For the record, aides said, the Illinois senator reads the newspaper.

He said the Illinois senator had "promised the moon and the stars but delivered almost nothing so far" in terms of campaign time.

The Illinois senator asserted that it was time for the nation to aid senior citizens with the cost of nursing home care.

Both Illinois senators were also in attendance to address the two thousand assembled guests.

In a 90-minute stop here, the Illinois Senator told a crowd of about 100 people that farm programs should be redesigned to benefit the family farmers.

At the same time, the Illinois Senator reaffirms his commitment to more Federal aid for education, the elderly and the unemployed.

The Illinois senator didn't have on an implacable mask of amiability, as Hillary did in Iowa.

Over the summer, Obama's campaign stumbled, and the Illinois senator even fell behind McCain for a short while in September.

The Illinois Senator vowed to prove that his bow tie and his belief in traditional Democratic policies are not out of fashion.

Madigan was an Illinois Senator from 1998 through 2002, during which time she worked down the hall from Barack Obama.