# Keyes To Run Against Obama in Illinois Senate Race **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [August 6, 2004, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632 "2004-08-06T15:41:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![cmason32](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@cmason32](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmason32)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2004, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/21 "2004-08-06T18:30:12Z")
Here is a Keyes quote from March 2000: > [@](#): > > I deeply resent the destruction of federalism represented by Hillary Clinton’s willingness go into a state she doesn’t even live in and pretend to represent people there, so I certainly wouldn’t imitate it. Can’t wait to see how he explains this one. ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2004, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/22 "2004-08-06T18:30:34Z")
Doesn’t the selection of Keyes also give lie to the Republicans’ claim of opposing affirmative action? I mean, does anyone truly believe he was selected on any criteria _other_ than the color of his skin? (On preview: simulpost with **syncrolecyne** ) ---
**Author:** ![Apos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/838e76/32.png) [@Apos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apos)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2004, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/23 "2004-08-06T18:36:05Z")
No, no, it wasn’t affirmative action. It was a legacy hire. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Lance\_Murdoch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/47e85d/32.png) [@Captain\_Lance\_Murdoch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Lance_Murdoch)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2004, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/24 "2004-08-06T18:50:17Z")
Has Jack Ryan _officially_ dropped out of the race yet? I heard he was really dragging his feet on it. I must admit, this story just keeps getting better. ---
**Author:** ![Lennon\_Lives](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f04885/32.png) [@Lennon\_Lives](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lennon_Lives)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2004, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/25 "2004-08-06T19:27:16Z")
[QUOTE=rjung] Doesn’t the selection of Keyes also give lie to the Republicans’ claim of opposing affirmative action? I mean, does anyone truly believe he was selected on any criteria _other_ than the color of his skin?QUOTE] I think this is pretty clever of the Republicans. They are clearly concerned about Obama after his speech at the DNC and would like to tarnish his image a bit. A white opponent could not attack him very strenuously without the possibility of being labeled racist. OTOH, a black opponent can aggressively attach Obama and avoid the racist charge. LL ---
**Author:** ![furt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/439d5e/32.png) [@furt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furt)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2004, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/26 "2004-08-06T19:44:26Z")
Media whore. And I’m a guy that more-or-less likes him. He could have found himself a favorable district and run for the House ten years ago. Had he won, as a black Republican he’d have had a visible platform for his ideas, and a foundation for a career. But he didn’t want to pay his dues and tried to make himself a national figure from nothing. Hubris. ---
**Author:** ![cmason32](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@cmason32](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmason32)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2004, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/27 "2004-08-07T01:50:12Z")
I went back to look at that _Tribune_ poll and, as of this posting, over 8000 people have voted and almost 85% don’t believe Keyes candidacy is a good idea. Now, this poll is obviously non-scientific and it’s a safe bet to say that most votes came from the Chicagoland area rather than the more conservative southern part of Illinois - but I can help but wonder whether these numbers are giving the GOP pause. I have to imagine that the GOP is polling right now (perhaps one of the newspapers, too?) and I’d love to see those numbers. ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2004, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/28 "2004-08-07T02:04:21Z")
[CNN](http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/08/04/barack.ap/index.html) said that Keyes was considered along with Andrea Grubb Barthwell, who last served in the Office of National Drug Control Policy. I’m thinking she may have some serious political viability (“serious” meaning “she might have an actual shot at winning something”), so the Pubbies chose Keyes to be a sacrificial lamb in a race they know they can’t win. Robin ---
**Author:** ![cmason32](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@cmason32](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmason32)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2004, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/29 "2004-08-07T02:16:35Z")
> [@MsRobyn](#): > > [CNN](http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/08/04/barack.ap/index.html) said that Keyes was considered along with Andrea Grubb Barthwell, who last served in the Office of National Drug Control Policy. I’m thinking she may have some serious political viability (“serious” meaning “she might have an actual shot at winning something”), so the Pubbies chose Keyes to be a sacrificial lamb in a race they know they can’t win. > > Robin I don’t know what to think about Barthwell. She has made donations to democratic candidates before, is pro-choice, and was reprimanded for making inappropriate sexual comments to someone that worked for her. IIRC, she basically made fun of the guy’s homosexuality (which is weird because she is supposedly pro-gay rights). A few weeks ago an anonymous conservative strategist said, “Andrea Barthwell? Put down the crack pipe. … We’re going to take a black, pro-choice, pro-gay-rights woman and run her as a Republican?” So - who knows? The Illinois GOP is such disarray nowadays that anything is possible. ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2004, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/30 "2004-08-07T02:50:28Z")
> [@Captain Lance Murdoch](#): > > Has Jack Ryan _officially_ dropped out of the race yet? I heard he was really dragging his feet on it. Yeah, he officially dropped it a week or two ago. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2004, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/31 "2004-08-07T02:56:22Z")
I loved this anecdote about Keyes that a blog I read brought up. Wow. [Alan Keyes and the Mosh Pit](http://www.fact-index.com/m/mo/mosh_pit.html) ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2004, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/32 "2004-08-07T02:58:54Z")
And, after further thought, and to paraphrase Moore: I’d suspected the Illinois GOP organization was insane, I just didn’t know _how_ insane until now. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2004, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/33 "2004-08-07T02:59:28Z")
I repeat: Who is this Alan Keyes? (And no, I have not spent the last ten years on Mars, living in a cave with my fingers stuck in my ears. Alan Keyes is a name I have heard mentioned now and then, but that’s all. Who is he? What has he done? What is there to know about him?) ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2004, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/34 "2004-08-07T03:18:02Z")
I’ll leave the Keyes biography to others but here’s a great snap of [Keyes courting the youth vote](http://www.detnews.com/pix/2000/01/26/nati2.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2004, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/35 "2004-08-07T03:21:03Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > I repeat: Who is this Alan Keyes? (And no, I have not spent the last ten years on Mars, living in a cave with my fingers stuck in my ears. Alan Keyes is a name I have heard mentioned now and then, but that’s all. Who is he? What has he done? What is there to know about him?) Alan Keyes is a former US ambassador to the United Nations _cum_ right wing demagogue and perenniel “candidate.” [More here](http://www.renewamerica.us/keyes/index.htm). ---
**Author:** ![Israfel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/87869e/32.png) [@Israfel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Israfel)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2004, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/36 "2004-08-07T03:24:42Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > I repeat: Who is this Alan Keyes? (And no, I have not spent the last ten years on Mars, living in a cave with my fingers stuck in my ears. Alan Keyes is a name I have heard mentioned now and then, but that’s all. Who is he? What has he done? What is there to know about him?) To sum up- Keyes is a former US Ambassador who has run for public office numerous times (but has never won). His politics are quite conservative and he’s often lumped in with the religious Right. Why does his name keep popping up despite not having held an elected office? Well, first of all he’s a black Republican- but blacks in the GOP aren’t _that_ rare, so I rather imagine the real reason behind his (relative) popularity is that he is an unusually gifted orator. He’s a much more engaging speaker than the vast majority of politicians and that’s likely the key to his “staying power”. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2004, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/37 "2004-08-07T03:51:38Z")
> [@Lennon Lives](#): > > I think this is pretty clever of the Republicans. They are clearly concerned about Obama after his speech at the DNC and would like to tarnish his image a bit. A white opponent could not attack him very strenuously without the possibility of being labeled racist. OTOH, a black opponent can aggressively attach Obama and avoid the racist charge. That’s pretty goofy logic. Unless Ryan had actually said something that sounded racist (and why would he?), I don’t think anyone would have interpreted a run-of-the-mill attack as racist. The Obama/Osama thing had a certain xenophobic tinge, but I don’t know where exactly it came from. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2004, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/38 "2004-08-07T04:01:19Z")
> [@Fear Itself](#): > > I will be waiting to see if all the esteemed conservatives on this board who attacked Hillary Clinton as a carpetbagger when she ran for the Senate in New York will do the same to Keyes in Illinois. > > I won’t hold my breath. Well, for the record, I have always said that the people of New York are entitled to set their own rules for residency, but that in my (outsider’s) view it was a foolish policy. The people of Illinois apparently have a similar policy, and I think it’s similarly foolish. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2004, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/39 "2004-08-07T04:02:37Z")
Is it Illinois and New York law, or federal law? ---
**Author:** ![Muad\_Dib](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/35a633/32.png) [@Muad\_Dib](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muad_Dib)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2004, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632/40 "2004-08-07T04:05:46Z")
> [@a35362](#): > > Keyes is a one-issue candidate (abortion), and does not represent the majority view AFAIK. > > He is not from Illinois. It’s ridiculous that one has to be a resident only as of Election Day to be considered a resident. Make it, say, five years before Election Day. > > He ran for president (twice?) and lost. He once went on a hunger strike to demand that he be included in the '96 primary debates, so he’s a bit of a kook. > > I am guessing that the Illinois GOP have given this race up for lost and Keyes is their sacrificial lamb. But I’m astonished that they can’t find a viable Republican candidate in Illinois. Statewide, Illinois is pretty moderate. I think in '92 we had ten Democratic Congressmen and ten Republican Congressmen; the R’s have a slight advantage now. We’ve had one Democratic Senator and one Republican Senator since Fitzgerald beat Moseley-Braun. Governor Rod is the first Democratic governor in my memory. Even Chicago isn’t that heavily Democratic anymore, and some people think that has to do with machine politics more than any strong lefty principles. > > I don’t think Keyes was chosen for his race. It was down to him and a black woman who worked for Bush. I think he was chosen for his name recognition, more than anything else. You can find Bible-thumpers and anti-choice activists anywhere, but I can’t believe they have any kind of real power in Illinois. Oh poppycock. It is insulting to say that the man is a one-issue candidate. He is amoung the most steadfast Libertarian Conservatives in the Republican party and probably the parties finest speaker. I would absolutely love it if he won, but I don’t feel to great for his chances [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keyes-to-run-against-obama-in-illinois-senate-race/258632.md?page=3)