If there was any question that next month's special election in New York's 9th congressional district will be a referendum on President Barack Obama's policies, yesterday's New York Times endorsement removes all doubt. Not surprisingly, the left-leaning paper's editorial board has chosen to support Democrat David Weprin in the September 13 contest to replace disgraced Congressman Anthony Weiner. But the reasons given for that support have little to do with the candidate's qualifications and everything to do with the Obama agenda.

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The endorsement makes only a cursory mention of Mr. Weprin's years in state government claiming he "promoted education and civil rights and fought to protect senior citizens" but no specific accomplishments are mentioned.

More specificity is given with regard to the candidate's promises "to work to protect Social Security and Medicare" and to "push for higher taxes for the wealthy rather than cut programs that serve the working and middle classes." If you close your eyes you can almost hear the president's voice as he tries to scare the elderly and fan the flames of class warfare.

Next comes another page out of the Obama Playbook (ridicule and lie). The editors claim Republican Bob Turner's calls for government spending cuts and lower taxes without reducing current benefits for those on Social Security and Medicare, "would take a magician, not a businessman." In other words, don't listen to that crazy retired executive with decades of real economic success. A career politician, a community organizer and the New York Times editorial board know better!

The endorsement also included the usual Obama-esque fear mongering that "if Mr. Turner gets his way, it would be impossible to spare anybody who relies on the government for benefits or to keep the air clean or their food safe." Translation: A vote for Mr. Weprin is a vote for Team Obama's new and obscenely expensive regulations.

Ironically, the most Weprin-centric part of the endorsement claims the candidate "would represent the district with far more expertise, sensitivity and fiscal rationality." But Assemblyman Weprin, who has been selling himself as a fiscal Mr. Fix-it, was off by a staggering $10 trillion when asked the size of our national debt. Evidently even without the most basic understanding of the largest financial issue facing the nation, you're still fiscally rational as long as you support the Obama agenda.

So while President Barack Obama's name is not on the ballot in NY-9; his ideas, his methods and promises to continue his failed policies are. In a district where Democrats outnumber Republicans by a 3 to 1 margin, a Turner victory is certainly a long shot. But the latest poll shows a much tighter race than expected and even a Weprin victory by a less than overwhelming margin should send a strong message to the White House.