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Tuesdays primary in New York State should be of interest to both members of the Democratic Party and the Democratic Left nationwide. If for no other reason that republicans are examining it, the contest between Governor Andrew Cuomo and Zephyr Teachout was important. Lets take a look.
Cuomo is, of course, the son of former governor Mario Cuomo. Andrew worked for his father, and got his education in elections and the world of state and national politics -- at a time when George W. Bush was involved with his fathers political career. In some ways, Andrew is the complete opposite of W: he is highly intelligent, and highly disciplined. In other ways, he is similar: he is highly ambitious, and that isnt intended as a compliment. He wants to be president.
Teachout teaches Fordham Law School. She was born and raised on a farm in Vermont, something that served her well in the democratic primary. She ran a classic, grassroots underdog campaign, appealing to farmers, environmentalists, and the teachers union. And, unlike Cuomo, her campaign ran on very little money.
As governor, Cuomo had advantages other than money. He had access to the media at levels his opponent did not. And by refusing to debate Teachout, he insured that Zephyr remained largely unknown.
As a result, Cuomo won the primary, with about 2/3rds the votes, compared to Teachouts 1/3rd. However, she won in at least twenty of the rural, upstate counties. Cuomos strength was, not surprisingly, in the large cities.
As it now stands, Cuomo will face a conservative republican puppet in November. There is at least one third party candidate in the mix, a Green Party candidate who has made his anti-fracking policy his central issue. And there is a call for Teachout to run third party, although I do not think that she is going to.
If Cuomo was facing a serious republican challenger -- such as his father did in George Pataki -- he would need the support of progressive Democrats and the Democratic Left. But he is not; indeed, the republican machine in New York State views Cuomo being acceptable. Indeed, two of his closest associates are state senator Tom Libous (recently indicted on federal corruption charges) and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.
Thus, the question that groups including environmentalists and the teachers union have to answer goes beyond November. Do they continue to support centrists such as Andrew Cuomo, simply because he is a registered democrat? Even when that politician fails to support them on the very issues that they consider most important? Or do they continue to organize at the grass roots level, to build a coalition of like-minded citizens, capable of winning elections from the local level up?
djean111
(14,255 posts)DINOs in order to "beat" the GOP - and then, of course, we are supposed to sit down and STFU when the DINOs are elected and proceed to serve as Republicans. Because hey! we voted for them, right? The DINO with the most money wins.
vi5
(13,305 posts)This didn't happen in Arkansas or some other red state. This happened in one of the bluest states in the country.
The fact that the Democratic establishment got as involved as it did in a Democratic primary, and sided with the much more conservative candidate (for both Gov and Lt. Gov) was nauseating to me.
And I'm predicting a repeat of it next year for the Presidential primaries, with Hillary replacing Cuomo.
djean111
(14,255 posts)If/When Hillary is anointed as the candidate, that TPP thing will drive me out of what used to be the Democratic Party.
Policy-wise, there is no difference between Cuomo and Christie. Despite one being identified with a "D" and the other an "R," they are twins.
LWolf
(46,179 posts)I don't. When my union leadership isn't leading, their endorsements don't count with me. Of course, I don't live in NY.
I'm interested to see what my new NEA president has to say during national campaign seasons; she seems a bit more willing to take on the bad education policy promoted by "centrists."
H2O Man
(73,537 posts)region of upstate NY where I am, it's teachers -- from the schools and colleges -- who have been joining with local activists in getting good people elected. We haven't won every contest, but we have won more than we've lost in the past six years. And that's a significant change from the past.
LWolf
(46,179 posts)There are a lot of us out here, and we can make a difference.