A Weekend in New Hampshire

by Rich Alicea, Queens YRs

Growing up and spending my entire life in New York, I have grown accustomed to seeing presidential candidates skip over our state, in favor of those states that are more competitive.
Because of this, I have never had the opportunity to take part in any aspect of a presidential campaign, let alone actually traveling to other states to campaign for a candidate.

Luckily, presidential candidate and former mayor of New York City Rudy Giuliani has made New York a priority, keeping his national headquarters in Manhattan. As he has said in the past, he is making his presidential campaign a 50-state race, unlike in the past, where candidates would pass over states like New York, which frequently sway to the left.

The Queens County Young Republicans, as well as several other groups in the area, as well as YRs from across the state, including former state Chair, Jason Weingartner, have taken advantage of the opportunities afforded by this campaign strategy to become more active.
For months, volunteers have been working out of Giuliani’s Manhattan phone bank, making calls to Iowa and New Hampshire.

However, during the weekend of January 5th, we got a small taste of life on the campaign trail, making a trip to New Hampshire to campaign for Rudy during the final push before the primary, along with groups from across the five boroughs and Long Island.

Arriving in Manchester, NH on Saturday, we were immediately thrust into what was a hotbed of political activity.

Campaign workers for virtually every candidate, Republican and Democrat, were present, doing things from simple sign waving, to going door-to-door with campaign literature, which is what we spent most of our time doing. In contrast to the first trip we made to NH, back in November, the streets were packed with campaigners and journalists.

The bulk of our time in NH was spent talking with New Hampshirans about the policies we saw enacted by Rudy Giuliani during his tenure as Mayor. Because most of us lived in New York City during the Giuliani years, we were in a good position to speak of the great changes implemented under his administration, from tax cuts to the massive drop in crime rates to welfare reform. Many of the people we spoke to were very receptive to the issues we spoke to them about, particularly tax cuts.

They were impressed by the fact that many of us came up from New York City to talk about the candidate we know very well through our own experiences, rather than some candidate whose policies we learned about on the bus ride to NH.

As one would imagine, the days were long, and there was never a dull moment.

At the same time, it can be exhilarating, knowing the difference you are making on the campaign trail.

Even though the results of the primary may not have been ideal, our time was not spent in vain. According to the campaign, the volunteers from NYC accounted for visits to almost 10,000 New Hampshire homes and several thousand phone calls in only two days, making it one of the largest grassroots operations in the days before the New Hampshire primary.

With similar commitments in other states, especially those whose primaries take place on February 5th, we can hope to see much more encouraging results. Only then will the volunteers who are spending countless hours making phone calls, attending events and traveling to early primary states truly see the effect of their work.

Rich Alicea is the President of the Queens County Young Republicans.

It’s Not Heaven, it's Just the Iowa Caucuses!

by Rick Cordaro, Onondaga YRs

I was born, raised, and educated in Iowa. When I tell people this, they assume I'm a farmer (I'm not. I grew up in suburban Des Moines, a city roughly the size of Syracuse, but with a much brighter economic future).

People figure Iowa is merely a patchwork of farms and hog lots somewhere "out west" with lots of flat land and very few people. Or they think Iowans grow potatoes (yes, people confuse Iowa and Idaho even though they are nearly 1,000 miles apart).

But every four years, Iowa becomes the center of attention for the media, presidential candidates, and the news consuming public. So, let me share with you a bit about the place.

First, some background: This is a state that has never had a female governor, never had a female member of Congress, and never had a female Senator. One current Senator is a Democrat, the other a Republican, and both are two of the most powerful Senators in Washington. Senator Tom Harkin (D) chairs the Agriculture Committee and Senator Chuck Grassley (R) is the ranking member and former Chairman of the Finance Committee.

The Governor's mansion has been occupied by both a Republican and a Democrat in just the last 10 years. President Herbert Hoover was from Iowa. And thanks to federal subsidies, 89 octane gas (that's the "mid-grade" gas here in New York, not the cheapest 87 octane or the premium 92 octane) is actually cheaper than the low- end stuff because it contains corn-based ethanol.

Now that you're up to speed, let's talk caucuses. By now, you know the Democrats have a wacky, drawn-out process of standing in groups horse-trading candidates and that Republicans simply cast a vote. But what is that like?

I spoke to my dad (a Republican) who caucused this year. He mentioned that it took 40 minutes, start to finish, to complete the process. That's because the Republicans give anyone in the room a chance to speak before the votes are cast. Joining my father was a United States Senator, several local elected officials, and a handful of regular citizens. My parents don't live in a high profile district, but the caucuses draw out all the big guns. Iowa is the first race in the country and no matter how many times New Hampshire negates the results of Iowa, it's a major political market that first week in January.

Then there are the commercials. I was back in Iowa over the Christmas holiday. I am not exaggerating when I tell you that three of every four commercials on network TV are for a presidential candidate. All those commercials we watch on YouTube and hear about on the news - they are running in Iowa. Going to Iowa makes me glad the candidates neglect New York! It is a constant, 24-hour, endless barrage of advertising.

And of course, there are the phone calls. Several times a day, the phone rings with another friendly voice chatting up their candidate. After a while, you just stop answering.

What does this all mean? If a candidate is not viable in Iowa, will they be viable anywhere else? Can they win nationally? Should you or I or anyone contribute to a candidate that is not electable nationwide? Any why do small states like Iowa and New Hampshire get to decide the fate of a candidate who may one day run the entire country? Do these states reflect the national interest? Is the process broken?

I don't know the answer to any of these questions, but I will be casting my vote on Super Tuesday! You should too. Vote for your favorite candidate in the primary and vote Republican in November.

Rick Cordaro is the Chairman of the Onondaga County Young Republicans and serves as Executive Director of the New York State Young Republicans.

One "Huck" of a Candidate

by Guy Amisano, Steuben YRs

It has been a long and winding road to the 2008 Republican Presidential nomination, one which has not yet been fully traversed. As we in New York prepare to cast our ballots on February 5th, the time seems to be appropriate for a review of the nomination race as it has developed so far and as it is likely to develop going forward.

By 2006, a consensus seemed to have developed among the political punditry that the nomination would be contested between a couple of Republicans whom social conservatives may have some reservations about supporting wholeheartedly.

One candidate, however, did emerge from the contenders who has supported many issues important to social conservatives consistently throughout his career; this is former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee.

Though deviating from the conservative line on economic and foreign policy issues, Huckabee has impeccable credentials as a social conservative. Buoyed by strong debate performances and the support of Evangelical Protestants, Huckabee won more votes than the much better financed Romney in the Iowa Caucuses. This disrupted Romney’s strategy of leveraging wins in the early states of Iowa and New Hampshire to capture the nomination.

Further, McCain was able to claim the New Hampshire primary in large part by taking advantage of Romney’s loss of momentum in Iowa.

In my view, the Republican contest will soon prove to be a two-man race between Huckabee and McCain. Romney needs to win Michigan to resurrect his campaign, but I don’t believe that is likely to happen considering the negative momentum working against him after performing below expectations in Iowa and New Hampshire.

One-time frontrunner Giuliani paid little heed to early states while focusing on larger and later-voting states, and this strategy seems to have doomed him. Giuliani must win Florida to stay in the race, but he may be unable to do that after losing primary contests leading up to Florida. Fred Thompson needs to win South Carolina, which figures to be a friendly Southern state, but he has polled so low recently that a win in any state seems improbable.

That leaves Huckabee and McCain. I expect that McCain will win Michigan and then face a battle with Huckabee in Evangelical-rich South Carolina.

If McCain wins Michigan and South Carolina, I believe the nomination is his. If Huckabee wins South Carolina, then I expect that Huckabee will also win Florida and he will be a slight front-runner over McCain going into “Tsunami Tuesday” on February 5th.

Mr. November

by Anthony J. Romeo

When Reggie Jackson hit three homeruns in the 1977 World Series, he was going against great odds, but was still able to overcome and stand out from all the rest. Hence, he was nicknamed Mr. October.

There are many great candidates in the 2008 Presidential race, but I believe Rudy Giuliani will stand out from the rest. Hopefully, if all goes well next year at this time, we can refer to him as not only the President, but as Mr. November for Republicans.

Once I heard Mr. Giuliani was going to be in the presidential race for 2008, I knew he was going to get my first vote ever. I missed my first two chances to vote because of my own youth and ignorance.

But after all my travels and experiences abroad in the Navy, I now see, as an American, how important it is to vote. As a native New Yorker, I am convinced that Mr. Giuliani will have no problem facing our nation’s issues and executing an effective plan of action. America is the greatest nation in the world to me, as I am sure it is to all of you. That is why, back in December of 2004, I enlisted in the Navy. While traveling to many countries, I have seen first hand why our voting system should not be taken for granted.

I also know how vital it is to know the history of the candidate whom you are supporting.
Growing up in New York, I can remember Mr. Giuliani serving as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York City. If you did not know, he secured over 4,000 criminal convictions. I also remember how he changed the NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission, where he made the emissions test more stringent for the thousands of cabs that roam through New York City each day. This was a great achievement because if you were living in the city during the late 80’s and early 90’s, you would recall too many of those taxi cabs breaking down on the side of the road or polluting the air with abandon when they were up and running.

If you look at Times Square now, compared to 20 years ago, it has made a complete 180-degree turn around for the better. I can remember walking through Times Square as a boy in broad day light, seeing all the peep shows, smut shops and prostitutes right on the street. It was down right disgusting for a young boy to see. Then Mayor Giuliani forced out the smut shops and increased the manpower of the New York City Police Department and the NY/NJ Port Authority to enforce the law. This led to a number of big corporations like Planet Hollywood, ESPN Zone, Olive Garden, The W Hotel, MTV's TRL, Toys R' Us and many others to set up shop in Times Square. This is just one of many reasons tourism has grown in New York City since Giuliani’s administration. Now, I look at Times Square in a completely different light.

I am sure he has not done everything right throughout his career, but what President has not made mistakes in office? Problems will always occur throughout time, but instead of avoiding an issue, Mr. Giuliani has and, I believe, will continue to face the issues head on.

On top of that, Mr. Giuliani is glorified for his actions during September 11th, as he rightfully should. Because of his cool, calm, collective thoughts and quick planning, he and his admirable staff were able to organize rescue crews, security units, as well as clean up crews for the after effects in less than a day.

I’m sure a lot of people might say or think that he just did his job. If you could remember the one-day black out in New York City in the late 70's, killings, riots, and chaos took over the city. All this lunacy erupted from a temporary loss of electrical power on that particular night!

You may think that this is an outdated example of the worst-case scenario, but then think about what happened after Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana. Remember all the unfortunate riots, lootings, and killings in the aftermath? I understand that September 11th was horrific, but the aftermath could have been so much worse.

In my opinion, if Mr. Giuliani were not there to take the proper actions that he did, there would have been a much greater disaster after September 11th. To me, he was a great attorney and a fabulous Mayor, so I have absolutely no doubt he would make an outstanding President for our great nation.

Anthony John Romeo is a sailor in the U.S. Navy who plans to get more active with the YRs and the Republican presidential campaign when he returns to New York.