Jefferson County, Kentucky

Republican Austin Rogers and Democrat Amanda Green, competing to succeed retiring U.S. Rep. Neal Dunn in Florida's 2nd Congressional District, will hold their only Leon County forum Oct. 27 at a Tallahassee business luncheon. Rogers, a former aide to Sen. Rick Scott, has Trump's endorsement, broad business backing and a large fundraising lead. Green, a development-sector operations director, has endorsements from former Rep. Allen Boyd, Blue Dog PAC and the Alliance for Retired Americans, and is courting farmers and independents frustrated with trade policy and rising costs. The GOP has held the seat 14 of the last 16 years; forecasters including Decision Desk HQ and Cook Political Report favor Rogers heavily.

Sen. Mitch McConnell continued his return to the Senate this week, casting his first vote in more than three months on Monday after a five-week recess and appearing again Tuesday, when he voted to advance cryptocurrency legislation known as the Clarity Act. The Kentucky Republican, 84, had been out of public view since being hospitalized June 14 following a fall and a slight case of pneumonia, later moving to a rehabilitation center before being discharged August 6 to continue recovery and physical therapy at home. He has been seen being pushed onto the floor in a wheelchair.

Reaction has split along party lines. Kentucky Republicans, including Senate President Robert Stivers, praised McConnell's dedication and wished him well. Democrats, including Gov. Andy Beshear and Rep. Morgan McGarvey, welcomed his return but renewed calls for greater transparency about his health and absence.

McConnell has said his recovery has been "long and often frustrating," compounded by lingering effects of childhood polio, and that he is not yet back to full strength. He has assured Majority Leader John Thune he will keep up physical therapy and attend key votes, including a stalled farm bill in committee and looming government funding deadlines before the fiscal year ends September 30.

Jefferson County Public Schools (Jeffco) in Colorado has sued the Trump administration after federal officials threatened to cut $50 million in funding over the district's transgender-inclusive policies. Interim Superintendent Rob Stein says complying would violate Colorado's state anti-discrimination law, which protects transgender students, leaving the district caught between conflicting state and federal mandates.

The Education Department claims Jeffco violated Title IX by letting students use facilities and join sports teams based on gender identity, citing a disputed figure of 61 boys on girls' teams that the district says actually refers to managers, mascots, and a shared coaching roster. The case, one of more than five dozen similar federal investigations nationwide, has drawn in high-profile figures including Justice Department civil rights lawyer Harmeet Dhillon and law firm led by former special counsel Jack Smith, now representing Jeffco and other targeted districts. The dispute highlights broader tension between Trump's executive orders on gender and sex and state-level protections, with advocates calling Jeffco's legal pushback a rare exception to widespread institutional compliance.

Former Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin was arrested by the Bourbon County Sheriff's Office while working as a featured extra on a Christmas movie set at a horse farm in Paris, Kentucky, after a tip alerted deputies to his location. He was booked into a local detention center before being transferred to the Louisville Metro Detention Center on a charge tied to a Jefferson Family Court contempt order. He later appeared in court in an orange jumpsuit and handcuffs.

Judge Angela Johnson ruled Bevin must serve the full 60-day sentence, rejecting his attorney's request for home detention, saying he had shown "complete disregard" for the court. The contempt stemmed from Bevin's repeated failure to turn over financial records and appear at hearings in a child support dispute brought by his son Jonah, one of four children the Bevins adopted from Ethiopia, who alleges he was abandoned at an abusive, now-closed Jamaican facility. Johnson said she may revisit the sentence in 30 days; it remains appealable. Bevin served as governor from 2015 to 2019.

The Fort Worth City Council voted unanimously to approve an $11.25 million settlement with the family of Atatiana Jefferson, resolving all civil claims stemming from her 2019 killing. Jefferson, 28, was fatally shot through a window of her home by then-officer Aaron Dean while she was watching her young nephew; a neighbor had called police for a welfare check after noticing her doors open. Dean was convicted of manslaughter in 2022, the first Tarrant County officer convicted for an on-duty shooting, and was sentenced to more than 11 years in prison.

The settlement still requires probate court approval before taking effect. Under the family's agreement, Jefferson's two nephews, including one who was present during the shooting, will receive larger shares placed in trust until they turn 18, with the rest divided among other family members. Mayor Mattie Parker called the loss "profound and unimaginable," while Jefferson's sister, Ashley Carr, said the case represents a rare instance of both criminal and civil accountability for a police killing.