Can Democrats still win with a women-centered strategy?

Democrats have made plain that the “war on women” playbook will be key to their efforts to unseat McConnell. Last week, Grimes rolled out the endorsement of Lilly Ledbetter, the namesake of the pay-equity law signed by Obama, and her campaign issued a memo on women’s issues, noting that Grimes is an “advocate for women” and would be “Kentucky’s first female United States senator.”

Meanwhile, in a November memo, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee’s Matt Canter blasted “Team McConnell’s misogyny.” The DSCC and Grimes have taken umbrage with everything from the National Republican Senatorial Committee’s male spokesman, Brad Dayspring, calling Grimes an “empty dress” to the NRSC’s tweeting a link to a photoshopped image of her.

“The NRSC should stand for Notoriously Repeating Sexist Comments. They cannot relate or connect with the women of Kentucky or our country,” Grimes said in a statement after the latest incident.

Brook Hougesen, an NRSC spokeswoman, said the DSCC is “dangerously overreaching.” “Every day, the DSCC is claiming to be offended,” she said.