Rep. John Yarmuth (D) picked up the support of the Louisville Courier-Journal over the weekend and earned the backing of the Fraternal Order of Police on Monday.

The endorsements signal an increasingly favorable climate for the freshman, who is facing a rematch against former Rep. Anne Northup (R). The FOP endorsed Northup in 2006, although she ultimately lost to Yarmuth 51 percent to 48 percent.The rematch in the Louisville-based 3rd district is one of the most closely watched races this year, with polls indicating a small lead for Yarmuth.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) touched down in Louisville on Monday for a roundtable discussion, organized by Yarmuth, on the economic stimulus package.

Hoyer Tops List of Pols Aiding Boswell Effort

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) joined by Gov. Steve Beshear (D) and former Sen. Wendell Ford (D), headlined a fundraiser for 2nd district candidate David Boswell (D) while Hoyer was in the Bluegrass State on Monday.

Boswell, a five-term state Senator, is running against state Sen. Brett Guthrie (R) in a tight race that has garnered the attention and money of both national parties. A poll released Monday commissioned by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee showed Boswell leading Guthrie 47 percent to 41 percent with a 4.9-point error margin. The DCCC and National Republican Congressional Committee have spent a combined $1 million in the Republican-leaning district, represented for 14 years by retiring Rep. Ron Lewis (R).

The Louisville Courier-Journal and the Elizabethtown News-Enterprise endorsed Boswell over the weekend.

Kerrey Is Latest Party Star to Help Lunsford

The parade of big-name Democrats heading to Kentucky to try to help knock off Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R) continued over the weekend when former Nebraska Sen. Bob Kerrey threw his support behind Democrat Bruce Lunsford at a rally in Hardin County.

Democrats are going all-out in their effort to take down the highest-profile Republican in the Senate, and Lunsford has hosted recent visits from former President Bill Clinton, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) and former Georgia Sen. Max Cleland (D), among other party stars. In his endorsement of Lunsford on Saturday, Kerrey continued the Democratic line of attack that paints McConnell as a handmaiden of the Bush administration.

“The policy of Bush and McConnell is that you cut taxes for wealthy people, and they’ll invest and spend that money and it’ll be good for the middle class,” Kerrey said. “It has never worked, and it is not working in 2008.”