SAFE IN KENTUCKY? – AT 10:58 A.M. ET:  One Senate race that the GOP has been sweating is in Kentucky, where Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has been in the battle of his career against attractive Democratic candidate Alison Lundergan Grimes.  But it appears that McConnell has now taken charge.  From The Hill: 

A once-golden opportunity in the Kentucky Senate race could be slipping away from Democrats.

After more than a dozen consecutive polls have shown nominee Alison Lundergan Grimes lagging behind Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R), some Kentucky Democrats are warning that Grimes might need a strategy shake-up. Last week, the state’s largest newspaper wondered whether she needed a “campaign reset.”

Grimes’s campaign and her allies insist they’re exactly where they need to be, pointing out several polls were within the margin of error or partisan surveys. They said their strategy of unseating the unpopular GOP leader is going according to plan.

But the public numbers have some veteran Bluegrass State Democrats worried. Longtime strategist Jimmy Cauley, who ran Gov. Steve Beshear’s (D-Ky.) 2007 race, warned that if Grimes doesn’t shift her strategy soon, it might be too late.

“I genuinely believe, if it’s an hourglass, the sands are running out,” he told The Hill.

Conversations with several Democrats in the state revealed near-universal concern that Grimes has let McConnell and his moneyed allies define the candidate before she could define herself.

COMMENT:  Translated:  She isn't running a very good campaign.  Now, Mitch McConnell isn't the most lovable guy around, but he's a pro in a contest that requires a pro.  Also, the fact that he was in some trouble was detected early, and corrections were made.  In general, Republican campaigns are better run this year than the last time around.  We're getting into crunch time now.

September 24, 2014