Democrats in Mitch McConnell's home state are hawking T-shirts with a barbed message — "Just say Nyet to Moscow Mitch" — as they try to capitalize on a bitter dispute involving the Republican senator over election security legislation.
The Kentucky Democratic Party said Wednesday it's launching a "Moscow Mitch" webstore, intensifying a dig that has struck a nerve with the normally unflappable Senate majority leader.
MSNBC host Joe Scarborough quickly weighed in with the "Moscow Mitch" nickname, a moniker Kentucky Democrats say was coined by a retired schoolteacher in the state.
The shirt declares "Just say Nyet to Moscow Mitch" in yellow, Soviet-style letters.
"We've even thrown in a 'Moscow Mitch' Cossack-style faux-fur hat for extra snark," the party said in a news release.
But the "Moscow Mitch" nickname could be ringing in McConnell's ears Saturday, when he's scheduled to attend the state's leading political event — the Fancy Farm picnic in western Kentucky.
There, prominent politicians regularly take turns taking digs at their rivals, while shouting partisans try to rattle the speakers. »
