Bill Moyers suggests McConnell's campaign and his allies are illegally coordinating their election activities

In the last week, roundups will change often, so keep us bookmarked . . .

• In an essay titled "How to buy an election," liberal journalist and commentator Bill Moyers questions whether Sen. Mitch McConnell has kept proper legal distance from "a constellation of outside groups" that are attacking Alison Lundergan Grimes in all sorts of advertising. He notes the senator's ties to several people who are playing key roles in those "supposedly independent" campaigns, like the one of the Kentucky Opportunity Coalition, which has spent $12.4 million attacking Grimes, Joe Gerth of The Courier-Journal reports. "Often the sharing of consultants and ad makers means that any 'fire wall' is merely symbolic," Moyers writes. "But there have been no consequences for these potential violations of federal law, because there’s been no enforcement of the law, thanks to partisan gridlock at the Federal Election Commission," fostered partly by McConnell.
• Both candidates have started the traditional "closer" ads, in which they speak to the camera with a gentler message than most of their spots have delivered. McConnell has some real fun, ending with a bunch of bloodhounds to subtly recall the ads he rode to an upset victory over Democratic Sen. Walter D. Huddleston in 1984. It ends with him laughing, a rarity in an ad.
  

For an analysis of the Grimes ad, from Susan Davis of USA Today, click here.

Joe Arnold of Louisville's WHAS-TV reports on get-out-the-vote operations in both parties that may be the largest ever in Kentucky.

"Although they get little attention from candidates, white evangelical Christian voters are likely to be fundamental to any Republican victories in the key Senate races, especially in the South," Alistair Bell writes for Reuters. "Polling data shows evangelicals are more enthusiastic than the general population about the midterms," which Bell says "is striking given that Republican candidates have largely avoided evangelicals' pet topics like opposition to abortion and gay marriage for fear of alienating moderate voters." Ralph Reed of the Faith and Freedom Coalition says his group is doing its "most muscular" turnout operation ever. That includes voter guides like the one at the bottom of this blog post. CatholicVote.org, another pro-McConnell group, also has a guide.

The outcome of the race depends on whether voters have less trust in Congress or in President Obama, writes Michael Memoli of the Los Angeles Times.

Ever since Libertarian David Patterson got his name on the ballot, observers have wondered which major candidate he would hurt. Bill Hayes writes on his blog, The Rural Democrat, that it is likely Grimes, if Patterson gets 4 to 5 percent of the vote, because recent polling has shown him gaining support among self-defined independent voters and her losing support among that group.

July 2 roundup: Another military-women mailer, this one more specific

Women's issues are in play today:

• Adam Beam of The Associated Press looks at Sen. Mitch McConnell's vocal support of the Supreme Court ruling that lets closely held companies opt out of the federal health-reform law's requirement to include contraceptive coverage in mandatory insurance for their employees: "Political observers said McConnell has been talking more about social issues such as abortion during this campaign than he has for most of his 30-year Senate career. That could be a byproduct of this year's Republican primary, where McConnell had to defeat Tea Party challenger Matt Bevin." (Read more)

• The Kentucky Opportunity Coalition, a "super PAC" supporting McConnell, has sent its fourth direct-mail advertisement touting McConnell's support of women in the military. It mentions the same issues as before, one with more specifics: bills to take sexual-assault cases out of the chain of command and to allow women to fly combat missions. Earlier ads said the latter bill would give them "more hands-on opportunities." For a copy of the latest ad, click here.

Roundup for June 5: Grimes, Reid raise money; PAC for McConnell sends another military-women mailer; Grimes makes counter-offer on debates

A high-profile event and two pieces of print advertising are among today's news:

• Alison Lundergan Grimes attended a fund-raiser with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in Washington this morning, prompting criticism from Mitch McConnell's campaign. The fund-raiser was held less than 24 hours after Reid blocked McConnell's bill to put hurdles in front of the proposed carbon-dioxide rules the Obama administration announced three days ago.
• McConnell asked the Environmental Protection Agency to hold a hearing in Eastern Kentucky on its proposed carbon-dioxide regulations, which the agency declined to do as it was drafting the regulations.
• The initial version of Grimes's newspaper ad about coal featured a European male model posing as a miner, James Hohmann reports for Politico. Grimes's campaign says it replaced the photo before the ad was printed, but it didn't notify its media list. The revised version appears here; for the original version, click here.
• A political action committee supporting McConnell, the Kentucky Opportunity Coalition, sent its second mail piece promoting the senator's efforts to help women in the military, indicating the importance of female voters to the race. The first one was sent after the May primary. For a black-and-white version of the latest full-color mailer, click here.
• Grimes made a counter-offer to McConnell's debate plan, saying debates should be held before and after Labor Day, with citizens asking questions; and accepting KET's proposed forum on Oct. 13.