Marvin Gandall wrote:
"I hope our man comes in," Mrs. Scolnick said. "Enough is enough. The guy in
there now, he's a yutz," a Yiddish word meaning a dope. Ms. Simone is a foot
solder in the biggest effort that any union local in the nation has
undertaken to elect John Kerry. Her union, 1199/S.E.I.U., the giant New York
health care union, is spending $10 million to send more than 800 nurses,
hospital housekeepers, lab technicians and other union members to
battleground states to work full-time to elect Mr. Kerry.
The New York Times
March 20, 2002 Wednesday
Late Edition - Final
Union Crosses Party Lines For Pataki
By ADAM NAGOURNEY
Two months after Gov. George E. Pataki engineered a deal that provided
$1.8 billion in raises for health care workers, the state's largest
health care union broke with the Democratic Party and announced
yesterday that it would support Mr. Pataki, a Republican, over either of
the two Democrats seeking to challenge him.
Dennis Rivera, the president of 1199/S.E.I.U., New York's Health and
Human Services Union, stood beside Mr. Pataki at a Bronx hospital
yesterday to announce the unanimous decision of the labor group's
executive board. The union is known for its formidable get-out-the-vote
operation and a mostly minority membership that usually votes for the
candidates recommended by its leadership.
Mr. Pataki, appearing elated at his latest successful incursion into
Democratic territory, grabbed the hands of hospital workers and stiffly
hoisted them in the air as television cameras recorded the moment. He
even answered a question in halting Spanish as Mr. Rivera, who is Puerto
Rican, smiled in approval.
===
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,130617,00.html
Pataki: Bush Is A Strong Leader
Monday, August 30, 2004
September 01, 2004
This is a partial transcript from "On the Record" with Greta Van
Susteren, August 30, 2004, that has been edited for clarity.
Watch "On the Record" every weeknight at 10 p.m. ET!
GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, HOST: Earlier today, I had a chance to sit down with
New York governor George Pataki (search), who will be introducing the
president to the delegates on Thursday.
GOV. GEORGE PATAKI (R), NEW YORK: I'm ready, and I'm very excited about
it. And I'm not really nervous because I'm not talking about me, I'm
talking about the president, and that's something that for me is easy.
VAN SUSTEREN: What are you going to say?
PATAKI: I'm just going to try to let the people of America see what I
understand this president means. He's a terrific leader. He's a very
straight-shooting, honest guy. He's got his heart that's bigger than you
could ever imagine, and I think the American people need to know that.
VAN SUSTEREN: How important is this convention to New York?
PATAKI: It's important to New York. We want to show a lot of people
who've never been here before and the millions who are watching that
this is a great city, that for all our diversity comes strength. This is
the most exciting place in the world.
And I think we're going to have the greatest convention, an exciting
convention. I just hope that all the people who see it on TV say, Hey, I
got to get out there and see what New York is really like.
VAN SUSTEREN: Does it end up being more expensive for the state or for
the city, or with all the influx of the media, does it end up to be
money making or even, a wash?
PATAKI: Well, I think it's going to be a great boom to New York. You
know, I don't think you can measure the economic consequences of what
happens over the next seven days. But I think there are going to be
people who've never been here before who say, My God, what a great,
exciting place.
So I think the long-term benefits from people seeing the excitement and
how great New York is going to be helpful for a long time.
VAN SUSTEREN: Are we going to see any kind of debate or battle over any
particular issues as we sort of march towards the nomination process
this year?
PATAKI: I don't think so. I think we're united behind this president and
the vice president and their leadership. You know, these are probably
the most difficult times I've seen.
We're in a war against terrorists who want to attack us again. We're
coming out of what was a terrible recession, and the president's
creating more jobs. And I think we're just going to be united behind
this president, behind the vice president, and hopefully, propel him to
the formal part of the campaign Thursday night and send him on the way
to a great victory.
VAN SUSTEREN: Are the two tickets really different?
PATAKI: Yes.
VAN SUSTEREN: In what way? What's the biggest difference?
PATAKI: I think they're profoundly different, everything from philosophy
to the people they are. And I don't want to be critical of the senator
here, but I have to tell you that one of the great things about
President Bush, whether you agree with him or not on every single issue,
this is a man who's honest, who's a strong leader.
He doesn't take a poll to decide what he should do when he believes the
interests of the people of America is at stake. This is a president
who's a leader, and he does what he thinks is right for us. And I think
his leadership has been extraordinary. I'm just very proud that he's our
president.
VAN SUSTEREN: There's been a lot of criticism of the Democratic
convention that they put the moderates up. Same criticism of the
Republican Party. We're going to see all the moderates in primetime.
Deliberate?
PATAKI: We're supporting the president. It's that simple.
VAN SUSTEREN: But where's the -- where are people who are -- you know,
the -- we didn't see the far left in Boston, we're not seeing the far
right at night here.
PATAKI: Well, I don't know who picked the schedule, but I do know that
what we're going to do is present a united front behind a great
president. And I think that's what this convention is all about.
Let the American people see and hear the president Thursday night. Let
them hear the rest of us talk about the leadership that this president
has provided.
And we have a very diverse party, but we're united on so many things
that, ultimately, I think what we are most united on is our belief in
America, in our people and in our freedom.
We don't want government that's weak in the face of attacks to our
freedom. We don't want a government that's going to take our money and
run our economy and try to run our lives. What unites us is so much more
than what might seem to divide us, particularly when you look at the
ticket of the other party. And I think we have to get that message
across to the American people because it doesn't just unite us as
Republicans, it unites us with the overwhelming majority of the American
people.
--
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