As the Laesch for Congress campaign readies for our visit to YearlyKos, we are keeping an eye on media reports about Hastert's plans to make an announcement in August, and the not-quite-announcements of several Republican candidates that are hanging in the balance.  Most recently we have heard from CQ Quarterly

that there is a

widespread belief that Hastert is much more likely to retire than to seek an 12th House term in 2008

On the other hand, local press quotes Hastert at a mid-July event:

"As far as I'm concerned right now, I'm running," Hastert said at the more than 500-person event at the Sandwich Fairgrounds. He said he plans to make a formal announcement next month on whether he will enter the 2008 race.

If Hastert does retire, there are some, um, interesting candidates out there on the right...and that would be pretty far to the right, no, farther, farther...almost there now.

First up, Chris Lauzen.  Now in the interest of full disclosure, I will just say that Chris Lauzen is my very own State Senator.  I have been trying very, very hard to not pay too close attention to what he is doing in my name.  In my defense I adopted this head-in-the-sand attitude on the day when Lauzen chose to make his mark as the only member of the Illinois legislature to vote against a law to make it legal to breast-feed in public in Illinois.

So you can see why I have cravenly tried not to pay attention to him.  But some days, reality intrudes.  Yesterday I learned that while my State Senator is openly anti-breast, he is apparently pro-smoking: he is now fretting that a bill in the Illinois legislature to impose additional taxes on cigarettes will have what he calls the "negative" effect of making people quit buying them.  

Although Geneva mayor Kevin Burns is also in, it is thought that Lauzen's only real competition is from Jim Oberweis, of Oberweis Dairy fame, and anti-gay, anti-immigrant infamy.  When Republican nominee Jack Ryan was forced by scandal to withdraw from his 2004 race against Obama, Oberweis could not get the Illinois Republican Party to give him the nod despite the fact that he came in second in the primary.  Oberweis was just so very far to the right that they chose Alan Keyes instead.  

Oberweis supported a (failed) anti-gay amendment to the Illinois constitution twice, and ran a series of anti-immigrant television ads that were so offensive I know Republicans who won't eat Oberweis Ice-Cream any more.  He has unsuccessfully run for his party's nomination to the Senate twice and the Governor's office once.

Back in the Laesch camp, John has a busy schedule but still found time for an interview with Ed Schultz this week.

Don't miss John on the Mike Malloy Show, Monday at 9:30 EST.  You can listen at http://www.mikemalloy.com/listen.html and please show John Laesch some love.  .  

John Laesch can take any one of these Republicans, but he needs our support to do it.

Lisa Bennett
(Downtowner)
Blog Coordinator
Laesch for Congress

Cross-posted at Fireside 14, Prairie State Blue, Diatribune, DailyKos