* I’ve been hearing reports that Dan Lipinksi’s campaign has been calling some ward organizations in his district several times a day. Panic appears to be setting in over his primary race against Democrat Mark Pera and two others.

Larry at ArchPundit ran some results from Pera’s benchmark poll of Democratic voters several days ago which appears to show that Little Lip’s district ain’t nearly as conservative as some people have claimed, particlarly in the primary…

82 percent Less likely to vote for Lipinski on the issue of choice once they learn that he opposes a woman’s right to choose and supports criminalizing abortion even in cases of rape or incest

83 percent Less likely they would vote for Lipinski after they learned that he voted for the Bush energy proposal and voted to allow drilling in the Artic National Wildlife Refuge

76 percent Favor a mandate calling for a pull-out of troops from Iraq beginning immediately with all troops out within a year as well as a cap on war funding to ensure the Bush Administration meets that goal

* Ray Hanania, however, claims that Lipinski is far more liberal than Pera has been portraying him…

Lipinski is 100 percent with the AFL-CIO, Children’s Defense Fund, Breast Cancer Coalition, and Alliance for Retired Senior America. He’s 92 percent with the League of Conservation Voters…

The National Journal analyzed all the voting records and concluded that Lipinski is “more liberal” than 71 percent of other members of Congress, and that puts him in the mainstream of America.

AFSCME endorsed Lipinski on Friday, by the way.

* I’m still skeptical of Pera’s chances. There are two other candidates in the primary race, both with their own bases of support. The general rule of thumb in primaries is “The more, the merrier” for incumbents. Pera won the ballot lottery, so his name will appear first - giving him a slight edge if the race is close.

Lipinski can probably expect an onslought of hostile media coverage for the remainder of the primary. His elevation to his daddy’s seat still rankles the media, and reporters appear eager to pile on.

Remember how Mayor Daley forced his petition circulators sign affidavits swearing that they wouldn’t trade their efforts for government jobs or contracts? Well, Fox Chicago ran this story the other day on how a third of Lipinski’s circulators were government employees - and all of them appear on the infamous Robert Sorich “clout list”…

The bottom line, though, is that those precinct workers will make a big difference come election day.

* More congressional stories, compiled by Paul…

* Shimkus adjusts to his new role in Congress… “I think I’ve been even more outspoken,” Shimkus said. “I get to vote no. We don’t move the agenda. I don’t have (Shimkus’ mentor, the former House Speaker Dennis) Hastert saying, ‘Hey, you may not like 25, 30 or 40 percent of this bill, but this is where we’re at as a conference and we have to move this forward.’ I think you’re a lot freer in the minority, a lot freer.”

* Will Reynolds: Durbin supports McMenamin for Congress against Shimkus

* TeamAmerica: Looks like Dan Seals may be looking for a new day job

* Word on the street: Democrat’s gaffe caught on record

* ILGOPNet: YouTube interview with 18th-CD candidate Jim McConoughey

*** UPDATE 1 *** One of Pera’s people took a look at that National Journal study cited by Ray Hanania above.

Hanania claimed that the numbers showed Little Lip was “‘more liberal’ than 71 percent of other members of Congress.”

But Pera’s folks note that if you look at the results for just congressional Democrats, you find that Lipinski’s voting record is “more conservative” than 78.5 percent of his fellow Democrats. Download the spreadsheet here.

*** UPDATE 2 *** Interesting news from Pera’s campaign…

A trio of political mavericks - Chicago Aldermen Manuel “Manny” Flores, 1st Ward; Brendan Reilly, 42nd Ward; and Scott Waguespack, 32nd Ward - are supporting Democrat Mark Pera’s bid for Congress by hosting an upcoming fund-raiser. […]

Joining Flores, Reilly and Waguespack in their efforts are state Rep. John Fritchey, D-11th, Metropolitan Water Reclamation District Commissioner Debra Shore, Stephen Blandin, Emilia DiMenco, Amy Evans and Gail Morse.