Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, Democrat of New York, questions Pete Hegseth, now the secretary of defense, during his confirmation hearing in January. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

Column by Paul Kane

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand wants to re-create the Democratic game plan of 20 years ago, when she launched her own career as a conservative Democrat against an entrenched House Republican in Upstate New York. Subscribe for unlimited access to The Post You can cancel anytime. Subscribe

Some of the same issues are again colliding, she said. That could open doors to a surprising number of Democratic wins, just like in 2006: a GOP president heading into a second midterm election with an agenda of proposed cuts to entitlement programs, amid questions about corruption.

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