Carl Paladino, Andrew Cuomo Leave the Potshots to Others
Five underdogs in crowded N.Y. governor field fire at frontrunners in debate.
Oct. 18, 2010— -- Carl Paladino and Andrew Cuomo avoided taking potshots at one another at the New York gubernatorial debate tonight, leaving that to the five other candidates -- one more colorful than the next.
Joining the headline grabbing tea party-favorite Republican candidate and the scion of New York Democratic politics were a convicted madam, a Black Panther turned city councilman, a retired mailman, a current UPS package handler and a lawyer who moonlights as a screenwriter.
Rather than attack each other, as they have in the New York press in recent weeks, Paladino and Cuomo stuck to pushing their own positions. On policy, the men often seemed to strike the same chord on such things as cuts to Medicaid and support for charter schools.
They did not mention each other directly by name or indirectly once in the 90-minute debate.
The seven-way debate, which included candidates from the Freedom, Anti-Prohibition, Rent is Too Damn High, Libertarian and Green parties was held at Hofstra University on Long Island.
The debate touched on budget cuts, property tax cuts, the environment, job creation, education, public transportation, and corruption.
Cuomo, the race's frontrunner, took the most barbs -- attacked by Libertarian Party Candidate Warren Redlich for taking special interest money and by Freedom Party candidate Charles Barron for advocating state job cuts -- but none directly from Paladino.
"Asking Andrew Cuomo and Carl Paladino to end corruption is like asking an arsonist to put out fires," said Barron, a left-wing New York City Council member.
