Murphy Will Lose

Ericka Andersen | February 04, 2009 7:17 PM

Scott Murphy ought to take a lesson from Tom Daschle, cash in his cards and get out of the way. The venture capitalist Democrats have chosen to represent them in the upcoming special election for Rep. Kristin Gillibrand's NY seat,

is another in the long line of tax cheating Democrats -- as Amanda reported here yesterday. In light of this issue, the DCCC has kept quiet, essentially paving the way for Republican Assemblyman James Tedisco to take the seat.

Carelessness? No. Democrats feel so confident in their majorities they aren't willing to go out on the line for another tax evader right now. If Murphy loses, Republicans will take back a seat they lost to Gillibrand in 2006. Jimmy Vielkind writes that "If [Tedisco] were to win the seat, his victory would be the first Democratic loss since the Democratic tsunami that elected Barack Obama. It could be spun as the start of a movement."

Politico reports:

In a closed-door meeting Wednesday morning at the Capitol Hill Club, Delaware Rep. Mike Castle took the lead in making the pitch to members of the House Republican Conference. Reps. Kevin McCarthy (Calif.), Mike Coffman (Colo.), Wally Herger (Calif.), David Dreier (Calif.), and Howard McKeon (Calif.) all gave $10,000 on the spot for the GOP candidate in New York’s 20th congressional district, according to sources involved with the meeting.

Republicans are far more determined to win back a seat that they desperately need.