FOX 32 Sunday: Reporter’s Notebook: Kirk keeps quiet this inauguration
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By Mike Flannery, FOX 32 News Political Editor - bio
CHICAGO (FOX 32 News) -
On this inauguration weekend in Washington, one voice we may not hear will be that of Senator Mark Kirk, one of our state's highest-ranking Republicans on Capitol Hill.
Staffers told me Kirk won't be doing broadcast interviews or live appearances and that's too bad. Since his return a few weeks ago, we haven't heard much from him.
Kirk has been a close ally, fundraiser for and supporter of the man we spoke to earlier, GOP State Chairman Patrick Brady. His Republican allies need Kirk to come back strong. But so does the whole state and the country. Kirk is one of a shrinking band of Washington politicians who have occasionally been willing to cross the aisle and work with the other party. He is, for example, regarded as a potential swing vote on the President's recent gun proposals.
You may recall that, in the mid-'90s, then-President Clinton's Assault Weapons Ban passed by one vote. With several Democrats expected to vote against President Obama's AWB, both sides in this debate are focused on Kirk.
That role allows Kirk to wield more influence than is typical for a first-term senator. That could be good for Illinois and for America.
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