* Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s people, including her top campaign aide Mary Morrissey, threw lots of cold water on reports this week that the AG might run for US Senate when I talked to them. Madigan, herself, didn’t return a call, but she did tell Sneed that she was taking another look at the race…
“The governor’s race is still my main consideration,” Madigan told Sneed. But Madigan’s taking another look at the Senate race after recruitment phone calls from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. […]
Sneed also hears Madigan sent word to the Merchandise Mart’s Chris Kennedy that she is being seriously courted by the DSCC as its preferred candidate for the Senate seat once held by President Obama. Kennedy is himself considering a run for the seat.
Top political strategist and fund-raiser David Rosen tells Sneed he spoke to both Madigan and Kennedy.
• • Quoth Rosen: “I told the attorney general I was scheduled to meet with Kennedy, and she told me to tell him she had changed her mind and was thinking of running for the Senate. Lisa was not sending this message to clear the field. She just felt badly she had told Chris a week ago she was not going to run for the Senate.”
Madigan tells Sneed that Rosen called her. In the conversation, she asked Rosen to tell Kennedy about the DSCC’s courtship of her, but she stressed to Sneed that she also talks to Kennedy regularly herself and was not trying to send any message about her intentions.
“I don’t need to send a messenger to Chris,” she said. “I’m still up in the air about the Senate.”
DSCC polling shows Madigan doing the best of any candidate in the US Senate race. The Republicans say Alexi Giannoulias shows signs of serious weakness with negative polling “push” questions.
Sneed also pointed out that LMadigan has said in the past that she didn’t want to move her young children to DC.
* Lynn Sweet recalls a conversation she had last month with AG Madigan…
Thinking about the Senate? I asked.
“Never given it any serious consideration, Lynn,” Madigan said.
But you are considering running for governor?
“Correct,” Madigan said.
Since then, Madigan has had a retreat in her Chicago campaign office with her advisers, including media consultant Saul Shorr and pollster Celinda Lake. And since then, she has said the Senate is an option.
Sweet also has some GOP polling numbers from May 7…
Q. If the Democratic Primary election for United States Senate were held today and the candidate were Jan Schakowsky, Chris Kennedy, Roland Burris and Alexi Giannoulias, for whom would you vote?
- 20.0 Jan Schakowsky
- 16.4 Alexi Giannoulias
- 15.9 Roland Burris
- 12.7 Chris Kennedy
- 35.0 Undecided
Q. If the general election for United States Senate were held today, which one of the following best describes how you are likely to vote between Mark Kirk, the Republican candidate and Alexi Giannoulias, the Democratic candidate?
- 34.2 Mark Kirk
- 33.2 Alexi Giannoulias
- 32.6 Undecided
Q. If the general election for United States Senate were held today, which one of the following best describes how you are likely to vote between Mark Kirk, the Republican candidate and Chris Kennedy, the Democratic candidate?
- 33.2 Mark Kirk
- 32.6 Chris Kennedy
- 34.2 Undecided
Kirk and Giannoulias start out even. Madigan starts out way ahead. But if Madigan gets into the US Senate race, Kirk may just run for governor.
* Other political stuff…
* Boland considering Illinois lieutenant governor bid
* Cronin, others eye DuPage County chairman’s post
* IL AG: Craigslist dropping ‘erotic services’ ads - Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan says that Craigslist is getting rid of its “erotic services” ads and will create a new adult category that Web site employees will review.
* Hynes demands $10M from funeral directors
* State comptroller: Funeral trust owes millions
* Madigan releases proposed rewrite of FOI law
* Halvorson gets Republican challenger for 2010 race
- Sneed`s Travel Agent - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 9:49 am:
AG Madigan needs to tread lightly. She may risk sending the wrong message to the Gov candidate field if she appears to be forum shopping. And she may risk alienating the black voting block if she takes out a viable black candidate to replace Roland (Cheryle Jackson, maybe?)
- Chicago Law Student - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 9:53 am:
How does Rep. Boland think he can raise enough funds to run statewide? I think former Sen. Jacobs summed it up perfectly:
==”But as a state representative I can’t really point to one bill in his entire career that I could call a ‘major piece’ of legislation.”==
- ILPundit - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 9:57 am:
The fact that the reconsideration is coming on the heels of a political retreat with her top advisors is very telling.
I would be willing to bet that her political team has some internal polling showing that the Father/Daughter/Speaker/Governor issue has a lot of potential traction in both a Primary and a General election for Governor.
Senate lets her sidestep that landmine, move to a higher profile position, and still reserve the option of running for Governor in the future.
- wordslinger - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 10:07 am:
I would think the Senate seat is very attractive — governor is going to be a pretty rough job for a few years.
Lot of nice places in nearby Virginia to raise a family.
- Cassandra - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 10:08 am:
A gubernatorial race sans Lisa with Kirk running against Alexi is appealing to me. I still like Alexi even though he has made some mistakes lately like that stupid car. But he can recover. Mark Kirk has a lot of positives from all I hear plus it really is better for citizens if one political party doesn’t run everything.
Plus, with Quinn forging ahead with his highly regressive middle class tax increase, it would be amusing if it was Kirk that got to spend all those billions of new extra money.
- Anon - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 10:19 am:
David Rosen comes off as a rather poor messenger / middleman, though that’s probably not what Sneed intended.
- Speaking at Will - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 10:26 am:
It is suprising to me that Alexi is not doing better in polling against Kirk, especially this early on. Kirk is not that well known statewide, and Alexi gets to send out press releases on state wide issues. I would have thought that name recognition would have put him ahead early on, at least until TV, radio, and print ads start running.
Once those ads start running I think Alexi is dead in the water. I have been a supporter of his for some time, however the Broadway Bank / Blagojevich / Bright Start Investment boondoggle / and the Bright start car are going to make for some pretty ugly campaign ads.
The Lisa Madigan question is one that I am not even going to attempt to analyze, never try to predict a Madigan, thier always five steps ahead of everyone else. Whatever happens, LM is going to come out a winner.
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 10:29 am:
==Plus, with Quinn forging ahead with his highly regressive middle class tax increase…==
Huh? The proposal is focused on the top end of the wage scale and is actually a cut for many in the middle class.
- Angry Chicagoan - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 10:29 am:
Remember the 1988 Democratic Presidential primary, the so-called “seven dwarves”? Too many of them in one primary, and the biggest dwarf of all, Roland Burris, might just get through. I hope that at least a few people are either humble enough to drop out or resourceful enough to break clear of the field.
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 10:31 am:
To the question: At this point, who would want to be Gov? It looks like the tax increase is going to tank, and governing a broken state wouldn’t be much fun.
- Angry Chicagoan - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 10:31 am:
What’s regressive about Quinn’s tax increase? You’re misusing the term, Cassandra. Regressive is where the poor pay a higher percentage of tax than the rich. Whatever else you can call Quinn’s proposal, it is not regressive. Regressive would be what Todd Stroger has done with the Cook County sales tax, because it was an increase in a tax that in practice falls at a higher percentage rate on the poor.
- dupage dan - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 10:47 am:
LMadigan had a chance yesterday to answer a direct question about the serious issues Illinois residents are facing. She gave the typical politician answer about researching the options, etc. She can’t not know what Illinois is facing and can’t claim there is anything new to offer about how to address the crisis. She is just another pol in the pack as far as I’m concerned. Not my candidate - for any office other that AG.
- MOON - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 11:19 am:
DU PAGE DAN
Give LM a break. She has yet to decide her future in politics(AG, GOV,or SEN.). I am sure once she decides you and the rest of us will hear from her pertaining to the issues facing this state.
LM is much like her father. Thoughtfully studying and thinking thru the problems before offering possible solutions. Whats wrong with that tact?
- Cheswick - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 11:21 am:
When I first read that “Boland considering Illinois lieutenant governor bid,” I thought it said Burris for a second there. Strangely, I thought, that doesn’t surprise me. LOL. Then I figured it out.
- Hon. Cranial Lamb - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 11:33 am:
The list of potential Lt. Governor candidates has 177 names on it.
- Shore - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 12:17 pm:
Kirk has said repeatedly he has no interest in springfield. His entire life has been in d.c. and his top issue-foreign affairs doesn’t generally include champaign or rockford.
I also struggle to see where any of these people with anything to do with the springfield mess the last 6 years, alexi, lisa ect think that the state of the state makes them viable for promotion to higher office.
It has to be embarrassing for the democrats with all the talk about obama and how democrat this state is that some of these people, schakowsky, alexi who have been publicly tied to him for awhile aren’t doing better against Kirk.
- Ghost - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 1:02 pm:
I really hope LMad runs for Gov. his would be a very bad time to turn the position over to the repubs. I think the Gov job also gives her a better platform for future political positions then the senate position (LMad for Pres 2016)
- VanillaMan - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 1:05 pm:
No surprises here.
- Captain America - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 1:31 pm:
I prefer that Lisa run for Governor because I think it opens the doors for a lot of aspiring Democratic elected officials to try for higher office: Jan S and Alexi for Senate; Julie Hamos and others to run for Jan’s congressional seat; Dan Hynes for Attorney General - he deserves a promotion; and wide-open contests for Comptroller and Treasurer. All this tunrover/political change would make for a very interesting primary and genral election - not tomention the Quinn- Madigan face-off and the Cook County Board President contest.
Lisa please run for Governor. You’ll beat Quinn, do a good job as Governor, and create a healthy change dynamic for the llinois body politic.
- Phineas J. Whoopee - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 1:57 pm:
Lisa Madigan has about 4 million more reasons to run for Governor then for Senate and vacillating only shows weakness. Even if she is uncertain, her counsels should be private till a decision is made.
- Pat Collins - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 2:54 pm:
lisa going after craigslist
And of course the Chicago Reader is next on her list, I am sure. NOT
- Ann O'Namus - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 3:10 pm:
Wouldn’t the Chicago Reader be Cook County SA’s jurisdiction? Not that I don’t want the AG to right all wrongs single-handedly.
- Watchingthepoliticans - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 3:53 pm:
Boland’s candidacy is a joke. nobody knows who the guy is and he can’t raise a dime without Speaker Madigan. Fact is, Boland regularly float is own name and then backs off once it becomes apperant that others plan to take his house seat.
- Anonymous - Wednesday, May 13, 09 @ 8:15 pm:
==========
It is suprising to me that Alexi is not doing better in polling against Kirk, especially this early on. Kirk is not that well known statewide,….
==========
Therefore one would have to come to the conclusion that people who know about Kirk, like what they know about him.