Carolyn Maloney for U.S. Senate

The absurdity of the situation in this contest is obvious. There is no way that President Obama can credibly range himself against Carolyn Maloney. Carolyn Maloney would be a winner as a Senator. a winner in a statewide election and a winner in Washington.

I say these things because I am a card-carrying, contributing and serious supporter of our President.

2010 will not be so tight that a spirited primary among two women with differing qualities and records would not be something that a partisan of democracy with a small d would welcome. Those who think differently will be faced down by the independent-minded voters of New York State.

If there is any sustained effort to cold-shoulder Maloney, then President Obama and the machine led by the Senior Senator from New York will become the issue in the primary. And New Yorkers will have the chance to vote overwhelmingly for an outsider and, by so doing, to show the whole farce up.

I am not a partisan of Senator Schumer. I consider myself a good Democrat, but, in my view, the way he deals with and attacks his opponents. including witnesses I have seen him demolish in Senate hearings, is less than admirable. I have a problem with badgering. If he was the 2010 incumbent and Maloney the prospective opponent in a primary, I would go for Maloney hands down.

If I were consulting Carolyn Maloney, I would advise her to say exactly how she is a better Obama supporter than her opponent. And never to mention her opponent by name.

I would also advise her to challenge the Schumer camp on the basis of their lack of confidence ... in themselves ... in the people ... in the process. I would keep the President out of it to make it easier for him to do the right thing. This will not be a unique problem in 2010 I am certain. Beginning with New York and Pennsylvania.

If Democrats believe that a primary would be bad because they think 2010 will be close, they are not reading things that well.

We want to win in 2010 and our opponents will be anyone who messed with the Obama agenda. We are going to advance, not retreat. By 2010 we need to have health care reforming, the economy beginning to hum and green becoming a visible reality. These are things the people want and the President must separate himself from Congressional foot draggers and obstructionists, robbing them of their power to defeat reasonable reform and change.

Carolyn Maloney will win the primary the same way Barack Obama won Iowa, not as the faux sure thing. but as the outsider who stands for hope and change. These are not things the current Junior Senator has ever really embraced.

I think Maloney's is a challenge the President should accept. He is about to discover the limits of bipartisanship in today's less than admirable Congress. The discovery can only make him willing to support true allies and step back from those with Blue Dog leanings and the votes to prove it.

A slightly different version of this appeared in my blog http://stephencrose.wordpress.com

Comments

[TruBlueDem]

There's one more potential challenger to Gillibrand in addition to Maloney, and that's Jon Cooper. He's the Democratic Majority Leader of the Suffolk County Legislature on Long Island, and he runs a successful manufacturing company (with a union shop). Unlike Gillibrand, Cooper has a 10-year legislative record as a true progressive. And unlike both Gillibrand and Maloney, he was an early supporter of Barack Obama. In fact, Cooper was the first elected official in New York to endorse Obama for President and he served as Obama's Long Island Campaign Chairman.

Cooper formed an exploratory committee 2 months ago and has said he won't make an official decision about a primary challenge until the fall. Sure, he's an underdog, but I wouldn't discount his potential to run a winning statewide campaign. Cooper has a well-earned reputation for being smart, thinking out of the box and not being afraid to buck the powers that be.

[glorialovelace]

"If I were consulting Carolyn Maloney, I would advise her to say exactly how she is a better Obama supporter than her opponent. And never to mention her opponent by name."

Both Maloney and Gillibrand supported Hillary Clinton -- and not Obama -- during the primary.

But why should the degree of support make any difference, except to a candidate who has no other way of distinguishing herself?

[S1m0n]

Who?

[glorialovelace]

Who indeed. Most people don't know the difference between Carolyn Maloney and the far more famous Carolyn McCarthy.

Wasn't Rose one of the chief boosters of Caroline Kennedy's fiasco of a candidacy?

[Stephen C. Rose - Huffpost Blogger]

Still would.

[unitron]

I assume this column wasn't really intended for anyone is any of the other 49 states, who may have heard Maloney's name but don't remember exactly where, whose knowledge of New York senatorial things only extends to knowing that somebody was supposed to get Hilary's senator job, but don't remember exactly how all that turned out after everybody quit talking about Caroline Kennedy, and don't see what Obama has to do with any of it.

[modwiz]

Great post, let the people speak. Schumer is not very likable and would only probably win in NYC where they like his chutzpah.

[glorialovelace]

"Schumer is not very likable and would only probably win in NYC where they like his chutzpah."

Schumer has won statewide office, so apparently Upstate New York is happy enough with him. The same cannot be said about Maloney, who is wasting time, money and the prestige of the party.