Plug Power founder to join congressional race Tuesday, March 4, 2008 By Jill Bryce (Contact) Gazette Reporter
LOUDONVILLE — A fifth Democrat is expected to announce Thursday he's entering the race for Michael McNulty 's 21st Congressional District seat. Gary Mittleman, 55, of Loudonville, is the founder and former CEO of Plug Power. He started the company in 1997 and left in 2000. Mittleman does consulting work for small start-up companies, serves on different boards in the Capital Region, including IP Logic, a high tech company, and also invests. He is expected to announce his candidacy at 3 p.m. Thursday at 255 New Scotland Ave. in Albany. Mittleman said it's becoming increasingly clear that major issues addressing the country, including the economy, health care, energy policy, foreign policy - including the war in Iraq - the environment and education need to be addressed by people with knowledge in those areas. "Career politicians are not getting it done," said Mittleman. "With my background and experience, I believe I can change things for the better." He said he would provide more details about what he would do if in Washington when he makes his formal announcement on Thursday. When asked about joining the pool of five Democratic candidates, Mittleman, said he's glad the American voters will have a real choice to move forward. Mittleman, 55, is married and has two children and a step-daughter. The other Democrats to announce their candidacies include: Phil Steck, Colonie Democratic chairman; Tracey Brooks, a former aide to U S. Sen. Hillary Clinton; Darius Shahinfar, a former aide to U.S. Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand; and Lester Freeman, an Albany Democratic activist. Former Democratic Assemblyman Paul Tonko, president and CEO of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, said last week he's also considering a run. McNulty, D-Green Island, is retiring at the end of this year after 20 years in Congress. The two-year seat covers parts of Fulton, Rensselaer and Saratoga counties, and all of Albany, Montgomery, Schenectady and Schoharie counties.
Tonko’s endorsed, sans announcement March 16, 2008 by Lauren Stanforth, Staff writer
The Schenectady City Democratic Executive Committee voted Saturday morning to endorse current NYSERDA president and former state Assemblyman Paul Tonko in the 21st Congressional district race.
One problem. Tonko hasn’t announced he’s running. And he’s even hedged in the past about whether he’s interested or not.
City Council member Gary McCarthy, who said he’s not a voting member but attends the committee’s meetings, said today that the group wanted to be the first political committee to endorse the next member of Congress.
This is one of the many rumblings that Tonko, who would be the sixth Democrat to enter the race, will compete for Mike McNulty’s seat. But there’s been no indication of movement yet on his side of the table.
Buhrmaster joins congressional race as lone Republican Wednesday, March 19, 2008
GLENVILLE — Schenectady County Legislator Jim Buhrmaster entered the race for the 21st Congressional District on Wednesday as the first Republican, but immediately positioned himself as an independent candidate.
Buhrmaster, 62, is president of Buhrmaster Energy Group, a fourth-generation, locally owned and operated company based in Glenville.
A registered Republican, Buhrmaster said if elected, he would go to Congress in Washington, D.C., to represent taxpayers, not a political party.
“I can assure you when it comes to addressing the issues that concern us all, I won’t be looking for the Democrat or Republican solution. I will be looking for the solution that makes the best sense for taxpayers and folks back home,” he said.
Buhrmaster was re-elected to a second four-year term in the county Legislature in District 3 last year. He is chairman of the Legislature’s Transportation Committee, treasurer of the Schenectady County Industrial Development Agency and a member of the Scotia-Glenville Republican Committee.
Five Democrats have entered the race so far: Tracey Brooks, a former aide to U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton; Lester Freeman, the city of Albany’s Equal Employment Opportunity officer; Gary Mittleman, former Plug Power CEO; Darius Shahinfar, 41, an Albany attorney and former Kirsten Gillibrand aide; and Phil Steck, Colonie Democratic chairman.
Michael McNulty, D-Green Island, announced last October he would retire in January after serving 20 years in Congress. The district has been held by a Democrat for 50 years and is considered a safe seat.
Okay then....it's 5 dems and 1 rep running for ONE seat. But now I don't know where we need a rep more. In the county legislature or in Congress. Cause you know that Buhrmaster's county seat will be 'appointed' to a dem.
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
You can't blame Buhrmaster for wanting to get out of the disfunctional County Council as he'll never be able to get anything done as long as the council is being run the way it is now.
21ST CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT Republican running for district seat Vasquez says priority would be to improve economy BY JILL BRYCE Gazette Reporter
A second Republican has announced that he is entering the race for the 21st Congressional District seat, which could set the stage for a Republican primary. Steven Vasquez, 33, of Ballston Lake, a self-described Tech Valley entrepreneur who started an electronics company called ReQuest, said he will work full time on his candidacy. He decided to run to “stop wasting money so we can protect seniors and veterans.” He said the key issue is the economy and he will “fight to make hard choices to stop Congress from deficit spending that robs Social Security.” Vasquez said the reason taxes are so high is because Congress is spending massive amounts of money, which is hurting the economy, increasing the defi cit and forcing the country to borrow money from Communist China and Saudi Arabia. Congress — both Democrats and Republicans — has been taking money from Social Security surplus funds for decades, he added. U.S. Rep. Michael McNulty, DGreen Island, who has held the seat for 20 years, is not running for re-election. The U.S. Government Accountability Office said that as baby boomers enter retirement age in the next 20 years, the federal government will go broke and not be able to fulfill its obligations, leaving taxpayers holding the bill for more than $500,000 per household, according to Vasquez. The U.S. country is reaching the threshold of how much the government can borrow vs. how much it can produce. “I would create a firewall and stop Congress from being able to loot the trust funds. That alone won’t save it, but it would buy time to help Congress stop wasting money overseas.” Vasquez, who is single, has not run for elected office before but has worked on political campaigns including Ron Paul’s recent run for president. A graduate of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, Vasquez said he created manufacturing and engineering jobs in Tech Valley by co-founding ReQuest, a consumer electronics business. He now serves on the ReQuest board. “I am a tech-savvy entrepreneur, and I know how to bring jobs to Tech Valley. What’s happening in New York is that we are more highly taxed than elsewhere in country. It’s creating barriers for people who would like to move in and get jobs.” He said he’s excited by the number of candidates in the race. “It will allow voters a real choice. It should be a good race. I think I will win. I have the ability to take on hard choices most other candidates won’t talk about.” Earlier this week, Jim Buhrmaster, a business owner and Schenectady County legislator, became the fi rst Republican to announce he would run for McNulty’s seat. The Democrats who have announced their candidacies are: Gary Mittleman, founding CEO of Plug Power; Phil Steck, Colonie Democratic chairman; Tracey Brooks, a former aide to U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton; Darius Shahinfar, a former aide to U.S. Rep . Kirsten Gillibrand; and Lester Freeman, an Albany Democratic activist. Former Democratic assemblyman Paul Tonko, president and CEO of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, is considering a run. McNulty has not endorsed any of the candidates. The district covers parts of Fulton, Rensselaer and Saratoga counties and all of Albany, Montgomery, Schenectady and Schoharie counties. It has a majority of Democrats with 41 percent; 28 percent of voters are Republicans and 31 percent are not enrolled in either major party.
He decided to run to “stop wasting money so we can protect seniors and veterans.” He said the key issue is the economy and he will “fight to make hard choices to stop Congress from deficit spending that robs Social Security.”
Just what we need is someone who wants to 'protect' a government handout......I say dismantle it....it's not worth the paper it's written on.....
...you are a product of your environment, your environment is a product of your priorities, your priorities are a product of you......
The replacement of morality and conscience with law produces a deadly paradox.
STOP BEING GOOD DEMOCRATS---STOP BEING GOOD REPUBLICANS--START BEING GOOD AMERICANS
By CAROL DeMARE, Staff writer . Monday, March 24, 2008
COLONIE -- Democrat No. 6 has entered the race for the the seat being vacated by Rep. Michael McNulty in the 21st Congressional District, joining two Republicans who are also running.
Arthur Welser, 55, of Latham, is making his first plunge for elected office. He is a real estate broker and was a Jefferson County dairy farmer for 25 years. "In the past we've had professional politicians running for Congress, and generally they've been ineffective," Welser said. He cited "a Social Security system today that is not anywhere near a self-sustaining system." His Web site, http://arthurwelsercitizenforcongress.com,, emphasizes his grass-roots approach. " don't think professional politicians actually represent people," he said. "They represent town and counties and the politicians from where they come from." He likened what he perceives as the "fish bowl effect," saying he sees politicians inside the bowl looking out and citizens outside looking in, "and they don't have the same perspective." He said his biggest proposal is for the federal government to guarantee that all children have a high school education. He also wants ROTC offered in public high schools and have the Reserve Officer Training Corps mandatory for students at risk meaning those with high absenteeism or those who are deemed likely to drop out. Welser grew up near Fort Drum and after graduation from Cornell University with a degree in agriculture economics, he returned to home to Evans Mills to help run the family farm. He was appointed to the town of LeRay Board of Appeals. Before moving to the Capital Region six years ago, Welser lived in central New York for two years and was a car salesman. He currently is a broker at Real Property Enterprises in East Greenbush and has a home office in Latham.
21ST CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT Sixth Democrat joins race for Congress BY MICHAEL LAMENDOLA Gazette Reporter Reach Gazette reporter Michael Lamendola at 395-3114 or lamend@dailygazette.com
A sixth Democrat, Arthur Welser, has entered the race for the 21st Congressional District seat, from which Rep. Michael Mc-Nulty, D-Green Island, will retire at the end of this term, after 20 years. Welser, 55, of Latham, is a licensed broker with Real Property Enterprises in North Greenbush. He is a graduate of Cornell University with a bachelor of science degree in economics, finance and statistics. His campaign information indicates he worked on his family farm for several years in Evan Mills and served on local community boards and the Le-Ray Zoning Board of Appeals. He also worked as a car salesman in central New York. He moved to Latham six years ago and describes himself as pro-family and pro-homeownership. Welser says he wants to fix Social Security, establish a Reserve Military Training Corps in high schools for problem children, stop promoting gambling and deal with global warming. “I’ve never served in a paid position in government, never been elected to political office and I’m of the opinion Congress is well, Congress! It shouldn’t be made up of former government employees and/or politicians. Maybe not people of wealth either, although a few of our Founding Fathers including Jefferson were very rich,” he said. He is running for Congress to create change, to end the war and to finish undecided issues left by McNulty, he said. The other Democrats in the race are: Tracey Brooks, a former aide to U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton; Lester Freeman, the city of Albany’s Equal Employment Opportunity offi cer; Gary Mittleman, former Plug Power CEO; Darius Shahinfar, an Albany attorney and former aide to Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand; and Phil Steck, Colonie Democratic chairman. Two Republicans have declared candidacies: James Buhrmaster, 62, is president of Buhrmaster Energy Group, a fourth-generation, locally owned and operated company based in Glenville, and a Schenectady County legislator; and Steven Vasquez, 33, of Ballston Lake, a self-described Tech Valley entrepreneur who started an electronics company called ReQuest.
We certainly have choice in this election. Anyone have any opinions, based on the issues, of any of these candidates? PLEASE, leave the partisan politics out of the discussion. I would like to hear of the candidates' positions on the issues.
I found a web site for Steven Vasquez where he addresses his position on some of the important issues that face this nation. He fails to express his positions on many issues including abortion, gun ownership, and trade. I Google'd his name. There were several hits returned that link Mr. Vasquez to Ron Paul's presidential campaign.
I notice all the issues that are addressed are those at the surface of voters 'complaints/concerns'.....what I dont hear from the candidates are root causes and fixes.....there is always more than meets the eye.....it's like building babylon.....the bottom of the tower always looks good but, as we get to the top of the heap it doesn't match and it leans and sways.......that is just my view from here,,,,that is what I see, hear and smell and feel......I want to know what the candidates see, hear and smell and feel, I dont want them to talk about the 'other guy/gal/party'.........
not many of them get to the root and not many voters dig to see and hear......most of us just like to look and listen and if it makes us feel good then it must be okay.....Pavlov's dog anyone???
...you are a product of your environment, your environment is a product of your priorities, your priorities are a product of you......
The replacement of morality and conscience with law produces a deadly paradox.
STOP BEING GOOD DEMOCRATS---STOP BEING GOOD REPUBLICANS--START BEING GOOD AMERICANS
By MIKE GOODWIN, Staff writer Monday, March 31, 2008
Attorney John Aretakis is running for Congress.
In a news release sent to area media outlets, Aretakis announced that he planned to formally enter the race next week. He'll join a field of six Democrats who are already vying to succeed retiring U.S. Rep. Michael McNulty.
OMG, I can't keep track of all of these candidates. And where are the republican candidates? Or aren't there any left? Or is there no point?
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
21ST CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT Attorney John Aretakis joining race for Congress BY MICHAEL LAMENDOLA Gazette Reporter
A high-profile lawyer known for pursuit of clergy abuse cases plans to join the field of Democrats seeking the 21st Congressional District seat of Rep. Michael McNulty, DGreen Island. John Aretakis, 47, of North Greenbush, will announce next week he will seek the seat, he said Monday in a news release. Mark Lyman, a spokesman for Aretakis, said Aretakis wants to address the sexual abuse of children through legislation in Congress, as well as economic issues affecting New Yorkers. Lyman is codirector of the Albany chapter of SNAP, the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests. Lyman hired Aretakis in 2004 to represent him when he filed a lawsuit alleging that he was abused by a priest as a child. “He wants to appeal to the average middle class family. Look at what is going in Washington, look at what is going in New York,” Lyman said. “People are tired and feel they don’t have good representation in Washington. John will bring a fresh new agenda and will work very hard representing people.” Lyman said he and others have urged Aretakis to run for Congress: “John is a fighter and that is what people need right now.” Aretakis’ news release calls him a “battletested fighter and tireless advocate for the marginalized as well as the average person.” Aretakis has filed 15 sexual abuse lawsuits since 2003 against the Albany Roman Catholic Diocese in an effort to seek damages for people who claim they were abused by priests. All were either dismissed or withdrawn, diocese officials said. Aretakis said he’s settled 25 to 30 sexual abuse cases with the Catholic Church, which includes the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany, and he estimates he has collected $2.5 million in churchrelated settlements. In 1996, Aretakis won almost $1 million in a clergy abuse case he filed against the Albany diocese, even though the statute of limitations had passed. In September 2007, Aretakis was sanctioned by a federal court judge and ordered to pay more than $24,000 for filing a “baseless lawsuit” against a Catholic diocese and the U.S. government. The lawsuit alleged that the church broke its agreement to provide charitable housing to a woman who was forced out of her New Orleans apartment because of Hurricane Katrina. Aretakis and his wife have a 9-year-old son. He obtained a law degree from Albany Law School and a master’s degree in international law from Georgetown University Law School. He worked as a staff attorney for two years in Washington, D.C. Aretakis would enter a race that includes six Democrats and two Republicans. The growing field will result in primaries for both parties this summer. The other Democrats in the race are: Tracey Brooks, a former aide to U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton; Lester Freeman, the city of Albany’s equal employment opportunity officer; Gary Mittleman, former Plug Power CEO; Darius Shahinfar, an Albany attorney and former aide to Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand; Phil Steck, Colonie Democratic chairman; and Arthur Welser, a licensed broker with Real Property Enterprises in North Greenbush. Two Republicans have declared their candidacies: James Buhrmaster, 62, is president of Buhrmaster Energy Group, a fourth-generation, locally owned and operated company based in Glenville, and a Schenectady County legislator; and Steven Vasquez, 33, of Ballston Lake, a self-described Tech Valley entrepreneur who started an electronics company called ReQuest. McNulty will retire at the end of this term after 20 years in Congress.
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