WHO'S WORSE BRUCE LUNSFORD OR MITCH McCONNELL? IT MIGHT NOT MATTER

Kentucky Senate candidate Sonny Landham

It would be hard to imagine that anyone could be worse than McConnell. He has been Bush's worst lap-dog in the Congress and has managed to use parliamentary maneuvers to block almost every piece of progressive legislation that has come before the Senate. Even beyond his dismal corporate voting record and his unparalleled corruption, a case can be made, and often is, that McConnell is the single worst member of the U.S. Senate. Even right wingers are embarrassed by his behavior. As for Lunsford... there is some disagreement about whether he's a dyed-in-the-wool reactionary like his pal McConnell, or just a mainstream corporate conservative. If he were to be elected, it is likely that he would be among the worst Democrats in the Senate, not nearly as bad as McConnell but on key substantive issues voting the same way McConnell would and voting far worse than even Joe Lieberman, Ben Nelson or Mary Landrieu. Lunsford has a long and clear record of betraying Democrats, betraying progressive ideals and values and facilitating partisan GOP initiatives. Better than McConnell? Sure. But at least McConnell doesn't work to undermine the Democratic Party from within, the way Lunsford would do if he were ever elected.

But will he be? I didn't think so. McConnell's corporate cronies don't plan on seeing him defeated. He's already raised $13,000,000 for this contest... and he's just getting started. Nearly every deprecation against the US economy since Bush became president can be traced to unregulated industries which have showered McConnell with massive "donations." His biggest contributors have been in the securities and investment industry ($753,059), the fine folks who have brought us the mortgage meltdown-- along with the real estate industry, which chipped in another $514,085 for their boy Mitch. Can we blame high gas prices on McConnell? Well, look at it like this-- every single vote he made favored Big Oil over consumers and Big Oil rewarded him with $215,100 this cycle. Big Pharma ($220,400), insurance ($406,583), commercial banks ($262,050), lobbyists ($337,066)... every special interest loves Mitch McConnell. (Of course, none of these crooks would have the slightest bit of trouble loving a Senator Lunsford just as much.) But a curve ball got tossed into the Kentucky race today that is making me think McConnell may lose after all.

The reason why McConnell may lose is because there may be enough Republicans fed up with him to actually vote for the Libertarian candidate, tough guy character actor Sonny Landham (Billy from Predator and Billy Bear from 48 Hours). Although he's an anti-choice fanatic, he's campaigning against NAFTA and against political insiders, an appeal that has a certain resonance with McConnell detractors, even if it doesn't exactly work when mouthed by an equally insider goon like Lunsford.

Landham refers to McConnell, a four-term Republican, as "Boss Hogg" after the corrupt politician from "The Dukes of Hazzard" TV show. He bluntly called Democratic candidate and millionaire businessman Bruce Lunsford an "elitist."

Even President Bush is a target: "He took us into a war on lies," Landham said, claiming the actual intent was "to put 'Big Oil' back into Iraq."

Landham was a porn actor in the 70s and he served a couple years in prison-- although the conviction was later thrown out-- for making threatening and obscene phone calls to his ex-wife. He's on his fifth wife now and lives in Ashland, Kentucky.

Political scientist Michael Baranowski, of Northern Kentucky University, predicted minimal impact on the Senate race, though Landham could take some votes from McConnell.

"I'm not sure which is more of a hurdle for Landham, being a former porn actor or being a Libertarian Party candidate," he said. "But if the race between McConnell and Lunsford is tight enough, the votes Landham pulls from McConnell might be critical."

DWT doesn't expect to endorse any candidates in this race. We looked for a Landham porno scene but there are none on YouTube.