Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear waves to the audience after delivering his State of the Commonwealth address in Frankfort, Jan. 7, 2026. (Photo by Arden Barnes/Kentucky Lantern)
WASHINGTON — Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear’s faith calls him to address hunger, health access and community care, he said during an event Thursday at the progressive Center for American Progress unveiling a possible campaign in the 2028 cycle.
The Trump administration has “hijacked faith,” the Democrat said, which has resulted in harming people instead of helping them. He pointed to the impact of the major tax cuts and spending package that Republicans passed last year, which funded the tax cuts through changes to food aid and health care, which would result in millions of people losing access to those safety nets.
“Do we use faith to help people or to hurt people?” he said. “It’s that simple.”
More than 100,000 people are expected to be removed from SNAP and 25 rural hospitals in Kentucky alone are at risk of closing, he said.
“The reason I talk about faith is because it motivates me. (It’s) the reason I’m willing to stand up, no matter how mean and cruel the world has become, and fight to make it a little better,” he said.
Upcoming bid for the White House?
Beshear, 48, is widely expected to run for president in 2028, and he did not rule out a run when members of the audience asked how he would govern if he won the presidency.
Like previous presidential candidates, he is preparing for it a book tour. He told the think tank that his upcoming book explores how his Christian faith has guided him through challenging times as governor, from the start of the coronavirus pandemic to deadly tornadoes, and how he believes those values can heal the country’s deep polarization.
“Ultimately, we have to… I would hope that you would say you are an American long before you would say you are a Democrat or a Republican,” Beshear said.
Beshear was a leading candidate for 2024 Democratic nominee Kamala Harris before she chose Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
immigration
An audience member asked Beshear how he would handle immigration as president. The issue has dominated political discourse since the fatal shooting of two U.S. citizens by immigration officials in Minneapolis last month.
Beshear said every federal immigration agent needs to be retrained, and he expressed concern about what he described as constitutional violations, such as officers entering private homes without a warrant.
“What we see with (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) is a law enforcement agency out of control,” he said. “They are so overly aggressive compared to any other law enforcement group in the country.”
He said enforcement actions like the one in Minneapolis “will continue in other places if current leadership remains in place and is not fully retrained.”
Beshear said the country needs comprehensive immigration reform that addresses long-term undocumented immigrants and also ensures a stable workforce.
“I think there is a sensible way to push forward immigration,” he said.
RFK as a campaign model
Another audience member asked Beshear whether a possible 2028 Democratic presidential run would resemble Robert F. Kennedy’s 1968 campaign style, which sought to unite the deeply divided country amid the Vietnam War, massive poverty and the civil rights movement. Kennedy was a leading candidate for the Democratic nomination before his assassination in June 1968.
Beshear said he would.
“Absolutely,” he said. “When I think of his campaign … you think of hope, you think of connections. He made you feel like progress was possible, that we could go up against great adversaries like poverty and do better.”
