Obama to visit Indatus on East Main St

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama will visit an East Main Street technology company as part of his visit to Louisville on Thursday to discuss the changing economy.

The president will visit Indatus, a technology company that provides cloud-based communication applications and top-of-the-line hardware and infrastructure to help businesses, in the afternoon, according to a White House schedule obtained by The Courier-Journal.

Mayor Greg Fischer said the president chose to visit Louisville to speak about the city's efforts to address the changing economy, including initiatives surrounding food and beverage logistics and e-commerce.

"It's great," Fischer said. "It shows what we're doing right."

The office of Rep. John Yarmuth, D-Louisville, said the congressman will be at the Obama appearance.

The visit will mark only Obama's second presidential event in Kentucky since he entered the White House more than six years ago. The commander-in-chief visited troops at Fort Campbell, Ky., in May 2011.

Obama last set foot in Louisville, Kentucky's largest city, during the 2008 Democratic presidential primary, when he visited twice.

In fact, other than using the Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky International Airport in Hebron, Ky., to park Air Force One for visits to southern Ohio, Obama has been scarce in Kentucky.

The Bluegrass State has not been friendly political territory for the president. He lost Kentucky in the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections. In the latter race, Jefferson County was one of only five Kentucky counties he carried.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., also targeted Obama in his re-election bid last fall. The senator accused the president of conducting a "war on coal" in a state where coal is big business and the primary source of power.

Indeed, McConnell and Obama have not enjoyed a warm relationship. The Kentucky Republican has been a vocal critic of many of the president's domestic and foreign policies, especially Obama's signature achievement, the Affordable Care Act.

Even so, states where there are political adversaries or where Obama suffered campaign failures are no longer immune to presidential visits.

Last week, Obama visited Birmingham, Ala., the largest city in another state that is solidly Republican red in presidential elections. Economic issues also were the focus of that trip.

Reach reporter James R. Carroll at (703) 854-8945. Follow him on Twitter @JRCarrollNews .