As the Golden and Eaton factions come down the stretch — It looks like most of Golden’s folks are in the lead

Going into GOP primary, appeals court confirmation that “technical” cover sheet error was fatal to a bundle of Eaton’s “Unchallenged” CC Delegates makes prospects of holding leadership dubious

Full-scale battle in 46th AD will include face-to-face, mail and phones through the weekend and up to Primary Day

Recent inputs from multiple sources indicate that outside the 46th AD, with a hand full of exceptions involving relatively few possible CC delegates, the main thrusts of the KCRP and “Republicans for Change” are shifting to post-primary tactics and strategies in preparation for a “last stand” or “final victory” at the 2013 GOP County Convention. Some of my inputs are clearly intentional, and in some cases tailored, outputs from the competing sides with the purpose of spinning what appears here  —  that doesn’t make those particular output-inputs  false or meaningless.

Part of the RFC pitch continues to be on message with  “...it’s all  locked up.” BUT, the recent gopher-popup of a NY State Senator calling to make a variety of personal pitches, some aimed at the primary, and others focused post-primary at the convention, shows at least a little internal tug-o-war. Weather that is merely the result of very complex and detailed targeting, the competing demands inside a fractious  RFC coalition, or is indicative of some other confusion of unknown etiology is not at all clear at this time.

Some outside the “Republicans for Change” ambit are trying to pitch the line that the Golden insertion this early  in the game shows desperation. However, almost everybody that have said that also say or have said that some level of Golden’s participation in the primary and convention had been expected all along.

A more likely explanation of the Golden pop-up, with his manning the phones at this time, is that it shows a cautious strategy of leaving nothing to chance. Whether the live calls by the State Senator are something that was long-ago planned or something more of more recent motivation is not the relevant inquiry. The only important questions now are these: 1) whether the Golden phone calls have an immediate positive effect for his side; 2) whether there will be a price to be paid by Golden for this level of participation; and 3) whether, after evaluating “1” and “2 ” it’s all worth it for Marty Golden going forward. My guess is that, for now, the answer to those would be “Yes” - “Maybe” and “Yes” —   Or else, how would one explain why would Golden have done it ?

Given a series of significant reverses at the BOE and in various courts, the Brooklyn Republican establishment standing behind the current GOP County Leader Craig Eaton are pulling back from a major fight for new delegates. Instead, there will be a focus on the post-primary shepherding their own flock, while influencing the “RFC” folks with various types of informational mailings and calls leading up to the convention, which probably can’t even be scheduled until the delegate races have been certified by the BOE. Some have advocated that approach from the beginning; but with the loss of so many otherwise “uncontested” potential delegates, how can playing a mostly-defensive kind of game win, when the other side looks to have more delegates coming out of the primary and going toward the Republican County Convention ?

Of course, the exception to that is inside the 46th AD where everybody will be “All In” in an all-out primary battle for State and County Committee, because there really is no other way for them to go. Whether there will be any additional outside-in influence in the last days before the primary in any of the 46th AD races is not yet known. With half of the County Committee delegation in hand, the La Guardia Republican Organization has prepared a series of mailings and robo-calls to compliment a door-to-door campaign in key EDs in the 46th AD, including a few in Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights. The unifying theme in the 46th AD is the election of the new leadership team in the 46th AD of Nussbaum and Potter  that will provide diversity and a revitalization of the GOP in Southwest Brooklyn.