The day after a Primary always have a few losing candidates, their supporters and gullible reporters talking about "demanding a recount".

Let’s make it clear. There are no recounts in New York because there hasn’t been an official count yet.

The results that are out there now are unofficial. They are called in by election inspectors after the polls closed Tuesday night. Numbers are not double checked and mistakes are always made. No absentee, affadavit or emergency ballots have been counted yet.

In the next week or two, the Board of Elections will conduct the official count by recording the numbers off the machines and counting the paper ballots.

American doesn’t love a loser, so today is not a day many people will be thanking Tom Suozzi for his work and his campaign.  I was going to drop him a note, but I’m a blogger now, so what the hell, I’ll do it here. 

Thank you for turning your back on the safe path of careerism, trading favors, waiting for the death or indictment of an incumbent, and occupying a seat.  Instead you took on the corrupt and seemingly impregnable Nassau County Republican machine, made many of the hard short run decisions – higher taxes, reduced services, tougher labor negotiations – required to begin turning the situation around for the long run.  Thanks even more for taking on the disgrace our state government, once one of the best in the nation, has become.  That was even harder, because it required that you not only call out the other side, but also your own side and its supporters.  It made a lot of enemies, which has cost you.  But from my point of view, they include many of the right enemies.  And thanks for running for Governor.  You offered your service.  The voters decided to choose otherwise.  So be it.  That isn’t anything for Tom Suozzi to feel bad about.

American doesn’t love a loser, so today is not a day many people will be thanking Tom Suozzi for his work and his campaign.  I was going to drop him a note, but I’m a blogger now, so what the hell, I’ll do it here. 

Thank you for turning your back on the safe path of careerism, trading favors, waiting for the death or indictment of an incumbent, and occupying a seat.  Instead you took on the corrupt and seemingly impregnable Nassau County Republican machine, made many of the hard short run decisions – higher taxes, reduced services, tougher labor negotiations – required to begin turning the situation around for the long run.  Thanks even more for taking on the disgrace our state government, once one of the best in the nation, has become.  That was even harder, because it required that you not only call out the other side, but also your own side and its supporters.  It made a lot of enemies, which has cost you.  But from my point of view, they include many of the right enemies.  And thanks for running for Governor.  You offered your service.  The voters decided to choose otherwise.  So be it.  That isn’t anything for Tom Suozzi to feel bad about.

American doesn’t love a loser, so today is not a day many people will be thanking Tom Suozzi for his work and his campaign.  I was going to drop him a note, but I’m a blogger now, so what the hell, I’ll do it here. 

Thank you for turning your back on the safe path of careerism, trading favors, waiting for the death or indictment of an incumbent, and occupying a seat.  Instead you took on the corrupt and seemingly impregnable Nassau County Republican machine, made many of the hard short run decisions – higher taxes, reduced services, tougher labor negotiations – required to begin turning the situation around for the long run.  Thanks even more for taking on the disgrace our state government, once one of the best in the nation, has become.  That was even harder, because it required that you not only call out the other side, but also your own side and its supporters.  It made a lot of enemies, which has cost you.  But from my point of view, they include many of the right enemies.  And thanks for running for Governor.  You offered your service.  The voters decided to choose otherwise.  So be it.  That isn’t anything for Tom Suozzi to feel bad about.

American doesn’t love a loser, so today is not a day many people will be thanking Tom Suozzi for his work and his campaign.  I was going to drop him a note, but I’m a blogger now, so what the hell, I’ll do it here. 

Thank you for turning your back on the safe path of careerism, trading favors, waiting for the death or indictment of an incumbent, and occupying a seat.  Instead you took on the corrupt and seemingly impregnable Nassau County Republican machine, made many of the hard short run decisions – higher taxes, reduced services, tougher labor negotiations – required to begin turning the situation around for the long run.  Thanks even more for taking on the disgrace our state government, once one of the best in the nation, has become.  That was even harder, because it required that you not only call out the other side, but also your own side and its supporters.  It made a lot of enemies, which has cost you.  But from my point of view, they include many of the right enemies.  And thanks for running for Governor.  You offered your service.  The voters decided to choose otherwise.  So be it.  That isn’t anything for Tom Suozzi to feel bad about.

I had been planning to post an argument that we should move New York’s Primary date but today’s New York Sun shows that Chris Owens, Yvette Clarke, Jonathan Tasini and of all people Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver beat me to it.

Silver, in fact, has co-sponsored a bill to move the Primary to the 3^rd Thursday in June.

The argument in that because the media has, and presumably will continue to focus so much on the anniversary of the September 11^th attacks and there is now such much pressure on candidates never to campaign on September 11^th, turnout in the Primary is depressed.

For a decade or more the status and needs of Upstate New York’s economy has been the number one issue in virtually every statewide political campaign.  In 1994, Republican George Pataki unseated his predecessor as Governor, Democrat Mario Cuomo, in part by blaming Cuomo for Upstate’s economic decline.  In 1998, Democrat Chuck Schumer unseated his predecessor as Senator, Republican Al D’Amato, by blaming the Republicans for failing to revive the Upstate economy; meanwhile, Governor Pataki criticized his opponent, New York City Council Speaker Peter Vallone, for not caring enough about Upstate New York.   In 2000, future Senator Hillary Clinton scored points by “listening” to Upstate New York while her opponent, Republican Rick Lazio, committed a “gaffe” by claiming that Upstate New York was improving.  And one of the few risks in George Pataki’s 2002 re-election campaign was potential Upstate resentment at his “unjustified” attention to New York City in the wake of a minor incident with a couple of airplanes.  In this election, Eliot Spitzer compared Upstate to Appalachia, Tom Suozzi said upstate needs jobs, and John Faso is running in the tradition of candidates who believe lazy, undeserving New York City needs to be cut off to help hard working, deserving Upstate.

For a decade or more the status and needs of Upstate New York’s economy has been the number one issue in virtually every statewide political campaign.  In 1994, Republican George Pataki unseated his predecessor as Governor, Democrat Mario Cuomo, in part by blaming Cuomo for Upstate’s economic decline.  In 1998, Democrat Chuck Schumer unseated his predecessor as Senator, Republican Al D’Amato, by blaming the Republicans for failing to revive the Upstate economy; meanwhile, Governor Pataki criticized his opponent, New York City Council Speaker Peter Vallone, for not caring enough about Upstate New York.   In 2000, future Senator Hillary Clinton scored points by “listening” to Upstate New York while her opponent, Republican Rick Lazio, committed a “gaffe” by claiming that Upstate New York was improving.  And one of the few risks in George Pataki’s 2002 re-election campaign was potential Upstate resentment at his “unjustified” attention to New York City in the wake of a minor incident with a couple of airplanes.  In this election, Eliot Spitzer compared Upstate to Appalachia, Tom Suozzi said upstate needs jobs, and John Faso is running in the tradition of candidates who believe lazy, undeserving New York City needs to be cut off to help hard working, deserving Upstate.

For a decade or more the status and needs of Upstate New York’s economy has been the number one issue in virtually every statewide political campaign.  In 1994, Republican George Pataki unseated his predecessor as Governor, Democrat Mario Cuomo, in part by blaming Cuomo for Upstate’s economic decline.  In 1998, Democrat Chuck Schumer unseated his predecessor as Senator, Republican Al D’Amato, by blaming the Republicans for failing to revive the Upstate economy; meanwhile, Governor Pataki criticized his opponent, New York City Council Speaker Peter Vallone, for not caring enough about Upstate New York.   In 2000, future Senator Hillary Clinton scored points by “listening” to Upstate New York while her opponent, Republican Rick Lazio, committed a “gaffe” by claiming that Upstate New York was improving.  And one of the few risks in George Pataki’s 2002 re-election campaign was potential Upstate resentment at his “unjustified” attention to New York City in the wake of a minor incident with a couple of airplanes.  In this election, Eliot Spitzer compared Upstate to Appalachia, Tom Suozzi said upstate needs jobs, and John Faso is running in the tradition of candidates who believe lazy, undeserving New York City needs to be cut off to help hard working, deserving Upstate.

For a decade or more the status and needs of Upstate New York’s economy has been the number one issue in virtually every statewide political campaign.  In 1994, Republican George Pataki unseated his predecessor as Governor, Democrat Mario Cuomo, in part by blaming Cuomo for Upstate’s economic decline.  In 1998, Democrat Chuck Schumer unseated his predecessor as Senator, Republican Al D’Amato, by blaming the Republicans for failing to revive the Upstate economy; meanwhile, Governor Pataki criticized his opponent, New York City Council Speaker Peter Vallone, for not caring enough about Upstate New York.   In 2000, future Senator Hillary Clinton scored points by “listening” to Upstate New York while her opponent, Republican Rick Lazio, committed a “gaffe” by claiming that Upstate New York was improving.  And one of the few risks in George Pataki’s 2002 re-election campaign was potential Upstate resentment at his “unjustified” attention to New York City in the wake of a minor incident with a couple of airplanes.  In this election, Eliot Spitzer compared Upstate to Appalachia, Tom Suozzi said upstate needs jobs, and John Faso is running in the tradition of candidates who believe lazy, undeserving New York City needs to be cut off to help hard working, deserving Upstate.