Kentucky Sports Radio host Matt Jones says he will decide within the “next few weeks” whether he will run for the U.S. Senate in 2020.
Jones brought his show to Paducah on Thursday as part of KSR’s Summer Tour. He said after the show, winning the Senate would be difficult due to the national political parties rallying behind the current candidates.
“I think a lot of people are tired of the party structure,” Jones said. “Whether you’re a Republican or Democrat, a lot of people don’t like what the national party tells them what they have to think, so I would be running kind of as an independent voice.”
When asked about what he thinks should be done in the wake of the recent gun violence, Jones said a majority of Americans agree on universal background checks for guns and more mental health coverage. He said his stance on gun legislation evolves.
“I think what we all should agree on is: we need to study why this stuff happens,” Jones said. “Everybody has a theory. A lot of liberals say it’s the guns and conservatives say it’s mental health or video games. The reality is we don’t know because it’s not really been studied.”
Jones said people agree that there need to be more red flag laws. State lawmakers proposed ‘red flag’ legislation on Thursday. The bill would allow police or family members to ask a court to temporarily take guns away from people if they present a danger to themselves or others.
When asked about this year’s Fancy Farm Picnic, Jones said that while he enjoys the spirited political speaking, he wishes people would calm down. He said the viral photo of Team Mitch supporters posing with a cardboard cutout of Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is “awful.” He said it would likewise be awful if someone posed like that with a cutout of Senator Mitch McConnell.
