An Upstate New York Perspective!

Living in NY-24 I can tell you that Hanna is gaining momentum.

I took my 2 year old son to the barber shop this morning. An elderly gentleman was in the chair getting a trim before retiring to Florida for the winter. Talk turned to politics, as they always seem to do in these settings. This traditional democrat, trying to relive the glory days of the Clinton Administration, describes Richard Hanna as the lesser of two evils. For upstate New York (Cooperstown), this is near heretical thinking. By the way the barber is a supporter because Richard gets his hair cut there every other Saturday. There is a monumental shift taking place, even in Now York.

The problem, as my friend in the chair, noted is that Carl Paladino is a drag on the party and the vote. That he threatened a reporter ends all viability as a candidate regardless of his baseball bat! I am afraid this will limit turnout or preclude a secondary democratic vote for Michael Arcuri or Kirsten Gillibrand.

Joe DioGuardi, who promises a strong finish, has been touring the state since June and has overcome tremendous obstacles to be in the position of being the “51st Senator” against the Obama, Reid, Pelosi trident, but he lacks cash and traditional media support. I follow the NY political blogs and it is Paladino vs Cuomo all the time. DioGuardi/Gillibrand get little interest in spite of very interesting associations that have been noted in a largely unexamined Senate candidate who has recreated herself from a socially liberal, fiscal conservative to a Chuck Schumer pawn who does what she is told to do.

Throughout her career this is demonstrably true. She ably represented the interests of the Tobacco industry as they committed perjury before congress. She, at a minimum, aided and abetted the housing crisis with her work at HUD. Now in the Senate she has been a dependable vote for Schumer, Reid and Obama. She has not a been a leader despite tremendous opportunity to take that role. She is no Hillary Clinton! She is a follower.

Back to Hanna, I wouldn’t trust the polls. I think the race is much closer than the 5% Siena finds. The question is do you think Paladino is going to be a factor. If he is, multiple congressional races will go from toss up to lean dem. I truly don’t know. I hope that the media coverage doesn't accurately reflect the mood of the populace though, if it does, New York republicans are going to be in for a long and disappointing night.

Vote Hanna/DioGuardi!

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