If you’ve been following this story…the other shoe has just dropped:
Westchester County District Attorney Jeanine Pirro (R) ended her campaign against New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton on Wednesday, bringing to a close a brief and decidedly rocky attempt to unseat perhaps the country’s most famous Democratic officeholder.
Even as she announced she would shutter her campaign against Clinton, Pirro jumped into the state attorney general’s contest. A recent independent poll showed her trailing the two Democrats seeking that office.
In a statement released by her campaign, Pirro said her “law enforcement background better qualifies me for a race for New York State Attorney General than a race for the United States Senate.”
Pirro’s exit leaves the Republicans adrift for now, with only two obscure candidates vying for the nomination: former Yonkers mayor John Spencer and tax lawyer William Brenner.
From the start of Pirro’s Senate campaign in mid-August, she was beset by questions about her fundraising ability and readiness for such a high-profile contest.
This Washington Post article is echoed by The New York Times which notes:
While Ms. Pirro’s decision to withdraw had been widely expected, with The New York Post reporting yesterday that it would happen by the end of the week, it nonetheless left state Republican leaders scrambling to find another candidate to challenge Mrs. Clinton, who enters her re-election year in a dominant position, with high approval ratings and millions of dollars in her campaign coffers.
Here’s some reaction to her announcement.
So now the question becomes: what should the GOP do? How can it find a strong candidate to run against Hillary Clinton?
Wait — here’s an idea: how about asking Alan Keyes to move into the state and run against her?