Upstate New York Political Blur
There’s a lot of coverage of the special election in Upstate New York’s 20th congressional district, as the final vote count gets closer and closer. People are wondering whether Democrat Scott Murphy or Republican James Tedisco will win, and what the implications of that victory will be.
Perhaps they ought to be asking themselves whether the outcome of that election will really have much impact at all. The Democrat who vacated that House seat often voted as we would expect a Republican to vote. As a Senator, Kirsten Gillibrand has been little but a showpiece, with very little legislative activity of her own.
Across Upstate New York, many Democratic politicians behave as their Republican neighbors would. An example of this blurring of party lines comes from the 23rd and 24th districts, represented by Republican John McHugh and Democrat Michael Arcuri.
If you’re one of those people who buys into the idea that Democrats and Republicans represent two distinct ways of thinking, you would expect to see a lot of difference between Arcuri and McHugh. That’s not what the record shows. They come from two different parties, but their records are about the same. Both of them have earned a Net Congressional Score of just 16 out of a possible 100.
In spite of his label of Democrat, Representative Arcuri has joined his Republican neighbor in opposing or neglecting much of the strong progressive legislation that’s been offered so far in this session of Congress. If voters in the 24th congressional district want to see a departure from the Bush-era record of regressive politics, Congressman Arcuri won’t be the leader to get them there.
