Restore state’s leadership

National politics and politicians in Kentucky, with the rare exception, prefer to take the back bench and go along with the mainstream consensus. That explains how only one, and sometimes another, of our elected federal officials walk outside the rank-and-file to lead.

Kentucky is not a backbench state, Kentuckians are not backbench people, and Kentuckians will one day soon, again, lead our nation.

U.S. Rep. Andy Barr is one of these rank-and-file politicians going to Washington to fight, but not for you or me. He prefers, instead, to blindly follow those at the top. He prefers to take orders. He prefers to succumb to politics and to worry more about re-election than improving the lives of his constituents. A more perfect candidate can surely be found.

This isn’t right versus left, Democrat versus Republican, rich versus poor, sick versus healthy. There is no Red America or Blue America, there is only the United States of America, and Kentucky’s great motto rings more true today than ever before — “United We Stand, Divided We Fall.”

A Kentucky divided against itself cannot stand. Join me and other Kentuckians in removing the roadblocks to a brighter future on Nov. 6, 2018.

This story was originally published June 29, 2017 at 5:47 PM with the headline "Restore state’s leadership."