What a difference a week makes.

Last Thursday, the Illinois Republican delegation issued a series of questions for Gov. Pat Quinn regarding his plan to allow the federal government to incarcerate former Guantanamo Bay detainees at the Thomson Correctional Center. The letter's opening sentence called for a "dignified and precise discussion regarding the cost, security, and legal issues" of the proposed Guantanamo transfer, a tone Rep. Mark Kirk carried over to his joint news conference with fellow Republican Peter Roskam this afternoon. The Tribune's Rick Pearson was in attendance:

"In my judgment, it’s not a necessary risk. But then I’m practical. I’m from the Midwest and I understand when a deal has been cut. So then the question is, if we are to move forward, then how do we move forward?"

"This is a dispassionate, nonpartisan way to lay out the questions which the governor and the president have to answer, anyway. I was very pleased when the governor said he was going to treat our letter seriously.”

Of course, the letter penned by Kirk last Monday was anything but "dispassionate" or "dignified," as the following excerpt exhibits:

Our homeland security is at stake. If we don’t act, the world’s most dangerous terrorists will be moved to U.S. soil — just 150 miles from Chicago. Once in the United States, these foreign-born, foreign-captured terrorists — unlike any currently serving in a U.S. prison — will be housed here in the heartland. ... As home to America’s tallest building, we should not invite Al Qaeda to make Illinois a top target.

These claims provoked a serious media backlash and led the North Shore Republican to conduct some damage control today.  Chalk it up as just the latest example of Kirk struggling to find his statewide bearings.