SENATE AND ASSEMBLY LEADERS ISSUE LETTERS DEMANDING GOP CANDIDATES DISAVOW PALADI

NO’S HOMOPHOBIA
JACOBS BLASTS COX’S REFUSAL TO CONDEMN PALADINO’S OFFENSIVE, HOMOPHOBIC REMARKS
Today, Democratic Chairman Jay Jacobs slammed Ed Cox, the GOP chairman, for his
refusal to condemn the homophobic remarks made by Carl Paladino, the GOP candida
te for governor, this weekend.
Democrats also released letters from the Senate and Assembly Leadership demandin
g that Republican Assembly and Senate candidates immediately disavow Paladino’s ho
mophobia.
The full text of the letters from Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Senate Maj
ority Leader John Sampson follow Jay Jacobs’ statement below.
Jacobs issued the following statement:
“With the savage bias attack in the Bronx and the high profile hate crimes around
the state, every public official or candidate has a fundamental responsibility t
o condemn homophobia and foster tolerance every chance he gets. That’s why Republ
icans – from Rudy Giuliani to Rick Lazio – are coming out of the woodwork to denounc
e Carl Paladino’s hateful assault on New York’s gay community.”
“I wish I could say the same for Ed Cox, the Republican Chairman, who won’t even ack
nowledge that Paladino’s statements were homophobic in the first place.
“Yesterday, I called on Ed Cox to disavow Paladino’s hateful remarks. I urged him t
o state unequivocally that Paladino’s homophobic views are NOT what the Republican
Party stands for.
“What did Ed Cox do? He ducked, he bobbed, he weaved but he did not disassociate
himself or his Party from Paladino’s remarks. That is outrageous.
“Cox stated that ‘[i]nsofar as Carl Paladino’s statements can be construed as homophob
ic, those statements are inappropriate and we condemn them.’ Nowhere did he disav
ow Paladino’s outrageous comments, implying that they might not be homophobic at a
ll. There’s no debate: Paladino’s remarks were homophobic and deeply offensive. Su
ggesting otherwise is itself offensive.
“Chairman Cox, I want to give you a chance to clear the air by answering the follo
wing questions without ducking –
1. Were Paladino’s remarks homophobic? An easy ‘yes’ or ‘no’ will suffice.
2. Do you agree or disagree with Paladino’s remarks?
3. Does the Republican Party disagree with those remarks? Obviously Giulia
ni and Lazio do. How about the rest of the Party?
4. Does the Republican Party disavow and disassociate itself from the remar
ks Paladino made about homosexuals this past weekend?”
LETTER FROM SENATE LEADERSHIP
Dear Senate Democratic Candidates:
Carl Paladino has shown himself to be morally reprehensible. He is misguided if
he believes New York will elect a leader who so clearly hates New Yorkers. At hi
s core, Paladino is racist, sexist, and anti-Semitic. Now we learn vehemently ho
mophobic can be added to his personal wall of shame.
Many Republican leaders might believe Paladino is not their problem. They are wr
ong. Hate-mongering rhetoric affects us all because degradation of any New Yorke
r is a threat to all New Yorkers.
Paladino’s offensive and divisive behavior must be recognized and called out for w
hat it is - a clear threat to the values and diversity that makes New York great
. Failure by GOP State Senate candidates to condemn Paladino condones his offens
ive and divisive behavior.
Carl Paladino has attempted to explain away comments as politically incorrect ga
ffes or out-of-context remarks. But we are not fooled. He is on a mission to tur
n hatred into votes, chasing headlines with an offensive and divisive approach t
hat shouldn’t be acceptable to anyone, regardless of party.
Instead of focusing on job creation and lower taxes – New York’s greatest needs – Pala
dino and the GOP are focused on the distraction of divisive politics. This is th
e same GOP that controlled the Senate for decades as New York saw the departure
of hundreds of thousands of jobs. It’s misdirection to hide their mismanagement of
New York. They have no plan to improve the economy so these are the gutter tact
ics they engage in.
This is the moment for GOP State Senate candidates to tell New Yorkers where the
y stand - either with Carl Paladino or against him. I call on all candidates to
stand up for New York and reject Carl Paladino just as he rejects the diversity
that defines New York.
Yours Truly,
John L. Sampson
Senate Majority Conference Leader
LETTER FROM ASSEMBLY LEADERSHIP
Dear Democratic Assembly Candidate,
We are a mere 21 days from what may be the most important Election Day in a gene
ration. New York voters are facing vital decisions about the future of our great
state and how we want to live.
Nowhere is that choice more important than in the race for governor. The Republi
can candidate for Governor, Carl Paladino, has proposed irrational policies that
will, among other things, increase unemployment through haphazard cuts to healt
h care, give huge tax cuts to the richest New Yorkers, and completely eliminate
a woman’s right to choose, even in cases of rape and incest. It’s clear his demeanor
and rhetoric indicate he is unfit to be governor of New York.
Most recently, Paladino has exhibited a shocking level of intolerance to the gay
community. On Sunday, he made divisive and homophobic comments stating, among o
ther things, that homosexuality was not a valid lifestyle. Comments like these h
ave no place in New York, whether one is a Democrat or a Republican.
As we enter the final weeks of the campaign, it’s important for you to put your op
ponent on record regarding who they support for governor and whether they agree
with Paladino’s homophobic comments. Notably, some Republicans have already begun
to denounce Paladino’s remarks.
I urge you to let voters know that there is no place in New York State for Repub
lican Party officials who stand by Carl Paladino’s insulting and offensive campaig
n which seeks to divide this state by race, gender, and sexual preference.
Carl Paladino does not appear to believe that we are all created equal. He has c
learly become a problem for Republican candidates around the State. It is time f
or all Democrats to now speak out and challenge their Republican opponents to di
savow Paladino and disassociate themselves from his dangerous brand of extremism
and his ugly rhetoric and tactics. I urge you to do so.
Best of luck in your campaign.
Sincerely,
Sheldon Silver
Assembly Speaker