Noise & Notes

Kentucky Democrat Jack Conway is the second hottest attorney general in the country, according to BuzzFeed. 

How did this arbitrary and meaningless satirical list even come up, one may ask.

Well The Washington Post reported on Thursday President Obama diverged from his prepared remarks at fundraiser to praise California Attorney General Kamala Harris.

The president said: "She’s brilliant and she’s dedicated, she’s tough. She also happens to be, by far, the best looking attorney general."

"It’s true! C’mon," Obama added.

Not so, says the online news outlet that is known for viral cat videos as much as political reporting.

A Kentucky-based Republican operative is launching a new super PAC that observers expect will help Senator Mitch McConnell in the 2014 U.S. Senate race.

GOP strategist Scott Jennings is a former Karl Rove deputy who worked as a campaign aide for McConnell before running Mitt Romney's 2012 presidential campaign in Ohio. He now serves as a chief adviser to Kentuckians For Strong Leadership, which is listed to make unlimited outside expenditures in federal races.

From Politico:

"Kentucky’s a battleground, in some ways, to keep conservative leadership in Washington," Jennings told POLITICO

Republican Senator Rand Paul will speak at one of the country’s oldest historically black colleges as he seeks to reach out to African-American voters, and some Louisville leaders say that's a good sign.

Paul is scheduled to address students at Howard University in Washington, D.C. next Wednesday where Kentucky's junior senator is expected to talk about school choice and changing federal mandatory minimum sentencing laws.

The senator’s remarks will also focus on how the GOP and black history intertwine, and marks another sign Paul is earnest in his attempts to seek out minorities ahead of his potential presidential bid.

"It's important that the Republican Party to talk to everybody," says Paul spokesman Dan Bayens. "And I'm not sure that we've been doing that, especially recently. No matter who the group is let's go and have a conversation with them."

Paul is becoming a force in the GOP that has rocked the establishment of both parties in an unexpected way. National polls show Paul is at the top rumored 2016 Republican presidential candidates, coming in at either second in the still too early to predict GOP primary field. 

Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer is preparing to announce whether he will seek a second term or not.

In December, Fischer balked at questions on running for re-election in 2014. At the time, there were rumors he was considering a bid for Kentucky's U.S. Senate seat held by Republican Leader Mitch McConnell.

Fischer told WFPL earlier this year he wasn’t interested in challenging McConnell and was leaning towards running for a second term as mayor. He initially said a decision would be announced this summer, but now he says he’s moved the announcement up to this month.

"We’ll be making an announcement on that sometime in April, but I’m in the final stages of making that decision," he says.

U.S. Senator Joe Donnelly of Indiana is one of eight Democrats being encouraged to support gay marriage in a petition being touted by MoveOn.org.

The activist group points out the "last eight" have yet to come out in support the marriage equality for all couples.

Earlier this week, Democratic Senator Bob Casey of Pennsylvania announced his support for gay marriage "after much deliberation."

MoveOn is circulating a number of petitions targeting Democratic senators from Arkansas, Florida, West Virginia, South Dakota, North Dakota, Louisiana and Delaware over the issue.

"Fifty-four percent of Hoosiers oppose a ban on gay marriage," says Indiana MoveOn member Edward Cherlin, who started the Donnelly petition. "We need you to stand up publicly to the bullies and bigots along with the majority of Hoosiers in support of our friends, neighbors, co-workers, and families."

Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer is encouraging citizens and businesses to brandish Cardinal red ahead of the Final Four this weekend.

The mayor declared Friday is Cardinal Red Day to celebrate the University of Louisville men's and women's college basketball teams making it to the Final Four in their respective NCAA tournaments.

The men's team is scheduled to play in Atlanta on Saturday, and the women's team will be in New Orleans on Sunday.

"I want to paint the town red—literally," Fischer said in a news release. "It’s been an amazing, and lately very emotional, season for the Cards—both the men and the women—and we want the whole city to get behind them in their quest for national titles in Atlanta and New Orleans."

A liberal group is launching a petition asking the NCAA be required to provide universal health care for student athletes in the wake of a shocking leg injury to Louisville men's basketball player Kevin Ware.

Ware suffered a compound fracture of his right leg on Sunday during the Cardinals's game against Duke in the Elite Eight.

The Progressive Change Campaign Committee points out the NCAA makes $780 million per year off college athletes, but does not guarantee full payment of medical bills for injuries.

Louisville’s basketball program is also the most profitable in the country, raking in $40 million in revenue annually with a projected $23 to $28 million in profit.

The Ware injury has gained national media attention, but is has also put the spotlight on how college athletes aren't protected and universities aren't legally obligated to take care of players once they're hurt.

From The New York Times:

University officials say they go out of their way to inform students about the limits of insurance. Yet the situation has confused and frustrated athletes and their families, some of whom have had to shoulder large and unexpected medical bills.

Under a new proposal, Louisville Metro Government would bill neighborhood groups approximately $3,000 to hold zoning hearings in their affected communities.

The Metro Planning Commission often holds special meetings at neighborhood venues in the evenings when residents and developers clash over controversial new projects or developments.

But city officials says rising costs for things such as a court reporter, recording equipment and security are harder to pay for in lean budget times.

"We've gotten to the point where in the past couple of years our budget has gone down quite a bit," says Metro Planning and Design Services Director Phil Bills. "And a lot of places we go to are not convenient for video or audio recording. In our downtown location we have that equipment, but when we go out we have to hire a court reporter and that's up to $1,500 alone."

The idea was discussed briefly at the Metro Planning Commission last Friday, and the proposal has been tabled.

Attorney Stephen Porter represents OPEN Louisville and other preservationist groups in zoning cases. He says neighborhood leaders object to the idea because it burdens residents and favors developers

Former Kentucky treasurer Jonathan Miller is blaming fellow state Democrats for helping push actress Ashley Judd out of the upcoming U.S. Senate race.

Judd announced last week she is declining to run against Republican Mitch McConnell in 2014, citing a need to focus on family. The speculation on other reasons why Judd isn't making a bid are plentiful, but supporters are speaking up.

In an editorial, Miller says a "dizzying blur of false testimony" promoted by a handful of Democratic consultants and strategists in national stories was part of the reason Judd declined.

From The Daily Beast:

While many may legitimately believe that (Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan) Grimes is the better candidate, many of those who have been quoted impugning Judd, or have done so on background, also have personal motives: some stand to profit from a Grimes campaign, some may have been trying to redress perceived “disses” by the actress, and some may be aiming to keep Grimes out of the 2015 gubernatorial race, where she could undermine their preferred candidates.

Stop ignoring the West End!

At least that’s the message from a recent Louisville Magazine cover story about the nine neighborhoods encompassing west Louisville.

The 38-page exposé tells the community's history, and also outlined the current disparities in income, property values and education levels. Many know anecdotally about the so-called Ninth Street Divide, but the stark realities when compared to the East End is eye-opening.

Statistics show residents in east Louisville make three times more and seven times as many have a bachelor's degree or higher than their West End counterparts.

It's a bleak picture of the predominately African-American part of the city, which is increasingly isolated.