Also at The Albany Project
In the nationally significant 20th Congressional District special election between Democratic candidate Scott Murphy and Republican candidate Assembly Minority Leader Jim Tedisco, New York's two popular Senators made appearances Sunday for Murphy.
Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand did diners with Murphy -- Schumer in Halfmoon and Gillibrand in Brunswick (photo below from there).
Tedisco weakly countered with a Glens Falls event with Freda Solomon, the widow of uber-wingnut Gerry Solomon, who represented the district for 20 years before heading to K Street.
More about appearances by Murphy endorsers, and non-appearances by Tedisco's endorsers, below.
I was out canvassing for Murphy Sunday in Rensselaer County, so did not see Schumer in action in Saratoga County.
But I did catch up with Gillibrand and Murphy late in the afternoon at the Country View Diner on Route 7.
Gillibrand and Murphy chatted amiably with a score or so of diner patrons, with Gillibrand telling them why Murphy was the obvious choice to replace her.
But the reach of this event will go far beyond the diners in the diner -- every TV station was there, as were reporters and photographers from the Albany Times Union and the Troy Record. (Local media also covered Schumer's appearance.)
Given the media scrum around Gillibrand and Murphy, it was difficult to hear what they were chatting about with the diner's patrons.
So I asked Gillibrand later what she was telling them, and she said:
Scott Murphy is a great candidate for the 20th Congressional District.
What I like so much about him is that he has a background in creating jobs, and with the economy as bad as it is today, we need people who are going to help solve these problems and help our small businesses not only recover but succeed.
And we need people who are going to look very hard at what policies are going to make our economy grow again, and I think Scott Murphy is the best man for the job.
I also like the fact that his wife is from upstate New York and grew up on a dairy farm. He's someone who's really going to fight for our farmers, he's going to fight for our veterans, and he's going to fight for our small business owners.
Gillibrand is extraordinarily popular in the district, with a consistent 75 percent or so favorability rating in the three Siena College polls of this race.
Her endorsement, TV ad, personal appearances, and private campaign and fund-raising advice have been a major factor in Murphy's surge from unknown double-digit-loser-in-the-polls to presumptive favorite to win on Tuesday.
Regarding political endorsements in general, Tedisco holds the short end of the stick.
Obama, Biden, Schumer, Gillibrand, and NY Democratic Members of Congress have endorsed Murphy.
Tedisco's public endorsements from his own party have been somewhat more B-list, as far as New York is concerned -- Steele, Boehner, Gingrich, Rudy 9/11, a rookie GOP Congressman from Illinois, and a bunch of local GOP pols.
For various embarrassing reasons, Tedisco buddies and former A-list New York Republicans like Miami Mob Leader John Sweeney (who represented this district from 1998 to 2006, and has been secretly advising Tedisco), former state Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno (now under federal indictment), and former Gov. George Pataki (who is Bush-like in his post-office obscurity and unpopularity), have not made any public endorsements or appearances.
No other Republican of note — Rudy 9/11, John Faso, Betty Little, Gingrich, Hannity, etc. — did a last-weekend event with Tedisco.
Prominent Republicans who can show their face in public have caught the stink of FAIL from Tedisco’s inept campaign, and naturally don’t want to smell it in person.
Conservative WGDJ-AM talk-show host Paul Vandenburgh did squeeze in a phone call from Gingrich among the infomercials this morning, but it's really not the same as seeing that big fat hypocrite in the area with Tedisco.
But we haven't won yet -- two days of all-important GOTV remain.
For those who live near NY-20, any help you can give, in any way, will be important.
For those farther afield, DCCC has an excellent remote phone bank.
