Bishop lands on Dems' endangered list

Three months after barely surviving his toughest re-election bid, Rep. Tim Bishop is on Democrats' endangered list.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Thursday announced the first 15 members of its "Frontline" program to protect incumbents. Bishop (D-Southampton) and Rep. Bill Owens (D-Plattsburgh) made the list from New York, where the GOP won six new seats in 2010. Also on the list is Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), who remains in rehabilitation after she was wounded in the Jan. 8 Tucson shootings.

Bishop in 2010 defeated St. James businessman Randy Altschuler by 593 votes out of about 196,000 cast. The race was not decided until a month after Election Day.

"It's an acknowledgment of reality," Bishop aide Jon Schneider said. "When your race is decided in December, it's not a news flash that you had a very close race."

The practical benefits for Bishop and others on the list include a waiver from paying the $150,000 campaign committee member dues and fundraising help. In the last election cycle, Altschuler outspent Bishop nearly 2-1, despite help for the five-term Bishop from high-profile Democrats such as Vice President Joe Biden.

Campaign committee chairman Rep. Steve Israel (D-Dix Hills) said in a news release that any Democratic gains in 2012 will hinge on keeping incumbents in swing districts.

Rob Ryan, who served as Altschuler's 2010 spokesman, declined to say whether Altschuler was planning a 2012 rematch.

"Tim Bishop obviously wasn't listening to the voters last fall," Ryan said. "He's still a big-spending liberal who marches lock-step with [House Minority Leader] Nancy Pelosi and her high-taxing policies."

Schneider said he is optimistic Bishop will have sufficient resources to hold the seat. "I would anticipate we're going to have a much better environment to run in 2012 than in 2010," he said. "I'd be hard-pressed to tell you how it could be worse."