Republican gubernatorial candidate Rob Astorino confronted a lost constituency Thursday night, politely, but pointedly, criticizing the business community for supporting Governor Andrew Cuomo. Typical electoral expectations suggest that Republican Astorino would be supported by the business community broadly, and the Business Council specifically. The Council, however, is expected to endorse Cuomo on Friday, and Cuomo has received enormous financial contributions from a wide range of the business community. Astorino began his speech to the Council by saying that “your graciousness makes it a little harder to say what I came here to say.” Here are selected excerpts from Astorino’s speech:
His post-speech discussion with press, with a focus on his speech, is here.