Editorial and Political Intelligence

They call themselves "concerned mothers and grandparents." Others are now calling them the Ghost Battalion of West Kentucky. Old time political observers are starting to question that they may become the best chance, in the far West Kentucky, to defeat Senator Mitch McConnell in 2020.

This Ghost Battalion is becoming an umbrella force coordinating and sharing energies with several other independent think-action groups found in the Jackson Purchase. Some 30 to 50 independents', along with some 200 to 300 Invisible Project members, along with Sierra Club, Kentuckians for the Commonwealth members are joining in the fight.

Recently a small leadership cadre of Invisible group made political history in Kentucky. They raised a 4 ft. by 8 ft billboard some 40 ft. above the Lone oak highway entrance into Paducah, Kentucky. A second large billboard was raised in Down Town Paducah.

For these new political warriors, this was not cheap. Each billboard will stay up for the campaign to defeat Mitch McConnell. These billboards are being paid for by cup cake and bake sales, donations, clubs, tea parties, and social media.

Nationally, Mitch McConnell has as many political enemies as does Trump. To this end, large amounts of monies are flowing into this local signage ground game against Mitch from around the nation.

In normal past statewide political races, TV ads and professional billboards were used when the candidate had lots of money and professional consultants.

When history writes of the Kentucky 2020 elections, it might record how an invisible army of ordinary people took down a 40 year power machine call Senator Mitch McConnell.

Many of these new political warriors are from Progressive Democrats. Many belong to the national effort called Indivisible. Many of them live in rural areas of Kentucky. Many of them want to belong to an effort and or project to engage their energies, into the battle over how to "get rid of Trump" and how to make sure, Mitch McConnell is defeated.

These new political warriors are from the bottom floor of traditional politics. They are the faces of the voting public with no other plan than to make politics once again work for the people. This Ghost Battalion is a new umbrella force of county by county political volunteers, experts and leaders.

The strength of this Ghost Battalion is that they have no large sum of official campaign funds. In many regards they are a fighting force without top down command structure, like the Kentucky Democratic Party, to control them.

The Ghost Battalion will engage Mitch McConnell in places he has never fought before. They plan to fight with (1) optics, (2) precision tactics, (3) command of social media, (4) (geography of back yards and front porches, urban streets, back roads and forgotten small towns of the Jackson Purchase.

What they do have is plenty of new political currency of (1) energy (2) passion of cause (3) operational street by street combat plan (4) major social media presence, and (5) establishing financial networking with national groups.

The Democratic Senate primary election winner, Amy McGrath commands an army of consultants and money for TV. However, in this battle for control of the Senate race, this Ghost Battalion, along with the Trade Unions, will wage a hand-to-hand fight against the Republicans, in far West Kentucky.

West Kentucky, within the Jackson Purchase geography, is some 300 miles from the largest population centers of Central Kentucky and the Democratic Party Headquarters in Frankfort.

If I were a betting man, I would lay down money on the grandmothers, as they take the fight with Mitch, into the streets, yards, and fields of West Kentucky.