Dede Scozzafava, the woman who has become the symbol of moderate Republicanism, is taking a shot at former Republican vice presidential hopeful Sarah Palin, the woman who has become the darling of the Republican Party's conservative grassroots.| Chum, meet |
The Hoffman campaign and many of his supporters targeted Scozzafava on some of her more moderate views, particularly on social issues.
The growing conservative support for Hoffman, including the endorsements from Palin and other prominent conservatives, eventually led Scozzafava - who had been hand-picked by local party leaders - to drop out of the race just days before Election Day.
"How can Sarah Palin come out and endorse someone who can't answer some basic questions?" Scozzafava told the Washington Post. "Do these people even know who they are endorsing?"
In the interview, Scozzafava - who ended up backing the race's victor, Democrat Bill Owens - sounded a bitter note about how she was treated by members of her own party.
"It was organized," Scozzafava told the Post about the attacks against her by Palin, other prominent conservative figures, and conservative advocacy groups. "There is a lot of us who consider ourselves Republicans, of the Party of Lincoln. If they don't want us with them, we're going to work against them."