Former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer says he failed “big time” in his first campaign ad for NYC comptroller.
In the minute-long ad, Spitzer addresses the prostitution scandal that led to his eventual resignation as governor in 2008.
“When you dig yourself a hole, you can either lie in it the rest of your life or do something positive. That’s why I’m running,” he says in the spot.
Spitzer is running against Democratic challenger, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, and is leading him by nine percentage points in the latest NBC 4 New York/WSJ/Marist poll. The poll also showed that 67% of Democrats believe Spitzer should have a shot at a second chance. While Spitzer may appear to be the fan favorite, New York’s Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and three state women’s groups have endorsed Stringer. Gillibrand, was serving in the House in 2008 and requested for Spitzer to resign.
Spitzer joined Morning Joe earlier in July to discuss his campaign, and admitted to Mika Brzezinski that he had gone through pain and that he had changed since 2008. As msnbc has previously reported, Spitzer isn’t the only disgraced politician angling for a second chance at public-sector life: Former Rep. Anthony Weiner is running for NYC mayor and is currently leading City Council Speaker Christine Quinn in a new Quinnipiac poll. How did Tuesday’s Morning Joe panel feel about the ad, which features black-and-white images of a seemingly pensive Spitzer interspersed with images of Manhattan and Spitzer addressing a camera? “Why is he running? Is it for Wall Street or is it redemption? I don’t think he has resolved that, and I don’t think this ad resolves that either,” said msnbc’s Richard Wolffe.
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