News

Louisville Gas and Electric Company says a downed wire in the East Market Street area caused about 1,900 customers to lose power late this morning.

A spokeswoman says service had been restored to all but about 77 affected customers, with the rest expected to be back online by early afternoon.   

Republican incumbent Todd Young has agreed to participate in two debates in Indiana’s Ninth Congressional District race, but Democratic challenger Shelli Yoder wants more forums.

The debates will be held at Franklin College in Johnson County and O'Bannon Publishing in Harrison County, but the Yoder campaign alleges Young is ignoring the need for additional debates in populated areas.

Last month, Yoder called for 13 debates in each county across the southern Indiana district.

Yoder campaign manager Katie Carlson says Young sought seven debates when he ran against then-Congressman Baron Hill two years ago, and that the negotiations are ongoing.

"We have not reached an agreement on the number of debates. We believe that more debates are necessary to give voters of the Ninth District an opportunity to hear from both of their candidates for Congress and an opportunity to discuss issues that are most important to them," she says.

Louisville Gas and Electric Company crews are working to restore power to about 1,900 customers in an area that includes the Clifton neighborhood and sections of East Main and Market streets downtown.

A company spokeswoman says all customers should have their power restored by 2:00pm.

The cause of the outage, which occurred last this morning, is under investigation.

Boxing legend and Louisville native Muhammad Ali will be presented with the 2012 Liberty Medal at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia Thursday night.

The award honors individuals of courage and conviction who strive to represent liberty to people around the world.

Seeking a sixth term, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell has hired a Tea Party strategist who led campaigns for fellow Kentucky Senator Rand Paul and Texas Congressman Ron Paul.

McConnell announced he hired Jesse Benton as his campaign manager for re-election on Thursday despite having no primary or general election opponent. Benton led Congressman Ron Paul's presidential primary race and worked for Rand Paul's Senate bid as well.

"We’re committed to running a presidential-level campaign in Kentucky, and that starts with a presidential campaign manager," McConnell told The Washington Post. "Jesse is literally the best in the business at building and organizing conservative grassroots movements, and I’m thrilled he’s chosen to return to Kentucky to lead my campaign."

Environmental activists are gathering in Washington D.C. today for an anti-mountaintop removal rally.

University of Louisville President James Ramsey says his institution and higher education in general face an uncertain future as long as government funding continues to be slashed.

Ramsey delivered his annual State of the University address today.

He says while U of L has seen growth over the past year at its Belknap, Shelby and Health Sciences campuses, there have been some setbacks, including another cut in state funding that forced a tuition increase.

The capitals of Kentucky and Indiana are among five cities chosen to receive assistance in green design from the Environmental Protection Agency through the agency’s Greening America’s Capitals program.

The touring production of the Broadway hit “Wicked” previews today and opens Thursday evening at the Kentucky Center. The Tony and Grammy Award-winning musical depicts "The Wizard of Oz" characters Elphaba (the Wicked Witch of the West) and Glinda the Good as schoolgirls in an oppressive political regime.

Performances of “Wicked” often sell out, but a limited number of steeply discounted orchestra-level tickets will be placed on sale the day of each performance.

Congressman John Yarmuth, D-Ky., is slamming Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney for his hasty comments during the attack on the U.S. Consulate in Libya.

The raid of the consulate was allegedly sparked by an American video mocking Islam's founding prophet and resulted in the death of Ambassador Chris Stevens and three others.

In a campaign statement released before the killing, Romney accused the Obama administration of sympathizing with protestors who attacked the consulate. The GOP nominee's remarks were referring to a statement from the U.S. embassy in Egypt, which condemned the anti-Islam video.

Yarmuth says the death of the four U.S. diplomats is disturbing and underscores the volatility of the Middle East, but that Romney’s rush to judgment shows the GOP nominee is intemperate.

"Governor Romney’s initial reaction, an instinct to turn a tragedy into a political opportunity is despicable and disqualifies him to serve as President of the United States," he says.