Democratic fund-raiser in Chicago to help Congressional candidates

Updated: April 30, 2012 4:44PM

If Democrats don’t take six congressional seats back from Republicans in Illinois this year, it won’t be from lack of campaigning or fund-raising.

U.S. Rep. Steve Israel (D-N.Y.), chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, was in Chicago over the weekend raising money for Democrats trying to win back three Chicago-area seats now held by Republicans.

“In 2010, we did not lose the House to House Republicans — we lost it to Karl Rove and the Koch Brothers and to SuperPAC spending,” Israel said. “These unnamed secret SuperPACs … they spent about $40 million against Democratic candidates. And our allies barely spent anything.”

He said Democrats won’t be caught under-funded this time.

“I’m told that our ally groups who want to protect Medicare and strengthen the middle class will have a much more robust response in 2012,” he said.

Israel said the candidates themselves, especially those in Illinois, have exceeded his expectations in raising money.

“They have out-raised the Republicans — that is not supposed to happen,” he said.

Iraqi war vet Tammy Duckworth has outraised freshman Tea Party favorite and incumbent U.S. Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Ill.) in the northwest suburbs. Former Rep. Bill Foster has outraised current Rep. Judy Biggert (R-Ill.) in the west suburbs. Cheri Butsos has outraised Bobby Schilling in northwest Illinois. In southwest Illinois, Brad Harriman has outraised Jason Plummer.

On the North Shore, financial consultant Brad Schneider has come close to but has not outraised freshman Republican U.S. Rep. Bob Dold in a district newly redrawn to favor Democrats.

Israel has listed all five of those races as “red-to-blue” — his party’s top-tier listing for races the Demcorats hope to win. The designation lets Democratic donors know the party considers it a worthwhile investment.

The sixth race in Illinois that could make the red-to-blue list is the seat being left open by the retirement of Republican U.S. Rep. Tim Johnson. Democrat David Gill will take on a yet-to-be-named Republican.

Because Republicans will likely write off Illinois to President Barack Obama and no Senate or gubernatorials seats are in play here, “The House races will be the only game in town,” Israel said. “Three Chicagoland districts in the same media market — that’s a unique constellation of circumstances.”

Duckworth, Foster and Schneider have taken to holding joint news conferences. Israel hasn’t decided whether to run a joint advertising campaign for the three.

While Duckworth faces an unapologetically conservative candidate in Walsh, Foster and Schneider face candidates with more moderate voting records. Israel said his side would challenge their “moderate” credentials.

“You can call yourself a moderate, but if you vote like Michelle Bachmann; if you vote for a budget that dismantles Medicare; if you spend more time trying to figure out how to close down Planned Parenthood offices than to create new small businesses, you’re no moderate,” he said.

Walsh, R-McHenry, jokingly told New York conservatives Monday that his re-election here is “a piece of cake.”

But Speaker of the House John Boehner told Fox News that of the 89 freshmen whose seats he must defend, those in the “orphan” states — Illinois New York and California, which the presidential campaign will largely skip over — “those districts are frankly pretty vulnerable.”

Boehner predicted a one-in-three chance he could lose his majority in the House.

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