Kirk Strengthened in the 10th

Rep. Mark Kirk (R-10th) continues to pull in contributions from constituents, outraising his would-be Dem rivals:

In the north suburban 10th District race, Kirk, a Highland Park resident seeking his fifth term in Congress, raised more than $525,000 over the last three months, more than either of his potential Democratic challengers, marketing consultant Dan Seals of Wilmette and former White House adviser Jay Footlik of Vernon Hills.

Kirk had more than $1.5 million in his campaign kitty at the end of the reporting period, reports showed.

As the surge shows undeniable progress in Iraq, even by the lights of the MSM, his position has strengthened. (Of course, now he needs to motivate his base.)

Kirk's approach to Iran, tougher sanctions and squeezing off funds first, has been confirmed in a bi-partisan manner by the Congress. And he continues to be a staunch and knowledegable supporter of Israel, blunting any attack from the Dems there.

UPDATE: Related piece on Iran's al Qaeda, Bret Stephens, WSJ, "If the Revolutionary Guards aren't terrorists, who is?:

On the morning of July 18, 1994, a suicide bomber drove a van into the seven-story Jewish cultural center in Buenos Aires, Argentina, murdering 85 people and seriously injuring 151 others. Last November, Argentine Judge Rodolfo Canicoba Corral issued international arrest warrants for eight men -- seven Iranians and one Lebanese -- wanted in connection to the bombing. Among them are former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, former Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Velayati, and three other men with one important point in common: All were, or are, senior officers in the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.[snip]

Then there is Ahmad Vahidi, who helped oversee the operation from Tehran. According to Iran analyst Alireza Jafarzadeh, Mr. Vahidi founded the IRGC's "Lebanon Corps" in the 1980s, meaning he is responsible for the attack on the U.S. Marine barracks that left 241 American servicemen dead. He was later appointed the first commander of the IRGC's Qods (Jerusalem) Force, with oversight of "extraterritorial operations," including in Europe and South America. In 2003, the Washington Post reported that "Bin Laden's second-in-command, Ayman Zawahiri, used his decade-old relationship with Mr. Vahidi, then commander of the Jerusalem Force, to negotiate a safe harbor for some of al Qaeda's leaders who were trapped in the mountains of Tora Bora, Afghanistan, in 2001, according to a European intelligence official."

Today, Mr. Vahidi is Iran's deputy defense minister.

Related post on Iran here.