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2012

By David Freedlander 5/02/12 3:29pm

2012

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Christine Quinn and Scott Stringer Want Mike Bloomberg To Stay Away From Mitt Romney

At a press conference on the State Senate GOP’s efforts to block a reproductive health bill, Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Manhattan borough president Scott Stringer were asked what they think of the anti-choice Mitt Romney’s courting of Mike Bloomberg–and the possibility that Hizzoner may bestow his endorsement on the governor.

Ms. Quinn–who, you will recall, walked out of a press conference this week when a participant insulted Mr. Bloomberg–declined to mention her erstwhile ally, simply saying, “I think Mitt Romney would be a bad president– not just for women but in a lot of areas. And I think Governor Romney has demonstrated a very clear change in position, one that is extremely hostile to women’s reproductive health and women’s health care in general.” Read More

By David Freedlander 4/30/12 11:50am

2012

President Obama

In ‘Forward’ Web Video, Obama Campaign Looks Backward

This weekend, President Barack Obama will mark the beginning of his general election campaign with a series of rallies in the swing states of Virginia and Ohio; and in marking the start of the long campaign, the Obama campaign released a 7-minute long web video that lays out their themes going forward.

This decision is telegraphed in the very title of the video, “Forward,” which has been much mocked for seeming to borrow the same tagline as the left-leaning network MSNBC. 

But the Obama video is almost entirely a look back, rather than a look into what the next four years could look like under a President Obama. The video never once mentions Mitt Romney, Mr. Obama’s opponent, and not until the final minute or so does it pivot to a look towards the future. Read More

By David Freedlander 3/20/12 11:10pm

2012

Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Rom

Romney Wins Easily In Barack Obama’s Backyard [Video]

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney cruised to an easy win in the Illinois primary tonight, besting former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum  by 12 points with approximately 90 percent of precincts reporting.

In a spirited speech to his supporters, Mr. Romney largely ignored his rivals, taking the fight directly to the man he hopes to face in November: Barack Obama.

“For 25 years, I lived and breathed jobs, business, and the economy,” Mr. Romney said.  ”I had successes and failures but each step of the way, I learned a little more about what it is that makes our American system so powerful. You can’t learn that teaching Constitutional law. You can’t learn that as a community organizer. The simple truth is that this President just doesn’t understand the genius of America’s economy – or the secret of our success.” Read More

By David Freedlander 3/14/12 11:35am

2012

Rick Santorum and Mitt Romney at a presidential debate in Arizona in February. (Photo: Getty)

As Grassroots GOPers Reject The Establishment, Romney Doubles-Down On Their Support

Republicans, the axiom goes, don’t so much fall in love as fall in line.  Thus Mitt Romney could run in 2008, finish a respectable second (or third, depending on how you score Mike Huckabee’s performance) and  be the inevitable nominee in 2012.

There has always been though a strain of the Republican base that has rejected this line of succession. This is the group that, ironically, backed Mr. Romney in 2008, when John McCain was crowned the inevitable candidate, or Steve Forbes in 1996.

Each time, the rebels have fought valiantly, but failed. This time around, they sound like they are wiling to continue spitting in the face of the party establishment for as long as Rick Santorum stays in the race. To wit, despite the endorsement of Governor Nikki Haley, Mitt Romney lost South Carolina to Newt Gingrich. Despite the endorsement of Tim Pawlenty, he lost to Rick Santorum in South Carolina. Read More

By David Freedlander 3/08/12 11:07am

2012

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Campaign Releases Trailer For Obama 2012: The Movie [Video]

On a conference call with reporters yesterday Obama campaign chiefs David Axelrod and Jim Messina announced that the campaign was set to release a 17-minute documentary on Obama’s first term in office.

Today they unveiled the two-minute trailer from that video.

The message is clear, and is what we have heard all along from the Obama folks–”GM is alive; Osama Bin Laden is dead.” Added to that however is a reminder of the economic hole the nation found itself in when Mr. Obama became president, and some of the pathbreaking thrill that his first campaign created. Read More

By David Freedlander 3/07/12 1:59pm

2012

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Obama Campaign Tweaks Romney On Super Tuesday Stalemate: ‘Super Glue Day’ More Like It, Says Axelrod

Top Obama campaign strategists David Axelrod and Jim Messina held a conference call with reporters this morning and teased Mitt Romney for his failure to put away the opposition in last night’s Super Tuesday contests.

“In every primary we have seen just how disappointed Republicans are in their candidates and how dissatisfied they are with their choices,” Mr. Messina said. “In state after state Republican voters have stated home and frankly I don’t blame them. On Super Tuesday we saw that dissatisfaction get super-sized.”

“The Romney Campaign wanted to put the campaign away,” Mr. Axelrod added. “Instead of Super Tuesday it became ‘Super Glue Day.’  They are still stuck with Santorum and with Gingrich and with the prospect of a long race here.” Read More

By David Freedlander 3/05/12 6:35pm

2012

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Maragos Nets Skelos Endorsement

The Republican race to challenge Kirsten Gillibrand is heating up, with Wendy Long, a conservative lawyer and Joe Carvin, an investor and Rye lawmaker, criscrossing the state in anticipation of the GOP convention later this month.

The duo have to catch up with Nassau comptroller George Maragos, who has been in the race for the better part of the year.

And this evening Mr. Maragos received a substantial bump in his efforts when he received the endorsement of perhaps the state’s highest ranking Republican official, Senate  Majority Leader Dean Skelos. Read More

By David Freedlander 2/28/12 4:07pm

2012

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More On The Congressional Run Of Sylvia Kinard, Ex-Wife of Bill Thompson

Yesterday we wrote about how Sylvia Kinard, the ex-wife of former Democratic mayoral nominee Bill Thompson, is running for Congress in Brooklyn against incumbent Rep. Yvette Clark. 

According to two sources, a lot of the push for Ms. Kinard comes from members of the district’s Jewish community who have been unsatisfied with Ms. Clark, citing her opposition to resolution that condemned the Goldstone Report–a United Nations-sponsored investigation that found human rights violations on the part of Israel during the Gaza War–and her criticism of the Israeli blockade of Gaza.

“It’s numerous things,” said one district source. “They believe she hasn’t been around.” Read More

By David Freedlander 2/27/12 10:44am

2012

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Sylvia Kinard, Ex-Wife of Bill Thompson, To Run for Congress

Sylvia Kinard, an attorney and the second wife of former Democratic mayoral nominee Bill Thompson, told The Politicker this morning that she is running for Congress against incumbent Democrat Yvette Clarke.

“We have a petitioning process, we are getting ready for that,” Ms. Kinard said. “I want to see a better Brooklyn for everyone. There is an old saying that ‘A Rising Tide Lifts All Boats.’ I am not sure that is true anymore.”

Ms. Kinard married Mr. Thompson in 1999 and the couple had a nasty split in 2006  played out in the press just Read More

By David Freedlander 2/22/12 10:37am

2012

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Caroline Kennedy Named Co-Chair of Obama 2012 Effort

The Obama re-election campaign rolled out 35 co-chairs of their national effort, and amidst the usual group of politicos was Caroline Kennedy, daughter of President John Kennedy and one-time candidate for the U.S. Senate.

Ms. Kennedy, you will recall, made a very public effort to be named to the Senate seat being vacated by now Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The decision was ultimately up to David Paterson, and after a long-drawn out process, he named Kirsten Gillibrand to the seat, and Ms. Kennedy sounded through with politics. Read More