Politics
Trump shakes up Kentucky Senate race with endorsement of Rep. Andy Barr
President Donald Trump endorsed a Republican congressmember to replace Sen. Mitch McConnell while rejecting a self-styled MAGA candidate with backing from Elon Musk.
Trump announced his support Friday for Rep. Andy Barr in the Kentucky Republican primary, shortly after he said he asked businessperson Nate Morris to drop out of the race and take an unspecified role in the Trump administration.
The endorsement gives Barr a massive boost to win the GOP nomination over former Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron in the deep-red state.
“I know Andy well, and he is always a Vote we can count on because he knows what it takes to GET THINGS DONE and, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” Trump said on social media.
Trump said he asked Morris to serve as an ambassador but did not specify the exact diplomatic post, while praising him as a “strong MAGA Warrior.”
“Nate is Oxford educated, tough as nails, LOVES our Great Nation, and will represent the United States very well, overseas, or otherwise,” Trump said.
Morris endorsed Barr in a social media post, and called on “all Kentuckians to rally behind our next Senator.”
Morris has self-financed his campaign to stay financially competitive with Barr. But he did receive a significant investment from Elon Musk, who dropped $10 million into his campaign, according to federal campaign finance records from earlier this year.
The primary had been defined by Barr, Cameron and Morris seeking to distance themselves from McConnell, the lion of the Kentucky GOP who has grown into a Trump adversary and condemned the president for the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
That maneuvering away from McConnell speaks to the power of Trump’s endorsement in the state, Kentucky Republican strategist Tres Watson said. He noted that Cameron will be familiar with the gift Trump has given Barr — Cameron won the GOP primary for governor in 2023 after getting Trump’s backing.
“It’s all over but the shouting,” Watson said. “Donald Trump’s endorsement effectively ends this campaign and Andy Barr can begin to turn his attention to the general election.”
Barr’s allies celebrated Trump’s endorsement. Former Kentucky Senate Majority Leader Damon Thayer said it shows that Barr has run a “perfect race” thus far.
“I’m pleased that President Trump has endorsed Andy Barr,” Thayer said. “He likes to support winners and it’s been clear right from the start that Andy has what it takes to win the primary and the general and hold the seat for Republicans.”
Daniel Desrochers contributed to this report.
Spencer Cox: America’s political divide is destroying families and friendships
lead image
The Shaheen political dynasty lives on in New Hampshire.
Stefany Shaheen, the eldest daughter of Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), won Tuesday’s hotly contested Democratic primary for the state’s 1st District, defeating Maura Sullivan and a host of other rivals despite facing attacks that she was leaning on her well-known surname.
The seat, left open by Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas when he opted to run for Senate, is considered to be fairly competitive for the general election — former Vice President Kamala Harris won it by just two points in 2024.
Shaheen attempted to create distance from her mother throughout her campaign, rebuking the deal the senator helped broker to end last fall’s government shutdown and leaning into her public service in Portsmouth and medical-research advocacy on the trail.
Still, her family name helped her build an early polling lead and bank financial support.
Nearly $740,000 raised by Shaheen’s campaign came from donors who had previously given to her mother — 39 percent of total itemized campaign dollars, according to a Blue Light News analysis. One of those donors told Blue Light News the senator reached out last fall seeking their support for her daughter.
Sullivan, Shaheen’s main rival, attempted to weaponize the scion’s family ties in a year where the Democratic base has repeatedly spurned candidates with a perceived connection to the establishment.
The primary grew acrimonious in its closing weeks as Shaheen and Sullivan tangled over campaign donations and aired attack ads as polls showed a tightening race. The contest also underwent a rapid winnowing toward the end as two candidates dropped out; one, progressive Christian Urrutia, endorsed Shaheen.
A ruling from the Supreme Court on Tuesday means Missouri voters will likely go to the polls this fall under the same congressional map used two years ago, not one Republican state lawmakers adopted to try to pick up an additional House seat for the GOP.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh turned down a Republican-backed emergency appeal that sought to block a Missouri Supreme Court ruling last week restoring earlier district lines and ordering voters to weigh in on the redistricting plan in November for use in future elections.
Kavanaugh issued the ruling because he handles urgent matters arising in the 8th Circuit, which includes Missouri. Kavanaugh issued no explanation of his decision, nor did he indicate that he referred the matter to the full court, as is customary in significant cases. Missouri officials could ask another justice for relief, but such requests are almost never granted.
The justices rarely disturb state courts’ decisions about matters like the referendum petitions in Missouri that sought to put the redistricting before voters for approval.
However, lawyers for Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins warned the Supreme Court that the state faced “disaster” and “unprecedented chaos” in part because primaries already took place under the new lines last month.
Democrats argued any last-minute chaos to Missouri’s election administration was intentionally created by Hoskins, pointing to Republican leaders in the state arguing that delaying the decision on the redistricting referendum would benefit Republicans.
President Donald Trump denounced the state supreme court ruling last week.
“The Election Process, as usual, is being disturbed in America!” he wrotein a post on Truth Social. “Missouri must be able to use the map that was in effect just a couple of months ago, in the Primary. This is a Dark Day for “Justice” in Missouri!”
- Jim Jordan says he will relinquish Judiciary gavel, pass on a return to Oversight
- Bobby Scott defends his track record amid fight to keep committee post
- Sanders to host AI briefing for senators
- Cruz says guardrails needed after dire AI warning
- Key oil benchmark tops $100 a barrel for first time since July, as midterms loom
- Lawmakers urge Congress to act after AI researcher’s dire warning
- ‘No good options’: GOP’s midterm hopes suffer under energy inflation
- Capitol agenda: Will Schumer go long for college sports?
- Spencer Cox: America’s political divide is destroying families and friendships
- Louisiana’s abortion pill case could wipe out access in blue states
-
Politics2 years agoFormer ‘Squad’ members launching ‘Bowman and Bush’ YouTube show
-
Uncategorized2 years ago
Bob Good to step down as Freedom Caucus chair this week
-
Politics2 years agoFormer Kentucky AG Daniel Cameron launches Senate bid
-
The Josh Fourrier Show2 years agoDOOMSDAY: Trump won, now what?
-
The Dictatorship2 years agoLuigi Mangione acknowledges public support in first official statement since arrest
-
The Dictatorship2 years agoPete Hegseth’s tenure at the Pentagon goes from bad to worse
-
Politics2 years agoBlue Light News’s Editorial Director Ryan Hutchins speaks at Blue Light News’s 2025 Governors Summit
-
The Dictatorship12 months agoMike Johnson sums up the GOP’s arrogant position on military occupation with two words