Keep Your Skeptical Eye on the Ball
24 January 2009
3 Comments
Sen. Chuck Schumer and his pick for Hillary's replacement, Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand
All the huffing and puffing about New York’s newest (almost) Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is as amusing as it is beside the point.
Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy threatens to run against Gillibrand in a Democratic primary because the new Senator has perfect record with the National Rifle Association. Assemblyman Peter Rivera lashed out, “I find no compelling reason for the Governor to select a conservative Democrat to carry on the progressive work of now Secretary of State Clinton.”
And then there is Caroline Kennedy supporter Lawrence O’Donnell who is quoted in Monday’s New Yoker as saying this about Gillibrand and Paterson’s decision to pick her: “Paterson has no comprehension of upstate New York, absolutely none, and has chosen someone better at representing cows than people. What you have is the daughter of a lobbyist, instead of the daughter of a former President or the son of a former governor. This is the hack world producing the hack result that the hacks are happy with.”
Umm, yeah. Let’s not lose sight of what’s really happened here and what will almost certainly happen in 2010 when Gillibrand, Paterson, and New York’s other Senator Chuck Schumer will all be on the ballot. Historically there has been a battle between the Governor and either the Senator or Mayor of New York for control of his party. Remember Pataki-Giuliani-D’Amato? Remember Koch-Cuomo?
Lately David Paterson’s friends had been saying he was hoping this would be the year he would become more than the titular leader of the Dems in NY. But Chuck Schumer snatched that away in one fell swoop as Fred Siegal pointed out Friday. Schumer promoted Gillibrand very early on and was actually bouncing with joy on stage in Albany during Friday’s announcement. And why not?
With the appointment of Gillibrand Paterson has yielded the party leadership to Schumer. That’s why all the hullabaloo in the world from second-tier Democrats ain’t gonna amount to sh*t in 2010. A primary? Yeah right. Chuck Schumer — the guy who almost single-handedly brought the Democrats into the majority in the Senate in 2006 and got them thisclose to gaining a filibuster-proof majority in November — he’s going to allow his favored candidate to be primaried? I think not.
Kirsten Gillibrand will have a safe run in 2010 and may even scare off any real Republican challenge since she’s so moderate and has a proven ability to attract upstate Republican and independent voters. Kennedy would have been a far easier mark.
Lest you doubt Schumer’s influence remember that because of his campaign work in the Senate many in Washington think he is the most powerful member of that body — especially with his colleague/rival Hillary Clinton out of the way. His ability to make or break state politicians with well-placed or well-withheld largesse should not be underestimated.
Schumer is King of New York and Gillibrand is his Princess. She will not be dethroned on his watch.
You have seen through the bluster of a lot of progressive Democrats who think it would be a piece of cake to knock off this pro-gun, pro-hunter, Sarah Palin Democratic knock-off…While Cong. Ackerman groused that Kennedy was nothing more than a Palin, what he didn’t realize is that he’d wind up with a real-life imitation in the gun-toting huntress from a family that likes to shoot animals dead. She’s got a solid pro-corporate record and is likely to raise money from trial lawyers, banks and investment banks, agribusiness and the military-industrial complex…Schumer, the bankers’ Congressman, will be happy with all that…
Fascinating analysis. Everyone has been so distracted by the Paterson – Kennedy blow up. This take on what’s really going on makes a lot of sense.
[...] would have to win if some Dem chose to challenge her. While that’s incredibly unlikely (she “Keep Your Skeptical Eye on the Ball”), the Marist Poll provides a pretty strong reason to believe she’s better set with the base [...]
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