Pirro May Be Left Out In Cold
by john toscano

Given the recent experiences of two Democratic candidates for major offices who failed to build any early momentum in their campaigns and eventually suffered embarrassing defeats, it would seem to be a good idea for Jeanine Pirro to forget about challenging United States Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton next year.

Pirro was already facing a serious uphill fight against the popular, well-funded incumbent. The announcement of Pirro’s challenge to Clinton did not unleash an avalanche of campaign contributions nor a rallying of party leaders to her cause. Her nascent campaign has foundered since then, following the same pattern that brought the defeat of U.S. Senator John Kerry to President George W. Bush and Fernando Ferrer’s crushing loss at the hands of Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

So when Senate Majority Leader Bruno dropped his bombshell suggestion that Pirro quit the race against Clinton, much to the dismay of Pirro, Governor George Pataki, and state GOP Chairman Stephen J. Minarik, the whole matter of Pirro’s lagging effort came into sharp focus.

One of the initial results of Bruno’s remark was to try to get Pirro to change direction and run for state attorney general, which seemed to make sense, given all her years as Westchester’s chief prosecutor.

But Pirro had already rejected that idea when she made her decision to run against Clinton. Nor was there any groundswell of support for her to get into the Attorney General race. Many Republican leaders throughout the state have already committed to other candidates, so if Pirro does throw her hat in the ring for that post, some leaders will surely oppose the move. Should she run for attorney general none the less, they would give her only half-hearted support.

Some leaders are already annoyed that Pirro drove what they considered a good Clinton opponent, attorney Edward Cox, out of the race. There is also lingering opposition to Pirro in some other quarters because she would be dragged down by her husband’s recent conviction on tax evasion charges.

As Pirro was trying to build support for her Senate race, other Republicans eyeing the attorney general race have emerged and began to try to convince leaders to get behind them.

One of these potential candidates is Chauncey Parker, a former Manhattan prosecutor who is now the state criminal justice coordinator. He’s impressed leaders with his squeaky-clean credentials and stands an excellent chance of locking up the nomination.

The fallout from the Pirro debacle has also emphasized the lame duck status of Pataki, her mentor. Bruno’s ability to turn Pirro’s race inside out has only sharpened the animosity between the upstate lawmaker and the state’s three-term governor. Bruno has also managed to get Conservative Party Leader Michael Long interested in Republican matters again and, he too, got on the bandwagon to grease the wheels for Pirro’s Senate bid.

Pirro’s abortive bid to challenge Clinton, in the final analysis, only added more confusion to a party already in disarray.