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Dillard walks it back, Birkett vows to press on

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* After saying earlier today: “I look forward to having Lisa Madigan as attorney general when I’m the governor,” GOP gubernatorial candidate Kirk Dillard is now trying to walk back an obvious blunder on his first official day on the campaign trail…

Earlier today, I was asked about the attorney general and what my reaction is to her allegedly running for re-election. While I have a great deal of respect for her, we haven’t heard anything official about her status. Right now we’re focusing on the leadership of Illinois and returning pride to the people of this great state. And I will be backing the entire GOP ticket to accomplish that.

* And announced GOP attorney general candidate Joe Birkett has a new blog post entitled “Welcome to the race, Lisa“…

Lisa Madigan’s announcement does not change my plans. I look forward to offering Illinois voters new leadership in a state that desperately needs it.

Discuss.

posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 4:32 pm

Comments

Dillard can walk back anything he wants…he’s toasted more than the toast I had this morning.

(Word of the day: Toast)

Comment by Kamp Krusty Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 4:38 pm
He was not even a candidate for more than a few minutes when he was asked about this, come on! Here he is just leaving the podium and the Lisa question is asked he messed it up because he is answering other questions about Governor. He must be the front runner because they are attacking already.

Comment by votecounter Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 4:43 pm
Birkett might as well he knows what he wants, but he might want to get off the whole prosecutor trip. AG is more than being a prosecutor in fact, there’s not prosecutorial about being an AG. On the other hand he can go after Lisa Madigan on the issue of say prosecuting corruption.

Comment by Levois Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 4:44 pm
Birkett is living in buck rodgers world. Lisa has 5 million dollars to spend and will bloody up Birkett so that he won’t even be able to win reelection as DuPage States Attorney. They are already doing more opposition research on Joe. This is gonna be ugly for poor Joe.

Comment by AGforLife Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 4:48 pm
It’s called damage control. Dillard has brass. At his press conference, he said his guiding principle is “Put the taxpayer first!” That doesn’t square with his votes for higher taxes just in the last year.

Comment by reformer Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 4:48 pm
Say what you want about LMadigan and prosecuting corruption. The facts are that the feds told her to stay out of the RodB stuff and she did. I wonder if the feds told her to stay out of all the rest of the Illinois corruption? Chicago?

Comment by dupage dan Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 4:52 pm
votecounter, if he wasn’t ready to take on a few very simple questions at his campaign kickoff, then he shouldn’t have announced today. or ever.

Comment by Rich Miller Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 4:53 pm
Dillard is an embarrassment, what Rich just said is correct. Dillard is the kind of guy who would say or do virtually anything to win an election. Dillard fits in nicely to the Jim Thompson- Jim Edgar- George Ryan wing of the Illinois GOP. Maybe, Dillard can be hired as a Democratic party lobbyist.

Comment by Steve Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 4:56 pm
“Welcome to the race Lisa, I am ready for my beat-down”

Comment by Oswego Willy Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 5:04 pm
Regardless of who ends up on the Republican ticket, the dems face an uphill battle. Reminds me of 94′ — the only thing missing is Dawn Clark Netsch…

Comment by curtis Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 5:11 pm
Didn’t Dilliard appear in a commercial for that profligate spender Barack Obama?

Of course he did.

Comment by John Ruberry Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 5:17 pm
Curtis- Except that now the Democrats have one thing they didn’t have in 94, the power of incumbency. Never underestimate it.

Comment by SweetLou Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 5:22 pm
I personally like Dillard. Yet,Birkett is popular and has solid support among GOP primary voters. Dillard is not known at all South of 80. His “endorsement” of Lisa Madigan will get more coverage than the themes he articulated for his run for governor. Appear in Obama ad, “endorse” Lisa and create the appearance he has made a deal with Mike Madigan; this is a colossal blunder! Just when things looked like Dillard could get the party faithful to believe he is the guy…. Colossal blunder.

Comment by cousin ralph Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 5:22 pm
This is strikingly similiar to Dillard’s response to his recording a quasi-endorsement ad for Obama. He then talked about how much he liked McCain.

The reason he had difficulty wiht the question is that he wants to be liked by all sides.

Comment by danny Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 5:22 pm
What Dillard should have said:

“Oops…I thought she was running unopposed again. Of course I’ll be supporting the Republican nominee.”

“Wait. Its Birkett? Again?!?”

“I look forward to having Lisa Madigan as attorney general when I’m the governor.”

Comment by Yellow Dog Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 5:34 pm
Rich
I didn’t say he wasn’t ready I said he messed it up! The Lisa announcement was perfectly timed to come out right when he hit the podium. (If it was a coincidence it came at the right time) Dillard has reached out to conservative leaders and is a pretty conservative Senator on his own. The candidates who are in now only have themselves to blame they had 6 months to lite a fire and couldn’t. And personally I think Joe isn’t going to get his head handed to him he gave Lisa a hell of a fight last time and there has been nothing but corruption in the headlines since. In the last run against Joe she spent the money of a Governors candidate to win and just squeaked by. She will have the Democratic parties corruption to deal with, and rightly or wrongly her office has not been the one prosecuting the US attorney is.

Comment by votecounter Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 5:40 pm
===The Lisa announcement was perfectly timed to come out right when he hit the podium. ===

That’s tinfoil talk, man. Don’t go weird on us.

Comment by Rich Miller Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 6:02 pm
And you wonder why I picked the pen name
Good for the Brickhead…..his problem will be all of his arguements (which failed to carry the day EIGHT years ago) have now been fully addressed
TTFN Brick

Comment by CircularFiringSquad Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 6:21 pm
i was at the announcement - its fairly obvious that none of the posters were there.

he said I look forward to working with Lisa madigan but i am supporting joe birkett. its easy for the press and his primary opponents to pick up on a snippet and blow it up.

he is the favorite and will get hit by all sides.

Comment by 4 percent Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 6:48 pm
–Dillard fits in nicely to the Jim Thompson- Jim Edgar- George Ryan wing of the Illinois GOP.–

Steve, what do you call that wing — Electable? What do you call the one you’re signed on with?

Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 6:50 pm
All of this will be forgotten in a week or two. What won’t change is that Birkett will lose, again.

Comment by Toast Man Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 6:51 pm
unfortunatly we pine over these blips while the pros know that time is in their favor,look at who runs the campaigns same folks same circles….boring and predictable… who puts out the high % turnout, I like that Dillards colors including tie are blue….Freud lives!

Comment by memsaab Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 6:52 pm
Levois, what is it? Is the office of the AG not about prosecution or is the AG not enough of a prosecutor? You’re posting at cross purposes in two different threads dude.

To you and others I say, RTIC (Read The Illinois Constitution). If the Madigan family is foisting some kind of nefarious dynasty on helpless citizens, at least know what the law allows them to do.

Comment by Zora Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 6:54 pm
===Dillard fits in nicely to the Jim Thompson- Jim Edgar- George Ryan wing of the Illinois GOP===

Steve, you do understand that is the winning wing of the Illinois GOP, don’t you? When the IL GOP decides they want to win elections again in Illinois, Kirk Dillard is exactly the kind of candidate they should nominate.

But by all means, keep the civil war going.

Comment by 47th Ward Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 6:54 pm
I don’t understand what is wrong with Dillard acknowledging reality. Don’t we want a Governor who is in touch with reality?

Comment by Pot calling kettle Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 7:35 pm
Not having been there, but having read some of the comments of those who were, it seems that the issue is a single soundbyte that was clarified during the same speech and/or clarifed in a follow-up.

While I’d bet that Birkett would be happy to have Dillard’s support, he can move forward with his campaign either way.

Therefore, the only people who might stand to benefit from this–I don’t even know what to call it–are the Ds and perhaps some of the other R candidates for Gov–IF the Rs allow it.

A solid argument for NOT taking the bait is that it further emphasizes a vulnerability that is supposedly well-known within our Party and which exposes us to easy manipulation.

Come on. We’re stronger, better, and smarter than this.

Best to send a clear message up front to anyone who wants to jump on this that moving forward, we’re fully aware that these types of tactics are not going to help us reach OUR goals as a Party and as informed Voters, so stick to the REAL issues facing this State, please.

Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 8:02 pm
I hope Birkett stays in the race and has his usual lack of concession speech after he loses. He can blame the Chicago Precinct Captains once again. He will provide entertainment for all to enjoy - better than the three stooges.

Comment by the ole precinct captain Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 8:31 pm
==Come on. We’re stronger, better, and smarter than this.==
No you’re not. It is going to be another Democratic sweep.

Comment by Bill Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 8:42 pm
Thanks! Perfect opportunity to illustrate the application of the suggested approach.

Listen:

Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 8:44 pm
BTW, that’s silence that you’re listening to.

Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 8:44 pm
LOL.
By the way, if Quinn is the nominee I just might vote for Dillard myself if he makes it through the firing squad, which is doubtful.

Comment by Bill Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 8:53 pm
I dont remember all these posting when everyones hero and the almighty annointed one Obama stated that he campaigned in all 57 states, no he was allowed to make a mistake without Rich or anyone else saying he isnt ready.

Comment by fed up Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 8:53 pm
Hey Fed,
Get back to the TV. You’re missing Sean Hannity’s America!

Comment by Bill Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 9:04 pm
Bill I would never watch hannity or orielly or oberrman,maddow but Rich is getting to be just like them very slanted and ageda driven.

Comment by fed up Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 9:09 pm
You mean there are not 57 states? Who knew?

Comment by cousin ralph Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 9:11 pm
sorry agenda

Comment by fed up Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 9:11 pm
fed up, while I don’t recall that specific thread, I do believe that Rich has been very consistent in his choice of topics (which may apply to either or both Parties) and the way he presents them for us to debate–and more importantly, in moderating the debates. While he sometimes chimes in with his own opinion which is always interesting to hear, he more often than not chimes in to correct a misstatement of fact or to add an important fact that adds value to the debate.

Therefore, if there was a missed opportunity to argue that Obama was “not ready”, then I’m going to guess that it was because someone might have missed the opportunity–not because Rich wouldn’t allow it.

Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 9:16 pm
Anon, What I am stating is Rich likes to tweak the GOP quite a bit( most often it is deserved), I may be wrong but seldom gives them kudos for anything (this to may be deserved). It is Rich’s blog and as such he is free to do as he wishes. The blog commenters lean pretty heavly to the left, I just like chimming in every so often. I dont even agree with the GOP on many issues except low taxes.Not every discussion has to be one sided and I always chukle when Rich throws a bite me in my direction.

Comment by fed up Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 9:31 pm
Rich is indeed fair, that is why he is respected by so many who think that his political ideology may be different from their own and it is why this blog is so widely read.

Comment by cousin ralph Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 9:35 pm
Maybe it is because Obama was ready as he proved during the election and as he is proving now as the best President of the US in the past 100 years.

Comment by Bill Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 9:44 pm
Bill- Not knockin’ the O, but weren’t you also the guy who said Blago was the best governor IL ever had?

Comment by Six Degrees of Separation Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 9:59 pm
Rich, why are you playing ‘gotcha’ with one small verbal error by Dillard? I think many of us would like an explanation of that. Doesn’t seem like too much to ask. Please respond…thanks.

Comment by Bobs yer Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 10:15 pm
One small verbal error? Who are you kidding?

The only press the guy got today was throwing another republican under the bus.

What do you call Sen. Dillard hosting a fundraiser in DuPage for Bill Brady the same night he goes on Fox TV and says he’s running for Gov? Get real.

One small verbal error? Are you new?

Comment by Catonian Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 10:20 pm
Fed Up,

A) McCain and Palin had their share of gaffes too so why aren’t you mentioning those and questioning why Rich didn’t point them out?

B) Rich likely wouldn’t have pointed out gaffes in the presidential race in the first place because his is a blog about Illinois, not Federal, politics — whether a resident of the state is running for president or not.

He purposefully tried keeping national issues to a minimum but when he did post on items related to the presidential campaign he often listed caveats such as ‘National campaigns aren’t usually a focus on this blog, but…’ or warnings like ‘If you just use cut-and-paste national talking points you risk being banned…’ in order to put some parameters on the topic.

–

John Ruberry,

90% of the current Federal deficit is due to a combination of Bush’s spending, Bush’s economic policies like massive tax giveaways and Bush’s sour economy. And that’s based on non-partisan CBO reports my friend. (The same Congressional Budget Office that Republicans turn to when complaining about the costs of Democratic proposals.)

Ergo, if Obama is a “profligate spender” your man Bush must be a “lavishly squandering spendthrift”… or somesuch.

–

DuPage Dan,

Perhaps you missed the news but the Feds have indeed been going after corruption in Chicago and have put some people behind bars and even got a certain alderman to recently wear a wire…

We may not know if Attorney General Madigan was also investigating the same or similar cases but that’s the nature of undercover evidence gathering. (You don’t tell the suspects they’re, y’know, suspects.)

Again, please conservatives, please keep talking about Lisa Madigan was investigating Rod Blagojevich but had to stop because Fitzmas was coming to town… Oh, and by the way, she helped Fitzgerald by turning over the work she had done gathering evidence so he could use it in his Federal case so it’s not like she was sitting there doing needlepoint.

Comment by Rob_N Wednesday, Jul 8, 09 @ 11:09 pm
Well, even though he does not have much of a chance of him winning AG, he could make a key endorsement in the governor’s race. He won’t endorse Schillerstrom cause they hate each other. Dillard would have made sense, but this kills it. Brady was well liked by judy when they ran in 06 and a Birkett endorsement could help him in DuPage.

Comment by kj Thursday, Jul 9, 09 @ 12:05 am
Birkett should step aside for a younger prosecutor in this race. Sure, that person will still lose badly, but at least let some new blood get their name out there for the future. Birkett not only loses to Lisa, again - he’ll be a drag on a GOP ticket that will already have enough problems.

Comment by Just sayin Thursday, Jul 9, 09 @ 1:05 am
Six,
Yeah, I probably said that and in some ways, looking at where we are now, I still believe that. Personally and ethically he might have had some problems. I think he dealt with the entrenched Springfield power structure as well as anyone could without rolling over and just allowing them to do whatever they wanted.
I wouldn’t want to bee in Quinn’s shoes right now.

Comment by Bill Thursday, Jul 9, 09 @ 6:26 am
=== Birkett not only loses to Lisa, again - he’ll be a drag on a GOP ticket that will already have enough problems. ===

Worse, he gives Lisa Madigan and Mike Madigan an incentive to turn out Democratic votes. Lots of them. Everywhere.

Comment by Yellow Dog Thursday, Jul 9, 09 @ 8:34 am
===The blog commenters lean pretty heavly to the left, ===

That comment says more about you than them, frankly. lol

Comment by Rich Miller Thursday, Jul 9, 09 @ 8:55 am