>> It's a novel use of executive power, obviously to accomplish in policy goal here that and the governor supports.

And it seems like a majority in citizens of work.

But it will be interesting to see if that holds up.

>> We take a closer look at Governor Beshear's executive order regarding medical cannabis.

Some critics say the move is unconstitutional.

Politics is a team sport, particularly the legislature.

That's where McConnell I think derives his power.

Senator Mitch McConnell makes history after surviving a leadership test from some of his colleagues.

Be able to actually have something how roof overhead, you know, and I have something to cook on.

Have a place like my head and sleep at night.

The place.

Some who lost their home during the July floods are getting a place to stay and somewhere to call home.

They want to be in the community and be a >> vital part of the community.

Just like anyone else does.

>> Meet a group of people in Kentucky who are helping people with intellectual disabilities reached their highest potential.

>> Production of Kentucky Edition is made possible in part by the KET and down that for Kentucky Productions.

Leonard Press Endowment for Public Affairs and the KET Millennium Fund.

♪ ♪ >> Good evening and welcome to Kentucky.

Addition for Wednesday, November 16th.

I'm Casey Parker Bell filling in for Renee Shaw.

Yesterday here on Kentucky Edition we told you about Governor Beshear's newest executive order that will allow some Kentucky INS to use medical marijuana.

Some state lawmakers say the governor's actions are illegal.

That includes state Representative Ms, a Republican who has tried for years to pass a medical marijuana bill in Kentucky.

>> We're not only talking about people's health.

Okay.

It's also important for me to note, but if you are a parent.

And you go across state lines and you bring marijuana back to Kentucky for your child or if you do it for yourself, you are engaging in a felony.

That is trafficking under our walls.

He cannot white those away.

He can't do it.

So what he's doing is he's giving people false hope.

And I can't stand for that.

I'm not going to as much as I care about the about the issue.

He's giving people false hope.

If you go to Illinois and you bring marijuana back to Kentucky, you are a criminal that's not changed.

I want to change that.

We need to change that.

But this isn't the way to do it.

>> Jonathan Chavez, a law professor at the University of Kentucky.

He says the governor grounded his authority and his pardon power.

>> It is true, right, that if you bring Mayor medical marijuana into Kentuckyian you are under the law still committing a felony.

But what governor she did was to say I am pro suspected Lee pardoning every person who does this.

So the general pardon that for the future that covers all future conduct.

And he did it pursuant to the pardon power in the Constitution, which is one of the broader executive powers both in the Kentucky Constitution and the United States Constitution.

>> The shares executive order takes effect January.

1st, he says he will work with the General Assembly to push for full legalization of medical cannabis.

Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky will remain as the Senate GOP leader today.

He easily won re-election, squashing a challenge from Senator Rick Scott of Florida.

This was the first-ever attempts to oust McConnell after many leaders years as GOP leader this afternoon, Renee Shaw sat down with conservative political analyst Scott Jennings to discuss McConnell's when and how he will lead the party going forward.

>> Scott Jennings, thank you for a few minutes of your time.

Appreciate it.

This afternoon.

>> Thanks, Renay.

Good to be with you.

>> shortly before we convene, we learned that leader McConnell will remain as Senate GOP Republican leader.

Do you know about how close or how far it seems the vote was there and this challenge, the challenge that was mounted by Senator Rick Scott of Florida.

>> Yeah, it does that look like it was very close, according to the public I think the final vote tally was 37 to 10.

So McConnell put up a nice showing in what's noteworthy for Kentucky history buffs is that with this election and when he serves as leader, he'll become the longest-serving party leader of either party and U.S. history.

So he'd already become the longest serving Republican leader.

So it's really a kind of a nice feather in the cap for Kentucky.

I think right?

>> Does this interim party little squabble?

Does this have any long-term impact on how the Republican Party moves forward or how policy is actually carried out.

What are the far reaching implications if any of this?

>> Well, I sure hope not.

I think after leadership battle like this in the Democrats, by the way, had experience this as Leader Speaker Pelosi in the last Congress had some dissenters and then she went on to have you know what most Democrats would consider to be a pretty successful term.

The point is what you have a fight like this.

You get back together and you work together as a party.

Leaders and in a Senate so closely divided depending on what happens in Georgia, the Democrats are going to have a very limited control.

If you have factions in divisions in the party that can really advantage the other side.

And so I think for the House and for the Senate, what Republicans everywhere want is for party unity to occur.

So you can have as much leverage as possible on the policymaking process.

If you are current constantly fractured and splintered, you can really, really give the other side outsize influence in writing the laws and the Republican wants that.

>> So as you mention, of course, there were attempts to delay this until after the outcome of the Georgia election.

And that was to no avail.

And that wind of change the outcome, Had that actually procedural a move worked.

Senator Mitch McConnell probably still not being Republican leader.

Dean.

Guess.

>> Oh, yeah.

I think it was just a, you know, a talking point for the people who wanted to delay.

And obviously there was a small faction of senators who wanted to register their discontent for one reason or the other.

If you look at all these people, you know, Rick Scott, he probably wants to run for president someday Ted Cruz wants to run for president someday.

I think a lot of personal ambition went into this more than having anything to do with the team.

You know that.

That's another thing about this run 8.

It is noteworthy.

Politics is a team sport, particularly the legislature.

That's where McConnell I think derives his power treating the rest of the conference like a team.

He does more listening than talking.

I think that's really been the secret to his longevity in this job.

Yeah.

>> So policymaking once get to the politicking, 90 got a government got a herd, these cats.

And so you think that this will just go as he's always been able to do successfully is to get everyone in line and that these others, he once supported Rick Scott and he's got himself will also fall in line with the Republican agenda.

>> Yeah, I would hope so.

I mean, you always have a few people who fly off on different.

We're directions on on this bill or that.

But at the end of the day, it's the U.S. Senate.

Most everything needs to get 60 votes in order to get done.

And so what you hope is that the Republican stay united enough to KET that together.

One thing I'm watching about the Georgia Senate race, however, is this.

If the Democrats win, will they have enough votes to try to overturn the filibuster in the Senate?

So Senate control may not be on the line, but the future of the legislative filibuster could be.

And if the Democrats win this race of war not goes back, will they go in and try to amend the Senate rules now with Republicans in control, the House, the party still has a block on what the Biden White House might want to do.

But for the future of how the Senate is run, obviously the filibuster debate has been a big deal over the last few years out.

I'm kind of watching to see if the Democrats come for one more time.

We'll hear more from Scott Jennings tomorrow speaking to reporters after today's vote, Senator McConnell said he was proud of how it turned out.

>> The first room, this anybody who wants to run for it and feel free to do so.

so I'm not in any if ended by having an opponent or having a few votes in opposition as everyone we have the opportunity to discuss various differences, people a chance to listen.

Both candidates.

And I'm I'm very proud very 7 to 10.

>> Today's vote was behind closed doors.

Still, some Republican senators have gone on record saying how they voted.

Also this afternoon legislation to protect same sex marriage advance in the Senate test vote.

Senator McConnell voted against the measure.

More on that tomorrow.

Former President Donald Trump announced last night he's running again for president in 2024.

Trump is aiming to become only the second commander-in-chief ever elected to 2 non consecutive terms.

We spoke to and says Marr, a professor at eastern Kentucky University's Department of Government about Trump's 3rd run for the presidency and whether announcing 2 years before the election will help or hurt his campaign.

>> It is unusual for a candidate to announce this early before the 2024 election.

We just completed the mid terms and in fact, we're not completely done yet.

We still have that runoff in Georgia to consider.

So I think a lot of folks that actually hopes that former President Trump would hold back and not announce at this particular time, but he's always been on his own schedule.

And so it doesn't surprise me that he would go forward anyway.

This case strategically speaking.

I think he was trying to.

Less in other people jumping into the fields of sort of lessen the crowd.

It would be willing to challenge him as the former president and somebody still doubtful.

A lot of appeal to a base of voters.

And so I think in jumping in early like this, he was hoping to.

Make some people reconsider whether they actually wanted to one.

We're not in face off against him.

The downside of the strategy, however, is that for a long period of time, he's going to be the only one out there with his name.

And so the tension criticisms critiques are going to be the only on him.

There isn't sort of other people out there may be making speeches or gas or whatever that would lessen some of the focus their attention on any this like we're agar at Donald Trump, particularly after the midterm elections.

So you run that risk and sort of also letting it become stale.

So you're are certain campaign out in 2022, but you have to sustain momentum and excitement about your candidacy that all the way through November of 2024.

And I think that becomes really challenging when you're in so early and then there's going to be a lot of attention.

The history of the other candidates who have little later time, period.

That might be more typically expected.

That's running for the presidency.

According to the Associated Press.

>> Some allies were calling on Trump to delay his announcement until after the runoff election in Georgia.

Time for midweek, political check-in about the news across the Commonwealth with Rylan Barton, managing editor for Kentucky Public Radio and the Ohio Valley Resource Rylan.

Thanks for taking a couple minutes to be with us and we'll dive into some of the biggest news of the week.

Quickly.

The Kentucky Supreme Court heard oral arguments for case that could get or determine abortion access for Kentucky.

Could you break down what this case means and what we learned about the from the oral arguments.

>> Yeah, this is a big deal not only because of the subject matter this is the lawsuit that's against Kentucky's near total ban on abortion.

But it happened just a week after Kentucky voters rejected an amendment to the state constitution which would that amendment was seeking to prevent exactly people are arguing for in this case right here, which is that there is a constitutional right to abortion under the Kentucky Constitution.

So since Kentucky voters rejected that justices seemed a little bit more.

I'm interested in the argument from the plaintiffs in this case from the 2 abortion providers in the state along with the that this is this is this is an important right for people in Kentucky.

They at least seem to be asking some important pointed questions on that and also not being convinced by some of the attorney general's who was defending the states abortion bans in this Really, the attorney general's arguments are that there's no.

Abortion is not included within the state constitution.

It wasn't even contemplated.

What were deliberating this back in 18.

91 the of the when the most recent version of the Kentucky Constitution was ratified that they didn't seem to be too convinced by that argument that, you can't really draw a direct line between justices ask questions during oral arguments and an ultimate ruling, which we're expecting to get within the coming weeks.

>> Rylan, of course, these are about the 2 laws that were recently passed by the General Assembly, the trigger law that would completely ban abortion as well as the six-week what's called the fetal heartbeat bill.

If these 2 laws aren't able to take effect, we have a sense of what that means for abortion access in Kentucky.

>> Yeah, they're actually seem to be some agreement among the attorneys arguing this case and the presiding over the case that Kentucky's 15 week ban on abortion would go in place.

That's actually a law that lawmakers asked just last year which mimics what Mississippi's law was a better?

That appeal all the way to the Supreme Court actually led to this whole new landscape that we're in right now where Legislature's are are the ultimate arbiters of abortion rights across the country.

Kentucky's trying to get on board with that have well easily that that 15 week ban might very well likely be in place at that point.

You know, that is earlier abortion rights protections existed before of the downfall of Roe v Wade, which was the point of fetal viability, which is considered to be around 26 weeks of pregnancy.

So there's still a lot of moving pieces in in Kentucky.

This could be a lot of attention on how the legislature treats this during the next legislative session.

>> We've got news Governor Andy Beshear enacted an executive order this week that would allow medical cannabis in some instances.

Do you get a sense how this will work practically right now?

>> There's still a lot of questions with right now and it's not going to go into effect for a little obviously control the legislature at this point.

They They say that the governor is overstepping his bounds and he shouldn't be allowed to to do this without legislative The sponsor of the medical marijuana bill that has failed time and time again in the Kentucky Legislature came out and said he didn't want the path.

You know this to be the way that cannabis ultimately gets legalized in some way in Kentucky.

So if there's some disagreement here, but there's some politics at work here, too, since this is an overwhelmingly popular issue in Kentucky.

The governor has proposed this and it's you know, kind of daring Republicans you know, sue to block it, which would we'll probably be a pretty on popular in the eyes of a of a lot of people.

You this is a pretty popular issue.

>> Island, the governor took action in part because the medical marijuana bill couldn't make it through the General Assembly to get a sense whether or not it has a better chance in this upcoming legislative session.

You know, I think that this move from this year probably might make that a little bit of a better chance.

>> But it is it It's been hard for Republicans to really rally around this issue.

The big wall here has been in the Senate, which is just kind did a little bit more conservatively on this.

But I think there's a lot of holdouts of among people who figured that it would never pass any way because the bill is just so incredibly restrictive on its face right now that, you know, if if passed, would I think a lot of advocates are saying that it it wouldn't provide the the relief and the opportunity for as many constituents as as the sponsors of this up and say what Rylan.

Thanks for taking a couple minutes to be with us.

Robin Barton, managing editor for Kentucky Public Radio and the Ohio Valley Resource.

>> Thanks, Casey.

Justice Lawrence family, her husband elected as the new chief justice of the Kentucky Supreme Court.

He succeeds Chief Justice John Minton who is retiring on January.

1st Justice Vanmeter was elected to the court in 2016 and he's the 3rd Supreme Court justice to serve debt all 4 levels of the Kentucky Unified Court system.

His four-year term begins January 2nd.

♪ In education, news officials are launching a new program to improve college readiness for Kentucky students.

The Kentucky Department of Education and the Council on post-secondary education are working with a group called one goal.

It's a post-secondary success group.

Kde says 13 public school districts will get professional coaching to ensure equity in post-secondary advising and access those districts are Allen County, Barron County, Christian County, Clark County, Cumberland County, Danville, Independent Harlan in Jenkins, independent Lincoln Ludlow, Monroe and Warren counties and Washington County, the 13 school districts will receive the support for 2 years and at no cost thanks to federal funding enrollment in higher education declined to Kentucky during the COVID-19 pandemic.

♪ ♪ In July.

Flooding across 13 eastern Kentucky counties left thousands of homes destroyed and many people displaced in Breathitt County.

Some people were temporarily relocated and hour and a half away from where they call home.

But now the state is providing travel trailers for people in Jackson in Breathitt County so they can have temporary housing.

Well, they rebuild their homes.

I spoke to some people in Jackson about what it meant to get these travel trailers and to return home.

All means it means everything can world it.

>> I mean, it an answer from God.

You know me because I didn't actually we did not know what we were going to do.

Randy Breuer now has a travel trailer park.

>> That's after staying with his grandson in a tent after they lost their home during July's floods.

The trailer means they can stay in Jackson and his grandson can attend school with friends.

>> Because I really did while leave here.

I like it here.

In a in a no big city.

And we don't have transportation, but everything is right here for us.

>> This park is home to 42 travel trailers that are housing.

People who are displaced from the flooding in Breathitt County.

But even with the people here, ecstatic about the help they've been given.

Some are saying more help is still needed.

>> Everything was gone and be able Baxley have something have a roof over our head, you know, and have something to cook on, have a place to lay my head and sleep at night to bless.

And it really is.

>> Joseph Holland also lost his home.

He and his partner were saying camper with holes in the roof and floor before they got their travel trailer.

It's going take a big miracle in a lot of money.

>> To go there and get people to where they used to be, you know, where they are actually comfortable.

2 were there are actually feel like they're at home again.

The mic on feel human again.

You know.

>> You know, we're making headway by leaps and bounds.

But and then you go realize how much more work is to got to.

Do you think County Judge Executive Jeffrey Noble?

He's glad some people are getting to be closer to home.

>> But he says more needs to be done and that there is more room for travel trailers in the community.

He's afraid of people don't get back soon.

They may never return to breath.

>> I hear a lot of it my kids.

Don't want to go back.

My wife to want to go back.

But when you when you wave order, Nate deepen, look like you're getting retaking last breath.

I could see how they feel that way.

But for now, the people who have got help, we're thankful for.

>> For people to actually come here and recognize us and take time out of their day to actually help us.

It means a lot.

It really does.

>> The 42 trailers now in Jackson, also help people in western Kentucky.

They were used as temporary housing in Mayfield after the tornadoes in December 2021, the trailers made the more than 350 Mile journey to Jackson.

The last ones arriving last week.

♪ ♪ >> In 1972, 3 families came together.

>> To form what would become the point arc of northern Kentucky.

It's an organization dedicated to helping individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities reached their highest potential.

Now, 50 years later, we take a look at how the point park continues to change lives.

>> Our mission is to help individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities to reach their highest potential residential, a socially and the patient.

>> We have residential programming.

We have case management programming.

We have a day program and then we for enterprises within the agency as well as what we want to make sure that we're focused on is providing all of the individuals that we serve with difference is the opportunity to be thriving and society >> your fall term goal it one of the major pieces is preparing individuals with intellectual and or developmental disabilities for transitioning from high school to adulthood.

>> Years ago that many of our wait graduate from high school at age.

21 and go home said they want that they have a complete You know, everybody can go to school the what do we do after school?

One of that, the foundations of the point.

Our was job placement for individuals with intellectual development disabilities to find employment is so important and vital said that's really what we prepare them for.

Right.

So I started with the preview.

Occasional class.

It was helping us with business skills and stuff like be able to run a business and different skills to >> work with life and stuff.

And then this year and moved on to the clerics, patients, you go to it.

>> Different job sites.

See which one?

Its best.

I think it's hog.

That's the best.

>> I really liked going to hark housing opportunities for northern Kentucky because it gave me the vision of, you know.

I really do care about people and I don't like seeing people lives in poverty and staff and homeless.

So we've got to remodel one of the houses for a family.

I mean, we realize that.

That's might be something I want to do.

It was a fun experience and it may be happy to feel like I'm actually making a difference in the world.

So I think I could see myself doing future.

>> Right when it all.

>> Just because you have different abilities to someone else doesn't mean any less human than they are.

>> The individuals that we serve want to be just like anyone else.

They want a job just like anyone else.

They want to be in the community and be a vital part of the community just like anyone else does.

And they deserve that opportunity.

And so we're providing services that just go that extra step that just teach that extra skill to allow them to do that.

You need someone in their advocating for you and to let you know what is available.

It's not how much or how little it everyone doing what they can when they can.

>> That is made the point where we are today.

>> Point arc now serves more than 1400 people annually through its programs and services.

Educational programs include social communication, transition programs and career development.

♪ ♪ >> And liftoff of Artemis One.

We rise together back to the boom and John.

>> That was Artemis one successfully launching at one 50 this morning.

The launch was rescheduled several times due to technical issues and weather conditions.

But this is a moon mission with Kentucky ties.

The payload includes a satellite worked on at Morehead State University.

It will look for water on the moon water that would be used by future space Station.

Horse racing in over the top outfits have always been intertwined.

But what if it were the horses who were dressed to impress?

We'll introduce you to a Lexington man who designs custom sneakers for race horses.

That's coming up tomorrow on Kentucky EDITION.

We hope you'll join us again tomorrow night at 6.30, Eastern 5.30, central for Kentucky Edition or we inform connect and inspire subscribe to our weekly Kentucky Edition email newsletter and watch full episodes and clips a K E T Dot Org.

You can also find Kentucky Edition on the PBS video app on your mobile device and smart TV.

>> And follow KET on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to stay in the loop.

Thank you for joining us.

Have a good night and take care.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪