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My theory is this: Kirk's "statewide" campaign for the U.S. Senate treated the entire state as if it were IL-10. According to Kirk, the "suburbs" in Chicago consist only of the 10% which happen to fall in his Congressional district. Anyone else doesn't exist and was ignored accordingly (yet the election results show Kirk "won" those areas of Crook County by bigger margins than Bill Brady did)

He continues to legislate likewise. If you are NOT a resident of north shore (and the vast majority of Illinois citizens aren't), good luck trying to get Kirk to pay attention to an issue important to your community. He spends all his time talking about Lake Michigan pollution, navy training, and awards for kids from ivy-league WASP prep schools.

Even that goon Dick Durbin goes through the motions of visiting constituents across Illinois and pretends to care about "the entire state" more than Kirk does.

IL-10 has virtually all of the Illinois' Jewish population and they represent a major force in Kirk's old district. Voting to confirm an "anti-semitic" candidate would have grave repercussions in IL-10, though not so much in the rest of Illinois.

In short, Kirk has "concerns" about Hagel because he thinks Jewish voters would retaliate against him.

Being from Ohio, I don't know much about Illinois state politics...all I know is the reputation of "Chicago-style" politics!

From over here, I find it a little remarkable that even one Illinois Senator is a Republican, regardless of whether he's a RINO...he certainly must vote right on at least one or two issues, to be even a RINO? Or is he gonna "flip"?

He's right on the Hagel nomination, whatever his reasons, which I'm guessing is more than you'd get from some "Durbin II" Democrat...

“IL-10 has virtually all of the Illinois’ Jewish population....”

Umm, what about Schakowsky’s IL-09 or the Lakeshore precincts in Quigley’s IL-05? But I assume you’re correct about the IL-10 having virtually all Jewish voters in the Collar Counties.

“In short, Kirk has “concerns” about Hagel because he thinks Jewish voters would retaliate against him.”

Kirk’s pro-Israel stance is one of the very few conservative positions he has held in his 10+ years in Congress, and maybe it’s partly because he’s scared of losing Jewish votes, but perhaps he actually is pro-Israel. Even a stopped clock is right twice a day.