Cooperation With GOP Puts Senator in Primary

[Smarmie Doofus]

Perhaps Mr. Klein took this triangulation business a bit too far. We shall see.

My state senate district. My former city council member ( "progressive&quot is primarying ("pragmatic&quot incumbent dem who caucuses with gop , effectively keeping the majority DEM senate in GOP hands.

Tilting at windmill$? Or is it the wave of the future?


>>>ALBANY — G. Oliver Koppell has spent four decades in politics, serving in the State Assembly, on the New York City Council and as attorney general for a brief stint at the tail end of Gov. Mario M. Cuomo’s final term. Through it all, he has been a Democrat — and a liberal one at that — with Republicans as his usual opponents.

On Monday, however, Mr. Koppell will formally announce a bid for a different seat under different circumstances, challenging a fellow Democrat, Senator Jeffrey D. Klein, for a seat in Albany’s upper chamber representing parts of the Bronx and Westchester County.

Mr. Koppell said he was mounting his primary campaign because of Mr. Klein’s five-member breakaway group, the Independent Democratic Conference, which agreed to share leadership with Republicans, an act he considers treachery.

“I’m running because the state senator who represents my district has betrayed the Democratic Party and foiled important objectives,” Mr. Koppell said in an interview on Friday. “And people have come to me and said because of my good reputation, my good name recognition, because of my record, I’m someone who can set this right.”

Mr. Koppell, 73, faces a stiff challenge to unseat Mr. Klein, an accomplished fund-raiser who has supporters l>>>>>>> the rest at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/05/nyregion/cooperation-with-gop-puts-senator-in-a-primary.html?mabReward=RI%3A1&action=click&contentCollection=N.Y.%20%2F%20Region&region=Footer&module=Recommendation&src=recg&pgtype=article

[madokie]

1. Democratic in name only is killing us

[vi5]

2. We can't be like Republicans so we need to be like them!!

That seems to be the basic logic of people on "our side" who don't want DINO's being primaried.

"We shouldn't do that and have purity tests because we need to be better than Republicans!!"

So we're being "better than Republicans" by letting people on "our side" act like Republicans and vote like republicans and at times caucus with Republicans?

Yeah. No. We need to be done with that and we need to play hardball.

[hobbit709]

3. Let's see here. He calls himself a D but he hangs with the R's?

Fuck that. He's NOT a D.

[Smarmie Doofus]

4. Alas. He thinks he is. Most of the party establishment seems to agree.

A curious NYS DEM-style paradox.

The race would appear to hinge on who turns out on primary day. It should be a *really* low turnout. Maybe record low.

Who will turn-out? Real-life DEMs, or people who are connected to the machine... by $$$ or cronyism or blood relations, etc.

And if Klein loses the primary, he might be able to swing the GOP cross endorsement. They owe him much. He's done a lot for them.

I'd guess GOP normally gets about 40% in a general.

We'll see.