Andrew Cuomo has selected Rochester Mayor Robert Duffy as his choice for Lt. Governor. Duffy is a member of MAIG.
Schneiderman update
Eric Schneiderman has updated his campaign website. His antigun credentials are more prominently displayed under Issues -> Public Safety:
“… Eric is a national leader in the fight against illegal guns. Working with Mayor Bloomberg, Eric is the co-chair of Legislators Against Illegal Guns, a bi-partisan coalition of legislators representing suburban, rural and urban districts from around the country, united by a shared commitment to public safety. As Attorney General, Eric will employ high-tech, multi-state strategies to fight illegal guns and gangs to protect our schools, streets and communities from violence. Because over 90 percent of illegal guns in our state are smuggled from other states with weaker laws, New York cannot solve this problem alone. We must implement a new regional, interstate and multi-state approach to illegal gun trafficking. Eric will lead an “I-95″ coalition of state attorneys general, and state and local law enforcement agencies, to share and track data on gun crimes and gun sales between states.”
With guns and other issues, Schneiderman is trying to position himself as the biggest Leftist in the race. It’s not helping him as much as he’d like as the Times reports Andrew Cuomo is supporting Kathleen Rice:
“… In the weeks leading to the state Democratic convention next week, aides and allies of Mr. Cuomo have moved quietly and methodically to bolster Kathleen M. Rice, the Nassau County district attorney and the candidate widely believed to be Mr. Cuomo’s preferred successor …”
Rice is no prize either, but she’s not nearly as bad on guns as Schneiderman.
Mermel polling
Myers Mermel has decided to switch from running for Lt. Governor to Governor on the GOP line. His campaign just released a poll which, surprise, surprise, shows him in a favorable light. Guns were part of the poll:
“… Mermel … says a poll commissioned by him suggests that his composite — that is, a description of him that isn’t tied to his name — beats composites of the other Republicans in the race. If you take a look at the composites, you might conclude that they’re crafted just a bit to nudge respondents in, well, a certain direction … Likely Republican primary voters were given the choice between four candidate composites … Candidate B: Former Democrat … As Suffolk County Executive he raised school and property taxes, and is a strong supporter of gun control, abortion rights, and gay marriage. [STEVE LEVY] Candidate C: Is a former Congressman … is supported by former Governor George Pataki and is a supporter of gun control, abortion rights and gay marriage. [RICK LAZIO] …”
Majority/Minority Leader Schumer
The spectre of Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer appears again in the Washington Post article, “Sen. Chuck Schumer is positioned to be the Senate majority leader.” Rasmussen has incumbent Harry Reid floating around 40% compared with over 50% for both of his potential GOP opponents.
This assumes the Democrats will retain control of the Senate after November, which is increasingly in doubt as Barbara Boxer is in trouble in California. He could end up as Senate Minority Leader instead.
Cuomo announces
Andrew Cuomo formally announced his campaign for governor today. He has an extensive antigun record which can be summed up by this old post at the New York Sun:
“In arguing that the Second Amendment case now before the Supreme Court shouldn’t have any bearing on state gun control laws, Attorney General Cuomo is finding himself largely alone among state attorneys general. Mr. Cuomo filed a brief, signed onto by only four other states and Puerto Rico, to the federal high court last week in District of Columbia v. Heller … Mr. Cuomo’s brief is, in effect, an effort to limit any damage to the relatively strict handgun regulations in New York and some other states that might result from a Supreme Court decision favoring private gun ownership. The brief argues that the Second Amendment does not limit the power of state governments to regulate gun ownership …”
Legislative Report #25
Legislative Report #25 is now online.
After incorporation
Boss Daley spells out what’s in-store for gun owners after incorporation. Expect the same from Mayor Mike.
Lazio-Edwards ticket
Media reports indicate Rick Lazio has chosen Chautauqua County Executive Greg Edwards to be his running mate. An official announcement is supposed to come on Thursday.
Edwards himself is pro-gun and does have a personal interest in guns and hunting. However, this does not change the core problem with Rick Lazio, which is Rick Lazio himself.
Reconsidering challenging McCarthy
According to The Capitol, Republicans are considering making an effort to oust Carolyn McCarthy. From, “In Nassau, Emboldened Republicans Reconsider McCarthy Challenge“:
“… In years past, Republicans have struggled to find candidates to run against “Saint Carolyn,” so dubbed both for her nurse-like demeanor (she is, in fact, a licensed nurse) and for her life story—she ran for Congress after her husband and son were shot by a crazed gunman on the Long Island Rail Road … But last year, Nassau Republicans retook the county executive, county comptroller and the majority in the county legislature. That has helped convince [Joe] Mondello and other local Republicans that McCarthy can beat beaten, despite her years of big victories …”
The reason for her years of big victories were largely due to the losers the GOP put up against her. The district originally had been evenly split with Republican-Democrat enrollment. It now has a small Democrat advantage. If the GOP made a real effort to defeat her there’s a good chance they could have done it. She’s a single issue candidate who has coasted along without having to defend her record. What else does she talk about besides guns? What are her accomplishments?
So are Republicans going to make a serious effort to get rid of her now? I’m thinking not.
“… some wonder if Mondello, despite his protestations, is holding his fire. New York is likely to lose at least one congressional seat in the next round of redistricting. Since Rep. Pete King is seen as likely to find his district combined with another, that could put King in the same district as another Republican, if McCarthy loses this year. That could make for some awkward times in Nassau come 2012 …”
This I do not like. New York is probably going to lose two or three congressional seats, not just one.
On a more positive note:
“… Still, the last term for McCarthy has not been an easy one. She had back surgery earlier this year, which severely limited her mobility for months. Pennsylvania Rep. John Murtha, an ally who had taken McCarthy under his wing, died, and Murtha’s former staffer-turned-defense-lobbyist Paul Magliocchetti, who used to be a big donor to McCarthy’s re-election campaigns, shut down his firm in the wake of a federal investigation. Plus, the issue of gun safety, which afforded McCarthy a national profile, has faded from public consciousness. McCarthy associates say that she has seen a softening in her numbers in the district in recent months …”
They left out the strong anti-Democrat, anti-incumbent mood. Most pundits and polls I’ve seen predict significant gains for Republicans this fall. A halfway decent candidate could defeat McCarthy if the Republicans make that effort.
Pot calling kettle black
It took balls for Steve Levy to attack Rick Lazio on guns. Capitol Confidential reports on a mailing the Levy campaign did to members of the GOP State Committee. Here is a copy of the postcard in PDF format. CapCon does correctly point out that Levy fails to mention the F I gave him in 2002.