Michael Madigan, the chairman of the Illinois Democratic Party and the Speaker of the Illinois House attended a fund-raiser for GOP House Speaker John Boehner in the Chicago suburb of Lemont, scoops Chicago Sun-Times political reporter Abdon M. Pallasch and Springfield Bureau Chief Dave McKinney. Read their exclusive report here.

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn "disappointed" in Madigan; read Sun-Times story here.My February, 2010 column on how Madigan--unlike 49 other state Democratic chairs--declines to run a robust Democratic organization in Illinois is here.

Madigan cares most about keeping the Illinois state House. Still, under Madigan, Illinois has a Democratic governor and both state legislative chambers. Illinois Democrats in 2010 saw four U.S. House seats held by Democrats turn over to Republicans--helping create the majority that made Boehner speaker. Nationally, Democrats are poised to make some Illinois congressional battles a 2012 priority.