Michael Garcia-GOP Candidate for Governor, Attorney General, Congress?
To some state Republicans, success as U.S. Attorney makes the case for 2010 run
Fri, 10 Oct 2008 17:00:00
Michael Garcia, the U.S. attorney for the southern district of New York, has certainly had a busy year. He busted the prostitution ring that ensnared Eliot Spitzer (D), brought corruption charges against several state and local elected officials and their aides, and aided in the arrest of a United Nations employee for selling fraudulent visas.
Garcia's prosecutorial zeal is earning him rave reviews far beyond the court room. With the end of the Bush administration approaching, Garcia will be looking for a new job in 2009. And some are hoping that he might consider running for governor as a Republican.
A Sept. 12 editorial in the now defunct New York Sun noted that Garcia has been eyeing downtown firms to join, just as former U.S. attorney Rudy Giuliani (R) did before running for mayor. The editorial goes on to say Garcia would be "a great governor," citing his record cleaning up the State Legislature and the City Council.
While some prominent Republicans around the city say they have not heard any chatter about a Garcia campaign yet, they were all quick to lavish him with praise.
Former Sen. Alfonse D'Amato (R) said Garcia has brought renewed pride to the U.S. attorney's office by eschewing easy headlines, unlike his predecessor Giuliani, who had a famously adversarial relationship with D'Amato.
Garcia could do just about anything he wanted after leaving the Justice Department, D'Amato added, including a run for governor or Congress.
"He's been nothing short of spectacular," D'Amato said.
Running for attorney general might be another option, especially with the bench of Republican candidates so thin for 2010.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney's office declined to comment on Garcia's plans for next year.
Garcia had a quick stint as a journalist and a publisher before plunging into the legal arena, getting his start as a prosecutor focused on terrorism and national security cases. His first big case was prosecuting the terrorists involved in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.
President George W. Bush appointed him to lead the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement division of the Department of Homeland Security before moving him to the U.S. attorney's office in 2003.
Over the past five years, Garcia has racked up an impressive list of prosecutions. In addition to hastening the resignation of Spitzer, Garcia brought charges against former Assembly member Brian McLaughlin (D), State Sen. Efrain Gonzalez (D), former Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik, two staffers of Council Member Kendall Stewart (D-Brooklyn) and, most recently, Assembly Member Anthony Seminerio (D-Queens).
Some Republicans said that while he is clearly qualified to run for office, talk about future races was too early, especially with some still waiting to see whether Giuliani will make a bid for governor. But Garcia's record, as well as his Latino heritage, is already causing some chin-stroking among Republicans.
But running for office as a U.S. attorney can be a fraught path.
Across the Hudson River, another U.S. attorney, Christopher Christie, has run headlong into those difficulties.
Though he has been mum on an actual run, Christie is reported to be eyeing a race against New Jersey Gov. John Corzine (D) in 2009, which has made him the target of some bloggers and others who say such posturing unnecessarily politicizes the U.S. Attorney's office.
Ken Frydman, who was Giuliani's press secretary during his 1993 run for mayor, said that to avoid the pitfalls that have plagued Christie, Garcia would have to resign or wait until his term ended before seriously discussing a potential run for elected office. The actual campaign, however, may prove to be the most difficult part.
"Running as a U.S. attorney or prosecutor is not that easy of a trick," Frydman said, "because invariably you have prosecuted controversial cases and the outcomes affect the likelihood of gaining support in the business community."
There are other ways to lay the foundation for a campaign that would avoid comprising the office of U.S. attorney, said Tom Doherty, a Republican political consultant and a former aide to Gov. George Pataki (R).
Garcia could nurture the buzz that is already surrounding his name by increasing his visibility and doing more press events, Doherty said. But even then, the path is precipitous.
"The U.S. attorney's position is one that deals with many sensitive issues," Doherty said. "There is an expectation that you're not in the political arena and you're not basing your judgments based on politics."
But with the economy and Wall Street replacing crime and quality of life as the prevailing concerns of the day, some Republicans were skeptical that voters would still respond to a prosecutor the way they did to Giuliani.
Guy Molinari, the former borough president of Staten Island and GOP elder, was one of the first to approach Giuliani to run for mayor. Then still in the U.S. attorney's office, Giuliani refused to talk politics. But the day after Giuliani left for private practice, Molinari said, the two sat down to discuss a possible campaign.
"At that time crime was rampant throughout the city," Molinari said. But the city and state are different places today, he noted. "I don't think Giuliani could be elected mayor today."
Besides, the state has been trending Democrat for a number of years now, Molinari said, making it difficult for someone like Garcia to get elected.
"It's a long shot," Molinari said. "He's not known well in political circles."
Garcia's prosecutorial zeal is earning him rave reviews far beyond the court room. With the end of the Bush administration approaching, Garcia will be looking for a new job in 2009. And some are hoping that he might consider running for governor as a Republican.
A Sept. 12 editorial in the now defunct New York Sun noted that Garcia has been eyeing downtown firms to join, just as former U.S. attorney Rudy Giuliani (R) did before running for mayor. The editorial goes on to say Garcia would be "a great governor," citing his record cleaning up the State Legislature and the City Council.
While some prominent Republicans around the city say they have not heard any chatter about a Garcia campaign yet, they were all quick to lavish him with praise.
Former Sen. Alfonse D'Amato (R) said Garcia has brought renewed pride to the U.S. attorney's office by eschewing easy headlines, unlike his predecessor Giuliani, who had a famously adversarial relationship with D'Amato.
Garcia could do just about anything he wanted after leaving the Justice Department, D'Amato added, including a run for governor or Congress.
"He's been nothing short of spectacular," D'Amato said.
Running for attorney general might be another option, especially with the bench of Republican candidates so thin for 2010.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney's office declined to comment on Garcia's plans for next year.
Garcia had a quick stint as a journalist and a publisher before plunging into the legal arena, getting his start as a prosecutor focused on terrorism and national security cases. His first big case was prosecuting the terrorists involved in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.
President George W. Bush appointed him to lead the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement division of the Department of Homeland Security before moving him to the U.S. attorney's office in 2003.
Over the past five years, Garcia has racked up an impressive list of prosecutions. In addition to hastening the resignation of Spitzer, Garcia brought charges against former Assembly member Brian McLaughlin (D), State Sen. Efrain Gonzalez (D), former Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik, two staffers of Council Member Kendall Stewart (D-Brooklyn) and, most recently, Assembly Member Anthony Seminerio (D-Queens).
Some Republicans said that while he is clearly qualified to run for office, talk about future races was too early, especially with some still waiting to see whether Giuliani will make a bid for governor. But Garcia's record, as well as his Latino heritage, is already causing some chin-stroking among Republicans.
But running for office as a U.S. attorney can be a fraught path.
Across the Hudson River, another U.S. attorney, Christopher Christie, has run headlong into those difficulties.
Though he has been mum on an actual run, Christie is reported to be eyeing a race against New Jersey Gov. John Corzine (D) in 2009, which has made him the target of some bloggers and others who say such posturing unnecessarily politicizes the U.S. Attorney's office.
Ken Frydman, who was Giuliani's press secretary during his 1993 run for mayor, said that to avoid the pitfalls that have plagued Christie, Garcia would have to resign or wait until his term ended before seriously discussing a potential run for elected office. The actual campaign, however, may prove to be the most difficult part.
"Running as a U.S. attorney or prosecutor is not that easy of a trick," Frydman said, "because invariably you have prosecuted controversial cases and the outcomes affect the likelihood of gaining support in the business community."
There are other ways to lay the foundation for a campaign that would avoid comprising the office of U.S. attorney, said Tom Doherty, a Republican political consultant and a former aide to Gov. George Pataki (R).
Garcia could nurture the buzz that is already surrounding his name by increasing his visibility and doing more press events, Doherty said. But even then, the path is precipitous.
"The U.S. attorney's position is one that deals with many sensitive issues," Doherty said. "There is an expectation that you're not in the political arena and you're not basing your judgments based on politics."
But with the economy and Wall Street replacing crime and quality of life as the prevailing concerns of the day, some Republicans were skeptical that voters would still respond to a prosecutor the way they did to Giuliani.
Guy Molinari, the former borough president of Staten Island and GOP elder, was one of the first to approach Giuliani to run for mayor. Then still in the U.S. attorney's office, Giuliani refused to talk politics. But the day after Giuliani left for private practice, Molinari said, the two sat down to discuss a possible campaign.
"At that time crime was rampant throughout the city," Molinari said. But the city and state are different places today, he noted. "I don't think Giuliani could be elected mayor today."
Besides, the state has been trending Democrat for a number of years now, Molinari said, making it difficult for someone like Garcia to get elected.
"It's a long shot," Molinari said. "He's not known well in political circles."
