* Giannoulias’ announcement was pretty much what you would expect. Lots of Obama references and plenty of talk about his Greek-American immigrant parents…
With plentiful references to his “friend, mentor and inspiration,” President Obama, state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias declared his candidacy for the U.S. Senate.
“A few years ago, Barack Obama inspired me to run for public office,” Giannoulias told a crowd of 200 at the Hilton Chicago on Sunday.
200? That appears to be smaller than Mark Kirk’s kick-off turnout.
* The GOP responds…
After Giannoulias’ announcement to a couple of hundred supporters at a downtown hotel, state Republicans sought to tie him to fellow Democrat Blagojevich. They noted that his late father donated $10,000 to the disgraced former governor, that his brother was appointed to a state board by Blagojevich and that the family’s Broadway Bank was involved in loans with convicted Blagojevich fundraiser and adviser Antoin “Tony” Rezko. Politically, however, the state treasurer and Blagojevich were never close.
I doubt if anyone cares about that “Dad gave to Blagojevich” stuff. The bank is probably a much more potent issue. Still…
That bank, Broadway Bank, has brought Giannoulias some controversy over the years because of loans it made to organized crime-linked figures and convicted influence peddler Tony Rezko. But Giannoulias himself did not make the loans and ended his ties to the family bank before becoming treasurer.
There are other bank problems directly involving Giannoulias, though.
The lost money in the college scholarship program will only be problematic if Giannoulias can’t recoup most of the cash. The SUV purchase with administrative funds will likely be a TV ad, but it’s pretty weak, considering the actual facts.
* These two talking points set up problems for Republican Mark Kirk…
Giannoulias’ bid to tie himself to Obama may encapsulate a large share of the debate in the 2010 general election if he wins the Democratic nomination. Off-presidential-year federal elections are traditionally a measure of voter satisfaction with the White House, and just how the public perceives the state of the nation’s economy and recovery efforts is expected to be a predominant theme.
Giannoulias formed an exploratory committee in March that allowed him to already raise more than $1.8 million for the Senate campaign. He touted rules that prohibited employees, banks and contractors of the treasurer’s office to donate to his campaign and his refusal to accept corporate and federal lobbyist donations.
Here’s how…
Giannoulias took a jab at Kirk Sunday, saying he was offering to “pledge reform with one hand while the other hand takes millions from corporate special interests and votes for the very policies that got us into this mess in the first place.”
“That’s not ‘independence,’” Giannoulias said. “That’s the same old Washington way. That’s the same tired politics that voters rejected in 2008 and that’s the same tired politics that we will defeat in 2010.”
Giannoulias will do all he can to paint Kirk as an Obama obstructionist and a DC “PAC-Man.”
Thoughts?
* Related…
* Kirk’s “F-” gun right voting record: Kirk is best known among gun owners and activists for his proposal last year to revive the federal “Assault Weapons Ban” after its sunset provision ended it in 2004. He’s rated “D” by the NRA (of whom he is said to have said “the NRA is more powerful than Al-Qaeda”) and endorsed by the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Ownership. His Gun Owners of America rating is a dismal “F-” grade.
* Former Harvey Alderman joins race for U.S. Senate in Republican Primary