Best Candidate For New York Attorney General-- By Far: Zephyr Teachout

In 2014, Blue America endorsed Zephyr Teachout for governor. In a a guest post about trust-busting she wrote for DWT in August of that year she explained one reason why many of the Cuomo's most ardent supporters were "Republican donors and elected officials: he delivers Trickled-down Republican economic policies as well as any Republican Governor in the country." It hasn't gotten any better over the last 4 years.

That year low-info Democrats renominated Andrew Cuomo with 62% of the vote. He spent $60.62 per vote he received-- and spent over 40 times more than his opponent, Zephyr Teachout, who took 35%. Although Cuomo won all the big Machine counties, where men in back rooms decide on the totals in advance, Teachout won 30 of New York's 62 counties, some in absolute wipeouts:

• Putnam- 53.5%
• Dutchess- 57.5%
• Ulster- 70.0%
• Sullivan- 67.6%
• Delaware- 63.3%
• Greene- 62.1%
• Columbia- 77.9%
• Rensselaer- 63.4%
• Albany- 61.9%
• Schoharie- 71.7%
• Washington- 63.8%
• Saratoga- 67.3%
• Fulton- 54.3%
• Montgomery- 54.5%
• Otsego- 72.7%
• Chenango- 49.9%
• Madison- 46.8%
• Cortland- 60.6%
• Tompkins- 70.9%
• Tioga- 49.7%
• Schuyler- 60.7%
• Yates- 61.5%
• Ontario- 50.8%
• Seneca- 56.3%
• Wayne- 49.1%
• Warren- 56.7%
• Hamilton- 51.7%
• Essex- 48.6%
• Clinton- 49.4%
• St Lawrence- 54.6%

On September 13, New York Democratic voters will nominate one of four primary candidates" Zephyr, Cuomo's candidate Letitia James, conservative Democratic Sean Patrick Maloney, a notorious Wall Street whore, and a former Hillary Clinton policy advisor Leecia Eve. The Democratic status quo establishment-- from Obama, EMILY's List and Cuomo to now defeated Rep. Joe Crowley and a shit-load of corrupt elected officials have endorsed James. Grassroots organizations and progressives like Pramila Jayapal and Ro Khanna are behind Zephyr. She was also endorsed by the NY Times and, yesterday, by the Daily News: Zephyr Teachout for attorney general: A standout in the Democratic field.

Four years ago they were behind Cuomo. In their endorsement yesterday they noted that "Much has changed in four years... [It was] unimaginable then that Donald Trump would be the President, pursuing reckless policies while continuing to profit from his private business, an ethical monstrosity. What hasn’t changed in four years is that Albany remains a pit of corruption with conflicts of interest everywhere."

So more than ever New York needs a smart, energetic, independent lawyer to lead the 700 professionals of the Law Department to defend the state; enforce labor, housing and consumer law; file suit against corporations that violate New Yorkers’ rights; take on Trump’s official and personal predations, and root out Albany graft.

Teachout is a puzzle-piece fit of candidate and moment. An expert in state and federal anti-corruption laws, she would bring welcome sunlight to the Capitol’s dark corners.

It is Teachout’s theory that Trump is a living, breathing violation of the U.S. Constitution’s emoluments clause that is playing out in court. It is Teachout who promises to reanimate the Moreland Commission Gov. Cuomo hastily disbanded.

Clean as they come, of the four AG contenders, only Teachout has forsworn accepting contributions from corporate PACs or limited liability corporations, LLCs, which can completely subvert campaign donation limits.

Only Teachout welcomed last year’s referendum to convene a state Constitutional Convention to revise and amend the 52,500-word mess of a document that not only has she read, but that she teaches as a tenured member of Fordham’s faculty.

What is outside her immediate wheelhouse, Teachout, a whip-smart lawyer, can easily learn by recruiting top talent.

Teachout’s chief rival, Public Advocate Tish James, is a credible candidate, but she’s the pick of party power brokers, and that should set off alarm bells. The second strike against James: After Schneiderman imploded, she was happy to play the inside game and get handed the job by the Legislature. The third: Her record of successfully filing suit as public advocate is spotty, to put it kindly.

While other contenders, Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney and Leecia Eve, a former top aide to Gov. Cuomo and before that to Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton, could do the job, they don’t dazzle. And they too wanted the shortcut to incumbency. That ought to be a sign.

Vote for the one candidate who had sufficient respect for voters to keep Barbara Underwood as AG until Election Day. Who knows corruption laws inside out. Who is independent from the governor and the establishment.

Vote Teachout.

Please consider contributing to Zephyr's campaign by clicking on the thermometer above. Democratic voters in deep blue states often turn to Republicans for state office because of the corruption. In New York this year, it's time to turn to a progressive reformer instead. I'm sure the corrupt Democratic establishment fears Zephyr Teachout far more than they fear any Republican-- and they should.