Ognibene Getting Help

We hear Tom Ognibene is close to hiring Republican political consultant Brendan Quinn for his attack on Bloomberg's right flank.

Quinn is a former executive director of the New York State Republican Party and a veteran of the bitter post-election action in Florida in 2000. His presence on the campaign would indicate a level of seriousness about the political mechanics -- fundraising, petitioning, etc -- that we hadn't quite seen from Ognibene, and that his critics were hinting would not exist.

The two men had lunch at the Beekman Pub today, and we're told that Quinn is "very likely" to come on board. That probably means we'll see a real campaign from the right, and a headache for the Mayor.