This will bring long overdue change to the leadership of the local Republican committees, particularly here in Schenectady county where many of Tedisco's staffers will find themselves looking for new positions as a result of his loss of the Assembly minority leadership position. I suspect that the loss could lead to a shake up at the RNC also.
Lack of unity fatal to Tedisco Republicans split in nominating contest for House; the "no" factor
By LEIGH HORNBECK, Staff writer First published in print: Sunday, April 26, 2009
While the Democrats and Scott Murphy supporters across the 20th Congressional District celebrate their win, Republicans are asking themselves what went wrong.
Some say the seeds of Jim Tedisco's loss were sown in a selection process that lacked openness. Others blame negative advertising and the involvement of national party operatives who didn't understand voters in the 10-county district. And some blame the candidate himself — a man who had never lost a campaign in his many years in the Assembly, but had never run a race this big, either.
"Attacking Scott Murphy for being a private-sector businessman was not a logical approach," said John Faso of Kinderhook, a former Republican assemblyman who has run for comptroller and governor. He also expressed early interest in being his party's candidate in the House special election.
"Not taking a position on the (federal) stimulus was incomprehensible," Faso said of the issue that seemed to hang Tedisco up for more than half of the race's two-month span. "The bill is bad policy for the country. The economy needed a stimulus, but what came out of Congress — much of the spending will not benefit the economy, and it's all going to be paid for by our children and grandchildren."
Opposing the federal bill was the right position, Faso said, and it was one a Republican should have taken early and vocally.
"You can't learn what your philosophy is from a poll," said Faso, who is a lawyer and a lobbyist.
The Democrats labored over their selection process, soliciting applications and considering more than 30 people before interviewing 11. In the end, party leaders and the rank-and-file lined up behind Murphy. The Republicans could not say the same.
"I hope that this disappointment will cause the Republican Party leaders to change how we select our candidates and how we run our campaigns," said Dan Gale, a member of the Saratoga County GOP executive committee and chairman of the Northumberland town party.
State chairman Joseph Mondello wanted Tedisco, 58, as did Saratoga County's John "Jasper" Nolan, whose opinion was powerful because the leaders' votes were weighted by county population. But Washington and Essex counties lined up behind Betty Little, a popular state senator from Queensbury. Warren County voted narrowly for Tedisco. Elsewhere, Republicans in Columbia, Rensselaer, Delaware and Greene counties wanted Faso. Richard Wager in Dutchess County, who ran briefly against Kirsten Gillibrand in 2008, also had support, but Dutchess went for Tedisco.
As a result, Little — already in a delicate spot because she is related to Murphy by marriage — didn't go out of her way to help Tedisco in the North Country, and Faso didn't help in the south. Little was one of the first regional Republicans to suggest, once the vote count began to shift away from Tedisco, that he should start looking for an exit strategy.
Re April 25 article, “Count over; Murphy wins”: I was disappointed by James Tedisco’s loss for the congressional seat. It’s my opinion, of course, but I feel the better man did not get the job. The Albany Times Union came out in support of Scott Murphy, and I am sure their endorsement swayed a few people away from Mr. Tedisco, people who don’t know him and were sitting on the fence. One thing puzzles me. Mr. Tedisco was chosen by his party to run under their banner. In order to run a good race, he had to take time away from his Assembly position and his role as minority leader. I felt it was a no-brainer. Apparently I was wrong. The members of his party turned on him and he felt the need to step down from his minority leader post. The Republican Party placed Mr. Tedisco in a Catch-22 from where there was no graceful exit. The entire episode appears unfair to me. I hope he does not retire from the Assembly. He is too young for that. The loss should harden his will and vision. We need politicians like him to represent the little people, the middle class, the sick, elderly and poor of the community. Something better than the congressional seat will come along. Keep your chin up, Jim.
Another supporter that doesn't live in the 20th District. JT is a great guy but did not live in the 20th District and waffled on the Obama porkulus plan. NO REPS in the House supported it.
He should have run against Polenta Paul Tonko. The REPS in the Assembly have turned against him and a those that engineered this loss.
Rep. Scott Murphy (D-Glens Falls) Glens Falls businessman Scott Murphy will be sworn in this afternoon as New York’s newest Congressman. The Democrat won a razor-thin victory in March, in a special election to replace Kirsten Gillibrand, who was appointed to the US Senate. New York’s 20th congressional district stretches from Poughkeepsie in the Hudson Valley to Saranac Lake in the Adirondacks. Murphy is a newcomer to politics, but he managed to beat veteran Assemblyman Jim Tedisco, a Republican from Schenectady. As Murphy prepared to head to Washington for today’s ceremony, he spoke with Brian Mann.
Stephen Williams OFF THE NORTHWAY County GOP blames pros for defeat Reach Gazette reporter Stephen Williams at 885-6705 or swilliams@dailygazette.net.
Saratoga County Republicans are rightly red-faced that Assemblyman Jim Tedisco lost the 20th Congressional District special election — but the fl ush has more to do with anger than embarrassment. Local party leaders are rethinking their campaigning after that race, in which aggressively negative television ads and repeated phone calls against the eventual winner, Democrat Scott Murphy, infuriated many voters. Based on party enrollment numbers, Tedisco — at the time the state Assembly minority leader — should have won handily. The outcome was decided by fewer than 500 votes, meaning that Murphy couldn’t have won without a few dropped balls in the Republican outfield. The local leaders contend that they heard the voter anger loud and clear weeks before the special election, but the outside political consultants running Tedisco’s campaign wouldn’t listen. The lack of respect offended them. “There’s a lot of turmoil, some of it self-inflicted but some of it brought in by outsiders,” county GOP Chairman Jasper Nolan said after an airclearing Republican Committee meeting Thursday in Ballston Spa. Fortunately for everyone whose ears are still tender from the national political campaigns, 2009 should have only city, town and county elections. The Republicans control most Saratoga County towns. Their plan is to “go positive,” to talk with new residents, independent voters and the party faithful about what they say are the local organization’s strengths: financially conservative decisions that have kept county and town property taxes low and an attitude toward business growth that helped land the planned GlobalFoundries computer chip factory. “We are, not just in the Northeast, not just in New York, but globally, a leader in economic development,” said Dan Gale, a county committee vice chairman. Former Saratoga County Treasurer J. Christopher Callaghan of Waterford has been elected treasurer of the county Republican Committee, replacing Tom Lewis, who resigned shortly after the special election.
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Another supporter that doesn't live in the 20th District. JT is a great guy but did not live in the 20th District and waffled on the Obama porkulus plan. NO REPS in the House supported it. 
