The cake walk began January 23rd when then-Rep. Gillibrand received a surprise Senate appointment after only one term in Congress. Senate appointments are an anti-Democratic process to begin with (and one that some want to get rid of). What's worse is that after taking office, the establishment started clearing the field, with Senators Schumer and Menendez and even the President himself forcing Rep. Steve Israel (a very formidable candidate) out of the race.
New Yorkers were not able to vote for Gillibrand to become Senator. And, now, the etablishment thinks Democrats shouldn't have the choice for 2010 either.
Whether you like Gillibrand or not (and her gun control flip-flop and Big Tobacco past may change your mind), we can all agree that this sort of machine politics is exactly what the Netroots has spent the last decade destroying. We deserve a choice. Its why we killed the Kennedy appointment, and its why we need to stand-up and demand that we have a real, competitive primary -- an election of ideas, values, and records.
After the Israel force-out, it looked like we were stuck. Now, things may be changing, if Rep. Carolyn Maloney runs:
CQ Politics reports that Rep. Carolyn Maloney of Manhattan/Queens plans to primary Gillibrand next year.
The Web site reports that Reps. Jerrold Nadler and Anthony Weiner, both New York City Dems, said Maloney told them she will run.
While she’s not considered to be as good a fundraiser as Israel, Maloney does have $1.1 million in the bank, about half of what Gillibrand has in her war chest. But Maloney represents the East Side of Manhattan, where, well, there’s plenty of money to go around.
One source told LIBN tonight that if she runs, Maloney would give Gillibrand a run for her money.
"Maloney’s from New York City and she’s going to get a lot of attention from the New York media," our independent source said. "And without Israel in the race, she could become the darling of the Long Island area too."
Rep. Maloney is rumored to already be getting the full-court press, with a phone call from Vice President Biden (even if he wasn't explicit) and some well-timed endorsements.
If Rep. Maloney wards off the pressure and stays in, it would be a very competitive race:
A private poll conducted for Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) suggests she’d begin a race against Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) with a small lead and could find success with attacks on Gillibrand’s ties to the tobacco industry and her relatively conservative record.
The poll of 600 likely Democratic primary voters, conducted at the end of May by pollster Doug Schoen, found Maloney with a 34 percent to 32 percent lead over the appointed senator — and that she leads 49 percent to 25 percent after voters have been read arguments against both senators.
Though Gillibrand’s name recognition is somewhat higher than Maloney’s, so are her negatives, and there are other numbers in the poll to warm the heart of a challenger: for instance, 27 percent said Gillibrand has done her job well enough to deserve reelection, while 29 percent said it’s time for her to be replaced.
My point is this: Let's not let the insiders decide who becomes our nominee and next Senator. We deserve a debate over gun control, our economy, and New York's infrastructure. We deserve a primary. We deserve a choice.
UPDATE: The title of this post was changed due to some concerns within this community. Don't want to detract from my point.