Ready for Hillary? Not so fast.
Zephyr Teachout, fresh off her strong second-place showing in the Democratic primary against New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, pleaded for more Democratic candidates to challenge the presumed 2016 frontrunner. “Please, we need people to run against Hillary Clinton because if she’s not debating anyone on education policy or on tax policy then we all lose,” she told MSNBC’s Krystal Ball on Wednesday.
“Not only does she need a challenger from the left, we should have 5 people—10 people—running for president,” she argued. “If we don’t have a Democratic Party challenger, that is a democratic tragedy.”
Armed with an “efficient” campaign staff and tiny war chest, Teachout won an impressive one third of the Democratic vote in last week’s primary against incumbent Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo– the best showing for a primary challenger to an incumbent governor in the state’s history. The Fordham Law professor mobilized the state’s populist Democrats, focusing on inequality, education, and the environment.
When asked what resonated with New York’s Democratic base that was representative of a national insurgency on the left, Teachout pointed to frustration with Cuomo’s “trickle-down” tax policy. “[Cuomo]’s basically a Republican when it comes to economic policy—all tax breaks for wealthy companies.” she told Krystal Clear.








