Chuck Schumer

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Brian X. Foley with David Paterson.

A new poll from Siena College [PDF] of six key State Senate races show Democrats on the verge of ousting an incumbent on Long Island, and successfully defending a seat in Erie County, but losing in Buffalo--and possibly even in Queens.

If the results of the Siena poll hold on Election Day, Democrats will gain one State Senate seat, and have a decent chance of winning a second--and the coveted majority. But many races are tight.

Democratic challenger Brian Foley has opened up a twenty two-point lead (56-34) against incumbent Republican Caesar Trunzo [clarified]. In Siena's September poll, Trunzo led Foley 46 to 40 percent.

WASHINGTON - Four years after the GOP successfully sunk the Democratic leader in the U.S. Senate, Democrats are giving Republicans the reverse treatment by going after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.

For the last three weeks, national Democrats have barraged Kentucky media markets with television advertisements slamming McConnell (R-Louisville). The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee's newest TV ad, out this week, shows McConnell as a delivery truck driver while a narrator says the Republican "backed George Bush's crazy spending and delivered a $10 trillion debt."

In a press conference today, DSCC Chairman Chuck Schumer was repeatedly pressed on whether the decision to target the opposing party's leader was proper. He responded that after Republicans succeeded in targeting then-party leader Tom Daschle in 2004, Democrats had a free hand to go after McConnell.

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If you ask Chuck Schumer or Harry Reid, they’ll give you a cautious answer about their party’s prospects of attaining a filibuster-proof 60-seat majority in the Senate next Tuesday. It’s possible and it would be great if it happened, they have said over and over, but it will by no means be a disappointment if we fall short of it.

But it will be.  read more »

Last night, after Hillary Clinton presented an award to Iris Weinshall at the 38th annual Women Write the World gala, Weinshall's husband, Chuck Schumer, explained how valuable his wife has been to his political career.

Taking the stage, Schumer recounted a night years ago, during Ed Koch's third term as mayor.

Koch, Schumer said, “sometimes, he would say these things that were a little bit off the deep end." One night, Weinshall turned to Schumer and said of Koch, “Do you know what his problem is?”

According to Schumer, she went on, "When he goes to bed at night there’s no one laying in bed next to him saying, ‘You know what a jerk you made out of yourself?’”

The crowd laughed.

John Ensign

U.S. Sen. John Ensign (R-Las Vegas) isn't exactly making an endorsement in the race to succeed him as National Republican Senatorial Committee chair, but he does seem to think U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) would be a good fit.

In a conference call with reporters today, Ensign said Cornyn and U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman (R-Minn.), who are both said to be gunning for the post, "would be fantastic" in heading up the GOP's Senate campaign arm. But the Nevada Senator reserved particular praise for Cornyn, a first-term Senator who currently serves as the Republican Conference vice chairman.

Ensign explained that having a strong geographical fundraising base would was key for the job and Cornyn, "would bring a lot of people from Texas."

Check back next week to view my Convention Sketchpads from the Republican National Convention in Minneapolis.:

• View all four Convention Sketchpads from the Democratic National Convention