Caroline Kennedy blazed her own campaign trail upstate yesterday, meeting local leaders on her version of a “listening tour” – and insisting she’s qualified to replace Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.
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Kennedy hopscotched through Syracuse, Rochester and Buffalo as she pressed her case for Gov. Paterson to tap her for the Senate slot.
“I’ve had a lifelong commitment to public service,” she said in Rochester.
While Kennedy hawked her credentials to upstate pols, Mayor Bloomberg‘s top political lieutenant, Deputy Mayor Kevin Sheekey, worked contacts hard on her behalf.
He was the one who connected Kennedy with political consultant and longtime Bloomberg adviser Josh Isay, one source said.
The Post has also reported that while Bloomberg was unlikely to ever publicly endorse her, he’s boosting her behind the scenes.
Kennedy is set to sit down with the Rev. Al Sharpton at Sylvia’s in Harlem today.
In her upstate visits, the daughter of JFK and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, said, “I’ve written books on the Constitution and the importance of individual participation. And I’ve raised my family. I think I really could help bring change to Washington.”
She said it wouldn’t be her last trip to the region – and even got in a political joke.
“This was a great visit,” Kennedy said. “I’ve already learned a lot. I want to come back here if I were lucky enough to be chosen.
“It’s my first visit to Rochester, but I’ll be back as many times as [Sen.] Chuck Schumer,” she quipped.
Kennedy is in what’s basically a monthlong effort to convince a constituency of one – Paterson – to tap her for the seat.
Clinton, who has been tabbed as Obama’s secretary of state, famously traveled for months on a “listening tour” before officially declaring her candidacy for the Senate in 2000.
Already, a number of New York politicians have questioned whether Kennedy’s résumé is suited to the job.
Her initial foray into answering such questions didn’t go smoothly at the start of her tour in Syracuse yesterday.
After meeting with Mayor Matt Driscoll – who described her merely as “well read” – she ignored reporters when they started asking about her qualifications, and moved away.