Senate Election 2014: Kentucky Candidate Alison Lundergan Grimes' Attack Ad Ask "Where Was Mitch McConnell?"
With less than two weeks remaining for Kentucky residents to register to vote, the state's secretary of state launched an attack advertisement against Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., accusing him of being absent on important matters in Congress.
Alison Lundergan Grimes, the Kentucky secretary of state and Democratic senatorial challenger against McConnell, launched the advertisement titled "Where Was He?" The 30-second video cites the Senate Committee Hearing and Markup Records from 2009 to 2014 to note McConnell's absence.
"First, we learned Mitch Connell skipped hundreds of committee hearings," the narrator of the ad says, noting he skipped meetings on rural jobs and votes on troop funding, farming and veteran affairs. "Where was he?"
Despite missing the meetings, the attack ad said McConnell had time to appear for a lobbyist fundraiser, television appearances and a toast with China's vice president to recognize the country's "great achievements."
"And the rest of the time, he created gridlock," the narrator says, noting he blocked votes in the Senate 114 times between 2007 and 2013. "Thirty years is long enough."
"After 30 years in Washington, it is clear where McConnell's true priorities are. Kentuckians deserve better than a senator full of excuses about why he skips out on work," said a statement from Lundergan Grimes' campaign website.
One day after the ad's launch, the McConnell campaign announced the American Farm Bureau Federation recognized McConnell as a "Friend of Farm Bureau." McConnell's campaign also listed the incumbent senator's "History Of Big Accomplishments For Kentucky Farmers."
"Sen. McConnell always puts Kentucky first and despite repeated false attacks from Alison Lundergan Grimes, Kentucky farm families stand strong in their support for his hard work to ensure farming continues to grow and thrive here in the Commonwealth," McConnell campaign spokeswoman Allison Moore said.
Based on the latest polling data from Reuters/Ipsos, McConnell leads with 46 percent to Lundergan Grimes' 42 percent among likely voters. Among registered voters, Lundergan Grimes' led with 38 percent to McConnell's 36 percent. Independent voters narrowly favored Lundergan Grimes with 29 percent to McConnell's 24 percent.
As Latin Post reported, McConnell targeted his opponent by citing her support for immigration reform. Lundergan Grimes has distanced herself from President Barack Obama by stating she doesn't agree with some of his polices, specifically coal, guns and the Environmental Protection Agency.
According to the Kentucky State Board of Elections, Oct. 6 is the last day for Kentuckians to register to vote for November's election. Lundergan Grimes is also the state's Board of Elections chair.