For some reason, Kentucky U.S. Senate candidate Rand Paul never gets called the "frontrunner" in that race. Secretary of State Trey Grayson, seen as the favorite of Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), still receives that title. But it's another day and another poll -- this one from Magellan Strategies -- showing Paul crushing Grayson. He has a nearly 2-1 lead, 44 percent to Grayson's 23 percent, and a whopping 31-point net favorable rating to Grayson's 11-point net favorable rating.

The secret to Paul's success? He's not seen as a fringe candidate, but as an embodiment of the Tea Parties -- which have a 67 percent favorable rating among GOP primary voters. And he's aided by the endorsement of Sarah Palin. Twenty-eight percent of Kentucky Republicans favor Palin in a hypothetical 2012 primary to only 4 percent who favor Paul's father, Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas).

The younger Paul has been running a pitch-perfect campaign. One example: his rapid-fire response to an ad in which Grayson accused Paul of supporting "Obama's war on coal". Another example is this closing answer at a debate in Paducah. Watch how Paul trains his focus on the parts of hardcore libertarianism most popular with Republican voters.