I was riding in the hills of eastern Kentucky and noticed that as I slowed it was hard to down shift and when I was stopped the clutch was not fully disengaged. I stopped and adjusted the cable and that seemed to cure the problem. What could cause the sudden chance in the clutch? Everything was very tight.

Also when the bike is in gear and rolling power off the clutch lever has about 1/16" play maybe a little more, but when you are accelerating there is much more play. The clutch doesn't slip at all. Is this normal?

The bike 09 electra 103 original clutch, heavy spring, 45K, well maintained

 

The play in the clutch lever shouldn't change.
By adjusting the cable you are not adjusting the clutch, just the cable. I would start by doing a complete clutch adjustment when the bike is cold The final step in doing that is the cable adjustment.
See if it makes a difference.