Chicago Daily Observor confidently declares that Mark Kirk will not run for Burris's Senate seat, but will seek re-election to his IL-10 House seat.
See below:
Mark Kirk. U. S. Rep. Mark Kirk, preferred by GOP ticket-planners to run for either governor or senator, will decline both jobs in order to seek reelection to his House seat, I have been told on what I believe is excellent authority. The reason is not political but personal. His decision will likely be spun as acknowledgment that no Republican can win either race... a conclusion the liberal media will quickly buy and propagate: but the true reason lies not in politics but with other concerns. This decision leaves the list wide open for the two top spots, governor and senator. Kirk was the odds-on favorite of liberal media and prominent GOP fund-raisers who have sought to raise double-digit millions for him and the ticket, if he were to have run for governor. At the same time, it was noted that Kirk's strong pro-abort positions and other liberal stances... i.e. his support of the so-called "hate crimes" legislation... would deprive him of social conservative support in the primary-but the ticket-builders argued that this could be offset by other candidates on the ticket: a conclusion that has been widely disputed. My own feeling is that Kirk would be a better choice for U.S. Senator than governor-although I wouldn't have voted for him for either job. ** Tom Roeser is the Chairman of the Chicago Daily Observer Editorial Board.
Well, at least one announcement actually did came out -- Kirk is finally finishing up his divorce (see Politico column, "Shenanigans":
"Rep. Mark Kirk is almost officially divorced. 'Congressman Kirk is separated from his wife, and they are working out the final divorce details,' his spokesman confirmed to Shenan."
However, even though he promised an announcement at the end of April after months of mulling about it, this is not the announcement Republicans were waiting for. Kirk has not yet announced what he is going to do about statewide office.
Although Chicago Daily Observer and his excellent authority have it wrong (at this point), it leaves some interesting questions.
Why the delay? Why the Hamlet act? What's behind the indecision? The Republicans are dying for Kirk to step up and go after the seat. They're ready to throw big money at Kirk to claim Obama's former seat, even though he is a moderate Republican, voted for SCHIP and the first bailout. But what is Kirk afraid will be revealed? Getting a divorce is not a scarlet letter anymore, even among Republicans. Sure, they might squawk a little about divorce...a worse attack on marriage than same sex marriage.
So, what is the problem? Inquiring minds want to know!
UPDATE: Crain's Chicago Businessreports on Kirk's possible wavering.
So, why is he wavering?