* Sneed claims a Chris Kennedy run is a done deal…
Scoopsville . . .
Bet the ranch.
Sneed has learned the Merchandise Mart’s Chris Kennedy, son of the late U.S. Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, will announce next week he is running for the U.S. Senate.
Sneed has also learned Kennedy, who lives with his wife, Sheila, and four children in Kenilworth, has hired the prestigious media consultant firm AKPD and has already shot his first TV campaign commercial.
AKPD was founded by President Obama’s senior adviser David Axelrod. Axelrod divested himself of the firm when he took the White house job.
• • The rationale: Top Dem party sources tell Sneed a Kennedy candidacy would come with instantaneous name recognition. “He’s also lived here for 25 years, is in his late 40s, comes from a business background, and has that Kennedy magic,” the source added.
• • The pol shot: The battle for Obama’s old seat is up for grabs. Former U.S. Commerce Secretary Bill Daley just opted out of the race; state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias held a fund-raiser for his Senate exploratory committee starring rocker Pete Wentz May 11 in Chicago, and U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky is now seriously eyeing a bid.
* Sweet isn’t as sure, but filed this yesterday afternoon…
-Everything I am hearing on Tuesday points to Chris Kennedy getting into the Illinois 2010 Senate race. Maybe this will change but a Kennedy decision is close. As of Tuesday afternoon, the plan calls for him to be announcing sometime probably next week. Long time Kennedy family friend Jay Doherty is being tapped to head up the fund-raising effort. […]
I talked to Kennedy on Tuesday night. “I’m keeping my options alive and working through a whole series of issues still,” he told me.
* And Larry wonders why a Cleveland deal isn’t getting more press…
Chris Kennedy has been getting pretty glowing coverage lately–in Chicago–not so much in Cleveland. Kennedy’s Merchandise Mart company has clouted a deal through the Cuyahoga county board where the county will float $900 million in bonds to build a mart that Kennedy’s company will then own, having only to put up $20 million and get all the profits for 20 years and having all their property taxes comped.
There’s profanity there, so beware if you are or have to be sensitive, but check out this excerpt from a Cleveland Plain Dealer story…
The decision, if it holds, would mean the county has decided to spend nearly a half-billion public dollars without holding a meeting in public to discuss the basis for its decision.
To make it happen, Hagan overrode the concerns of the county’s $100,000 negotiator, who wanted time to bargain with landowners before committing to one site.
Why the sudden rush? Why all the secrecy? And why would a county government in the middle of a sweeping federal corruption investigation choose not to conduct its business in the most open way possible?
Try to avoid generic Kennedy family bashing in comments. It’s truly boring. Come up with something new, please.
* It’s a bit frustrating watching some politicians play with the idea of running for various offices like they’re picking out a new toy…
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan appears to be leaning strongly toward running for governor– not US Senate.
She’s not ruling out a senate race, but tells ABC 7 News the possibility of moving to Washington, D.C. doesn’t appeal to her.
“My focus has long been on looking at a race for governor as you know I’ve made no decision yet,” said Lisa Madigan, Illinois Attorney General.
I understand the problem with schlepping back and forth to DC, especially with young kids. But that’s not exactly a high-minded reason to avoid a race. Pick a lane, please.
I’m taking a very, very careful look at this, and actually may make that run. I’ve set for myself an arbitrary deadline of June 8th where I’m gunna make a decision. And you know, I feel confident, actually, that if I ran I could win. Here we are though, at this incredibly opportune moment to really make big change. Big change moment today in our country. So I have to decide if I want to spend the next 18 months basically raising money. You know what I mean?… Rather than, I’m on the Energy and Commerce Committee, health care, energy. I’m on the Intelligence Committee, I’m in the Leadership of the House. So, I have to weigh all that. Clearly being in the Senate would give me an even larger opportunity to move an agenda.
Watch the video…
She also talks about US Sen. Roland Burris…
I don’t see how he can, at this point, win a primary. The numbers speak very loudly to that. And he’s just been embroiled in this toxic situation, and it hasn’t really gotten any better for him. And so I would say, that’s not, you know, I don’t see him as being competitive in a Democratic Primary.
And muses on the GOP’s chances in the contest…
Cenk Uygur: Is there a Republican in the state that can make a real run against a Democrat in Illinois?
Representative Schakowsky: For U.S Senate? I… no. And here’s why I say that: we are Barack Obama’s home state, and having a Republican who would run against the Obama agenda is a loser in Illinois. It just, you know, for our mostly blue state, I don’t see how that could happen. You know, there are things, I suppose that, you know, 2010 became a bad year because a lot of the hopes and dreams weren’t realized. But even then, I think there’s going to be a distaste for someone who’s part of the “just say no” group as a candidate for U.S Senate.
Discuss.
…Adding… The IL GOP’s new Web ad, “100 Days of the Same,” contains an interesting clip of Chris Kennedy that could be used in the upcoming campaign if he runs for US Senate…
