WEST LOOP — While covering the 1972 presidential election, Hunter S. Thompson once wrote, "Back to Chicago; it's never dull out there. You never know exactly what kind of terrible s--- is going to come down on you in that town, but you can always count on something. Every time I go to Chicago I come away with scars.”
About 43 years later, Chicago politics has apparently gone soft.
The late Dr. Gonzo probably would be disappointed to know that the guy who supports mayoral contender Jesus "Chuy" Garcia by baking muffins refuses to add nuts — let alone any grass, pellets of mescaline or high-powered acid — to his tasty campaign treats.
But what might really send Thompson on a tirade against Chicago's new breed of weak tea, tickle-fight politics is what I found in the storage closet where Garcia conducts closed-door business.
That's where Mayor Rahm Emanuel's challenger keeps a campaign secret weapon draped over his office chair — a plush Elmo blanket.
"It's my grandson's blanket," Garcia said, his signature mustache framing the proud grandfather's wide grin before our interview last week.
Now his political spokeswoman didn't seem too pleased that I snapped a few shots of Garcia beside the plush blanket decorated with a street scene of hard hat-wearing Elmo hammering a nail while construction vest-clad Cookie Monster takes a bite out of a shovel.
And who could blame her?
Garcia is running against Emanuel, a political tough guy who once sent a dead fish to a pollster and had a legendary standoff in the 1990s with former first lady and potential 2016 presidential candidate Hillary Clinton — which he won.
But Garcia wasn't ashamed of the cute, cuddly blankie that belongs to 2-year-old Mateo covering his campaign office chair.
"Hey, it's my grandson's," the candidate said as I snapped those photos. "It does the job ... keeps the seat warm."
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