Posted on 01/15/2012 6:54:56 AM PST by bigbob
Illinois state Sen. Dave Koehler, who abruptly exited the Democratic primary in the 17th Congressional District race two weeks ago, shed some light Thursday on his surprising decision.
He said he dropped out the same day U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., told him he was going to endorse rival Cheri Bustos.
Koehler’s exit came on a Friday, just three days before the filing deadline for state legislative races. Over that weekend, he and supporters had to scramble to get enough signatures to get on the ballot to run for re-election to his state Senate seat.
At the time, Koehler said he decided he could best serve Illinoisans by staying in Springfield rather going to Washington, D.C., but almost immediately rumors surfaced that Durbin intervened.
The Capitol Fax blog reported shortly afterward that Durbin called Koehler to say he was going to endorse Bustos. And on Thursday, Koehler told the State Journal-Register in Springfield the same thing.
In an interview with the Quad-City Times, Koehler said he didn’t think the endorsement would have hurt him in his hometown of Peoria but it would in other parts of the district where he isn’t as well known.
“Having Senator Durbin endorse my opponent and having all that work against me was more than I could overcome,” he said. He called it a “major” factor in his decision to drop out.
(Excerpt) Read more at qctimes.com ...
Bustos is a rabidly liberal pro-life "investigative journalist, health care advocate, and community leader" according to Durbins endorsement announcement. A former city council members, she will challenge Republican incumbent Bobby Schilling in November.
Gee, who would have figured? RAT politics per usual in the Land of Lincoln...
I don’t see anything really unusual in this, I would suppose the guy got lucky that Turban Durbin warned him in time to save his day job.
She’s pro-life? That doesn’t fit........
duh, my mistake. I meant to say she’s pro-choice.
If I was one of his opponents in the Senate race, I would call for an investigation of the signatures. I'll bet Mickey Mouse signed several times!
Such an angry looking woman.
http://www.wrex.com/story/16448822/new-endorsement-17th-district-race-heats-up?clienttype=printable
I couldn’t help but wonder...............thanks for the correction
She looks a big bone girl like Moochelle. How about a wrestling match?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.