Tsk, tsk, Senator.
On the other hand, her party does have a problem with this sort of thing, and I guess that she may need the campaign contributions for next year after all – so now would be a good time to reach out to the base.
But really, madam: Infowars?
Moe Lane
PS: The New York Observer: “The video is already in wide circulation on 9/11 conspiracy web sites.”
I imagine that it must be.
Crossposted to RedState.
The White House decided to make personally certain that an unelected New York Senator with publicly-stated views on gun control and immigration contrary to the rest of her party was not challenged in the primary by a solidly-liberal Representative who is well respected in his caucus. This has caused a good deal of tension in the rest of the New York delegation:
Confusion, conflict mar Gillibrand’s run
WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama’s effort to squelch plans by a New York congressman to run in next year’s Democratic primary against Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand apparently succeeded.
In fact, the president’s call to Rep. Steve Israel asking him not to run may rank as a pivotal moment in Gillibrand’s effort to hang onto her seat.
But Obama’s phone call also has angered members of the state’s congressional delegation, who see it as heavy-handed intrusion reminiscent of Tammany Hall party machine politics.
The behind-the-scenes maneuvering has the makings of a political soap opera with some lawmakers feeling pressured to endorse early, some dissatisfied with Gillibrand’s views on key liberal issues, and some too upset to even break bread together.
To begin with, this isn’t ‘Tammany Hall Machine politics.’ Your standard Tammany Hall machine politician would have sneered at the way that the internal conflict between the state and federal power structures ended up in the local papers. As a practical hint: you don’t start this sort of thing by telling a politician not to run. You start by seducing his supporters away, then have them tell him not to run. Sure, it costs more – but it also avoids newspaper articles with headlines like ‘Confusion, conflict mar Gillibrand’s run.’
Continue reading The President roils the NY-SEN race.
This is funny for two reasons:
Three Potential Challengers Jointly Rap Gillibrand on Guns
The three House Democrats who are talking openly of challenging Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) next year joined together Wednesday to tout gun control legislation that they said highlights the appointed Senator’s shaky record on the issue.
Reps. Carolyn McCarthy, Carolyn Maloney and Steve Israel teamed up for a Capitol Hill news conference on the No Fly, No Buy Act, which would bar people from buying guns if their names are on the Transportation Security Administration’s “no fly list” of suspected terrorists.
While none would confirm that they are running for Senate, their willingness to appear together and tweak Gillibrand suggested that they could put together a potent coalition if one decides to run against her and the others endorse the challenger.
The first reason is, Gillibrand’s getting a really quick lesson in the field of Just How Much Heresy Is Acceptable For A Democratic Senator. Answer? Not all that much. Certainly not when it comes to the field of gun rights, which should be a comfort to whichever GOP candidates we run next year*. As for the second reason… imagine how these three particular Musketeers are going to act towards each other next year if it ends up that Gillibrand is as vulnerable as Murtha or Dodd. They’ll make Kilkenny Cats
That’d be dumb of them? So would accidentally sending your primary opponent an inadvertent notification that you’re going to be an obstructionist. So what’s your point?
Moe Lane
*Two Senate elections in NY, thanks to the replacement. I can’t imagine that the NRA’s going to be so chintzy as give to one and not the other. Even if the other is facing “Do what you have to do” Schumer.
Crossposted to RedState.
I mention this not so much because she’s unique – she isn’t, especially among Democrats – but because she has her eye on higher office these days.
Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY) has made it clear that she may launch a primary challenge against Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), whom McCarthy deems too conservative to represent one of the most liberal states in the country.
But McCarthy may have a problem of her own to clear up before she sets her sights on higher office. McCarthy’s top contributor this cycle is the now-defunct PMA Group.
Via Instapundit. The article goes on to note that McCarthy helped block an ethics probe into PMA’s shenanigans (presumably, the one of the ones initiated by Republican Jeff Flake). Say what you like about now-Senator Gillibrand, but her name is conspicuously absent from this list…
Crossposted to RedState.
Worst possible news, in fact:
New York State voters disapprove 60 – 28 percent of the job Gov. David Paterson is doing, the lowest approval ever for a New York Governor, and say 63 – 22 percent that he does not deserve to be elected to a full four-year term, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today.
With numbers like that, it’d take a special miracle from God to convince the man to run for election next year; more to the point, even if Paterson refuses to admit to the inevitable the rest of the NY Democratic Party won’t be quite so stubborn. Hence, the use of the word ‘depressing.’ I much prefer to see the Other Side engage in rather vicious primary battles. Like the one that may be happening with Gillibrand: Continue reading Depressing Q-Poll about NY Gov Paterson.
Wow. I haven’t commented about Maureen Dowd in ages. There’s this entire nostalgia vibe going on here.
For those who don’t feel like risking the SAN/Intelligence loss that can come from reading one of Dowd’s columns, let me summarize: I like Blagojevich more than I like Paterson, because Blagojevich is clearly insane – do you hear that, Illinois voters? Insane – and Paterson did my friend Marquise Caroline Kennedy-Schlossberg wrong by not picking her right away. That let the awful, awful Clintons destroy the chances for the best choice for the NY Senate, and never mind all those Republicans out there who were revving their chainsaws and grinning evilly. I hope that they primary that gun-loving, bailout hating Gillibrand – and that they primary that adulterous, drug-using governor, too! That’ll show ’em.
OK, I may have added a little subtext there, but really: the title is “Whose Governor is wackier?” and everything (via Hot Air Headlines). That tells you something right there. Continue reading If this is how NY liberals are feeling, we’re going to have fun in 2010.
