February 28, 2013 10:24 AM UTC

At Least He's Not Your Candidate for Congress

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• by: Colorado Pols

It seems almost too absurd to believe, but this has really happened: Illinois Republicans have chosen a convicted burglar and armed robber who has served some 20 years in jail as their candidate to run in a special election for the seat vacated by disgraced Democratic Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr. Really. 

You may recall that Jackson recently pled guilty to illegally spending $750,000 in campaign funds for personal use, yet somehow, Republicans were able to find a candidate with a criminal record that is significantly worse. From Fox 32 News in Chicago:

Paul McKinley–who has been convicted of 6 felony counts and served nearly 20 years behind bars for armed robberies, aggravated battery, and burglaries–refers to himself as an "ex-offender" who wants to get other ex-offenders to work.

McKinley was also arrested 11 times from 2003 to 2007, mostly for protesting. Records show he also owes $14,147 in federal taxes…

…As one who's helped lead public and private conversations about rebuilding the GOP in Illinois, Chris Robling said he knows this much:  former burglar and armed robber Paul McKinley is not the sort of new leader the party needs.  In a series of campaign videos, McKinley said he cared little for Democrats or Republicans.

"I have fought against this system from the outside," McKinley said. "Now, I believe I can do even more damage to this corrupt system inside of government." [Pols emphasis]

That last line is really pushing the levels of political absurdity to new heights. The makeup of Illinois' CD-2 is overwhelmingly Democratic, so it was always unlikely that a Republican candidate could emerge victorious. The GOP didn't need to try so hard to guarantee a loss.