In Kentucky, prominent Democrats wooing Alison Lundergan Grimes, not Ashley Judd

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

Source: Politico

Democratic heavy hitters — including Bill Clinton — are quietly trying to woo a new candidate to jump into the race to unseat Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, even as actress Ashley Judd is taking steps toward launching a star-studded campaign of her own.
With fears growing in some Democratic quarters over Judd’s potential candidacy, some prominent Democrats in the Bluegrass State are beginning to set their sights on 34-year-old Alison Lundergan Grimes, the Kentucky secretary of state. Among Grimes’s attributes: She lacks political baggage since she’s served barely a year in office, and she hails from a well-connected family influential in Kentucky Democratic politics. But it’s not at all certain if she’ll jump into the race.

Grimes does have the Clintons in her corner. Earlier this month, the former president — a longtime friend of Grimes’s father — privately urged the young secretary of state to mount a Senate bid while assuring Grimes that both he and his wife, Hillary, would get behind her should she decide to take on the powerful Senate GOP leader, according to several sources familiar with the matter.

Attending an event for former Kentucky Sen. Wendell Ford in Owensboro earlier this month, Clinton privately met with Grimes for about 35 minutes, where they discussed her political future. Sources said Clinton made the case that the Senate bid would offer a bigger platform than the governor’s mansion or the U.S. House race in the 6th Congressional District, covering Frankfort and Lexington, which the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee had hoped she would pursue.

Attending an event for former Kentucky Sen. Wendell Ford in Owensboro earlier this month, Clinton privately met with Grimes for about 35 minutes, where they discussed her political future. Sources said Clinton made the case that the Senate bid would offer a bigger platform than the governor’s mansion or the U.S. House race in the 6th Congressional District, covering Frankfort and Lexington, which the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee had hoped she would pursue.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/03/kentucky-senate-2014-alison-lundergan-grimes-ashley-judd-89091.html#ixzz2O26AiWO4




Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/03/kentucky-senate-2014-alison-lundergan-grimes-ashley-judd-89091.html#ixzz2O25wTjS2

---

So, basically, Rove and co. release one smear ad and Clinton and the conservadems panic - as if Grimes isn't going to face equally vicious negative attacks from McTurtle and his allies.

[MannyGoldstein]

1. Is she a crypto-republican?

I'd assume so.

[forestpath]

2. That makes me root for Ashley Judd.

[TrollBuster9090]

19. Me, too. Ergo, maybe this is a Jedi Mind Meld!

All they need now is convince 'centrists' Irskine Bowles, Ed Rendell, Max Baucus, Ben Nelson and Evan Bayh to come out in favor of Grimes, and Judd will be a SHOE IN!

[Volaris]

61. I know right?

A God's-Honest Liberal getting elected in a God's-Honest RED State is a near-total repudiation of the very IDEA of Democratic Third Way Politiking (that we have to kneel down, sell out to Wall Street and cut a deal in order to get anything useful out of the People's Government).

Seems to be that at least SOMEONE thinks that Ashley Judd winning that seat would be almost as bad for the Democratic Party as it would for the REPUBLICAN Party.

Therefore, I say we send her some money.

Do it Ashley.

[iamthebandfanman]

3. No.

her father is the former head of the party here in Kentucky and he was as corrupt as it gets (made a killing off Katrina ... he did catering and emergency equipment... private contractor style and over charged.. and is still in that business today actually)
not to mention in her younger days (ie just 6-8 years ago) she would stop by her daddys restaurant and take as much alcohol as she wanted off the shelf.

I know from personal experience.

please, don't ask me to reveal myself..
in Kentucky things are still done the old fashioned way in politics..
good ole palm greasing and back pattin with a lil (a lot) of money on the side.


Hell no to the lundergans.

[Baitball Blogger]

5. I may be seeing the same pattern in Central Florida.

This is why the pendulum keeps swings from blue to red and back again.

[madfloridian]

15. Oh. yeh, I have written a lot about DCCC involvement in taking progressives out of the races.

They have actively, deliberately done so over and over. Their handpicked centrist candidates win, which is why we will never be able to change the party here.

After the Dean campaign those of us who supported him were not welcomed warmly into the party here at all.

[Baitball Blogger]

28. It does nothing to fix the culture of corruption that exists in Florida.

It is an uneasy feeling realizing that these old guard Florida Dems rely on the same backroom relationships to "make" it. It doesn't help any new business that tries to come into Florida.

[AnotherMcIntosh]

10. Good to know. Thank you.

[CherokeeDem]

30. Had the same dealings....

with Grimes' father's business ethics.

Not a fan of his or hers...

I do not see her winning against McConnell... it's going to take a huge presence and huge money to beat the Turtle... even with his dismal approval rating.

[A Little Weird]

42. I'm sorry to hear that

I don't like her father, but I have always heard good things about Allison Grimes and thought she was one of the good ones. Admittedly, I don't have the best record of picking good politicians. I will be voting against Mitch McConnell regardless of which dem is challenging but it would be really nice if I could vote for someone.

[saidsimplesimon]

56. It takes more than "personal experience".

I've been on silent mode regarding Ms. Judd's candidacy. On the one hand, she has name recognition. She also speaks against mountain top removal and the energy corporations.

On the other hand, we have former President Clinton, and former First Lady Mrs. Clinton endorsing another centrist.

I think Ms. Judd has been inspired by the example set by Elizabeth Warren.

If she wants to run for office, I'll support her. Her past is an open book.

[juajen]

77. I hope Ashley does run.

I believe she can take McConnell down.

[magellan]

4. Third Way Dems don't like Ashley Judd?

Whatta shock.

[brooklynite]

17. I'm a Third Way supporter, and I'll support Ashley...

...(seriously) when she shows me she can win in Kentucky.

[TrollBuster9090]

23. Judd is virtually tied with McConnell, and she hasn't even started campaigning yet.

Well, a 4 point margin is a virtual tie, anyway.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/21/ashley-judd-mitch-mcconnell_n_2345006.html

And that's before Judd has had a chance to even engage in political debates, give political interview etc., and before we've had a chance to duct tape KARL ROVE to Mitch McConnell, yet.


Why don't we put the the burden of proof on GRIMES, instead?

Show me a poll match up that shows Grimes doing better than Judd against McConnell, and I'll support Grimes. If not, the Clinton Machine should just leave Judd alone and start concentrating on something else.

[brooklynite]

25. ...and four years ago, Rudy Giuliani was leading the Republican Presidential field...

...this early in the game, the only responses to a poll like this are name recognition or political junkies.

I'm, quite honestly, not like most people here. I've already met two of our new candidates, and have had three Senators up for re-election call me to meet for coffee. I get lots of requests for money, not all of which I can accomodate, so I need to know the candidate is serious, has the resources s/he needs, and has a plan as to how to campaign in whatever environment s/he is running in. That's what I'm waiting to hear about.

[Ken Burch]

65. What would you accept as proof of "a game plan"?

And, if this other candidate turns out(as is likely)to be anti-labor, anti-choice and anti-gay, will there still be any point in trying to elect her?

Haven't we established by now that there's not that much difference between electing a right-wing Dem and just keeping the 'Pug in the job?

[magellan]

26. Big of you

I otoh won't support any Third Way Dems, ever again.

[brooklynite]

27. Third Way Dems like...

John Dingell

James Clyburn

Chris Coons

Jeanne Shaheen

Mark Udall

Gabby Giffords

Yep, wouldn't want to have THOSE people around anymore.....

[magellan]

29. Like I said

...I'm not interested in supporting Third Way Dems. Moderates and cons are overrepresented in the Dem Party as is. They can look out for themselves, apparently.

[TrollBuster9090]

33. Personally, I support Paul Waldman's election philosophy from his book 'Being Right is not Enough'

1. Ignore the deepest red parts of the south, leaving the most insane Republicans (like Louise Gohmert, for example) alone, and allowing them to make speeches and introduce bills that put rational people off the party.

2. Go after the MODERATE Republicans in other areas with everything you've got, making the GOP look more and more extreme.

3. If you ARE going to go after a Republican in a deep red state, do it with a HIGH PROFILE PROGRESSIVE, who will get MAXIMUM PUBLICITY by opposing a Republican candidate who will be playing to an extremist base in a very high profile way. You may lose the election, but at least you'll MAKE A POINT that will pay off in other areas.

So far that strategy has worked pretty well. This BS about running 'fake Republicans' in deep red areas is, frankly, just a WASTE OF MONEY and RESOURCES.

With Judd, they stand a CHANCE of winning by SHAKING UP THE STATUS QUO, but win or lose, they'll A) make a good case for Progressivism, and B) Force the GOP to spend a lot of money defending what SHOULD have been a SAFE SEAT.

Ashley Judd, if nothing else, will get lots of FREE PUBLICITY, forcing the GOP to spend LOTS OF MONEY defending McConnell.

[magellan]

38. I pretty much agree with this philosophy

Especially in running high profile progressives against insane far right Repubs. Judd fits the bill here.

I also think it's worth running strong progressives against moderate Repubs rather than caving to the belief that adopting Repub values wins us anything except conservative Dems who are Repubs in all but name.

Somewhere on DU recently - and I can't find the link right now - there was a story posted about research done by a university showing that in most parts of the US, constituents were actually more liberal than either Repubs or Dems acknowledge. That's obviously not going to hold in extremely gerrymandered districts like Boehner's, where they've cherry-picked their voters, so not worth it in those places. But otherwise I'm holding out for real progressives/liberals to support. The influx of centrist Dems to the party has only hurt the country.

[TrollBuster9090]

52. Pretty much.

The DNC-crafted 'safe strategy' for running third-way Democrats in red states:

1. Use the trope that "all politics is local" as a reason to find some junior-level State government politician who's too new and unknown to have any 'controversial' legislation associated with them, and give them a Pygmalian style political makeover.

2. Get them to barf out a bunch of carefully crafted, focus grouped talking points designed to cover 75% of the same talking points the Republicans are using, choosing the 'safe' position on every issue they can poll. "I don't support gay marriage (just civil unions). I don't support making more gun control laws, just do a better job of enforcing the ones already on the books. I don't support flag burning, but don't thing we should ban it. I don't support the federal government doing (insert issue here), I think it's a STATE government decision...." Blah blah blah

3. Make sure to do lots of carefully crafted photo-ops showing them:
a. going to church (a GENERIC church..preferably Presbyterian, not United or Southern Baptist.)
b. badmouthing banks, but praising local credit unions
c. riding horses around, as opposed to sailboarding
d. putting on an orange vest and going out to the woods to kill things (the stupid shot of John Kerry coming out of the woods with a dead goose in his hand during the 2004 election comes to mind)
e. eating apple pie and hot dogs, instead of sushi and yogurt
f. drinking coffee, not TEA
g. driving a TRUCK, not a SmartCar
h. bad mouthing the 'professional politicians in Washington'
i. badmouthing the 'mainstream media'
j. inspecting local reserve troops, or trying out a piece of military equipment (that stupid shot of Dukakis in the tank being the best example)
k. picking up kids and tossing them in the air
l. showing them going on hikes and playing around with their own kids and grand kids
etc.

And after all this crap, they might be able to eek out a 50.01% to 49.99% victory by getting enough people to say 'I have no idea what that person stands for, but I like the way they can slice an apple pie."

The fact is, nearly 50% of the people who are ELIGIBLE to vote, DON'T! They stay HOME on election day because they were never offered a choice beyond the status quo. Two candidates that are nearly identical, and will do nearly identical things if elected. So why bother to vote for either one of them when nothing will change one way or the other. How about we start going after some of THOSE people, instead of competing with the Republicans for the SAME people?

[pauliedangerously]

66. That was absolutely brilliant...

I haven't posted on DU in years...for some reason I never wanted to be one of those "1000+" people...not important, really, but I had to break my silence because I think you totally nailed it. I'm going to save that post to a text file and use it in future conversations.

Cheers!!

[TrollBuster9090]

75. Thanks! Although, I guess it's a moot point now. :(

But I'm glad you broke your silence.

[desertduck]

70. fantastic post. bravo!

[TrollBuster9090]

76. Thank you!

Although, it looks like I'll have to moth ball it until the next time a REAL PERSON decides to run for office.

[TrollBuster9090]

32. Did any of those people unseat a long-sitting, party establishment-funded Republican INCUMBENT?

As opposed to a newbie, or a Tea Party crackpot? I mean, you can scratch Chris Coons off that list for a start. He ran against a WITCH.

[brooklynite]

34. Why, yes...

Jeanne Shaheen defeated Senator John Sununu, and I didn't mention Kay Hagen, who defeated Senator Elizabeth Dole.

[TrollBuster9090]

40. Hagen might be an example of what you're talking about.

Hagen might be an example of what you're talking about that's allegorical to Grimes and McConnell. I wouldn't say Shaheen was, given that it was New Hampshire. Third-way Democrats beating Country Club Republicans in north eastern blue states is a different thing.

In my opinion you need a game changer when you're dealing with entrenched culture warriors in the deep south. You need to go for largely different demographics, and people in those states who normally don't turn out on election day. You can't just go for demographics that largely overlap with the Republican demographic groups.

[brooklynite]

46. "Game Changer" is a easy phrase to throw out...

...Show me that a "game changer" will appeal to 51% of the voters in Kentucky.

[TrollBuster9090]

53. What would you like as proof?

A poll, showing her virtually tied with McConnell?

All I can do is repeat what I've said. Show me somebody that polls better against McConnell than Judd does already, and I'll support THEM instead.

[NorthCarolina]

60. As a Third-Way Democrat supporter,

I am quite curious what aspects of Liberal ideals you find distasteful enough for you to prefer a more conservative Democratic Party. Entitlements? Healthcare? Education? Fairness in the workplace?

I am not knocking your choice, I would really just like a little insight. What issues, for instance, would you find disagreement with liberal/populist legislators the like of Bernie Sanders, or Alan Grayson, etc. Why is it necessary to move the Democratic Party to the right, instead of simply becoming a Republican, and moving that party towards a more functional platform?

For me personally, I feel that the promotion of third-way Democrats creates a situation wherein both viable political parties advocate for wealthy interests at the expense of the poor and middle class Americans, and that I cannot abide.

[brooklynite]

63. It is not so much liberal positions in themselves...

...as it is liberal positions in context of the political marketplace. Most voters are in the center ideologically, and most are reflexively "conservative" in that they are uncomfortable to sudden, radical change. This hurts us on issues like single-payer health care, but helps us when the Republicans try to push privatization of Social Security or "no exceptions" abortion restriction. I believe we get more done through incremental progress (frustrating as the pace may be) and by electing Democrats who support broad Democratic principles 75% of the time, rather than go for ideological purity and lose in districts where a more centrist candidate might have one.

Third Way gets a lot of grief here as RINO sell-outs, but they've published briefing papers on how to advocate for marriage equality, gun control, immigration reform, the President's Health Care program, etc.

[socialist_n_TN]

68. So what does that mean exactly?......

Bill Halter polled a LOT better against the Republican in Arkansas and yet the "centrists" decided he was too "liberal" for Arkansas and backed Blanche Lincoln who then lost by what? 20% or so against the Republican. Plus, Lincoln ALWAYS polled MUCH worse against the Republican than Halter did. Yet I would ALMOST be willing to bet that you supported Lincoln rather than Halter in that race. There's an "everybody knows" meme at work in red states that only Republican Lite has a chance to win those elections. And then the Republican Lite candidate loses to the real Republican every time. Maybe it's time to try something different? If your going to lose anyway, you might as well lose by trying something different.

I agree that Judd would need to prove herself, probably in a primary. She's going to have to defuse the God, gunz, and gays attacks that are going to be inevitable. I personally think that she can do that with a left economic populism and a massive voter registration campaign. Like everywhere else, half of the eligible voters in Kentucky don't even bother to register or vote because this group doesn't think that anybody is on their side. A left populist campaign (dust off and update Huey Long) just MIGHT energize these potential voters.

Why not? Nothing else has worked.

[brooklynite]

69. A Primary tells me who's popular among Democrats...

Doesn't show me who's going to be popular among the total electorate. Add to that, I won't be given the luxury of waiting until the Primary is over. I'll be approached by one side or the other to become a financial supported sometime this year.

[socialist_n_TN]

71. Well if I had money....

and was approached by both, I'd remember the Halter/Lincoln fiasco in Arkansas and try something different this time.

[Ken Burch]

72. How do you expect her to show you that

When you dismiss strong polling results?

Does she have to get elected BEFORE you'll support her?

[demwing]

6. Politico is a RW Rag

Founded and Edited by former Washington Post weasels John F. Harris and Jim VandeHei, and an ex Reagan assistant as President and CEO.

Take it with a grain of salt.

[totodeinhere]

44. Well either Clinton met with her or he didn't regardless of the source of the story.

Are you suggesting that the meeting didn't take place?

[demwing]

55. Nope, that can be verified. But...

They are friends. Meeting is not unusual

What did they talk about? We don't know, but some say...

And there's the issue. We deride FOX for their "some say" journalism, but for some reason are willing to take Politico's word on their nameless sources - Some, Many, and Inside Source.

It's more suspicious when the story alleges a split in Dem support for a candidate that clearly has the Repukes worried.

[formercia]

7. Same old Political Machine BS.

Let's break the cycle of political machine politics.

Judd 2014

[DonCoquixote]

8. YUP

Translation, the Blue Dog Dems that have sunk themselves deep into the carcass of the body are not going to risk a realdemocrat getting in and sweeping them out.

[dsc]

9. We have these things called primaries

and let them both run in the primary and let the people of KY choose who they want.

[iamthebandfanman]

11. true

but politics is as dirty as it gets here in the bluegrass state...
they'll fight dirty... they have nothing to lose... Ashley is the newcomer and has her whole political career at stake..
will Ashley feel like taking it on?'

I sure hope so.

the last thing we need is another lundergan with a position of even more power. sad enough shes in the office shes in. I typically vote straight ticket, but didn't solely because of her.

ON EDIT :

after thinking for a minute..
this could be a good thing... assuming she takes it on..
Ashley could stand to have any trash or secrets made public during a primary versus the general.. usually best that way, that way its old news...

[TrollBuster9090]

36. How can you 'find any dirt' on a woman who has already (literally) presented herself naked to the

public?

She's an entertainment celebrity who we expect has probably a) had wild sexual adventures, b) taken drugs, and c) hung out with crazy people. We already EXPECT that, and any 'revelations' about her can only work in the reverse direction. ie-she didn't take AS MANY drugs as we expected, and heck, she's got a Master's degree in Public Administration from Harvard. The 'low expectations' barrier for her has already been set, and all she can do is go UPWARDS from here. And any attacks from the Republican machine will only garner sympathy for her...somebody whose achieved fame through hard work and talent, as opposed to a professional politician like McConnell.

Meanwhile, there are probably quite a few skeletons in Grimes' closet that can be released at opportune times.

[Le Taz Hot]

12. Wouldn't it be nice if the PTB

actually allowed that process to happen without interference?

[madfloridian]

18. It doesn't work that way in FL, that I know.

Looks like it won't in KY either.

[dsc]

20. why not

the fact is Ashley Judd will have plenty of money, plenty of name recognition, and is likely to have at least some decent consultants to work with her. The other candidate would also have money and consultants. Let them fight it out.

[madfloridian]

39. Examples.

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/madfloridian/4

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/madfloridian/50

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/madfloridian/1487

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/madfloridian/2206

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/madfloridian/2647

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/madfloridian/3060

And the worst:

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/madfloridian/2470

[dsc]

43. In my opinion

if you can't win a competitive primary then you probably aren't the best candidate for the general. The fact is raising money is part of running for office. I hope Crist losses his primary but if he wins thems the breaks.

[ReRe]

13. Allison will never beat Mitch McConnell

Trust me. I know KY politics. The Democratic Party bosses in KY will never allow it. Allison is good, don't get me wrong. She would make a great Senator for KY. But Ashley will primary out Allison and the Dem Party bosses and pummel Mitch McConnell. Period. And I'll help her do it!

[TrollBuster9090]

14. Not that it's any of my business, BUT THIS WOULD BE STOOOOPID!

Ashley Judd is a classic 'GAMECHANGER' (in the GOOD sense, as opposed to the Sarah Palin sense).

Here's why they should go with Judd:

1. EVERY WORD that comes out of Ashley Judd's mouth will get COAST TO COAST COVERAGE, and

2.Every word that comes out of her mouth WILL BE GOOD.

Everybody will be expecting her to be a celebrity bubblehead, when in fact she's actually a highly intelligent, highly educated, common sense person. (Basically the f-ing OPPOSITE of 'game changer' Sarah Palin, who, being a career politician, everybody expected to be intelligent and rational, and turned out to be the the reverse. A celebrity bubblehead.)


Judd already has the advantage of 'low expectations' which she can easily surpass. She ALREADY has a network of national, free publicity, and she's got the smarts to put that celebrity profile to good use.

Grimes is exactly the kind of candidate the GOP would LOVE to run against, and exactly the kind of Democratic Party politician that set the Democrats up for A DECADE OF LOSSES. ie-a typical, no-name politician that Dems think can win because the GOP won't be able to find much to SMEAR her with. Bullshit! That was the GOP ROMNEY strategy, and we've just PROVED it doesn't work. You can't just run a boring "generic" candidate in the hopes that everybody is so fed up with the incumbent that they'll vote for the candidate with the paper bag over their head.


Here, I'll make a confession. I was against the Dems running AL FRANKIN! I thought it would make a mockery of the Democratic Party, and he had no chance of winning. They'd just smear him as a 'comic' gag-man with no political experience, and he'd lose. I was against them running 'bubblehead celebrity' Al Frankin for Senate...AND I WAS DEAD WRONG. Let's not make that mistake again.

[brooklynite]

35. Coast to Coast coverage is useless...

...since the only people who get to vote are in Kentucky.

Show me that what she says will resonate with Kentucky voters, not political junkies watching Cable News shows.

SERIOUSLY, I'm not being critical of her; I'm saying I know little about her that I can determine is relevant to a Kentucky Senate race, and before I get involved I want to do my homework.

[TrollBuster9090]

37. Coast to coast INCLUDES Kentucky. :)

And I think she'll appeal to a broad range of voters who usually stay home on election day in Kentucky. It's a Hail Mary pass, to be sure, but in my opinion the only way you can beat a well-funded, deeply intrenched, long sitting Republican incumbent in deep red state is if you throw a Hail Mary pass. As opposed to putting up a 'Republican Lite' candidate, and fight the election down in the weeds over crafted talking points tailored to swing the opinion polls by half a point in either direction.

[Botany]

16. Why don't they leave it up to the voters in KY?

The PTB have mucked around in quite a few dem primary senate races in Ohio
and sometimes w/ nasty results.

[Freddie Stubbs]

58. So, Ashley Judd should currently have no say, as she is a resident of Tennessee?

[Ken Burch]

21. What's so special about this Grimes person?

Is it just that she's not a "godless librul movie star"?

Also...why the fuck does ANYONE listen to Bill Clinton's advice on candidate selection? He NEVER manages to recruit winning candidates for anything, and the people he stumps for almost always lose. Get a clue, folks.

[iamthebandfanman]

24. her daddy. n/t

[Freddie Stubbs]

57. Grimes has proven her ability to win big a state-wide election in KY

She crushed her Republican opponent by a larger than 40% margin.

[Ken Burch]

64. Having done that, has she done anything good WITH the job?

Anybody can win a damn election...it's what happens afterwords that matters.

May I assume you'd back her against Ashley...the way you always back the least-progressive candidate in ANY Democratic primary?

[Freddie Stubbs]

78. She has pushed for legislation to make it easier for soldiers deployed overseas to vote

http://wkyufm.org/post/kentuckys-senate-bill-one-ensures-voting-rights-soldiers-overseas

[Ken Burch]

81. OK. That's good...didn't know about it.

Thanks for the info.

[NorthCarolina]

59. You can't let the "Liberal" out of the box

because it's tenets can become highly infective and spread like wildfire, with the largest danger coming from public exposure of the fact that the need for "Third-Way (aka GOP-like) Democrats" to compete in a red-state is a complete fallacy.

[47of74]

22. We need a hard, pipe hittin' liberal to challenge Mitch McFuckstick...

...and I don't think Grimes fits that bill at all.

[NBachers]

50. Sure sounds like another pump 'n' dump to me

[Volaris]

62. That's the best inside turn of phrase i've heard in a while lol...

And I agree with you. Let Ashley go to work on Yertle with the political equivalent of "a pair of pliers and a blowtorch."

[ballaratocker]

31. There may be more to this than a fear of smear attacks against Ashley Judd

I won't trot out the line 'She (Ashley Judd) is rich so she doesn't need the money from politics. They are scared they can't control her' line but I will give a less puerile version of it to argue my point.
A lot of politicians get into politics via the 'machine'. They never held a 'real' job before getting into the game and they owe a lot of their connections, fame and careers to people they met within the system. As far as I can tell, and please correct me if I'm wrong, Ashley Judd doesn't owe the Democratic machine her livelihood because she gained financial success and fame independently. If she does not owe them anything, she will be less easily controlled. Hence, why they want someone who might be a product of the organization and one who will be more likely to tow the party line.
Ashley Judd may get elected and get corrupted by the perks of office like so many before her but this may be a reason why they don't want her in there.

[lbrtbell]

41. The DLC is already trying to sabotage a true liberal

Shame on you, Bill Clinton. Wasn't your welfare DE-form damaging enough?

[Dragonfli]

45. This is to be expected, the Dem leadership always supports the farthest to the right

They can get, they only require that they Register as Dem and support shit like free trade and "entitlement reform". They will even support third party over Dem if the Dem is a liberal, Remember Lieberman?

[Nihil]

47. Interesting ...

> she hails from a well-connected family influential in Kentucky Democratic politics.

And that's apparently a "good thing" in Democratic circles? Coming from a "well-connected
family" who are "influential"?


Heaven help anyone who mentions the word "Plutarchy" ...

[blkmusclmachine]

48. Blanche Lincoln, Part 2: The Sequel.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

49. Careful, my friend. You dare criticize the Clintons on DU. :)

[BlueStreak]

51. You are speaking of the same bunch of losers that ...

Have lost to McConnell the last 5 times;

and have lost the other seat 3 times in a row;

since 1957 have lost 14 Senatorial elections and won only 6;

and since 1998 have lost every single one.

Really?

These are the people we should be listening to about how to win a Senatorial seat in Kentucky?

Really?

[davidpdx]

54. If Judd runs I'll support her

I personally don't care who the Clintons support. That said the KY primary is still a ways off (I haven't seen a date set yet). We'll know more after the Kentucky Derby in May.

[CobaltBlue]

67. Not since 1992

The Democrats haven't carried a U.S. Senate race in Kentucky since 1992.

Aside from Mitch McConnell (1984, 1990, 1996, 2002, 2008) . . . Jim Bunning was barely elected (1998) and re-elected (2004). And McConnell is unpopular. But the Democrats ran another ConservaDem, Jack Conway, to take on Rand Paul in 2010. And Paul won by something like 15 points.

Choice between Fake R and Official R .. may as well go for Official R.

[Beacool]

73. I don't live in KY, but I would support anyone who could win against the Turtle.

[yurbud]

74. it probably wasn't the ad that made them panic. Judd would clearly be her own woman

and not necessarily fall in line with the DLC, 21st Century Dem, or whatever new name they call themselves now, corporate Democrats.

It's not about left or right, but how high you jump when the wealthy tell you to.

[Puzzledtraveller]

79. This Kentuckian thinks Ms. Judd would have been a trainwreck.

Because it is "Kentucky"

[sylvi]

80. Oh wonderful

More old guard, establishment politicians. Just what the country needs.

[juajen]

82. What a pity!