music >> We're going to be in the center of the nuclear renaissance that's going to go on in this nation.

[MUSIC] >> Kentucky is one step closer to nuclear energy options.

[MUSIC] >> Why are we going to war with Iran?

[MUSIC] >> As the bombing continues, reaction to the U.S.

role in the Middle East from a Kentucky member of Congress and a diplomatic expert.

>> So I think when you look at Barnhart's legacy, I think that's going to factor fairly glow in the dark.

>> Plus, what it means for the University of Kentucky to be replacing its longtime athletics director.

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

>> Good evening and welcome to Kentucky Edition for this Thursday, March the 5th, I'm Renee Shaw, and we thank you for spending some of your Thursday night with us.

Kristi Noem is out as secretary of Homeland Security.

President Donald Trump fired her today after growing criticism of her handling of the job and her answers during congressional hearings.

The president says he'll make her a special envoy for the shields of the Americas.

A new security initiative focused on the Western Hemisphere.

Noam was in Kentucky back in February of 2025 to tour flooded areas of eastern Kentucky and to meet with Governor Andy Beshear.

Kentucky's federal delegation is reacting to the news.

Congressman James Comer of Kentucky's first district was asked about the president's decision on the Scott Jennings show.

>> I've known Christie for a long time.

Ever since I've been in Congress.

You know, it's I I'll say this.

I support the president's decision.

I think Mark Wayne will do a tremendous job in that position, if that's what he wants to do.

And hopefully we can, you know, get some get some stability moving forward.

Because if you look at all the great things President Trump has accomplished, securing the border and making our country safe internally, the homeland, that's his greatest accomplishment.

So that's what the focus of homeland Security needs to be about the president's accomplishments, not about, you know, whether the secretary spent too much money or her personal life or anything like that.

>> Congressman Morgan McGarvey of Kentucky's third district, a Democrat, shared his thoughts on social media.

His post simply read, quote, good riddance.

Now do something with Hegseth, referring to Pete Hegseth, the current US Secretary of Defense.

The Kentucky General Assembly looks to keep making good on its promise to see nuclear energy sourced in the state.

The Kentucky Nuclear Energy Development Authority gave out grants today to get the ball rolling, and the Paducah senator leading the cause.

Explain how many years it might take to see nuclear energy production.

Our Emily Sisk has the latest from Frankfort.

>> We are living.

>> The beginning of history, historical times when it relates to energy, not just within our state or within our country, but within our world.

>> Senator Danny Carroll, a Paducah Republican, has championed the nuclear energy effort over the last decade.

He sponsored legislation that lifted Kentucky's ban on nuclear in 2017.

The moratorium had been in place since 1984.

Today, the state's Nuclear Energy Development Authority gave out six grants to organizations across the state that want to get in on the nuclear movement.

House Majority Floor Leader Steven Rudy, also from Paducah, said this signals the state's involvement in the energy source.

>> We're going to be in the center of the nuclear renaissance that's going to go on in this nation.

>> Nuclear energy is a nonrenewable power source that is known for being a clean, environmentally friendly energy option.

Last year, the General Assembly passed Senate Bill 179 to establish a nuclear energy grant program, which could get the ball rolling for the years to come.

Today's awards were made possible by that legislation.

One of the grant recipients is the West Kentucky Educational Cooperative, which plans to create an education curriculum for students to have the expertise to enter the nuclear energy workforce.

>> We are establishing a robust science and technology curriculum that integrates into career and technical education, or CTE pathways directly, directly with our nuclear industry partners.

This ensures that our students aren't just learning, they're training for the specific high demand roles.

Our Western Kentucky economy is going to need.

>> Another award recipient, General Matter, is working to construct a facility with nuclear energy capability in West Kentucky.

>> We're building a uranium enrichment facility in Paducah, but we also see the entire supply chain industry as being a opportunity for Kentucky to lead in.

>> Senate President Robert Stivers said because of these efforts to revitalize the region, citizens should soon see an economic boom.

>> Because of the investment going in and around the old gaseous diffusion plant in Paducah, you're going to see that area of the state really have some good economic times over the next few years.

>> And Senator Carroll gave his prediction of when Kentucky could actually see nuclear energy production.

>> I firmly believe that through these efforts, we can have nuclear reactors producing generating power within the next 15 years.

And our Commonwealth.

>> For Kentucky edition.

I'm Emily Sisk.

>> Thank you, Emily.

Senator Carroll is also sponsoring Senate Bill 57 this year, which would pilot three locations to be ready for nuclear generation.

Governor Andy Beshear also discussed the future of nuclear energy in Kentucky and also data centers during his weekly news conference.

Today.

>> Nuclear energy is going to be critical for us to to meet the exponentially growing demand for power.

I think we're going to see more of the small modular reactors.

Of course, the cost of these are huge.

So I want to see what the $10 million would do.

I believe that the construction of them is likely going to be pushed by data centers, and so they should be paid for in full both the construction and new means of production, and that full cost of of power.

To be clear, when a data center comes to us and is looking to come into Kentucky, there are three requirements.

Number one, you pay for every cent of your power.

Our families are not going to foot the bill for you.

And if we stick to that, if the General Assembly sticks to that, they will build out new means of production that will actually have more capacity than may be needed and a chance in the future to stabilize or even bring down power bills.

>> On another topic, Governor Beshear was also critical of a proposal to put a summary of constitutional amendments on the Kentucky ballot instead of the full text of the amendments.

He said that would be denying voters important information.

A Boone County Republican is once again sparring with Kentucky hospitals over what's called certificate of need.

That's the law that regulates how many medical providers can offer certain services based on the size and needs of the local population.

As our June Leffler reports, lawmakers have to decide if the status quo or shakeup in the medical marketplace will help or hurt patients.

>> Certificate of need was nationwide until 1987.

>> The what the government was doing was artificially reducing the amount of beds, health care providers because they were worried about increasing health care costs, about duplication of services and quality.

>> Since then, states have decided to keep or alter this practice.

15 states have repealed it, arguably with success.

>> There are five states that have been studied that don't have certificate of need for rural hospitals, and those are Colorado, Idaho, Oregon, Utah and Wyoming.

And they have had zero closure since they did away with their laws.

This isn't certainly an effort to close hospitals.

I actually think when you're looking at certificate of need and across the board of different reforms, what we're really trying to do is equip both existing providers and new providers to be able to offer the services that are needed and wanted at the time.

>> That's why this state lawmaker wants to alter, though, not abandon, a law she says keeps competition out of health care.

>> It does not repeal Certificate of Need.

It streamlines the process.

>> Kentucky's hospitals have consistently lobbied against changes to certificate of need or Con, citing financial concerns.

>> And what that will do, in particular to Saint Elizabeth is it will harm safety net hospitals.

So Saint Elizabeth in northern Kentucky, we are the safety net hospital.

And by that I mean we provide a high volume of low income, uninsured and publicly insured patients, regardless of their ability to pay.

>> Medical providers have to apply to the state whenever they want to offer new services in an area.

House Bill 407 would prevent hospitals or other third parties from contesting those applications.

>> And so all that we're trying to do here is make sure that the process that the cabinet has, that the state of Kentucky has approved is thorough and is fair.

>> That right to request a hearing is now being given only to the applicant for Con.

And our concern is, why would an applicant ever request a hearing to oppose its own application?

>> Lexington Democrat says the status quo needs to change.

>> But when a corporation or a hospital, whether they're for profit or not, for profit, is directly impacted by a decision of the government, they need a right of appeal because the government's not always right.

>> The House Health Services Committee did pass the bill with a cautious yay vote from the chair.

>> It's difficult because health care is not really a free market enterprise.

It's not like going to the corner store and and, you know, buying the same apples in each store.

I just want to make sure that we're not driving up the cost of health care.

We need to improve access.

Of course we need to maintain quality.

Of course we need to maintain credentialing and all of the things that factor into this House.

>> Bill 407 passed in a 10 to 5 vote.

It now heads to the full house for Kentucky Edition.

I'm June Leffler.

>> Thank you June for that.

The committee also passed House Bill 713 regarding the verbal and physical harm sometimes inflicted on health care workers.

Republican Jason Nima sponsors that bill.

The Kentucky Nurses Association testified today in support of it.

It requires hospitals to better track and respond to workplace violence.

The bill does not alter penalties for harassment or assault, which can be felony offenses.

Preventing youth suicide and protecting survivor benefits for children in state custody.

Those are some of the bills passed by the House Committee for Families and Children this morning.

Our Mackenzie Spink was following that and brings us more on how lawmakers are trying to improve the state for the next generations.

>> House Speaker Pro Tem David Meade says sometimes when children in state custody receive federal benefits, such as survivor or disability benefits, the state uses a portion of that money to reimburse itself for caring for that child.

House Bill 669 would prohibit that and put all of the money aside into a new program called the Success Sequence Savings and Disbursement Plan.

>> Along the way, there will be milestones that they will reach when they turn 16.

They they can get it out for when they get their driver's license for a car or whatever it may be.

Again, when they turn 18, if they graduate, there's a they have the ability to pull some then or when they go to college or leave the system.

>> Louisville Democrat Representative Tina Bojanowski says she originally had reservations about the milestone system until she spoke with teenagers who were in the Capitol yesterday for Child Advocacy Day.

>> Yesterday, I had a meeting with four young adults who had been in the foster care system, and I asked them explicitly, how do you feel about this bill and these milestones?

And they said, we think it's really good.

You know, they expressed it was really probably one of the most poignant meetings that I'd had with young people.

You know, they said we weren't raised with the supports that help you learn how to be responsible for yourself.

And so they were very supportive of the success sequence milestones.

And for that reason, I'll support the bill.

>> House Bill 669 passed unanimously.

Representative Kim Moser's House Bill 686 also passed unanimously.

It would create the Kentucky Positive Youth Development Commission.

>> We had a number of youth suicides in Northern Kentucky and the Northern Kentucky Health Department did a really great job of pulling together stakeholders with Beck and the state office to try to figure out how to deal with this.

And so this bill is a product of what happened there.

>> The new commission would promote out of school programs, coordinate state agencies to develop suicide prevention strategies, and support existing community efforts that reduce suicide and self-harm, youth advocates say engaging young people and helping them build relationships is proven by research to improve their mental health.

>> We think it is critically important to create opportunities for young people to have alternatives to screen time, and we see this as a real mechanism to establishing options for young people to engage in out of school time activities, mentoring, tutoring, other positive youth development programing that can create an opportunity can create options for young people to address their mental health issues, but also just to connect with other young people.

>> The Kentucky Positive Youth Development Commission would be funded by any settlement funds related to how social media harms young people.

The Kentucky Attorney General's office currently has lawsuits against platforms like Roblox and TikTok for Kentucky edition.

I'm Mackenzie Spink.

>> Thank you Mackenzie.

The House Families and Children Committee also passed House Concurrent Resolution 36, which would establish the Child Welfare and Family Court Reform Task Force.

If it is passed by both chambers, something could be changing at Kentucky's Mammoth Cave National Park, and there's a new way to support Kentucky tornado victims.

Our Toby Gibbs explains those stories and more in tonight's look at headlines around Kentucky.

>> Mammoth cave could remove signs about slavery and diversity because of an executive order from President Donald Trump.

Mammoth Cave National Park has signs and exhibits about how enslaved people worked in the caves as miners and guides.

[MUSIC] They also described the poor working conditions.

Other signs describe the removal of indigenous people to make room for the park.

The Courier-Journal reports that Trump's order flagged those exhibits for possible removal.

For now, those exhibits are still in place.

The Trump administration says the information about possible removal was illegally leaked to the media from the Bowling Green Daily News.

A towing company owner says the city is targeting him with a revised towing ordinance that lowers the maximum rate for towing vehicles.

[MUSIC] The ordinance caps the cost at $125, down from 175, and the ordinance bans a $25 after hours fee.

Brian Nash, owner of Fountain Square Towing, is suing.

Nash's attorney says the city's attempt to control pricing is, quote, socialistic and not allowed by law.

According to Lincoln KY Union in Boone County is the latest Kentucky town to comply with a law passed last year requiring manufactured homes to be zoned the same way as single family homes.

[MUSIC] The Kentucky General Assembly passed House Bill 160 in 2025, barring cities and counties from zoning the two differently.

Lawmakers hope it will ease Kentucky's housing shortage by preventing communities from rejecting manufactured homes.

[MUSIC] The Kentucky League of Cities is helping western Kentucky communities hit hard by a December 2021 tornado.

[MUSIC] The Paducah Sun says the league is offering a city's drive Kentucky specialty license plate to support disaster relief.

The plates cost $44 and are available at county clerk's offices throughout Kentucky.

With headlines around Kentucky, I'm Toby Gibbs.

[MUSIC] >> Last night, the U-S Senate rejected a so-called War Powers resolution demanding a halt to the U.S.

military campaign against Iran unless it gets backing from Congress.

Kentucky's two U.S.

senators were split on the measure.

U.S.

Senator Mitch McConnell voted against the resolution backing President Donald Trump's right to launch the attack without congressional approval.

His Kentucky colleague, though Senator Rand Paul, voted for it.

He was the only Republican to vote yes.

The U.S.

House rejected a similar resolution today, 219 to 212.

Congressman Thomas Massie, a Republican from the fourth Congressional District, spoke out for the resolution.

He says the president's decision to go to war under these circumstances violates the U.S.

Constitution.

But he says there's more.

>> Beyond the constitutional question.

Here lies an even more important one.

Why are we going to war with Iran?

We owe our military service members a clear mission, and American families in my district want to know how's this is going to help them pay for groceries?

How does this make them any safer in their schools or in their neighborhoods?

How does this help them pay for housing?

>> Americans are already feeling the economic pinch of the war, as prices at the gas pump have climbed more than $0.30 and expect prices to go up on other goods and services, says Doctor Robert Farley, a diplomacy, intelligence and national security expert at the UK Patterson School of Diplomacy.

He recently sat down.

We recently sat down with us to find out more about the economic and diplomatic stakes of the war in Iran, and what he thinks it will take to end the conflict.

>> This is the most profound disruption in Iranian U.S.

relations, really, in the history of Iranian US relations.

The United States has been preparing to use force against Iran for the past month and a half, two months, we have been building up forces in the Gulf region, in the surrounding countries.

These have been air forces.

These have been naval forces.

What triggered the specific moment for us to launch the conflict?

We received intelligence that the Supreme leader of Iran, Ayatollah Khamenei, was going to be having a meeting with senior military and civilian leadership at his compound, his residential compound in Tehran.

We gave that information intelligence to the Israelis.

And the Israelis launched a strike based on that.

That effectively started the war.

As we are learning more about how the war started.

It is feeling more and more as if we were not prepared to launch a war at this particular time.

And there are lots of indications of this.

The State Department was not prepared to evacuate American citizens from the Middle East, and now it is deeply chaotic as Americans are trying to get out.

And that includes government employees, State Department employees.

We were not militarily well-prepared.

The deaths of the six U.S.

service members, the six soldiers in Kuwait, were probably because of under preparation to receive an Iranian attack.

There was a friendly fire incident that shot down three American F-15s off of Kuwait.

I think that the best analysis so far also suggests that that was the result of poor planning and poor staff work that was probably came out of not being well prepared and not anticipating that the war was going to start on the day that it started for a diplomatic outcome.

It would be really, really helpful if the United States could clearly enunciate what it wants from this war.

We have talked about a number of different goals that we have in the conflict from at the extreme, regime change to simply the elimination of Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs.

If we were able to settle on an outcome in the United States, which was less than regime change, that would mean that there would be some sort of diplomatic off ramp available, how that would be undertaken and who would be the mediators is sort of up in the air at this point.

But the United States really has to determine that we're fighting for something less than regime change, because if it's regime change, the Iranians have absolutely no interest and no incentive to negotiate.

What I suspect may happen is that as the weeks and months go by, as the United States runs out of munitions to strike Iran, and as we run out of targets to strike Iran, we may sort of come to the understanding that we have to have some sort of diplomacy in order to end the war.

We don't want this dragging on forever.

We can't really afford to drag it on forever.

The economic damage to the United States and the rest of the world will be significant.

The United States does not by much.

Middle eastern oil.

But oil is a fungible commodity, which is to say that oil that goes one place is much like oil that goes any other place.

And so as oil prices go up and oil prices will go up, because Iranian production is being taken offline and because Iran has purposefully attempted to disrupt the transit of oil through the Persian Gulf, through the Straits of Hormuz, oil prices are going to go up.

When oil prices go up, everything becomes more expensive.

That's not just gas, although that's the first thing that people notice.

And people have probably already noticed that their local gas station has gone up 30, 40 or $0.50 over the past two days.

But it affects air travel.

The airlines are extremely dependent and extremely price sensitive based on increases in oil.

Oil also goes into lots of other products.

Petroleum is a hugely important part of plastics, of just about everything you manufacture.

It is immensely important to the transport economy, which is to say that every truck that brings us something is a truck that depends on oil, and so this war will drive prices up.

There's no there's no question and there's no way around it.

>> We appreciate Doctor Farley's insight.

In an interview today with Axios, President Donald Trump said he should be involved in choosing Iran's next supreme leader.

[MUSIC] As we reported earlier this week, University of Kentucky Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart is stepping down.

He's currently the longest serving athletics director in the Power Four conferences.

So what is he accomplished in his time at UK?

A we caught up with longtime Lexington sportscaster Dick Gabriel for some insight.

[MUSIC] >> He has said more than once to me and other journalists, you know, when we've asked him about this or that, he has said, that's up to the next person.

You know, I'm going to leave that for someone else.

Although he's tackled so many things head on, but this seems like a pretty good time to say, you know, I've done whatever I can.

College athletics is moving into a new chapter in history such as it is, so let the next person handle that.

Whenever I look in an athletic director's legacy, I look at two things.

I look at hires, I look at facilities.

And there's a lot more than just that, of course.

But he has hired a lot of coaches who have been very successful, who have been the respective coach of the year in their conferences, in their sports.

Yeah, he's made some mistakes, but all ads do when it comes to facilities.

UK athletics has grown so much in the last two and a half decades.

I don't even know if anybody fathomed what it would be like the day he was hired, compared to what it's like now.

So I think he's got a pretty good track record.

When you look in the rear view mirror, one of the biggest hires I think Barnard made is Mark Stoops.

And Mark Stoops, of course, had no head coaching experience, but was a long time talented assistant, just as Mitch Barnhart was when Mitch took the Oregon State job.

And hiring a football coach in the Southeastern Conference is your biggest hire, even if it's at Kentucky.

You know, if you're an athletics director, you know, and Mark Stoops took this team, took this program to new heights.

So I think when you look at Barnhart's legacy, I think that's going to factor fairly glow in the dark.

>> Which represents the Commonwealth of Kentucky and.

>> That'll do it for us tonight.

But we hope that you'll join us again tomorrow night at 630 eastern, 530 Central on Kentucky Edition, where we inform, connect and inspire.

[MUSIC] We hope that you'll also connect with us all the way.

As you see on your screen, the social media channels, Facebook and Instagram.

To stay in the loop, we encourage you to send us a story idea by email or just a shout out at Public Affairs at ket.org, and look for us on the PBS app that you can download on your smart devices.

And all of our content is streaming online on demand at Ket.org.

We're looking forward to seeing you on Friday.

Take, take good care and have a great night.

[MUSIC] See you soon.