A final report on the failed family bank of Democratic Senate candidate Alexi Giannoulias will not be released until after the Nov. 2 election, federal regulators said today.
The release of the report before the election could have been another political headache for Giannoulias in the close contest with Republican Mark Kirk. Giannoulias has been on the defensive over his role in loans Broadway Bank made to convicted felons while he was a senior loan officer, as well as other troubled lending that contributed to the bank’s collapse early this year.
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Giannoulias, the state treasurer, has acknowledged the family put too much money in commercial real estate but said it was among the victims of a depressed economy.
Giannoulias left the bank in 2006, while he was running for treasurer, but his departure date has been a campaign issue because he has often said he left daily operations in 2005—a difference that gives him more distance from controversies at the institution.
If and when the feds' report reveals more incriminating information about Alexi's irresponsible banking practices, it may no longer matter. He could already be Senator-elect Giannoulias by then. This one's a nail-biter. If any Illinois readers are still considering not voting for Mark Kirk, please review this primer on his unacceptable opponent, courtesy of the NRSC: