GLASGOW – A week after entering the Kentucky governor’s race, Kelly Craft kicked off her campaign Tuesday night in her Glasgow hometown at a summer picnic-esque event replete with food trucks, face paint, swag and zingy one-liners.
Craft, who served as ambassador to Canada and the United Nations during the Trump administration, is vying for the Republican nomination to face Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear in November 2023.
But while her opening speech made frequent digs at President Joe Biden and Beshear’s “extreme liberal policies,” Craft never once referenced her Republican primary opponents.
Several hundred people gathered in front of the Barren County Courthouse in downtown Glasgow to hear Craft speak. While they awaited her arrival, “Sweet Caroline,” Dolly Parton’s “9 To 5” and “Eye of the Tiger” played over the loud speakers.
Everything from the choice of music and locale to Craft’s outfit – blue jeans and an understated white blouse – seemed themed to present Craft as a hardworking, down-to-earth and relatable Kentucky woman, through and through.
Two members of the Laurel County Republican Women’s Club, Kathy Davis and Donna Mills, drove nearly two hours to see Craft. They missed a club meeting to do so, Davis said.
“What better excuse is there than this?” she asked.
Mills said she gets a better “feel” for people in person, and she could take her judgment back to Laurel County.
“I don’t want to just hear promises,” Mills said. “I want to hear what she’s done and what it is she is going to do for Kentucky.”
Craft’s speech focused on “restoring” the foundation that her parents’ lives were built upon – “A promise that if you worked hard, lived by your faith and did right by your neighbors, that here in Kentucky anything is possible.”
Her father, a local veterinarian, powered her family through 1970s stagflation “through persistence, determination and sweat of his brow,” Craft said. She added that Kentuckians today feel like that promise is now out of reach.
“For far too many (Kentuckians), their dreams seem so unattainable, that they’ve simply stopped dreaming,” she said. “Well, I’m here to tell you that is unacceptable.”
Craft explained six ways she said she would restore the Kentucky promise if elected as governor.
First, she said she would lower the cost of living by taking action to reverse inflation, which she claimed was caused by Biden.
Second, she would restore excellence in Kentucky schools “to make sure that our children are being taught math and reading, not radical woke ideologies.”
“It’s the ABCs, it’s not the CRTs,” she said in reference to Critical Race Theory, which is not taught in Kentucky schools.
Third, Craft said she would “defend,” not “defund,” the police in order to “make every community safe again.”
Fourth, she would work to tighten the U.S.-Mexico border, which she sees as the source of illegal drugs leading to the opioid crisis in Kentucky. In 2021, Kentucky experienced a 14.5% increase in fatal drug overdoses, largely due to the proliferation of fentanyl, according to a state drug overdose report.
“Andy Beshear and Joe Biden have turned Kentucky into a border state,” Craft said. “When I’m governor, if you’re a drug dealer, I’m coming for you.”
Fifth, Craft said she would restore energy independence by “standing up” to those in power on behalf of Kentucky’s coal miners.
“Biden declared war on fossil fuels and Andy Beshear waved a white flag,” she said.
Lastly, Craft said she would “unleash the economic potential” of Kentucky by bringing manufacturing jobs to the commonwealth. She cited her experience in negotiating the United States-Mexico-Canada agreement (USMCA) to replace NAFTA as an example.
While Craft lacks Trump’s endorsement – Attorney General Daniel Cameron secured it long before she entered the race – she touted his belief in her as a UN ambassador against “tough opponents” like China.
After her speech, Craft entered the crowd to shake hands and take selfies. One attendee, Glasgow native Billy Craddock, said he hadn’t known much about Craft before the event, but that she had addressed all the points he wanted.
“I liked the attitude and demeanor she possesses,” Craddock said.
Craft has been criticized as politically benefitting from her wealth as the wife of Joe Craft, a coal-industry billionaire. Kentucky Democratic Party Chair Colmon Eldridge compared her to former Gov. Matt Bevin, whose unpopularity in office extended across the political aisle, in a news release.
“Bevin-backing billionaire Kelly Craft, who’s bought every public office she’s ever had and then didn’t show up for work, just kicked off her campaign with the phoniest rollout money can buy,” Eldridge said. “But Craft can’t write a check to hide her jaw-dropping lack of qualifications or experience. And her D.C. consultants can’t hide the fact that she lists her address in another state and did more than anyone else to elect her pal Matt Bevin as governor. Kentuckians rejected Matt Bevin in 2019, and they don’t want a bigger-budget sequel.”
