Golisano for Governor?

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

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NEW YORK SUN CONTRIBUTOR

The entry yesterday into the Republican Party by Thomas Golisano, the Rochester billionaire who founded the payroll company Paychex, is a positive development not only for the party of Lincoln but for all New Yorkers who believe that competition is healthy. One-party rule leads to corruption, so a growing Republican party that attracts political activists like Mr. Golisano is good for honest government in the state. And it’s hard to argue with the proposition put forth by Mr. Golisano in a statement yesterday, that “New York State must get taxes, spending and borrowing under control.”


For all that, there’s a long way to travel between joining the party and winning its nomination to run for governor, a nomination that Mr. Golisano says he is considering whether to seek. And he is going to have a long way to go to convince Republicans and conservatives that he is to be taken seriously on policy matters. Our Jacob Gershman reports on today’s front page on Federal Election Commission records showing that Mr. Golisano donated $2,000 to Senator Kerry’s presidential campaign while giving nothing to President Bush’s reelection campaign – a strange, even bizarre move for someone who advocates getting taxes under control.


The decision to support Mr. Kerry in 2004 also puts Mr. Golisano at odds with the man that Mr. Golisano said talked him into becoming a Republican, Senator Mc-Cain. Mr. McCain, who served with Senator Kerry in the Senate and worked with him on Vietnam prisoner of war issues, endorsed President Bush and campaigned with him last year. Mr. Golisano is joining a state party that has been through a rough patch in recent years but that nonetheless has some promising potential gubernatorial candidates already in Randy Daniels, William Weld, and John Faso. We look forward to a healthy debate between the candidates on which of them has the growth-oriented ideas most likely to build a majority in 2006 – and a record of sticking to those ideas under fire.

NY Sun
NEW YORK SUN CONTRIBUTOR

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.


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