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This belongs to you. Take it back...
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Alice Kryzan 
Tue Nov 04, 2008 at 07:59:15 AM EST
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The winner for first illegal flier of the day goes to the supporters (or campaign) of GOP fraudster Chris Lee in NY-26. From the Kryzan campaign.
Amherst, NY- As the polls open this morning, the Republicans and Chris Lee supporters have littered the district with illegal and grossly misleading flyers about Alice Kryzan. The flyers carry no disclaimer or 'paid for' line which is a clear violation of federal election law. These flyers are filled with lies about Alice Kryzan's environmental record.
"Telling lies about Alice's record is nothing new for Chris Lee and the Republicans," said Kryzan Campaign Spokeswoman Anne Wadsworth. "But to put out illegal flyers on Election Day is really over the top. With his history of hacking into his former employers computer system for personal gain, we know that Chris Lee has problems with ethics, but this effort by his supporters to mislead voters on election day shows blatant disregard for the election laws and the truth."
The New York League of Conservation Voters, the Sierra Club and Environmentalists for Alice, a local group of prominent local environmentalists, have all endorsed Alice. The plaintiff's attorneys, who defended the families of the Love Canal tragedy, joined Alice at a press conference last week to refute attacks by Chris Lee and reaffirm their strong support of her candidacy
Nice.
A note to all campaigns: If similar fliers to turn up in your race, please scan and send them pronto. We will be keeping tabs on the inevitable dirty tricks statewide today until the polls close.
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Tue Nov 04, 2008 at 00:35:54 AM EST
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The ruling that will keep Alice Kryzan off the Working Families Party line was a difficult one to swallow, but we will move on. Alice Kryzan did issue a statement about yesterday's decision:
"Voting is our most sacred right. Chris Lee and his political cronies have plunged a knife into the heart of our democracy by engaging in voter suppression and denying Western New Yorkers their right to vote for the candidate of their choosing.
Having spent months dodging debates, refusing to take a position on the issues important to Western New Yorkers and hiding behind a million dollar smear campaign, Chris Lee has stooped to a new low. Lee is running a negative and empty campaign, and is now using his family's fortune to undermine the Democratic process.
Elections should be decided by voters. Chris Lee should be ashamed of himself."
The ruling yesterday keeps Jon Powers on the Working Families Party line. He wasted no time in sending an e-mail to his supporters asking them to vote for Alice instead of casting what would be a rather meaningless and pointless vote for him.
As many of you know, I am down in Virginia working with other veterans to get Barack Obama elected President of the United States. I just learned that because of a recent court ruling, my name will appear on the ballot under the Working Families Party even though I am no longer campaigning.
The choice between the two candidates campaigning for the 26th Congressional District is clear for Western New Yorkers. That is why I endorsed Alice Kryzan and am asking you to vote for her on November 4th. Alice understands the issues facing Western New York and will be a strong voice for the community in Washington.
The choice is clear. Republican Chris Lee will be another Tom Reynolds. We don't need another Tom Reynolds. We need new, fresh representation. We need Alice Kryzan.
ON THE WEB:
Alice Kryzan's ActBlue Page
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Mon Nov 03, 2008 at 18:51:59 PM EST
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Thw Working Families Party isn't taking the GOP shenanigans in the 26th lying down. This was blasted to the WFP list in the district:
Dear WFP Supporter,
Alice Kryzan has the passion, the smarts, the leadership and above all the values to represent working families in Washington.
We can count on her when push comes to shove in the big fights on healthcare, trade, jobs, education, the environment - and all the issues we care about in Western New York.
Normally, we would ask you to vote your values by voting for Alice on the Working Families line.
Unfortunately, the Republicans have successfully sued to keep Alice off our ballot line in an attempt to confuse voters and deny Alice critical votes from Working Families supporters.
Don't let the Republican tricksters win. You should vote for Alice Kryzan tomorrow on the Democratic line. She's endorsed by the Working Families Party, by Jon Powers, and thousands of others who care deeply about fighting for Western New York.
What matters in this race is that we send someone who will put working people before the big money crowd in Washington.
There's no question - that's Alice.
Find out more at: http://www.kryzanforcongress.com/
Also - be sure to vote for Joe Mesi, if you live in the 61st Senate District. We need leaders we can trust in Albany too.
See you at the polls,
Sam Williams,
WFP Co-Chair
Jim Duncan,
WFP Western NY Chapter Co-Chair
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Mon Nov 03, 2008 at 16:11:14 PM EST
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The saga over Alice Kryzan's placement on the Working Families Party line is over: She will not appear on the ballot tomorrow.
A three-judge panel of the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York City ruled this afternoon that Jon Powers cannot be removed from the ballot on the Working Families Party line for the 26th Congressional District, meaning that Alice Kryzan has lost her bid for a second party line.
The judges issued a one-paragraph ruling following oral arguments this morning on the New York State Republican Committee's bid to prevent the change.
It was announced on Friday that Kryzan would get the Working Families Party line. However, Judge Richard Arcana of the U.S. District Court in Buffalo issued a temporary restraining order preventing that decision from being executed. Today's decision will bring an end to this. The case could be taken up with the U.S. Supreme Court, but considering the timing of today's decision, that appears to be unlikely.
Tomorrow when you go into the polls, vote for Alice Kryzan on the Democratic line. That is the only place where you will see her name. Vote for her. Alice is an intelligent woman and a progressive and we need those traits in Washington representing us. She will listen and she will be a true representative of the people. If you want Tom Reynolds Jr., vote for Chris Lee. If you want a change from the failed policies of the past and a representative who will do more than just show up for photo ops, vote for Alice Kryzan.
ON THE WEB:
Alice Kryzan's ActBlue Page
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Mon Nov 03, 2008 at 00:48:46 AM EST
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Yesterday, Dr. Kevin Hardwick hosted a debate on WBEN featuring Alice Kryzan and Chris Lee, the Democratic and Republican candidates for Congress in the 26th congressional district, respectively.
I listened and was very disappointed at the end. Hardwick didn't do his job yesterday. Sure, he ran the debate and asked the usual and predictable questions, but he didn't ask Lee about the incident involving Lee and breaking into a company's computers nearly 20 years ago. That incident led to Lee's firing and something he calls "a mistake."
I'm not going to pound on Hardwick, but I do remember quite well that he made it a point to bring up War Kids Relief and the issues raised with that to Jon Powers. I'm not looking for retribution. I'm looking for fairness.
Lee should have to speak, on the record, explaining his actions.
Now, there are also two versions of "mistakes": There are real mistakes where people screw up. Those things happen. I make mistakes on a daily basis. I might send an e-mail to the wrong person or forget to mail something my girlfriend asked me to do. It happens.
But then there are the other "mistakes." Those are the mistakes that aren't really mistakes at all. The word "mistake" just happens to be used to lessen the actual events and make it seem like it was something small. Sending an e-mail to the wrong person? Rather small and harmless. Using the credit manager's password to raise credit limits for his customers and other customers. That's not a "mistake." There was intent there.
Yes, it was 20 years ago. But what Lee did amounts to a crime. Certainly he isn't going to be tried and put away now and whether he faced criminal charges at the time remains unknown. That is exactly why Lee should have to answer questions about this. If Alice Kryzan has to answer questions about Love Canal, it is only fair for Lee to have to face questions about his "mistake."
And while I'm grateful that Lee's "mistake" was made public, the saying "it's better late than never" can't apply here. It was far too late to make a difference. Unlike Kryzan, Lee was never truly vetted. He has denied charges that he has shipped jobs overseas by saying that those are attacks on his family and his patriotism. He has dodged talking about this issue, as evidenced here. When is Chris Lee going to be straight with us? When is he going to be honest? If he can't be honest on the campaign trail, how will he ever be trusted as this district's representative?
ON THE WEB:
Alice Kryzan's ActBlue Page
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Sun Nov 02, 2008 at 11:46:28 AM EST
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The story of how Chris Lee once hacked into a company's website to change customers' credit limit is now the lead story on the Politico Scorecard blog.
If you'd asked me a few weeks ago who I thought would win this race, I'd have said Lee. Now it's a toss-up and something like this could tip the race in Kryzan's favor.
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Sat Nov 01, 2008 at 15:54:24 PM EDT
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A Federal Judge in Buffalo has issued a temporary restraining order preventing local election officials in NY-26 from placing Alice Kryzan on the Working Families Party ballot line.
Judge takes Kryzan off WFP ballot line
A federal judge is blocking a Democratic congressional candidate from getting her name on a third-party ballot line in western New York, the latest judicial twist in the battle to replace retiring Rep. Tom Reynolds.
Alice Kryzan _ who beat Jon Powers in the Democratic primary _ is trying to get her name instead of his on the Working Families Party line. An extra ballot line is usually worth thousands more votes.
New York State Chief Judge Judith Kaye on Friday let stand a lower court ruling giving the line to Kryzan.
Republicans took the case to federal court in Buffalo, where Chief Judge Richard Arcara late Friday issued a temporary restraining order barring elections officials from removing Powers' name from the ballot.
Kryzan campaign aides said they're appealing Arcara's decision.
Ugh.
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Sat Nov 01, 2008 at 09:24:09 AM EDT
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From the Buffalo News:
Congressional candidate Chris Lee acknowledged Friday that he was fired from Ingram Micro years ago because he "made a mistake." Sources familiar with the mistake say he hacked into a company computer for personal gain.
Lee was a young salesman with Ingram Micro, a computer products distributor that in 1989 was known as Ingram Micro D and operated from offices on Elmwood Avenue.
Lee, according to his co-workers at the time, somehow obtained a company credit manager's password. Then, with that password, he raised the credit limits for some of his customers and the customers of other sales people, the employees said.
That way Lee could sell the customers more of the company's products, on credit, before the billing system would flag their accounts for payment and halt further purchases.
Update: Amherst Guy makes a very good point: this is the sort of thing that caused the subprime crisis. Lying about credit scores and other financial info is exactly what got so many Americans into houses they couldn't afford.
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Fri Oct 31, 2008 at 23:38:33 PM EDT
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Let me be the first to say this, I am still a very big fan of Jon Powers. Since I met him last year I knew that I wanted to do something to help his campaign, I signed on as an intern and in the process found out a lot about not only the political world that I thought I knew (of which I thought that I knew everything), but what I didn't know as well. Powers for Congress was not only my way of getting my feet wet in politics, but also my way of finding out about what I needed to do to succeed, I learned this from Jon's team, but also from my work through the campaign with my own local party. For that experience, to Jon, Jon's team and to my local party, I am eternally grateful.
That being said, during the primary I, along with many others were not kind to Alice Kryzan. So in, short let me say this.......
Alice Kryzan has shown me that not isn't she just the 'lesser of two-evils', she's the box of gold next to a bag of charcoal.
Since the primary ended I've met Alice on a few occasions and found out not only a little more about her life and her story, but also have seen her passion for helping people, in her own community and outside of it. From the moment she arrived in Western New York she started spear-heading community projects and bringing sides together in legal matters and worked with local governments, helping them with legal issues. She really is someone who is passionate about Western New York, not just about our growth potential and our great cultural heritage but of our people as well. She's a great champion for progressive issues and for our area, like Jon Powers, Western New York has a treasure in Alice Kryzan.
What really impressed me about her though is what I saw tonight from her on a few occassions. Yes she is very smart, yes she is very policy savvy, but I also saw that she is very compassionate and understanding of how public policy impacts peoples lives and how policies can be used to make serious changes.
I have come to the conclusion that Alice Kryzan needs to not just do well, or do respectably in this Republican-leaning district, she needs to win. We need a democratic congressperson who's more than just great hair and sound-bytes, we need someone with a record of problem-solving who understands the basic challenges confronting us today. Alice Kryzan has proved herself as the person to take Western New York into the 21st century, her dedication, passion and policy-savvy is what we need in Washington right now.
On The Web: Alice Kryzan's ActBlue Page
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Fri Oct 31, 2008 at 10:41:59 AM EDT
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In a surprise twist, Alice Kryzan will be on the Working Families Party line after all.
Court knocks Powers off ballot, boosting Kryzan
The Appellate Division of State Supreme Court ruled late Thursday that a lower court erred in deciding that Powers, Kryzan's former rival for the Democratic nomination for the seat, must stay on the Working Families line even though he had moved to Washington, D.C., to take a job there.
"In the absence of evidence to the contrary, Powers's letters to the Board and his concomitant submission of an out-of-state driver's license and lease agreement conclusively establish his intention to establish residency outside of this state," the appeals court said.
That disqualifies Powers from the ballot -- giving the Working Families Party the right to name Kryzan its candidate, the court said.
"Given that a vacancy was created by Powers's disqualification, the Board [of Elections] was obliged to accept the WFP's certificate of nomination and authorization naming Kryzan" as its candidate, the court said.
This is the right decision. I know people expressed concern about military ballots and absentee ballots, but in reality the most votes come via voters on Election Day who go to the polls. I believe the appellate court made the right call here.
UPDATE: The Kryzan campaign issued a press release on this decision today. Anne Wadsworth, a Kryzan campaign spokesperson, had this to say about the decision:
"Alice is proud to have the support of the Working Families Party, of Jon Powers, and of voters across this district who want a new direction for Western New York's economy," said spokesperson Anne Wadsworth. "Despite Chris Lee and the Republican machine's attempts to block Alice's name from appearing on the Working Families Party ballot line, today's ruling will allow voters to have a clear choice when they vote on Tuesday."
I agree. It is only right (and fair) that Kryzan gets the WFP line since Lee was handed the Independence Party line in a shady deal.
UPDATE II: The Working Families Party has also responded to this great news today:
"We're ecstatic. Alice Kryzan is the candidate who'll stand up for the issues that matter to working families in Washington, so it's only appropriate that she should be on the Working Families Party ballot line. Now, Western New Yorkers can cast a vote for real progressive change by pulling the Working Families lever for Alice."
Let's vote for Alice Kryzan on Tuesday.
ON THE WEB:
Alice Kryzan's ActBlue Page
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Tue Oct 28, 2008 at 18:23:12 PM EDT
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The Cook Political Report has just changed their rating of the race in NY-26. Citing internal polling on both sides and a large number of undecideds, they've moved the race from "lean Republican" to "Toss Up" (sub req'd):
NY-26 OPEN (Reynolds) Lean Republican to Toss Up
Republican businessman Chris Lee might be a better fit for this suburban, GOP-leaning district than the surprise winner of the Democratic primary, attorney Alice Kryzan. But polling on both sides shows that a very large share of voters remains undecided very late in the game.
In this political and economic climate, no district in western New York can be considered safe for Republicans. A judge's ruling that former Kryzan primary rival Jonathan Powers must remain on the Working Families Party ballot line means that a Kryzan victory would still constitute something of an upset, but Lee can't be considered the favorite by much.
This one is going to be a squeaker.
On the web: Alice Kryzan for Congress.
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Mon Oct 27, 2008 at 17:02:08 PM EDT
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In late September, Anthony Fumerelle, who was then running for Congress in the 26th congressional district on the Independence Party line, was nominated for a judgeship - in Queens. Of course, no one saw anything wrong with that. That freed up the Independence Party line. The Independence Party didn't contact Alice Kryzan, who was riding high after an upset victory in the Democratic primary. Instead, the Independence Party gave their line to Republican Chris Lee.
At the time, I saw a lot wrong with how easy it was for Fumerelle to get nominated and within moments, it seemed, Lee was able to get on the line.
Compare that with today's announcement that Jon Powers will remain on the Working Families Party line, robbing Kryzan of a minor party line of her own. By all accounts, Lee's awarding of the IP line went without incident. However, when the WFP line was going to be awarded to Kryzan, the Republicans decided to create a scene and challenge that.
Here are the facts:
(A) Jon Powers no longer lives in New York. The judge in this case admits that, but also contends that Powers living in Washington only means that he will not be in New York on Election Day. What? If a person no longer has a residency in New York, how can you make such a contention? It's not as if he had dual residencies. He's in D.C. now. That's where he is living.
(B) The judge also made this argument: "However, upon his nomination, he accepted the nomination. He did not decline the nomination, nor were there any challenges to his nomination." I believe the same could be said for Fumerelle, am I correct? Upon his nomination, he accepted the nomination. He did not decline it. The deal to get him off the ballot didn't take place until 16 days after Primary Day. So why doesn't the court review that as well?
(C) Bob McCarthy of the News says that this is a blow to Kryzan. I don't think it is. Late last month, Powers was only polling at five percent. I can't imagine he's polling any better now. In fact, I'm sure his numbers have dropped. Even with his name on the ballot, I can't see too many people voting for him. Unless, of course, they want to waste their vote.
(D) Lastly, this is what the Republicans wanted. Yes, Powers isn't polling well and will be a non-factor. But they know that people will vote for Powers. If the race is close, that could mean Powers serves as a spoiler, helping Lee. This decision only helps the GOP and Chris Lee. This decision does rob voters of the 26th district from having another line to support Alice Kryzan on.
This is an absurd decision and the rationale given by the judge for her decision boggles my mind. Nevertheless, we will push forward and I urge fellow citizens of the 26th district to vote for Alice Kryzan on the Democratic line. This is the kind of politics Tom Reynolds and Chris Lee adhere to. Let's keep Chris Lee away from Washington D.C. We don't need another Tom Reynolds. We need new, responsible leadership from a true progressive. That candidate is Alice Kryzan.
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Mon Oct 27, 2008 at 16:25:02 PM EDT
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UPDATE: Here is the story from The Buffalo News on the decision to keep Jon Powers on the WFP line and keep Alice Kryzan off the WFP line:
A judge ruled today that Jon Powers must remain on the ballot as the candidate of the Working Families Party in next week's 26th District congressional election, dealing a major blow to Democrat Alice J. Kryzan's hope of securing an additional line.
Acting State Supreme Court Justice Kimberly A. O'Connor in Albany ruled that Working Families' attempt to substitute Kryzan for Powers after Powers moved out of state to Washington did not meet election law requirements.
"Powers has placed the Working Families Party in the position of having an absentee candidate on the ballot for the election that is to occur in just a few days," O'Connor wrote. "However, upon his nomination, he accepted the nomination. He did not decline the nomination, nor were there any challenges to his nomination.
"The time for such challenges has long passed," she added. "While Powers has chosen employment that currently has him working outside the State of New York, the law does not provide for a mechanism to have his name taken off the ballot at this late date."
This is the initial response from the campaign on this decision:
"This is nothing more than the Republican machine's attempt to make a mockery of the Democratic process. Jon Powers is not a candidate for Congress, he does not live in the state of New York and therefore by state law is ineligible to appear on the ballot. Clearly Republicans are struggling to come up with a winning message and are therefore playing Karl Rove-like antics in an attempt to steal the election. Alice got into this campaign because she believes that with new leadership we can bring jobs and prosperity back to Western New York. Republicans can play all the political games and use all the smear tactics they want, but we are confident that come November 4th Western New York will see through the mud and elect Alice Kryzan because she represents the positive change we need with integrity and independence."
I will have more of an analysis later.
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Sun Oct 26, 2008 at 17:47:14 PM EDT
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A friend of mine received a mailer from the New York Republican State Committee yesterday that was sent out on behalf of Republican candidate Chris Lee. The mailer, which labels Democratic candidate Alice Kryzan as a "trial lawyer" and uses that same false argument that Kryzan supports a tax increase because the Heritage Foundation's analysis of the House Democrats proposal from earlier this year said that it was a tax increase. The mailer adds that with the tax increase from Kryzan, we will lose 59,000 jobs. Of course, those are all ridiculous assertions and slanted assertions.
But the mailer also accuses Kryzan of running a "false, negative campaign." Being that these mailers came from Republicans, I thought those charges were odd considering this mailer was (A) Very negative and dark (the front of the mailer features a line that reads, "Western New York's Economy is a wreck. Alice Kryzan will make it worse.") and (B) The mailer includes false claims that have been debunked before.
In reviewing the campaign tactics of both campaigns and party committees, this is what I found:
- Alice Kryzan's ads that are put out by the Kryzan campaign have all been positive. However, Chris Lee's ads have not. At least three ads put out by the Lee campaign have been negative ads targeting Kryzan.
- There have been a few ads from the DCCC targeting Lee which would be considered "negative" ads. You can see them here, here and here. The DCCC does these ads for all of the candidates they are backing throughout the country. It would be one thing to say that Kryzan has negative ads out there and thus, she is running a negative campaign. At least you would have some evidence to back up your claim.
- The NRCC has also been running negative ads against Kryzan (Here you can find an example). This shouldn't be anything shocking. The NRCC and DCCC running ads for their candidates. Not a huge deal in my eyes.
But the difference is the content coming out of both campaigns. Kryzan is REALLY running an honorable campaign based on the issues. Her ads reflect that and her ads also reflect how much she cares about the 26th congressional district. Lee's ads drop the ball. His ads include the same negative rhetoric that the NRCC is pushing.
Let's get the facts right in the 26th. Chris Lee is running the negative campaign, not Alice Kryzan. That's what you do when you are as desperate as the Republicans are.
But let's not forget one important fact here. Kryzan came out of a vicious primary unscathed and without engaging in the same level of negativity as her primary opponents. She won and some suggested it was because she played it clean and didn't engage in the same tactics. Lee was apparently sleeping through the Democratic primary. He didn't learn anything from that.
Kryzan has an ability to engage voters and discuss issues in a very intelligent manner. That could be the difference on November 4.
ON THE WEB:
Alice Kryzan's ActBlue Page
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Fri Oct 24, 2008 at 16:09:16 PM EDT
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Jon Powers has already endorsed Democratic candidate Alice Kryzan. Now he is going to take it one step further.
Kryzan will be campaigning in four counties throughout the 26th congressional district and Powers will join her. In an e-mail to supporters, Kryzan had this to say about Powers joining her on the trail:
On Monday, Jon Powers and I will be hitting the pavement and talking to voters in Rochester, Geneseo, Batavia and Williamsville about importance of this election to the working families of Western New York.
I am excited to have Jon's support and so proud to add his voice to those calling for change in Western New York and across the country. I hope you can join us!
Kryzan and Powers will appear together in four counties: Erie, Genesee, Livingston and Monroe counties. They will kick off their day together on Monday at the Monroe County Democratic Headquarters in Rochester before traveling to Livingston County and meeting with SUNY Geneseo's College Democrats. They will then head over to Genesee County and meet at the Genesee County Democratic Committee Headquarters before ending their day at the Kryzan for Congress Volunteer Center in Amherst.
This will be a big day. I will make it out for at least one event and maybe more. This will be quite a duo working together. I'm looking forward to it.
ON THE WEB:
Alice Kryzan's ActBlue Page
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Fri Oct 24, 2008 at 14:18:21 PM EDT
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(Good stuff. - promoted by phillip anderson)
"The Republican Party has been taken over by a bunch of kooks"-Barry Goldwater
Since I was a small child I remember watching with a certain awe the political audacity and committment to which Western New Yorkers, especially in my home county of Genesee, committed themselves to not only political candidates but their ideas as well. Everywhere I went growing up, whether it was in Dunkin Donuts or the grocery store everyone had an opinion around election time. No matter who you were for, you were for someone and you had an opinion on everyone.
Why then, is this predominantly Republican county now registering more Democrats than Republicans? Why are even Republicans coming in our small, rural county committee's office asking for Obama/Biden, Mesi and Kryzan signs?
Perhaps their just not falling for the same old tired talking points anymore, maybe they realize what an aged Barry Goldwater said during the rise of the Religious Right (see above quote)...... (more on the flip)
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Fri Oct 24, 2008 at 10:36:14 AM EDT
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Larry Sabato just changed his rating on NY-26 from "leans R" to "toss-up". I'm not sure what prompted this change, but I'll see if I can find out.
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