CQ TODAY ONLINE NEWS
– POLITICS
May 11, 2009 – 1:26 p.m.
Israel Tells Colleagues He’ll Take On Gillibrand
By Jonathan Allen and Emily Cadei, CQ Staff
Rep. Steve Israel has told fellow members of New York’s congressional delegation that he will challenge Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand in a Democratic primary in 2010, congressional aides said Monday.
“An announcement is imminent,” said one aide to a Democratic member of the New York delegation.
Israel’s spokeswoman said there are no plans for such an announcement this week. “The only announcement the congressman has planned for this week is about a Smart Grid proposal for Long Island,” Lindsay Hamilton said in an e-mail.
Israel, a 50-year-old in his 5th term from Long Island’s 2nd District, represents the most serious threat thus far to Gillibrand, who was appointed to the seat by New York Gov. David Paterson earlier this year when Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (2001-2009) became secretary of State. Israel also was in the running for the appointment.
Several veteran politicians, including Democratic Reps. Carolyn McCarthy from Long Island’s 4th District and Carolyn Maloney from the Upper East Side’s 14th District, are considered possible candidates for the seat. Also interested in a potential run are Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and Suffolk County Legislature Majority Leader Jon Cooper.
McCarthy, whose husband was killed by the Long Island Rail Road shooter in 1993, called Gillibrand “the NRA’s poster child” in an interview on MSNBC’s Hardball in January and vowed to run against her if a younger candidate didn’t come forward.
Israel, who is more than 14 years younger than McCarthy, fits that description. But McCarthy is unlikely to bow out preemptively until it is certain that someone else will challenge Gillibrand for the nomination.
Gillibrand, who won two House terms as a centrist in the northern Hudson Valley-based 20th District, has yet to win over statewide voters and is widely viewed as vulnerable to a challenge from her left flank in next year’s special election.
A Marist poll of registered Democrats conducted April 28th and 29th found that 43 percent of respondents could not rate her job performance, while 19 percent said she was doing an excellent or good job and 38 percent said her performance in her new office was either fair or poor.
Gillibrand’s approval rating was lowest amongst New York City Democrats, who tend to be more liberal than their suburban or upstate counterparts.
And as longtime New York political consultant Hank Sheinkopf noted, “In the primary she needs New York City, she doesn’t need anything else.”
But Israel was, like Gillibrand, a rare northeastern member of the fiscally moderate Blue Dog Coalition until last election cycle and backed President George W. Bush ’s tax cuts in 2001. He voted for the Republican-written prescription-drug bill on its first trip through the House in 2003 but opposed the law’s final passage later that year.
Israel supported Bush’s position 48 percent of the time in 2001, a figure that dropped to 4 percent in 2007 before moving back up to 15 percent in 2008. His party unity scores—the rate at which he backed the Democratic position on votes that split the parties—rose steadily from 82 percent in 2001 to 99 percent in 2008.
Gillibrand, who served just two years in the House, supported Bush 6 percent of the time in 2007 and 22 percent of the time in 2008. Her party unity scores were 90 percent in 2007 and 91 percent in 2008.
She has been taken to task by Latino groups over her record on immigration but has since come out in favor of an overhaul of the immigration system that would provide a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants currently in the country. Gillibrand also signed on as a co-sponsor last month to the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act (
Well aware that she is a target in 2010 Gillibrand has launched an aggressive fundraising effort, laying down a marker with $2.3 million in receipts in the first three months of 2009.
Israel trailed well behind her in first quarter fundraising, with $280,000 in receipts. But he had $1.7 million in the bank at the end of March and has an established network of donors to draw from once his campaign gets underway.
Comments
Mr. Israel seems not to realize the power of Ms. Gillibrand. Not only is she brilliant, but is a hard worker with a progressive agenda. Once all New Yorkers become acquainted with her they will be more than pleased. Plus she's a fabulous money raiser.
In January 2009, Steve Israel promised Paterson to support whoever was selected for the Senate seat. "A divisive primary, said Israel, would help Republicans seeking to win the U.S. Senate post and break Democrats' hold on all statewide offices." Mr. Israel should stick to his promises. We have a talented, dedicated, and intelligent Senator who is working very hard to meet with her new constituents and sponsor important legislation to tackle the NY's pressing issues. This is clearly a self-serving act on Israel's part, and not in the best interest of the Party or NY. What is his argument--that he is more "progressive" than Gillibrand? Look at his record. Her voting record is solidly progressive. She opposed the war in Iraq, is a staunch advocate of women's rights, pay equity and choice; gay rights; stem cell research; increasing the minimum wage; and expanding affordable housing, Head Start and SCHIP. She is also greatly respected for her experience in financial services and banking. She has been endorsed by numerous progressive democratic issue-groups, including the ACLU, the League of Conservation Voters, EMILY'S List, NARAL, the Sierra Club, and the AFL- CIO. He also underestimates her support and campaigning prowess. See you at the voting booth, Steve.
Lee Woronoff has got it right. In just four short months, Senator Gillibrand has proved herself to be an amazing advocate for New York - she's delivered federal recovery monies to every area of the state and is working hard to create new jobs, keep guns off the street, and forge a rational immigration policy. She's amazing and we're lucky to have her in the US Senate!
There is no salient reason to replace Gillibrand with Steve Israel, but there are plenty of reasons NOT to choose Israel. One reason is demographic: does the entire state really need to be represented in the Senate by two Jewish men from Long Island?
I thought Chucky was from Brooklyn? Is he living in the Hamptons now?
The fact is that New Yorkers deserve a choice-- Gov Paterson handed the seat to Senator Gillibrand, I dont think we want to then again hand it to her. Given a choice, many New Yorkers will pick Steve Israel to represent them in the Senate
Brooklyn is the western end of Long Island. The next question would be: Who is in line to replace Cong. Israel?
Political egos threaten the national Democratic legislative agenda, or so it would seem by the unseemly rush to announce challenges to Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. O joy! O Rapture! might well be the theme of the Republicans who know how New York Democrats are capable of knocking each other senseless in September primaries, and then sneaking in a winning Republican in the November general election. If that happens, there goes the 60 Democratic senators needed to advance the Democratic agenda. However, each of you can help avoid a nasty, costly, divisive primary in 2010 against Kirsten in two important ways: 1. If you, or others you know, are a constituent of Steve Israel, or Carolyn Maloney, or anyone else positioning themselves to challenge Kirsten, please make it clear to them that while you applaud their service as a public official/Congressperson, and their seniority is of great value, you will not support them in a primary to unseat Kirsten, and if they persist, they will be spoilers or worse; and 2. Please make a contribution to Kirsten's campaign of any size, immediately, so that she will, for the second quarter in a row, report an impressive number of donors and a significant amount of money. This will help dissuade adventurers from venturing into dangerous waters...every amount, from a symbolic $5 to maxing out at $4800, helps send a message that we have a very progressive, effective, strong advocate as Senator, and that we are determined to keep the seat Democratic in a Democratic state known for electing Republicans. Please contribute at http://kirstengillibrand.com/index.asp. And you do not need to be a New Yorker to know how important this is to the Democratic Party and for a progressive national Democratic agenda! Everyone can help!
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