Phillips Blasts Hinchey's MSNBC Comments on Bin Laden

Phillips Blasts Hinchey's MSNBC Comments on Bin Laden

Binghamton, NY --- George Phillips, Candidate for US Congress in NY's 22nd Congressional District sharply criticized his opponent Maurice Hinchey for outrageous comments he made on MSNBC yesterday.

Hinchey stated President Bush 'intentionally let Osama Bin Laden get away' as part of an Iraq War plan (see link below).

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2009/11/30/congressman_bush_let_bin_laden_go_to_start_iraq_war.html

Phillips stated, "These wild accusations by a Member of the United States Congress on national television are simply outrageous."

Phillips added, "Americans put their lives on the line to capture this terrorist leader. Hinchey's comments are simply insulting to our men and women in the armed services. He should retract these groundless allegations and issue an apology."


Contact: Phillips for Congress --- (607) 341-8866
www.electgeorgephillips.com

Phillips blasts NYC 9/11 Trials

Phillips Criticizes NYC 9/11 Trials
Trials will Give Terrorist Suspects the Stage, Put America at Risk

For Immediate Release

Binghamton, NY --- George Phillips, Candidate for US Congress against Maurice Hinchey, sharply criticized the Justice Department decision to give alleged terrorists civilian trials in New York City.

"The suspects being charged in the 9/11 terror attacks were involved with acts of war. They don't deserve a civilian trial," Phillips said. "Imagine if those who attacked Pearl Harbor had been given civilian trials. The idea is absolutely preposterous."


"I worry this trial will give terrorist suspects the stage and enable them to incite more violence and attacks on America with inflammatory rhetoric. Unfortunately this could turn into a circus-like atmosphere that these alleged terrorists will take full advantage of" Phillips warned.

Phillips noted that military tribunals and courts could offer the suspects a chance to have their cases heard without giving them the profile and that war crimes such as the 9/11 attacks should be considered in such courts.

"The decision by Attorney General Holder puts America at risk. I hope the New York delegation and the Congress will urge him to reconsider his decision," Phillips added.


Contact: Phillips for Congress (607) 341-8866

Health Care Debate Op-Ed

Weighing in on the Health Care Debate

By George K. Phillips

The health care debate has captivated the nation this summer as members of Congress travel to “town hall” meetings across the country to explain and discuss a complex health-care reform bill that is more than 1,000 pages long.

At the heart of the debate is an effort to provide health insurance to the millions of Americans who currently lack it while improving, or at the very least not diminishing, the current-health care system. While “shouters” at the meetings have garnered much of the media attention, I would like to offer a few of what I hope are “reason-minded” critiques of the current bill and suggestions for improving the overall system.

To assess the long-term implications of the legislation before Congress that could create a new, large government bureaucracy, we must consider the state of our national government and economy.

The federal government has racked up an astounding $11 trillion national debt and will run an estimated $1.8 trillion budget deficit this year. The Social Security and Medicare trustees report for 2009 estimates the Social Security program will start running deficits in 2016 and states that the Medicare program is already running deficits.

With these staggering deficits and baby boomers soon moving into retirement and raising Social Security and Medicare costs even more, does it make sense to add another large government entitlement program? Even if the proponents do not intend for this new program to ration health care, wouldn’t health-care rationing result if the government simply can’t afford to pay the bills?

The plan relies on penalties and taxes on small businesses to enforce implementation at a time when unemployment is hovering near 10 percent. In 2005, the most recent year it has data available for, the Small Business Administration estimated small businesses were responsible for creating nearly 80 percent of new jobs. How can we pull out of this recession and grow the economy if we are placing additional restrictions on already overburdened small businesses?

I believe the plan should take the opposite approach: instead of taxes and penalties, give small businesses and their employees tax credits to purchase health insurance. Current estimates show small businesses pay an estimated 18 percent more for health-care benefits than larger firms. Small businesses should be allowed to partner together, amassing a larger group of employees together to compete for better plans that would enable them to lower their costs and expand benefits.

Helping small businesses pay for help insurance would help cover a large number of the uninsured. Efforts could be made to get the remaining uninsured into Medicaid rather than creating an entirely new program.

A key part of the health care-reform debate that is not even being considered in the current legislation is medical malpractice reform. Frivolous lawsuits impose billions on the U.S. economy each year. These lawsuits dramatically raise medical malpractice insurance as well as health-care costs for all Americans and cause doctors to practice defensive medicine.

Capping these suits and reforming a broken part of the health-care system that currently allows OB-GYNs to be sued up to 21 years after they have delivered a baby would greatly reduce costs for all Americans.

Health care can be reformed without creating a new big-government program. Empowering small businesses to better provide health insurance and lowering overall costs through medical malpractice reform should be part of the solution.

Stop Obama Care

Nancy Pelosi has unveilved a $900 billion, budget busting, government controlled health care bill that she plans to bring to the House floor this week.

This bill will put additional tax burdens on Americans in an econmy understrain and set up a government run health care program that millions of Americans will likely be forced into, dimishing and even leading to the rationing of care.

My opponent Congressman Maurice Hinchey has long supported big government health care and socialized medicine. He has stated that he strongly supports “the establishment of a national health care system.”

I have been fighting Obama Care for months — hosting a Town Hall Meeting after my opponent refused and writing an Op Ed to local newspapers on the topic.

I need you to keep fighting too. Your donation to our campaign will send a strong message to a liberal Democrat in small town America and Nancy Pelosi that Americans won’t stand for her bill and give up control of our future to Obama Care.

Our liberty and the future of our nation are at stake. Please act today by sending a donation.

Health Care Reform: What’s Needed

With out of control costs and millions of Americans struggling to afford health insurance, health care reform legislation is needed. However, Obama Care will simply make matters worse.

In Congress, these are the principles I’ll fight for to help improve our health care system:

1) Health Care Partnership - enable Small Businesses to form together in coaltions for group buying power so they can have rates that are competitive with corporate plans.

2) Tort Reform - frivolous lawsuites are driving up medical malpractice insurance and costs for everyday Americans and should be capped.

3) Health Savings Accounts -Americans should be allowed to save for their own medical needs through tax free health savings accounts

4) Keeping Your Insurance & Increasing Choices - Americans should be allowed to keep their insurance plan when they lose or change jobs and be allowed to select from a greater pool of insurance providers. Competition will lower costs

5) Tax Credits - Both Small Businesses and invididual Americans struggling to pay for health insurance should be given tax credits to help afford these costs

Time for a change

Here is another news article about NY Congressman Maurice Hinchey trying to get land protected in Utah. I'm not against protecting the environment but here in the 22nd district of New York we have our own problems going on. We need a representative that is going to be focused on our needs in our district. It's time for a change.


Lawmakers urge Salazar to protect Utah wild lands
By JOAN LOWY (AP) – 9 hours ago
WASHINGTON — Eighty-nine House members sent a letter to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar asking him to protect 9.4 million acres of red rocks lands in Utah while Congress works on legislation.
The letter sent Tuesday also asks Salazar to rescind an agreement reached between the Bush administration and the state of Utah that prevents the Bureau of Land Management from designating new wilderness study areas. The wilderness study designation discourages uses of the land that might alter its natural character.
Rep. Maurice Hinchey, a New York Democrat sponsoring the Utah wilderness bill, said that a consensus has developed that millions of acres within the state should be protected even if there remains disagreement on how to do that.
"It makes sense for the Interior Department to step in and temporarily protect these lands while Congress and state officials sort out the best way to protect these precious acres for this and future generations of Americans to enjoy and admire," Hinchey said in a statement. "These are the very scenic lands that the previous administration hoped to turn into off-road vehicle playgrounds and oil and gas fields.
Kendra Barkoff, a spokeswoman for Salazar, said the department is reviewing the letter.
The bill has 151 co-sponsors, but only seven are Republicans. It is opposed by the Utah congressional delegation, who say decisions on which lands should receive the protective wilderness designation are best made locally.
"Since they can't achieve their goal of locking up millions of acres of western land through an open and transparent democratic process, they're now trying to use back door, undemocratic rules and regulations to lock up public lands," Rep Rob Bishop, R-Utah, said in a statement. "If Congressman Hinchey was serious about protecting lands in Utah, he should try to work with Utahans instead of trying to go around us."
At a hearing before a House Natural Resources Committee subcommittee last month, some witnesses from Utah said the bill would prevent development of the lands, hurting the state's economy. However, former Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson and a Utah outdoors equipment maker told the subcommittee that protecting the lands will draw more visitors to the state, boosting the economy.
The red rocks wilderness bill, as the legislation is known, was first introduced in 1989 by the late Wayne Owens, a former Democratic congressman from Utah. Hinchey has been reintroducing the bill every two years since Owen left Congress in 1993.
Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5j08imnWBr9ZvGiTvxOYgxVxHV6PQD9BTDI383

Hinchey should be focused on NY not Utah

million acres in Utah

By Thomas Burr
The Salt Lake Tribune

Updated: 11/10/2009 02:50:35 PM MST

Related
• Wilderness bill
• Oct 1:
• Red Rock hearing: Agreement on wilderness, but not on how or how much
• Sep 30:
• Some worry wilderness measure could hurt schools
• Sep 29:
• Rocky Anderson to champion Red Rock bill
• Sep 28:
• Advocates: Support growing for wilderness bill
• Utah political elite to fight 'Red Rock bill' in Congress
• Sep 17:
• After 20 years, Red Rock bill gets first hearing in Congress
Washington » Nearly 90 members of Congress want the Interior Department to protect 9.4 million acres of Utah public lands from development while lawmakers consider a measure to set aside the areas as wilderness.
Led by New York Democratic Rep. Maurice Hinchey, the members of Congress wrote to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar on Tuesday asking him to use his "considerable authorities" to protect the millions of acres until Congress can act.
"While there are some differences of opinion on how to protect Utah's remarkably beautiful landscape, there is a consensus that millions of acres within the state warrant wilderness protection," Hinchey said in a statement.
"Given the common belief that much of this land should be safeguarded, it makes sense for the Interior Department to step in and temporarily protect these lands while Congress and state officials sort out the best way to protect these precious acres for this and future generations of Americans to enjoy and admire."
A House Natural Resources subcommittee last month held a hearing on the legislation, which has not come up for a vote in the 20 years it has been introduced. The bill, called America's Red Rock Wilderness Act, would designate 9.4 million acres of public land in Utah as Wilderness, effectively barring new roads, mining or off-road vehicle use.
None of Utah's members of Congress support the legislation, which was first introduced


by late Rep. Wayne Owens. Utah officials who testified said they preferred more smaller scale, local-level solutions to preserving public lands.
Rep. Rob Bishop, a Utah Republican who says the Red Rock bill is an attempted land grab by outsiders, said Tuesday's letter is evidence that supporters of the legislation realize they can't push their "massive one-size-fits-all wilderness" bill through Congress.
"Since they can't achieve their goal of locking up millions of acres of Western land through an open and transparent democratic process, they're now trying to use backdoor, undemocratic rules and regulations to lock up our state," Bishop said. "If Congressman Hinchey was serious about protecting lands in Utah, he should try to work with Utahns instead of trying to go around us."
Hinchey previously joined with more than 70 members of Congress earlier this year in asking Salazar to halt any more oil and gas leases after Salazar delayed 77 such leases in Utah.
The Interior Department did not comment on Hinchey's letter.

http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_13755686

Doomed to fail

Very interesting Pelosi compared the passage of this legislation against two other Government run programs both which are failing. Is this going to be indicative of this program in the future?

A triumphant Speaker Nancy Pelosi compared the legislation to the passage of Social Security in 1935 and Medicare 30 years later.

By ERICA WERNER

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Democratic-controlled House has narrowly passed landmark health care reform legislation, handing President Barack Obama a hard won victory on his signature domestic priority.
Republicans were nearly unanimous in opposing the plan that would expand coverage to tens of millions of Americans who lack it and place tough new restrictions on the insurance industry.
The 220-215 vote late Saturday cleared the way for the Senate to begin a long-delayed debate on the issue that has come to overshadow all others in Congress.
A triumphant Speaker Nancy Pelosi compared the legislation to the passage of Social Security in 1935 and Medicare 30 years later.
Obama, who went to Capitol Hill earlier on Saturday to lobby wavering Democrats, said in a statement after the vote, "I look forward to signing it into law by the end of the year."
"It provides coverage for 96 percent of Americans. It offers everyone, regardless of health or income, the peace of mind that comes from knowing they will have access to affordable health care when they need it," said Rep. John Dingell, the 83-year-old Michigan lawmaker who has introduced national health insurance in every Congress since succeeding his father in 1955.
But minority Republicans cataloged their objections across hours of debate on the 1,990-page, $1.2 trillion legislation.
"We are going to have a complete government takeover of our health care system faster than you can say, 'this is making me sick,'" said Rep. Candice Miller, R-Mich.
In the run-up to a final vote, conservatives from the two political parties joined forces to impose tough new restrictions on abortion coverage in insurance policies to be sold to many individuals and small groups.
The legislation would require most Americans to carry insurance and provide federal subsidies to those who otherwise could not afford it. Large companies would have to offer coverage to their employees. Both consumers and companies would be slapped with penalties if they defied the government's mandates.
Insurance industry practices such as denying coverage because of pre-existing medical conditions would be banned, and insurers would no longer be able to charge higher premiums on the basis of gender or medical history. The industry would also lose its exemption from federal antitrust restrictions on price fixing and market allocation.
At its core, the measure would create a federally regulated marketplace where consumers could shop for coverage. In the bill's most controversial provision, the government would sell insurance, although the Congressional Budget Office forecasts that premiums for it would be more expensive than for policies sold by private companies.
The bill drew the votes of 219 Democrats and Rep. Joseph Cao, a first-term Republican who holds an overwhelmingly Democratic seat in New Orleans. Opposed were 176 Republicans and 39 Democrats.
From the Senate, Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada issued a statement saying, "We realize the strong will for reform that exists, and we are energized that we stand closer than ever to reforming our broken health insurance system."
To pay for the expansion of coverage, the bill cuts Medicare's projected spending by more than $400 billion over a decade. It also imposes a tax surcharge of 5.4 percent on income over $500,000 in the case of individuals and $1 million for families.

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20091108/D9BREBKG1.html

Phillips set to take on Hinchey

BINGHAMTON – Republican George Phillips, who lost to Congressman Maurice Hinchey a year ago, says he plans on taking on the popular Democrat in next year’s election.

The political climate was different last year, said Phillips. “If you look back to a year ago, we had a nation of voters frustrated,” he said. “They wanted change, they wanted reform, and unfortunately I think as this off-year election showed, voters are still feeling that same discontent, and I know those who took office, including new President Obama, ere promising change, but I think it’s too much of business as usual, the economy is struggling, government is still growing out of control and Americans are upset with the mess in government from the federal level to the state level to local government and property taxes.”

Phillips said he up to the challenge of running against Hinchey again and he is confident he can defeat him this time around.

http://www.midhudsonnews.com/News/2009/November09/07/Phillips_run-07Nov09.html

GOP looking stong already

Democrats hoped to stave off a Republican sweep Tuesday of three off-year elections that could signal an early wave of discontent with the governing party's performance in Washington.
Polls closed at 7 p.m. in Virginia, where a hotly contested governor's race was too close to call at the top of the hour. Republican former state Attorney General Bob McDonnell was leading Democratic state Sen. Creigh Deeds in exit polling, according to television networks, and has been ahead in every public poll of the race since early summer.
The Virginia governor's race was only one of three elections that placed Republicans within striking distance of victory Tuesday night. The gubernatorial election in New Jersey and a special congressional election in upstateNew York also gave the GOP an opportunity to show strength at the polls an opportunity after President Obama's election last November.
The White House played down the importance of all three contests Tuesday, with spokesman Robert Gibbs urging reporters not to read the evening's returns as a referendum on the president and his party.
"I don't think, looking at the two gubernatorial races, you can draw with any great insight what's going to happen a year from now," Gibbs said.
Early exit polling reported by CNN Tuesday evening suggested voters were not intentionally trying to send message to the White House with their ballots: 55 percent of voters in Virginia and 60 percent of voters in New Jersey said their feelings toward the president did not weigh on their decision.
Among the remaining respondents, there was a close to even split between voters who said they were trying to support the president with their vote and those who were trying to rebuke him. In Virginia, 18 percent said they were trying to send the Obama administration a positive message, compared with 24 percent who said the opposite. In New Jersey, those numbers were 19 and 20 percent, respectively.
But if voters sounded ambivalent about the national implications of the race, national Democratic and Republican leaders were not. Leading figures from both parties have hit the campaign trail in recent days in all three key elections, including Vice President Biden, who stumped in New York 23rd congressional district for Democrat Bill Owens on Monday, and former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson, who appeared later in the day for Owens's opponent, Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman.
Thompson predicted Monday evening that a Hoffman win would "shake the foundations of Washington D.C." And speaking with POLITICO Tuesday, Hoffman painted his bid for Congress as the first stage of a national campaign to return Congress to conservative hands.
"Hopefully the Republican party, of which I’m a lifelong member, utilizes this energy and excitement of people coming to my support because we’ll need it in 2010," he said. "We’re just standing up for the core values that made America strong – less government, less taxes, less spending."
Hoffman has led in the most recent polling, with leads ranging from between five and 17 points, but Republican Dede Scozzafava's withdrawal from the election last weekend and subsequent endorsement of Owens has left the race a question mark.
On Sunday, President Barack Obama made the latest in a series of visits to New Jersey in support of incumbent Gov. Jon Corzine, whose contest with Republican prosecutor Chris Christie has been within the margin of error for weeks. Christie, meanwhile, has called in high-profile Republicans including former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty.
During his last campaign stop in Morris County Tuesday, Christie predicted a victory for his party in the Garden State and told volunteers at his local headquarters: "We're winning this thing."
In a nod to the tightness of his matchup with Corzine, Christie emphasized the importance of turnout and told supporters participation was "very good" across "areas of the state that we're going to do well in.
A third candidate, Chris Daggett, has injected a level of uncertainty into the New Jersey race by drawing off a number of disaffected independent voters, though his polling numbers have fallen from the teens into the mid-to-high single digits. Whether Daggett can hold on to his voters – or whether they break for either of the major party candidates – could decide the election.
CNN's early exit poll reported that the New Jersey race reflected a higher level of concern with local issue than the campaign in Virginia, with 26 percent of voters saying property taxes were the main issue on their minds and 20 percent expressing the gravest concern with the state's chronic political corruption.

National issues played a role in both contests, however. A plurality of voters in both states - 46 percent in Virginia and 31 percent in New Jersey - said the economy was the most important issue to them. And for voters in both gubernatorial contests, health care ranked high among the list of issues voters said they were thinking about, with 25 percent in Virginia and 18 percent in New Jersey calling it their top concern.
Republicans are watching Virginia not only for the governor's race, but also down-ballot statewide elections for lieutenant governor and attorney general that offer the GOP a credible opportunity to capture all the top offices in a state that has recently trended toward the Democrats – and which Obama won just one year ago.Republican attorney general candidate Ken Cuccinelli and incumbent Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling have consistently led their Democratic rivals, Steve Shannon and Jody Wagner.
Both Deeds and McDonnell were headed to the state capital in Richmond for election-night rallies with their supporters after a final day of campaigning. Virginia's polls close first tonight, at 7 p.m., with New Jersey following an hour later and New York an hour after that.
In a sign of Democratic anxiety going into today's vote, both Corzine and Deeds told television interviewers to disregard recent surveys that placed them behind their opponents.
"The only poll that counts is the one that's going on right now," Corzine said, deploying a familiar line Deeds also used.
Corzine voted Tuesday morning in Hoboken before heading out on a last swing that ends in East Brunswick for an election-night rally. Christie is gathering his supporters at the Parsippany Hilton to await the voters' decision.
In New York, Owens and Hoffman held competing events in Plattsburgh, one of the largely rural district's few population centers. Hoffman stopped at Plattsburgh City Hall for an event with Mayor Donald Kasprzak while Owens met with workers at the Clinton County Correctional facility and visited volunteers in the Plattsburgh field office.
"I certainly am confident in the election today. I think our message has gotten out, is resonating with people and we believe we are going to move forward," Owens told POLITICO after voting Tuesday morning.
Democratic officials in Owens's home base of Clinton County expressed concern Tuesday afternoon that turnout may not be keeping pace in the Democratic candidate's strongest areas.
Owens will spend the evening in Plattsburgh, addressing supporters at the American Legion there. Hoffman heads to Saranac Lake for an rally at the Hotel Saranac.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1109/29081.html

Two time B.C. Open winner Joey Sindelar hospitalized with pulmonary embolism

Champions Tour rallies around an ailing Sindelar
11.01.09 | 5:53 AM
SONOMA, Ca. -- The visitors filed into Joey Sindelar's room at Sonoma Valley Hospital on Saturday night, guys he'd known for thirty years: Andy Bean. Jeff Sluman. Brad Bryant. Mike Stevens, president of the Champions Tour, was there along with Lonnie Nielsen, one of the guys who played through his group on the front nine that day in the Charles Schwab Cup Championship. "We're getting to that age when guys will start to go down," said a stunned John Cook, the third-round leader in the press room at Sonoma GC.

Sindelar, 51, was that man on Saturday, being taken from the course to a local hospital, where he was diagnosed with a pulmonary embolism, or blood clot to his lung, that was potentially fatal. In the intensive care unit, and on blood thinners, he didn't expect to fly home to Horseheads, N.Y. for upwards of a week. His wife, Sue, was flying out to be with him. "He could have dropped dead, but he was smart enough to quit," said John Buchna, his caddie for the past 26 years. "The doctor said you quit at the right time."

Short of breath, Sindelar asked Buchna on the back nine during Friday's second round if they were playing above sea level. But Saturday, the shortness of breath, the dizziness, was pronounced from the second hole. That was when Sindelar, his second shot in the greenside bunker on the par-5, said to playing partner Gil Morgan, "I'm not feeling good. Do you mind playing first?"

A paramedic and doctor arrived by the third hole, which is where Nielsen and playing partner Tom Jenkins played through. Sindelar hit a good shot into the par-3 fourth, but needed a cart ride up to the fifth tee. That's when he said to Buchna, "Johnny, I can't do it."

In a cart halfway up the fifth fairway, Sindelar pulled off his oxygen mask to say, "How is it that when I get my swing in a groove, does this happen?" One under for the day with three pars and a birdie at the second, where he asked Morgan to play first, Sindelar WDed and was taken to the locker room and eventually Sonoma Valley.

"They said if he had stayed out there much longer it could have been bad," said Bean later that night from his hotel room. "They think they have it under control, but he won be able to fly for 4-5 days and obviously this is something he's going to have to watch. All of us obviously want him to have a speedy recovery and get better."

-- Tim Rosaforte

Republican Dede Scozzafava endorses Democrat Bill Owens

Republican Dede Scozzafava urges friends to vote for Democrat Bill Owens after exiting NY-23 House race
By Mike McAndrew / The Post-Standard
November 01, 2009, 3:07PM
John Berry / The Post-StandardRepublican Dede Scozzafava, who suspended her campaign for the 23rd Congressional District on Saturday, urged her supporters today in a private e-mail to vote for Democrat Bill Owens instead of Conservative Doug Hoffman.Canton, NY - One day after suspending her campaign, Republican Dede Scozzafava urged her supporters this afternoon in a private e-mail to vote for Democrat Bill Owens instead of Conservative Doug Hoffman for the 23rd Congressional District seat.
"...I am writing to let you know I am supporting Bill Owens for Congress and urge you to do the same," Scozzafava wrote. "It’s not in the cards for me to be your representative, but I strongly believe Bill is the only candidate who can build upon John McHugh's lasting legacy in the U.S. Congress."
"In Bill Owens, I see a sense of duty and integrity that will guide him beyond political partisanship. He will be an independent voice devoted to doing what is right for New York. Bill understands this district and its people, and when he represents us in Congress he will put our interests first," she wrote.
Contacted in Canton, where she and her husband were meeting with Owens, Scozzafava confirmed the e-mail was authentic.
"For me, my whole participation in the race has been about what I feel is best for the district. It hasn’t been about the battles other people want to make this race about. It’s about the issues right here in the 23rd district," she said. "To me it came down to the person I thought would best represent this area. Not Washington. Here."
Scozzafava's decision was welcomed by Owens and blasted by Hoffman's campaign and Conservative Party Chairman Michael Long.
“This afternoon Dede Scozzafava betrayed the GOP," said Hoffman spokesman Rob Ryan said in a statement issued by the campaign. "She endorsed a Pelosi Democrat who will spend more, tax more, and push the liberal agenda that is dragging down this nation. Doug Hoffman represents the revolution that is taking place against high taxes."
“I am honored to have Assemblywoman Scozzafava’s endorsement," John Berry / The Post-StandardDemocrat congressional candidate Bill OwensDennis Nett / The Post-StandardConservative congressional candidate Doug HoffmanOwens said in a prepared statement. "Over the course of her career, Dede has always committed to serving the people of Upstate New York before serving a partisan agenda. I have a tremendous amount of respect for what she's accomplished. We share a commitment to finding common sense solutions to address the challenges we’re facing here in Upstate New York."
Long said Scozzafava's move "is really no surprise. We always said Assemblywoman Scozzafava and Bill Owens were a pair of liberals. Doug Hoffman remains the only alternative to giving Nancy Pelosi another vote for her liberal agenda in Congress.”
The National Republican Congressional Committee responded to Scozzafava's note by urging voters to support Hoffman.
“The candidate best positioned and suited to protect Fort Drum and continue the legacy of John McHugh is Doug Hoffman, and the pledge from Republican leadership to secure support for him on the House Armed Services Committee affirms that," said Ken Spain, NRCC communications director. "...Only Doug Hoffman is willing to stand up to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and put the brakes on her agenda of massive government takeovers and less jobs.”
Earlier Sunday, the Jefferson County Republican Party announced it would back Hoffman in Tuesday's election.
Matt Burns, who was Scozzafava's campaign spokesman until she suspended her campaign, said he thought Scozzafava was making a mistake in supporting Owens.
"Dede is entitled to her own opinion, as is everyone, but I obviously disagree with her decision. I am supporting Doug Hoffman, because denying Nancy Pelosi another foot soldier is vital to restoring fiscal responsibility and common sense in Washington," Burns said in an e-mail.
A number of prominent Democrats and White House officials reached out to Scozzafava in the past 24 hours, asking her to endorse Owens.

U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., had several phone conversations with Scozzafava, an aide confirmed Sunday. Schumer also asked White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel to help lobby Scozzafava for her support.
Scozzafava said that she did not know if Republican Party leaders - many of whom are now endorsing Hoffman - will hold her support for Owens against her. Scozzafava said that she sent the email from her private computer, not through her campaign. She said she did not know how many people received her e-mail. She said she does not plan to appear at Owens' campaign events.
Scozzafava said that the tone of Hoffman's campaign ads attacking her record bothered her, but said that Hoffman's pledge to try to eliminate federal earmarks bothered her more. She said Fort Drum and the surrounding communities benefited from earmarks that Rep. McHugh secured.
"I have to say, the tone of his campaign bothers me. But that’s campaigns. That’s the way elections go. I think they were filled with lots of misinformation and lies. But the tone was one that encouraged people to be divisive instead of uniting the best things we have. The tone of his campaign did bother me,“ she said.

Future of GOP and moderate Republicans uncertain

ALBANY, N.Y. – In a Republican Party struggling to find its identity, the surprise withdrawal of the chosen GOP candidate for a New York congressional race amid a rising conservative upstart renews a lingering national debate: Are moderates welcome in today's Grand Old Party?
The question became even more relevant Sunday when the ex-candidate, state Assemblywoman Dierdre Scozzafava, threw her support behind the Democrat in the race rather than the Conservative Party candidate favored by fellow Republicans.
The GOP leadership insisted on Sunday political TV talk shows the party is strong and inclusive while Democrats described a Republican party out of touch with the people.
"We accept moderates in our party, and we want moderates in our party. We cover a wide range of Americans," said Republican House Leader John Boehner in an interview on CNN's "State of the Union."
But in New York's 23rd Congressional District, the message was clear early: Scozzafava was too moderate; some even used the dreaded "L" word — liberal. Her endorsement of Democrat Bill Owens over Conservative Doug Hoffman only reinforced that perception.
During the campaign she failed to connect with voters, party officials or, perhaps most important, campaign donors, largely because of her support for abortion rights, same-sex marriage and union rights. That opened the door for Hoffman, who took every opportunity to remind people that Scozzafava was not the kind of Republican they wanted representing their interests in a Democrat-led Congress.
Even before Scozzafava's fall, Republicans looking to broaden the base by attracting more centrist candidates worried that the harsh tone in the 23rd spelled trouble for the future, particularly the 2010 midterm elections.
"If we don't get some adult supervision, basically the party could explode and split itself up," said former Virginia Rep. Tom Davis, chief executive of the Republican Main Street Partnership, just days before Scozzafava withdrew.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich had the same concern, and that's why he endorsed Scozzafava early in the race. As other Republicans threw their support behind Hoffman's momentum, Gingrich argued that the party needed to be more inclusive of moderates if it had a hope of retaking the majority.
He told The Associated Press he was disappointed, and "deeply upset" that Scozzafava endorsed Owens.
"How could she have accepted all that support?" he said, adding later: "I'm very, very let down because she told everybody she was a Republican, and she said she was a loyal Republican."
Gingrich now backs Hoffman.
Scozzafava's support of Owens is angering Republicans back home as well. State Republican chairman Ed Cox said her endorsement is a "betrayal" of the people in the district and the party.
A recent Siena College poll showed her finishing a distant third behind Owens and Hoffman. And in this rural New York district, Republicans never finish third. In its different configurations over the years, a Republican has represented this part of the upstate New York since 1852.
Scozzafava did not return calls Sunday. Her husband, local labor leader Ron McDougall, said he's supporting Owens because of his union positions. He said his wife had been treated "harshly."
During the weekend, New York Democrat Sen. Charles Schumer and the White House reached out to Scozzafava urging her to back Owens.
Big-name Republicans including Sarah Palin, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson weighed in early in the race, giving their support to Hoffman. Money poured into his campaign from all over the country. In the process, Scozzafava was left behind in fundraising.
Democrats are seizing on the race as evidence that Republicans won't be able to retake the majority with a far right agenda.
On CBS' Face The Nation, White House senior adviser David Axelrod addressed whether he believes conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh truly represents the direction the GOP is going.
"That's for the Republican Party to decide," Axelrod said. "I think we've seen an interesting development over this weekend in a special election in upstate New York in a congressional district. The Republican candidate withdrew because of the strong third-party movement behind a very right wing conservative. And certainly Mr. Limbaugh and others were behind that. And I think it sends a clear message to moderates within that party that there's no room at the inn for them. That's why you see Republican identification in polls at a historic low."
And Valerie Jarrett, a senior adviser to President Barack Obama, said Republican leadership is "becoming more and more extreme and more and more marginalized."
John Brabender, a veteran Republican consultant, said it's dangerous to lump people together by label and suggest there's no room for moderates.
"I think it's about how moderate, and how likely are they to be voting with Republicans," he said. "I think it would be too grand of a statement to say moderates have a target on their back."
Brabender said the outcome of Tuesday's race will be key as Democrats and Republicans fight for what will be perceived as message-sending wins in this and other off-year races. Democrats will try to scoop up any disenfranchised moderate Republicans, while Republicans will argue that this is the year the political pendulum swings back to the right.
"There's a renewed belief that the Republican Party has a number of principles and people are going to look at the candidates running and look at the consistency of their principles rather than if they have an 'R' after their name," Brabender said.
A Republican loss in the 23rd would leave the party with just two seats in the 29-member state congressional delegation.


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_ny_special_election

Joe Biden gets involved with New York politics

The White House is sending Vice President Joe Biden to upstate New York to campaign for Democrat Bill Owens in a last-minute push to help Democrats pick up the longtime Republican House seat.

The Biden rally will be taking place next Monday morning in Watertown.

“I’m honored to have the President and Vice President’s support," Owens said in a statement announcing the vice-presidential visit. "I am excited to welcome the Vice President to Watertown where we’ll discuss my plans to create jobs Upstate and my commitment to helping turn the page on the George Bush economic agenda.”

The Biden event comes the day before the special election, which has turned into a two-way contest between Owens and a third-party Conservative challenger, Doug Hoffman, who has captured the momentum in the race in the last several days.

It’s the second time Biden has campaigned for Owens – he went up to Syracuse in September to fundraise for him. And Obama headlined a New York City fundraiser for Owens last week.

For Owens to win, he needs to gin up the Democratic base in the upstate New York district to show up at the polls -- voters who don’t normally turn out for off-year elections.

The visit by Biden underlines how badly national Democrats want to snatch this seat, Republican-held since before the Civil War, from the GOP. But it also reflects Democrats' 11th-hour efforts to avoid a clean sweep Tuesday of the three mostly closely-watched races.

With Republicans almost certainly winning the Virginia gubernatorial contest and the New Jersey governor's race very much up in the air, the upstate New York congressional race may represent the party's best chance for victory.

Biden has become the go-to man in the administration for House Democrats, regularly headlining fundraisers for vulnerable incumbents. He also weighed in in the last special congressional race, taping a radio ad for Rep. Scott Murphy's campaign this past spring.


http://www.politico.com/blogs/scorecard/1009/Biden_campaigning_for_Owens_in_NY_23.html#

Republicans must get it together

By ALEXANDER BURNS | 11/1/09 7:18 AM EST


Another election, another debacle for New YorkRepublicans.
While GOP nominee Dede Scozzafava's abrupt withdrawal Saturday from the Nov. 3 House election in upstate New York came as a surprise, it shouldn't have — over the past decade or so the New York Republican Party has emerged as the political gang that couldn't shoot straight, an operation so inept that it's sometimes hard to believe it exists in the nation's third-largest state.
The collapse of Scozzafava's campaign—and the quick rise of the national conservative revolt sparked by her nomination—is simply the latest calamity to befall the New York GOP and an illustration of the utter ruin into which the state party has fallen. In just a few short years, the party's presence in state politics has dwindled to the point of extinction-or irrelevance.
Little more than a decade ago, Republicans controlled the governor's mansion, the state Senate, one of two U.S. Senate seats, 13 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and the New York City mayor's office.
Since then, though, the GOP has declined at a steady and accelerating pace. Today, the party has virtually no presence in the congressional delegation-it controls just two of the state's 29 House seats at the moment. It lacks a single statewide elected officer and represents only a minority in both chambers of the state Legislature-the first time since the New Deal that New York has had a Democratic governor and legislature. In 2006, in an open governor's race, the Republican nominee failed to win even 30 percent of the vote.
Last April, Republicans botched another upstate House special election despite starting with a 70,000 Republican voter registration advantage. In that contest, a high-ranking state Republican, Assemblyman Jim Tedisco, cemented the GOP's Keystone Kops reputation by blowing a lead against an unknown businessman with no experience running for office, despite benefiting from heavy national Republican spending that far outpaced Democratic spending.
"I think the state of the New York Republican Party is at its lowest ebb we've seen and I've been watching this since the early '70s," said former Rep. Tom Reynolds, a former chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee who also served as the GOP leader in the state Assembly during the 1990s. "When we look at 2010, it's hard to imagine us going any lower than we are."
Making matters worse, Reynolds said, there's little sign Republicans are prepared to start clawing their way back in 2010 with a strong statewide slate. While Republicans are hopeful that former Gov. George Pataki or former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani will run statewide, neither has made serious moves toward launching a campaign and the GOP bench is painfully thin.
"We have six statewide offices and one announced candidate, and that is [former Long Island Congressman] Rick Lazio, who has announced for governor," Reynolds said. "Many believe and want to believe that there's an opportunity. And I think that remains to be seen."
For a party less battered and demoralized, 2010 would seem to be the mother of all opportunities. Though New York Democrats have dominated at the polls two cycles in a row, they have also suffered from a series of scandals and missteps that have permanently tarnished some of their most powerful figures.
The first scandal came barely a month after the 2006 elections, when state Comptroller Alan Hevesi resigned amid an investigation into financial corruption. Then, Gov. Eliot Spitzer was implicated in a prostitution scandal that ended his term in office.
Spitzer handed off his post to his running mate, David Paterson, who promptly admitted a history of extramarital affairs and drug use. Paterson then fumbled the process of filling a vacant U.S. Senate seat in early 2009. Paterson's approval ratings are so low and his prospects for re-election are so grim that the White House has intervened in the hopes of convincing him not to seek a second term. Yet in polling matchups with Lazio, the only announced GOP candidate, the beleaguered governor remains competitive.
Republicans point out that the state party is a victim of political forces beyond its will, located in a region of the country that has recoiled from the conservative national party and from George W. Bush. They note that Democrats also have a daunting, built-in advantage which includes a voter registration edge that's grown to nearly 3 million--a 50 percent increase since 2000.
"It's not like they [New York Democrats] have some well oiled functioning machine," said John Faso, a former Republican leader in the state Assembly and 2006 gubernatorial candidate. "They just have a great institutional advantage in terms of the number of voters in the state."
Democratic Rep. Steve Israel witnessed the state's turn to the left firsthand, as a local officeholder and congressional candidate in the formerly Republican strongholds of Suffolk and Nassau counties. Centrist and conservative New Yorkers who might have once voted for Giuliani or Pataki, he argued, have been brought inside the Democratic fold.
"We have, as Democrats, we have learned how to appeal to moderate, suburban voters throughout New York State-not just on Long Island," said Israel, who serves as a recruiter for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. "We've proved it in moderate areas with [second-term Rep.] Mike Arcuri, [freshman Rep.] Eric Massa. We've just, we have learned how to win those quintessentially moderate, suburban, soccer-mom districts."
Even if voters are frustrated with the state of New York politics, Democrats say, Republicans are in no position to capitalize since the GOP has matched Democrats nearly scandal for scandal, from the hasty retirement of Rep. Vito Fossella following a drunk driving arrest and the subsequent revelation that he'd fathered a child out of wedlock, to the defeat of Rep. John Sweeney amid reports of spousal abuse to former state Senate President Joe Bruno's indictment on multiple corruption charges earlier this year.
Former New York City Mayor Ed Koch, a Democrat who has repeatedly endorsed Republican candidates in state and federal elections, predicted that Republicans are unlikely to be the beneficiaries of widespread voter disgust with the political class.
"The Republicans they perceive to be just as bad and out of touch with reality in terms of what people want today, politically," he said.
Some Republicans worry that the centrist Scozzafava's special election collapse amid tremendous conservative opposition could send a bad signal to the broader New York electorate.
Former Rep. Sherry Boehlert, an upstate centrist who saw his seat flip to the Democratic column after he retired in 2006, sounded a bleak note earlier this week when asked about the special election.
"It probably says to a lot of people who are registered Republicans, maybe I should reconsider my registration," Boehlert said. "I think, from a Republican standpoint, it would provide further evidence for some that there doesn't appear to be any room in the Republican Party for people who are moderate in their thinking."


http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1109/28977.html

Two time B.C. Open winner Joey Sindelar rushed to hospital

SONOMA, Calif. -- Joey Sindelar withdrew from the Charles Schwab Cup Championship and was taken to a hospital after complaining of dizziness during the third round Saturday.


According to a Champions Tour spokesman, the Horseheads resident became dizzy after playing the 204-yard, par-3 fourth hole Saturday. He rested in between holes and tried to play the fifth before withdrawing.
Medical personnel attended to Sindelar at the Sonoma Golf Club, and the 51-year-old player was taken to a hospital for further tests.
Sindelar's wife, Sue, reached at their Horseheads home, said she spoke to her husband and he told her he had trouble breathing. She added that he seemed fine and was very talkative.
"They did some testing, did a CAT scan, checked to see there was no blood clot in the lung. They don't know," she said. "He got really short of breath and couldn't shake it. They thought it might be his heart, but it may be nothing."
Sindelar, a seven-time winner on the PGA Tour titles, was 7 under for the tournament before withdrawing. He was 1 under over his four holes Saturday, getting a birdie on the par-5 second hole.
"It's a shame. He was doing so well," Sue Sindelar said.
Joey Sindelar entered the season-ending Schwab Cup event eighth in points with 1,086. In 22 tournaments this year he's had seven top 10s, including a second-place finish behind Fred Funk in the U.S. Senior Open in August.

http://www.stargazette.com/article/20091031/SPORTS11/910310389/Sindelar+withdraws+after+dizziness+on+course

From the Facebook page of Sarah Palin

Sarah Palin's ode to Hoffman

From the Facebook page of Sarah Palin, who was one of the first leading national Republican figures to support Doug Hoffman's campaign:

I want to personally thank Republican Dede Scozzafava for acting so selflessly today in the NY District 23 race. Now it's time to cross the finish line with Doug Hoffman so that he can get to work for District 23 and the rest of America.

With Congress poised to overhaul one-sixth of our economy with so-called health care “reform” (which is really a government takeover of health care) and with plans to enact a cap-and-tax bill just as our economy struggles to recover, Doug Hoffman will be a voice for fiscal responsibility and common sense in Washington.

We need candidates like Doug now more than ever. In these final days of the campaign, it's vital that Doug continue to receive the enthusiastic support of those who want to bring common sense to Washington. Let’s help make it happen! You can help Doug by visiting his official website today and offering your support: https://www.doughoffmanforcongress.com/donate3.html

- Sarah Palin

http://www.politico.com/blogs/scorecard/1009/Sarah_Palins_ode_to_Hoffman.html

NY-23 candidate Dede Scozzafava drops out of race

By VALERIE BAUMAN, Associated Press Writer
ALBANY, N.Y. – Fighting plunging support, Republican Dierdre Scozzafava abruptly suspended her campaign Saturday in the 23rd Congressional District special election that has exposed a rift among national factions of the party.
Campaign spokesman Matt Burns said Scozzafava thinks stepping aside is for the best of the party. He said Scozzafava is essentially withdrawing from the race, although her name will remain on Tuesday's ballot.
"It is increasingly clear that pressure is mounting on many of my supporters to shift their support," Scozzafava said in a written statement. "Consequently, I hereby release those individuals who have endorsed and supported my campaign to transfer their support as they see fit."
The announcement comes after a Siena College poll found she was in third place with 20 percent of the vote in the heavily Republican district that has been safe ground for the party for more than 100 years. Conservative Party nominee Doug Hoffman and Democratic nominee Bill Owens were too close to call with 35 percent and 36 percent, respectively.
The race has pitted conservative and moderate wings of the Republican Party against each other in a battle of ideology. The special election in New York's rural north has received national attention as big-name Republicans including Sarah Palin, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson have thrown their support behind Hoffman. Money poured into Hoffman's campaign from all over the country.
"In today's political arena, you must be able to back up your message with money — and as I've been outspent on both sides, I've been unable to effectively address many of the charges that have been made about my record," Scozzafava said.
Some have called the race a test of the GOP's future: whether traditional conservative ideology would lead the way forward or if a more inclusive approach would draw more people back to the party. Hoffman and his backers said Scozzafava was too liberal to truly represent the Republican party, specifically noting her support of abortion rights and same-sex marriage.
Hoffman didn't address Scozzafava's action directly, instead targeting national Democrats.
"It's time for us to send a message to Washington — we're sick and tired of big-spending, high-taxing, career politicians," Hoffman said in a statement Saturday after Scozzafava's announcement.
The Owens campaign didn't immediately return calls for comment.
A Republican loss in the 23rd will leave the party with just two seats in the 29-member state congressional delegation.

http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/New-York/photo//ydownload_ap/20091030/photos_net_ap_pl/1256914876//s:/ap/us_ny_special_election

Make Hudson Valley part of the National Park Service?

Should the Hudson Valley be included as a unit of the National Park service.

By Adam Bosch
Times Herald-Record
Posted: October 30, 2009 - 3:13 PM
KINGSTON — Congressman Maurice Hinchey wants the federal government to adopt the Hudson River Valley as a unit of the National Park Service.

The designation would make the valley eligible for more federal grants to boost conservation, historic preservation and tourism.

Hinchey, D-Hurley, has authored legislation to fund a federal study that would determine whether the Hudson River Valley fits into one of the National Park Service programs. Dan Ahouse, Hinchey’s chief of staff, said they’re specifically focused on getting the region into the national river and recreation area program.

If Hinchey’s bill is adopted, it would fund the two-year study in 2010. Ahouse said the National Park Service would study the river and counties that abut the river stretching from Fort Edward to the southern-most tip of Westchester County.

The home of Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Vanderbilt Mansion, both in Hyde Park, and the Upper Delaware River are among the local places already included as units of the National Park Service. The Hudson River is considered a National Heritage Area by the park service.

Hinchey will discuss his plans in more detail Monday at 11 a.m. at the Hudson River Maritime Museum in Kingston.

abosch@th-record.com

http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091030/NEWS/910309975

Maurice Hinchey and the Helicopter contract here we go again

This is quite amazing. Just a few months ago New York's 22nd district Congressman Maurice Hinchey assured everyone in the Southern Tier that Lockheed Martin's Presidential Helicopter contract could be saved. Earlier this month Hinchey issued a statement that the chances of saving the copter program were 50/50. Today Hinchey issued another statement saying that he was confident that the Copter program could be saved. We need a rep that's not going to make decisions based on the direction that the wind is blowing.


By My-Ly Nguyen •mnguyen@gannett.com • October 29, 2009, 5:25 pm
OWEGO -- When it comes to funding the canceled presidential helicopter program, it's not over until it's over.


And that could be as early as next week or well into November, said Jeff Lieberson, spokesman for U.S. Rep. Maurice Hinchey, D-Hurley.
President Barack Obama may have signed a defense authorization bill Wednesday that does not include funding to continue Lockheed Martin's development of helicopters to replace his aging fleet, but that bill merely sets guidance for defense spending. It's the congressional appropriations committees that decide what is funded, Lieberson said.
"They actually cut the checks, so to speak," he said.
Most of the time, appropriations follow the guidelines set by the administration, Lieberson said. But there are times when those appropriations differ.
Hinchey is on the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, which earmarked $485.2 million for the helicopter program. The Senate did not include the copter funding in its version of the defense budget for fiscal 2010.
Both sides have been working to reconcile differences between their respective defense spending bills, including figuring out whether the presidential helicopter program will get the money it needs to advance in the joint, unified version of the spending plan.
"Congressman Hinchey and I are talking and working on this every day, pressing the leaders of the committee who control funding and making our arguments on the merits," U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said. "It is a difficult fight, but one we are waging as hard as we can."
The hope was that the conference committee would have wrapped up this reconciliation process on the presidential copter and other defense projects a few weeks ago.
"It's certainly not over," Lieberson said. "Our goal all along has been to fund the helicopter through the appropriations process. ... This doesn't change anything at all."
Earlier this month, Hinchey said chances are "50-50" that House and Senate leaders will restore the helicopter funding.
the canceled presidential helicopter program, it's not over until it's over.

And that could be as early as next week or well into November, said Jeff Lieberson, spokesman for U.S. Rep. Maurice Hinchey, D-Hurley.
President Barack Obama may have signed a defense authorization bill Wednesday that does not include funding to continue Lockheed Martin's development of helicopters to replace his aging fleet, but that bill merely sets guidance for defense spending. It's the congressional appropriations committees that decide what is funded, Lieberson said.
"They actually cut the checks, so to speak," he said.
Most of the time, appropriations follow the guidelines set by the administration, Lieberson said. But there are times when those appropriations differ.
Hinchey is on the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, which earmarked $485.2 million for the helicopter program. The Senate did not include the copter funding in its version of the defense budget for fiscal 2010.
Both sides have been working to reconcile differences between their respective defense spending bills, including figuring out whether the presidential helicopter program will get the money it needs to advance in the joint, unified version of the spending plan.
"Congressman Hinchey and I are talking and working on this every day, pressing the leaders of the committee who control funding and making our arguments on the merits," U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said. "It is a difficult fight, but one we are waging as hard as we can."
The hope was that the conference committee would have wrapped up this reconciliation process on the presidential copter and other defense projects a few weeks ago.
"It's certainly not over," Lieberson said. "Our goal all along has been to fund the helicopter through the appropriations process. ... This doesn't change anything at all."
Earlier this month, Hinchey said chances are "50-50" that House and Senate leaders will restore the helicopter funding.

http://www.pressconnects.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009910290380

George Phillips to run for Congress

George Phillips a Republican,Conservative from Endwell New York has announced that he will be running for New York's 22nd Congressional Seat against Maurice Hinchey a progressive Democrat in 2010. George was born and raised in Endwell near Binghamton, NY. He graduated from Seton Catholic high scool in 1994. George obtained the Thomas Watson Scholarship from IBM, which helped him pay for college at Villanova University. He also worked for three summers during college in manufacturing at IBM’s plant in Endicott. Upon graduating from Villanova summa cum laude in 1998, George was accepted to the University of Notre Dame’s volunteer teacher training program. He taught high school in Louisiana for two years and obtained a Master’s Degree from Notre Dame in 2000.

In Washington, DC, George taught for a brief time as a long term substitute in inner city DC Public Schools before landing a position with Congressman Chris Smith of New Jersey in 2001, then the Chairman of House Veterans’ Affairs Committee and Vice Chairman of the House International Relations Committee.
George worked on foreign affairs, business, immigration and senior issues for Congressman Smith. He was fortunate to handle part of Smith’s foreign affairs portfolio in the days following the 9/11 terrorists attacks and assisted on several bills that were signed into law, including the Victims of Trafficking Protection Act.

In 2005, George returned to the Binghamton area to teach Social Studies and Theology classes at his alma mater, Seton Catholic Central. He also teaches government at Broome Community College.
In 2005, he also married Diana Quintero. They have a young son George Joseph, and live in a house in Endwell near George’s parents.



Work on Fairness Doctrine
George’s opponent, Congressman Maurice Hinchey has been a long-time champion of the so-called “Fairness Doctrine,” a policy that would blatantly violate free speech rights of talk radio hosts by mandating that they give equal time to all viewpoints.
With Hinchey going recently going on CNN to say that he would be pushing legislation on the Fairness Doctrine soon, George designed to launch a new website called “Stop the Fairness Doctrine Now” to generate support against this move to limit the freedom of speech.

Will Rudy Giuliani run for Governor of NY?

State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has sent word to former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani that he will run for governor of New York next year.

That's according to the "New York Post," which says the confidential message was recently conveyed to Giuliani as a courtesy and a heads-up that he will face a brutal battle should he also decide to run for governor.

The article quotes sources as saying Cuomo is in no hurry to publicly announce his intentions, as he wants to stay focused on his current job duties.

Despite public opinion polls showing Cuomo easily beating Governor David Paterson in a Democratic primary, Paterson insists he will seek election in 2010 no matter what Cuomo decides to do.


http://rochesterhomepage.net/content/fulltext/?cid=129162

CNN Flops

CNN in Last Place –
James Joyner | Tuesday, October 27, 2009

CNN has dropped to fourth place in the cable news business it invented. And Fox continues to rise while under fire from the administration.

CNN, which invented the cable news network more than two decades ago, will hit a new competitive low with its prime-time programs in October, finishing fourth – and last – among the cable news networks with the audience that all the networks rely on for their advertising. The official monthly numbers will be finalized at 4 p.m. Monday and will include results from Friday. CNN executives conceded that will not change the competitive standing for the month. CNN will still be last in prime time.

That means CNN’s programs were behind not only Fox News and MSNBC, but even its own sister network HLN (formerly Headline News.) Three of its four shows between 7 and 11 p.m. finished fourth and last among the cable news networks. That was the first time CNN had finished that poorly with its prime-time shows.

The results demonstrate once more the apparent preference of viewers for opinion-oriented shows from the news networks in prime time. CNN has steered opinion hosts like Nancy Grace to HLN, while maintaining more news-oriented shows on CNN itself. When news events are not being intensely followed, CNN executives acknowledge, viewers seem to be looking for partisan views more than objective coverage.

Individually, the CNN shows were beaten resoundingly by all the Fox News programs, but also lost to all of the MSNBC programs, including a repeat of Keith Olbermann’s 8 p.m. edition of “Countdown,” which beat the 10 p.m. hour of CNN’s signature prime-time program, “Anderson Cooper 360.” Again that was a first. Mr. Cooper had 211,000 viewers to 223,000 for Mr. Olbermann’s repeat. That meant Mr. Cooper finished fourth and last in the 10 p.m. hour because, besides being well behind the leader, Greta Van Susteren, who had 538,000 viewers, he was also beaten by a repeat of Nancy Grace’s 8 p.m. show on HLN, which averaged 222,000.

[...]

CNN executives emphasized that the network continues to draw more viewers than all its competitors except Fox News when all hours of the day are counted. CNN released a statement Monday saying, “CNN’s ratings are always going to be more dependent on the news environment, much more so than opinion-based programming especially in prime time.”

Now, of course, none of this answers the question as to whether Fox is a news network or a partisan outlet. (In my opinion — granted, as someone who has all but stopped watching television news in recent years — it’s both.) But it does show what the people want to see.

I personally find most of the cable news hosts insipid, if not grating. (The exceptions, ironically, are the faux anchors Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert, who manage to be smart and charming even while being partisan.) But it’s human nature to prefer routine. So, people who are in the mood for public affairs chat during prime time will naturally gravitate to their favorite news personality on at that hour and make that appointment viewing.

Indeed, the preference for host-based, periodic program over “whatever’s happening now” goes beyond news. ESPN’s most popular programs are “Pardon the Interruption” and its lead-in “Around the Horn.” Viewers — certainly, this viewer — are annoyed when “PTI” is pre-empted for some live sporting event such as the Little League World series or, say, women’s golf. And the music channels all moved from showing videos of popular songs to more routine, familiar programming.

This is even more understandable in the Internet age. People who are interested in news — whether about public affairs, sports, or the weather — can get it when they want it, how they want it. There’s no longer much point in waiting for the 6:30 or 11:00 news. Even shows like “SportsCenter,” which were a godsend 20 years ago, are now boring blather since it’s an hour talking about things viewers knew about hours earlier. Indeed, it’s gotten so bad that they chopped off the last five minutes of “PTI” and hide it somewhere during the ensuing “SportsCenter” episode, forcing people to either miss the end of the show or watch a show they otherwise wouldn’t. (Or, in my case, TiVo “PTI” for 90 minutes and fast-forward though both the commercials and non-”PTI” segments of “SportsCenter.”)

Postscript: In terms of sheer business, it’s conceivable that CNN is making a good decision here. They’ve essentially divided their network into two components, so CNN and HLN both contribute to the bottom line. The question is whether the amount of money spent on retaining name brand hosts 1) pays for itself in higher ratings and 2) offsets the cost of covering the news.

http://www.outsidethebeltway.com/archives/cnn_in_last_place_-_behind_msnbc_reruns/

Joe Liberman says no to public option

Independent Sen. Joseph Lieberman said Tuesday he would join a Republican filibuster to block the final vote on any health care bill that has a government-run public health insurance option.

Lieberman's vote is crucial to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's hopes of passing a health care bill that includes the controversial public option. Reid announced Monday he would send to the full Senate a health care bill that has a public option but also allows states to opt out of that provision.

Lieberman said he would support a vote to launch debate on the health care bill but would oppose a motion to end debate if the public option remains in the legislation. Democrats would need 60 votes in the 100-member Senate to close debate on the bill, and the Democratic caucus has 60 members, including Lieberman.

"I can't see a way in which I can vote for cloture on any bill that contained a creation of a government-operated and run insurance company," the Connecticut senator said. "It's just asking for trouble."

Also Tuesday, two other conservative-leaning Democratic senators, Ben Nelson of Nebraska and Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, said they would decide how to vote once they see the final bill.

"I'm not going to make any kind of commitment until I see the bill," Nelson said, adding that he has not given Reid any assurance or "secret" acknowledgment of support.

Reid needs the support of Lieberman, Nelson, Landrieu and several other conservative or moderate caucus members to ensure that he has enough votes to prevent Republicans from blocking action on a health care bill. His Republican counterpart, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, on Tuesday promised a filibuster against both introducing the health care bill and later closing debate on it.

"Well, it's fairly routine around the Senate that controversial matters require 60 votes," McConnell told reporters. "I mean, there's no question it'll require 60 votes to get on the bill and it'll require 60 votes to get off the bill."

Reid's decision to include any form of public option was a major victory for the more liberal wing of the Democratic Party. He included the state opt-out provision to try to win support of conservative and moderate caucus members


Individual states would have until 2014 to decide whether they wanted to opt out, according to Reid, a Nevada Democrat facing tough re-election prospects next year.

Opting out would require action by state legislatures, two Democratic sources told CNN on Tuesday. If the state's governor vetoed the bill, the legislature could still enact it by overriding the veto, they said.

Reid has been melding legislation from the more conservative Senate Finance Committee and the more liberal Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.

The Health Committee included a form of the public option in its bill, while the Finance Committee did not.

On the House side, Speaker Nancy Pelosi has insisted the chamber pass a health care reform bill that includes a public option.

Republicans oppose a public option, saying it would drive private insurers out of the market and eventually lead to a government takeover of the health care system.

Democrats call such claims fear-mongering and say a public option is the best way to bring competition to the market. President Obama has called a public option the best way to help achieve major goals of health care reform, including expanded coverage and lower costs.

The president has not, however, indicated that he would veto a bill without such a provision.

Several top Democrats have previously expressed concern that the traditionally conservative Senate would not pass a bill with a public option.

Reid's health care bill, which will be given a cost assessment by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, also includes a provision from the Finance Committee bill allowing for the creation of nonprofit health care cooperatives that would negotiate collective insurance coverage for members.

The majority leader's strategy of publicizing his intention was risky, multiple sources said.

Reid said Tuesday that much work remains in the amendment process of debating the bill, indicating possible compromises in the complex legislation that overhauls the nation's health care system.

"There are a lot of senators, Democrat and Republicans, who don't like part of what's in this bill," Reid said. Asked specifically about Lieberman's opposition to a public option, Reid said Lieberman would support opening debate on the bill, "and I'm sure he'll have some interesting things to do in the way of an amendment.

"But Joe Lieberman is the least of Harry Reid's problems," he said.

Lieberman, asked by CNN about a possible Democratic backlash against his stance, said he was thinking of what is best for Connecticut and the country.

"I was re-elected as an independent," Lieberman said. "I've got an obligation to the voters of Connecticut and I've got an obligation most of all to do what's best for the United States of America, so I'm not going to worry about the political ramifications in a way that will stop me from doing what I think is right."

Reid, meanwhile, also expressed disappointment at the virtually unanimous Republican opposition to Democratic-led health care reform efforts.

He also expressed disappointment about the virtually unanimous Republican opposition to Democratic-led health care reform efforts.

"When I came here, we had Republicans and Democrats work together," Reid said. "But you can't dance if your partner is unwilling to get off the chair."

On Monday, Reid said he hoped to eventually win over Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe, the lone Republican to back the Finance Committee bill. Snowe has indicated her preference for a "trigger" provision that would mandate creation of a public health insurance option in the future if specific thresholds for expanded coverage and other changes were not met.

Snowe issued a statement Monday saying she was "deeply disappointed" about Reid's decision on the public option. She said that a decision in favor of a trigger "could have been the road toward achieving a broader bipartisan consensus in the Senate."

Reid, in turn, said he was "disappointed that the one issue, the public option, has been something that's frightened" Snowe.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/10/27/health.care/index.html

Give up meat to save the planet?

You read the title correctly. Lord Stern suggests that giving up meat will save the planet.

People will need to consider turning vegetarian if the world is to conquer climate change, according to a leading authority on global warming.

In an interview with The Times, Lord Stern of Brentford said: “Meat is a wasteful use of water and creates a lot of greenhouse gases. It puts enormous pressure on the world’s resources. A vegetarian diet is better.”

Direct emissions of methane from cows and pigs is a significant source of greenhouse gases. Methane is 23 times more powerful than carbon dioxide as a global warming gas.

Lord Stern, the author of the influential 2006 Stern Review on the cost of tackling global warming, said that a successful deal at the Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December would lead to soaring costs for meat and other foods that generate large quantities of greenhouse gases.


He predicted that people’s attitudes would evolve until meat eating became unacceptable. “I think it’s important that people think about what they are doing and that includes what they are eating,” he said. “I am 61 now and attitudes towards drinking and driving have changed radically since I was a student. People change their notion of what is responsible. They will increasingly ask about the carbon content of their food.”

Lord Stern, a former chief economist of the World Bank and now I. G. Patel Professor of Economics at the London School of Economics, warned that British taxpayers would need to contribute about £3 billion a year by 2015 to help poor countries to cope with the inevitable impact of climate change.

He also issued a clear message to President Obama that he must attend the meeting in Copenhagen in person in order for an effective deal to be reached. US leadership, he said, was “desperately needed” to secure a deal.

He said that he was deeply concerned that popular opinion had so far failed to grasp the scale of the changes needed to address climate change, or of the importance of the UN meeting in Copenhagen from December 7 to December 18. “I am not sure that people fully understand what we are talking about or the kind of changes that will be necessary,” he added.

Up to 20,000 delegates from 192 countries are due to attend the UN conference in the Danish capital. Its aim is to forge a deal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions sufficiently to prevent an increase in global temperatures of more than 2 degrees centigrade. Any increase above this level is expected to trigger runaway climate change, threatening the lives of hundreds of millions of people.

Lord Stern said that Copenhagen presented a unique opportunity for the world to break free from its catastrophic current trajectory. He said that the world needed to agree to halve global greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 to 25 gigatonnes a year from the current level of 50 gigatonnes.

UN figures suggest that meat production is responsible for about 18 per cent of global carbon emissions, including the destruction of forest land for cattle ranching and the production of animal feeds such as soy.

Lord Stern, who said that he was not a strict vegetarian himself, was speaking on the eve of an all-parliamentary debate on climate change. His remarks provoked anger from the meat industry.

Jonathan Scurlock, of the National Farmers Union, said: “Going vegetarian is not a worldwide solution. It’s not a view shared by the NFU. Farmers in this country are interested in evidence-based policymaking. We don’t have a methane-free cow or pig available to us.”

On average, a British person eats 50g of protein derived from meat each day — the equivalent of a chicken breast or a lamb chop. This is a relatively low level for a wealthy country but between 25 per cent and 50 per cent higher than the amount recommended by the World Health Organisation.

Su Taylor, a spokeswoman for the Vegetarian Society, welcomed Lord Stern’s remarks. “What we choose to eat is one of the biggest factors in our personal impact on the environment,” she said. “Meat uses up a lot of resources and a vegetarian diet consumes a lot less land and water. One of the best things you can do about climate change is reduce the amount of meat in your diet.”

The UN has warned that meat consumption is on course to double by the middle of the century.


http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/article6891362.ece

Mark your calendars

CHICAGO (AP) — Sarah Palin is going to sit down with Oprah Winfrey.
Harpo Productions announced Tuesday that the former governor of Alaska and Republican vice presidential candidate will appear on The Oprah Winfrey Show on Monday, Nov. 16.

According to Harpo, the interview will be Palin's first about her new book, Going Rogue: An American Life, and it will be the first time Palin and Winfrey will meet.

Palin's book was No. 4 on Amazon.com's best-seller list on Tuesday. It's slated to be released Tuesday, Nov. 17, the day after Palin's interview with Winfrey.

http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2009-10-20-oprah-winfrey_N.htm?csp=34