Editor’s Note: This is the first column by Republican Columnist Bob Capano. PoliticsNY is looking for a mainstream Democratic Party columnist to balance his columns out. If you are a lifelong Democrat and think you can handle a regular column covering the blue side of the red/blue divide email switt@Schnepsmedia.com.
The same factors leading many to expect huge Republican gains in Congress in this year’s mid-term elections also gives the GOP hope here in deep blue New York.
The New York State Republican Party, which just had their convention, has four credible candidates running for Governor, which demonstrates the belief that GOP gains will trickle down to state races.
While U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin won the bulk of support among Republican honchos at their recent convention in Long Island, the other three GOP gubernatorial candidates, Andrew Giuliani, Rob Astorino, and Harry Wilson are running aggressive campaigns.
In a GOP primary, as we have seen throughout the county, an endorsement from former President Trump can make or break a candidacy. Zeldin and Giuliani have the best shot for his endorsement due to their close ties to the former President.
However, only Giuliani boosted Trump at the convention calling the GOP “the party of Donald J. Trump.” You can bet that Giuliani folks will make sure Trump knows this. Of course, a Trump endorsement can hurt in a general election but winning the primary comes first. Giuliani is probably betting that the current crises in New York, most notably crime, will trump a possible Trump endorsement in November.
Nationally, the President’s political party almost always loses seats in Congress in mid-term elections. In modern mid-terms the party whose President sits in the White House have lost an average of 30 seats in the House of Representatives and U.S. Senate. The extent of these losses is dependent on the Presidents’ popularity and the state of the economy.
Today, Biden’s ratings are in the toilet, hovering at 37% in a just released Washington Post-ABC news poll. The state of the economy is miserable with soaring inflation hitting Americans where it hurts most- in their wallets and purses.
However, in addition to these factors there are ever increasing crime rates, with many placing the blame on Democrat policies- not COVID. Indeed, there was an incredible 205.6% spike in NYC subway crime this past week compared to the same time last year.
Yet, to this day, Governor Hochul and state Democrats refuse to make any changes to the widely criticized bail reform law, including allowing judges to consider the “dangerousness” of a defendant when deciding on bail. Significantly, every other state allows judges this discretion. In addition, New York City District Attorneys, most notably Manhattan’s Al Bragg, refuse to prosecute many crimes.
Politically, all of this allows New York Republicans to blame Democrats for every New Yorker that gets human feces splattered on their face, pushed on the subway, shot, assaulted, or robbed. After all, they control all the levers of power at our national, state, and local levels of government and gave in to the woke progressive anti-law enforcement and pro-criminal propaganda.
Republicans will not only make gains in Washington but can do so in Albany for the first time in decades.
Bob Capano has served in senior positions to NYC elected Republicans and Democrats, and has been an adjunct professor of political science for over 15 years.
