Progress Illinois

A new video from the Dan Hynes campaign has been making the rounds online today. It splices together some footage from yesterday's Campaign for Better Health Care forum in which Gov. Pat Quinn appears a bit tired and distracted as Illinois resident Midge Hough recalls the tragic story of her 24-year-old daughter-in-law's death. The video ends with the tagline: "Illinois can't afford a governor who is asleep at the wheel."  Watch it:

This afternoon, the Quinn campaign responded quickly with some footage of their own.  It shows the governor talking one-on-one with Hough following the event.  He can be seen giving her his card and telling her, "I know this is the cause of your life," adding, "I want to help tell Jenny's story."  Watch it:

In a release accompanying the video, the Quinn campaign accused the Hynes campaign of "deceptive" editing and further stated:

We all commend Midge Hough for her extraordinary courage and her indomitable belief that this personal tragedy may ultimately serve to help millions of other people, like Jenny and her baby, who still do not have health care coverage.

The latest from Illinois' 2010 electoral landscape ...

U.S. SENATE

Rasmussen Reports released their first poll on the IL-SEN race yesterday, measuring head-to-head general election matchups between GOP Rep. Mark Kirk and Democratic candidates Alexi Giannoulias and Cheryle Jackson.  The toplines show Kirk and Giannoulias in a toss-up, while Kirk posts a considerable lead over Jackson:

Giannoulias (D): 38
Kirk (R): 41
Other: 4
Undecided: 17

Jackson (D): 30
Kirk (R): 47
Other: 6
Undecided: 17
(MoE: ±4.5%)

The poll registered 83 percent name recognition for both Kirk and Giannoulias and 74 percent for Jackson.  Giannoulias was recognized by 70 percent of respondents in an April poll, so it seems feasible that he could his name ID could have jumped in the months since.  Kirk's numbers seem extremely high for a member of Congress who has never run for statewide office.  That being said, he probably gets more media coverage than any other Illinois representative.  Then there is Jackson's 74 percent name ID, which just seems unrealistic considering she's never run for office, let alone been on a statewide ballot.

In short, wait for a few other surveys to surface before putting too much stock in this poll.

In other U.S. Senate news, Jackson is facing questions about her role in the Blagojevich administration's Loop Lab School debacle. Meanwhile, Sun-Times columnist Laura Washington yesterday described the Jackson "playbook" as she sees it:

Rake in some heavy green. While her profile will attract some soft-focused free media, this political unknown needs money big time for TV commercial time.

Jackson's got to play the race and gender cards. She is assiduously wooing Emily's List, the powerful national PAC that backs women candidates. As Giannoulias has done in the Greek community, she must cultivate a national profile among prominent women and monied Democratic liberals.

The black "keep-the-seaters" are an unpredictable bunch, but they could come in handy, as well.

IL GOVERNOR

The Rasmussen poll also measured favorability for Gov. Pat Quinn, Comptroller Dan Hynes (who plans to challenge Quinn in next year's Democratic primary), as well as the various Republican contendors.  Here's what they found (favorable/unfavorable/not sure):

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The latest from the 2010 electoral landscape ...

Illinois Governor

The Sun-Times' Abdon Pallasch reports today that Comptroller Dan Hynes "will be sending out a letter to supporters today confirming he is running for governor," adding: "He comes into the race with $3.5 million in the bank, compared with [Gov. Pat] Quinn's $700,000."

Earlier this week, Hynes continued his criticism of Quinn's handling of the budget crisis, with a specific focus on state workers:

Hynes said Quinn is cutting front-line workers before weeding out middle- and upper-level managers.

Hynes’ office said 1,600 people on the state payroll who earn $70,000 or more a year were hired while Rod Blagojevich was governor. Hynes described them as “mostly political appointees.”

“There are 1,600 positions that should be scrutinized before we consider cutting employees who take care of our children and protect our communities,” Hynes said, adding that he is not suggesting all of the jobs are unnecessary.

In the 2004 Senate primary, AFSCME Council 31 -- which represents almost all of the "front-line workers" mentioned above -- endorsed Barack Obama over Hynes.  Considering these remarks, don't be surprised if they back him this time around.

Will there be any other entries into the Democratic gubernatorial primary?  One person to watch is State Rep. Jack Franks (learn a bit more about him here).  On WTTW last night, the SouthtownStar's Kristen McQueary reported that he plans to make a decision about the race by Labor Day.

And what about an African-American candidate?  Downstate Sen. James Clayborne is "mulling it over," according to Rich Miller's Monday SouthtownStar column.

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