Maloney to try her luck in Senate bid
Is rival to Kennedy for Clinton’s seat
Two women from the Silk Stocking District of Manhattan are among those seeking the U. S. Senate seat Hillary Rodham Clinton is vacating.
One is, well, you know, Caroline Kennedy.
The other already represents Kennedy in Congress — Rep. Carolyn Maloney.
Maloney spent Saturday in Buffalo, meeting with a half-dozen politicians, including Mayor Byron W. Brown. But unlike Kennedy, Maloney also met with average citizens, including 35 who attended a forum on the economy at the Central Library.
“The number one concern I’ve heard is jobs, jobs, jobs,” Maloney said at the forum, sponsored by Be The Change New York and Citizen Action of New York.
If Gov. David A. Paterson deems gender important enough of an issue to focus on filling Clinton’s seat with another woman, it could very well come down to the celebrity of Kennedy versus the credentials of Maloney.
Maloney, 60, has held elected office for 26 years, first serving 10 years on the New York City Council and since then in Congress as a Democrat representing most of Manhattan’s East Side and Astoria and Long Island City in Queens.
She’s regarded as a champion of issues related to women, children and families, and has won praise for her work on legislation to fight human trafficking and improve consumer protections for credit card holders.
Last year she published a book, “Rumors of Our Progress Have Been Greatly Exaggerated: Why Women’s Lives Aren’t Getting Any Easier — and How We Can Make Real Progress for Ourselves and Our Daughters.”
Maloney’s advocacy earned her endorsements for the Senate from several feminist organizations, including the National Organization for Women and Gloria Steinem.
Maloney, who has never met her more-famous constituent, has been upfront about her desire for the Senate seat.
In early December, she hired a consulting firm whose founder has been described as Paterson’s political mentor, but who has had an up-and-down relationship with the governor of late.
Maloney’s visit to Buffalo was the first of a three-day tour of upstate, which will include stops in Syracuse today and Rochester on Monday.
While in Buffalo, she met with seven elected officials and Democratic Party leaders, including Brown, who has also expressed an interest in Clinton’s seat, and Leonard Lenihan, the head of the Erie County Democratic Party who has endorsed Rep. Brian Higgins, D-Buffalo, for that seat.
She fielded questions from members of the public at the library forum for an hour-and- a-half.
Maloney steered clear of criticizing Kennedy in an interview, declining to discuss her credentials or the manner in which she has handled herself since declaring her interest in the Senate seat.
What does Maloney think of Kennedy’s candidacy?
“The only thing that matters is what the governor thinks,” she said.
Does it bother her the way Kennedy has been able to parlay her celebrity?
“As President Carter said, ‘Life isn’t always fair.’ ”
Does Maloney like her chances of getting the appointment?
“If it’s a celebrity beauty contest, I’m definitely not going to win. But if it’s based on hard work, merit and a record of accomplishment, then I have a shot,” she said.
Without offering a lot of specifics, Maloney said she has visited Western New York on numerous occasions, both as a tourist and elected official. Several comments she made, however, suggest her grasp on the region is not strong.
She badly mispronounced Tonawanda, got the name wrong of the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus and spoke of the need to expand the Peace Bridge from two to four lanes when the issue is building a companion span.
Maloney rattled off a number of issues that she said are of importance to the region and said she doesn’t sense that the locals are partial to having someone from upstate fill Clinton’s seat.
“The people I’ve spoken with are most concerned about what you can do to help the economy in Buffalo,” she said.
Log into MyBuffalo to post a comment
MyBuffalo is the new social network from Buffalo.com. Your MyBuffalo account lets you comment on and rate stories at buffalonews.com. You can also head over to mybuffalo.com to share your blog posts, stories, photos, and videos with the community. Join now or learn more.
Reader comments