mitch_mcconnell.jpgFANCY FARM, Ky. (AP) _ Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell is trying to make the Kentucky governor's race about President Barack Obama.

McConnell told a crowd in his home state Saturday that Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear and Obama “are singing the same tune: they both claim they've improved the economy.''

Borrowing a line from Ronald Reagan in the 1980 presidential debate, McConnell asked: “Is there anybody out there who is better off since Beshear and Obama took over?''

Polls show Obama remains unpopular in the Bluegrass State, which he lost in 2008. But polls also show Beshear with a double-digit lead over his Republican opponent, state Senate President David Williams, and independent candidate Gatewood Galbraith.

McConnell made the comments at a western Kentucky church picnic that is the traditional kickoff to the fall campaign.