims to “steer public companies back to neutral on divisive, ideological issues.”

Kentucky Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear in an appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, recently defended private sector decisions to maintain DEI policies. If companies think encouraging a diverse workforce helps them, Beshear said, “the state that you’re working with should support you.”

Read the letter below

FINAL Costco Lettet (1)

Kentucky Lantern is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Kentucky Lantern maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jamie Lucke for questions: info@kentuckylantern.com.

FRANKFORT — As news in Washington broke that Sen. Mitch McConnell, the longest serving floor leader of the U.S. Senate, planned to step down from that role this November, eyes in Kentucky turned to the senator’s legacy.

McConnell, also Kentucky’s longest-serving U.S. senator, is routinely credited by Republicans for building the current state party, which has won supermajorities in both legislative chambers and many local offices.

Earlier this year, he reminisced that when he defeated a Democratic incumbent in 1984 to represent Kentucky in the Senate, control of state government was firmly in the hands of Democrats. He was speaking in the Capitol Rotunda, celebrating the inaugurations of six Republicans who were elected statewide — to all of the constitutional offices except governor and lieutenant governor — last November.

McConnell’s announcement comes as former President Donald Trump solidifies his place as the GOP frontrunner in this year’s presidential election. Trump easily carried Kentucky twice and would be the favorite to do so again in November.

Last week, Trump said he was unsure if he would be able to work with McConnell in a second term. McConnell has blamed Trump for provoking the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 and has said that Trump is bad for the GOP, although McConnell voted to acquit Trump during his impeachment trial in February 2021.

McConnell has said he would support his party’s nominee but has not endorsed Trump, even as other prominent Republicans, including Senate Republican Whip John Thune of South Dakota, have. The New York Times recently reported that McConnell’s and Trump’s camps have been in talks about securing McConnell’s endorsement for the former president.

McConnell, speaking Wednesday on the Senate floor in Washington, D.C., told his colleagues that the “end of my contributions are closer than I’d prefer.” He recently turned 82. McConnell spoke of difficulties his family faced recently, such as the death of his wife’s youngest sister, Angela Chao.

McConnell plans to serve the remainder of his term which ends in January 2027. However, political observers have predicted he will not run for reelection in 2026.

“There are many challenges we must meet to deliver for the American people and each will have my full effort and attention,” he said. “I still have enough gas in the tank to thoroughly disappoint my critics and I intend to do so with all the enthusiasm which they have become accustomed.”

Last year, concerns about the senator’s health were raised after he suffered a concussion and two freeze-ups in front of reporters, including one in Northern Kentucky. Since then, McConnell has continued to speak publicly, both in Washington and at home in Kentucky.

Succession

Kentucky Republicans, including McConnell, have been preparing for a succession to his seat.

In Frankfort, Republican House Floor Leader Steven Rudy, of Paducah, filed House Bill 622 last week which would change the gubernatorial appointment process for U.S. Senate vacancies. If passed, the bill would allow winners of special elections to hold their Senate seat through the remainder of an unexpired term.

Before 2021, Kentucky’s governor had no restrictions on naming a replacement for a Senate vacancy. However, with McConnell’s support, Kentucky’s Republican-controlled General Assembly passed a law to require the governor to temporarily appoint someone of the same party as the departing senator.

Gov. Andy Beshear, a recently reelected Democrat, vetoed the 2021 legislation. His GOP opponent, McConnell protegé and former Attorney General Daniel Cameron, pushed Beshear on the campaign trail for not publicly committing to naming a Republican to fill a possible Senate vacancy.

“The reason we’re having this conversation is people speculating over his health, which I just don’t think is right,” Beshear told reporters after a Paducah debate in October. “I even told his (McConnell’s) state director that I wasn’t going to do this. I wasn’t going to go there because he says he’s healthy. He says he’s going to finish out his term, and I’m going to respect those wishes.”

Beshear thanked McConnell “for his years in leadership” in a Wednesday statement.

“There is no indication that he will not fulfill his promise to serve his entire term,” the governor said.

Later at an appearance in Shelby County, Beshear said McConnell deserves “widespread appreciation” for his long service. “For how long he has served in the position of leadership is pretty special, and we just want to say ‘thank you,'” the governor told reporters. Asked if he remains committed to serving out the full four-year second term he won in November, Beshear replied, “100 percent.”

Ahead of the annual Fancy Farm Picnic in August, McConnell addressed a room of party faithful at the Graves County GOP Breakfast — and vowed the West Kentucky political tradition wouldn’t be his last.

Kentucky reaction

Cameron, who is now an executive with the 1792 Exchange, thanked McConnell for his “servant’s heart and commitment to first principles” on X, formerly Twitter Wednesday.

“Leader McConnell has left an indelible impact on our Nation and our state,” Cameron said. “From the Supreme Court to defending America’s values, he has relentlessly pursued the US’s role as a shining city on a hill.”

Republican Secretary of State Michael Adams — a former McConnell scholar at the University of Louisville — congratulated the senator on X on his tenure leading U.S. Senate Republicans.

“Not only has he served our country in this role, he has elevated Kentucky,” Adams said. “Best wishes for his continued career in (the) Senate.”

Russell Coleman, Kentucky’s attorney general and former legal counsel for McConnell, said in a a statement that the senator is the “most consequential leader in Senate history” and that his family valued him for his kindness and mentorship.

“Leader McConnell has single handedly made sure Kentucky punches above our weight, and his legacy of accomplishment can be seen in every corner of the Bluegrass State,” Coleman said.

Republican Senate President Robert Stivers, of Manchester, applauded McConnell as “a tremendous leader in the U.S. Senate and in Kentucky” and said he aided in changing “the body politic in Frankfort, putting Kentucky on a much better trajectory.”

“He’s contributed significantly not only at the federal level, but also at the state level,” Stivers said. “Being a leader of a chamber myself, I have great respect and admiration for the job he’s done.”

Across the capitol, Republican House Speaker David Osborne, of Prospect, echoed Stivers’ comments about McConnell.

“Personally, I am sorry to see him leave a role he has served so well and leveraged to benefit so many. However, I wish him the absolute best in this next chapter,” Osborne said.

Don Fitzpatrick, the chairman of the Jefferson County Republican Party, said the local GOP party was “surprised to hear of Leader McConnell’s decision ” in a statement.

“Though we are saddened by this news, we fully support his decision and have tremendous gratitude for all he has accomplished for our Nation, for the Commonwealth of Kentucky and for our local Republican Party,” Fitzpatrick said. “We are reassured that his vast experience will be of continued service to not only the US Senate but also to our Commonwealth.”

Sen. Rand Paul, Kentucky’s second senator, offered a one-sentence comment: “I’d like to congratulate Senator McConnell on his long tenure.”

The relationship between the two has soured recently. Earlier this month, Paul criticized McConnell’s support for the standalone foreign aid bill.

Jack Brammer contributed to this report.

This story may be updated.Kentucky Lantern is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Kentucky Lantern maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jamie Lucke for questions: info@kentuckylantern.com. Follow Kentucky Lantern on Facebook and Twitter.