The Trump Gambit
Yesterday a junket of desperate Republicans met with noted Birther and tack merchant Donald Trump, urging him to run for governor of the state of New York against Andrew Cuomo. Among them was local political consultant and public relations maven Michael Caputo and birther tea party freshman Assemblyman David DiPietro.
In this episode of “let’s recruit the rich guy“, the Republican left on the sidelines is Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino, a solid Republican executive with wins under his belt, but little name recognition outside of downstate. Astorino also doesn’t plaster his name on all kinds of stuff or have a billion dollars, nor is he the Sarah Palin of billionaires. But New York State Republicans are not beneath screwing the guy who earns something in favor of the self-funding rich guy. Right, David Bellavia?
New York State has a population of just under 20 million people, almost half of whom live in the five boroughs of New York City. Add a million from Westchester, 1.5 million in Suffolk County, 1.4 million in Nassau, 317k in Rockland, 375k in Orange, and 100k in Putnam, and you have about 13.5 million of 19.5 million residents living within the immediate New York City metropolitan area – people who largely have no use for Albany or upstate in general, not to mention western New York.
Trump’s especial brand of anti-Obama birtherism plays well for like-minded fellas like David DiPietro and his tea party cohorts. While much is being made of the duration of yesterday’s meeting, and the fact that Trump is no longer ruling anything out, this may have something to do with Trump’s new feud against Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. Schneiderman’s office recently brought a $40 million fraud lawsuit against something called “Trump University” – or as the AG called it, a “nationwide scam” and bait & switch fraud. Trump just this week filed an ethics complaint against Schneiderman, citing the prominent case of Argle v. Bargle.
Really what this amounts to is recruiting a richer, downstate-friendly Carl Paladino. Trump is just as plainspoken, just as filled with scandal, just as flawed as our local loudmouth developer, but the difference is that Trump has name recognition downstate, to whom Paladino was a profane stranger, and Trump has actual friends in downstate media – even the NY Post was against Paladino.
Donald Trump is the dream candidate for the angry, defeatist white male upstate voter with a “repeal NY SAFE Act” lawnsign because to the WBEN listener Rus Thompson set, Cuomo is the devil, and Obama isn’t even human. They aspire to be just like Donald Trump, and they love that he thinks like they do – and he has the money and name recognition to not care what anyone thinks. His downstate bona fides explain why he’s being wooed.
Donald Trump would accomplish nothing in New York State. He would do nothing for education, for the poor, for upstate’s economic malaise, for Buffalo, or for anyone except the tea party and the ultrarich. I will also bet you that part of the strategy is a fusion party line or two, meaning that Trump would take advantage of the single-most corrupt process in New York politics.
The headlines yesterday should have read, “Lawmakers to Massage Trump Ego, Trump Reacts Favorably”.
Cuomo is just a wolf in sheep’s clothing…he’s no better or worse than Trump. he’s all about the rich and corporations……
Dear New York State Republicans,
I think that nominating a candidate for public office whose primary, and probably sole attribute, is to self fund a campaign and bring his personal wealth to the table, is probably not a good idea.
Sincerely,
Bert Dunn
Sheriff Tim Howard.
Dear New York State Republicans,
I think that nominating a candidate for governor who has universal name recognition via all the goofy and crazy things he has done in the public realm is inspiring. It’s fabulous!
Sincerely,
Kevin Gaughan
Dear New York State Republicans,
I think that placing on the ballot an awful and unelectable candidate, one who will disrupt and draw away support from the candidate on the ballot with actual credentials, is a fine idea where I come from.
Sincerely,
Winnie Fisher
I don’t like what people did to Winnie Fisher. You may not have liked her, but her Democratic opponent had his own personal problems (which didn’t come to light because decent human beings), and seriously it was bullshit what was done to her by Kristy Mazurek and Nick Langworthy.
Meh. I don’t know the lady and never met her. I’m sure there’s a lot of good in her. My set of snarky posts was to put a spotlight on the total inability of our local organization to recruit, fund and elect winnable candidates to public office despite overwhelming enrollment advantages. In light of the catastrophic defeats last month, one would think the stakeholders would look into the abyss and conclude that we all have to change our ways. Sadly, little has changed, and 2014 will bring yet more failure, dysfunction and bad outcomes you watch. As for me, being a do nothing, hanger on, washed up clown, I get to pour a beverage, sit back and relax and watch the freak show from my 15th floor balcony.
What was done to Winnie Fisher that you think was BS? We can easily review what you were up to with candidates. You were exposing emails, dressing up as a horse/following Carl around and stalking Chris Collins trying to catch photos of where he was parking. 🙂 I’m not defending the people you were doing this against. Why are you calling BS against Winnie? it is politics.
First of all, I didn’t “stalk” Chris Collins. People sent that in. Secondly, I think that it’s wholly relevant for voters to know that they’re being asked to vote for a sexist, racist, homophobic, misogynist forwarder of anal horse porn. Thirdly, Wynnie Fisher was involved in a run-of-the-mill dispute with a neighbor. The neighbor defamed her to a nominally Democratic operative who, in turn, gave it to Nick Langworthy to smear her. Do you think it’s relevant to a county legislature race for a neighbor to get the EC GOP Chair to point out how “insane” she seems because she uses a doggie stroller? (Something I saw at least 10 times in South Florida 2 weeks ago).
For the last time, skippy: Alan is NOT me! Neigh, I say! Neigh! I gace Trump a carriage ride in Central Park once, fortunately I ate a big bowl of chili beforehand, so he smelled nothing but horse farts for 40 minutes!
Glad to see Kulyk finally trying to influence the political party where he naturally belongs. They can have him. Oh, but what they get is a big-mouthed, do-nothing hanger-on whose political irrelevance is quite clear to pretty much anyone who knows this washed-up clown.
Alan, recently you said Michael Caputo was a friend and you support his efforts. These are the type of efforts for which I know this guy, what does he do that you support?
I support him making a living. I don’t have to support the substance of what he does. I didn’t go on WBEN to agree with his opinions, you know.
I guess. Unless that living does more harm than good to the community?
According to who, Jim? You? No offense intended, but I’m qualified to decide what I wish to do for my community. Just like you are qualified to decide what to do, too? My advise: do something and stand up for it with your real name? Anonymous passive criticism is worth the paper it’s printed on? (Note the use of a question mark to make it seem I’m like just askin’, not criticizin’.)
Don’t mean to get under your skin. Alan said he supported your efforts. When asked what efforts he said the effort to make a living. In my opinion the things you and your ilk stand for do more harm than good so my question, and it was a question, had to do with the fine line he was drawing.
On the other hand if you inviting Alan onto WBEN was an effort on your part to diversify opinion on that station, I’m all for it. Mundane monotone is exactly what WBEN has become. I don’t listen, I’d like to, I used to listen to talk radio all day. But that station is exactly what you accuse me of being.
As for staying anonymous, I used to write to the news editorials, my wife was uncomfortable with the phone calls.
Fair enough. MC
If I only hung out with people I agree with on the issues, my life would be a horribly mundane monotone existence. Perhaps a lot like yours.
Thanks for reinforcing the idea that conservatives are condescending jackasses! As a patriot, I support your efforts!
What they are really saying is “hey, there are a lot of stupid people in New York State who are just ripe for the picking. With their dumb dollars and a lot of help from the NRA, it’s an easy way for us to get hold of some serious coin.”