Trailing Rand Paul by double digits in the latest WHAS11/Courier-Journal Bluegrass Poll, Secretary of State Trey Grayson has rolled out a new attack ad on national security, which again hammers Paul on previous comments he has made regarding whether the Guantanamo Bay detention center should close and on the war in Afghanistan.
And if Paul is wondering about the the extensive opposition research by the Grayson campaign, he can do some one-stop shopping at a new Grayson campaign website, RandPaulStrangeIdeas.com. The Grayson campaign cites the sources for Paul's positions and record on 17 different topics, including abortion, gay marriage, differences with prominent Kentucky Republicans Mitch McConnell and Hal Rogers, and similarities with his libertarian icon father, Ron Paul.
Meanwhile, the National Journal's Reid Wilson is reporting on the Grayson offensive, while laying out a criticism of the heir apparent Grayson letting the race get away from him:
Many GOPers worried about Grayson's ability to take a punch and to effectively counter attacks made against him. But those with nerves thought it would be the Dem nominee they worried about; few expected that weakness to manifest itself so evidently in the primary.
Grayson was slow to realize Paul's strength, sources in both camps agree. And the national political environment, which favors outsiders over insiders, is playing to the upstart Paul's advantage.
"[Paul's camp] did a number of smart things, and I think they got really lucky that Trey Grayson never really engaged. They used their time wisely, and I'm not sure that Trey Grayson did," said the strategist who will vote for Grayson. "They had a chance to define Rand Paul early, but they just didn't engage."
Here's the transcipt of the new Grayson ad:
Important
Transcript
I’m Trey Grayson. On National Security, Rand Paul has some strange ideas. Paul favors closing Guantanamo Bay and sending Al-Qaeda terrorists back to their home countries.
Paul Video Clip: “… drop ‘em off back in Afghanistan. It’ll take ‘em a while to get back over here …”
Guantanamo should stay open and terrorists should be tried in military courts. Even though the 9/11 attacks began there, Paul thinks Afghanistan is not a threat to our national security.
I’m Trey Grayson and I approved this message, because national security is too important to get it wrong.
