DeLay strategy will backfire

If Tammy Duckworth wants to bring Tom DeLay into the 6th District race, she's welcome.

But it will backfire, big time.

Duckworth's candidacy is a creation of Rahm Emanuel, and his name will be more potent poison to 6th District voters in November than will DeLay's.

As usual, Democrats are brazenly raising ethics issues with huge problems in their own closets.  It was just last year that plea agreements in the federal Hired Truck scandal revealed that Rahm got elected using illegal help. 

Gerald Wesolowski admitted shaking down Hired Truck companies for campaign donations to Mayor Daley, John Daley's 11th Ward Regular Democratic Organization, and Tomczak's son, former Will County State's Attorney Jeff Tomczak. Wesolowski also described how Water Department employees won promotions, pay raises and coveted overtime in exchange for doing campaign work for Mayor Daley, Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.) and others. Unnamed city officials gave Tomczak his marching orders, according to the guilty plea.

There is a long list of questionable ethical practices by Emanuel that Republicans would be glad to talk about.  I'd personally like to see more discussion about how he got so rich so quickly after leaving the White House.

Rahm Emanuel wields real clout in Illinois and nationally and his ties to Duckworth are undeniable.   DeLay is leaving and Roskam's short stint in his office as a lowly aide 21 years ago hardly qualifies as a close association.  The voters in the 6th will be able to sort this one out.