Bunning’s flap energizing Democrats who want his Senate seat

By Jack Brammer – jbrammer@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — U.S. Sen. Jim Bunning ended his singular stand against extending unemployment benefits Tuesday night, but the national flap he created may have long-lasting effects on the Kentucky race to replace him.

Democrats seeking his seat moved quickly to capitalize on the controversy, holding a protest rally on Tuesday and launching a television ad on Wednesday that hammers the lame duck senator and the Republican Senate candidates who supported him.

Several political analysts said Wednesday that Bunning’s stance, which garnered ridicule and praise across the nation, provides an opening for Democrats who had been relegated to second-tier status in recent weeks as Kentucky’s Republican primary generated a national buzz.

Analysts were not surprised that Attorney General Jack Conway began airing a TV ad Wednesday that accused Republicans Trey Grayson and Rand Paul of “shamefully” supporting Bunning, a Hall of Fame pitcher, who Conway said was “throwing high and wild, hitting working families where it hurts.”

“This is a great chance for Democrats to energize their base,” said Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics.

“Everybody agrees with Bunning that government programs should be paid for but Bunning chose to emphasize this on programs that help the unemployed,” Sabato said. “Most people are sympathetic to the unemployed.”

Bunning maintained that the $10 billion price tag for the benefits extension should be paid for with money from unspent stimulus funds instead of increasing the national debt.

In a statement about his 30-second ad, which is the first of his campaign and airs on Lexington and Louisville stations, Conway called Bunning, Grayson and Paul “completely out of touch with the economic needs of Kentucky workers and families.”

Conway did not mention in the ad his primary Democratic opponent, Lt. Gov. Daniel Mongiardo, who led protests outside Bunning’s Lexington and Louisville offices on Tuesday.

Grayson and Paul fired back.

“Trey Grayson believes Washington needs to pay for new spending, not just add to the deficit,” said Grayson campaign Nate Hodson.

The Grayson campaign also went up with a TV ad Wednesday, touting his cost-cutting measures as Kentucky’s secretary of state. It did not mention by name any of his rivals or Bunning, but did say Washington needs to cut more spending.

Paul, a Bowling Green eye surgeon and son of U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, dismissed the Conway ad as “just more of the same political gamesmanship from the Democrats.

“They love kicking Sen. Bunning around, but Jim was taking a principled stand on the debt and was not opposing the benefits.”

Sabato said Bunning’s action ingratiates him with some conservatives who are “fed up” with deficit spending in Washington. “But many others point out that Bunning has voted for other federal programs, like the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, without the necessary funding to pay for them,” he said.

Bunning’s previous stances leave him — and Republicans more generally — open to accusations of “obstructionism and insensitivity,” Sabato said.

Scott Lasley, a political science professor at Western Kentucky University, said the issue may remain relevant for a long time, but he doubts it will impact many voters in the general election.

“It’s premature to say how it will affect the Senate race but it certainly will give Democrats the chance to energize their base,” Lasley said.

The Conway ad is designed for the more active, liberal voters who are more likely to vote in the May 18 Democratic primary election, said Democratic political consultant Danny Briscoe of Louisville.

“They are outraged with Bunning and Conway is tapping into that outrage,” Briscoe said. “Conway is saying, hey, Democrats, if you’re looking for an example of obstructionism by Republicans, there is none better than Jim Bunning. And you have two Republican candidates in his mold.”

Filed Under: Democratic Party • Elections • Federal Government • Jack Conway • Jim Bunning • Rand Paul • Trey Grayson • US Senate Race