When actress and political novice Ashley Judd chose not to challenge Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell in the Kentucky Senate race, some political observers might have expected a more normal, predictable race run by professional politicians and veteran campaign strategists. This, however, has not been the case so far. On the Democratic side, Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes rather bungled the announcement of her candidacy for U.S. Senate. She was flanked by signs promoting her candidacy for her current position rather than for Senate. Her campaign had yet to set up a website to accept donations and did little to promote the campaign kickoff. This may be because Grimes herself did not decide to run until the last minute: immediately before making her announcement to the press, Grimes actually asked a room of supporters and Kentucky Democratic leaders whether she ought to run.
Meanwhile, with the Grimes campaign struggling to get off the ground, the seasoned pros over at “Team Mitch” have kindly offered their assistance. The McConnell campaign has created a rather deceptive website, http://www.grimesforsenate2014.com, purportedly in support of Grimes’ candidacy. The website features statements praising President Obama and vowing to support his “War on Coal,” along with “Obamacare, entitlements, stimulus spending, green energy loans, and an expanded EPA.” It also touts “endorsements” from Obama, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz, and Ashley Judd. Only upon scrolling to the bottom does it become clear that the site is “Paid for by McConnell Senate Committee ’14.”
In addition to creating a misleading website for Grimes, Team Mitch has released a bizarre web video with a suggested “theme song” for her campaign. The video, entitled “What Rhymes With Alison Lundergan Grimes?” looks more like the product of Stephen Colbert than of a real campaign. The auto-tuned song repeatedly references Grimes’ long name, while captions suggest possible rhymes such as “sticks to party line,” “left-wing mime,” and “not ready for prime time.” While the video is apparently intended to make Grimes seem self-absorbed (it shows her referring to herself in the third-person), it is so heavily edited that it is difficult to take any of the charges seriously. For example, it superimposes Grimes’ head onto the figure of Ellen DeGeneres dancing with Obama. Reviews of the video on Facebook have included “I’m a republican, this is dumb. You need to fire whoever is putting this stuff out” and “Dude, what is this? I mean, seriously, are you letting a twelve year old make your videos or something?”
The McConnell campaign may be resorting to such tactics—ranging from borderline unethical to borderline comical—in part because it has little else to go on at the moment. According to Roger Alford, the Associated Press’ correspondent in Frankfort, Kentucky, “the public record shows little about Grimes’ positions on coal, guns, immigration, abortion, same-sex marriage and federal health care reforms.” Since EMILY’s List encouraged Grimes to get in the race, it seems logical to assume that she is pro-choice, though even this is hard to confirm. Beyond that, it is difficult to ascertain where she stands on the issues. Indeed, as Chris Cillizza notes in the Washington Post, the leaked tape of McConnell and his staff discussing potential opponents indicates that Team Mitch has relatively little opposition research on Grimes. During the tape, a staffer suggests portraying Grimes as “self-centered” and “egotistical,” themes that the campaign attempted to convey in its web video.
However, once the silly season ends, Grimes will need to bring her A-game if she intends to give McConnell a serious challenge. Kentucky’s senior senator is far from beloved in his home state, but he boasts a huge war chest and a campaign operation that, auto-tune misadventures aside, is widely regarded as among the most formidable in the nation. Kentuckians have been willing to elect Democrats such as Grimes and Governor Steve Beshear to statewide offices, but the state has consistently voted Republican in recent presidential and Senate elections (the last Democratic presidential candidate to win Kentucky was Bill Clinton in 1996).
Given national Democrats’ desire to defeat McConnell—one of Obama’s chief Congressional antagonists—Grimes can likely count on plenty of money and support from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and out-of-state donors. Meanwhile, her best strategy is likely to follow the blueprint established by Heidi Heitkamp in North Dakota and Joe Manchin in neighboring West Virginia: run away from He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named (Obama) and against Washington. The latter tactic may be especially fruitful given McConnell’s undeniable insider status. Moreover, McConnell is already notorious for his willingness to engage in nasty, negative campaigning, and tactics like the “Alison Grimes for Senate” website may only serve to increase the perception that he will resort to any trick in order to win. Of course, Grimes will eventually need to set up her own website and articulate a few positions on issues. Otherwise, the respective campaigns may be forced to run for sixteen months on “Alison Lundergan Grimes has a long name” and “Mitch McConnell has been in Washington a long time.”
Photo Credit: Nelson County Gazette and CBS News