Kristen McQueary takes on a subject that has perplexed many an outside observer over the years. How does Jerry Weller keep annhilating his opponents? First, she lays out some of the problems he faces this year.
His father-in-law, Efrain Rios Montt, is a former Guatemalan dictator for whom an arrest warrant was issued in July on charges of genocide, torture, illegal arrest and terrorism for a 1980s insurgency he orchestrated (with the support of the Reagan administration). […]
Weller’s campaign fund includes contributions from the interests of the now-indicted Jack Abramoff, the under-scrutiny Brent Wilkes and a telecommunications giant, Jeffrey Prosser, whom political bloggers label an international phone sex operator.
His address is largely a mystery. Does Weller actually live in the 11th District? Between flights to Washington, D.C., and Guatemala where his wife serves as a prominent government leader, he consistently faces questions about his residency. Reports filed with the U.S. House clerk show he owns two lots in Nicaragua; sold a home in Morris and lived in an apartment above the garage; owns a condo in Chicago; and, according to his campaign, built a larger home in Morris recently.
But then she runs through the counter-arguments and writes this key paragraph.
He manages to balance just the right mix of political prowess to keep bombshell stories from soiling his lapel. He brushes off criticism as political pettiness. He meets the needs of his district just enough to sustain a presence. And he raises money like a skilled Vegas gambler, ready at any moment to unleash a torrent of negative publicity about an opponent in the weeks leading up to Election Day.
She concludes that the trending Democratic Will County will be the key battleground if there is to be a race at all. Read the whole thing.