Jon Powers, who has recently stepped up his criticisms of free trade policies which have actually contributed to economic in this country, took the opportunity of McCain’s visit to criticize Chris Lee for attending John McCain’s fundraiser at the Albright-Knox Monday night.

“Chris Lee was happy to appear with John McCain yesterday as he refused to talk to the voters of Western New York. Chris Lee must now respond to the unanswered questions and tell the voters what he will do to end the trade policies that have shipped Western New York jobs overseas,” said Powers for Congress Campaign Manager, John Gerken.

“Jon has been consistent in his opposition to the careless free trade policies of George Bush and John McCain. The working men and women of this district have recognized Jon’s commitment to saving jobs and we are proud to have their support.”

Now, the only free trade agreement mentioned on Jon Powers‘ website is NAFTA, which was enacted in 1994. Now, in case Jon Powers hasn’t been paying attention to history, George W. Bush wasn’t president in 1994 — Bill Clinton was… and further, NAFTA has enjoyed bipartisan support and praise. Despite this fact, Powers finds it easier to blame George W. Bush and John McCain.

Another supporter of NAFTA was Nancy Pelosi.  And the anti-free trade Jon Powers will be going to a DCCC fundraising event in Washington D.C. that is being hosted by the pro-free trade House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Will Jon Powers critcize Speaker Pelosi for her support of NAFTA?

And Nancy didn’t just endorse NAFTA, she pushed to get it passed, according this 1993 article from the San Francisco Chronicle (via LexisNexis): 

An influential friend of Clinton, Pelosi’s standing with the White House grew further in recent days, after she endorsed NAFTA and helped win other House members’ support.

How can Powers criticize John McCain and George W. Bush for supporting NAFTA with claims that it “shipped Western New York jobs overseas,”  and still attend Pelosi’s fundraiser for the DCCC. I’m willing to bet a lot of money that he’s not going to criticize Madame Speaker for her support and advocacy of NAFTA.

Another prominent Democrat who has supported NAFTA and free trade is Charles Rangel,  who is also joining Powers at the fundraiser next month. Powers probably won’t get into a debate with him over free trade either… we know he won’t return his money.

But, why should I be surprised that Jon Powers is a hypocrite? Hypocrisy is a prerequisite for joining the Democratic Party.

UPDATE, July 24, 2008: Monroe Rising has more…

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Dan Humiston, the Republican-endorsed candidate for Congress in the 27th congressional district, attended the John McCain fundraiser last night at the Albright-Knox Gallery. He was kind of enough to answer a few questions I had about the fundraiser, since the media and local liberal bloggers seem more interested in talking about the high price of admission. 

“Senator McCain focused his remarks primarily on the important issues facing our nation including the economy, price of gas and the war,” Humiston told me.

So, what is the media missing about McCain’s fundraiser? Not just the money he raised, according to Humiston, but the support that is clearly there. “Senator McCain raised a lot of money in a very short period of time,” he explained. “Clearly there is a lot of support for him in Western New York.  The media should ask what kind of message this sends to Democrat candidates in this part of the state and how it will affect their campaign strategies.”

Even the Buffalo News wrote off McCain’s efforts by leading their story about the event saying that McCain left Buffalo last night with, “no new hope of carrying New York in November.” So, I was curious if Humiston got any indication that the McCain campaign sees New York as a potential battleground in the presidential election. Humiston said that Western New York “has a large percentage of conservative Democrats who consistently support moderate Republicans over liberal Democrats.” He asked, “Will the Democrat candidates publicly back their the man at the top of their ticket and his views or will they attempt to distance themselves from him?”

Since Humiston is a newcomer to politics, I wanted to know what he got out of the event with McCain. “I am overwhelmed by the excessive amount of money that is necessary to wage a successful campaign,” he told me. “Incumbency comes with many perks and one is the ability to raise large sums of money from Washington’s special interests.” In November, Humiston will face incumbent Brian Higgins, who was first elected to Congress in 2004.

Humiston added, “The candidate who raises the most money usually wins and that’s too bad. If we want to elect a new breed of leaders we need to change the system so it rewards skills other than fundraising.” 

Despite the influence of money in politics, Humiston got some encouraging words from John McCain about his race. “I had a good talk to McCain about my race; he said that this year is setting up perfect for a candidate like me (an Independent, business owner who hasn’t been in politics) to knock off an incumbent.”

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McCain’s $10,000/plate fundraiser in at the Gioia residence this evening was the big topic of conversation on Sandy Beach’s program on WBEN today, and it was full of mocking of he idea of such a fundraiser. It is funny that people seemed to be acting as if they’d never heard of such a fundraiser before. They happen all the time for candidates of both parties — and yet I’ve never heard so much whining about them before.

And then there was the complaining about McCain not taking more time to either answer questions from the media or speak to local supporters who weren’t about to shell out $10,000 for dinner or $1,000 minimum to get into the reception at the Albright-Knox. The Buffalo News certainly didn’t let McCain’s tight schedule go unnoticed.

The Arizona senator arrived via his “straight talk express” airliner at the Prior Aviation terminal at Buffalo Niagara International Airport, where he was met by a host of local GOP dignitaries.

After only about five minutes of meeting and greeting, McCain avoided a cluster of Buffalo and Rochester reporters and climbed aboard an SUV that whisked him to the first of two fundraising events.

But, I just don’t get why people think McCain was going to devote more time here than he needed to. Let’s face it, New York is a blue state, and unless something incredible happens that changes the political situation in this state, then It’s not unreasonable to assume that McCain isn’t going to be holding any rallies here. Why not? Because a rally is intended to excite supporters and motivate them to get out the vote. If polls show New York is really in play, you’ll see McCain making longer visits to the Empire State, where he can perhaps devote more time to the precious media.

Coinciding with McCain visit, congressional candidate Jon Powers issued some Democratic talking points (in the form of a statement) going after McCain’s position on free trade, and sounding just as clueless about economics as Jack Davis.

Powers obviously doesn’t understand free trade or economics, but what can you expect when you’re just a single-issue candidate (his issue being Iraq) with no policy positions except for the talking points he gets from the DNC. 

UPDATE: Monroe Rising notes the hypocrisy of the criticism McCain is receiving from prominent Democrats:

I seem to recall that Cook County, Illinois Senator Barack Hussein Obama visited New York City on July 9th and 10th.  Obama didn’t go to the Big Apple to speak out about the housing shortage, or the War on Drugs, or mandatory minimums, or education reform, or health care for children.  Instead he collected checks from fellow liberal elitists at four different fundraisers over two days. Then he hopped back on his private plane and went to squigee more money out of Americans instead of talking about the issues.  What is the harm in Democrats talking about issues that concern their constituencies.  Are they allergic?  Do they break out in hives if they get close? 

Issues really aren’t the Democrats’ strongpoint.

UPDATE: The hypocrisy cited by Monroe Rising seems to be lost on Amherst Times…

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Today, Henry Wojtaszek, the Niagara County Republican Committee Chairman called on Jon Powers to return contributions from Congressman Charlie Rangel, who was recently revealed to have received sweetheart rent deals and accused of violating campaign finance laws.  Rangel has donated $9,000 to Powers, and they are to appear a fundraiser together in August.

 ”Powers isn’t leading by example; he’s following the model of a typical politician.  His ties to career politicians like Rangel, his illegal use of campaign funds, and his questionable acceptance of contributions from outside our district are indicative of the corruption and dishonesty of D.C. insiders,” said Niagara County Republican Committee Chairman, Henry Wojtaszek. “The voters of Western New York deserve a candidate who will bring real leadership and real change, not more of the same Washington politics.  It’s time for Jon Powers to come clean, and give Western New Yorkers an answer about his fundraiser and contributions.”

Wojtaszek was also critical of Power’s fundraising and spending:

In addition to Powers’ questionable ties to Rangel, Powers recent fundraising report shows that nearly half of his reported contributions came from outside New York State. Powers filing shows large contributions from San Francisco, Massachusetts, New York City, Washington, D.C., and Virginia. Additionally, Powers spent more than $15,000 on travel to places other than Western New York.

Wojtaszek said, “Powers has claimed to have a lot of ‘grassroots’ support from the district, but his contribution filings show otherwise. It’s another example of Powers’ hypocrisy by example. It’s been a week of silence since Powers was asked about his contributions from Rangel and his fundraiser with Rangel. It’s time for an answer and for Powers to give back the money and cancel his fundraiser.”

I’m not holding my breath on that one. While Jon Powers has said constantly that he would lead by example he never said that it would be a good example.

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From Rochester’s Democrat & Chronicle:

Millionaire Democratic congressional candidate Jack Davis is taking his primary challenger Jon Powers to task today for again accepting campaign donations from western New York strip-club owner Rick Snowden.

Powers accepted $7,000 from Snowden, who held a fundraiser for Powers. And now Davis is pointing out that Powers took another $550 from Snowden this quarter. Some Powers’ opponents have called on him to return the money.

“It is pathetic and sad that Mr. Powers will say anything, do anything, and take money from anyone to further his aspirations for a career in politics,” Davis’ campaign said in a statement.
“Voters want someone who will stand up to the special interests, not sell out to them.”

Jon Powers’ connection to Jack Snowden was first reported on The Buffalo Bean last month.

UPDATE: More from Monroe Rising:

It should have been obvious to Powers that taking money from a man who exploits women for money is wrong the first time.  But for Powers to accept money from this scumbag again is just disgusting.  That’s the Dem’s candidate for you right there.  

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According to a press release I just received, Erie County Republican Party Chairman Jim Domagalski is calling on congressional candidate Jon Powers to return contributions he received from Rep. Charles Rangel, following today’s New York Times story on a number of Rangel’s sweetheart real estate deals.

In light of today’s New York Times article highlighting Rep. Charlie Rangel’s sweatheart [sic] real estate deals Erie County Republican Chairman James P. Domagalski called on Congressional candidate Jon Powers to show “leadership by example” and return Congressman Rangel’s $9,000 in campaign contributions.
 
“At a time when many Western New York families are being hit by the housing crisis Jon Powers is taking campaign contributions from a senior Democrat Congressman who now appears to have taken sweatheart real estate deals,” said Domagalski.  “Jon Powers should cancel his upcoming fundraiser with Rangel and return his campaign contributions.”

According to the New York Times story:

While aggressive evictions are reducing the number of rent-stabilized apartments in New York, Representative Charles B. Rangel is enjoying four of them, including three adjacent units on the 16th floor overlooking Upper Manhattan in a building owned by one of New York’s premier real estate developers.

Mr. Rangel, the powerful Democrat who is chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, uses his fourth apartment, six floors below, as a campaign office, despite state and city regulations that require rent-stabilized apartments to be used as a primary residence.

Jon Powers has scheduled a joint fundraising event with Rep. Rangel, according to Roll Call. 

I’m not counting on Jon Powers to return the contributions. Rangel himself refused to return thousands of dollars in Abramoff-connected cash he received at the height of the Abramoff scandal. Though, when Powers himself violated election laws for using campaign cash to pay his rent, he did pay the money back… but there a difference between a legal obligation and a moral/ethical one. Democrats have a long record of ignoring both, and as Powers continues to become more and more like his Democrat colleagues in Congress, the chances of him doing the right thing are significantly reduced.

So, what will Jon “Lead By Example” Powers do?

UPDATE: Rangel: Not unfair to have 4 rent-stabilized apts

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I got back from the Chris Lee for Congress fundraiser at the Buffalo-Niagara Marriott in Amherst a little while ago. It was a big event with lots of people and campaign officials tell me it was a huge success.

Yours truly was in attendance at the fundraiser for both the VIP Meet & Greet and the reception that followed.

There were quite a few local party leaders and Republican candidates there this evening, and I was fortunate to meet quite a few of them. Jim Domagalski, chairman of the Erie County Republican Party, Henry F. Wojtaszek, chairman of the Niagara County Republican Party, and Ed Cox, the New York State chairman of Senator John McCain’s presidential campaign.

As for the candidates, I had really good conversations with Dan Humiston, who’s running for congress in the 27th District (my district) and Detective Dennis Delano, candidate for the State Senate.

Also there this evening was Congressman Tom Reynolds. There were a lot of people who wanted to speak with him, so I only talked to him briefl

y, but I expect to be conducting an interview with him for The Buffalo Bean sometime in the near future.

Of course, the man of the hour was Chris Lee. Congressman Reynolds introduced Lee to the VIP Meet & Greet, praising him for “understanding Western New York and its values.” He called Lee a “new voice in the next generation of leadership,” and after describing Lee’s background in business and his family, said that Lee “brings strong conservative values and principles to the aspect of what [being in Congress] needs and is about.”

Later, at the reception, Reynolds once again introduced Chris Lee to the larger crowd. He began by saying that he truly believes the saying that “all politics is local” and that he practiced that his entire career. He explained, “Chris Lee brings [in his life experience] … an experience of business, [and] a native aspect of being a Western new Yorker,” and of being the father of a three-year-old.

Reynolds hinted at the success of the fundraiser by revealing that it was “a record setting fundraiser for an inaugural candidacy for anyone running for the United States House of Representatives.”

Then he welcome the next congressman for the 26th district, Chris Lee.

Flattered by the large crowd and enormous enthusiasm, Chris Lee promised to work for the people of his district, he recognized that the people in this room that he’d be working for, “you’re paying my salary if I’m fortunate enough to get there.”

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Tonight I’ll be going to a fundraiser for Chris Lee for Congress. I’ll have lots to report later, so be sure to check back this evening. (UPDATE)

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