>> Recognizing her for her >> Recognizing her for her service.

>> A lot of people have died for this country.

So we can be free.

>> A community pays its respects to a fallen hero.

[MUSIC] >> We've been in the top ten several times over the past few years, but this is the first time we've been at number one.

>> The category where a Kentucky university is tops.

[MUSIC] >> I think about being a year out.

I mean, resilience is what comes to mind for me.

[MUSIC] >> One of Kentucky's oldest distilleries sits right on the Kentucky River.

How it's faring now.

One year out from last year's intense Frankfort floods.

>> 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 10th.

I'm Renee Shaw and we thank you for jumpstarting your weekend with us.

A Kentucky Air Force sergeant who died overseas will be laid to rest tomorrow.

34 year old Technical Sergeant Ashley Young Pruitt was killed last month when her aircraft went down during Operation Epic Fury.

She was born and raised in Bardstown, where people lined the streets to pay their respects.

Just yesterday, our Laura Rogers has more from Nelson County.

>> The city of Bardstown, coming together to honor the service and sacrifice of Tech Sergeant Ashley Pruitt.

>> We've got the entire block, and I haven't been down to 45 yet, but I'm pretty sure that the motorcycle brigade is set up and ready to go.

>> Hundreds of people gathered for a formal escort and procession from the airport to the funeral home.

>> Brotherhood American got to show respect for those fallen.

And this young lady has sacrificed the most.

>> Pruitt was one of six service members who died aboard a KC 135 air tanker that went down over Iraq March 12th.

>> I think every person that was on that tanker is a hero.

Without all these boys and ladies going into service, we wouldn't be free.

>> Freedom, pride, patriotism all on display along Bardstown's Court Square and beyond.

>> It was very nice.

Our community came together and honored her for serving and also supporting the family.

>> Many of those saluting Pruitt's life and legacy included veterans like Jeff Loyless, who served in the Army National Guard.

>> Everybody.

It's a big family, no matter what branch it is.

Army, Air Force, Marines, it doesn't matter.

We're all family.

>> She deserves all of this and more.

I cannot believe this.

Many people have come out to honor her.

>> Pruitt's dreams of a military career began here at home in Nelson County.

In the junior ROTC program, she enlisted in the United States Air Force in 2017.

>> She is from our hometown.

I graduated from Nelson County.

I have a nephew who is actually in the Army.

Boyfriend is a Navy veteran.

I just wanted to come out and show our support for our veterans.

>> First, second North Korean War, all the wars, Vietnam.

A lot of people died for this country.

So we can be free and do what we do.

>> Pruitt served as a boom operator in the Air Force.

She was stationed at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida.

>> They do take care of us from A to Z, and I felt the need to go out and support them, that she's protecting our country.

>> Tech Sergeant Ashley Young Pruitt leaves behind a husband, daughter and stepson who in her obituary say they will carry her spirit forward with pride.

For Kentucky edition, I'm Laura Rogers.

>> Thank you so much, Laura.

Tech Sergeant Pruitt's funeral is tomorrow at New Salem Baptist Church Cemetery.

She is the second Kentuckian to die in the Iraq War.

Staff Sergeant Benjamin Pennington of Hardin County, died March 8th during an attack in Saudi Arabia.

The Kentucky State Senate has set the dates for Judge Julie Goodman's impeachment trial that is slated to begin next Thursday.

Judge Goodman says the man who filed the impeachment petition should pay her court fees.

Killian Timoney, a former member of the Kentucky House from Lexington, filed the petition against Judge Goodman, a judge in the Fayette Circuit Court.

He accused her of judicial misconduct.

On March 20th, the Kentucky House voted 73 to 14 to impeach her, setting up a trial in the Senate.

But the state Supreme Court ruled earlier this week that the impeachment process is invalid, in part because Goodman is not accused of a crime.

It also said the General Assembly was the wrong venue to deal with the matter.

Despite that court ruling, the Senate has set dates for the House prosecution and Goodman defense team to present their cases.

The Lexington Herald-Leader reports that Judge Goodman filed a motion yesterday asking a judge to force Timoney to pay her attorney's costs and court fees.

Congressman Thomas Massie, a longtime advocate for more action on the Jeffrey Epstein case, is reacting to the first lady's call for victims to testify before Congress.

Yesterday, in a surprise statement, Melania Trump said she had done nothing wrong connected to Epstein.

She also called for Congress to hear from victims of Epstein's abuse.

Congressman Massie, a Republican from the Fourth Congressional District in Kentucky, said lawmakers want to hear from them, but the Justice Department is resisting.

Massie said this on social media.

Quote, first lady asked Congress to bring Epstein survivors in for testimony.

With all due respect, that's Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche's job.

Representative Ro Khanna and I already gave brave survivors a chance to tell their horrific stories on Capitol Hill.

Pam Bondi wouldn't even acknowledge them.

Prosecute, end quote.

[MUSIC] Time now to go inside Kentucky politics.

We're going to talk a little bit about the U.S.

Senate GOP primary and what we can expect on the final two days of the legislative session that is next week, and we have a couple of our faves with us.

We've got Abby Piper and Jared Smith, both from Piper Smith government relations firm.

Thank you both for being with us.

>> Happy to be here.

>> So let's start with the U.S.

Senate race.

And Jared, I'll start with you.

There's been some new polling out, some new ads out one ad now that is targeting Cameron.

Cameron's kind of been out of the ad fray a little bit.

And even the debate stage, he kind of the other candidates were talking over him.

Smart thing to do.

And now that there is an ad that is targeting him, he has said, well, it's because they see me as a threat, whoever they is.

First, let's show people what we're talking about.

>> He teamed up with the ACLU to release criminals early.

Not this guy.

This one.

Daniel Cameron partnered with the ACLU to end cash bail and put criminals back on the street.

>> So what do you make of this ad, Jared?

>> You know, it's it could be either Barr or Morse.

They both need to take Cameron down because Cameron, even though he's not spending money, he has 100% name ID and he's just he's got he's got his vote.

Those voters are going to be his and they're not going anywhere.

So now maybe can we start picking off the undecideds and making sure that make them Knott pick Cameron.

So I see it as essential for both campaigns to be behind it.

This this packs a little unique.

>> Knott KY pack.

Who is KY pack?

>> Not much out there, you know, which is interesting to maybe think this may be Barr related of some sort, since Morse has two packs and obviously they don't care what they say.

So, you know, not trying to hide anything.

But you know, I just don't know if being too cute there, you know, just it's it's a pack.

We already know it's a pack, you know, so like, it's interesting though, but I do think it's a very well done ad.

>> Well, and to call him like dangerously wrong for Kentucky because Abby, this goes after his what the ad would say soft on crime approach.

But a few years ago it was right on crime and it was all about criminal justice reform.

But now it's an albatross.

>> Yeah, well, it's always the politics of now, right.

And that's the, the, the, the danger of being somebody who's been in politics for a while, who's like Cameron said, he's been attorney general, he's been a gubernatorial candidate.

So there are a lot of clips out there of him.

And he's done a lot of work.

And you're never going to please everybody.

So that's a that's the liability that's out there when you have that kind of experience.

>> So we know that a recent poll, this was the Emerson College polling and Fox 56.

This was last week when we were on a different stage together, had Barr at 28%, Cameron was at 21% and Morris at 15%.

Has Morris always placed third?

>> He's always placed third, but he's come out from around 5 to 7 to up to 15, which is a big move, you know.

So his ads are working.

So let's see where he can go from there.

Does he ever get to 20.

You know so if you look at polling I saw I know this is a little off topic, but Thomas Massie and Gallrein.

>> Let's go there because that's an interesting one too.

>> That poll came out and Masis was he 43?

>> Right.

>> Yeah.

And he goes, I'm not at 50 yet, but I need, you know, so help me get to 50.

But you know, if Mason gets the 50, that race is over, right.

You know.

>> What do you think about this race about the fourth district congressional race?

What we're talking about now with the incumbent Thomas Massie and challenger at Gallrein.

>> I think you've seen this break nationally between the libertarian wing of the Republican Party and Maga.

It's actually the weirdest thing.

The left and the libertarians are together, you know, to combat Maga.

And so I think Massie's telling Republicans it's okay to disagree with the president.

And I think that's starting to gain traction up there.

>> Yeah.

My sources are saying that Massie seems to be in very good shape, that his base is is strong and it's solid and it's not going anywhere.

And I'm not sure that a Trump endorsement is really helpful.

>> Or Elon Musk money makes a difference.

>> Certainly not.

I mean, it's it's a very unique area of the state.

You have to remember that.

>> It's also Canada.

This is this is a candidate and I don't know but but did not got beat by another Navy Seal, Aaron Reed for a state Senate race.

Now he's running for the fourth congressional race.

And there's there's some people say he's not very good on the stump.

You know, he doesn't he's not a very good doesn't give a good speech.

You know he doesn't you know do the the retail politics side very well which Massie excels at.

>> Right, right.

Well he has an invitation for here.

So we'll see.

You know.

And does it benefit him to do debates.

Does it benefit him to be on the same stage with the Thomas Massie?

>> Well, I think I just saw where Gallrein said he wasn't going to do it, because he didn't want to give Massie a platform to bash Trump, which is code.

I don't want to do the debate.

Yeah, yeah.

>> And do debates even move the needle, by and large, for primary voters, maybe they're more effective for general election voters.

>> I think this year is different.

>> It's different this year because more people are tuned in than I think have been in previous years.

But I would also say your point is well taken, that the people that watch debates are people who are pretty active already in politics and know a lot about, you know, they're following these folks on social media, they're watching the ads, they're engaged in that so they can help.

I mean, if it's really for the undecideds, right?

And there's always a big chunk of that.

And that's what we're seeing right now in that recent poll, that it's the undecideds that are starting to filter into their their lanes.

>> Well, there's 29% going back to the U.S.

Senate GOP primary, 29% of GOP voters are still undecided.

>> So what that tells me is Daniel Cameron is basically 100% KDE.

That's 29%.

They're not voting for Daniel Cameron.

Yeah, they're persuadable voters.

>> And we know that Daniel Cameron hasn't been able to raise the kind of money.

>> To make to make that argument.

>> Correct, right, to make that argument.

So we'll see where that goes.

Okay, so now in a minute and 47 seconds, let's talk about lawmakers going back for the final two days of the session.

Several bills still out there.

But one of the big items that the session may not really be over on April 15th, as the Kentucky Senate president kind of ambiguously stated that they're going to proceed with the impeachment trial of Fayette Circuit Judge Julie Goodman on grounds that she had abused her judicial discretion and authority based off of six cases.

But can they do that, given that the Kentucky Supreme Court said in a 5 to 1 ruling, you need to halt all these proceedings.

But the Senate president seems to have a different way of looking at it.

>> Yeah, I think we're in a classic constitutional crisis of their own making.

The legislature and the judiciary are sniping back and forth at each other, and the legislature has a good point.

It's in the state Constitution.

They have the right to do that.

And the judiciary is like, well, you know, she didn't commit a crime technically, you know, she's just a bad judge, basically, you know, she didn't commit a crime.

And they're saying, well, she's committed so many.

She's doing so many bad things and you all aren't fixing it.

You know, why wasn't she brought before the JCC?

>> So judicial Conduct Commission, right?

Yeah.

What's your take on this?

And wouldn't the Supreme Court just overturn this on appeal anyway?

So aren't you going to get the same result?

>> Well, that's possible, but there's always this jockeying in an election year as well too.

So you got to remember that this is the judicial branch is going to be seen as somewhat of an arm of Beshear.

And so, you know, they can't let him win if they want to have that as a talking point.

And I do think that this legislature has been serious about establishing and reinforcing legislative independence for a number of years now, even when the Democrats were in charge.

And so, you know, I think that's a long standing sort of bit of field work that they want to continue.

>> Yeah.

>> I mean, the language, the Supreme Court basically kind of semi threatened that if you're a sanctioned Barr attorney, you could face, if you're in the Kentucky Barr, you could face sanctions if you voted for impeachment.

I thought that was way over the line.

And the other thing was, it's interesting.

It's like Judge Goodman is suing Kelly and Timothy for court fees.

Right.

And so.

>> Yeah, a lot to watch, a lot to keep our eyes on.

And thank you guys for helping us sort through it today.

>> Always happy.

>> It's been one year since flood waters reaching 48ft swept through Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort.

The historic distillery sits right on the Kentucky River and has robust flood plans in place.

But employees say the flood still rose higher and further than expected.

Now, one year later, they say visitors would be hard pressed to see any lasting effects from the flood.

>> So we saw the flood levels reach over 48ft, which was the second highest ever in history.

Kentucky River is what brought raw materials into the distillery.

You know, they've been distilling on the site since the 1700s.

So that's how they brought goods in here.

And it's also how we shipped our finished product out for trading.

So without the Kentucky River, we wouldn't be here at all.

But it was a known risk.

So we did lots of preparations for it.

There's an extensive flood plan which involves, you know, moving electronics out, relocating pumps, shutting things down to prepare for those waters.

But those waters just exceeded all of our expectations.

And we're levels that none of us here had ever seen before.

So we had water forces come in and move tanks off their foundations, right?

And so that had to be reset and then repairing and replacing electronics.

But at that same time, we were also preparing for the next flood.

So instead of just putting things back in their same place, we found opportunities to relocate or find more efficiencies or, you know, just be safer and preparing for that next flood event that is inevitably going to happen.

We had not only our 900 team members here at Buffalo Trace, but a team of 200 outside folks helping us as well.

Experts and cleanup and recovery team members as well.

So we had our entire distillery helping us out, plus the outside experts.

And then the community was so supportive as well.

A lot of our cleanup, not only here but everywhere, was lots of mud.

So that water of course, brought in a lot and then pulled back out and left a lot of mud with it.

So we also found some fish in some places as well.

So the river brought in some unique species of fish.

We were able to work with Kentucky State and actually do a lot of recovery efforts for the fish, where they were able to study them and put them back in the water as well.

The good thing is, while we did see a little bit of water in some of the warehouses, a lot of our aging inventory, it was not impacted.

Within a week, we had been able to resume bottling in certain areas, and then just a little bit more than a week after we were able to welcome visitors back.

While we won't see maybe much, that's permanent damage, we do like to commemorate it.

So throughout a few spots, we've marked where those flood levels were.

You can still see the watermark from 2025 and then the 1978 below that, and then 1937.

And more of our more recent ones are much lower than that.

So it just brings an interesting perspective of we would have been completely underwater in this space.

You know, the Frankfort community is so important to us.

We feel so connected to it.

They were so supportive throughout the process.

We wanted to bring visitors back because the tourism here is such an important part of what happens in Frankfurt, so that they could visit the local restaurants and shops and be in downtown and participate in Frankfurt.

So really, our urgency to open back up was to make sure tourism was coming back to Frankfurt and just helping that entire economy.

I think about being a year out.

I mean, resilience is what comes to mind for me, not just for Buffalo Trace as a distillery, but our 900 team members, the community, the support that we saw here.

We really do take a moment to reflect on the past, but we're focused on the future and what we have coming this summer.

>> After the flood caused damage to the distillery's historic clubhouse, the cleanup process turned into turned into construction on a new permanent café, the John G. Carlisle Cafe will open later this year.

[MUSIC] There is a new ranking of the top military friendly universities across the U.S.

and one Kentucky institution has risen to the top.

Our Emily Sisk takes us to Eastern Kentucky University to learn about their support for military students.

>> Eastern Kentucky University is home to nearly 2000 military affiliated students, which represents about 12% of the total student body.

The resources offered to those students led the university to be named the number one military friendly school in the country for the first ever time.

>> We're really honored to get the distinction.

>> Josh Maynard works as the director of Veterans Upward Bound at EKU.

Serving military students is a profound mission for him.

As an Army veteran and two time EKU alum.

>> A lot of people in our office are veterans or military members, so we kind of have firsthand knowledge on how that experience goes.

>> But this month, the Office of Military and Veterans Affairs learned their support, earned the university national recognition as the number one military friendly school out of all large public universities in the country.

Military friendly gave out that ranking.

It's an organization that evaluates employers and universities based on their resources for veterans and active duty military members.

>> They asked questions about retention, graduation rates, services that we provide for military students.

>> EKU had received recognition as a military friendly school before, but this year's distinction marked a first.

>> We've been in the top ten several times over the past few years, but this is the first time we've been at number one.

>> So what sets the Colonels apart when it comes to their support for military students?

The Office of Military and Veterans Affairs has a handful of full time staff members to help students navigate many facets of college life.

>> Help applying to the university, navigating benefits like financial VA benefits they might have, or applying for scholarships.

>> This has been especially helpful for students like Mackenzie Doyle, who started her first semester at EKU, then learned she'd have to take a leave to fulfill her service to the National Guard.

>> I get to my unit and within the first drill, they tell us that we're deploying.

>> The Owensboro native spent nine months deployed in Iraq.

She's now in her second semester at EKU and said the Office of Military and Veterans Affairs helped make the transition smooth.

>> It's actually quite common from a National Guard member or a member of the reserves to get activated while they're in college, whether it's helped with drawing from the class that no penalty or resuming where they left off once they come back, our office can help facilitate that.

>> Now that Mackenzie is back on campus, she's been able to transfer credits from basic training to go toward her degree.

>> So I'm military police and my degree is in criminal justice, and a lot of my classes in that stage of my training were transferable to the school just by like bringing up my joint service transcript.

I think it was like 18 to 22 credit hours that I got from basic training alone.

>> Receiving these types of general education or degree specific credits is not uncommon at EKU, Maynard says.

>> We offer more military credit than any other school in the state for for military training.

>> And Eastern offers discounted tuition for military spouses, active service members and those in the guard or reserves.

The special military rate is $250 per credit hour, about $100 less than the regular tuition rate.

>> A lot of universities nationwide are going away from that due to rising costs.

Or maybe it's less of a discount than it has been, but EKU has kept that discount steady for the past few years.

>> When it comes to the number one ranking director Maynard said the Office of Military and Veterans Affairs is just doing their job to support students in Richmond for Kentucky edition.

I'm Emily Sisk.

>> Many thanks to you.

Emily EKU also offers counseling services and academic advisors who are trained to support military veteran students.

[MUSIC] It is going to be a lovely weekend this weekend weather wise.

But before you plan your weekend, check out what Kentucky has in store for you.

Our Toby Gibbs has this lineup of a look at what's happening around the Commonwealth.

>> They're serving up a little mountain flavor in Pikeville with the return of hillbilly days, three days of parades, live music, food and classic Appalachian entertainment events stretch across downtown Pikeville, highlighting culture and community in eastern Kentucky.

The festival kicks off next Thursday.

If your to do list at home is growing, this might be the place to start.

Checking boxes.

Hundreds of exhibitors and experts are gathering in Lexington for the Central Kentucky Home Show, a multi-day event focused on home improvement.

It's a chance to get remodeling ideas, hear from professionals and get practical advice for projects big and small.

[MUSIC] It's all about hands on and handmade and Greenup with the handcrafted weekend and quilt show, which features local artists and artisans sharing their work and skills.

Take classes, watch demonstrations and browse a wide range of handmade items throughout the weekend.

The show starts Saturday.

[MUSIC] A legendary voice is bringing the spotlight and the stories with him to Louisville this weekend.

John Legend's Night of Songs and Stories blends music with personal stories from his career.

The Egot winning artist will perform well-known songs along with reflections from more than two decades in the industry.

[MUSIC] A classic is taking flight in Bowling Green, as the World Ballet Company presents Swan Lake.

The full scale production features a live orchestra and an international cast who bring the classic tale of love and transformation.

[MUSIC] The performance is next Tuesday at the Southern Kentucky Performing Arts Center.

Expect things to get a little wooly in the best way at the Hardin County Fairgrounds this weekend, as it hosts the Alpaca Spring Fling.

The event offers a chance to see alpacas up close, learn about their care, and shop for fiber products.

You can also walk an alpaca along a short course and take a selfie with one at this free, family friendly event.

[MUSIC] It's a chance to travel the world without leaving town, as Madisonville Community College hosts its international cultural Celebration, featuring food, performances and traditions from a variety of cultures, the event focuses on sharing customs and bringing different communities together.

The celebration takes place next Thursday.

[MUSIC] It's an opportunity to take a hike and branch out in your knowledge of nature at Cumberland State Falls Resort Park.

As it kicks off, it's Kentucky untamed series take guided hikes led by park naturalists and explore topics like plant life, insects and ecosystems, and get a closer look at the science behind Kentucky's natural landscapes.

[MUSIC] The series begins this Saturday, and that's a look at what's happening around the Commonwealth this week.

I'm Toby Gibbs.

>> Thank you Toby.

Wish we could do all of those things.

The session, the U.S.

Senate race and the attempt to impeach a Kentucky judge.

Well, all of that is coming up on comment on Kentucky with host Bill Bryant and a panel of Kentucky reporters.

They'll talk about all of that and much more at Eastern seven central right here on KET.

We hope you have a splendid weekend.

Enjoy the beautiful weather across the bluegrass, and come back to see us at 630 eastern 530 central on Kentucky edition on Monday night, where we inform, connect and inspire.

I'm Renee Shaw, thank you for being with us this week.

Have a great weekend and I'll see you Monday.