Tag: NY-23

"I am writing today to introduce myself. My name is Jeremy Brunton and I plan on running for the House seat in the 23rd district in New York in 2008 as a Democrat.. My challenger will be Rep. John Mchugh. I know that I have a huge task in front of me. Considering a democrat has not held the seat since the 1800s. I plan on changing that hopefully with help from some of you. In order for me to even have a chance in this election, I must get organized early."

"I have lived what the politicians in Washington only think they know how it is. I want to bring my life experience to Washington and truly represent the "little man." I believe I can do this by inciting the middle class and youth to vote for real change. I want to pull of this upset and show that it not impossible to upset a high ranking congressmen that is out of touch with his people."

It is still unknown yet whether McHugh's 2004 and 2006 challenger, Dr. Bob Johnson (D) of Jefferson County, who now operates the McHugh Watch website, plans to challenge McHugh for a third time.

Our Soldiers Deserve the Best Citizens of the North Country are appalled by the scandalous conditions uncovered at the Walter Reed Medical Center. The lack of treatment and care for our wounded soldiers is shameful. North Country voters may not know that our Congressman, John McHugh, is responsible for conditions at Walter Reed. Mr. McHugh chaired a subcommittee of the Armed Services Committee from 1999 until the end of 2006. Their charge was to oversee military healthcare. In 2004, McHugh and his subcommittee conducted a one-day investigation of Walter Reed Medical Center, and they did not even issue a report. Conditions continued to worsen at Walter Reed, until scandal broke just weeks ago. North Country Democracy for America is sponsoring a ?Support Our Wounded Soldiers? morning rally at the entrance to the Holiday Inn in Plattsburgh on March 17th at 8:00 AM. Mr. McHugh will speak at a Salute to Labor breakfast, but he will pass a rally demanding that he account for the tragedy at Walter Reed. If you support our veterans and wounded soldiers, please come help Mr. McHugh hear your voice. Mike Kelly

Well, I'm not certain that he's completely responsible but there's plenty of blame to go around and a good share belongs to McHugh. For one thing McHugh has a perfect voting record when it comes to health care for veterans and active militray personnel-- a perfect zero. In recent years there have been a dozen roll call votes on health care issues for our vets and military servicemen and McHugh voted against their interests every single time. Clint from Watertown says McHugh "was in charge of the oversight committee for the well being of our troops at Walter Reed and all the medical facilities in the system. He failed our men and women in those facilities and he failed his constituents and he failed America. If he were in Japan, he would have commited sepaku. In our part of the world, if he was a man he would resign."

• Kirsten Gillibrand voted for the anti-surge resolution and recently spoke with peace activists (http://www.fox23news.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=88453198-e8cc-414f-8669-ce46a3496e6a)
• Meanwhile, almost all Upstate Republicans were against the recent anti-surge resolution, including McHugh, Kuhl, and Reynolds. Jim Walsh was the only Upstate Republican representative to cross over and vote for the resolution, and I (as well as many others) think this is only due to Walsh's increasing vulnerability representing a district which has been trending increasinly Democratic in recent years. (http://www.thealbanyproject.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=411)
• North Country Public Radio has a broadcast of John McHugh's "explanation" on why he continues to stand behind Bush on the war. (http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/archive.php?id=8717)
• A new forum has been introduced by staffers of Congressman Arcuri where residents of New York's 24th District may express their concerns to the newly elected Representative (http://ny24thers.proboards101.com/)

In political discourse, Dr. Robert J. Johnson argues, it is rarely reality that is proffered, but carefully tailored perceptions of reality. ?One of the most incredibly frustrating things about running against John is that he has this perception of supporting things that he opposes, and opposing things that he supports,? said Dr. Johnson, a thoracic surgeon who has twice campaigned unsuccessfully against Republican congressman John M. McHugh. ?He is able to use the language in such a vague manner as to create a perception for the groups he?s addressing.? Dr. Johnson, Sackets Harbor, has founded McHugh Watch, a blog that he says will contrast the perception of the congressman with his voting record. ?This isn?t something antagonistic. It?s to inform the people of how he?s representing us,? said Dr. Johnson. ?What I?m trying to get people to do is separate facts from opinion. Draw what conclusions you want. But if you know the facts, you usually come to the right decisions.? Brynn A. Barnett, Mr. McHugh?s spokeswoman, said the congressman will not monitor the site. ?Frankly, he couldn?t care less,? she said. Ms. Barnett added that the congressman?s office ?is not confident that this, or any other political blog, represents the facts accurately.? She said the congressman will continue to communicate about his voting record through letters, press releases, and interviews with the media. Although Dr. Johnson concedes that the Web site should keep his name in the minds of voters here, the surgeon is unsure about a third campaign. ?I might not be the right person,? he said. ?I have a passion and a cause and I want to do some good. But I?m not sure people understand that.? The erstwhile candidate also acknowledged problems raising enough funds to get his message across the district, which encompasses parts of 11 counties. In the last campaign cycle, Dr. Johnson reported $161,770 in total receipts, according to the Federal Elections Commission. Mr. McHugh, R-Pierrepont Manor, reported receipts of $561,841 for the same time period. If he elects to run again, Dr. Johnson said, he won?t solicit contributions through the new site. But the surgeon said he is recruiting contributors for the blog. Some, he said, may elect to remain anonymous as they critique Mr. McHugh. Dr. Johnson said ?it just didn?t feel right? obscuring his identity as the site?s founder and primary contributor. Instead, he established a biographical page that details his aspirations for the site and his failed campaigns against the congressman. Dr. Johnson?s posts bear the pseudonym Theophilus, a Biblical figure to whom Luke addressed his gospel. (It?s also the name of his dog.) The surgeon said it takes about three to four hours of his recreational time to research a topic and build a post. ?If it?s ignored, I suppose I would consider it fruitless,? he said. ?But it?s not being ignored.? Dr. Johnson said his site amassed about 5,000 hits on Jan. 30, the day it was announced on DangerDemocrat, a blog scribed by former county Democratic Party Chairman Ezra S. ?Ted? Ford. Some hits, he said, were even logged from computers using the ?house.gov? portal. While the site?s growing prominence may entice more unseemly visitors, Dr. Johnson said he will moderate comments to keep discussions from derailing into personal vitriol. ?I don?t want a lot of raving,? he said. ?I read some of the Web boards and the posts are obscene. I think we need to watch our representatives, but we don?t need to denigrate our representatives.? Dr. Johnson said he will congratulate Mr. McHugh on the site when he believes it?s warranted. ?If the blog feels he?s representing the majority of people?s interests, we?ll give him kudos for it,? he said.