John Shimkus

U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis recalls the moment he learned that Democrats had identified him as a special target for defeat in 2014. He was standing in line for freshman orientation the week after winning his seat last November. "The honeymoon didn't even...

Michael McAuliff writes for the Huffington Post about Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse's rebuttal to those who contend God would never allow mankind to destroy the planet:  Although Whitehouse did not name names, some of his Senate colleagues could be counted as...

It may be only 100 days or so into U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis' first term as a congressman, but there is already at least one name being floated to challenge him in 2014: Madison County Chief Judge Ann Callis. Callis is seriously pondering a run in the 13th...

If you worry about Scott Air Force Base's future, then the Pentagon's most recent budget bill contains good news: The next round of Base Realignment and Closure, the process that Congress uses to decide which military bases to close, won't begin until...

WASHINGTON -- The morning after the Boston Marathon bombings, Ben Cardin, the first speaker on the Senate floor after leaders opened the day's session, marked the national crisis with some heartfelt thoughts on … school libraries. "Across the...

If you liked it then you shoulda put a - check made payable to the Bob Casey campaign - on it? The Pennsylvania Democratic U.S. senator, who just won his re-election in 2012, is looking to refill his coffers this summer at a fundraiser held at the...

Congressional investigators have recommended a full House Ethics Committee probe of Rep. Aaron Schock for allegedly soliciting contributions of more than $5,000 for a political action committee to help an Illinois colleague engaged in a bitter primary...

NEW YORK -- Police dropped assault and harassment charges against a man who Lindsay Lohan said choked her during a scuffle over cell phone photos early Sunday, a New York Police Department official said. Instead, Christian LaBella, 25, and Lohan, 26,...

Transportation is always an important factor in moving delegates from their hotel to the national convention center site, but it’s of special concern to Illinois Republicans who are in Clearwater Beach, 30 miles away from the Tampa Bay Times Forum....

Veteran Republican U.S. Rep. Tim Johnson of Urbana, viewed as almost certain to win another term in November, will announce as soon as Thursday he is not seeking re-election, sources familiar with the Republican lawmaker’s decision said Wednesday....

Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum, the frontrunners in the contest for the Republican presidential nomination, are hitting the campaign trail hard in Illinois this weekend. Romney was favored to win, due to a large support base in the Chicago area and far...

Sen. Lisa Murkowski isn't up for election until 2016, but that's not stopping the American Chemistry Council from buying lots of commercial airtime on TV and radio stations in Anchorage, airing a pro-Murkowski political advertisement hundreds of times....