* This happened while I was away…

Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Tammy Duckworth’s campaign initially wasn’t going to let reporters inside a post-primary “unity breakfast” in Bronzeville on Monday, then some protesters showed up.

It’s unclear who organized the group of roughly three dozen mostly African-American people who gathered outside Pearl’s Place chanting, waving signs and shouting “Shame on you!” at Democrats walking into the meeting. That’s because the group’s leaders declined to give their names or explain their affiliations.

One man holding an anti-Duckworth sign asked a Tribune reporter whether Duckworth is a Democrat or a Republican, then said he expected to get paid for his time outside Pearl’s “by the man who sponsored” the protest. Before he could explain further, other protesters nearby told him to be quiet. They declined to discuss why they were demonstrating or whether they supported incumbent Republican Sen. Mark Kirk.

There was at least one Kirk campaign staffer on hand outside Pearl’s shooting video and speaking to protesters. But Kirk campaign manager Kevin Artl said the staffer was simply there as part of his regular duties tracking Duckworth at events and had nothing to do with the protest.

This is not unusual in Chicago, where people make a few bucks by rounding up small crews of rabble rousers. Gov. Rauner’s campaign was accused of doing the same thing to Pat Quinn.

* But this one was particularly inept…

A dozen protesters, all African-Americans, lined the sidewalk in front of the restaurant, holding signs and chanting. But they wouldn’t answer questions about the protest or say which organization they represented. Most held hand-lettered signs that bore one of three messages: “What’s Our Vote Worth Duckworth?”, “Picked by Washington In$iders” or “D.C. Hatched a Plan,” showing a duckling emerging from an egg.

Kirk campaign staffer Matt Custardo mingled with the protesters outside the restaurant. The Kirk campaign said he was on hand to tape the event, but he appeared to be helping pass out coffee and doughnuts to the demonstrators. And whether they liked Duckworth or not, the protesters were happy to accept breakfast from the candidate, munching on bacon and eggs Duckworth staffers brought out of Pearl’s in foam boxes after the meeting adjourned.

Jeffrey Coleman was one of the few people standing among the protesters who was willing to talk with a reporter, though he admitted he had worked for Kirk’s campaign. Coleman, who is black, said African-American voters should not vote reflexively for Democrats.

Two of those three slogans come directly from the NRSC talking points about this campaign. The NRSC even posted TV news video of the event.

* More…

BNR has learned that an attendee of the event recognized some of the protesters as residents of a local homeless shelter. Several of the protest signs, pictured below, were duplicates and appeared to be written with the same hand:

Kirk campaign manager Kevin Artl dismissed the notion that they organized or paid the Duckworth protesters, telling the Tribune that there was only one staffer at the event who was “simply there as part of his regular duties tracking Duckworth at events and had nothing to do with the protest.”

But an Illinois Democratic party official told BNR that there were two Kirk staffers there, Kirk’s regular campaign tracker (pictured below in a gray hat) and Custardo, who was shown in the video above.

The video is here.