Biden, the Dems' best closer? NY-23 thinks so. Sarah Palin not so much.

The day before the election, Vice President Joe Biden was in Watertown, N.Y., a rural town in a community of military families in an upstate New York congressional district that had been in Republican hands since the 19th century.

Campaigning for Democrat Bill Owens just as polls showed his opponent, conservative Doug Hoffman, surging with momentum, Biden turned the election into a referendum on the right-wing agenda of the Bush administration, policies he said "brought this country to its economic knees."

Singling out former Vice President Dick Cheney and conservative radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh, Biden criticized Republicans for deserting their own candidate in the race. State Assemblywoman Dede Scozzafava, was forced to withdraw after the Tea Party activists derailed her as too moderate. He even took a shot at former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, for her "simple" view that energy problems could be solved with a simple chant of "drill, baby, drill."

By contrast, Biden said, Owens was a "pragmatic and tough" candidate who is strong on national defense and tax relief. "They may not have more room for moderate views in upstate New York, but we have room, we have room," the vice president said.

He told the crowd, many Republicans who had backed Scozzafava, “We’re not asking you to switch your party. We’re just saying, join us in teaching a lesson to absolutists who come and tell us that no dissent is permitted within their own party.”

Voters did just that, giving Owens a 49%-45% victory over Hoffman. But Palin, who backed Hoffman over Scozzafava, predicted that Republicans would recapture the seat in 2010.

"The race for New York's 23rd District is not over, just postponed until 2010," she wrote on her Facebook page. "The issues of this election have always centered on the economy -- on the need for fiscal restraint, smaller government and policies that encourage jobs. In 2010, these issues will be even more crucial to the electorate."

-- Johanna Neuman

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Comments

[gamesetmatch]

Glenn Beck, Rush and Sarah Palin FAIL. How funny is it they all put so much into this race only to see it backfire big time.

[G]

The candidate that Sarah Palin supports always ends up losing. McCain, Hoffman..next.
Future(conservative) Repulican candidates should stay away from her.

[Joseph M. Liotta]

Congratulations to our new congressman Bill Owens, the first Democrat to be elected to the House of Representatives in the last 150 years.

I've lived in this district for more than 50 years and given that experience I believe this would not have happened if Doug Hoffman did not enter this race. Dede Scozzafava would have won going away because this district is by and large really moderate. On the other hand if the race was between Hoffman and Owens I believe Owens would have still won, again because this district is by and large really moderate.

I am proud of my neighbors in the whole district that rejected outsiders coming into our district - not physically, but over the right wing talk radio airwaves. Glen Beck, Mark Levin, Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh's constant barrage and their tactics did not work in 2008, it did not work in 2009 and I hope that it won't work in the future.

[steve rodriguez]

Joe where are those green jobs?, where is that new clean energy?
Where is that "simulated economy!"
Sarah Palin was right! "Drill baby drill!"

[buck the smuck]

sarah did not put in alot of effert-just endorsed him on facebook. i believe Barry helped his candidate win the nj and va governor races-not, by going many times to nj and va.seems like he is always in campaign mood.

[Mikey123]

Did you booger eaters miss the fact that Acorn Boy campaigned for The Gov's that lost? By the way times, Biden is a clown. And more thing, Hoffman came out of nowhere, had to fight the RNC who was spending money against him, beat Dede a Pelosi bootlicker and only have Dede turncoat. This had nothing to do with General Joe Blowhard, who drew all of 200 people at his ONE appearence, dopes. Now Owens, the other Pelosi bootlicker will keep the seat warm for one year. Dopes.