What were the top Kentucky stories of 2017?

"Everyone I spoke to was shocked and had never heard of anything like this," said Amy Robertson, who works for the Shelbyville Public Defender's office. "Everyone I spoke to was shocked and had never heard of anything like this," said Amy Robertson, who works for the Shelbyville Public Defender's office.

Forget E Pluribus Unum: Trump goes with a MAGAa

DECEMBER 21: John Wertman, a coin collector, with his Trump "challenge coin" on December, 21, 2017 in Burke, VA. The flip side of President Donald Trump's "challenge coin", bottom, along with those of, from left, Vice President Mike Pence, Joe Biden and Barack Obama.

NFL wide receiver pays tribute to McCain in Christmas editorial

John Sidney McCain GOP strategist donates to Alabama Democrat Meghan McCain knocks Bannon: 'Who the hell are you' to criticize Romney? Dems demand Tillerson end State hiring freeze, consult with Congress MORE in a Christmas-themed op-ed this week, citing McCain's military service and his close relationship with the veteran senator. "The sacrifices John McCain has made for our country, and especially the men and women he served with in the military, are incredible," Fitzgerald wrote in a Sports Illustrated op-ed on Saturday.

Grassley Meets With NAFTA Negotiators

Key trade and ag senators like Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley met with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer this week to get an update on that. Grassley says there are concerns within Washington that the White House will pull out of the trade deal, "So, they're talking about prices dropping then, and what would the government do to support prices.

Pardoned by Christie, woman pushes for change to US gun laws

In this Aug. 5 2014, file photo, attorney Evan Nappen, left, and his client Shaneen Allen, talk to media outside Atlantic County Criminal Court in Mays Landing, N.J., after a motion to dismiss the gun possession charges against her was denied. The handgun that Allen was carrying when she was pulled over on a New Jersey highway could have sent her to prison for years if not for a pardon from Republican Gov. Chris Christie.

Tuesday, Dec. 26, 2017: No more handouts for General Dynamics,…

Health care reimbursement for rural hospitals throughout our nation is very complex and becoming more and more difficult each day because of the increased regulations and decreased funding by government agencies such as Medicare and Medicaid, which make-up approximately 65 percent of our volume here at Calais Regional Hospital. We continue to work with these agencies, commercial payers and other governmental agencies to improve our cash flow.

Buoyed by Alabama win, Democrats eye Tennessee Senate race

Democrats eager to take control of the Senate next year are turning to Tennessee, where a popular Democratic ex-governor is running for the seat being vacated by the retirement of Republican Sen. Bob Corker. Neither of Tennessee's top GOP candidates, Rep. Marsha Blackburn and former Rep. Stephen Fincher, has the kind of personal baggage that Senate candidate Roy Moore had in Alabama while denying sexual misconduct accusations.

Tax-plan fallout in Democrats’ strategy

In this Dec. 20, 2017, file photo, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of Calif., left, standing with Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer of N.Y., right, speaks at a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington. Democratic candidates in the 2018 midterms plan to argue that the legislation favors the wealthy and breaks President Donald Trump and Republicans' promises to the middle class.

Mueller critics turning up heat

Tom Fitton, president of the conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch, said "our concerns about Mueller are beginning to take hold." For months, efforts to discredit special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 campaign flickered at the fringes of political debate.

Democrats hope to use tax overhaul as a club against GOP

One of her counterparts in California dismisses estimates of tax savings for most U.S. households and says the legislation is "just putting money in the pocket of the wealthy." And in Kansas, a Democratic candidate for governor says it's "a recipe for disaster" that signals inevitable cuts to popular programs like Social Security and Medicare.

Trump’s law enforcement policies are a welcome improvement from Obama’s

The president reiterated his backing despite slamming the agency for apparent bias in the Clinton email investigation and ongoing Russia probe; Kevin Corke has more for 'Special Report.' As a presidential candidate, Donald Trump praised the virtues and sacrifice of law enforcement officers in his many campaign speeches. To beleaguered cops, the president's inauguration signaled the welcome end of eight years of unwarranted criticism from the Obama administration.

After chaotic start, Republicans make their mark in Congress

After a halting start, the Republican-controlled 115th Congress - sometimes in collaboration with President Donald Trump, often despite him - has enacted surprisingly far-reaching conservative achievements in its first year, among them a long-promised rewrite of the tax code, oil drilling in the Arctic and a series of lifetime appointments to the judiciary. For the new year, Republican leaders in the House have their sights on decades-old programs for the poor that they say are too easily exploited by those who do not need them.

Departing GOP lawmakers warn that their party could lose majorities in 2018

Republicans could easily lose their congressional majorities in 2018, two retiring GOP lawmakers warned Sunday, pointing to a lack of diversity in the party and President Donald Trump's pattern of catering to his narrow conservative base as likely harbingers of bad news for their party. "When you look at some of the audiences cheering for Republicans sometimes, you look out there and you say, 'Those are the spasms of a dying party,' " Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., said on ABC's "This Week."