In December 2008, Commander Kirk, while on active duty, participated in video discussions in the media about the unfolding situation involving then-Governor Blagojevich of Illinois. Members of the Armed Forces on active duty may not participate in television discussions as an advocate for or against a partisan political party, candidate, or cause.
In July 2009, while on active duty in the Washington area, either Commander Kirk or a staff member posted a "twitter" to his Senate campaign web site that indicated he was on duty at the National Military Command Center. At the time, Commander Kirk was a candidate for the Senate. Candidates for political office may not participate in any campaign activities while on active duty. They may not update or revise their websites, and they must inform their campaign staff of the applicable restrictions....
Commander Kirk was counseled about each of his violations after they occurred and signed a statement acknowledging the limitations on his ability to participate in campaign activities while on active duty. He was required to complete this acknowledgment before being allowed to begin active duty in December 2009.
With Kirk's military service record mess and Democratic nominee Alexi Giannoulias' (D) controversy over his family's bank and his time as state treasurer, both party's nominees seem to be in big trouble.
A new PPP poll shows reflects voters' dissatisfaction with their choices. The poll finds two major party nominees picking up only 61% combined, with Giannoulias (D) edging Kirk (R) 31% to 30%. Meanwhile, Green Party candidate LeAlan Jones picks up 14% and 24% of voters are still undecided. Jones appears to take most of the third-party vote in this race (which is very high) even though no one really knows who he is.
This shows that there is a big opening for self-funding businessman Mike Niecestro, a former Republican, to launch an independent bid. He says he already has the 25,000 signatures needed and will loan his campaign at least $1 million in addition to the $100,000 he's already raised. This guy is not messing around.
With two of the major party nominees mired in controversy and two third-party candidates running at different ends of the spectrum, this race could shape up to be very interesting.
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