IL 14, The Republicans and Obama

While there is a danger of reading too much into Bill Foster's win over Jim Oberweis in the special election held in Illinois this weekend there is also a danger in reading too little. Captain Ed has some legitimate criticism of the Illinois Republican Party and the candidate they picked but the fact remains the NRCC spent over a million dollars, 20% of their cash on hand in an unsuccessful attempt to hold the seat. Voter turnout was low which in the past has given the Republicans the edge but this time it looks like they are the ones who stayed home. And perhaps the most significant is that Obama campaigned for Foster and McCain for Oberweis giving Obama an early victory over McCain in a Republican district.

Yesterday, little-known Democrat Bill Foster scored a major upset and won the congressional seat held for 20 years by former House Speaker Dennis Hastert, a Republican. The race was a proxy war between Barack Obama and John McCain.

This should be a big plus for Obama and the Democratic leadership should pay attention.

Foster also sent a message to congressional Democrats who are getting week in the knees when it comes to telecom immunity - Foster is against it and he won.

There has been a minimal attempt to try to spin this on the right side of the blogosphere. Most like Ed have blamed the candidate or the Illinois Republican Party.

This brings me to a related point, the Republicans and Obama. Until recently the Republican and media types have gone easy on Obama, Not because the liked him but because they thought he would be an easier target in November. I can't blame them for that, I was in that camp until recently. They suddenly find that is not the case. They also realize the odds of winning in November are not really very good and they would really rather have Hillary Clinton than Barrack Obama in the White House. The have started to be critical and attack Obama now but Hillary is still doing all the work for them.