Hoffman wins Week Two In 23rd special election

By my (obviously very) subjective scorecard, Lake Placid accountant and Conservative candidate Doug Hoffman wins Week 2 of the as-yet-unscheduled special election.

Why?

1. Hoffman won a lot of pretty glowing coverage for his call for cuts to government spending, and his pledge to vote against any future tax or fee increases. (Unfortunately, Hoffman offered no details about which government programs he would cut, or how he would reduce deficits.)

2. His campaign is clearly triggering a heated response from Republicans backing Dede Scozzafava, which means Hoffman is on their radar screen. That’s an important first step toward real credibility for any third party candidate.

3. The other candidates had lackluster weeks:

Scozzafava was once again forced to talk about her ties to the troubled Scozzafava family retail business, when it was revealed that she owns more than $1 million in preferred stock in the company. And she drew fire in an editorial posted in the influential conservative newspaper the Washington times.

Democrat Bill Owens was largely invisible. He held no public appearances that we’re aware of and his website remains an empty shell, with no information on his positions or ideas. He was also panned by the influential left-leaning website DailyKos.

There’s my take? Your views…welcome below.