Kentucky
Kentucky Senate president spends first three days of session complaining about local news media
For three straight days, Kentucky state Senate President Robert Stivers (R-Manchester) has chastised local news media for being negative about the state’s upper chamber.
Stivers called reporters a “dying breed” on Tuesday for “trying to create division in the state.”
Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers II (R-Manchester) appears to threaten local news media that report on disagreements in the chamber.
“Some of you are a dying breed; only you’re reporting that which is negative and divisive and trying to create division in the state.” pic.twitter.com/OjmsBc7tLK
— Heartland Signal (@HeartlandSignal) January 7, 2025
Stivers, who shot down giving teachers raises and implementing universal Pre-K last Saturday, has been the president of the Kentucky Senate since 2013.
Last October, Stivers gave a lengthy statement defending the Electoral College after Gov. Andy Beshear (D) called for repealing the mostly unpopular system. Stivers called the electoral college, a “vital pillar of our Republic” and that “we [Kentucky GOP] reject any attempt to dismantle it.”
After Gov. Andy Beshear (D) took office in 2020, Stivers and other Senate Republicans filed legislation to strip power away from the governor’s office. The Kentucky GOP has also repealed many of Beshear’s vetoes in the past and been heavily critical of his positions.
The Kentucky Senate will be in session for 30 days in 2025. The Kentucky GOP has filed bills requiring public schools to display the Ten Commandments, crack down the release of too many balloons and repeal Beshear’s conversion therapy ban for minors.