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Doing her best to paint Moynihan as a Nixonite in Democratic clothing, Abzug stresses her six years in Congress. She quotes the often lavish praise of colleagues and pulls out a survey showing that she is regarded as one of the most effective members of the House. Following a schedule that would tax the stamina of a Sherpa, she has the advantage of instant recognition. Her floppy, broad-brimmed hat signaling her arrival, she evokes gasps and squeals wherever she goes. "I may not look like a Senator," she likes to say, "but I think I'm what a Senator should look like."
If Bella has seemed less abrasive lately, it is obvious that she still knows how to use her elbows. Asked whether she would support Moynihan if he won the primary, she exploded: "I draw the line at going out and campaigning for a man who undermined the liberal tradition of the Democratic Party. He supported Nixon and Ford policies and has not yet repudiated those policies." Though 33 Democratic county leaders, not all of them Moynihan supporters, called on her to withdraw her statement, she would not budge.
A Good Day. Considered third in the contest, Clark is hoping for a rerun of his surprise victory in the 1974 senatorial primary. He still roams the streets in his Hush Puppies and narrow ties, chatting with voters if they are in a mood to listen, blending into the crowd if they are not. "You can't communicate very well on the street," he admits. "All you can say is, 'Hello. Have a good day.' " He has churned out position papers on every conceivable issue to appeal to thinking liberals, but their hearts mostly belong to Bella.
O'Dwyer, with his shock of white hair and Irish brogue, is a familiar figure. Nevertheless, he is trying to change his image. Identified as far back as anyone can remember with every possible liberal-left cause, he is casting himself as a "middle-of-the-road ethnic" in the probably forlorn hope of cutting into the Moynihan constituency. For all his radical past, he is also supported by the regular Democratic organization—showing that any renegade who stays around long enough eventually acquires respectability. The question is how much good this backing will do.
Hirschfeld is definitely a self-starter. He has no tangible support, no campaign organization, no issues, but plenty of gall and, more important, lots of money, which he earned from building parking garages.
Bella is considered ahead in the race. She starts with a militant following among New York's Jewish voters, who customarily cast almost 40% of the Democratic primary ballots. But Moynihan has cut into the Jewish vote with his impassioned defense of Israel at the U.N. Beyond that, he is more popular than Bella among moderate-to-conservative Roman Catholic voters, one of the state's largest voting blocs.
The incumbent, who faces a not-too-serious primary challenge from moderate Republican Congressman Peter Peyser, is no pushover. Thoughtful and engaging, he will base his campaign on the belief that voters are fed up with Government interference in so many aspects of their lives—just what his Democratic opponents want to increase.