Carl Paladino Vows to Spend What it Takes to Get NY Congressional Seat

Carl Paladino Vows to Spend What it Takes to Get NY Congressional Seat

By: Hadassa Kalatizadeh  

 

Carl Paladino, formerly a gubernatorial candidate, says he is willing to spend what it takes to secure a seat in Congress this year, even amid scandals which continue to churn around his campaign.  “I’ve already put $300,000 into the [campaign] account,” Paladino told The Post. “I am very confident.”

The 75-year-old upstate real estate developer, who is worth an estimated $150 million, is gearing up to run for the 23rd congressional district seat, representing western New York. He will be facing off in the coming primary against GOP state chairman Nick Langworthy.  On Thursday, there was outrage after comments reemerged where Paladino seemed to have lauded Adolf Hitler, calling him “the kind of leader we need today.”

“We need somebody inspirational. We need somebody that is a doer, has been there and done it,” Paladino added. The remarks, from a Feb 2021 radio interview, were publicized on Wednesday by the liberal watchdog group Media Matters. Paladino told The Post he had been taken out of context. Still, this isn’t the first offensive statements he’s gotten in trouble for.

In 2016 Paladino had said he hoped former President Obama would die of Mad Cow Disease and that former First Lady Michelle Obama should “return to being a male and let loose in the outback of Zimbabwe where she lives comfortably in a cave with Maxie, the gorilla.” He had subsequently apologized for the remarks. Still, those remarks had gotten him kicked off the Buffalo Public Schools Board, where he had served from 2013 through 2017.

When asked by the NY Post this week if he regretted the statement, he responded, “no”.  “I stand responsible for what I said. I said them in a humorous vein … most people laughed at it, they got a kick out of it,” Paladino said.  “Oh I’ll cause trouble, there is no question about that, at the appropriate time and on the appropriate issues,” he said.

Paladino, who grew up in Buffalo with his Italian immigrant parents, is the founder and chairman of Ellicott Development Co. In 2010, he ran for New York State governor, beating Rick Lazio in the Republican primary, but losing against Democrat Andrew Cuomo in the general election, 63% to 33%.  Still, he had won all eight counties in the Buffalo media market. Then too, in his first time running in a political race, Paladino had been quoted saying that he was willing to spend up to $10 million in his own money.

Paladino got another chance at politics last week, after Rep. Chis Jacobs, who has held the 23rd district congressional seat since 2020, suddenly dropped plans to seek reelection.  Jacobs had gotten severe criticism from his own party for supporting gun control, following the shooting in a Buffalo supermarket where a white supremacist gunman left 10 dead.  The opening for the solidly Republican seat led Paladino to spring into action.  He announced a decidedly different approach to the issue than Jacobs. “The best gun control is going to be when we devote more resources to mental illness. That is what is behind all this,” Paladino said, casting aside any talk of new gun restrictions.