36 Comments - Lovie's Leather - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 12:55 am: Gidwitz-no Oberweis- maybe once more for old times sake Wegman- ha, for what?! Rauschy- probably not… Mangieri- definately not (no matter what he says) Brady would definately be the most likely to run for statewide office again. I think his goal, at the very least, was to position himself for an ‘08 Senate run. Wouldn’t it be ironic if the establishment supported him??? He’d have my vote…. - anon - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 1:20 am: Mangy will if the children surrounding MJM tell him to. - Thinkingman - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 1:36 am: Brady, duh. This is one of the few questions of the day with an actual right answer rather than one where people can express opinions. - Tony Soprano - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 1:46 am: Brady will run again.. i dont think dairyman will ever go away. - Silas - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 3:07 am: Oberweiss should give it up….Please!!!!! - anon in the sticks - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 6:00 am: I’m sure Bill Brady will in 08′ .. you know he ran a good positive campaign, stayed with his points & message, stayed out of the “jazz” of the last month or so & got around the state pretty well … just lacked the “big dough” to push him over the line although he raised a respectable amount. In a 4 1/2 way race it’s tough. His “ground crew” was far better & was everywhere. JBT got lucky, name been out there for a long time, OBY-Won is just “”out there”" on yet another return engagement. Thinking for Brady maybe US Senate against Durbin. ??? At 45 years old he can wait or move ahead. I voted for him this time & I would again if he stays the course. Raushy ??? Should have stayed an Ill. Senator …. a good guy. The others doubtful but wish them well. - DOWNSTATE - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 6:22 am: Obie will run for gov. again only this time he will pick a running mate to equal his style Sandy Weigman. - Wumpus - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 6:32 am: Rauschy’s dumb butt should have run for Treasurer. Obie should run away Gidwitz should not un again..ever. Although he seemed like adecent guy and good canddiate, he was the insider of all insiders. Brady, please run for something. Wegman, don;t run and if you do, don’t put your picture on your campaign signs. I am not saying you are ugly, buut it is a waste of money and that should only be done by the most attractive candidates. - Nearly Normal - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 6:41 am: Brady can run for re-election in 08 for his state senate seat. That is his to lose. Once you are an incumbent in this area, if you do your job, it’s yours. Brady could run again in 2010 for statewide office. If Blago is reelected, probably. If Judy wins, possible depending on her approval rate and whether or not she runs for reelection. Durbin’s U.S. Senate seat is also up in 2008 so it’s possible that he could run for that instead. Between now and late 2007 I am sure he will be assessing his options. With more visibility in the state and more money, he would a definite contender in any these races. If the conservatives in the party would get behind one candidate and not bicker, they could slate someone who could make a good run against Durbin. The problem is that many of them are single-issue conservatives and won’t support a candidate that isn’t for their single issue. Compromise to get a conservative elected is not in their realm of possibilities. - notquitehip - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 7:05 am: Brady will not run for Senate in ‘08, he will run for governor in ‘10. I’ve heard one person say they thought that because Durbin is so entreached, we should throw Oberweis at him in ‘08. Oberweis wouldn’t win, but it would be like a cage match, they could go at each other for a year or so and make-up fantastic conspiracy tales about each other. Rauschenberger will find a job (if he doesn’t have one already) that pays him eight times as much as he was as a senator, and won’t go back into politics. - Ravenswood Right Winger - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 8:00 am: Brady-definitely will/should run, although I wonder if he can stay on the sidelines until 2010. Oberweis-he’s the John Cox of the GOP..just with more money and more name recognition. He will run again. Barf. - Lloyd Dobbler - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 8:14 am: Although Obie v. Durbin would be great fun, I think Illinois has a 3-strikes-and-you’re-out clause. Everyone agrees Brady will run again… that would be great! - Anonymous - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 8:18 am: Brady will definitely run again, but I think he’d be crazy to actually run against Durbin in this state in a Presidential Election year. If he lost, he’d be losing ground after building a good name for himself this time around. He should be re-elected easily to his state senate district in ‘08, continue the circuit for the next three years, and build, build, build. He can also help fellow legislators around the state and build up that list of people that will owe him when ‘10 rolls around. I think the only fly in the ointment is if Judy and Joe win, Joe’s positioned to run in ‘10. But a Brady ticket with Joe going for A.G. again if Lisa decides to run for governor makes a pretty strong ticket. I think Rauschy was so disheartened by this whole experience that he won’t run again, unless he is the party’s guy to take on Durbin in ‘08. Oberweis is now a perennial candidate. If he seriously wants to win statewide, he needs to start smaller and learn Springfield a little. You can still be seen as an “outsider”, but maybe he wouldn’t make so many numbskull mistakes. This was his last hurrah. He may run again, but he won’t win - he’ll just ironically become the spoiler holding back new candidates that have a chance. Gidwitz won’t run again. He couldn’t have done a whole lot more than he did. You spend that kind of money and gain no traction, the writing is on the wall. He’d make a great party fundraiser again, or maybe even the sacrificial lamb to Durbin that has the money to make it a race. Doubt it though. Always fun to think about this stuff, but a lot can happen in two/four years, and there are plenty of legislators and leaders in both parties waiting to step into the fray. We’ll see soon enough. - illrino - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 8:43 am: Brady can’t afford to run for anything but his Senate seat in ‘08. While many on this board like him, he’ll be a footnote by this fall when Rutherford, Radogno, Pankau, et al become the “new” face of the GOP. Brady did better than expected in the primary, but only because he carried by large margins his home base–solidly Republican Central Illinois. He needed to show some strength elsewhere in the state. If you check the results, he didn’t get there. - Anonymous - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 8:45 am: Brady - as a Dem. Spoiler Bill has earned the eternal gratitude of the Dems for making sure we have a choice of 2 Dems, Blago or JBT. - Wumpus - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 9:02 am: oberweis may run for hastert’s seat..and win. Blago would have beaten Bi-polarweis(Tm) 65-35 (and that is if Blago was indicted and in court, working on a plea bargain deal the week prior to election day). Obie had no chance in winning. he spoiled it for Brady if anything. There is a difference between Cox and Mr. Xanax in my milk, Cox is a likeable guy. - Curious George - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 9:25 am: Illinois politicians have no guts. In 02 out of 19 members of congress not one stepped forward to run for an open seat in the Senate. This would have been unthinkable in any other state. Obama only ran because he was in the middle of his term just like when he ran against Rush. Brady, Mangieri, Wegman, Rutherford, Umholtz, Pankau, Radogno and Birkett only stepped forward because they were in the middle of their terms. It can be argued that Rauschenberger only ran because he could not have held on to his senate seat. Topinka is the only one who risked it all. But then at her age what’s the point if you don’t run. - John - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 9:28 am: This is the problem with you spineless Illinois “Republicans”. We have two whole years left before Durbin is up. The guy’s a freekin’ lunatic moonbat and can be defeated with enough money and the right candidate. But here we are, with two years to gear up, and you losers are all ready conceding. Shut the f— up and stop talking nonsense about sacrificial lambs and a cage match with Oberweis. Oh, and grow a pair. Do you people want to win or not? And if so, why do you want to win? ‘Cause if it’s only about face time and power grabbing than there’s no use anyway. You have to want to win because of principle, something which Illinois Republicans seriously lack. Oh wait, I remeber. The whole point of the Illinois Republican Party is making sure that the Chicago Democrats have someone to beat. What a flat, pathetic state this is. You people deserve Durbin and Blagojevich. - Yellow Dog Democrat - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 10:03 am: It’s pointless to make a prediction about who will run until this year’s elections shake out. Needless to say, conservatives have alot to gain from a Topinka loss. If she wins, she not only clogs up the Governor’s mansion until 2014 (Topinka v. Madigan in 2010), she’ll want to pick the down ballot candidates for 2010 as well. A more realistic question is who has a chance of someday winning statewide office, and that’s Brady, but you can bet Roeser will do everything he can to pay Brady back for spoiling the Milk this time. - Thom Yorke - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 10:43 am: Brady - Yes, and he should. And hopefully not as a sacrifical lamb to Dick Durbin in 08. He has too much potential to waste it getting slam dunked by Durbin, assuming Durbin doesn’t majorly step in it between now and 08. Oberweis - He’s already running for Kane GOP Chairman and 14th Dist. State Central Committee. After that, maybe he’ll explore a run as John Cox’s veep. Gidwitz - Someone please talk him into running for Mayor of Chicago. The Democrats will have an absolutely brutal primary between Luis Gutierrez, Baby Jesse and King Richard. It’ll be racial political warfare to the enth degree an an outstanding opportunity capitalize on the Dem’s civil war. Wegman - Who? Rauschenberger - Who cares? Mangieri - Again, who? - Scott Fawell's Cellmate - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 10:44 am: Hey Rich, You didn’t include Eisendrath in your question ? Not that there is much a of a statewide future for Ed (not Edwin, because when you run the kind of pathetic race he did, the word “win” shouldn’t even be in your name), but he at least merits his poltitical footnote. - VanillaMan - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 10:50 am: It doesn’t matter who in this list runs again, the bigger question is who could win? No one in that list, frankly. Topinka is the last GOP candidate with statewide appeal. Illinois voters will elect a social conservative that has proven themselves in office. But since the GOP is out of officeholders, they are out of winning candidates. If Topinka goes down, the GOP will be out of power for a long, long time. Those fond of supporting 20th Century social programs and welfare state mentality here in Illinois may rejoice over the demise of a healthy GOP. But these seniors have nothing to offer voters except their version of a future depending on government hand-outs financed by struggling workers. Under this administration and mentality, Illinois is inching closer to Michigan malaise than Texan prosperity. In his first term alone, our business climate has struggled with 300 increased taxes and fees, and now ranks at the bottom of US states. Businesses leave welfare states like the one Blagojevich is trying to build. But without another party, Illinois will become a giant Cook County, hunting down any source of revenue remaining in the state, and driving families and thriving businesses out as it falls deeper in debt issuing welfare checks and services to the unemployed, poor and aged. Like Illinois, Michigan is stumbling with a governor out of ideas and out of her league. She promised to turn Michigan into a little Canada, and discovered that her Canadian model was impossible to do in the real world. Granholm and Blagojevich have got to go. - John - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 11:13 am: The Detroit analogy is excellent. Ever been to Decatur? Certainly most of this blog’s readers are familiar with Chicago. I know this much. I certainly don’t want to stay in Illinois. This state is a sinking ship and I have no intention of going down with it. - Sour Milk - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 11:17 am: Unfortunately, I’m afraid Oberweis will run again — for something, anything. He seeks validation and acceptance, and believes elected office will fill whatever strange psychological void he has. After losing 2 U.S. Senate primaries, a Gov. primary, a bid for State Party Chair in which he got NO votes, and now another tilting-at-windmills exercise with a bid for State Central Comm. and/or County Chair, I’m afraid Oberweis doesn’t know how to go away. Or understand what it means to LOSE. - Brady's Combover - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 11:25 am: Pro-life even in cases of rape and incest. Opposed to health care for low-income kids. Huge conflicts of interest in his real estate business. Oh please, please, Bill Brady, run again. Alan Keyes with a comb-over. - illrino - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 11:46 am: Bill Brady wants to be governor. That’s all he ever wanted to be. Didn’t want to run for Congress against Tim Johnson but did so because the string-pullers didn’t like the wacko Johnson and thought Brady had a chance to derail him. Brady didn’t run for a down-ballot position this time because the ONLY job he has ever wanted was governor. And that’s why he won’t risk his state senate job to run vs. Durbin. - Da Professor - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 2:00 pm: Don’t talk trash about Decatur, brother John. We’re turning it around. I’ve lived several places, including St. Louis & Chicago, and I’ll tell ya, the people here are special, and the cost of living can’t be beat. - T.J. - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 2:03 pm: I love a good positive campaign that consists of attacking everyone else for being so negative. But Brady needs to become a teetotaler so he can brag about it next time. - Illini Forever - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 2:04 pm: Maybe you should give your anti-Eisendrath utterings a rest, Mr. Rich. I mean, Eisendrath at least had the guts to run for governor while the rest of his party closed their eyes and plugged their ears, hoping their incumbent wouldn’t get hauled off to jail for his smarmy tactics. After watching the constant flow of news linking the incumbent to corruption, Eisendrath must’ve decided late last year that he HAD to get in so at least one democratic candidate could take a stand for good government (no pay to play, no pension games, etc). He gave it his best shot, with no help from party leaders (who just pray that Blago won’t get indicted), and he lost. Eisendrath got nearly 1/3 of the democratic votes. Call them anti-Blago votes, or whatever you want, but they were votes for Eisendrath, and I’ll bet he will be back. - Rich Miller - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 2:06 pm: It wasn’t a rant. It was the truth. I did already forget about him. - EE SUPPORTER - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 2:23 pm: You seem to have forgotten that Eisendrath got 30% of the vote, not the 18% you predicted! Rich you seem to have a problem with honest candidates who tell the truth! Wonder why that is? Our state is broke, we’re last in funding education, we’re losing jobs to the states around us…and guess what for now we’re stuck with Rod. Eisendrath can pick an office, I’d vote for him again in a heart beat! - Rich Miller - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 2:24 pm: I didn’t predict anything of the sort. Period. - FIVEFINGERS - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 4:32 pm: Rich, Sure you forgot about Edwin after you wrote that totally uncalled for article in the Sun-Times last friday. It seems to me that you were only taking up space because that article was truly worthless. Save your ranting for this site!!! - Team Sleep - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 4:33 pm: Ron Gidwitz should run for chairman of the BORED! HAHA! Seriously, though, Brady will run again. Mangieri will not run again unless his next run is for re-election in Knox County. Eisendrath will run for something small (county board, state rep) and Oberweis needs to run off a cliff. The shameful thing about Illinois voters is that a lot of them vote against their best interests. In the Metro East, property taxes and various fees on housing costs are sky-high but voters keep electing officials who don’t care if the property taxes and housing fees are high. The same goes for suburbanites in the north. We may have a small income tax but was does the average person have to show for his 3%? AllKids is a good program - IF WE CAN PAY FOR IT. The same goes for tax credits for school and education epxansion. I could argue that I get to drive on the roads in Illinois but most of the roads are in disrepair and it takes for ever to widen and repair them. I give up. - Scott Fawell's Cellmate - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 5:39 pm: Where were all these rabid Eisendrath supporters LAST Monday ? Quit yelling at the messenger. Rich is just calling them like he sees them in HIS column espousing HIS opinion. We love ya, Rich, and just wish we could have another photo caption contest again sometime soon. C’mon, someone from one of the campaigns must have a photo they could email Rich ! Winner of the caption contest gets his or her very own t-shirt that reads “My millionaire running mate came in 4th place and all I got was this lousy t-shirt,” personally signed by Steve Rauschenberger. - Anon - Monday, Mar 27, 06 @ 9:15 pm: The real question: Which one(s) will get suckered into hiring Calomino and Proft. Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.