As Faso looks back, Gillibrand talks 2020

ALBANY, N.Y. _ When I talked to John Faso about his loss to Antonio Delgado, there were traces of bitterness in his voice.

Faso, a freshman congressman from the 19th Congressional District, faced a difficult task. He was a Republican running when Democratic voters were motivated by fury toward Donald Trump. Maybe the so-called "blue wave" didn't materialize nationally, but it sure washed over Republicans in New York.

Faso, unlike some Republicans, kept his distance from Trump. Was that a tactical mistake? Trump thinks so and even called out Faso for failing to embrace him. But Faso believes he made the right call.

"I have a district where being closer to the president would not have been helpful," Faso said Monday. "This is a district where the anti-Trump intensity is stronger than the pro-Trump intensity."

The massive 19th is a true swing district that stretches from the Massachusetts border to Cooperstown and includes a good chunk of the Hudson Valley. Not surprisingly, Delgado was strongest in the more populated parts of the district while Faso dominated in rural areas.

When he ran two years ago, Faso received 166,000 votes. This time, he received 124,000. Delgado received 9,000 fewer votes than 2016 candidate Zephyr Teachout, but nevertheless won by about three percentage points.

Faso attributed his loss mostly to his being outspent by Delgado, especially on television advertising. But he also believes unfair coverage contributed to his defeat.

"There is a lot of explicit and implicit media bias, and I saw it more in this campaign than ever before," Faso told me. "That's just the environment we're in _ and I don't think the press is the enemy of the people."

Faso was widely criticized for ads from the National Republican Congressional Committee that highlighted Delgado's brief career as a rapper. The New York Times and others accused Faso of race baiting. (Delgado is black.)

Faso said he didn't think the ads hurt him, but said they played into the media's Republicans-are-racist narrative. As evidence of bias, he noted that district newspapers focused on the NRCC ads, but failed to care that a Delgado attack ad was called "mostly false" by Politifact.

I can't judge the of media coverage in the sprawling district, but I do think Faso is wrong about the rapper ads. They helped Delgado.

The ads angered Democrats and motivated turnout. And they added to Delgado's appeal.

Delgado, who recently worked as an attorney for a powerful lobbying firm, is a corporate Democrat who played the campaign safe and spoke in platitudes. For some voters, especially younger ones, his rap career was compelling _ a reason to vote for Delgado, instead of against him.

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Here's what Kirsten Gillibrand said during a recent debate when asked whether she would serve out her term if reelected to the Senate:

"I will."

The moderator pressed her a bit. You're saying, he asked, that you will not run for president?

"I will serve my six-year term," Gillibrand said.

Here's what New York's newly re-elected junior senator said roughly two weeks later, when again asked about running for president:

"I've been thinking about it," she said Monday on "The View."

That, in a nutshell, is why voters are so distrustful of politicians and cynical about politics. Promises mean nothing. Lies flow like tap water.

The problem is pervasive. (As Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Trump so frequently illustrate.) We live in a time of blatant misrepresentation and manipulation.

Still, Gillibrand's shamelessness feels especially unnecessary. Every poll showed her with a huge lead over Republican Chele Farley, and she won by 33 percentage points.

Would it have made any difference if Gillibrand had been honest about presidential ambitions that have long been obvious? Of course not. So why be dishonest?

On "The View," Gillibrand said she'll consider a 2020 run because she feels called to fight for "moral integrity." If she was aware of the irony, it didn't show.

Contact columnist Chris Churchill at 518-454-5442 or email cchurchill(at)timesunion.com