By rolling out an early prime endorsement by U.S. Senator John McCain, Congressman Mark Kirk sets the bar pretty high for contenders in either party to make a splash with future endorsements.
McCain, if you recall, was the GOP nominee for president in 2008, but perhaps of more relevance in the IL senate race, is a sitting senator and veteran (not to mention a former POW). So far, none of the wanna-be senators on either side of the aisle have come up with anything nearly as impressive, and we still have months to go before the primary, not to mention the general elections. Unless Obama comes in for a Dem, which is far from certain in the general, and highly doubtful in the primary, this is likely to be the endorsement with the most 'star power' that anyone is going to be able to muster.
The media took notice. In addition to making the local evening news (ABC-7 video here, WGN-9 video here), check out the print coverage in the Sun-Times, Daily Herald, and Tribune.
While some are skeptical that this is any big deal, when you consider that Kirk's first challenge is to familiarize downstate voters with himself, discounting the advantages of having a national hero like McCain (whom everyone knows) in your corner is a bit nearsighted. And by bringing out the big guns early, any endorsements that the other little-known GOP contenders seek to roll out are going to pale in comparison.
Advantage: Kirk.
UPDATED 5:45 p.m.: I saw just now that Congressman Bobby Rush is going to endorse Democratic hopeful Cheryle Jackson for U.S. Senate. As a local Congressman, Rush doesn't have the stature of a former presidential candidate such as McCain, but it ain't bad, and I think trumps anything Alexi or Hoffman have trotted out so far. As far as I'm concerned, I hope the Dem primary is a three-way snipe-fest all the way until February.
UPDATED x2 9/1/09 10:00 a.m.: She also got Meek's endorsement, says Sweet.
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Mark Kirk had a terrific day yesterday. While it comes as no surprise that Mark is grabbing media attention and the best endorsement one could hope for in Senator McCain, it is reassuring that Mark is doing exactly what made him a 5 term congressman. I was at the fundraiser last night and it was packed with people who adore Kirk and can't wait to help in any way possible.
McCain was a rock star last night. He was funny, affable and convincing. Congressman Kirk was at his best. VERY SENATORIAL LOOKING.
It is also important to highlight Mark's campaign staff and leaders. This is one talented group.
Mark is battle tested and ready to take on his primary opponents on Feb 2.
I was also at last night's super event in Winnetka. Only a jaded person who find fault with what they saw and felt in that overly jam-packed fundraiser attended by nearly 200 people. It was, by all accounts, one of the best Kirk fundraising events ever. Senator McCain mixed with the crowd, did the photos with guests, spoke with a passion seldom heard. Mark was never better. You could feel the excitement and the energy all evening long. A well deserved great day for Mark Kirk.
$500,000 raised last night, McCain endorsement - Kirk is on a roll to beat Giannoulias
It's a good endorsementand good for raising money, but McCain lost this state by 25 points 62-37 and this district big. Bush did better in 04. Palin tainted him, and it's sad because he was really popular in 2000 and it really helped Mark. I have fond memories of the last days of the 2000 campaign and a great event in wheeling with the motorcycle/army veteran folks coming out to support him.
FOKLAES
I think you're remembering what was called back then, Bus-O-Rama. Senator McCain was a huge help them, was an enormous help yesterday and will continue to be a strong pro-Kirk voice as we move this campaign forward. Forget about his numbers in 08. We need to concentrate and only work forward. Palin is not an issue so forget it. Mark Kirk has the momentum building all around him right now and we can help keep it going by positive action, not rehashing what doesn't matter. The media coverage last night was amazing. Let's enjoy the moment but not forget that the Kirk organization and everyone committed to helping him win will need to keep the focus moving forward. I know we can count on you, Foklaes, right?
It also doesn't help that the Kirk opponent with the best chance (Patrick Hughes) has voted THREE TIMES in his entire life.
Read about it here: http://rodskindofrepublican.blogspot.com/
Few primary voters will care about McCain's endorsement. The majority of republican primary voters will vote against a candidate who is pro-choice, pro-gun control, pro-gay marriage, pro-spending increases, pro-illegal alien, and anti-Iraq surge (Kirk). The best candidate is Eric Wallace.
Conservative Veteran
Anon 11:47 you are simply out of touch. Period. You are clueless about what you THINK voters will embrace and it certainly isn't Eric Wallace. Please take your idiotic comments elsewhere, like to the Daily Kos.
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Congressman Kirk was at his best. VERY SENATORIAL LOOKING.
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Analysis of all media reports concurs that Congressman Kirk is at his very best.
Warms the heart to see the Press treat Senator McCain and our Candidate with the deep respect and attention they so much deserve.
One of the reporters last night even mentioned that Senator McCain referred once to Kirk as a "Senator"--and I noticed a reporter do the same in an interview with Kirk not long after his kick-off.
No denying it. The ancient Oracle has spoken, she's on our side--and people are already getting the word out about what's to come.
You go, Boy! No one has ever made campaigning look so easy and like so much fun. Volunteers are just champing at the bit in the wings of The theater.
1. FOKLAES is behind Kirk. FOKLAES also believes the moment Kirk is elected he will be groomed to replace dick lugar as head of the senate foreign relations committee. He will be the scoop jackson for the gop for the first quarter of the 21st century. put in the bank. This will be a new thing for Republicans like me who are too young to remember chuck percy and dirksen-Illinois GOP Senate lions.
2. More conservative in the state will know pat hughes the broadcaster than pat hughes the senate candidate on feb 3rd. He like every other conservative is so obsessed with himself and his ideology that he never really bothers to apply his principles to issues confronting us. That's why conservatives get crushed here-arrogance. Mark will send him a thank you note however because every time he attacks Mark, Kirk looks more moderate.
FOKLAES
Re: Hughes: are we certain he was born in the US?
I've only voted a handful of times as well, because I was born near where the samba girl once roamed.
Anon, Article I, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution states:
No Person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty Years, and been nine Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State for which he shall be chosen.
You are thinking of the citizenship requirement for President.
So he's over 30, is an inhabitant of the State, and only needs to have been a Citizen for 9 years. Isn't that right?
Hence, perhaps, the voting record. He could have been carrying around a green card even while at Yale.
Yale? Hughes went to law school at DePaul and Marquette for undergrad.
Pat has flaws but not being a U.S. Citizen is not one of them.
Sorry. Mixed up my candidates, and you seem to know for sure re: country of origin.
Again, it's not country of origin, it's that you need to be a citizen for nine years. I never had any doubt that Pat was a citizen when I was in law school with him 15 years ago, so I would let it go.
Maybe Pat better come out with a press release responding to Anon's concerns before he has his own uprising of "birthers" detrail his senate campaign. LOL
Alright. But grant me this: If he had been born elsewhere, came to the US even as a toddler, and didn't become a Citizen until later, then he would have had fewer elections in which to vote. Isn't that right?
Doesn't have anything to do with his qualifications for US Senate. Doesn't one need to be a Citizen to vote?
And, please, don't associate me with the "birthers".
In this particular instance, if he were born elsewhere and people were attacking him, a perceived negative could turn very quickly.
It says on his website that Patrick Hughes was born and raised in Chicago. His failure to vote stems from laziness, not lack of citizenship.
I don't know why ANY Republican should vote for Patrick Hughes when he couldn't even bother to vote against Rod Blagojevich in 2006, or in 2002.
Heck, Hughes didn't even vote for the last Republican to hold this Senate seat - Peter Fitzgerald
If that website is a kirk thing, it's really good. They should have done a nasty little thing like that dan in 07.
FOKLAES
When Kirk loses the election, at least he can follow Tom DeLay.
Again, John McCain and his unique and inaccurate BELIEFS about the economy and his VP selection do not a commendable endorsement make.
Also, ask the former Airborne/DHL employees what they think about McCain's allowing DHL to buy-out Airborne. I also wonder if Kirk will have Keating as his advisor on how to deal with the FDIC/FSLIC
and other governmental agencies; not to mention McCain's new found love for protesting government bailouts (except his own and Bush's.)
Didn't McCain also say that he and his 'friends' should strive to not stand in the way of doing what is right for the nation including not being obstinate toward President Obama? (Go back and look at his Election Day speech if you don't take my word for it.) Or was this more GOP rhetoric like 'we would have been pleased to vote for healthcare reform if Kennedy was more involved.' Most people who care know where Kennedy stood. Period. In the words of Cameron's character on the late John Hughes' "Ferris Bueller's Day Off": "Dry that one out and you can fertilize the lawn."
McCain is paying Kirk back for Mr. Independent endorsing a problematic McCain-Palin ticket. He must not have been up late studying every letter of the McCain-Palin approach to experienced governmental officials and their platforms like he was regarding cap and trade. Of course, I doubt he's actually read any of the pending healthcare reform legislation either so let's give the guy a break (retirement?).
Sorry the first line of this made me think one thing-fat kid giving dieting advice! He's in. If someone has a camera, I'd love to see video of this.
FOKLAES
Join Dan Seals to Learn About His Plans to Win in 2010
Wednesday September 2nd 2009, 07:30pm
Glencoe Public Library
320 Park Ave.
Glencoe
Contact: Dan Seals for Congress
info@dansealsforcongress.com 847-945-8900
Join Dan and share your ideas with the campaign.
DATE: Wednesday, September 2, 2009
TIME: 7:30 p.m.
LOCATION: Glencoe Public Library, 320 Park Ave., Glencoe
Dear, Lord.
When you're Tom DeLay, there are some things that should be restricted to only doing at home whenever humanly possible--and certainly not in public (especially during the wrong times). (Such as speaking in a quick, sprightly manner, for example.)
Dancing With The Stars is not an option (nor negotiable) for Greatness--no matter what. It just won't do from a historical perspective.
Lots of good reaction to Mark Kirk at the Jan Schakowsky town hall event tonight. I was waiting in line to enter the event but was turned away despite arriving one hour and fifteen minutes before the start.
I spoke to many of the people in line that were turned away due to full capacity. As Schakowsky staffers came by to tell people that there would be a teletown hall next week I asked why Schakowsky doesn't hold a back to back town hall the way Mark Kirk did in the 10th district in Arlington Heights.
This had people with HCAN signs and stickers nodding in agreement.
I like Mark Kirk and think he'll make a fine Republican Senator for Illinois, but it is a huge problem when someone that has never run for public office and has a scant voting record can put his hat in the ring and get Kirk supporters to spike straw polls at GOP events.
This is a major weakness that Kirk has to overcome. He needs a ground game. That's only going to come with the money he can raise and how effectively, and at whom, he targets his with his attacks.
Where is Julie Hamos? If you do a google news for her and seals, you barely come up with any relevant stories. Even on her own site, you only have one press release since August 7. We are 153 days to the primary. I wonder if she's really serious about this race.
Up until January this campaign is going to be waged mostly out of the media. Right now it's being fought in phone calls with donors and local party leaders behind the scenes. I'm sure julie is using comrade jan and jailbird bob to get endorsements from things like emily's list and to deny dan every legitamate donor and endorsement she can. She's probably also trying to get her state reps to firm up their organizations for her and introducing herself to the north and western parts of the district.
There's nothing to cover with any of these people, few debates yet among other things. When Springfield goes back into session you can expect dick green to start nailing coulson on a daily basis on her votes she takes as he should, because he needs to take her down to win. His manager was one of DeLay's lower operative/guns and if he's anything like DeLay they will start napalming her after labor day on taxes, blago, job losses, her pay hikes, and every other thing she deserves to lose for. Green's only way to win this race is to make Coulson look like a chicago democrat and him like a moderate business republican.
FOKLAES
The word around town is that Coulson's harsh criticism and lack of help to the Kirk campaign over the years has doomed her chances.
Coulson should have realized this very real fact before trying to reach out to his base.
See ya.
Is Bill Cadigan still in the race? or is it just coulson, green, and dold?
Supporters of Julie Hamos were at the Schakowsky town hall. I wanted to sign her petition for signatures, but they were only taking signatures from residents of the 10th district.
Is this right?
Anyway, they seemed to think there would be 10th district residents at the town hall.
12:01 Yes that's correct. But know that Chicago and Park Ridge residents were at Congressman Kirk's Town Hall meeting in Arlington Heights. Probably because their rep was so late in the game doing a TH meeting -- that's Jan if I'm correct.
Sounds as if Coulson's Doomed then, unless she can somehow convince the Voters otherwise.
"If he's anything like DeLay," he'll be kicked out of GOP leadership and on Dancing with the stars faster than you can say unnecessary need for a super-majority!
FOKLAES 12.15,
What you're saying re Hamos sounds accurate. If that's the case, Hamos will lose. If she was running trying to get a committeman's nod or votes for Majority Leader or an appointment to some prominent board, this would be the right approach. But if she focuses on fundraising and waits until January, she is going to lose. In January all the media oxygen (what's left of it--fewer and fewer local beat reporters every day) is going to be taken up by all the up-ticket races and the Cook County Board races.
You could fill a small football stadium with the number of careers of politicians and staffs that DeLay and his team killed-he was our rahm, a machine gun. Roe wasn't a top gun-he lost a bitter fight in 2000 in the only race that was more expensive than Mark's-rogan R-CA.
Still he's never won a moderate race, and he and his wife are really dirty from D.C.-both ran the congressional offices of men whose careers ended in disgrace.
If I'm Dan I'm hoping Julie follows the feighenholtz, gash, cegelis, duckworth template for defeat that has resulted in nearly every female Jan protege getting embarrassed running for congress. They play up mommy issues, think because they're women they'll win and say right wing pro-life every other sentenece. It's foolish.
Her little apparatchik alex armour has a misreble record up here. they confuse their winning a district republicans would never bother to compete in with actually having poltiical skill and ability, which they don't beyond smugly regurgitating culture war era talking points.
what we need is mckenna or chisolm or ant to sit down with eric elk and get his game plan for beating suburban democrats and then feed that to appel a day keeps the tax hikes away, fightin tim, go get em gray, and every other elephant who'll step up and end a democrat state house career.
FOKLAES
FOKLAES, I'm not sure exactly what you're talking about, but the only campaign I know Alex Armour from is Bill Foster's which was, if I remember correctly, successful.
Also, Nancy Cegelis did a lot with very little against a very entrenched incumbent in a very red district. I know you're iffy on this whole feminism thing, FOKLAES, but women aren't inherently bad candidates, and there's nothing detrimental to a campaign about being a mother, especially in a place like the North suburbs where there a lot of working moms.
Sorry, had a grammar fail. I meant to say, the only campaign I know Alex Armour worked on was Bill Foster's.
Alex Armour is a paid staffer for Schakowsky for Congress. He was on loan to Bill Foster to help him win his race.
Schakowsky can raise money in a secure seat and loan her staff to suburban Democrats to tip a race.
the McCain Endorsement of Kirk is like the Bush Endorsement to McCain....it is not going to sit well with the area outside of the 10th.
To the person stating Beth Coulson is doomed because she never helped Mark Kirk...Are you crazy?
Mark Kirk does not know how to spell the word reciprocity - its a one way street with he and his two top goons.
Coulson has helped more Republicans than the Kirk folks have ever helped...
Just setting the record straight...carry on!
A lot to comment on in the last few posts. Tikkunolam, it's time you fessed up to knowing the real facts about people who help people. You knew that Armour is/was tied to Jan and her felon husband, Bob Creamer.
And Anon 8:04 you are hopelessly out of touch and moronic when you call people on Kirk's staff as goons. Why don't you just stop the name calling and understand that your kind of crap is simply not welcome on this blog. Coulson knows exactly what she said about Mark Kirk. End of the story.
Coulson has never been a friend to even moderate republicans. In fact, she refused to endorse kirk in 2002...she is too liberal to be a blue dog dem
Coulson campaign is dead in the water. The hatred surrounding her is growing. Well deserved. See ya and would never want to beeya!
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