Illinois will never vote Obama out now, he'll win several terms and one day will be the Elder Black statesman of the senate and will be quoted breathlessly by the MSM.
Shoot...I am getting the impression that Obama is being groomed to be a VP candidate...possibly in 2008...
and I say...bring it on!!!
The more I see of him, the more I realize that he is just a more "chocolate" version of John Edwards...without the legal background.
There is a kind of odd political connection between IL and TN. Howard Henry Baker, Jr., married Joy Dirksen of Pekin, IL, and also became the son-in-law of legendary Republican Everett McKinley Dirksen, who he later followed as Senate Republican leader. Former TN Governor Don Sundquist is an unpopular IL native and was somewhat similar in governance to indicted former IL Governor George Ryan. TN may be inclined to join IL again and elect the second sitting black U.S. Senator, Mr. Ford, to join the wildly popular Mr. Obama. I suspect that TN want to show it is "not prejudiced" and could elect Ford if 2006 is a heavily Democrat year. VA has already done such with the popular L. Douglas Wilder in 1989. It looks like the TN GOP is unable to agree on just who should oppose Ford. Perhaps the TN GOP can unite behind a plurality primary winner, but they may not either.