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Kirk is our choice for U.S. Senate

With all the substantive issues the country is facing, it's disheartening that the race for the U.S. Senate seat once held by President Barack Obama has largely been focused on character issues.

Even more troubling is that both major-party candidates have had trouble explaining away those issues.

Alexi Giannoulias, the Democrat, won his state treasurer post four years ago touting his experience as a banker. But the family business, Broadway Bank in Chicago, lent money to convicted felons and eventually went bust earlier this year. Giannoulias, 34, claims he did not know about the extent of the mob connections the bank's clients had and he says he wasn't connected with the bank when it failed.

Republican Mark Kirk's political career has been aided by his military background as a longtime Naval Reserve intelligence officer. So we were disappointed when it was revealed that Kirk, 51, padded that resume with details of bravery that didn't happen and teaching credentials that were inflated. He took responsibility for the fabrications, but he's yet to provide much of an answer as to why he felt he had to lie.

So, we've got the mob banker and serial liar, or so they would have voters believe. On the face of it, not much of a choice as we don't think the three minority party candidates are an option.

But those character issues don't represent the sum of all parts of these two men. In fact, we believe they are a small part of the puzzle and either person could potentially serve well as Illinois' junior senator. But we like one a little more: Mark Kirk. He receives our endorsement for both the new six-year term beginning in January and the two months left on Obama's seat.

During the 10 years we've supported him as a congressman from the suburban 10th District, we have admired Kirk's knowledge of the issues and his willingness to shake the shackles of partisanship and look at issues from a broad perspective. He is, indeed, “Mr. Independent" as several analyses of his votes during that time will attest.

He is a self-described fiscal conservative and that's what we think Illinois and the country needs as we face a soaring federal deficit and a national debt of an astounding $13 trillion. He lays out a plan to curb out-of-control spending while also helping small business owners in particular get back on their feet.

His independence is most evident in social issues in which he stakes out a more moderate record. He favors a woman's right to choose and he broke with his party on stem-cell research. He also is more environmentally aware than many of his Republican counterparts.

Kirk was a leader among GOP moderates in the House and his effectiveness working with both sides of the aisle sets him apart. That's the Kirk we know and the Kirk we expect in the upper chamber.