* Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s people, including her top campaign aide Mary Morrissey, threw lots of cold water on reports this week that the AG might run for US Senate when I talked to them. Madigan, herself, didn’t return a call, but she did tell Sneed that she was taking another look at the race…

“The governor’s race is still my main consideration,” Madigan told Sneed. But Madigan’s taking another look at the Senate race after recruitment phone calls from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. […]

Sneed also hears Madigan sent word to the Merchandise Mart’s Chris Kennedy that she is being seriously courted by the DSCC as its preferred candidate for the Senate seat once held by President Obama. Kennedy is himself considering a run for the seat.

Top political strategist and fund-raiser David Rosen tells Sneed he spoke to both Madigan and Kennedy.

• • Quoth Rosen: “I told the attorney general I was scheduled to meet with Kennedy, and she told me to tell him she had changed her mind and was thinking of running for the Senate. Lisa was not sending this message to clear the field. She just felt badly she had told Chris a week ago she was not going to run for the Senate.”

Madigan tells Sneed that Rosen called her. In the conversation, she asked Rosen to tell Kennedy about the DSCC’s courtship of her, but she stressed to Sneed that she also talks to Kennedy regularly herself and was not trying to send any message about her intentions.

“I don’t need to send a messenger to Chris,” she said. “I’m still up in the air about the Senate.”

DSCC polling shows Madigan doing the best of any candidate in the US Senate race. The Republicans say Alexi Giannoulias shows signs of serious weakness with negative polling “push” questions.

Sneed also pointed out that LMadigan has said in the past that she didn’t want to move her young children to DC.

* Lynn Sweet recalls a conversation she had last month with AG Madigan…

Thinking about the Senate? I asked.

“Never given it any serious consideration, Lynn,” Madigan said.

But you are considering running for governor?

“Correct,” Madigan said.

Since then, Madigan has had a retreat in her Chicago campaign office with her advisers, including media consultant Saul Shorr and pollster Celinda Lake. And since then, she has said the Senate is an option.

Sweet also has some GOP polling numbers from May 7…

Q. If the Democratic Primary election for United States Senate were held today and the candidate were Jan Schakowsky, Chris Kennedy, Roland Burris and Alexi Giannoulias, for whom would you vote?

- 20.0 Jan Schakowsky

- 16.4 Alexi Giannoulias

- 15.9 Roland Burris

- 12.7 Chris Kennedy

- 35.0 Undecided

Q. If the general election for United States Senate were held today, which one of the following best describes how you are likely to vote between Mark Kirk, the Republican candidate and Alexi Giannoulias, the Democratic candidate?

- 34.2 Mark Kirk

- 33.2 Alexi Giannoulias

- 32.6 Undecided

Q. If the general election for United States Senate were held today, which one of the following best describes how you are likely to vote between Mark Kirk, the Republican candidate and Chris Kennedy, the Democratic candidate?

- 33.2 Mark Kirk

- 32.6 Chris Kennedy

- 34.2 Undecided

Kirk and Giannoulias start out even. Madigan starts out way ahead. But if Madigan gets into the US Senate race, Kirk may just run for governor.

* Other political stuff…

* Boland considering Illinois lieutenant governor bid

* Cronin, others eye DuPage County chairman’s post

* IL AG: Craigslist dropping ‘erotic services’ ads - Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan says that Craigslist is getting rid of its “erotic services” ads and will create a new adult category that Web site employees will review.

* Hynes demands $10M from funeral directors

* State comptroller: Funeral trust owes millions

* Madigan releases proposed rewrite of FOI law

* Halvorson gets Republican challenger for 2010 race