Rick Lazio is running for Governor of New York, and he’s found an issue to run on in the controversy surrounding the controversy over the construction of a community center in Lower Manhattan:
At an office complex in the faded industrial town of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., recently, Rick A. Lazio, the former congressman from Long Island who is running for governor, had taken a series of standard jabs against political dysfunction in Albany and sky-high tax rates when he suddenly seemed to gain true traction with the crowd.
The issue was not the economy, or even his rival; it was the planned Muslim community center and mosque in Lower Manhattan. “We do not believe in turning our back on the victims of 9/11,” he said to enthusiastic applause. As the Republican primary for the governor’s race approaches, Mr. Lazio is making his vigorous opposition to the project a centerpiece of his candidacy, assailing it on the campaign trail, testifying against it at public hearings, denouncing it in television commercials and even creating an online petition demanding an investigation into the center and its organizers. “Defend New York,” says the giant headline above the petition on his Web site.
As a dominant New York voice against the center, Mr. Lazio has attracted a burst of public attention to a campaign that had failed to gather much momentum, overshadowed by the money and muscle of his Democratic rival, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo.
The occasional voter has now taken to stopping Mr. Lazio in the street to urge him on, and any number of others have stocked his campaign’s Web site with letters of support made public by Mr. Lazio’s aides. “Rick’s got my vote,” wrote one New Yorker, after seeing Mr. Lazio’s latest commercial about the center.
Mr. Lazio’s relentless opposition to the project — he again attacked the imam behind it during an appearance Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press” — is, above all, aimed at Republican primary voters, analysts say. But it risks alienating moderates who could prove crucial in a general election. And it certainly is infuriating many Muslim leaders, who say he is preying on the worst fears of voters; and provoking a backlash from some influential voices in the community of Sept. 11 emergency workers, who say he is exploiting the tragedy.
Nevertheless, Mr. Lazio is pushing ahead with the strategy, even breaking what has been, until now, something of an unwritten rule of politics in New York: never to use images of Sept. 11 in campaign advertisements.
As I noted on Friday, Lazio is now out with a web ad where he uses 9/11 imagery and goads Andrew Cuomo, his Democratic opponent, to take a stand on the mosque issue. So far, Cuomo has not responded, and there’s no indication that Lazio’s decision to take up the mosque as a campaign issue has had an appreciable impact on the race:
The first politician for a major elected office who came out against the “ground zero mosque” was Rick Lazio, the man who lost the New York U.S. Senate race to Hillary Clinton in 2000, who’s making a comeback bid to run for governor. Lazio asked for a mosque probe more than a month ago, challenged frontrunner Andrew Cuomo to a debate about the mosque — basically, he’s milked it for all it’s worth.
So what does it mean that this isn’t helping Lazio at all?
The new Siena Poll finds that New Yorkers (everyone in the state) oppose the mosque by a 63-27 margin; they defend the constitutional right to build it by a 64-28 margin. At the same time, Lazio trails Cuomo by 34 points. He’s down 2 points — within the margin of error, but not what you’d expect if the Great Mosque Debate of 2010 was hitting home.
Indeed not. For the most part, this race is in the same place it’s been for months, and nothing Lazio has said regarding the “Ground Zero Mosque” has done anything to change that:
Lazio has a Republican primary to get through before he faces Cuomo in November, but he’s leading that race by a fairly health margin and, if anything his stance on the mosque is actually moderate compared to that of his primary opponent, who wants to use eminent domain to take the Park 51 property away from its owners.
No doubt, Lazio will continue demagouging the mosque issue, he really has nothing to lose at this point, but it seems fairly clear that it’s providing no benefit to him in the polls. Good.
Cassie … for the Trader Joe’s fans … error on application costs New Jersey $400 million in federal funds … Miss Universe, if you missed the competition … a breakdown of who’s using twitter, and why … father fights assistant principal on Open House night … how to crash an orgy … this is probably a decent link for the stat-lovers in NFL & NBA … drunk, naked guy gets beat up outside a bar (video) … USA Today to lay off 130 employees … IRS comes after day trader for $172 million in back tasks; trader asks, “Who’s the IRS?” … that’s a big bar tab for Kansas City … well, this is a grim tale … this song’s incredibly infectious (and NSFW) … what Russia looked like a century ago … woman recovering from Blackberry thumb surgery … trapped miners basically told: Stay thin, or else …
Cheerleader wins $11 million libel lawsuit against blogger. [UPDATE: Wow. Due to a clerical error, this judgment could be nullified.]
Mandatory US Open read – how power has transformed women’s tennis. [NYT Magazine]
Carol Mann, who used to be in the LPGA, has made her anti-mosque thoughts known on Facebook. [Wei Under Par]
Digital overload. Fascinating stuff. [NYT, NPR]
Sam Bradford was pretty impressive last night in New England … should he start the opener?
Cool story about what went down in the 48 hours after a rumor about the Washington Times closing hit the web. [Wash Post]
Should the Pirates spend money to win ball games?
A look at what “wise guys” think about the gambling lines on the first weekend of college football. [ESPN Insider]
Shouldn’t be surprised: “Americans Want Money More Than Smarts, Thinness, Youth.”
Wrapping up Johnny Damon passing on the Red Sox with a pretty ridiculous (in a bad way) column by Dan Shaughnessy.
The more problems college football has, the more we think it’s going the baseball route. Terrible leadership and decision-making.
Why do some NHL teams want bloggers banned from the locker room? [Puck Daddy]
Rare. Captivating. You’ll watch all 10 minutes. [via Ken Tremendous]
Enjoy. [via Guyism]
Enslaved DLC detailed <b>News</b> - Page 1 | Eurogamer.net
Read our news of Enslaved DLC detailed. ... Enslaved developer diary #3 Monday. Enslaved - first 15 minutes 15 September, 2010. Latest News. Move demos flood PS Store . Enslaved UK pre-order deals detailed ...
Homosexual advocacy group not legitimately Catholic, military <b>...</b>
After receiving a letter from the group Catholics for Equality urging a change to the “Don't Ask, Don't Tell” policy, the Archbishop for Military Services responded, saying that the archdiocese's position is “clear.
Facebook Making Changes to <b>News</b> Feed, Requests, Bookmarks to <b>...</b>
After the changes take effect, people who do not play games will no longer see news feed stories from friends who do play games — same goes for any other third-party app. Because news feed stories were a main way that people found games ...
robert shumake
Enslaved DLC detailed <b>News</b> - Page 1 | Eurogamer.net
Read our news of Enslaved DLC detailed. ... Enslaved developer diary #3 Monday. Enslaved - first 15 minutes 15 September, 2010. Latest News. Move demos flood PS Store . Enslaved UK pre-order deals detailed ...
Homosexual advocacy group not legitimately Catholic, military <b>...</b>
After receiving a letter from the group Catholics for Equality urging a change to the “Don't Ask, Don't Tell” policy, the Archbishop for Military Services responded, saying that the archdiocese's position is “clear.
Facebook Making Changes to <b>News</b> Feed, Requests, Bookmarks to <b>...</b>
After the changes take effect, people who do not play games will no longer see news feed stories from friends who do play games — same goes for any other third-party app. Because news feed stories were a main way that people found games ...
Rick Lazio is running for Governor of New York, and he’s found an issue to run on in the controversy surrounding the controversy over the construction of a community center in Lower Manhattan:
At an office complex in the faded industrial town of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., recently, Rick A. Lazio, the former congressman from Long Island who is running for governor, had taken a series of standard jabs against political dysfunction in Albany and sky-high tax rates when he suddenly seemed to gain true traction with the crowd.
The issue was not the economy, or even his rival; it was the planned Muslim community center and mosque in Lower Manhattan. “We do not believe in turning our back on the victims of 9/11,” he said to enthusiastic applause. As the Republican primary for the governor’s race approaches, Mr. Lazio is making his vigorous opposition to the project a centerpiece of his candidacy, assailing it on the campaign trail, testifying against it at public hearings, denouncing it in television commercials and even creating an online petition demanding an investigation into the center and its organizers. “Defend New York,” says the giant headline above the petition on his Web site.
As a dominant New York voice against the center, Mr. Lazio has attracted a burst of public attention to a campaign that had failed to gather much momentum, overshadowed by the money and muscle of his Democratic rival, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo.
The occasional voter has now taken to stopping Mr. Lazio in the street to urge him on, and any number of others have stocked his campaign’s Web site with letters of support made public by Mr. Lazio’s aides. “Rick’s got my vote,” wrote one New Yorker, after seeing Mr. Lazio’s latest commercial about the center.
Mr. Lazio’s relentless opposition to the project — he again attacked the imam behind it during an appearance Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press” — is, above all, aimed at Republican primary voters, analysts say. But it risks alienating moderates who could prove crucial in a general election. And it certainly is infuriating many Muslim leaders, who say he is preying on the worst fears of voters; and provoking a backlash from some influential voices in the community of Sept. 11 emergency workers, who say he is exploiting the tragedy.
Nevertheless, Mr. Lazio is pushing ahead with the strategy, even breaking what has been, until now, something of an unwritten rule of politics in New York: never to use images of Sept. 11 in campaign advertisements.
As I noted on Friday, Lazio is now out with a web ad where he uses 9/11 imagery and goads Andrew Cuomo, his Democratic opponent, to take a stand on the mosque issue. So far, Cuomo has not responded, and there’s no indication that Lazio’s decision to take up the mosque as a campaign issue has had an appreciable impact on the race:
The first politician for a major elected office who came out against the “ground zero mosque” was Rick Lazio, the man who lost the New York U.S. Senate race to Hillary Clinton in 2000, who’s making a comeback bid to run for governor. Lazio asked for a mosque probe more than a month ago, challenged frontrunner Andrew Cuomo to a debate about the mosque — basically, he’s milked it for all it’s worth.
So what does it mean that this isn’t helping Lazio at all?
The new Siena Poll finds that New Yorkers (everyone in the state) oppose the mosque by a 63-27 margin; they defend the constitutional right to build it by a 64-28 margin. At the same time, Lazio trails Cuomo by 34 points. He’s down 2 points — within the margin of error, but not what you’d expect if the Great Mosque Debate of 2010 was hitting home.
Indeed not. For the most part, this race is in the same place it’s been for months, and nothing Lazio has said regarding the “Ground Zero Mosque” has done anything to change that:
Lazio has a Republican primary to get through before he faces Cuomo in November, but he’s leading that race by a fairly health margin and, if anything his stance on the mosque is actually moderate compared to that of his primary opponent, who wants to use eminent domain to take the Park 51 property away from its owners.
No doubt, Lazio will continue demagouging the mosque issue, he really has nothing to lose at this point, but it seems fairly clear that it’s providing no benefit to him in the polls. Good.
Cassie … for the Trader Joe’s fans … error on application costs New Jersey $400 million in federal funds … Miss Universe, if you missed the competition … a breakdown of who’s using twitter, and why … father fights assistant principal on Open House night … how to crash an orgy … this is probably a decent link for the stat-lovers in NFL & NBA … drunk, naked guy gets beat up outside a bar (video) … USA Today to lay off 130 employees … IRS comes after day trader for $172 million in back tasks; trader asks, “Who’s the IRS?” … that’s a big bar tab for Kansas City … well, this is a grim tale … this song’s incredibly infectious (and NSFW) … what Russia looked like a century ago … woman recovering from Blackberry thumb surgery … trapped miners basically told: Stay thin, or else …
Cheerleader wins $11 million libel lawsuit against blogger. [UPDATE: Wow. Due to a clerical error, this judgment could be nullified.]
Mandatory US Open read – how power has transformed women’s tennis. [NYT Magazine]
Carol Mann, who used to be in the LPGA, has made her anti-mosque thoughts known on Facebook. [Wei Under Par]
Digital overload. Fascinating stuff. [NYT, NPR]
Sam Bradford was pretty impressive last night in New England … should he start the opener?
Cool story about what went down in the 48 hours after a rumor about the Washington Times closing hit the web. [Wash Post]
Should the Pirates spend money to win ball games?
A look at what “wise guys” think about the gambling lines on the first weekend of college football. [ESPN Insider]
Shouldn’t be surprised: “Americans Want Money More Than Smarts, Thinness, Youth.”
Wrapping up Johnny Damon passing on the Red Sox with a pretty ridiculous (in a bad way) column by Dan Shaughnessy.
The more problems college football has, the more we think it’s going the baseball route. Terrible leadership and decision-making.
Why do some NHL teams want bloggers banned from the locker room? [Puck Daddy]
Rare. Captivating. You’ll watch all 10 minutes. [via Ken Tremendous]
Enjoy. [via Guyism]
robert shumake
Enslaved DLC detailed <b>News</b> - Page 1 | Eurogamer.net
Read our news of Enslaved DLC detailed. ... Enslaved developer diary #3 Monday. Enslaved - first 15 minutes 15 September, 2010. Latest News. Move demos flood PS Store . Enslaved UK pre-order deals detailed ...
Homosexual advocacy group not legitimately Catholic, military <b>...</b>
After receiving a letter from the group Catholics for Equality urging a change to the “Don't Ask, Don't Tell” policy, the Archbishop for Military Services responded, saying that the archdiocese's position is “clear.
Facebook Making Changes to <b>News</b> Feed, Requests, Bookmarks to <b>...</b>
After the changes take effect, people who do not play games will no longer see news feed stories from friends who do play games — same goes for any other third-party app. Because news feed stories were a main way that people found games ...
robert shumake
Enslaved DLC detailed <b>News</b> - Page 1 | Eurogamer.net
Read our news of Enslaved DLC detailed. ... Enslaved developer diary #3 Monday. Enslaved - first 15 minutes 15 September, 2010. Latest News. Move demos flood PS Store . Enslaved UK pre-order deals detailed ...
Homosexual advocacy group not legitimately Catholic, military <b>...</b>
After receiving a letter from the group Catholics for Equality urging a change to the “Don't Ask, Don't Tell” policy, the Archbishop for Military Services responded, saying that the archdiocese's position is “clear.
Facebook Making Changes to <b>News</b> Feed, Requests, Bookmarks to <b>...</b>
After the changes take effect, people who do not play games will no longer see news feed stories from friends who do play games — same goes for any other third-party app. Because news feed stories were a main way that people found games ...
No comments:
Post a Comment