Politics

Bellarmine University will host a debate for voters in the Metro Council 8th District featuring Republican challenger Kirt Jacobs and Democratic incumbent Tom Owen.

Owen is a three-term councilman and his seat is being challenged by Jacobs in the upcoming election. Jacobs is a local businessman who hosts "Leadership Landscape" a weekly one-on-one interview program.

Earlier this year, observers speculated that the 72-year-old Owen might retire and not seek re-election, but the longtime city lawmakers says he is committed to serving a full term and though he has won previous races by wide margins, he is taking this year’s election seriously.

"You would know by my current jitters that I am neither complacent about my request for the voters to send me for an additional term nor am I in anyway blasé or arrogant just presuming victory," he says.

Kentucky’s Blue Ribbon Tax Commission has spent months learning how the state’s tax system works, and is now beginning to hammer out proposals to reform the state’s tax code.

The commission met again today in Frankfort to hear some final reports from the Beshear administration on how Kentucky’s current revenue systems work.

State representative and commission member Jim Wayne says the reports served as another reminder of how far behind Kentucky has fallen.

Former Republican presidential candidate and Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee will be in Louisville this week to headline a fundraiser for state House GOP candidates.

In Kentucky’s history, the GOP has held the majority in the state House for only four years and just briefly in the 1920s. This November, Republicans need to win 10 seats to gain control of the House from the Democrats, who hold a 59-to-41 majority.

Last month, House GOP leaders unveiled their platform, which includes reforming the state tax code, cutting Medicaid spending and requiring each bill be read before a vote.

Republican Caucus spokesman Joe Burgan says Huckabee’s appearance demonstrates how serious the GOP is about winning this fall.

"It really speaks to the opportunity that Republicans have this fall," he says. "The governor is coming to town because he realizes for the first time in 91 years we have the chance to take the state House and set a new course for Kentucky."

President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney are preparing for their first debate this week, and observers are eager to see if it will impact the race.

Both campaigns have been complimentary of each other and are trying to lower expectations before the televised debate in Denver, Colorado on Wednesday in order to gain an advantage going in. But experts agree that stakes are higher for Romney, who trails the president according to most polls in battleground states.

Tiffany Dillard-Knox is acting director of the University of Louisville debate team. She says people are excited to watch the first presidential debate, but that the forums are becoming more of a liability.

"I think the debates more likely can make you lose a candidacy more so than win one. You can say the wrong things. I don’t think people are really listening for the right things anymore. But I think people are taking into consideration when the candidates are saying the wrong things," she says.

During a televised debate with Democratic opponent Elizabeth Warren, U.S. Sen. Scott Brown, R-Ma., voiced his displeasure with Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and said he's undecided on voting for him to lead the GOP caucus.

President Obama is leading in Massachusetts by at least 30 points, and Brown is stressing his role as a moderate Republican with a bipartisan record. Asked if he'd support McConnell next year, Brown said he was undecided and voiced disgust with Congress.

Watch (h/t LEO Weekly):