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Check this out: Watertown, NY paper: Scozzafava urging supporters to vote for the Democrat During the day Saturday, she [Scozzafava] began to quietly and thoughtfully encourage her supporters to vote for Democrat William L. Owens. - Watertown Daily Times
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| Posted 2009-11-01 6:31 AM (#26948) By: Editor
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I thought Ms. Scozzafava dropped out b/c it was the decision "in the best interest of the party." Since Doug Hoffman agreed to caucus with the Republicans on Capitol Hill, exactly how is it in the best interest of the party that she encourage support for her former Democrat opponent over the Independent, conservative Hoffman? Did her stmt not refer to the best interest of the Republican Party? I guess the Republican establishment candidate really did have a lot more in common with liberal Democrats, than with mainline conservatives, in this race. | |
| Posted 2009-11-01 6:48 AM (#26951 - in reply to #26948) By: Savvy
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According to New York Daily News, Dede's Democratic Preference?
"At 10 p.m. last night - right in the middle of the Halloween festivities - Scozzafava's husband, Ron McDougall, president of the Jefferson/Lewis/St. Lawrence Central Labor Council issued a statement through the AFL-CIO that he is endorsing Owens against Conservative candidate Doug Hoffman.
According to his statement, it basically all comes down to support of the labor movement's top priority, the Employee Free Choice Act and its controversial card-check provision, which Owens and Scozzafava supported - much to the chagrin of the right - and Hoffman pointedly does not." | |
| Posted 2009-11-01 8:28 AM (#26956 - in reply to #26951) By: Editor
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I think it has to do with "saving face".
If she were to have stayed in the race, and ended up in third place, it would have been a huge embarrassment for her.
But now that she is out of the race, if the Democrat wins, it will make Hoffman look bad, as if he were the one who should have dropped out of the race.
More than anything else, this seems to have the markings of a clever political strategy.
What else might we expect from a politician? | |
| Posted 2009-11-01 8:38 AM (#26957 - in reply to #26956) By: VALEDICTION
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Dede's Democratic Preference?
By Elizabeth Benjamin
Assemblywoman Dede Scozzafava, who did not formally endorse either of her rivals when she dropped her bid for former Rep. John McHugh's seat in NY-23 yesterday, apparently has a favorite after all - and it's not Conservative nominee Doug Hoffman.
According to the Watertown Times, which had endorsed Scozzafava and switched its support to Democratic candidate Bill Owens this morning, the Republican assemblywoman "began to quietly and thoughtfully encourage her supporters" to vote for Owens yesterday.
This occurred as she publicly declined to choose sides after her campaign and a Hoffman operative agreed giving him her nod would do more harm than good.
At 10 p.m. last night - right in the middle of the Halloween festivities - Scozzafava's husband, Ron McDougall, president of the Jefferson/Lewis/St. Lawrence Central Labor Council issued a statement through the AFL-CIO that he is endorsing Owens against Conservative candidate Doug Hoffman.
According to his statement, it basically all comes down to support of the labor movement's top priority, the Employee Free Choice Act and its controversial card-check provision, which Owens and Scozzafava supported - much to the chagrin of the right - and Hoffman pointedly does not.
"This has been a difficult day for my family. But the needs and concerns of the men and women of the 23rd Congressional District remain paramount," McDougall said. "As such, I wholeheartedly and without reservation endorse the candidacy of Bill Owens."
“As a life-long labor activist, I know that Bill Owens understands the issues important to working people. On the other hand, Doug Hoffman has little regard for the interests of workers."
"Hoffman’s opposition to the Employee Free Choice Act, coupled with his support for the failed policies of the Bush Administration make him a poor choice to serve the citizens of the 23rd Congressional District.”
The Jefferson/Lewis/St. Lawrence Central Labor Council had endorsed Scozzafava, along with much - but not all - of the labor community.
McDougall and his role in the labor movement provided fodder early on in the campaign for Hoffman's side, which blasted him for contributing to the Working Families Party (on whose line Scozzfava has run in the past).
Scozzafava's friendly relationship with Democratic elected officials, ties to labor and her moderate views on social issues like gay marriage and abortion rights led to speculation early on that she might forsake the GOP altogether and run on the Democratic line. (The Democrats approached her; she turned them down).
Now that Scozzafava has bowed out of the race, her union backers are rushing to endorse Owens, which could prove crucial to him in the final hours of the race when it all comes down to the kind of GOTV that unions (or some of them, anyway) excel at.
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypolitics/2009/11/dedes-democr...
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| Posted 2009-11-01 8:45 AM (#26958 - in reply to #26957) By: Editor
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