56th State Senate race set

Brighton town supervisor Sandy Frankel ended her campaign for the New York State Senate Thursday night, making her intentions clear at the Monroe Co. Democratic Convention.

Frankel said that fellow Democrat Rick Dollinger has the party votes to be the designated candidate, and that she was removing her name from consideration in the name of party unity.

That means the race for the 56th State Senate seat is set. Dollinger will face off with the incumbent, Republican Joe Robach of Greece.

Dean of Democrats in Rochester Thursday (Updated)

Howard's Here (UPDATED) - Howard Dean is in Rochester Thursday night for the Monroe Co. Democratic Convention. The chairman of the Democratic National Committee is in Syracuse Thursday morning, in a show of support for Dan Maffei, running for the 25th District seat in Congress. Tonight in Rochester, several Dem candidates will be officially given the party nod, like judge candidate and current assistant district attorney Joanne Winslow, and county clerk candidate Tom Hasman.

The big story, of course, is Howard Dean steering the Democratic ship. No surprise, he remained neutral on the Democratic Primary.

'Elo Guv'nah (UPDATED) - Gov. David Paterson gave News 8's Evan Axelbank an exclusive 1-on-1 interview Wednesday. Paterson said he is still supporting Clinton, and that anything can happen. When asked to name a scenario where Clinton would be the nominee, he balked. Evan has posted more interesting insights from the Governor here, and here.

Tough Tapdance - The most interesting endorsement of Barack Obama on Wednesday didn't come from John Edwards. In fact, it wasn't really an endorsement at all. The New York branch of NARAL, the National Abortion Rights Action League, broke with it's parent organization by not throwing it's support behind either Obama's or Hillary Clinton's limping campaign.

NARAL NY is just one example. It's in a bind, like a lot of local and statewide organization branches and elected officials. NARAL can't appear to bite the hand of Hillary; however, the longer the organization waits, the more irrelevant-seeming the endorsement becomes.

Of course, there's the irony of a pro-choice organization choosing not to choose.



Sweetland Sweep - Republican Dale Sweetland, running against Dan Maffei for the 25th Congressional seat, has recieved the endorsement of the Wayne Co. Republican Party. This is the seat that will be up for grabs when Jim Walsh retires this year. Sweetland is from Fabius in Onondaga County, where he was a county legislator. Sweetland (on the left) also bears an uncanny resemblance to British boxer Nigel "The UK Hammer" Hudson (on the right).

Can Hillary make it to the finish line?

That's the big question Wednesday morning. A big win in West Virginia Tuesday didn't change the math for Hillary Clinton. The New York Senator is huddled with her campaign staff, trying to figure out if she has the money to see this race to the end.

Trailing in delegates, superdelegates, and the popular vote, reality has to have set in to Clinton's supporters, who at best can hope for a Julie Moss finish.

In the 1982 Ironman Triathlon, Moss led the way, and was within sight of the finish line when her body just couldn't take any more. She collapsed several times. As she struggled to stand up, or even remain conscious, her friend and chief rival passed her, and crossed the finish line seconds later. Moss did not give up and made it to the end.

With no hope of overtaking Barack Obama, the best Hillary can hope for is an Ironman-like finish to inspire the Democrats.

In case you missed it...

Rick's Rolling - Rick Dollinger's campaign to return to Albany got a big boost Saturday. Dollinger now has the backing of the Monroe Co. Democratic Party. He's seeking the 56th District seat in the state Senate, held by Joe Robach, a Republican. Dollinger spent 10 years in the state Senate. Brighton town supervisor Sandy Frankel and Rochester City School District board member Willa Powell were also looking to run against Robach as Democrats.

Et tu, SNL? - Saturday Night Live has had a knack for making me cringe (I will always hold a grudge against the show for unleashing Will Ferrell on the world). You have to see Amy Poehler's sendup of Sen. Hillary Clinton and her underlying campaign strategy that kicked off the show this weekend. Absolutely brutal, in a "they went there" way. The wince-worthy clip of the weekend has plenty of Hillary supporters upset. It's a surprising turn of events. Two months ago, SNL seemed to be in Clinton's pocket, as skits made it seem like Clinton was the underdog as the press fawned over Obama, and Tina Fey openly cheered on Hillary from the Weekend Update desk. You're going to have to watch the clip and decide for yourself. You can catch it and other videos at SNL's new election website.