“Since their most recent wipeout in November, Democrats have been desperate to find a warm body to run for Kentucky’s U.S. Senate seat. Just hours before the filing deadline, they finally convinced Jim Gray to take one for the team.
“In 2014, Democrats endlessly hyped their chances to win a Senate seat in Kentucky, only to see Senator Mitch McConnell win re-election by nearly 16 points. A year later, their hopes for a statewide resurgence were swept away by a red wave as they lost the governor’s mansion and their preferred Senate candidate all at once.
“As Alison Lundergan Grimes, Jack Conway, and Adam Edelen can all attest, any statewide candidate who puts a ‘D’ next to his or her name has already suffered irreparable damage in the Bluegrass State. Like those who came before him, Jim Gray will be sunk by Obamacare, the war on coal, and the rest of Barack Obama’s toxic agenda.” – NRSC Spokesman Greg Blair
BACKGROUND
Democrats All But Gave Up On Finding A Viable Senate Candidate: “With the filing deadline set for Jan. 26, Kentucky’s only Democratic federal officeholder worried publicly on Monday the struggling party might not be able to field a viable candidate. ‘I am concerned we might not have a credible candidate,’ U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth of Louisville told reporters while filing for re-election to his U.S. House seat on Monday. ‘So far the people we have talked to are not champing at the bit to run, but they are thinking about running and it’s getting late.’” (Adam Beam, “Yarmuth: Democrats Might Not Have Viable US Senate Candidate,” Associated Press, 1/4/16)
Preferred Candidate Adam Edelen Was A Victim Of The 2015 Wipeout: “Kentucky Democrats experienced a statewide political bloodbath in November – one that washed away the ambition of one rising star, state Auditor Adam Edelen, to challenge Sen. Rand Paul…Since then, nobody has stepped forward.” (Eli Yokley, “Democrats Running Out Of Time To Challenge Paul,” Roll Call, 1/19/16)
The Democrat Brand Is In Shambles In Kentucky: “‘But the [Democratic] party’s got a long way to go before I think we will be trusted as a potential governing party again,’ [Edelen] said. Edelen holds a harsh view of what ails Democrats in Kentucky, criticizing the ‘debacle’ that was former Attorney General Jack Conway’s gubernatorial campaign strategy, a lack of authenticity from Democratic candidates and the absence of a meaningful primary last year. (Sam Youngman, “Out But Not Down, Adam Edelen Says His Hiatus From Politics Is Temporary,” Lexington Herald-Leader, 1/5/16)
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“Moreover, the trend in Kentucky is to the right, including especially the upset victory of industrialist Matt Bevin (R) in the governor’s race last month. On the federal level, there is now only one Kentucky Democrat (US Rep. John Yarmuth) holding office….’The Democrats’ ass is in a sling,’ says [veteran journalist Al] Cross.” (Hastings Wyman, “Kentucky: Democrats Ponder Challenge To Paul,” Southern Political Report, 12/22/15)
- “Kentucky Democrats, including Mr. Edelen, were trounced last week in an election that swept aside decades of their dominance over state government — and added Mr. Edelen to a growing list of Democrats across the country who have suffered painful defeats since President Obama was elected.” (Sheryl Gay Stolberg, Michael D. Shear, and Alan Blinder, “Obama Legacy In State Offices: A Shrinking Democratic Share,” New York Times, 11/12/15)
Edelen Himself Said Kentucky Democrats’ Problem Is Barack Obama: “‘I think the first step for the party in terms of recovering here in Kentucky is to acknowledge that there is a structural problem,” said Edelen. “This wasn’t an aberration. We’ve seen two elections now where the party was wiped out in the east and the west… A lot of it’s Obama…When you have a failure that is this widespread, it puts us in a spot…There is no doubt that the national party is badly out of step with where Kentuckians are, there’s no question.’” (Joe Sonka, “State Auditor Adam Edelen Shares Thoughts On His Election Loss, The Democratic Party’s Decline, And How To Move Forward,” Insider Louisville, 11/5/15)