DOMINIC RECCHIA/STEVE HARRISON

Rumor has it that City Councilman Dominic Recchia is considering a run for Congress from CD-13. This seat has been held by Bush waterboy Vito Fossella since 1997. In the 2006 Congressional election Fossella was challenged by Steve Harrison and if Harrison had more money and backing from the DCCC he would have won that race.

Look at it this way, Vito had over 1,400,000 in contributions and spent over $1,600,000 which gave him a debt of over $200,000. With the Democrats taking over the House Fossella has lost his cash cow Finance seat (banking, real estate, stock market) and now only sits on the Energy and Commerce Committee.

The problem with this seat and beating Fossella is that in every race the local Dems have put up a new candidate against Fossella. Additionally, all the candidates that they have put up live on the Brooklyn side of the district. Apparently no Dem in Staten Island wants to run in this race for reasons that remain questionable at the very least.

This week Crain's had a blurb that City Councilman Dominic Recchia is considering running for this seat. Recchia is term limited in his current Council seat as of 2009. Recchia is a conservative Democrat and there is a question if he lives in the district of CD-13 or CD-8 where Jerold Nadler is the Congressman. I know his parents (father recently deceased) live in CD-13 but am not sure of his address. Recchia serves on the City Council part time and has a law practice where he made $250,000 last year so he doesn't need the money. Additionally, he did little if nothing to deliver Gravesend to Steve Harrison last year. So much for a team player.

Harrison is a proven candidate and with more money and backing from the DCCC he would have won in 2006. He knows both Staten Island and Brooklyn and will represent both sides of the Bridge equally.

I say Recchia KEEP OUT. Give your support to Steve Harrison if he decides to run again and this time don't make that support just lip service. If you had done more in your district to help Steve he could have won. Harrison has a volunteer base who are awaiting his announcement so that we can begin fundraising and getting his message out. Step aside until Steve makes his decision.

We need a firm candidate and we don't need or want a primary in this district. That starts us off on the wrong foot and gives Fossella the edge. We need to band together a make this seat which is the ONLY seat in the 5 NYC Boroughs that is in the hands of the RNC a Democratic seat and increase our majority.