Frothy Paradise

There was a debate last night in preparation for Tuesday’s special election to fill Hiram Monserrate’s state senate seat, from which the convicted abuser was ejected last month. Democrat Jose Peralta and Republican Robert Beltrani were there, but Monserrate, running hard to replace himself, was the center of attention; the Daily News reports Monserrate was booed and heckled and, each time he referred to “cuts,” some smartass drew lines on his own face with lipstick, indicative of Karla Giraldo’s slash marks. Monserrate and Peralta seemed not far apart on issues except for gay marriage — opposition to which is Monserrate’s key strategy — and Hiram Monserrate, whose arrest and conviction WNYC says Peralta “kept bringing up,” as per his key strategy. (Earlier, in response to Monserrate’s charges elsewhere that Peralta, a Queens assemblyman, has no record to run on, Peralta replied, “I will be more than happy to match my legislative record of protecting women’s right to privacy in the workplace to Monserrate’s record of assaulting his girlfriend in his bedroom.”)