Senate GOP campaign chief Cornyn turns his attention to NY race

Senate Republican campaign chief John Cornyn (Texas) turned his eye toward New York this week, and on Thursday he expressed confidence the GOP could go after Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) in 2010.

New York has emerged as perhaps the next big recruiting target for Cornyn. Candidates have flooded primaries in other races, but all eyes in New York are on Gov. George Pataki, who could decide as early as the next two weeks. And Cornyn said he has also talked with former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

Cornyn said he was in New York on Monday, meeting with newly elected state GOP chairman Ed Cox to discuss the potential 2010 Republican races and how to coordinate their efforts.

Based on his talks, Cornyn said Pataki is “considering” a Senate race while Giuliani seems more likely to challenge Gov. David Paterson (D). Giuliani has said he is not considering a Senate run.

Cornyn’s comments come in the wake of new polls showing that both Pataki and Giuliani are leading Gillibrand in hypothetical match-ups.

“I will tell you, we’ve seen a seismic shift in the political landscape,” Cornyn told The Hill. “We’re seeing a lot of good candidates step forward, and I think these polls demonstrate that there’s an opportunity in New York.”

Cox said last month that he has been urging Giuliani to run for Senate rather than governor, but after the remarks went to print, he quickly changed his tune and said he would be happy having Giuliani run for governor.

Asked for comment Thursday, Gillibrand referred The Hill to her press office, which referred the question to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC).

DSCC Chairman Robert Menendez (N.J.) noted that Giuliani has been quoted expressing a lack of interest in the Senate seat and that Gillibrand is in solid shape.

“At the end of the day, she has set a great foundation for herself to run against anyone, and there’s a difference between hypothetical match-ups versus actual campaigns,” Menendez said. “In an actual campaign, in a state that’s that Democratic, against someone who would have to explain why he was in lockstep with [former President George W.] Bush in the eight years he was there, I’m not concerned.”

Polling has consistently shown Gillibrand behind both men, with Giuliani the more formidable. A Siena Research Institute poll this week showed Giuliani up 53-36 and Pataki leading 46-41. Gillibrand remains unknown to a large percentage of voters — 46 percent in the Siena poll — with 28 percent approving of her and 26 percent disapproving.

The poll showed that Giuliani is leading Paterson, 56-33, in a hypothetical match-up for governor. New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo holds a 70-20 advantage over Paterson for the Democratic nomination, the poll shows. Cuomo has not launched a bid yet, though many expect him to.

A Pataki run for the Senate and a Giuliani bid for governor could help Cornyn avoid a divisive and expensive GOP primary in the Empire State for either the Senate seat or governor’s chair. But the Texan said that wasn’t his immediate concern.

“Right now, I’d even settle for [a primary] if we can get one or both of them to run,” Cornyn said. “But I think there’s plenty of opportunities. Obviously the governor there is very unpopular, and if he decides to run, that’s an opportunity for us to pick up a governor’s seat as well. So I don’t anticipate any primaries. I’d be delighted to have one or both of them run.”

Pataki has said he will make a decision by the end of the year and possibly by Nov. 3, according to the New York Daily News.

President Barack Obama has made retaining Hillary Rodham Clinton’s old seat a top priority. White House officials, including Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, played a leading role in convincing a couple of House members not to challenge Gillibrand in the Democratic primary.