Cuomo 2014

Gov. Andrew Cuomo's reelection campaign for 2014 was formally announced via mousepad, pen and notepad (courtesy of Capital Tonight) on Friday night at Proctors Theater in Schenectady. Cuomo was in town for the Democratic Rural Conference's two-day Convention.
Guests of the Convention were given these parting gifts, which were imprinted with the words "Cuomo 2014." The governor did not address this fact during his opening remarks at the Convention. In fact, DRC members had national aspirations for him after he spoke.
The immediate reaction from one DRC member to the speech was, "Thank you President Cuomo," as a more subdued member suggested the governor would win that title in 2016.
Cuomo was championed as the "son" of the DRC, which endorsed him in 2002 when he tried to secure the Democratic nomination for governor. The governor embraced their strong past and said, "You can call me a son of the DRC anytime... I was born from the DRC. The DRC was very good to me early on ... and more importantly they were with me in bad days."
After briefly doing a victory lap on the passage of an on-time budget, Cuomo turned to the economic revitalization of upstate New York. He talked about economic development for this troubled region, but opted not to talk about the heretofore secret Regional Economic Development Councils that are supposed to be a part of upstate's recovery.
Instead, Cuomo seemed to focus more on protecting his flank, as he laid out his vision for New York to become a leading progressive state. This message felt like a response to critics who alleged that his budget was too fiscally conservative. Refuting that belief, the governor stressed the government's role in helping people and waxed on about the state's potential to be a leader on civil rights.
"We led the way and we're going to do it again," Cuomo said, as he promised the state would be the progressive capital for women's rights, reproductive rights, environmental rights and marriage equality.