Andy Beshear Wants Americans to Emulate the Good Samaritan, Not Trump

NAPERVILLE, Illinois (RNS) — The line outside Anderson’s Bookshop stretched down the block and around the corner as patrons waited to hear Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear talk about “Go and Do Likewise,” his new book on faith and politics.

And perhaps to get a first look at a future presidential candidate.

Beshear, a two-time Democratic governor of red-state Kentucky, grandson of a Baptist lay preacher and newly minted New York Times bestselling author, did not disappoint on Monday night (Oct. 5).

Drawing heavily on the Gospel parable of the Good Samaritan — in which a foreigner helps out a stranger left by the side of the road — and his experiences helping Kentuckians rebuild after a series of natural disasters, Beshear painted a picture of an America where neighbors help one another out when things go wrong rather than giving in to polarization.

“While I don’t want us to have as many natural disasters as Kentucky has had, if we can remind Americans that we are the very best of ourselves, that we love and care about our neighbor, and that our neighbor is not the enemy from within, we can move beyond this division that’s pushed down on us,” Beshear told the crowd of about 150.

Beshear was joined by Kentucky activist Hadley Duvall for an hourlong conversation about the book, which outlines his vision for a post-Trump America. Duvall, an abuse survivor who became pregnant at age 12 after being raped by her stepfather, gained national attention in 2022 for a social media post she wrote after the Supreme Court overturned Roe. v. Wade. She later recorded an ad for Beshear’s re-election campaign and is featured in the new book.

The conversation started with Beshear discussing his mistakes as governor. He said every gaffe made by a politician will end up on social media — and that voters want to see politicians act authentically and not try to spin away their mistakes.

“They want to know who you really are, and you can’t fake it,” he told the audience. “And that means that you’re going to get some things wrong, and people want you to own up when you’re wrong.”

Then he launched into a story about the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, when one of his staffers learned that someone using the name Tupac Shakur had applied for unemployment in Kentucky. Assuming that the applicant was committing fraud, given that the famed rapper by that name died in the 1990s, Beshear blasted him during a public appearance. Not long after, he learned that a Kentucky worker shared the same name.

His mistake ended up being highlighted on late-night television and led to a public apology.

“I learned that No. 1, I needed to be a little more thoughtful,” said Beshear. “No. 2, that Tupac was still alive.” He added that Shakur got his employment benefits quickly.

Like the book, Beshear’s talk was filled with mentions of faith and Bible verses, like Jesus’ commandments to love your neighbors and not judge others. And he highlighted the way Kentuckians responded to a series of natural disasters, including catastrophic floods and tornadoes.

In particular, he told of an encounter with a woman named Ellisa, whom he met when she was mucking out a flooded house in Whitesburg, Kentucky, after a 2022 flood that left dozens dead and many homeless. At first, Beshear said, he expressed sympathy that her house had been damaged. But it turned out that she was working on her neighbor’s house before tackling her own.

“We’ll get to mine later,” he recalled her saying. “I thought I’d start with my neighbor.”

That example, he said, has been repeated over and over in his time as governor.

“If you ever lose faith in humanity, watch what people do after a natural disaster,” he said. “It’s like the Parable of the Good Samaritan. They don’t care what you look like, who you pray to, who you voted for, how you think, or who you love. They will help you in that moment.”

Beshear said the same kind of spirit can help America become a better place. And he outlined some public policy ideas, like a massive federal investment in building new houses and using the buying power of the government to get lower prices on prescription drugs. He also said politicians should spend most of their time working on issues people agree on, such as affordability and less time on what divides them.

His book tour has been seen as a trial run for a 2028 campaign for the White House, something that Beshear and Duvall hinted at repeatedly. He told the story of walking off a stage in 2024 at the end of his reelection campaign — Kentucky limits governors to two terms — and saying he’d never have to run for office again.

“I don’t have an announcement tonight,” he told the bookstore crowd. “That statement I made walking off stage, I’m not so sure it’s true anymore.”

Beshear’s message landed with the attendees, who repeatedly applauded during the talk.

Erin Fitzgerald of Downers Grove, a Chicago suburb, said she appreciated how Beshear talked about faith in an inclusive way. And she approved of his focus on the Good Samaritan and the idea of turning faith into action.

“I feel like it hasn’t always been easy being a Christian in 2026,” said Fitzgerald, who attends a Presbyterian Church (USA) congregation. “I think sometimes when people hear that you’re a Christian, they assume that you’re going to throw your religion in their face or be really judgy. And I like how he shows that you can be religious, that you can believe in God, but you can also do it in a nonjudgmental, loving, compassionate way.”

Her friend Kelly Vittorio, a fellow political nerd from Tinley Park, agreed. Vittorio, who is Catholic, said she has friends in Kentucky who are fans of Beshear and wanted to hear what he had to say — especially his line about faith being more than a bumper sticker slogan.

“I feel like a lot of times the Bible is used as a weapon to divide,” she said. “I really like what Governor Beshear said. It was positive all the way through — do good works and be kind.”