Former New York Governor George Pataki is the latest Republican to enter the race for president. Pataki is already in New Hampshire this week campaigning for votes.Pataki's campaign posted a https://youtu.be/aw5DmSp0gtI">video on YouTube this morning, signaling his run for the office.
The video focuses on recapturing the united spirit that spread through out the nation following the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Pataki was in the second of three terms as governor when the attacks hit Washington, Pennsylvania and New York, toppling New York City's Twin Towers.
"If we are to flourish as a people, we have to fall in love with America again," Pataki says in the video.
The video closes with image reading, "Pataki for President."
This morning, WBFO's Jay Moran spoke with Buffalo News Reporter Tim O'Shei, who has been in New Hampshire covering Pataki.
"The way that politicians campaign in New Hampshire could work very, very well for George Pataki. Does that mean he'll win? No, it probably does not because it's of course not this simple," says O'Shei.
"People in New Hampshire, there's a running joke, they call themselves 'Granite Staters'," says O'Shei. "A 'Granite Stater' needs to meet you three times before he or she will decide whether they're even going to consider voting for you... So, what that means, you see this on TV all the time, presidential candidates will pop into coffee shops, bars, pizza joints, book stores, back yards, living rooms. I hit all of these things this week. That's where the presidential candidates, show up, introduce themselves and ask for votes. George Pataki, coming from Peekskill, New York, is actually quite good at that."
"They (voters) are getting a sense of who he is but they really don't know too much about him," says O'Shei.
"Pataki, of course lead New York through 9/11, but ask virtually anybody outside of New York or maybe in the state who they recall, and they're going to tell you Rudy Giuliani," notes O'Shei. "I asked Pataki about that yesterday and he said Mayor Giuliani did a great job with that. I wasn't looking for headlines, I was looking to lead and I feel like I did that."
"He is going to need to find a way in the Granite State of New Hampshire to get that message out to voters in a way where they appreciate the character but they also remember the name."
