The tremors of the The Steamroller driving himself off the cliff and exploding on impact are still reverberating.
David Paterson was supposed to be a clean slate, until Days Inn dalliances smudged his image and no one knows if those old bulls, Bruno and Silver, will soon defeat him at mudwrestling. Then, as Michael Samuels posted here yesterday, there’s speculation Hillary Clinton might make a bid to be New York’s first woman governor which had political fanatics drooling at the tasty spectacle of a Rudy/Hillary donnybrook.
But not so fast Rudy, says Peter King, R-Seaford, who the New York Times reports today is looking at a run for New York’s top spot.
Can the sage of Island Park, the scourge of New York Democrats, beloved of God and the state GOP faithful, be next to announce for a last hurrah?
From the Times story:
“Mr. King’s supporters say that he fits the profile needed to help Republicans win a statewide race in New York: a white Republican from the suburbs of New York City who is Roman Catholic with an ethnic background, in his case Irish-American.
He has also shown an ability to raise significant amounts of money. In 2006, for example, he raised more than $2 million during a bruising campaign season for Republicans, and one in which he faced a strong opponent.
His supporters also say that his record is an asset for any Republican running in a heavily Democratic state like New York. While he opposes abortion rights and supports strong measures to stem illegal immigration, he has been seen as something of a maverick within his own party.
Mr. King has worked closely — and openly — with Democrats to block Republican policies in Washington that he felt might hurt his state, including proposed cuts to Medicaid and homeland security funding. He is also close to labor unions, a major constituency in New York.
