Topic category:  Elections - Politics, Polling, etc.

Last March I declared that "It's Wendy Long Time in New York" and now even The New York Post has conceded that Conservative Party leader Mike Long (no relation) and I (and so many others) are right about Wendy Long (no relation).

In "It's Wendy Long Time in New York" (March 20, 2012) (www.renewamerica.com/columns/gaynor/120320), I wrote:

Wendy Long dominated the New York State Republican Convention, taking more than 47% of the vote for the Republican nomination to run for the United States Senate against Kirsten Gillibrand. She began her convention speech with "Sen. Gillibrand says she wants to see more women in politics. I say, 'Let's give her what she's asking for.'" New York Republicans have never nominated a woman to run for the United States Senate, but Long showed them that the time to do so is now.

When a woman is the best qualified and the opponent is a woman running on the "War Against Women" hoax, it should be a no brainer.

Long is a very able and articulate attorney with expertise in the United States Supreme Court and Constitution. She has appeared on numerous news programs and as a guest columnist and contributor for various media outlets on these subjects.

After graduating from Dartmouth, Long went to Washington, D.C. and served as press secretary for two Republican United States Senators, William L. Armstrong from Colorado and Gordon J. Humphrey from her native New Hampshire.

After studying law at Northwestern and Harvard, Long received a J.D degree, moved to New York and served as a law clerk for Judge Ralph K. Winter on the United States Circuit Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York City, and then for Justice Clarence Thomas on the Supreme Court of the United States.

Long then served as a litigation partner for the law firm Kirkland & Ellis, LLP, a leading law firm with offices in New York and Washington, D.C.

In 2005, Long joined the Judicial Confirmation Network as chief counsel and advanced the cause of judicial restraint through extensive media and public speaking. She participated in discussion and debate on U.S. Circuit Court and U.S. Supreme Court nominations and led public support or opposition to them, including supporting confirmations of Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Sam Alito to the Supreme Court of the United States.

A wife and mother of a son and a daughter living in New York City who believes in traditional American values, Long also is a Member of the Board of Trustees of Mount Saint Mary's College in Newburgh, New York, an active member of the Church of Our Saviour in Manhattan and a Roman Catholic catechism teacher.

Of course, there are older men who want to be nominated by the Republican and Conservative Parties too.

George Maragos, the Nassau County comptroller, and Bob Turner, the first time Brooklyn Congressman who replaced Anthony Weiner, each barely cleared the 25% hurdle to enter the primary without having to obtain signatures on petitions.

The liberal media establishment is concerned that Long will beat Gillibrand and the news reports of Newsday and The New York Times reflect that.

The Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/17/nyregion/3-ny-republicans-to-vie-in-primary-for-nomination-for-senate-seat.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=wendy%20long&st=cse) acknowledged that Long "has generated considerable excitement among party regulars. She is articulate and charismatic, and seen as someone who could foil Ms. Gillibrand."

Then it immediately (and simplistically) tried to discredit her as (1) "a strong social conservative who has spoken out against same-sex marriage, saying it could open the door for humans to marry animals," (2) "linked to a student newspaper at Dartmouth, her alma mater, that mocked gays, blacks and Jews" and (3) perhaps not electable.

Long describes herself as "a 1980s Ronald Reagan conservative," notes that Reagan won New York twice and denies that her "conservative values are out of step with New York at all."

Newsday (www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/turner-maragos-long-in-gop-primary-1.3607949ridiculously) minimized Long's convention success.

Its headline inverted the order in which the Republican hopefuls finished: "Turner, Maragos, Long in GOP primary." Before finally mentioning Long in the fifth paragraph, Newsday made the convention seem like a great triumph for Turner, stating:

"It's going to be a three-way Republican primary to see who earns the right to take on Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.).

"Just 72 hours after declaring his candidacy, Rep. Robert Turner (R-Rockaway Point) roared into the Republican state convention Friday and snapped up 25 percent of the delegates' support — reaching the threshold to qualify for the June 26 primary.

"In contrast, Nassau County Comptroller George Maragos saw his support drop, then teeter throughout the daylong event. But he finished with 27 percent — putting him on the ballot.

"Maragos' chances were unclear until Suffolk County — the third-to-last county to vote — threw all of its support behind the Long Island candidate."

Newsday foresaw Long winning the Republican Senate primary and paved the way for explaining that by stating that she "could benefit from a three-way primary by being the only woman in the race."

The Times and Newsday will be supporting Gillibrand no matter whom the Republicans and Conservatives nominate, but they want to make it easy for her by having the Republicans and Conservatives nominate different candidates or at least another man for Gillibrand to beat easily, not another woman with the intellect, experience and articulateness to beat her.

Maragos, Nassau County comptroller since January 2010, and Turner, a Congressman since September 2011, tout their brief periods of public service in elective office and wealth/fund raising ability as proof that they are best qualified to beat Gillibrand.

They'll try to explain why it didn't work at the Republican convention. Long got a near majority of the votes, more than 20% more than Maragos and 22% more than Turner.

It's not going to work with New York State primary voters who have had liberal women representing them in the United States Senate since 2001 and urgently want a conservative woman United States Senator to represent them instead and expose the Left's "War Against Women" charge as the hoax it is.

The New York Post championed a septuagenerian male who had turned to politics after retiring from business and won his second attempt to be elected to Congress less than a year ago.

Now The New York Post admits that...It's Wendy Long time and letting Gillibrand be re-elected on her War against Women charge would be a political crime.

New York Post, March 15, 2012, "What's the hurry, Mike?" (www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/editorials/what_the_hurry_mike_JMgqBooU9T9VmN09rv2PRN):

Suddenly, New York Republicans have a serious, reasonably well-known candidate running against Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.

But try telling that to state Conservative Party Chairman Mike Long.

Rep. Bob Turner, who turned the conventional wisdom on its head by winning Anthony Weiner’s heavily Democratic district in last year’s special election, is running against Gilly.

Not that he really had anywhere else to go — his Brooklyn-Queens seat is being vaporized by redistricting.

But Turner, a former TV executive, has shown a proven ability to raise money and campaign well in a decidedly unfavorable district.

Thus he looms large in what up to now has been a field of GOP non-entities.

Yet despite Turner’s entry, Long is continuing to stick with the least-known candidate out there — Wendy Long (no relation), a lawyer and conservative activist.

Also announced are Rye Town Supervisor Joe Carvin and Nassau County Comptroller George Maragos.

Mike Long’s support makes his namesake the odds-on favorite for the Conservative nod at this weekend’s convention.

But why is he so unwilling to unite behind someone who has a reasonable chance to unseat Gillibrand?

After all, Mike Long didn’t care much about ideology back when he placed his party at the service of New York’s ultimately irresolute Gov. George Pataki.

As it is, any Republican — Turner included — has an uphill climb this fall.

Gillibrand has $8 million in the bank, and the New York GOP is so weak that it hasn’t won a US Senate race since the first George Bush was president.

But Turner at least has visibility and name recognition.

More important, he provides a marked — and welcome — contrast to Gillibrand. Not just because he’s a conservative, but because he actually has a consistent set of beliefs and positions.

In other words, he actually stands for something other than his own ambition.

Unlike Gillibrand, who all but renounced every position she ever took as a moderate House member once she was elevated to the Senate by David Paterson.

Now she’s hurtled so far left that she’s tied for first on the National Journal’s ranking of the most liberal senators.

The Republican and Conservative parties have a chance to unify behind a candidate with proven vote-getting abilities — provided Mike Long comes to his senses.

New York Post, June 22, 2012, "Wendy Long for the GOP" (www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/editorials/wendy_long_for_the_gop_ixx1HrdQd5pCRU4MhvbJoI?utm_medium=rss&utm_content=Editorials):

Three Republicans are vying in next Tuesday’s primary for the ungratifying task of taking on Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, New York’s serial-flip-flopper, in November.

One must be dismissed as a party hack. But the other two are serious people — making this race a tough call.

Nevertheless, The Post today endorses the candidacy of Wendy Long, a lawyer, former congressional aide and longtime conservative activist, for the GOP nod.

She has a long record of involvement on the national level and on national issues.

Which is why she has picked up dozens of endorsements from leading national political figures, including former UN Ambassador John Bolton and ex-presidential candidate Steve Forbes.

That is not to denigrate Rep. Bob Turner, the other worthwhile candidate, who turned political punditry on its head with his upset win in ex-Rep. Anthony Weiner’s heavily Democratic district.

But he has failed thus far to gain any real traction in the intra-party race.

Still, Republicans could do a lot worse than nominating Turner — specifically, by picking Nassau County George Maragos, a stooge for county GOP boss Joe Mondello and a fellow guaranteed to embarrass himself and his party should he win Tuesday.

Truth be told, the eventual victor will enter the general election generally unknown and substantially under-funded.

Long, as she herself notes, is better positioned to fight “this whole phony war-on-women thing that the Democrats are cooking up.”

And her national connections could be helpful in raising cash.

Gillibrand enters the lists with some $9 million-plus tucked away and with a unified Democratic Party standing firmly behind her — the proceeds of one of the most cynical performances in recent New York political history.

A once-upon-a-time moderate from Albany, she seen her opportunities and she took ’em — renouncing, one by one, every middle-of-the-road position she ever took while in the House.

Now National Journal ranks her as America’s most liberal senator, and she’s become the darling of the hard left.

New Yorkers deserve a senator who actually stands for something — beyond the betterment of her personal circumstances, that is.

While the GOP is offering two good candidates, Wendy Long is the better choice.

it's not really a tough call, but at least The Post made the right call!

New Yorkers like Raymond A. Meier see it clearly.

Raymond A. Meier, Rome, New York (www.watertowndailytimes.com/article/20120622/OPINION02/706229969):

On Tuesday, June 26, Republican primary voters will have the opportunity to select a candidate for U.S. senator. The clear choice based on qualifications and the ability to articulate sound conservative positions on the issues is Wendy Long.

Wendy Long is an accomplished attorney and constitutional scholar. She clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and Second Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Ralph Winter following service as a staff member for two United States senators.

We live in a time when the explosive growth of the federal government and our national debt threaten our ability to pass on to our children and grandchildren a brighter future. Wendy Long’s commitment to limited government, a vigorous defense of Second Amendment rights, and shrinking the national debt by cutting spending are exactly what is desperately needed in the U.S. Senate. Moreover, her endorsement by the Conservative Party creates the united front needed to be electable in November.

I urge enrolled Republicans to cast a vote for principle and our children’s future by supporting Wendy Long on June 26.

EXACTLY!

Michael J. Gaynor

Biography - Michael J. Gaynor

Michael J. Gaynor has been practicing law in New York since 1973. A former partner at Fulton, Duncombe & Rowe and Gaynor & Bass, he is a solo practitioner admitted to practice in New York state and federal courts and an Association of the Bar of the City of New York member.

Gaynor graduated magna cum laude, with Honors in Social Science, from Hofstra University's New College, and received his J.D. degree from St. John's Law School, where he won the American Jurisprudence Award in Evidence and served as an editor of the Law Review and the St. Thomas More Institute for Legal Research. He wrote on the Pentagon Papers case for the Review and obscenity law for The Catholic Lawyer and edited the Law Review's commentary on significant developments in New York law.

The day after graduating, Gaynor joined the Fulton firm, where he focused on litigation and corporate law. In 1997 Gaynor and Emily Bass formed Gaynor & Bass and then conducted a general legal practice, emphasizing litigation, and represented corporations, individuals and a New York City labor union. Notably, Gaynor & Bass prevailed in the Second Circuit in a seminal copyright infringement case, Tasini v. New York Times, against newspaper and magazine publishers and Lexis-Nexis. The U.S. Supreme Court affirmed, 7 to 2, holding that the copyrights of freelance writers had been infringed when their work was put online without permission or compensation.

Gaynor currently contributes regularly to www.MichNews.com, www.RenewAmerica.com, www.WebCommentary.com, www.PostChronicle.com and www.therealitycheck.org and has contributed to many other websites. He has written extensively on political and religious issues, notably the Terry Schiavo case, the Duke "no rape" case, ACORN and canon law, and appeared as a guest on television and radio. He was acknowledged in Until Proven Innocent, by Stuart Taylor and KC Johnson, and Culture of Corruption, by Michelle Malkin. He appeared on "Your World With Cavuto" to promote an eBay boycott that he initiated and "The World Over With Raymond Arroyo" (EWTN) to discuss the legal implications of the Schiavo case. On October 22, 2008, Gaynor was the first to report that The New York Times had killed an Obama/ACORN expose on which a Times reporter had been working with ACORN whistleblower Anita MonCrief.

Gaynor's email address is gaynormike@aol.com.