* 2:21 pm - Republican DuPage County State’s Attorney Joe Birkett is calling around this afternoon saying he plans to run for attorney general.

This would be Birkett’s second try at AG. He lost to Lisa Madigan in 2002. He ran for governor four years later, dropped out and became Judy Baar Topinka’s running mate. He had been considering a bid for governor next year, but that race is getting pretty crowded.

Campaign website, YouTube page, Twitter, Facebook.

*** UPDATE 1 *** He just announced on YouTube…

*** UPDATE 2 *** Here’s the announcement via e-mail…

I’ve made the decision to remain a prosecutor and to run for the Office of Illinois Attorney General in 2010.

I invite you to watch the brief video below in which I explain my decision. I will continue to aggressively engage with you online to build a statewide organization that provides each and every citizen a voice in Illinois government, once and for all.

* But the Daily Herald publishes a much more gushing press release…

Never one to back down from a fight, DuPage County State’s Attorney Joe Birkett plans to run for Illinois Attorney General in 2010 - even if incumbent Lisa Madigan seeks a third term.

Birkett made the political announcement Thursday during a Daily Herald interview.

As Madigan wavers between a possible run for U.S. Senate, governor or to retain her current office, Birkett said the attorney general post is the best fit for him regardless of whom he faces on Election Day. […]

“You have to be who you are,” the 54-year-old Wheaton man said. “I’m a prosecutor. I’ve come to the conclusion I should remain one. That’s where I belong. It’s my passion.”

I kid you not. That’s the actual Daily Herald story. And it even gets “better,” if you can believe it, but I shouldn’t paste more than four grafs here. Go read it yourself.

…Adding… No wonder. She’s the criminal court reporter. It has always been thus at the DH.