Please! This will make the 3 months of Bush bashing bearable. (no pun intended).

Supposedly he's pretty conservative. As a right wing Dallas fan, I've always been bummed that neither Staubach nor Landry made it into politics. Ditka played for Dallas as well as the Bears, so he'll do.

This does sound interesting although I fear Ditka would be baited by the media into making some non-pc statement that would kill his campaign. The media would of course portray him as too stupid for politics. Finally he would have the headwind of Bush probably not taking this state in the election. But it would spice things up a bit.

I saw a comment he made when asked if he was intelligent enough to be a senator, and he said if Ted Kennedy can be one then he certainly can be.

JD, comments like this will come everday if Ditka gets nominated and there will be many politically incorrect ones for us to savor.

He'll lose, of course, but will still get no less accomplished in the Senate than the Torch's last minute sub. What has Lautenberg done lately?

JAB - How do you know he'll lose? Celebrities have a way of doing well.

I may be missing somebody, but were he elected Ditka would become the second member of Congress in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the first being Steve Largent. The only other Hall of Famer I know of is still in office: Senator Jim Bunning.

Tom Osbourne (R-Neb) is in the College Football Hall of Fame.

Ditka! Ditka! Ditka!

He doesn't need to be a brain surgeon, he's running for the Senate. Come on its not like Senators have to do anything if they don't want to -- look at Kerry, he doesn't even vote.

pchuck:

As a native Nebraskan, I think it's almost a shame that Osborne got involved in politics so late in his life. Voting for him for president would be every Nebraskan's dream.

I don't think Ditka could possibly be hurt by any statement he could make, at least in the Chicago area. He is a demi-god here, and everybody knows he says exactly what he thinks, and that is exactly what they love about him. Honesty plays better in Chicago than any other big city in America, which is why it's known as the biggest small town.

I went to that site and signed the petition - why not? I'd pay money to see Ditka cavorting about the Senate and yelling "See this buddy? That's your IQ - zero!" He would probably kick Leahy's ass in the parking lot on the first day.

AWW
Is it now "official" that Bush won't win Illinois? Say it ain't so.

Ditka won't be hurt in Chicago by anything he says because Chicago Democrats won't vote for him anyway.

I seriously doubt he'd win any election. Liking someone as a coach isn't the same as deciding the same person would be good in the Senate. The Republican strategy of recruiting celebrities as novelty candidates has its limits.

Ditka = White = The Winner

This is a U.S. Senate race, not some
seedy ward election.

Celebrities (provided they are serious enough) can certainly win elections.

Why not Mike Ditka - he is surely as qualified to be in the Senate as Corzine, Clinton, Boxer, Murray, and a host of others. He has succeeded at the highest levels of his profession (at two different positions), and also has been in front of the cameras quite a bit. Having him run would be worth it just to watch the Democrats squeal about the unfairness of it all.

Bush would probably refuse to help him; he seems to have ignored Senate campaigns two years ago. Still a two-man race is better than a one-man race.

John:

That's inane. No sitting president ever campaigned harder in midterms nor put more of his own credibility on the line in the results than the President two years ago.

H-man - I'm not saying Bush won't win Illinois but at this point it doesn't look like he will carry it.