Guess The Hound won't have Roland Burris to kick around much longer. The Senate's only black senator made official Friday what everybody knew days before: He will not seek re-election to his own six-year term. The Hound thought that with a crowded Democratic primary field in February, Burris might have snuck through.
But in the end, it was money, not politics that did in the senator appointed by former Gov. Rod Blagojevich. Burris danced around the political minefields, but it was the fund-raising which he couldn't handle. Nobody wanted to back his run, so he'll be a lame-duck senator from now until January 2011, and will no doubt serve honorably.
Which leaves a whole bunch of candidates on both sides of the aisle ready to take the senatorial plunge. But does that include Highland Park Congressman Mark Kirk?
Republican Kirk, considered a strong campaigner and one candidate who could best a Democratic field, may be having cold feet. The Washington Post reported Friday that Kirk has decided not to seek the Senate seat from Illinois that once belonged to President Obama. However, his spokesman said the 10th District congressman is stll looking at a possible run and his timeline is open.
Can't be that open. Filing begins in October and petition circulation can begin Aug. 4. Kirk, too, just raised more than $1 million in the last campaign reporting period. Now that won't get you much for a statewide Senate campaign, but it's a chunk if you want to be assured of re-election to the House. Besides, national Republicans want that Senate seat and will pour money here behind a credible candidate, i.e., not Alan Keys.
If Kirk does decide to stay in the House, Republicans may have to resort to Plan B, whatever that is.
At least he's not a quitter like a certain Governor in Alaska
THE HOUND SEZ: At least she's not indicted like a certain governor in Illinois.
Kirk damaged his chances with his vote supporting the "Global Warming" Cap and Tax bill. Republicans could support him, despite some of his other positions, but his vote supporting a bill which a large majority of Republicans (and a significant number of Democrats as well) saw as a tax increase on the average taxpayer, a jobs killer, and huge intrusion by the Federal Government on individual rights, was too much to stomach. What did Kirk hope to gain? A promise that Pelosi and the Dem party would not field or support a viable opponent of his House seat in 2010? It can't be a promise to let him run against a weak Dem opponent.
Our 'esteemed' State Treasurer is a good buddy of Obama, and he has had his eye on Burris' seat. AG Madigan's decision to run for a 3rd term took out a strong opponent, which has left Alexi with nobody of any real significance to oppose him (Unless a member of the Daley family wants the job.) With the Obama/ACORN machine in place, it would be easy for him to get the Dem slot on the ballot.)
Who would the GOP get if Kirk decided to stick with his House seat? Frankly, I don't know. If the leadership of the Illinois GOP had not been so hostile to Peter Fitzgerald, we wouldn't even been thinking about an Obama crony running, or even Mark Kirk thinking about the Senate. If they had not been so quick to abandon Jack Ryan and to install a carpetbagger like Keyes, we may not have had a Senator Obama then to think about a Senator Burris now.
The state GOP will need to get behind one viable candidate and to stick with him or her 100%. The campaign needs to be a theme of running against the Chicago machine and systematic corruption. I do not think it will be Kirk, based upon my previous statement, and I don't think an Oberweis or even Jim Edgar could do it. (Oberweis has lost too many times and the last time in a district which he should have won. Edgar has been out of state politics too long and his last chance was when the Il GOP needed him, when Jack Ryan pulled out.)If it is a relative unknown, then this candidate will have to be a true reformer for the anti-machine campaign to work.
It will be an interesting couple of months for us to see who the players will be and how they intend to package themselves.
THE HOUND SAYS: If Republicans want to win back the U.S. Senate seat once belonging to Peter Fitzgerald, they need to coalesce behind one candidate. Kirk is the candidate, unless, of course he believes Republicans will sweep into power in the House in the midterm elections (not likely) and he gets a coveted committee chairmanship. Hey, Hermie, Republicans don't count in general elections. They like to pound their chests in the primaries. Kirk's "cap & trade" vote was aimed at independents who are the ones which overshadow the number of true-blue GOP votes cast in the general election. A solid Republican candidate can win in November, but as usual, GOPsters are letting ideology get in the way of winning back that filibuster-proof Senate.
You can't spell worth a darn, can you? Keys for Keyes in this story. Straights for straits (financial) in the story right before it. Granted, neither one of these would be caught by Spell Checker but, as bloggers for a newspaper, you should be more concerned about correctness than the average blogging blowhard.
THE HOUND SAYS: Such sturm und drang over two mispelled words from another retired school teacher with nothing to do but surf the Internet. The Hound already has disciplined the copy editor who failed to catch those two outlandish errors. She is now missing the tips of two fingers. Besides, The Hound does not use spell check. That's what copy editors are for --- and retired school marms.