In an unusual move, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell today endorsed his long time protege Kentucky Secretary of State Trey Grayson for forced out, er, retiring Jim Bunning’s Senate seat.
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With two weeks to go before the Bluegrass State’s first contested Senate GOP primary, Grayson is trailing insurgent Tea Party darling Rand Paul, son of Libertarian Ron Paul, by more than 15 percentage points. Given the anti-establishment nature of the cycle, I’m not sure McConnell’s endorsement is going to do much for Grayson — in fact it could hurt him amongst the Tea Party set. Paul had asked that McConnell, who had raised money for Greyson but until now had not formally endorsed, stay out of the race. At the same time, McConnell has often been on the receiving end of Paul’s barbs at the Beltway crowd.
All this drama should be good for Democrats, only they’re engaged in an equally brutal cannibalistic feast of their own: Lt. Gov. Dan Mongiardo holds a slight lead over Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway. So, both primary winners, whomever they may be, look to enter the general election for Kentucky’s Senate seat poor, bruised and bloodied.