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Janison: Obama, McCain face same voter challenges

Dan Janison | dan.janison@newsday.com

August 25, 2008

DENVER - Fellow Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain may not be talking shop together these days, but they face a similar problem - partially involving the Clintons - as their presidential nominations approach.

Each candidate wishes to tell voters he is different from the last president of his party - but also keep voters who elected the last president of his party. That will create "an interesting bit of gymnastics," predicts Professor David Birdsell, politics expert at Baruch College in Manhattan.

For Obama, any need for personal distance from Bill Clinton has taken care of itself. But he will need Clinton voters, and Birdsell notes that "the clear question is how far" the forces of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton will get at the convention.

McCain, for his part, seeks to unburden himself of President George W. Bush. The candidate said in an ad last week: "We're worse off than we were four years ago." That's a sharp reversal from primary-season praise of Bushonomics. And the GOP, which once worked so hard to peg Sen. Clinton as a radical gorgon, casts her today as a martyred moderate.

ONE DEAN DONOR: In Westchester, businessman Sam Zherka has drawn public attention as much for his clashes with government officials as for his ventures. He's best known as owner of the Westchester Guardian, a free weekly paper, and the V.I.P. club, a Manhattan adult-entertainment establishment, and real-estate entities. He's sued Westchester DA Janet DiFiore as well as Manhattan prosecutors and GOP Yonkers Mayor Phil Amicone - among other things to dispute what he said were wrongful, politically motivated attempts to probe and paint him as involved in criminal activities.

Corporations in which Zherka or business associates are listed as officers have donated thousands of dollars to state Sen. Dean Skelos in the years before the Rockville Centre Republican was majority leader. As Skelos is a local figure now in the statewide spotlight, we inquired last week, and Zherka explained: "I used to own some businesses on Long Island. I met Dean when I used to own the East Bay Diner on Long Beach Road in Oceanside and an Italian restaurant, and got to know him. In my opinion he's not your typical politician. Very laid back, very honest.

"So I did some fundraisers for him ... Unfortunately, there aren't too many honest guys like him in elected office."

ON ONE'S OWN: Famously frugal Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy has pumped no funds into ally Waldo Cabrera's Democratic primary bid to unseat third-term Assemb. Phil Ramos of Brentwood. Cabrera had $15,915 as of the last filing Aug. 8 and loaned himself $10,000 on July 10. Ramos had $27,852 on hand, helped by a $14,500 loan from the Suffolk Democrats in June. Ramos has touted local backing from Suffolk chairman Richard Schaffer, Islip Supervisor Phil Nolan and Legis. Jon Cooper and Ricardo Montano, among others. Asked if he planned to fundraise, Levy said: "No, he's working hard and I wish him the best. It's always been Waldo's race to win. I'm concentrating on the county's $100-million budget shortfall and not on state-level campaigns."