Phillip M. Bailey

Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner James Comer is the only Republican serving as a constitutional officer in state government, and is frequently mentioned as a future gubernatorial candidate.

Comer was elected to office with the highest number of votes among any candidate running in last year’s statewide election and he arrived at the agriculture department promising a new, bipartisan direction.

The former state representative immediately partnered with State Auditor Adam Edelen to address a growing scandal left by his predecessor—former University of Kentucky basketball star Richie Farmer—who is now reportedly being investigated by the FBI.

A producer with MSNBC's award-winning prison documentary series "Lockup" says Louisville Metro Corrections Director Mark Bolton made inaccurate statements about the city’s contract with the cable news network.

The series began filming at the city jail earlier this year, and its season debut Saturday will feature footage from the corrections department. Bolton told WFPL in a telephone interview that Metro Corrections was given final edit approval and that his department had received $20,000 from the show for leadership development.

But MSNBC spokeswoman Wessie Vieria says Bolton’s claims are not true, and the cable network never gave Metro Corrections the rights to final editorial control of the show’s content.

"MSNBC does not ever give any editorial control to the people who appear in the stories and it was not different in this case. MSNBC and NBC News have final editorial control over every episode of Lockup and that is very, very clearly stated in our agreements with the jails and the prison," she says.

Green Party vice presidential candidate Cheri Honkala has been touring Kentucky this week to draw attention to issues that are not being discussed in the campaign as well as speak out against the debate at Centre College.

Several demonstrations were held before the debate in Danville, Ky. on Thursday, including rallies to draw attention to access while others addressed issues of poverty and austerity measures. The Presidential Debate Commission barred Honkala and other third party candidates from participating alongside Vice President Joe Biden and Republican Congressman Paul Ryan.

The commissions rules dictate that in order for third party candidates to be included they must poll at least 15 percent among registered voters.

Honkala says the commission is the problem and should include more perspectives so that all Americans can have their views represented.

"I was outraged when I found out that myself and (running mate) Dr. Jill Stein have not been allowed into the debates, especially because we worked really hard to get on the ballot in about 38 states and 85 percent is eligible to vote for us," she says.

Even though the candidates for vice president met at Centre College in Danville for their debate Thursday night, Kentucky issues such as coal and the auto industry weren’t heavily addressed.

Kentucky is affected by many of the national issues that were discussed, but Vice President Joe Biden and Congressman Paul Ryan had little to say on topics specific to the commonwealth, such as coal and the auto industry.

MSNBC's award-winning prison documentary series "Lockup" is making its season premiere this Saturday with footage from the Louisville Metro Corrections Jail.

The series began filming at the city facility earlier this year, and features repeat offender Brian Voltz along with local inmates discussing their workout routines. The show is a ratings magnet for the cable news network that highlights sometimes violent footage of inmates in maximum security state prisons.

Metro Corrections Director Mark Bolton says the show’s producers approached the department to see if they were interested, but that his staff urged him to participate.

"What I did is I engaged our entire staff and I put it out to a vote to them," he says. "And overwhelmingly they came back and said 'yeah, this might be an opportunity for us to showcase what we do and show the country a little bit about Louisville Metro and how we do things.'"

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Kentucky leads the country in Google searches for the legalization of marijuana, according to a list of political issues put out by the technology company.

Google went through a year of online searches to find out which states look at what topics more than others. For instance, Montana led searches in gun control while Florida looked up Social Security more than any other state.

From The Fix:

The biggest surprise for us? Kentucky is the state where searches for legalization of marijuana are highest. Yes, Kentucky. One possible explanation: There is an effort to pass a law legalizing medicinal marijuana in the state, which could generate some search interest.

In Kentucky's Third Congressional District race, Democratic incumbent John Yarmuth and Republican challenger Brooks Wicker met for an in-depth debate on WFPL.

The two candidates are scheduled to make a number of appearances this week for voters to contrast their differing views, but this was the first publicly broadcasted forum where they discussed the Affordable Care Act, economy and looming fiscal cliff.

Former U.S. Ambassador to Latvia Cathy Bailey is considering a run for Kentucky governor.

Bailey has been a chief fundraiser for Kentucky Republicans since leaving her post.

She told Pure Politics' Ryan Alessi in an interview that she is flattered that her name is among the rumored candidates, but she wants to get past the presidential race and Sen. Mitch McConnell's re-election first.

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An analysis by The Washington Post shows U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth, D-Ky., has supported a number of bills that benefit the home health care industry, which the three-term Congressman has a $5 million investment in through his brother's business.

The article looks at several members of Congress who have either sponsored or co-sponsored legislation that could personally benefit themselves or a family members's businesses. It goes through financial disclosure forms and other public records, and questions whether more reforms are needed.

Yarmuth’s brother owns Almost Family, a home health care business that provides nursing, rehabilitation and other personal care services. The newspaper reports that Yarmuth, who is a shareholder, did seek an opinion from the ethics committee on whether he could vote on bills relating to the industry when he took office in 2007.

But a trade group representing home health care businesses has lobbied on five bills Yarmuth has co-sponsored.

From The Washington Post:

In office, Yarmuth joined the congressional Home Health Caucus, a group of two dozen lawmakers that promotes the value of in-home health care.

The first presidential debate is behind us, and observers are still digesting how President Barack Obama and Republican nominee Mitt Romney performed.

It was a much anticipated discussion that about 67 million Americans watched, but surprisingly both Mr. Obama's critics and supporters agreed that the president gave a lackluster performance.

Romney was more aggressive and forceful, and this could be the turning point his campaign needs less than five weeks until Election Day. For many, this puts added pressure on Vice President Joe Biden in his debate against Congressman Paul Ryan on Thursday in Danville, Ky.

But the president's supporters point out that while Romney may have won the style of the debate his facts do not add up on a number of his assertions.

I talked to political commentator Stacy Brooks and Louisville Young Republicans Chairman James Young about the debate, Mr. Obama's performance and where the election is headed.