Hold your nose touting

How embarrassing for Mitch McConnell. Somebody managed to get a recording of a private telephone call made by his campaign manager.

In the recording, obtained by Economic Policy Journal, Jesse Benton — who ran Paul's successful 2010 campaign before joining McConnell's team — told conservative activist Dennis Fusaro that he has an ulterior motive in working the GOP leader's 2014 campaign.

"Between you an me, I'm sorta holding my nose for two years," Benton said in the recording, "'cause what we're doing here is gonna be a big benefit to Rand in '16."

And yes, it's real:

Benton confirmed the authenticity of the recording telling the Weekly Standard, "It is truly sick that someone would record a private phone conversation I had out of kindness and use it to try to hurt me."

I'm not comfortable with such invasions of privacy but must admit my extreme disgust with Mitch McConnell leaves me more amused by this than I probably should be.

Adding: Alec MacGillis was in Kentucky recently and discovered McConnell's trouble in Kentucky runs much deeper than just a reluctant campaign manager.

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Ditching Mitch McConnell

Let's face it. We're talking about Kentucky. Electing a Democrat to the Senate won't be easy but Grimes looks up to the challenge.

Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes announced Monday she will challenge Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), giving Democrats their favored candidate and turning the race into one of the 2014 cycle's marquee contests.

She has a good pitch. Echoing the GOP's intention to use ageism as a weapon against Hillary, well, it could work both ways.

Lundergan Grimes stressed that she was Kentucky's "only female constitutional officer" and "the youngest secretary of state across the nation that is a female."

"Kentucky is tired of a senior senator who has lost touch with Kentucky issues, voters and their values," she said.

It's certainly not hopeless. The man is not popular.

"The Kentucky Senate race is now a toss up. Mitch McConnell is the most unpopular incumbent in the entire country. He is a relic of the past and a symbol of everything that is wrong with Washington. Kentuckians want a change," Cecil said, citing polling done for the committee that showed more than 60 percent of Kentucky voters disapprove of the senator's job performance.

All McConnell's got going for him is Obama Derangement Syndrome. He's going to play this as a vote against a rubber stamp for Obama. That could work for him but Grimes looks like a fighter and she has plenty of ammo. If she plays it right, she could capture the women's vote. Might be enough to swing a win. Stranger things have happened.

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Mitch McConnell spins the scandals

Gotta give him some credit for wringing the most value out of pseudoscandal. Taking to the WaPo op-ed page, Mitch McConnell sees an opportunity to quash big money donor disclosure:

[R]ecent efforts to revive the so-called Disclose Act suggest that these tactics are alive and well in Washington. This bill, which would force grass-roots groups to make their member and donor lists public, may seem benign to some. But as a longtime defender of the First Amendment, I have always seen it for what it is: a backdoor effort to discourage those who disagree with the Obama administration from participating in the political process. [...]

Oddly, some on the left are now arguing that the IRS scandal is reason to revive the Disclose Act. But if this scandal has taught us anything, it is that Washington's ability to target individuals and groups is already too expansive.

You will recall the odious intimidation McConnell is speaking of here merely requires deep pocket donors who sponsor political attack ads to be identified so the public can judge the motivation of the groups flinging the dirt to muddy the discourse. It doesn't kick in until the donation reaches $10,000 or more.

Of course the majority of these groups are backing Republican candidates and causes and are financed mainly by a handful of very wealthy Big Business conservatives but I'm sure that has nothing to do with Mr. McConnell's great concern that millionaires and billionaires might be terrorized on the streets by the hoi polloi if the voters find out who's sponsoring the half-truths and outright lies on their TV.

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Who is Progress KY

Serious question. While it's entirely possible they're just the world's most inept wannabe lefty anarchists, Progress KY feels more like a GOP front group every passing day. I mean, first the lame attack ads on the wife and then the lamebrain secret taping which they immediately bragged about pulling off. They're like Jimmy O'Keefe on whiskey and quaaludes.

Odd how everything they've done so far has been such a big help to Mitch.

The leak seems to have backfired, helping to strengthen McConnell in the state. Most of the focus has been on the FBI investigation into who bugged McConnell's office, and on Conway's comments about his discussions with Progress Kentucky's leaders.

The story has also given McConnell's allies a chance to tie the fringe group to Democrats in and outside of the state.

Moreover, they have no apparent talent for raising money, yet they managed to pay for the racist ads in the beginning and high powered legal counsel now. The investigation is likely to last until the 2014 election. The gift that keeps on giving -- to McConnell. Funny how that works.

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