The Honorary White Men of Kentucky

On February 5, 2025, Representative Andy Barr (R-KY) kicked off his campaign for the U.S. Senate to replace retiring Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) reminding people of his MAGA credentials. 

In his first TV campaign ad, Andy railed against DEI and declared that "it is not a sin to be white." 

This phrase used by Barr is a variation of “It’s OK to be white,” which has been adopted by white supremacists. It has been designated as a “hate slogan“ by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL). The phrase surfaced in 2017 on racist message boards, often abbreviated as IOTBW.

Barr's top Republican primary opponent, former Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron is Black. One of his top potential Democratic opponents, former state representative Charles Booker, is as well.

According to campaign finance records reviewed by the nonprofit Popular Information, Barr’s campaign ad is being bankrolled by dozens of major corporations, including General Motors, State Farm, JPMorgan Chase, Delta, and Microsoft. They identify 67 corporations. As he is a member of the powerful House Financial Services Committee and Chair of the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and a member of the Subcommittee on National Security, Illicit Finance, and International Financial Institutions, he is supported by all major banks, securities and insurance companies. His membership on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Subcommittee on East Asia and Pacific is likely an added attraction to Aflac that has substantial investment in Japan.

There were also two Japanese companies among the Barr donors. Both have substantial investments in Kentucky. Toyota gave $8,500 and Suntory that makes Jim Beam and Maker's Mark gave $10,000.