Faced with a choice between two candidates for the House of Representatives, the members of the New York Daily News editorial board found themselves in a quandary. The incumbent, Rep. Michael Grimm (R-NY), who once threatened a reporter saying, “I’ll break you in half, like a boy,” is currently under federal indictment for tax and wire fraud.
His opponent, on the other hand, is, well, perhaps the editorial board put it best:
“In Domenic Recchia, the Democrats have fielded a candidate so dumb, ill-informed, evasive and inarticulate that voting for a thuggish Republican who could wind up in a prison jumpsuit starts to make rational sense.”
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While newspaper endorsements are frequently written in a tone that offers a less than ringing testimony to the recipient, few if any manage to convey the hope that the endorsee will wind up in jail so that the whole process can start over again.
“At least Michael Grimm can string three sentences together in arguing that he deserves the presumption of innocence on federal criminal charges stemming from his past operation of a restaurant,” the endorsement read. “Should he be convicted, Grimm has promised to resign, paving the way for a match between two fresh candidates. All the better.”
Apparently Recchia, a former city councilman clearly made a poor impression when he turned up at the newspaper’s offices to seek its endorsement.
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“He accomplished the unprecedented feat of failing to give a single coherent answer when he was interviewed hoping for the Daily News endorsement,” the board wrote.
“Sent to Washington, Recchia would be, at best, a cipher and, at worst, a dupe in an impotent Democratic House minority,” the board concluded. “Grimm would have more power as part of the Republican majority, an advantage not to be taken lightly. Also a plus, he has been a clear voice for fixing broken immigration laws. Unfortunately, he’s the only alternative when the mantra must be anyone but Recchia.”
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