'I welcome the challenge' of running the only national race in 2014, McConnell says

Early and often: That’s the way U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell is going about raising money for and talking about his re-election in 2014.

Most recently, McConnell spent part of his speech at a Boone County Republican Party dinner on Friday outlining how he expects to be the national Democrats’ chief target.

His last re-election bid — in 2008 against millionaire businessman Bruce Lunsford — cost more than $40 million. Expect this one to be just as expensive, if not more, McConnell said.

He already has raised more than $10 million and has about $7 million in the bank even though no challenger — Democrat or Republican — has emerged. Here’s what McConnell said:

On a related note, the Lexington Herald-Leader reported in an analysis piece over the weekend that McConnell’s stances on negotiations with the White House over the fiscal cliff are likely being influenced by his upcoming bid for a sixth six-year term.