Lazio Hits the Campaign Trail

Former Rep. Rick Lazio is outmanned, out-financed and is given little-to-no chance by political handicappers of beating Attorney General Andrew Cuomo in this November's gubernatorial election.

In fact, Lazio had to fight to get his own party's endorsement, which was also sought after by Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy. Now, while Levy moves ahead in Suffolk without a party, Lazio looks to pull off a miracle.

Lazio, at least, says he's up for the challenge.

"The campaign is going very well," said Lazio, a member of the West Islip High School Class of 1976. "New Yorkers know the state is in serious trouble and needs a change in management. I think people look at Albany and some are disappointed, some of disgusted. Everybody virtually knows that we can't keep going the way we are going."

It's Lazio's first time on the campaign trail since 2000, when he was a late insert to run against Hillary Rodham Clinton after New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani bailed on the race. Lazio would go on to get blown out by Clinton, who served 8 years as New York's junior Senator before resigning to become President Obama's secretary of state.

Lazio is hoping the bad economy, dysfunction in Albany and high taxes will lead to a different result this time around.

"This state has such a rich heritage," Lazio said. "Where we are now is an embarrassment to where we have been."

Lazio is placing the campaign focus on on the state finances.

"We need to get our budget back into balance," he said.  "We need to drive down property taxes. We need to make this an affordable place to we need to focus relentlessly on jobs."

Lazio maintains that the state is losing its tax base because New Yorkers are finding it increasingly difficult to live here.

"We lose a population about the size of Syracuse every single year," Lazio said. "That must stop. We need a strategy for a stable fiscal environment; we need to balance our budget and lower our spending and invest in creating jobs."

But Christopher Hahn, a Democratic strategist, said Lazio isn't the right guy to deliver change. In fact, he argued that the Republicans chose the wrong candidate when they passed on Levy.

"Levy would have been far more competitive especially in crucial suburban areas where State Senate races are expected to be tight," Hahn said.  "At this point in time, there is little reason for donors to expect that Lazio has any chance to win in November."

And Hahn added that because Levy would have grabbed more headlines in areas such as Long Island, the GOP may have cost itself votes in competitive state Senate races, such as the race between Brian X Foley and Lee Zeldin, who ran a spirited, but ultimately unsucessful campaign to unseat Rep. Tim Bishop in 2008.