32 Comments - Ray del Camino - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 2:59 pm: Down here in deep SO IL, that’s probably “just Mike being Mike,” but remember the preponderance of votes are in the Metro East, where the voters have not been inoculated against Bost rants. I think it must look pretty bad to them. - Deep South - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 3:01 pm: Mrs. South saw the ad on the TV the other day and afterwards laughingly agreed that Bost has got to go. Her language was much more colorful, of course, so those who maintain that this ad will backfire might want to think again. - Ducky LaMoore - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 3:01 pm: Not as good as the first one, but has a better tagline at the end. - John A Logan - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 3:06 pm: The more they play this ad, the bigger Bost’s lead will become. Enyart is toast. The number of desperate emails being sent out on behalf of Enyart lately is telling. Enyart has little to campaign on in terms of his achievements since elected, and so the last best hope is to try to bury Bost in negative ads, which actually help him. Blago’s general better find a new line of attack, cause this one aint gonna get the job done. - Linny - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 3:07 pm: Maybe too similar to the other ad, but i think it will be powerful nonetheless, especially with the use of a lot of his own words. - Willie Stark - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 3:08 pm: Ooof. That’s gotta hurt. He looks out of control. Howard Dean’s crazy yell has got nothing on Bost’s performances. And, as mentioned in the Bost positive ad thread, spending a good amount of time reminding people you are angry, upset and mad (and telling them they should be too!) is not such a good counterpoint to this Enyart ad. - VanillaMan - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 3:08 pm: Since the ad is not using any of Bost’s statements, it portrays him as a nutjob. I find this line of attack a bit risky in this election year. Obviously Democrats hate this and are smitten by using these clips. I still think that is being tone deaf. - Anon - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 3:08 pm: ==The more they play this ad, the bigger Bost’s lead will become. Enyart is toast. The number of desperate emails being sent out on behalf of Enyart lately is telling. Enyart has little to campaign on in terms of his achievements since elected, and so the last best hope is to try to bury Bost in negative ads, which actually help him. Blago’s general better find a new line of attack, cause this one aint gonna get the job done.== I like when commentators on this blog show that they have no idea what they are talking about. - Precinct Captain - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 3:08 pm: Nothing like having your own words thrown back at you. - wordslilnger - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 3:11 pm: Voters Bost already has in the bank might like the tantrums, but I doubt if it helps with undecideds. And as has been said, Bost obviously felt that he had to explain the meltdown. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 3:12 pm: Welp, that “C-,D+” response for Bost looks even more Dopey. Bost can chase is tail on this till November, but having a laptop showing your rant, and “calmly” explaining your “tantrums” gives this Ad credibility. “I’m insane, but I’m insane for you.” Yikes. - Way South of I-80 - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 3:19 pm: What makes it even more interesting is the total lack of reaction from those legislators sitting around Bost. Their obvious boredom makes it look like Bost had these fits every day. You can almost feel them sighing and rolling their eyes. - Carl Nyberg - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 3:21 pm: That guy needs a blog, a Twitter account and a talk radio show. - Archiesmom - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 3:23 pm: Just watched this with a colleague. I almost did a spit take with my diet Coke. We were doubled over laughing. It’s a great ad. Contrary o Anon., I predict it will be very effective. - Nieva - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 3:25 pm: If you have never been this upset you have never lived. - AnnaMan - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 3:27 pm: This is a great ad. Agree with Way South of I-80, and using his own words, big OUCH for Bost. Coupled with his response ad, this could be pretty darn effective if you ask me. - Down Here - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 3:43 pm: As a metro-east voter in the 12th CD this is a definite OUCH against Bost. Although Enyart did a very poor job becoming better known throughout his district in his first year in office, we don’t know Bost at all and now what we know of Bost is not good. People in my area are saying, “Oh yeah. He’s that whack job”, but we don’t know him well enough to finish that sentence with “…but he’s our whack job.” I’m sure Enyart and the DCCC will keep this stuff rolling over the next several weeks. - Yellow Dog Democrat - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 4:09 pm: I have long argued that Independents tend to vote for the person they think will be the least annoying on TV for the next Two years. Team Enyart seems to agree. - A guy... - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 4:15 pm: Don’t know the district well enough. If the folks there are angry and fed up, it backfires and works for Bost. If they’re apathetic, advantage Enyart. - Amalia - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 4:29 pm: not in my district, but really hoping that kind of unhinged approach to legislation does not get elected to Congress. there’s only 435 members of the house. adding Bost would not be a plus. - wordslinger - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 4:52 pm: –If they’re apathetic, advantage Enyart.– Spin, spin, spin…. You can be engaged and still not want to vote for a dude whose behavior earns the average 3-year-old a timeout in the corner. - I-64 - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 5:21 pm: Bost wins 51% - 49%. - 47th Ward - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 5:22 pm: Using Bost’s own “vote no” line at the end was a nice touch. - railrat - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 5:46 pm: Rep. Black was “accepted” with rants Rep. Bost seems theatrical and has zero “cred” - Down South - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 7:29 pm: I really don’t care which one of them wins….but I will tell you that when this ad played on TV at my house this afternoon, it actually reflected well on Bost. The consensus here is that there is quite a lot for him to react adversely to in Illinois….and that a little fire in the belly isn’t such a bad thing. - Madison - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 8:46 pm: What Bost should have done was link Madigan and the Chicago Democratic Machine in the tirade, which team Enyart cut from the original rant. That should turn the tables nicely, and in fact link MJM and Enyart. Whomever is doing Mike’s campaign strategy could do better - Rhino Slider - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 10:52 pm: As a person who has paid some attention to the mess in Springfield, it makes me want to vote for Bost. - Mad County - Tuesday, Sep 16, 14 @ 11:29 pm: I thought first Bost rant ad by Enyart was not nearly effective as it could have been in terms of making the point they were going for (”this guy is crazy…don’t vote for him”) and could have actually played into the hands of those who are upset with government. But this version, take 2, is on the mark by team Enyart and does a good job of making Bost - who nobody in the Metro East knows, as Ray El Camino pointed out - look like an idiot. The question seems to be how much damage will this do with moderate Republican women, who after seeing this are likely to say in the voting booth - “Oh, the angry guy — I’ll pass on that one.” Regardless, Enyart should have never let this election get this close. While Metro East voters don’t know Bost, they also don’t know Enyart. - Someone you should know - Wednesday, Sep 17, 14 @ 12:05 am: Bill Black was accepted because he was erudite and witty Bost, not so much - dr. reason a. goodwin - Wednesday, Sep 17, 14 @ 12:08 am: This might hurt in the Metro East, but my read is that Bost is picking up a lot of usual-Dem votes in the rest of the district. I’m sticking with my prediction that Bost wins. - Granitized - Wednesday, Sep 17, 14 @ 7:56 am: Being out there most nice days, people tell me it was Barack that sealed Enyart and Callis’ fate. Stick a fork in em - SouthILModeration - Thursday, Sep 18, 14 @ 8:04 am: As a Counselor licensed in this state, anyone who YELLS at another is demeaning them and the others, including myself, stop listening. We need more listening and discussion and less yelling at each other. I wish Bost does not win. Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.