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(OpEd By U.S. Senator Rand Paul) After President Donald Trump nominated Judge Amy Coney Barrett, who currently sits on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, I said I believed Judge Barrett would make an excellent justice that would serve our country and Constitution well. Since then, I’ve continued to be truly impressed by Judge Barrett, and after meeting with her this past week, I am proud to reaffirm my position and give her my full support. During our meeting, I enjoyed hearing from her directly about her judicial philosophy — a careful, impartial, and grounded approach to the law that is exactly what we need on...

A regional brand now identifies the 41 counties of southern and eastern Kentucky as an enticing tourist destination: The Kentucky Wildlands. The Kentucky Wildlands is a regional tourism marketing initiative that showcases the region’s majestic beauty and rich heritage with the goal of driving economic development. Components of the initiative will include a media campaign, hospitality education, itinerary development and entrepreneur training. The initiative was launched by Eastern Kentucky PRIDE, Inc. Known as PRIDE, the nonprofit organization has spearheaded environmental education and cleanup across the region since 1997, with the ultimate goal of uncovering the scenic area’s tourism potential. The Kentucky Wildlands initiative is funded by grants from the Appalachian Regional...

A defense attorney recently asked a judge for access to a defendant’s psychological evaluation, but the evaluation he is wanting isn’t for his client. Thomas Earl Reynolds III, 31, of Apopka, Florida, is accused of shooting at police during a high-speed chase in a stolen vehicle in 2017 that went from Williamsburg to Corbin and then back to Williamsburg before it finally ended. In January 2018, a Whitley County Grand Jury indicted Reynolds on charges of criminal attempt to commit murder, two counts of first-degree wanton endangerment, possession of a handgun by a convicted felon, receiving stolen property over $10,000, receiving stolen property-handgun, first-degree fleeing or evading police, operating a motor...

(Story By Jeff Ledington, The Mountain Advocate) Lt. Col Amy McGrath is a Kentucky native and veteran of three combat tours. She says she wants to go to Washington “for Kentucky, not big interests.” McGrath has pulled in record fundraising halls and touted that she’s received donations from every county in the state. “I’m a Kentuckian, I was raised here and left home at the age of 18 to join the military,” McGrath said of her Kentucky roots. After a two decade career, she and her husband, a Navy veteran and a Republican, moved their family back to the bluegrass. “I’m running because we need better leaders in Kentucky,” she stated....

(Story By Jeff Ledington, The Mountain Advocate) A retired Lieutenant Colonel, teacher, and farmer is aiming to unseat Kentucky’s senior senator. He says “What’s happening in Washington is really on one man, and that’s Mitch McConnell.” Lt. Col. Mike Broihier served over 20 years in the Marine Corps in both war and peace time. He retired after serving as lead war planner in Korea and went on to become an adjunct faculty member at the University of California. He has served as a substitute teacher in Lincoln County schools and worked in newspapers for five years. 10 years ago, Broihier and his wife, also a combat veteran, started what is now...

(Story By Jeff Ledington, The Mountain Advocate) State Representative Charles Booker of the 41st district is looking to win the Democrat nomination for the United States Senate. A lifelong resident of Louisville, Booker wants to take on Mitch McConnell, a man elected to office two weeks before he was born. Booker represents a portion of Jefferson county that includes the state’s poorest zip code. The son of two ministers, Booker believes hard working Kentuckians need leaders that “see us, that listen to us.” Before being elected to the state house in 2018, he served as Director of Personnel and Administrative Services for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife. Booker has worked...

(Story By Jeff Ledington, The Mountain Advocate) Senator Mitch McConnell has been in office since 1985 and has been Senate Majority Leader since 2015. Born in Alabama, McConnell graduated from the University of Louisville and later the University of Kentucky College of Law. He served as Judge Executive for Jefferson County before being elected to the senate. McConnell took some time to answer written questions from the Mountain Advocate. Eastern Kentucky has been hit hard by job losses and the continued decline of coal. How have you addressed this in your most recent term and how will you if re-elected? I’ve worked closely with local leaders to help our mountain...

(Story by Jeff Ledington, The Mountain Advocate) Eastern Kentucky native and businessman C Wesley Morgan is looking to unseat Mitch McConnell in Kentucky’s Republican Primary. Morgan holds political science and accounting degrees from Cumberland College, now the University of the Cumberlands, and Eastern Kentucky University. He would go on to work as an investigator for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms as well as serving on the Secret Service. Today he operates several retail stores and has designed custom retail software used nationwide. Morgan has called out McConnell’s voting record on things like gun control, supreme court picks, and media matters; calling it “disgusting.” Morgan maintains a list of McConnell’s voting...

When homeless youth staying at Ryan’s Place, a local safe haven in Barbourville, were asked what they wanted most at the shelter, they said, “We would like some games to play together.” Jessi Montgomery, the fund development manager for Ryan’s Place and a graduate from Cumberlands who was finishing her MBA through the University at the time, was stunned. She’d been discussing the shelter’s funding needs with other staff and was trying to narrow down what Ryan’s Place needed most by asking the residents themselves. She didn’t expect games to be at the top of their list. “These young adults have nothing, yet their only request was something to share with...

When it comes to property tax rates, there is some bad news and some good news for Whitley County property owners regarding their upcoming property tax bill this year or at least the portion of it that goes to the Whitley County Board of Health. First the bad news. During its regular quarterly meeting Monday evening, the Whitley County Board of Health, which oversees the Whitley County Health Department, voted to increase the property tax rate from 4 cents per $100 of assessment to 5 cents per $100 of assessment, or a 25 percent increase, on the upcoming property tax bills. Now the good news. The board declined to increase the rate to...