Free Republic

Itching to unload on Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand at a town hall meeting on health care reform? You're out of luck. Aides to the New York Democrats told the Daily News they won't be sponsoring any town hall meetings on health care. Instead, they will be touring the state and soliciting opinions in more informal settings. "During recess, as he does every year, Sen. Schumer will be in over 20 counties across New York City and state talking with

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand faces urgent timetable to connect with voters WASHINGTON — Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand has spent her first 100 days in office crisscrossing New York state and reaching out to voters who aren't familiar with her policies and personality. So far, Gillibrand admits, she's got a lot more work to do in that department. A former one-term Democratic House member from a mostly rural district that includes Saratoga and Warren counties, Gillibrand was sworn in to replace Secretary of State HillaryRodham Clinton in the Senate on Jan. 27. A Marist Poll released Monday found 43 percent of registered voters...

The American adversarial system of justice depends on the willingness of lawyers to vigorously represent unpopular, even odious clients. Criticizing a lawyer for his or her choice of client can be a dicey business. Like everyone else, though, lawyers bear responsibility for their decisions. Take the career of Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. Before she was elected to Congress in 2006 (and later appointed to fill Hillary Rodham Clinton’s vacated Senate seat earlier this year), Ms. Gillibrand spent a significant chunk of her professional life working at a prestigious New... --snip-- Her law firm allowed lawyers to decline work on tobacco cases...

February 24, 2009, 4:00 a.m. Stick to Your Guns, SenatorGiving in to the anti-gun lobby will not help Kirsten Gillibrand stay in office. By Dave Kopel What should Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand do about guns? As a two-term U.S. representative from upstate New York, she had a perfect pro–Second Amendment voting record. A week ago, she admitted to Newsday that she kept two rifles under her bed for family defense. This has not sat well with the gun-prohibition crowd, although when Newsday put the question to a reader vote, 97 percent did not mind her owning guns for this purpose....

It may be Senator Kirsten Gillibrand's clearest flip-flop so far. In an interview with news 4 New York on Friday, Gillibrand said she would not vote for a bill she sponsored just eight months ago. "Not unless they fix it," She said.

When Kirsten Gillibrand was a congresswoman in a pretty conservative district, she voted against the bailout, so wouldn't you think she would vote against THIS PORKulus? Nope, she's under Sen. Schumer's thumb. When she was a congresswoman in this conservative district, she did what she had to do to win, except for abortion. She received a 100% rating from NARAL.

Sure, it’s early yet. Only the first day of February. Lots of time for someone to overtake her. But let’s recognize that Kirsten Gillibrand has taken the lead for the worst piece of political gobbledygook of this young year. As per the Associated Press, here’s what the newly-anointed senator from New York, billed as a “conservative” Democrat, had to say after emerging from a meeting with Latino leaders who had been peeved about her immigration policies: "We need to recognize the heritage that the immigrant community has provided to this country and put policies in place that will reflect that...

NEW YORK -- New York's new senator, Kirsten Gillibrand, who has drawn fire from Hispanics over her views on immigration and gun control, says she's willing to listen and perhaps even change her positions on some subjects - but isn't ready to make any commitments. "We need to recognize the heritage that the immigrant community has provided to this country and put policies in place that will reflect that core value," Gillibrand, who recently assumed Hillary Clinton's old Senate seat, said after a two-hour meeting on Sunday with a dozen or so Hispanic members of the state Assembly and the...

Jim Tedisco: A name we know, a record we trust. ✓ Republican Leader of the New York State Assembly ✓ Proven record of fighting for real property tax relief, fiscal responsibility and more jobs ✓ Supports small businesses and growing our economy ✓ Stopped Governor Eliot Spitzer’s unlawful plan to give driver’s licenses to illegal aliens

As if attempting to prove the truth of that old New Yorker cartoon that shows nothing of any consequence beyond the friendly confines of Manhattan, the New York Times has condemned liberal Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand for being too conservative. Apparently, Gillibrand hasn’t toed the party line quite as strictly as they would like. (Can you imagine the gnashing of teeth at the DNC when they found out she has a 100% lifetime rating from the National Rifle Association, voted against TARP, supports the death penalty, and is pro-life? Yet, despite those “conservative” positions Gillibrand considers herself a liberal. We’re sure...

January 27, 2009, 4:00 a.m. Challenging GillibrandCan Peter King do it? By Mark Hemingway When Caroline Kennedy was still a top contender to replace Hillary Clinton as the junior senator from New York, it had been widely reported that Republican congressman Peter King of Long Island was gearing up to challenge her in 2010. Since then, Kennedy has dropped out of the running, amid considerable acrimony between the Kennedy clan and New York governor David Paterson. Paterson has instead tapped Kirsten Gillibrand, a blue-dog congresswoman from upstate who is in some ways the antithesis of Kennedy liberalism. Despite this...

Pro-gay, pro-gun Kirsten Gillibrand is New York Gov. David Paterson’s choice to succeed Hillary Clinton in the U.S. Senate. Gillibrand seems to fit no convenient category, but the odds are that she will slide to the left over the next two years. Gillibrand is from upstate New York and a member of the Blue Dog Democrats, a group of about 50 fiscally conservative House Democrats, though the Blue Dogs -- including Gillibrand -- are often moderate to liberal on social issues, including abortion and gay rights. She grew up in Albany, N.Y., the daughter of a prominent state lobbyist, and...

As Caroline Kennedy (AKA “The Princess of Camelot”) unhappily found out, that most congenial spot for happily-ever-aftering is not located in NY. ... During the press conference in which he announced his choice, Patterson said Kirsten Gillibrand is “dynamic, she’s articulate, she is perceptive, she’s courageous, she is outspoken.” In other words, she is everything Kennedy is not. Note: The Stiletto writes about politics and other stuff at The Stiletto Blog, chosen an Official Honoree in the Political Blogs category by the judges of the 12th Annual Webby Awards (the Oscars of the online universe) along with CNN Political Ticker

Abortion Issues 2007-2008 Based on a point system, with points assigned for actions in support of or in opposition to National Right to Life Committee's position, Representative Gillibrand received a rating of 0. 2007 In 2007 NARAL Pro-Choice America gave Representative Gillibrand a grade of 100. snip Conservative 2007-2008 Based on a point system, with points assigned for actions in support of or in opposition to Americans for Prosperity's position, Representative Gillibrand received a rating of 5. 2007-2008 Representative Gillibrand supported the interests of the Christian Coalition 10 percent in 2007-2008. 2007-2008 Representative Gillibrand supported the interests of the Concerned...

I have to laugh at the choice Governor David Paterson made in appointing a senator to replace Hillary Clinton in the U.S. Senate. Everybody figured that if it wasn't going to be Caroline Kennedy then it would be some other standard liberal. Instead he picked someone who supports the NRA, voted against the bailout bill, and is one of only two Bluedog Democrats in the New York congressional delegation. Okay, by our sane standards Kirsten Gillibrand is still too much of a liberal but to the Democrats and the DUmmies what Paterson did was an act of treason which...

Conservative reaction to the Kirsten Gillibrand appointment thus far has been mixed. Some approve, on the grounds that it will bother liberals. "LIBERAL DEMS HOWL," heds the New York Post. Wake Up America is happy that liberal blogs are unhappy. NewsBusters says the mainstream media's refusal to use their terminology is proof of bias. "When will the mainstream [media] begin labeling Gillibrand as a 'Maverick Democrat?'" they demand. "Or is the 'maverick' label applied by the MSM only to Republicans who are liberals or 'moderates' (really meaning liberal)?... If she holds to her views then she would definitely be qualified...

Because Governor Paterson picked Gillibrand to replace Hillary Clinton, there will be a Special Election to replace Kirsten Gillibrand for congressperson. Call the New York State Republican Party, and tell them you want her to be replaced with a pro-life, conservative, and to please pick a pro-life, conservative like Assembly Minority Leader Tedesco, John Faso (who ran against Spitzer in the governor's race) and Assemblywoman Betty Little. All of these people were said to be strong possibilities, and all are pro-life, and conservative in every way.

The decision by New York Governor David Paterson to name a somewhat conservative replacement (by that state's democrat standards), Kirsten Gillibrand, to Hillary Clinton's U.S. Senate seat has already sent some liberals into a tizzy. They are upset over Gillibrand's support for the National Rifle Association as well as for extending the Bush tax cuts among the issues that disturb them. So when will the mainstream begin labeling Gillibrand as a "Maverick Democrat?" Or is the "maverick" label applied by the MSM only to Republicans who are liberals or "moderates" (really meaning liberal)?

ALBANY—The group New Yorkers Against Gun Violence is asking members to lobby against the possible appointment of Representative Kirsten Gillibrand to the U.S. Senate. The group urges people to call David Paterson and "tell him you don't want the NRA to take New York's Senate Seat." The e-mail message reads: Kirsten Gillibrand's record on gun issues is just awful. She has an "A" rating from the NRA as a superior representative of their views, in part because she signed on as an amicus supporter of Heller in the brief filed with the Supreme Court. In that decision, the Supreme Court...

SAN FRANCISCO -- Fugitive political fundraiser Norman Hsu, who skipped out on San Mateo County authorities this week rather than face sentencing in a fraud scheme, was apprehended tonight by federal and local lawmen in Grand Junction, Colo. Authorities said Hsu was taken into custody at St. Mary's Hospital in Grand Junction at 7 p.m. local time. He had been on the lam for almost two days after failing to appear in a Redwood City courtroom Wednesday to surrender his passport. Hsu's attorney told state prosecutors that he had been on a charter flight that arrived at Oakland International Airport...