Trey Grayson started it.

As soon as the NCAA men's brackets were announced, Kentucky's Republican secretary of State was up with an Internet ad assailing his opponent in the Senate primary -- Rand Paul. Not because he's the son of presidential candidate Ron Paul, the darling of Libertarians everywhere, or because he has never held public office before, but because he's a graduate of Duke Medical School. Take a look.

The basketball rivalry between the University of Kentucky and Duke dates back at least to 1992, when  Christian Laettner's shot at the buzzer gave Duke a 104-103 win over Kentucky in what some still call the greatest college basketball game in history. Laettner, still reviled in the Blue Grass State, is not on the ballot. So candidates in both parties are trying to tar each other with the dirt of Duke affiliation. The subtext, always popular in American politics: Duke is for elitists, Kentucky for real folks.

Paul, an eye surgeon making his maiden run for office, tried to make light of the slur. "Well, I guess that might be a real issue if you're running for student council," he said in a statement. "It's especially funny watching my Harvard-educated opponent complain about where I went to medical school."

Ouch.

Not to be outdone, Democrats have also gotten into the act. Lt. Gov. Daniel Mongiardo offered a "friendly wager" Monday to his primary opponent, Atty. Gen. Jack Conway, over whether Kentucky (Mongiardo's alma mater) or Duke (Conway's) would advance. But the bet was Mongiardo's not-so-subtle attempt to remind voters that Conway had a more privileged background, promising to be a Kentucky Wildcat and would "stand up and fight for people who eat barbecue with a fork, not caviar with a silver spoon."

All of this might be part of the silly season in politics, but University of Kentucky political science professor Donald Gross thinks the attacks could actually change hearts and minds. "Many Big Blue fans have horrible memories about Duke," he told KentuckySports.com. "It could make a difference to some Kentucky fans."

Hey, it's March.

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In his day, Curt Schilling  was one of those pitchers with a reputation for competitiveness. Helping the Red Sox win the  2004 World Series championship, their first in 86 years, Schilling ignored a bloodstain on his sock to pitch his team to victory in Game 6 of the American League championship series against the New York Yankees.

Now, the 42-year-old Boston resident -- who won his first World Series with the Arizona Diamondbacks -- has his eye on a new prize: the Senate seat held by Ted Kennedy for almost 50 years.

“I do have some interest in the possibility,” Schilling wrote Wednesday on his blog, 38 Pitches   (named after his uniform number with the Red Sox). “That being said, to get there from where I am today, many, many things would have to align themselves.”

A registered Independent, Schilling campaigned for George W. Bush in 2004 and for John McCain last year, and often vents, in populist voice, against Washington insiders who have lost touch with constituents.

Approached by Republican insiders to consider the idea, Schilling quipped to one journalist that his famous feuding with reporters might disqualify him. "My first press conference could probably be my last as someone on the political scene, which probably wouldn’t be a bad thing," he told New England Cable News.

Lots of other names have been floated for the Senate seat, including Democratic Atty. Gen. Martha Coakley, who announced her candidacy this morning, saying, "We have lost our distinguished and tenacious senator Ted Kennedy.... No one can fill his shoes, but we must strive to follow in his footsteps."

Of course, being a popular baseball pitcher does not a great senator make. Just ask Jim Bunning, the Kentucky Republican and former major league pitcher for Detroit and Philadelphia, who was asked by GOP colleagues not to run for office next year.

Bunning was so controversial -- he infamously predicted last February that Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg would die of pancreatic cancer within nine months -- that  Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a fellow Kentucky conservative, feared Republicans would lose the seat if Bunning stayed.

But hey, maybe baseball pitchers are well-trained for the rigors of politics. After all, they're used to the sound of cheers. And boos.

-- Johanna Neuman

Photo: Schilling pitching against the Yankees Oct. 19, 2004. Credit: Associated Press

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It used to be that the favored public reason for giving up something was the fervent and newly discovered desire by the departee for more quality time with the family.

There was a whiff of that in Sarah Palin's recent retirement rhetoric, though no one expects her to hole up by the big picture window in her lakeside Wasilla pad and watch the ice come in this fall.

The newest reason is money. Illinois' demonized Democrat interim Sen. Roland Burris used it recently to explain his new-found desire to retire next year and not seek a formal election to Barack Obama's old seat as the Senate's sole black.

Now, today comes Republican incumbent Sen. Jim Bunning of Kentucky.

The strange thing is, unlike the old "family time" line, in both senators' cases the publicly stated reason is most probably true.

Also, they would have lost in the end anyway. So why go out in flames when they can go home in faux dignity and peacefully eat Shredded Wheat at the kitchen table?

In a bitter surrender letter today, Bunning made it official that he would not seek reelection, suggesting that some collegial undercutting was responsible for his inability to raise sufficient funds. Double-dealing? In U.S. politics?

Those muffled cheers you may hear come from the GOP Senate caucus, which promised last winter not to fund a primary challenger to Bunning but, as The Ticket reported in February, worked quietly to ensure today's decision.

In recent years, the 77-year-old second-term Republican has at times taken to speaking in tongues in public, alluding to "strangers among us" to explain upping his security detail and tossing off a prediction that a cancer-stricken Supreme Court justice would be dead in a few months.

With fellow Kentuckian and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's close call in his reelection last fall, Bunning's Bluegrass seat looked like a loss next year to pad the Democratic majority if the incumbent tried to hold it. Now, the way is cleared for young blood, most likely Kentucky Secretary of State Trey Grayson.

In recent years Bunning has seemed like a Hall of Fame pitcher who keeps showing up for spring training well past his prime. Oh, wait. That is Bunning, who became only the second pitcher ever to earn 100 wins and 1,000 strikeouts in both the American and the other league that hasn't won an All-Star Game this century (Cy Young was first).

Bunning officially ended his baseball career in 1971 with 2,855 strikeouts, 224 wins and 184 losses.

Exactly 40 years later he'll officially end his Senate career 2-0.

-- Andrew Malcolm

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Photo: Getty Images

Republicans, worried that Democrats could strengthen their hold on the U.S. Senate in 2010, are mounting a not-so-quiet effort to get Sen. Jim Bunning (R-Ky.) to retire.

In an increasingly purple state, where even Minority Leader Mitch McConnell had a close call in last year's election, Bunning is considered a serious underdog. In fact, many believe that he is the most vulnerable incumbent up for reelection.

Republican strategists insist that they will not fund a challenger against him in the GOP primary. But they worry that if Bunning does not retire, Democrats could pick up the seat and give the Dems a veto-proof majority.

So, over the weekend, according to The Hill, officials at the National Republican Senatorial Committee met with state Sen. David Williams to explore his candidacy. The president of the state Senate was in Washington for the National Governors' Assn. meeting.

Meanwhile, Bunning probably hurt his own case with an outrageous comment that Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg would be dead within “nine months.” In the course of explaining his support for conservative judges to a crowd at the Lincoln Day Dinner at the Old State Theater in Hardin County, Ky.,  Bunning said that a fight over a new Supreme Court justice would start “very shortly because Ruth Bader Ginsburg … has cancer ... bad cancer. The kind that you don’t get better from."

The 75-year-old Ginsburg returned to work at the Supreme Court today with a report from her doctors that her tumor had turned out to be benign and had not spread.

Bunning, a retired Hall of Fame pitcher, has been known for wild verbal excesses before.

During the 2004 election, he said his opponent -- state Sen. Daniel Mongiardo -- looked like one of Saddam Hussein's sons. And he accused Mongiardo's staff of roughing up the senator's wife. He also upped his security detail, telling a Paducah TV station, "There may be strangers among us."

The two-term senator has raised very little money for a reelection bid this cycle, with his campaign bank account actually shrinking between the third and fourth quarter last year.

-- Johanna Neuman

Photo: Getty Images

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With much of the nation's attention focused on his successor and the unfolding formation of the Barack Obama administration, President George W. Bush celebrated his last Thanksgiving in office with the troops at Ft. Campbell, Ky., the same base where he marked his first Thanksgiving after 9/11.

Bush took the occasion to explain to the soldiers what they and their predecessors had accomplished in the succeeding seven years. We have video below of some of his remarks.

And a complete text of the president's remarks is viewable by clicking on the "Read more" line below.

-- Andrew Malcolm

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More than a year ago, The Ticket noted how everything seemed to be coming up roses for the Democrats as the landscape took shape for 2008 Senate races.

Now, with the election a week away, the party caught still another break with the conviction this afternoon of the longest-serving Republican in the Senate -- Ted Stevens of Alaska -- on all seven counts of failing to report an array of gifts.

Most obviously, the jury's verdict is a huge blow to Stevens' bid for a seventh full Senate term.

Is it a fatal one?

We'd pause before writing off Stevens -- even with a felony conviction weighing him down -- because of the  status he long enjoyed among his constituents. And in a statement he issued, Stevens, right, made clear he'll depict himself as the target of unscrupulous and unethical federal prosecutors. "This verdict is the result of the unconscionable manner in which the Justice Department lawyers conducted this trial."

But Anne Hays of the Anchorage-based Hays Research Group showed no hesitation to make a political prediction as word spread in her state of Stevens' conviction.

"I think it sinks him," she told us as word spread of Stevens' conviction. His race against Democrat Mark Begich "had tightened up," she noted. "But I think this will break it out again" in Begich's favor.

More broadly, the verdict is yet another stain on a GOP brand ...

When the cast of "The Predator" gathered in the jungles of Mexico to make the sci-fi/action/horror flick during the spring of 1986, someone must have been offering a correspondence course in civics during down time.

So far, two of the film's actors have gone on to win governorships -- leading man Arnold Schwarzenegger, in California, and supporting performer Jesse Ventura, in Minnesota.

This year, two could by running for the U.S. Senate.

One is Ventura, who has been suggesting he may try to resurrect his political career by offering himself as an alternative in a race that already features Republican incumbent Norm Coleman and Democratic challenger Al Franken (himself an entertainment-industry refugee).

The other is Sonny Landham (who, though lesser known than Ventura, shared with him a doomed fate in "The Predator").

In Kentucky, Landham recently announced that he would start collecting petition signatures to qualify as the Libertarian Party candidate against Republican Mitch McConnell (the reigning Senate minority leader).

Landham, who also appeared in "48 Hours" (starring Eddie Murphy and Nick Nolte), should qualify for the ballot. His chances of actually winning, of course, are about as good as were his prospects when he went up against that cinematic alien more than 20 years ago.

Still, at least one political observer in Kentucky believes Landham could have an impact on McConnell's reelection bid, as you can read about here (and also learn more about the actor's colorful past).

-- Don Frederick

Photo credits: 20th Century Fox (movie poster); Associated Press (Landham)

On this, the first anniversary of our Top of the Ticket blog, we are reminded of the mercurial, unpredictable nature of U.S. politics -- part of what makes what we do so fascinating.

Our goal -- one of us on the East Coast and the other on the far more important or at least less humid West Coast -- was to write about Campaign '08 virtually around the clock.

Our second-ever posting, 12 months ago today, previewed an upcoming L.A. Times/Bloomberg Poll; later in the day, we detailed the results of the nationwide survey. The findings were in line with other polls of the time.

In the Republican presidential race, which then seemed the most likely to last deep into the primary season, Rudy Giuliani was perched in first place. His lead wasn't overwhelming, but it was strong enough that he appeared certain to remain a major contender.

His liberal record on social issues loomed as an obvious liability within his party, but his tough-on-terrorism message was attracting substantial support from moderates and GOP-leaning independents.

His major headache among rivals last June was an as-yet-undeclared candidate who was riding a wave as the great conservative hope -- Fred Thompson. He ran a strong second in the poll.

Lagging far behind were John McCain and Mitt Romney, each barely with double-digit support. In our preview posting, we were especially scornful of McCain, noting sarcastically (and foolishly, as it turned out) that in the poll, he found himself "in heated competition with the 'Don't Know' category."

Meriting no mention from us was Mike Huckabee, one of several back-of-the-pack candidates barely earning any support across the country.

The Democratic race, at that point, seemed so much more cut-and-dried.

Hillary Clinton was the clear front-runner; Barack Obama was just as clearly ...

You know, today is the last day of primaries. (Yes, we know AP says Barack Obama has clinched the Democratic nomination by delegates, but there are still real votes to be voted.)

Just like spring, election day comes kinda late to Montana and South Dakota. And they really are the final ones. No, really.

And then almost immediately -- well, five months from tomorrow -- comes the general election on Nov. 4. So you better hurry and sign up for instant results via Ticket Twitter for tonight and beyond.

Had you already signed up for Twitter, you would have known about Obama clinching through a special news tweet. 

And, of course, by signing up you also get automatic notification of Hillary Clinton's walloping of Barack Obama in Kentucky a whole lot quicker had you been a Ticket Twitter subscriber. 

Also, don't miss one moment of Rep. Ron Paul's surge now that he's within almost 1,300 delegates of catching Sen. John McCain for the Republican nomination in St. Paul. (Honest, that's where the GOP meets come September.)

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Once again, on this final primary election day and all the ordinary campaign days in between until the Bitter End when everyone has made their Thanksgiving airline reservations and winced at the new prices, we're going to have all the political news and election result updates for our Twitter subscribers. (Actually, to be honest, we'll be here well beyond Nov. 4 chronicling formation of a new presidential administration and the political fallout in the losing party.)

With notice of each regular Ticket posting.

-- Andrew Malcolm

Hillary Clinton's campaign just sent this e-mail to supporters, spinning off the results from the Puerto Rico primary.  It is missing the sense of urgency that such e-mails had after earlier primary wins -- and losses -- in which the campaign used the fresh results to spur on supporters.

"Another big win!  Today in Puerto Rico, the voters spoke with a powerful voice to say that this race is not over yet.  And thanks to your support, we're celebrating another great victory.

"When all the votes in Puerto Rico are counted, our popular vote lead will be even bigger. More than 17 million people have cast their ballots for our campaign, more votes than any candidate has received in the history of the Democratic Party. Now there can be no doubt: The people have spoken and you have chosen your candidate.  We are winning the popular vote.

"Every time the pundits count us out -- every time they declare the race over -- you, the voters, send a clear message that you have another idea.  And you and I just keep winning races together.

"Now there are just two contests left, the final primaries in South Dakota and Montana.  I know I can rely on your support for these last two races, just as I have throughout the campaign.

"Thank you so much for everything."

Then it was hand-signed "Hillary" over "Hillary Rodham Clinton," with a button to click for contributions. Click past the jump to see the letter she sent out after winning Kentucky.

-- Scott Martelle

No one was surprised by Hillary Clinton's absolute dominance in the hills, hollows and other rural stretches of Kentucky in the state's Democratic presidential primary Tuesday. But as she rolled up an overall victory margin of 35 percentage points over Barack Obama in the state, one local result stands out.

Magoffin County -- which according to the Lexington Herald-Leader has been identified by the Census Bureau as "the least diverse place in the nation" -- delivered Clinton her largest share of the vote among Kentucky's 120 counties.

She racked up 93% of the vote in Magoffin (named for a former governor and located in the state's eastern half). In raw votes, the totals were Clinton, 2,714; Obama, 146.

How homogenous is the county? According to the 2000 census, 99.29% of its population of 13,332 was white.

[UPDATE: For information on the primary result in the U.S. county with the largest concentration of black residents, go here.]

-- Don Frederick

Yes, there are still states -- and a territory -- to vote, Democratic delegates to select, superdelegates to decide and conventions to be held, but it's hard not to peek ahead to the fall matchup. You can make your own presumptions about whether the Dems will go with Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton, but for the sake of argument, we'll presume it's Obama.

And polls, fickle though they may be, show that the general election could be just as tight as the Democratic primaries in crucial swing states where Obama's race and perceived class work against him (witness Kentucky). The tallies maintained at Real Clear Politics give a broader sense of the challenge for Obama and for John McCain.

You can go over there and play, but the overview is the latest state poll aggregates give the current advantage (some of these are within the margin of error) to McCain in Ohio, Florida and Missouri and the advantage to Obama in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin (though McCain led in the most recent poll) and Iowa with Michigan essentially a dead heat. 

Now take those poll numbers over to an interactive electoral college map and the advantage is: Nobody. Under that scenario, with Michigan a virtual tie and polls too erratic in New Mexico to count, Obama and McCain would be separated by four electoral votes and both would need Michigan to put them over the 270 threshold.

Let the fun begin. Oh, wait -- it already has.

-- Scott Martelle