21 Comments - Some Guy - Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 9:57 am: If Martin wins the primary, would he do worse than Alan Keyes? At least Keyes had the support from some of the state party. - wordslinger - Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 9:58 am: It sure could happen — it’s precisely why he changed his name from Anthony Martin-Trigona to Andy Martin. Plus, it probably will be a higher than usual primary turnout with the GOP presidential, so it won’t just be the hard-core, presumably knowledgeable, party faithful taking ballots. Martin-Trigona is the last thing the once mighty Illinois GOP needs. - VanillaMan - Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 10:01 am: Yes, Martin is a nicer sounding name for a candidate than Sauerberg - but when a guy named Blagojevich first ran for US Congress, he made his name something to remember by poking fun at it in a series of television ads. It would be very memorable if Dr. Sauerberg made campaign ads with him appearing as a medical professional warning viewers of “high tax disease”, “Dubinitis - the lack of a backbone”, “Washingtonitis - an illness causing excessive bloviating, a pandering for cash, and constituent forgetfulness”. “As a medical doctor, I can assure you that without proper treatment, Dick Durbin will continue to suffer under delusions of grandeur”. “I’m Dr. Sauerber, and I approve of this message!” It could be hilarious, memorable and very effective. Durbin has a host of weaknesses, but is very likeable. It will take a creative, humorous tact for Sauerberg to poke Durbin in the eye, make his case, and get voters to THINK. “I’m VanillaMan, and I approve of this message.” - Jaded - Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 10:08 am: Why would it cause the Republican Party heartburn? Neither one of these guys has a snowball/s chance of beating Durbin. The GOP should actually hope Martin wins, and then they could use their limited resources elsewhere. - Hickory - Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 10:11 am: I keep reading how smart voters are on this blog and from the individuals running for office. Will this make you think otherwise? - downstateyp - Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 10:19 am: I was going to vote vor Sauerberg when he announced, but now I am not. First, his shady, non-answers on abortion. In my opinon be pro-life or pro-choice, but give a clear answer. Second, the state GOP is pushing him hard…and that makes me worried. I have a hard time with a state party endorsing someone in the primary to begin with, but with the track record of the IL GOP, I don’t think its a good thing to be backed by them. I’ve voting for Psak, or whatever his name is, and I couldn’t pick him out in a crowd of 10! - PhilCollins - Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 10:38 am: The IL GOP leaders have a record of endorsing candidates who lose the general election. In 2002, many party leaders endorsed Jim Durkin, before the primary. He won the primary, and, in the general election, he received 38%. In 2004, after Jack Ryan quit the race, party leaders choose Alan Keyes, and he received 27%. This proves that, if party leaders choose a candidate, the voters should choose another candidate. Psak has been endorsed by these conservative groups: Illinois Center Right Coalition Illinois Federation for Right to Life Illinois Citizens For Life (Highest Rating) Minutemen Midwest - 93% Rating Tax Accountability 2008 National Taxpayers United of Illinois Berwyn Township Regular Republican Organization Berwyn Friends Of The GOP - PAC Catholicblogs.com Kathy Schott, DuKane A.B.A.T.E. Chicago Minuteman Project (Highest Rating) Please read his site, www.psak4ussenate.com. - Team Sleep - Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 10:55 am: Ugh. What a mess. Sauerberg is a very nice guy and I’m sure he’s a competent doctor. However, why he would want to burn his money in a race against Durbin is beyond me. And if he can’t squeak out of the primary, all of his to-date expenditures will be for naught. At this point, I wish a state rep or senator would have run. The bench is dry and Sauerberg has no future. Some state-level official from one of the collar counties would have at least drawn some fundraising interest as well as some real party support. And whoever would have done so could have built up his or her name recognition. I know Durkin didn’t get too much of a bounce in 2002, but anything is possible for a candidate’s future (statewide office, Congress, county board chair, etc.). Instead, we’re stuck with Sauerberg’s as the “establishment’s choice” - which to me means bupkus since it’s coming from Andy McKenna. - Carl Nyberg - Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 11:00 am: Martin has 10 times the chance of beating Durbin that Sauerberg has, because ten times zero is still zero. Who will be more entertaining? Andy Martin or Steve Sauerberg? What do they say at AA? Change comes when you admit you have a problem. The Illinois GOP is not going to admit it has a problem unless Martin or Psak get the nomination. - TonyBanks and MikeRutherford - Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 2:49 pm: As Illinois Republicans, the only thing that is giving us heartburn is the existence of Andy McKenna as chairman of a once-proud, now borderline worthless party. Let Martin or Psak take their chances against Durbin. They will not win but do better than “Dr. Steven Sauerberg” in his wildest dreams. Pathetic. Pathetic. Pathetic. - TonyBanks and MikeRutherford - Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 2:58 pm: Don’t forget that Andy Martin said that Tribune reporter Rick Pearson “looked like a child molester” live on the WGN Morning News two years ago. Crazy, yes. Boneheaded, inappropriate and uncalled for? Yes, again. Dick Durbin’s verbosity towards our own troops has not been much better. Again, why doesn’t Andy McKenna run himself? He ran in ‘04. If he’s so great, and Durbin is so bad, what’s the problem? We saw him on Fox News Sunday. He is the most ineffectual twerp ever. Everything (everything)he does is wrong. Is it on purpose? - cermak_rd - Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 3:59 pm: The fact is, it’s extremely hard to unseat an incumbent senator. It’s even harder to unseat an incumbent senator in a presidential election year in a state that is going to turn out to elect a Dem president. Durbin’s approval rating is pretty high (over 60% if I recall) so I just don’t see him losing this race regardless of who the GOP nominee is unless something pretty darned dramatic happens. - some former legislative intern - Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 5:25 pm: None of them have a chance, so what’s the point? The best part of this post is about Mark Shelden. I love seeing Shelden so depressed. Someone should ask him if he will actually allow U of I students to vote without putting ridiculous obsticles in place designed to discourage them from turning out. Although I am from Chicago, I learned first hand about voter intimidation from working in student precincts when I was on campus. Well, good old Mark is no longer in. He and his jolly band of Champaign County Republicans have no jobs anymore, and they are upset. Shelden shouldn’t be so concerned about statewide politics. Rather, he should be focused on maintaining what the GOP has in terms of local offices in Champaign County, as there is now a Democratic majority on the Champaign County Board and at least one Dem countywide officeholder. - Andy Martin - Wednesday, Jan 30, 08 @ 11:40 pm: I have a record of forty years of public service and participation (e.g. FirstRespondersonline.us), outstanding successes (see andymartin.com) in court and 40 years of broadcasting experience. Need I say more why I am the best candidate to tackle Dick Durbin? Sorry, but Mr. Shelden is the loser, not me. Andy Martin - Alicia - Thursday, Jan 31, 08 @ 10:21 am: Andy Martin has my vote. His has the experience and political insights to stand in the ring with Durbin and take him down and is not afraid to say it like it is. He I keep seeing a small handful of old ‘reports’ that are just getting older and older with time. People obviously have not read his news releases and understand just how on top of world events he is generaly before everyone else. Politics is not childs play. Sauerberg doesn’t have any vision or strategy to run up against Durbin and be effective. - Andy Martin - Thursday, Jan 31, 08 @ 10:31 am: Thank you Alicia. I don’t know who you are, but you have grasped the essence of my career in public life. I will not disappoint you. We will give Durbin the fight of his life. We will never surrender, like the Combine would have us do. No one is perfect, and I am not perfect. But forty (40) years of public integrity stands behind my campaign. No one can match that; not even Durbin. - Hester - Thursday, Jan 31, 08 @ 10:47 am: What a tragedy that for decades Illinois has suffered a corrupt GOP - and lost elections. It is going to take an exceptional man to stand up to corruption and to Durbin. Andy Martin is that man. (Also helps that he’s witty, clever and likeable!) - township_official - Thursday, Jan 31, 08 @ 7:30 pm: I am voting for Andy because he looks like someone who will be an aggressive campaigner and who will speak his mind. I don’t want another “establishment” candidate because to me, that would not be a real choice. Somebody needs to go after Durbin and Andy Martin has the fire in his gut. - Andy Martin - Thursday, Jan 31, 08 @ 8:03 pm: Thank you township official! You are correct. I not only want to fight, I know how to fight. I have forty (40!) years of broadcasting experience. Neither of my opponents–both of whom are decent fellows–know anything about media, politics, campaigning. Can they just walk into a a TV studio and start debating with an experienced pro such as Durbin? It is not enough to decide you are a candidate. You need to know how to campaign. I do. - Alicia - Thursday, Jan 31, 08 @ 9:59 pm: McKenna decides who should be endorsed as if the GOP is his own private club and uses GOP funds to his own discretion as if he owns the bank. If Sauerberg had any ethics at all he would be frowning on McKenna’s blatant use of the good old boys club. Or maybe he just doesn’t get it? - Andy Martin - Thursday, Jan 31, 08 @ 11:30 pm: Mark Shelden is entitled to his nasty opinion of my forty years in public life. For anyone interested in the facts, however, there is AndyMartin.com and AndyforUSSenator.com. My daily news feed is at AndyforUSSenator.blogspot.com or AndyforUSSenator.wordpress.com. Anyone who wants to receive daily e-mails can contact us at AndyforUSSenator@aol.com. The reality is that we are not having a “stealth” election as Shelden suggests. People have studied my credentials and S’berg’s credentials and found him to be both an insubstantial candidate and a puppet of the “Combine” that corrupts and controls Illinois politics. I want to thank CapitolFaxblog.com for publicizing Shelden’s malicious views. The obvious backlash to Shelden’s claims shows that informed Republicans overwhelmingly support me. And thank you again to your anonymous readers who are unknown to me but still support my candidacy. Can I say “Keep on truckin,” or does that sound too much like Psak? Andy Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.