NY-23: Pataki Endorses Hoffman

Former New York Governor George Pataki has endorsed NY-23 candidate Doug Hoffman. Via Memeorandum, here is Pataki's statement:

As someone personally engaged in the way of life in the Adirondacks and Northern New York, I’m deeply concerned about the course of our nation and the outcome of the election in the 23rd Congressional District.

Simply put, we cannot afford to give another vote to Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid we cannot afford another vote for higher taxes, we cannot afford another vote for government run health care and we absolutely cannot afford another vote to take away from hard working men and women the right to secret ballot.

That is why tonight, I’m proud to endorse Doug Hoffman, a Republican, running on the Conservative line for Congress in the 23rd Congressional District.

Doug Hoffman will stand up to Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid. He will fight for all the residents of northern New York. He will fight for our proud servicemen and women at Fort Drum, our dairy farmers in Lowville and our manufacturers in Plattsburgh.

As a businessman, and as a life-long resident of the North Country Doug Hoffman understands the need to lower taxes on working families, the need to stand tall against terror and he won’t back phony stimulus programs that fail to create the jobs we need and leaves a mountain of debt to our children.

When elected to Congress Doug will work to reduce our taxes, he will stand tall against those who despise our freedoms and he will be a vigilant stalwart against those who would substitute government programs for individual initiative.

And Doug Hoffman can win.

I urge all the voters of the 23rd Congressional District – Republican Democrat, Independent and Conservative to come out and vote for Doug Hoffman for Congress.

Pataki now joins a very, very long list of folks who have endorsed Hoffman, including Sarah Palin, Rick Santorum, Steve Forbes, Tim Pawlenty, and my own Representative, John Fleming. Conservatives4Palin has the list, here.

Now it seems that even the NRCC is bailing on Scozzafava as Pete Sessions says that Doug Hoffman would be "welcome with open arms" into the ranks of the Republican leadership. Politico reports that :

On Thursday afternoon, Sessions appeared to tacitly acknowledge that Hoffman may represent the GOP’s best chance to keep the Republican-held seat from being picked up by a Democrat.

“I think it’s pretty clear that a person who would vote for John Boehner, support tax cuts, support growing our economy, and defeat Nancy Pelosi’s tax and spend agenda will be really welcome in our conference, and I think having a person who can win that district off that message would be really good for the Republican Party,” Sessions said.

What? Now that Hoffman has surged past Scozzafava in the polls, leaving her now in third place behind the Democrat Bill Owens, Sessions wants in on the Hoffmania? I'm sure Scozzafava was thrilled when she read that one.

Don't expect the NRCC to have learned any real lessons here. As long as the Republican leadership is out of touch with the conservative base, they will continue to support whichever candidate they feel can win the seat. As conservatives, we need to send our support directly to those candidates that reflect our values rather than to the RNC as long as they continue to prop up candidates like Scozzafava and Charlie Crist in Florida.

Time posts an article today which sums up this race:

Jeff Graham, the mayor of Watertown and a member of the Independence Party, says Hoffman is "a meek, soft-spoken guy who is mad as hell and just decided to go ahead and do this 2009 version of Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. And it seems to be working."

Run Doug, Run!

(Cross-posted at Not One Red Cent!)