Progress Illinois

Is GOP Rep. Mark Kirk's Twitter feed an extension of his U.S. Senate campaign?  It sure seems like it.  The account wallpaper prominently features his Kirk For Senate logo.  The link on the right side of the screen sends readers to his campaign website.  And most importantly, many of the tweets are campaign-related, such as this one from earlier today urging followers to "circulate petitions" for his candidacy.  

So when he sends out a tweet while touring a Veterans Affairs hospital, as he did this morning, is he violating the law that prohibits candidates from campaigning on federal property?

The answer is far from clear.  Nonetheless, this marks the second time Kirk's tweets have entered questionable legal territory. 

In late July, Capitol Fax noticed him posting messages to his Twitter account -- including details of his location -- while on active duty with the Naval Reserves.  After several national outlets picked up the story, Kirk told reporters he would be more careful with his tweets:

"It's something that I will not do again," Kirk said while pooh-poohing the severity of the offenses at the end of a downtown Chicago news conference on his proposal for health-care reform on Monday. "I understand the sensitivities. So my days on that, when I'm on active duty, are over."     

But the issue of campaigning at VA hospitals is equally "sensitive."  For instance, Rob Portman, GOP Senate candidate in Ohio, was asked to leave a VA facility in Dayton when he showed up for a "meet and greet" back in May:

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Rob Portman stopped at the Dayton Veterans Affairs Medical Center on Sunday, May 24, to “meet and greet” veterans at the Patriot Freedom Festival, but was quickly informed by VA officials that campaigning on federal property is illegal.

The Kirk campaign needs to get its act together and delineate whether the Twitter feed is an extension of his House office or his campaign operation.  It can't be both.