By DOUG IBENDAHL • December 14, 2009
Mark Kirk’s extreme makeover campaign hit a rough patch last week when two major news outlets identified more examples of Kirk not practicing what he now preaches.
He may be far ahead in the polls for U.S. Senate on the Republican side, but it’s clear Mark Kirk isn’t going to coast to February 2nd. He’s not satisfied just donning his gay apparel this Christmas. Instead Mark Kirk is working every day to con gullible Republicans into believing he’s something he’s not.
The good news is that last week at least the national press called Mark Kirk out on one pander scam.
Here is how host Brett Baier of Fox News’ Special Report described Mark Kirk’s hypocrisy on pork barrel spending:
Two Republican congressmen are doing their best to slaughter what they call the 11 most wasteful pork barrel projects of the current session.
Georgia’s Tom Price and Mark Kirk of Illinois say the projects contribute to the country’s deficit. Examples include nearly $4 million for an urban art trail in Rochester, New York. In that same state, $3 million for an 88-year-old boat in a museum. And $3 million for new bicycle racks here in Washington. The list goes on to include fish food, incentives to grow mushrooms and renovations to a vacant building.
But Kirk, who is a candidate for President Obama’s old Senate seat, secured more than $30 million two years ago for 19 of his own pet projects.
The Associated Press also weighed in and described “Kirk’s new pitch” this way:
But Kirk’s own history with earmarks shows some of the hurdles the GOP will need to overcome, not just in his race but as a party out of power in search of a credible opposition message.
When members of Congress debated a 2008 spending bill, Kirk landed more than $1.1 million for the Adler Planetarium in Chicago. Planetarium board members had given more than $23,000 to Kirk’s congressional campaigns from 2000 to 2008.
Kirk attached $119,000 in spending for a Christian outreach program to the 2008 spending bill. David Ross, the president of the board of directors of the Christian Outreach of Lutherans, the group that benefited from the earmark, gave $4,600 to Kirk between 2007 and 2008.
Overall, Kirk took in more than $63,000 from 2000 to 2008 from campaign donors with ties to nearly $5 million in earmarks, an Associated Press review of his campaign finance reports and his earmarks found.
It’s good to see at least some in the national press starting to do more serious reporting on Mark Kirk.
Maybe by the end of January much of the window dressing will be gone and voters will understand why - for the sake of the GOP’s future - Republicans need to kick Mark Kirk to the curb.
Doug Ibendahl is a Chicago Attorney and a former General Counsel of the Illinois Republican Party.
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