[UPDATE: Rep. Fossella's formidable fundraising factory showed prowess with more $300,000 raised in the just ended quarter -- with $250,000 cash on hand reports Liz Benjamin (Previous claims for Recchia were $220,000 and for Harrison $110,000.). Those keeping up with the race in the 13th Congressional District may also want to read the Sunday’s Strictly Political column by Tom Wrobleski in the Staten Island advance.]

I sometimes wonder if I have become a Yellow Dog Democrat – you know the sort who would vote for a yellow dog if it were the Democratic candidate. And then I remember Susan Molinari who represented Staten Island in the NYC Council and in Congress with wit, intelligence and care. I thought she was very good. I liked as well her Council successor and Finance Commissioner Alfred Cerullo. I have not admired the work of Congress Member Fossella. Let me give you an example of his work which in my view is bad not just because I disagree with his views (which I do) but because his views are couched in misstatements of fact and law.

Mr. Fossella’s essay appeared as a column in the NY Post by GOP Rep.Vito Fossella on a crucial issue pending before Congress; the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. (FISA) Congress Member Fossella also read this piece as the Republican radio address of the week and you can access from his website here .

[For a fair, left-partisan, discussion of the FISA issues, try Dahlia Lithwick's essay in Slate or try mcjoan's post at Kos . For the ACLU's view go here]. The Senate may vote on FISA Feb 4th or 5th. Consider calling your Senator .

As I read it, however, it misstates the facts and law about FISA and it repeats a part-fact part-fiction story which has been discredited. If this is the level of debate that Mr. Fossella is going to advance, the only question left is whether anyone will stay fooled by him

In the race to replace Vito Fossella in New York's 13th Congressional District the arguments among and between the partisans of the aspirants for the Democratic Party nomination in New York’s 13 Congressional District has focused on almost anything but the issues. Personally, I’ve been dissatisfied with what seemed to be shaping up as an intensely insider debate. (Who can raise enough money? Who is a pawn of Vito Lopez? Who supported Sen. Martin J. Golden?) Process questions are important, but they should not take the place of policy discussion, as I see it.

In order to understand the difference between them, I called up both candidates and asked them about key issues. I’ve run the statements below by each candidate again so as to ensure their accuracy and opportunity to fine tune the positions. Corrections are welcome. In my view, the statements below point to some policy differences between Mr. Harrison and Mr. Recchia.

I asked about the views of Mr. Harrison and Mr. Recchia on other issues too: health care, civil liberties, the economy, the sub-prime lending crisis. Suggestions are welcome The statements post jump.

Interested in assisting the defeat of Vito Fossella, NYC’s only GOP member of Congress, I’ve been watching developments in NY’s 13th CD (Staten Island & parts of Brooklyn) from a distance. Ten days ago, or so, I attended an event on Staten Island where I met Steve Harrison and many of his SI supporters. To keep up on events in this race try NY13 Blog Retaking NY-13 From Vito Fossella or you could try Richard Reichard's Rm 8 Blog (not kept quite so up to date).

I liked Harrison. He seemed articulate, focused; ready for prime time. The gossip of the gathering, however, was the rumor that some progressive Democrats – for example State Senator Diane Savino -- were supporting the possible candidacy of NYC Council Member Domenic Recchia.

I asked Savino, a progressive trade unionist and formerly Working Families Party activist why she would consider supporting Recchia in 2008 when she’d supported Harrison vigorously in 2006. The rumor specifically was that Senator Savino was introducing Council Member Recchia to her SI friends and supporters.

She said:

For me, the question is which of them can win. On their worst day, either Steve or Domenic would be better much than Vito Fossella. Electing either Harrison or Recchia would be a great victory. I campaigned hard for Steve in 2006 and, if he’s the candidate in 2008, will do so again.

Domenic’s Council district overlaps a lot of my Senate district so I know him well. My sense is that he would be a more formidable candidate than Steve.

The way I judge that is by the candidates’ fund raising abilities. In January, I met with Steve and more recently with Domenic. I told them the same thing. You need to show that you can raise enough money for the race. I believe that a truly formidable candidate will have raised in the neighborhood of $500,000 by the end of the Quarter [Jan. 15, I think]. I think Domenic can do that. The reason the race will be so expensive is the need to reach out to SI voters by mail and TV ads.

Below is a link to a story positioning Steve Harrison as the candidate of the people and Domenic Recchia as the Brooklyn machine's choice in City Hall News.

The article mentions the Daily Gotham, but the reporter didn't contact Bouldin and Mole as I suggested when he was writing the piece.

http://www.cityhallnews.com/news/128/ARTICLE/1316/2007-11-12.html

Domenic Recchia, go home.

Brooklyn City Councilman Domenic Recchia has been making the rounds on Staten Island in recent weeks. Some speculated that the Daily News Knucklehead award winner( http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2006/12/26/2006-12-26_how_stupid_can...) was visiting the forgotten borough because he was seeking citywide office. Others correctly speculated that he was contemplating running a primary against Steve Harrison for the right to attempt to unseat Vito Fossella, New York City’s only Republican member of Congress, who represents all of Staten Island and a portion of Brooklyn. Crain’s and the Staten Island Advance confirmed his potentially disastrous for those wanting to Veto Vito, ambitions.

Brooklyn attorney Harrison ran a gallant campaign last year, losing by a smaller percentage of the vote than any of Fossella’s opponents since he supplanted the Molinari dynasty in 1997. Harrison accomplished this despite being out spent 12-1 by Fossella, largely because people like Recchia, who represents a tiny portion of the Congressional District in the Council, did squat for Steve.

Harrison has not formally announced his repeat candidacy yet, but it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that he’s likely to run based on his ubiquitous presence on Staten Island since the election. He also couldn’t announce because of party chair John Lavelle’s death and three first quarter 2007 special elections in Staten Island.