Free Republic

Correction Appended The former Yonkers mayor, John Spencer, defeated Kathleen Troia McFarland last night in a fiercely contested Republican primary for United States Senate, setting the stage for an uphill struggle against Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton. As widely expected, Mrs. Clinton soundly defeated her Democratic opponent, Jonathan Tasini, based on unofficial returns. With 98 percent of precincts reporting, Mr. Spencer had 60.2 percent of the vote, to Ms. McFarland’s 39.8 percent. The Republican race, which devolved into personal attacks involving marital infidelity, out-of-wedlock children, mental stability and personal revelations about past parental abuse, inspired little turnout. Last night, during his...

The two Republicans seeking to unseat Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton clashed ferociously last night in a debate that centered far more on questions of marital infidelity, nepotism and other personal attacks than on what either candidate would do if elected. Kathleen Troia McFarland, a former official in the Reagan-era Pentagon, repeatedly hammered John Spencer, a former mayor of Yonkers, for having an extramarital affair with a city employee while he was mayor, having relatives on the city payroll, and raising property taxes. Mr. Spencer fought back, accusing her of distorting his record with “lies and innuendos and half-truths” while ignoring...