NY-26: Buffalo News Notices Powers Netroots Support
by Matt at Aug 17th, 2008
Jerry Zremski of the Buffalo News has an article today about how Jon Powers has raised a decent amount of money from left-wing fundraising powerhouses, but not so much from the people he wants to represent in Congress… something I’ve been noting for quite a while now.
Jon Powers would be the next congressman from the 26th District if the “netroots” were doing the voting.
The Iraq War veteran and former substitute teacher has raised $322,452 through ActBlue, a Web site that bills itself as “the online clearinghouse for Democratic action,” while winning the praise of bloggers from Buffalo to the Beltway.
“He’s the model of a modern patriot,” wrote Jake McIntyre, a Buffalo native and Washington labor lawyer who blogs under the name “Trapper John” on Daily Kos, one of the most popular progressive blogs.
Meanwhile, liberal bloggers have dismissed one of Powers’ Democratic primary opponents as “Crazy Jack Davis” and largely ignored the other, local attorney Alice Kryzan.
But there’s a downside to Powers’ prolonged courtship of the netroots. It’s the reason he raised nearly twice as much money from New York City as he has from the Buffalo area, a fact that allows his opponents to charge that the 26th District might not be foremost in his mind if Powers makes his way to Washington.
“Jon Powers is campaigning the same way he’ll govern; from outside New York and inside the pockets of the special interests,” said Joy Langley, a spokesman for Davis, the millionaire industrialist who’s paying for his third congressional race with his own money.
The story goes on to detail how Powers courted left-wing activists prior to his congressional run.
An interesting point raised by Zremski is that Alice Kryzan the “other” Democrat candidate in NY-26, “out-raised Powers by more than $30,000 in the Buffalo area.” WROC-TV noted last week that in an otherwise bitter Democratic primary, riddled with scandals and nastiness, Kryzan has remained quite unscathed. She might not be making headlines, but her out-fundraising Jon Powers should concern his campaign. The bloody battle between Davis and Powers could prove to be quite beneficial to Kryzan.
Perhaps the funniest part of the article came at the end, where it said Powers “vowed not to be swayed by such campaign donations or by the bloggers who’ve become his defenders.”
Yeah, let’s see. Since Jon Powers has had congressional ambitions, he’s been increasingly seeking the support of cash from left-wing activists, and his pursuit of that cash has gone hand-in-hand with an undeniable leftward shift on the issues, including abortion, free trade, even Iraq. So, despite evidence to the contrary, Powers told Zremski, “I’m going to be representing the people of Western New York.”
Powers seems to be confusing Western New York with the Daily Kos and Huffington Post.
