>> Really what we're excited about, we have all of the Senate candidates running in the May primary to replace leader McConnell.

>> Top Republican candidates for the U.S.

Senate make their case in Bowling Green.

>> That uncertainty is killing investment and putting livelihoods at risk.

>> A Kentucky congressman wants to clarify federal hemp law.

>> Now, this provides sort of a piece of infrastructure, if you will, that we were missing as a community.

>> Plus how a Bowling Green company is going the distance.

[MUSIC] >> Production of Kentucky edition is made possible in part by the KET Millennium Fund.

[MUSIC] >> Good evening and welcome to Kentucky Edition for this Friday, April the 24th.

We have made it to the weekend.

I'm Renee Shaw, and we thank you for kicking off your weekend with us.

We begin tonight with politics.

Less than one month before the May 19th primary, the Warren County GOP held its Lincoln Day dinner last night with several special guests.

Bowling green is home to Senator Rand Paul and Congressman Brett Guthrie, who both made remarks.

State and local leadership were also there, as well as candidates on the primary ballot in May.

That includes three Republicans vying for the U.S.

Senate.

We caught up with them on their message to voters in the weeks before Election Day.

>> Warren County, in many ways, is like a second home for me and McKenzie.

McKenzie went to Western, and we've got a lot of friends and relationships in this community.

And as I mentioned, Judge Doug Gorman is a dear friend of mine, someone who was vital and instrumental to making sure we got that money from the opioid abatement settlement, making sure we got that money to Warren County and frankly, to our 120 counties.

And so it's always good to be here.

There are a lot of people in this community that mean a great deal to me.

And of course, this is a vital and energetic community when it comes to the economic development of this Commonwealth.

And it's important for us to knock on wood the next United States senator, to be here and communicating with the people about the issues that they care about.

They want somebody that is focused on them and not the mudslinging.

They want somebody that cares deeply about ensuring that we have set the economic conditions in Washington that allow our people to thrive here at home.

And I continue to talk about the issues.

>> This is such a key area for Kentucky, the job creation.

The people are so proud of the Corvette factory right here.

My family are autoworkers.

So appreciate what we do here.

And look, it's great to be with fellow Republicans.

We're we're almost to the primary.

So Kentucky's got a big decision.

And I think they're going to choose our candidacy come May 19th and we'll be the next United States Senator.

I think this race is really clear.

Look, I'm an outsider.

I'm a business person.

I've never run for office.

I believe in term limits.

I took $10,000 and built one of the largest waste management companies in the U.S.

from scratch.

So proud that I went to public schools here, raised by a single mom.

And look, I fought and scrapped for everything I have.

I'm running against two career politicians, two career politicians that owe everything to our senior senator.

I'm going to Washington because I want to stand strong.

I want to go and shake it up and stand with President Trump.

And President Trump showed that we need more business people.

I've created thousands of jobs in my career, and I don't need the job or the money.

I'm running because Kentucky needs a fighter and somebody is going to go represent them in the United States Senate.

>> I have experience that we'll need.

We are losing influence with our delegation, with the retirement of Senator McConnell.

And this is a very important decision for the people of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

I am battle tested, I am experienced, I know this job because I'm doing this job.

Our campaign is surging, and the reason why we have so much momentum in the polling and the energy and enthusiasm on the ground, is that people outside of my congressional district are starting to hear my message and get to know me.

And they know that I love Kentucky, that I'm a father who believes in the greatness of this country, that this is a very special place, and we owe it to our kids in the next generation to secure a better, brighter future for all of them.

And they know I'm a fighter.

They know I'm an ally of this president.

I'll be an even greater ally and a more effective ally of this president.

In the Senate.

>> A couple of hundred people attended last night's Lincoln Day dinner.

The primary election is Tuesday, May the 19th.

Now, Congressman Andy Barr also made a stop in Harrison County today to announce his plan to save Kentucky's hemp industry from the upcoming federal ban in November.

His Lawful Hemp Protection Act aims to redefine legal hemp and improve the federal regulations on the industry.

As our Mackenzie Spink reports, farmers in Kentucky say they're suffering from the current industry uncertainty.

>> According to the National Hemp Report, Kentucky farmers planted 4700 acres of hemp in 2025 alone.

Farmers are saying the uncertainty in the market because of the looming federal ban means they're sitting on product they can't sell.

>> Farmers planted last year are planting today, but they don't know what the rules will be tomorrow.

That uncertainty is killing investment and putting livelihoods at risk.

At this point, we can't plan hemp this year.

It's quite a challenge for us.

We did everything by the book, by the law, but now we're Simpson probably can't sell.

>> One.

Legislation was passed last year to reopen the federal government.

A measure was added onto the bill that redefined legal hemp in the country, meaning many hemp products will leave the shelves in November when the law takes effect.

Representative Andy Barr says he's worked with the hemp industry to draft the Lawful Hemp Protection Act, which he will introduce next week.

>> First, we want to protect this growing industry for Kentucky farmers.

Secondly, we're going to build a long term regulatory framework to create the stability and certainty certainty so that we have a durable, mature industry that will not be subject to changes in the law.

And third, we want to protect consumers, especially kids, by standardizing the marketplace and getting rid of bad actors.

>> Barr says his bill will grow the industry while protecting families and children.

>> We can grow this industry responsibly while protecting families, our kids and consumers.

So the key provisions are as follows.

We're going to have a 21 plus age requirement for all consumable hemp products, strict marketing rules to prevent targeting children, a ban, and this is very important.

And this is a big fix.

And this is this is what gave legitimate farmers difficulty a ban on synthetic products to ensure safety and transparency.

And American grown hemp.

>> Only the change to legal hemp products was a provision from Kentucky's senior senator, Mitch McConnell, who said he wanted to take the loosely regulated synthetic products off the market.

Representative Barr, who is running for McConnell Senate seat, says his bill fulfills that mission.

>> In this legislation, we are directly responding to the legitimate concerns that Senator McConnell had when he was a trying to achieve what he was doing.

This bill that I'm introducing does in fact, ban high potency and synthetic products.

And that's what's different than what we had with the status quo before.

And that's what's going to create the stability and certainty in the long run for the industry.

This is not going back to the status quo.

This is taking us into the future with a with a mature, responsible industry that gives a lifeline to these terrific farmers.

>> For Kentucky Edition, I'm McKenzie Spink.

>> Thank you.

McKenzie.

According to the Kentucky Hemp Association, hemp is a $330 million industry employing over 3000 Kentuckians.

Earlier this week, Kentucky U.S.

Senator Rand Paul, a Republican, unveiled his own plan to help the hemp industry.

Today, he spoke about his Hemp Safety Enforcement Act during a speech at the University of Kentucky Patterson School for diplomacy, noting the legislation has the backing of President Trump.

>> I'm in general for adults being able to make a choice, but there's a big economic engine for this thing.

So I have a law to say that if the state has set up a regulatory apparatus, that that would supersede the federal law.

Traditionally, federal law supersedes state law.

But there's no reason we can't pass a law saying if the states have a law that supersedes the federal law and we have a Democrat co-sponsor, and we're hoping to get that on the farm bill.

But it's it's not easy, but that's what our hope is.

And the president being behind is a good.

It will help the cause as well.

>> The war in Iran was one of the main topics of Senator Paul's speech.

He told the group he believes Iran wants to negotiate with the U.S.

to get out of the war, but thinks the current administration's diplomacy tactics are making that difficult.

>> We're in the midst of the Iran war.

We completely and utterly dominate them militarily.

We can defeat them at every motion.

We could occupy the country even.

And yet almost all wars, even lopsided wars like this, where we have complete military dominance, will end in a diplomatic settlement.

Now, the president has talked about unconditional surrender.

I think that's actually very unlikely and that's going to occupy the country.

So how do we get out of this is a real question.

I do think that religious imagery doesn't help, particularly Christian religious imagery versus Islam.

Look, I'm a Christian and I think we're right.

I think it's the best religion and I promote it.

But I don't think quoting the Old Testament saying, we're going to smite the pagans and the, you know, non-Christians that live in Iran is probably a good thing to say.

Quoting Pulp Fiction made up verses.

Probably not a good thing to say, mocking their God by saying, you know, praise be Allah in a tweet.

Probably not a good thing to say.

And people say, well, he's using might and sarcasm of these, this bombast to chase in them.

Well, maybe.

Or maybe the opposite.

Maybe those things being said are actually making peace less likely to come.

In the end, peace will be negotiated.

I think they're more willing to negotiate.

One of the things that stops them from negotiating, even though they have been utterly defeated militarily, is that the last two times we negotiated, we bombed them during the middle of negotiations.

And so I think it's, you know, makes them a little bit skittish.

>> Paul also says he believes lifting, not imposing sanctions is a more effective negotiating tactic when it comes to dealing with adversarial countries like Iran, China and Russia.

Louisville's congressman says the federal government should ground the McDonnell Douglas 11 aircraft after November's deadly UPS air crash in Louisville that killed 15 people.

Congressman Morgan McGarvey is a Democrat from Kentucky's third congressional District, which covers Louisville.

He just sent a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration urging the FAA to stop flights of the MD 11.

McGarvey noted the NTSB is finding that a structural failing caused the plane's left engine to detach after takeoff.

Three crew members and 12 people on the ground died in the resulting crash.

McGarvey says there have been at least ten Hale related accidents involving the MD 11 since 1990.

In his letter, McGarvey says, quote, we have a collective responsibility to ensure that no additional lives are put at risk by an aircraft whose design and operational history have repeatedly demonstrated an unacceptable level of danger, end quote.

City governments are shaping their budgets for the upcoming fiscal year.

Last night, Louisville's mayor unveiled a more than $1 billion spending plan for the city.

Our June Leffler was there and has this report.

>> As Louisville Mayor, Craig Greenberg wraps his first term and campaigns for another.

He says now is the time to see investments through, not rolled them back.

>> The choice is whether we meet this moment with hesitation or with purpose.

This budget chooses purpose.

All once again without raising taxes.

>> Federal funding has dwindled for some programs.

>> Last year, when federal funding cuts threatened meals for 900 of our seniors, I found funding to keep the meals being delivered.

That federal funding still has not yet been restored.

So with this budget, you're stepping up again to make sure some of our most vulnerable seniors continue to receive the meals they depend on.

>> Early in his term, Greenburg committed to expand pre-K education with thrive by five.

>> So every child walks into kindergarten ready to thrive.

So no parent or grandparent has to choose between opportunity for themselves or opportunity for their child.

>> The budget ramps up construction of libraries, parks, public pools, and community centers throughout the city.

The city's largest green space will also get a makeover.

>> So just imagine the benefits that will create with our focus on improving Jefferson Memorial Forest, the largest city managed urban forest in the entire country.

We're going to build one of the community's favorite parts of the plan the longest canopy walk in the country.

>> Private dollars in city bonds are supporting many projects.

State dollars will also go directly to Louisville's downtown.

>> The Commonwealth of Kentucky has made clear that they believe that downtown Louisville is a key economic engine for our local economy and the entire Commonwealth.

>> Greenburg proposes a 6% increase for police funding.

He says investment must continue while progress is being made.

>> In 2025, we saw fewer shootings than in any year in the past decade, down 40% in the time that I've been mayor.

Homicides, robberies, carjackings, street racing and takeovers are all down to.

>> Council members of both parties like what they hear.

>> The highlights were very impressive.

The mayor touched pretty much every part of the city, and to be able to not raise taxes spoke volume.

>> I am most impressed by the mayor's highlight of infrastructure investments, and that includes things like parks, libraries, roads, etc.

those are the things that hopefully will be enjoyed by people 48 years from now.

>> The full council will hash out the budget with community input by July 1st.

For Kentucky Edition, I'm June Leffler.

>> Many thanks June.

Some are pushing Louisville to increase local property taxes through.

Though with resistance.

Jefferson County Public School superintendent and advocates for the parks would like a ballot measure asking voters for a tax increase.

Republicans on Metro Council aren't on board as of now.

[MUSIC] A Bowling Green company that supports the metals industry is the first to use direct rail service at the Kentucky Transpark.

Southern Coil Solutions is a hub for aluminum and steel mills to store their material.

It then ships those metals to buyers like food packaging and automotive plants, as needed.

The company can deliver up to 8000 tons per day across North America.

>> We are heavily manufacturing, so we're twice the national average of manufacturing locally because we're within a day's drive of over 65% of the U.S.

population.

And this was a gap that was noticed by a local entrepreneur who filled the gap.

And so it's a great win for our region and for our local businesses to see an issue that was kind of missing in our ecosystem for economic development related to manufacturing.

And to fill that locally with a local investment.

>> The rail access is via the bowling green ITA spur in the Kentucky Transpark.

Our Laura Rogers talks with Southern Coil Solutions about logistics and efficiency in tonight's Business Beat segment.

>> Mark Loike is president and co-founder of Southern Coil Solutions, located there at the Kentucky Transpark and Mark.

First, let's talk about what you do there.

You're a transload facility.

Can you explain daily operations at Southern Coil?

>> Yes.

Currently, one of the aspects of our facility is that it is a fully automated facility.

So our Transload facility is doing rail and truck.

Currently, our partner on the rail side is CSX and our facility, because there's not a lot of human interaction, can unload and load both truck and rail fully automated without any interaction with the individuals in the plant.

>> So always activity going on.

It sounds like at Southern Coil Solutions.

>> That's correct.

We're getting material from as far north as Michigan, and we're getting as far south as Alabama and as far east as South Carolina.

>> And these are metal coils.

So aluminum, steel, and these are used in what industry.

>> So primarily our inventory from our customers being the aluminum mills and steel mills would be primarily on the aluminum side be food grade.

Right.

So going into Coca-Cola Truly's, Budweiser and so on.

And then on the automotive side, we have Ford, Toyota, BMW, Mercedes for aluminum automotive exposed.

And from the integrated steel mills, we have material that which is kind of used for automotive frames or car parts in general.

>> And so let's talk rail access.

I believe this became operational near the beginning of the year.

How has this increased your capabilities?

>> I think our visibility to our customers has increased in the fact that now they have an option for rail.

So typically coming from the traditional steel mills up in the north, trucking was your only viable solution.

But now with the facilities and services that we offer, customers now have the option to purchase more material on a larger scale.

And then the economics kick in of shipping it via rail, and then they can save money that way.

>> And then is it also saving money for the company?

Is this increasing your efficiency using rail as opposed to just trucking?

>> I think on the rail side, what we can do is typically a rail car might have 5 to 7 coils in it, depending on the size of the coils.

And let's say a truck maybe can only handle one large coil or maybe 3 or 4 coils.

So yes, by handling those volumes, we can gain efficiencies by bringing in one rail car, having 5 to 7 rather than one truck having 3 to 5 coils on it, or just one.

>> And it's my understanding this the potential for rail access has been there for a long time, but no company has yet utilized it.

What moved the needle for Southern Coil Solutions to say, okay, we're going to capitalize on this and we're going to start using this rail spur.

>> I think over the 15 years, perhaps more of the transpark that's been around, I think the growth within the Transpark has been quite tremendous.

So we have companies that use aluminum.

We have companies that use steel in the transpark.

So I felt that with with the option for us to gain that service, that we would sort of, you know, under the principle of if you build it, they will come.

And that's kind of what's happened here is that companies have learned of our services, learned of the economic advantages of rail, and then being able to take advantage of that.

So for us, it's like we just felt that we were able to offer a service and customers would come.

And that's what's happened.

>> You are transporting this across North America and into Mexico and Canada.

There's a far reach here.

>> Very much so.

Right.

We're getting material from Canada in the near future, and we'll be shipping down to Mexico near future as well.

>> All right.

We appreciate it so much.

Thank you.

>> Thank you Laura.

>> An education note.

Now more than 20,000 students from across the state were in Lexington today at Rupp Arena for the annual s t LP competition.

STLP stands for Student Technology Leadership Program.

Kentucky was the first state to provide every district in the Commonwealth with internet access way back in 1994, and since then, the Kentucky Department of Ed has sponsored STLP is a way for students to showcase what they've learned and what they've created using technology.

Students from kindergarten through 12th grade had a chance today to show off their talent in a range of categories, including coding, robotics, and the creative arts.

Several individual and team winners were announced this afternoon, and our Kelsey Starks was there in the midst of it all.

Now get out and enjoy yourself.

On the last weekend of April.

Our Toby Gibbs has a few ideas and this look at what's happening around the Commonwealth.

>> The runway meets the roadway at Wings and Wheels, an annual event celebrating both aviation and classic cars.

Walk the grounds of the Harrison County Airport and view a mix of small aircraft and classic and modern cars.

Local food vendors will be on site.

The event takes place on Saturday.

It's handmade, meets hands on as the Bluegrass Creative Society Art and craft show brings artists and makers together in Louisville.

[MUSIC] The one day event happening Saturday features handcrafted work, live demonstrations and hands on classes designed for all skill levels.

Get a taste of what Kentucky has to offer at the Morehead, Kentucky Proud Expo.

The expo includes more than 30 vendors, with everything from beer, cheese and local wines to handcrafted goods.

Browse, sample and meet the people behind locally made products at this free event that starts today.

It's sound suds and smoky meets at the Bluegrass Brew and Barbecue Fest, kicking off today in Livingston County.

The festival brings together live bluegrass bands, barbecue breweries, wineries and distilleries, along with a range of craft and retail vendors.

The festival runs through Saturday.

Get set for liftoff in Lexington as the city hosts Kite Fest at Masterson Station Park on Saturday.

The day is in celebration of National Kite Month and is a chance for families to get outdoors, fly kites and enjoy live music, food and activities like face painting and bounce houses.

The event is free.

In Bowling Green, the arts are taking center stage and a few side streets too, with the White Squirrel Arts Festival.

[MUSIC] The festival highlights local art, music and performers and includes a fashion show, theatrical readings and a poetry slam, along with food trucks and artisan vendors.

The festival takes place on Saturday.

[MUSIC] They're digging into tradition this weekend in Irvine at the Mountain Mushroom Festival.

The festival celebrates local traditions with food, crafts and educational activities and brings together mushroom hunters, artisans and community groups.

This free two day event runs Saturday and Sunday.

And that's a look at what's up around the Commonwealth.

[MUSIC] I'm Toby Gibbs.

>> Thank you Toby Gibbs a lot of great things to do, including watching Bill Brian and a panel of Kentucky reporters review the news of the week, on comment on Kentucky.

That's coming at you in about an hour.

They'll talk about everything from Jacqueline Coleman's run for governor to Churchill Downs is buying the Preakness.

That's coming your way at 8:00 eastern, seven central right here on KET.

We sure appreciate your company.

All this week on Kentucky edition.

We hope to see you right back here on Monday night at 630 eastern, 530 central, where we inform, connect and inspire.

Connect with us all the way.

As you see on your screen, the social media channels, the PBS app, and you can stream our content on demand online anytime, anywhere@ket.org.

I'm Renee Shaw.

Once again, we appreciate your company this week.

Have a terrific weekend and come back and see us Monday night.

Take good care.