Coup d’etat
Democratic voters, you asked for it. In one modestly attended election, the Democrats for Change went from a splinter group to wielding an overwhelming majority in the city Democratic Committee. With results still coming in from a handful of the Spa City’s 25 election districts, DFC candidates had taken no less than 40 of their party’s 50 committee seats. And that’s not even including one district where there was a three-way tie between the pair of purported DFC candidates and one of their so-called opponents.Shawn Thompson, the incumbent committeeman from the state’s 110th district, also secured a definitive victory over challenger Patrick Southworth. The political hack-extraordinaire bested his challenger by a solid 172 votes, according to preliminary results from the county Board of Elections.
Update: Patricia Southworth, the Ballston supervisor and husband of Patrick, reportedly quit the Democratic Party Wednesday, claiming she no longer feels the county committee has room for differences of opinion under the fence-sitting Larry Bullman. And the fallout from 2007 continues...
Most striking was the sweeping defeat suffered by the brothers’ McTygue. All three were swept from the committee at the hands of their opponents. Bill McTygue, the city’s Public Works director, suffered the most humiliating loss among the three brothers after amassing a paltry seven votes, the second lowest of any candidate running for a seat.
The most popular vote-getter was Zoning Board Chairwoman Nancy Goldberg –a card-carrying supporter of deposed mayor Valerie Keehn –who netted 80 tallies in her district. She was trailed by fellow DFC candidate Mary Zoltnick, the coordinator of Community Outreach at the Saratoga Prevention Council, who scored 74 tallies in Goldberg’s 23rd election district. Together, they gave soon-to-be former committee Chairman Lou Schneider a solid thrashing.
From the pseudo-sublime to the bizarre, Saratogian Editor Barbara Lombardo now has a mole on the Democratic committee, after her eldest son David squeaked out a five-vote victory over his closest opponent. Of course, it’s hard to view such a victory as a mandate when roughly a quarter of your 19 votes likely came from your own family. He is now among two college students elected to the committee who will be living more than 150 miles away from Saratoga Springs for most of the coming year. The other –Ariana Vacs Renwick –won’t even be living in New York this fall.
But it wasn’t all smiles among the splinter-turned-committee. Voters soundly sent City Court judge candidate Joe Montagnino packing. The committee-endorsed Jeff Wait bested the DFC candidate by 68 votes, tarnishing the group’s otherwise sweeping victory. Unfortunately for Wait, he was punted from his Independence Party endorsement by his Republican challenger, Matt Dorsey, meaning he’s lost at least one of two third party lines he was seeking. And to make matters even worse, Montagnino still stands a chance of getting his name on the ballot, thanks to a stalemate for the Working Families Party line; a nail-biting one-to-one tie.All said and told, a little more than 2,700 Democrats pulled a lever for someone running for the committee among the reported 6,300 registered members of the party. This means about 43 percent of the city’s mules felt the committee battle important enough to show up at the poll. These figures are nothing short of remarkable considering the number of voters normally turning out of for a local primary not involving any of the five city council seats.
But then again, there was quite a stir over the Tracy Brooks-Paul Tonko battle for a spot on the ballot for U.S. Rep. Michael McNulty’s seat. And local races certainly benefitted from the stir over the challenge for former state Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno’s old digs in Albany. This isn’t even considering the nine months of politicking in the city over retiring Judge Douglas Mills’ seat on the bench.
Time will only tell if the Democrats for Change will do what they relentlessly have pledged to do from when the splinter started forming back in 2005 right up until Tuesday’s primary. They now have a fresh slate to start on, meaning party census building is again a possibility. It’s now their choice whether to release the doves or hawks in wake of their victory. However, if history is any indicator, the DFC opponents will soon be ducking a talon-clawing assault from above.
What does all this mean? For one, the city Democrats will soon have a leader hand-picked by Thompson, the fellow who orchestrated the whole coup and a political operative who seemingly lacks real desire for a party peace accord. The win also means the city is likely to see the name Keehn resurface on the election ballot sometime in 2009. The former mayor was extremely vocal in the run up to the primary, perhaps even more vocal than any former council member in recent memory. She’s also made many appearances at the council meetings, meaning she’s angling for something.
But who really cares about all this anyway? Well that’s a good question: The die-hard needle-in-the-vein political junkies of Saratoga Springs. And there was a good contingent of them rolling through the city last night, pale-faced and pushing beads of cold sweat from their brows before the polls closed. Aside from them, the largest audience for last night’s episode of As the Democrats Turn was a gaggle of political operative skulking around Washington Street at a certain campaign headquarters; waiting in the high grass, their ears perked and their playbooks opened to 2009.
posted by Horatio Alger at 9:00 PM
74 Comments:
Lombardo doesn't even live in his district, so no one in his family voted for him...
It appears that the McTygues were over matched by Chairman Bulman and Shawn Thompson. "Red" Southworth is toast! Loser!
I'm a loyal republican, but just hearing the name McTygue being flushed royally from Saratoga politics makes me happy. These guys have held this city hostage with their bully tactics and people will not miss any of them!
Well now your column will have something to write about. Your 5 or 6 people that do the commenting will keep you busy. Check Bill McTygue and 7 votes! Ha! Ha! Those votes came from all the nuts that comment here. Real people don't care about this shit you print!
Democrats for change have won the battle and lost the war.
First more than one half to one third of the democratic base won’t vote for a Democrats for change candidate if they were giving out hundred dollar bills. They might as well have leprosy for all we care, we wouldn’t touch them.
Second democrats for anyone but Kim has already been started.
Democrats for Johnson will be able to come out of the closet now that its leaders are off the committee.
The republicans will run the city for awhile or at least till the old inept leaders of Democrats for change move to a nice rest home for the bewildered.
Enjoy your moment peasants, just like Val sealed her fate when she won the primary and guaranteed she’d lose the general election by all means nominate your biggest wackos for office lets see you lose with some real style.
The only person happier then you morons today is Tom Roohan while he downs his steak and eggs and looks forward to controlling the city till his grand kids are married.
Honest to God, this will be better than a cheesy soap opera - only it matters.
some people just can't read the writing on the wall. bye-bye tommy.
Hey Ron I know you’re a lawyer and all but do you know what Pyrrhic victory is?
A Pyrrhic victory (IPA: /ˈpɪrɪk/) is a victory with devastating cost to the victor.
You’re get your new station when hell freezes over see you tonight.
The Republicans are party'ing now!
There could not have been better news awaiting us this morning.
DFC has just sealed the GOP's control of Saratoga for the next 20years.
Thanks!!!!!!!!!!
Fuck McTygue and his small,tiny pathetic band of losers. You got what you deserved. Wait is toast also! Dorsey will clean his clock in the general election!
9:22,
Those bastards. If you can depend on your family to move into your district for you, than who can you trust these days?
4:15,
If "real" people don't care about "this shit," than they must either live outside of Saratoga Springs or be thoroughly divorced from local politics. In the case of the later, I'd argue they're not real at all. Rather, they're sheep who have no vested interest in the people shaping that are making life-altering decisions for them. Sad, I say.
9:34,
I agree with you regarding Dorsey. Now, pay close attention: This is a sneak-peak of how politics is about to play out in Saratoga Springs. DFC -now the Democratic Committee -supports a fringe candidate for office. The general party disagrees and offers a challenger. DFC wages hellfire on the challenger, bringing him or her to their knees in September. Meanwhile, the Republican candidate smiles on the sidelines. November comes and the bad blood from the primaries sinks the DFC candidate easier than a toy boat in a tsunami.
As I've alluded before, the fundamental political problem with the DFC folks is that they can't differentiate between primaries and the general election. Their only success was when there was a tentative consensus between them and the rest of the party in 2005. Just weeks after their victory, they threw this consensus to the wind in hopes of ramming their own agenda through the city council. And we all saw how well that worked out.
While I'm not going to say this is the end of the Democrats -the Change-o-crats CAN move in the right direction and repair the party -the primary certainly bodes ill for the party over the next two years until a new, more reasonable group tries to take over the committee.
dem roc said: thanks for the welcome back, but truth is, i've been here all along. A little bit more grounded in reality then the mctygue's apologists these days. bottom line, the guy is a tainted name brand, capable of costing mother theresa the election Vs. hitler. the guy just can't read the writing on the wall and his apologist will spin it anyway he can, to do what they always do, blame someone else. "boo hoo it was all vals fault, she was so mean to tommy". so now we'll be cast into the internet to write deplorable things about her, because it looks as though his political career has taken a turn at the little bighorn.
i'm glad someone finally pointed him toward the great egress, the only question left is will he be like the drunk, annoying guy at the party after he's been kicked out and try to sneak back in because he can't realize that he's just not wanted
"It’s time for the Stewart’s election wrap up: With a re-hash of his predictions, here’s agphoto:"
“Thanks, Buffy. We had a mixed bag, with a few highlights along the way. To recap (original post below):
“1) Wait over Montagnino. This was a home team win by 68; considering the coat-tails that JW surfed against, a solid if not gaudy win. If Montagnino couldn’t ride in on the DFC endorsement, even THEY don’t want him any mo’. A swift end to the alleged “marital issues” barter will bring about instant hobo status to the wannabee ‘Joe’ – somebody give this guy a ride and a bus ticket- bye! RECORD: 1-0.
“2) Southworth over Thompson . Ouch. The epitome of the McT wipeout, of course.
"Let the speculation, vulturism, and whining/ drink muttering convention begin. Bonfire of the Vanities, 12866 style.
"Anyway, for my part – I’ll take the hit – I blew this one. Put up the “L”; lick your wounds, and come back strong next time. RECORD: 1-1.
“3) BEST BET: Russo wins big, 1 extra unit on a +5% margin.
"What an easy game. Why do I even bother with sports and racing bets?
"With the feeling that we will be going home with some house $$, we forge ahead to the final battle – RECORD: 3-1
“4) LONGSHOT: Mausert wins county fam court judge.
"Oh well, we tried to press our bet, but not to be. At least we got a family man for family judge, though.
“So that’s it, folks. A solid 3-2 week. Thanks for watching, we’ll look forward to being your war correspondent for the November surge. Buffy will be right back, after this word from susan dake and some bovine creature.”
From the ‘Dumb & Dummer’ – posted 09.06:
how bout some predictions?:
since i did so well on my football card this weekend, let's parlay these plays for 1 unit each:
- Wait over Montagnino.
- Southworth over Thompson
- BEST BET: Russo wins big, i extra unit on a +5% margin
- LONGSHOT: Mausert wins county fam court judge
i base this on the same handicapping skills which save left me teetering on either side of the poverty line since high school ie: zero, but it's fun to play and put your self out on the edge...
The only thing I can share regarding DFC . . .
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujPGPvmMhhs
You just can't stop!
Mr. Shawn Thompson: A Profile
ShawnThompson has perpetuated the myth that he plays an important role in the leadership of the Democratic Party at the state level. The myth of his importance has been furthered by the Larry Bulman, who chairs the Saratoga County Democratic Party. Regretably, a sober look at Mr. Thompson's history suggests a very different story.
Historically, the New York Assembly Democrats ran an operation called DAC. I cannot remember what the initials stood for but it was the campaign arm of the assembly. Its resources were marshalled to support key assembly races accross the state. It was always staffed by young and ambitious people seeking a vehicle to advance their careers. The work was hard but the potential rewards were great. The staff were dispatched by the leadership to the hinterlands where ever a key Assembly race needed help. They spent their days organizing phone banks and literature drops. They spent their nights cajoling potential volunteers to assist them.
Mr. Thompson began his career there. Eventually he made his way to the Carl McCall's campaign staff. Thompson encouraged people to believe that he was McCall's campaign manager. Allen Cappelli was McCall's campaign manager. Thompson headed the logistics side of the campaign. This was simply an extension of the grunt work that he had done at DAC. Again, it was not a policy or real leadership position but a continuation of the trench work that he had performed at the assembly. After McCall's defeat he found himself shifted to basically the same job but now he was working for David Paterson, at the time, the minority leader in the New York Senate.
When Eliot Spitzer won the governorship, one would have expected that Mr. Thompson's ship would have arrived. All those loyal years of soldiering should have produced either a position in the governor's office or at least an executive position at one of the large state agencies. This is the usual career path for someone like Mr. Thompson but in fact he remained in the logistics job in the senate.
When David Paterson became governor one would have expected Mr. Thompson's star to have soared. What has been most telling has been the fact that he has ended up as the "Deputy Secretary of the Senate." This is one of those titles out of Gilbert and Sullivan. The way that politics works in New York state is that three people make the decisions. The Governor, the Assembly Speaker, and the Senate Majority Leader. If you a member of the minority party in either the Assembly or the Senate you basically have nothing to do. A member of the minority cannot even get a bill introduced unless the majority (in the NYS Senate the Republicans) decide they want it considered. In other words. Mr. Thompson is still a grunt. He gets paid better than he did at DAC but not as well as the top positions in the governor's office or the state agencies and he basically still has nothing to do but work on campaigns. The fact that David Paterson did not find a position for Mr. Thompson is a telling and very unflattering statement about who he is.
Basically, at forty-one years of age, Mr. Thompson is a kind of aging bat boy.
The question then is why, after all the years of being a hired gun who has worked for what ever candidate he was assigned to no matter their merits, has Mr. Thompson's career basically gone no where?
To answer this question it is helpful to consider a general type who is active in politics (the party is irrelevant).
Among the people who populate the professional world of politics are those who savor the excercise of power. They thrill at intrigue and gossip. These people often have boundless energy going to any public event in which they can rub shoulders with those they perceive as important. For them, the act that is most thrilling and reaffirming is the defeat of their "enemies." Issues are secondary and are simply tools to use in a campaign. They have many allies, many enemies, and few if any friends. When they are not at a meeting or a public event they are on their phone. They can never get enough information because they must constantly monitor their opponents to both protect themselves and to gain advantage.
In the case of Mr.Thompson, he brought this persona to Saratoga Springs politics. Consider the rise and fall of his protege, Valerie Keehn.
Keehn was obsessed by her need to defeat Tommy McTygue and anyone that she saw as his ally. Her two year feud with Tom McTygue probed the limits of pettyness and vitrol. Even to the most casual observer it became apparent that her war with McTygue would not only jeopardize his re-election but that it would inevitably result in her own defeat. What ever one thinks of Tom McTygue, battling him at meeting after meeting over every issue, no matter how small had to become self-indulgent and self-destructive. A shrewd and tested political professional would have recognized the folly of this. Aside from the fact that the Republicans would pick up both seats, if one really cared about Valerie Keehn's political career one would have tried to get her to show some restraint.
In fact, the history of ShawnThompson's role with his protege Keehn, was one in which he encouraged her. For those who observed Mr. Thompson he was as obsessed about defeating the McTygue's as Keehn although he played a less public role. For those who would suggest that his motivation was high minded and that he saw the sacrifice of Keehn as some how serving the public good, they should consider his role at DAC. While the New York State Assembly has some very decent people, it also has a large contingent whose egos and ambitions trump all other concerns. Mr. Thompson served them all; the good the bad and the ugly.
When a person involves themselves in unprincipled intrigues they often find themselves in embarassing situations. It was not unusual for Mr. Thompson to lie in order to extricate himself even when it was apparent that he would be found out. In addition, Mr. Thompson was catty and cavalier talking about people. Again, such careless talk never remains private.
Mr. Thompson's ace in the hole was the persona that he was a powerful player in Albany. People often tolerate the kind of things Mr. Thompson did because they hold to the illusion that they may be able to call on him for help someday.
All of this is offered to explain why Mr. Thompson languishes in the New York Senate. When you behave this way over the years you create two liabilities. First you create enemies of the people you have insulted or slighted and you make enemies of the friends of those people that you have hurt. In politics, it is best to keep your enemies list as short as possible because you never can be sure who will one day reach a position of power. Most important is that fundamentally, people like Mr. Thompson lack the discpline to control their lesser selves and are therefore too risky to rely on. In the case of Mr. Thompson, it is ok to have him organize phone banks and do other grunt work but he is simply to unstable to rely on in a position of real responsibility. His extraordinary energy and past work is such that people feel that they cannot fire him but he can do liitle harm and some good handling the mundane but important basic grunt work that a political campaign requires.
Which gets me to my last point about why it is clear that Mr. Thompson holds no real power. In the years he has worked in this county he has never assisted the county chair in securing a single patronage job in Albany. When Valerie Keehn was Mayor he was never able to secure a single grant for the city. During the years he was vice chair of the Saratoga County Democratic Committee never brought in any significant money from the New York State Democratic Committee for local races.
Saratoga County is a backwater with very little to offer the Democratic powers in Albany and New York City. We are a county dominated by Republicans. We cannot produce a Democratic Senator and we cannot produce a Democratic Assemblyman. The illusion that Shawn Thompson has any power in Albany or that Albany has any real interest in Saratoga is absurd.
Regretably, politics is full of people whose fantasies about themselves makes them easy marks for people like Thompson. The grotesque drama of the City Democratic Committee over the last two years is his legacy.
Trout21- We need more people that do the grunt work. We need people down in the trenches scraping every day. This is why you're group got their asses handed to them! Get over it!
The dem party is going to be fine! The sorry part is Sharon Boyd somehow managed to stay on the committee. Another was Joy King who never shows up for any of our committee meetings. One of McTygue's old girlfriend's managed to stay on too(Marcie Taylor). It's good to see some that didn't make it. Blowhards -Kyle York and Cliff Ammon. Fossils-Scheider and Phil Diamond. The Brother Grimm-Tommy Billy and Petey! Lou Benton was no big loss either. Out with the old in with the new.
8:38PM,
I'm speechless. I am so impressed with this honest, educated, well written, and informative analysis. It is clear and to the point.
This is what many Saratoga County Democrats have been trying to educate Larry Bulman on for years, to no avail. Sadly, because no one has been able to prove this theory, it has gone nowhere. However, it is the truth and the only people that can confirm this are at the state level, the same people that do not mix with Saratoga County politics.
As you mentioned -- three points: Mr. Thompson is unstable, he has a lot of energy, and in politics you try to keep your enemy list short.
Mr. Thompson has been known to cause a lot of damage and his enemy list grows everyday.
In the end Mr. Thompson will realize many of his fears. Grunts are not immune. Especially grunts that continue to make enemies and make snide remarks about Governor Paterson.
Announcing:
Spa City Dems meeting--next Thursday at the Parting Glass.
This is a newly-formed group committed to fighting the Evil Do'ers of the DFC.
But we won't be as polite as your former opponents.
Mamie wrote “for any of our committee meetings”
Mamie I’m a little perplexed how did you morph from a republican trolup with a drinking problem and a job at City Hall to a male member of the Democratic committee? Perhaps you had a sex change? If that would be the case let me make a modest proposal for you to run as mayor of Saratoga Springs as a true progressive.
After all what could be better then a former alcoholic republican transgendered democrat to lead our city?
Last time I knew there are women on the committee. Did I really say I was a Republican? Can't tell all, it would ruin the fun! Follow the yellow brick road!
Oooh! Spa City Dems won't be polite! After the McTygue's give John Tighe his ass spanking because his wife screwed up by voting in the wrong place your core group will be mush! She voted at the wrong poll which led to catching McTygue voting illegally! Crooked To the Bitter End! Bye Bye! Tommy "The Tulip"
Anon 1:05:
Will a table for two be sufficient for your Spa City Dems meeting? Or how about just a barstool in the corner?
'Last time I knew there are women on the committee'
Sorry Lou Benton lost he was the biggest skirt on the committee now its up to Peter Tulin to fill those shoes
Don't ever turn your back on Larry Bulman. I know from first-hand experience. Trust me on this one.
-Former Democratic Town Chairman
Saratoga Democrats unanimously re elected Larry Bulman County chairman thursday night. I could not believe how well he ran the meeting. Pat Southworth never said a word. Larry's entire slate ran unopposed. The best part of the night was near the end when he went after Polly Windels from Ballston for attacking Democrats. the two things I learned tonight, Pat Southworth is a Coward and Bulman is smooth, sharp, polite & polished.
To "Just an Observer" et al--
You authored an interesting post in "Revisionist History." It was off-topic there and it's off-topic here...but I hope Horatio will cut us both some slack here on THE HOT POST of 2008.
I respect every challenge to my mantra of the “Deadly DEC/NiMo PCB site” and those skeptical of a story too bizarre to be credible.
That is PRECISELY what the DEC wants. And they've achieved it through some of the most reprehensible tax-supported behavior. From lies to cover-ups to "sanitized" office files, they're within two years of stunning success… albeit at your peril.
If HA will allow, I'll run through the BRIEFEST bullet-points of how Saratoga's most deadly PCB clean-up got STARTED with great Public Fanfare, got DELAYED by spirited public opposition, was RESUMED under a cloak of secrecy, was HIDDEN by your public employees, and was made invisible by a BRILLIANT campaign to make every citizen link "PCBs" with the "GE/EPA Ft. Edwards" site. Allow me to take my cyber-soapbox--
* The DEC/NiMo PCB clean-up began in the BRIGHT public light of 1988.
* After DEC tests documented extremely hazardous PCB concentrations at riverside campsites, the area was designated by DEC as "Toxic Registry Site #557012." Immediate action was called for.
* In 1992, NiMo signed a Court Order to clean the campsite soil AND the river sediment polluted by PCB run-off. The Order was signed VOLUTARILY as the RIGHT thing to do by a RESPONSIBLE NiMo.
* In 1994, NiMo-financed mapping showed extensive PCB pollution on the shore AND in the top 2 inches of the river sediment. They proceeded with responsible plans to clean the shore and the river.
* Dredging plans were stopped COLD after a Public Hearing in 1995. Few voices were as persuasive as current Queensbury leader Fred Champagne. Ask him.
* The shore clean-up was completed in a long extremely-visible effort in the summer of 1996, disrupting traffic on Corinth Road.
* Dredging studies resumed in subdued SILENCE in 2001.
* In July 2001, the NY AG spoke to Congress, on the record, about the unacceptable PCB risks "at Queensbury and Ft. Edward."
* County Water planners started exerting political pressure to "downplay" the NiMo/DEC PCBs adjacent to the possible site of the planned intake for the County Water Plan.
* DEC files began to disappear in an unrelenting "sanitizing" of paper records at DEC offices at Ray Brook.
* The DEC website was "improved" in a process that COMPLICATED user access to the history of the site... a history which was edited and rewritten to obfuscate the alarming health risks.
* When DEC/NiMo was awkwardly forced to make their plans known to other government projects (County Water FEIS, Moreau Park expansion FEIS), the dredging was acknowledged to be alive and well and "in the near future."
* When seasoned investigative reporters made FOIL requests for the details of the DEC/NiMo plan to dredge...they were denied. When they asked the reasons, they were told the information is SECRET. Ask Mark Mahoney of the Post-Star.
* Today, the plans completed in 2004 are ready to go, approved by DEC and DOH, waiting only for the completion of the GE de-watering plant at Ft. Edward.
* Today, the DEC Project Manager of Site 557012 is David Tromp. Call him and ask what is happening at the 10-acre PCB site at Queensbury.
* Until very recently, the DEC Project Manager of Site 557012 was Bill Daigle. Call him and ask what is happening at the 10-acre PCB site at Queensbury.
* For years, the DEC's administrative assistant for the Project Managers of Site 557012 has been Kevin Farrar. Call him and ask what is happening at the 10-acre PCB site at Queensbury.
Horatio, I thank you. Readers, I respect you. If ANY of you want documentation of ANY claim made here, ask and I'll post links if Horatio allows. If NOT, call me at 376-2107 and I'll provide links, pdfs of original documents available and those "gone missing."
When I converse with people like y’all, I'm always told this would make a great movie. Too late. They've already made CHINATOWN, SILKWOOD, and THE CHINA SYNDROME.
The only difference here is that THIS is REAL and happening NOW. When the DEC is ready to dredge, the Public Hearing will be no more than a minor inconvenience. It will be nothing like the 1995 meeting in Queensbury where 36 speakers stopped the bastards trying to deliver birth defects direct to your tap.
Today, all eyes are on GE...8 miles DOWNSTREAM of the most toxic measured PCB sludge samples along the entire length of the Hudson.
DEC site 557012. Twenty years in the making from your friends at DEC. Now THAT'S a "Coup d'etat."
-Kyle York
376-2107
kyle@york44.com
While Mamie is saying follow the yellow brick road, John Tighe is saying, "if I only had a brain." Smart move by your wife voting in wrong spot. That must of been one of Tommy's hand picked pollsters that let her slip by!
This Coup d’etat tis much ado about nothing.
Who cares?
Where has this coup led?
Have the winners gotten any real power? I think not.
The facts are that Keehn and her followers gave Saratogains two years of inept and vindictive leadership.
Voters, regardless of party affiliation, are not going to give these people another bite of the apple.
Hey Asswipe Joyce Tighe has never voted in any primary she doesn’t now or ever has belonged to any political party. She is like the majority of Saratogians who lets you have your little circle jerk parties after the primary and then crushes you in the general election. You people are just so fucking dumb.
To the citizens fo Saratoga Springs:
As you kow from Tuesday's election relults, you are now under MY command. My two-dozen plebes (aka Democrats for Change) carried out my mission well, which was to drag five neighbors each to the primary polls. This proved to be enought to sway the pri ary, given that 90+% of registered voters did not participate.
As of today, the folowing rules are in place:
- While avoiding eye contact, you must bow your head whenever Val Keehn, Ron Kim of myself walks past you on the steet.
- 5 Wells Street shall now be referred to as Nxivm Central.
- Public masterbation is now legal within the city limits.
- The city council webcasts will now be directed by Roger Wyatt (Nxivm name=Jitterz)
- The new Chief of the City Jail is David 'The Spitting Corporal' Bronner (aka Patton)
- The Saratoga Hotel has been seized and is now the rooming house for visiting Nxivm members. Gerard (aka AssGap) is in charge of housing arrangements, city wide.
- The Holiday Inn and the Inn at Saratoga have been seized and will now be the new Public Safety building. A bridge -- to be named the after the curent Public Safety deputy (aka WideBerth)-- will connect the two.
- Shawn Thompson (aka Fluff) is now my Propaganda Minister. Of course, he had had that post for several years already.
- Our members who failed to win their bids for committee seats on Tuesday will be buried behind the Weibel Avenue skating rink. Skip Scirocco (aka Einstein) is in charge of the effort.
- Hot Nxivm babes will be flown into town this weekend, replacing the old prunes (Hillary, Brucie, Nancy, etc) on the committee. Those that are being replaced will be re-assigned to duties on the DPW leaf-clearing crew.
- All residents of the city are required to enroll in life coaching workshops. Make checks payable to Valerie Keehn (aka Queen Raisin).
- All liquor within the city will be confiscated and thrown into the Hudson River (along with Kyle York). It will be replaced by Kool Aid served in large barrels and available for consumption on my word.
- The official song of this city is now "Onward Nxivm Soldiers".
- Anyone refusing to sing the song at official gatherings will be forced to listen to Val Keehn speak for four hours.
- A billboard will be erected on Broadway, reminding everyone that Ron Kim (aka He of the Bruised Face) is a lawyer.
- All women under the age of 30 and under 125 pounds in weight are to report to Nxivm Central on Tuesday night, where they will audition for the role of delivering my successor (aka The Sun Prince) to this world.
- All streets will be re-named in honor of quota-achieving Nxivm members. Billy McTygue will be forced to change the signs.
- 'Nxivm Heaven' (a sex orgy with my hot babes) will be rewarded to whoever brings a hog-tied Joe O'
Hara into my basement.
- 'Nxivm Hell' (a sex orgy with DFC members) will be brought upon anyone who does not carry out my commands.
If there are any questions, please cntact my Public Information Officer Hillary McLellan (aka Cloudy).
That is all for now.
Vanguard,
Thanks- it's important to know the lay of the land and the new rules.
You did forget these 2, however (see: Woody Allen's "Banana's" for a completer transcript; this was just after the Coup d’etat and the new el presidente' addresses his followers for the first time:
"1- the official language of out caribbean paradise will now be swedish.
"2- all citizens will be required to change their underwear 3x/day. all citizens will wear their underwear over their clothes, so we can check..."
NOTE: your hot babes are exempt from #2 as they rarely have their panties on anyway.
Now that is all.
DEC site 557012
There aren't enough brains in the County combined to make those calls.
Cheers to PCB's, mercury that causes autism, (http://www.sciencedaily.com
/releases/2008/04/080424120953.htm)
and the uneducated! Drink to your good health!
Actually, Kyle, forget the movie --do a reality show because it's the only thing people do understand today. The sleazier you make it the more people will watch. Good luck.
Only a Keehnac could conjure up a lie that a person who is not a member of any political party would then somehow vote in the wrong district when she couldn’t vote in any district and whose name isn’t even in the book.
It is hard to believe these idiots once ruled Saratoga and now they have their own party the Halloween party.
All aboard the ship of fools sailing from Wells St to Saratoga Hospital Mental Health with further pickups at the homeless shelter and Four Winds it’s time to sign up new member of the DFC.
If Larry Bulman had any class at all he'd stand up and kick the deadbeat parent off his committee, but he gives him power instead ... that he supports this kind of unethical and illegal behavior says too much about him.
Watch out kids, fat Larry's out to steal your lunch.
I am surprised by the post from the 'ballston DFC'. patrick southworth is not a coward. he, and i, spent months travelling around the 110th. we talked to people he might represent. we busted more ass than either side of the saratoga split did with all members combined. he has done everything within his power to stand by his beliefs. i don't know how this could be construed as cowardice. what we did learn from the county meeting is that poppa bulman has some claim to the ultimate truth: he claims not to help those who cause infighting, yet he gave aid to thompson, who is a harsh partisan in the party. mr bulman must know beyond a doubt that thompson is correct in all ways. otherwise he might just be a hypocrite.
on a similar note, nobody liked my idea of allowing conflicting viewpoints while establishing ways of rewarding activism FOR the party. the glassy eyes, hate, fear, and confusion that faced me was almost frightening. the stark bafflement on shawn's face tells me he slept through the class on 'dialectic reasoning' in his political philosophy course. or maybe he, like many of the people at that meeting, assumed they MUST be correct, and that their views are beyond trial. it goes a long way towards explaining why so many of them refuse to cooperate, communicate, or make concessions.
if i wanted to join a party where i was expected to obey the party line without question, i would have become a republican.
-john ogle
Kyle:
Correct me if I'm mistaken, but isn't Mr. Keehn a lawyer for DEC?
If so, how in all his righteous DFC ether allow this to happen.
While I'm at it, how did you, a scholarly, informed, well mannered and intentioned individual lose your seat on the Democratic committee to these people?
I am worried that the DFC takeover of the committee is one of the first signs of the apocalypse.
Small 'r'
well, thank you, ballston dems for change. if you would like to talk in person, i would welcome a conversation with a live body and a real name. i can only assume you're not the coward here.
281 4718
pat southworth
addendum to ballston DFC:
nowhere and notime did larry bulman say that the 'negative' editorials coming out of ballston were in any way false, misleading, exaggerated, or hyperbolic. because they weren't.
you dumb shits seem to think 'negative' is worse than 'false'. and that's why YOU are what is wrong with the political system.
ogle
Vanguard Aka (John Tighe) 7:49
Spelling is something you should really work on! Shouldn't you be working with your legal defense team to get the ole lady out of the slammer? Voting fraud is a serious offense! Who was the pollster that let her in to vote? Did she sign under someone else's name she new wasn't voting? That was awfully dumb. Even for a Tighe!
Didn't this Kyle York get his ass beat down? Is it necessary for him to print this same horseshit time after time?
Anon 6:06
Wait a MINUTE! That's my seat in the corner of the bar. Me and that John Candy looking character. I can't wait for the meeting. Just for a laugh!
Kyle,
Just so no one can attack your otherwise factual account, it should be noted that the county intake was moved upstream of the PCB's.
Anyone who claims my Wife voted in this primary is either a liar or crazy.
If by the outside chance someone was foolish enough to have impersonated her to commit voter fraud you will have our full cooperation to see that person who committed a felony is arrested convicted and sentenced.
If anyone has any knowledge this impersonation took place I urge you to call the
Board of Elections
Or
The Saratoga Springs Police
Although personally I believe this is just more DFC lies
John Tighe
584-0576
All of a sudden John Tighe is complaining about lies. Losing must have woken him up. Now he's looking in the mirror and recognizing the biggest liar in Saratoga Springs.
I know how she voted! She went under her street name. All those kind have different names. Tell me when she signed the book at the city center what name did she use?
Was it Candy Cane?
Was it White Chocolate?
Could it be Cinnaman Bun?
Ben 5:03-
The intake WAS moved upstream. Not once, but TWICE. But don't think Master Designer Dan Loewenstein made the move because of his immense knowledge. He did so only because Jean-Pierre Moreau of NiMo wrote him a letter to advise Dan to steer clear of the PCBs. Dan says he changed the location because of a difficult slope at the shoreline of his own second choice.
Unfortunately, the current site is no longer safe...as the engineers discovered in their second sediment study of August 2001. When compared to the same firm's map from 1994, they observed UPSTREAM migration of the PCB sediments. With great urgency, they requested a third mapping with more details. A third map was created in May 2002...but it has never been made public. My sources tell me the upstream migration was worse in that May 2002 map. One can only imagine how much further upstream the PCBs are today, over six years after the study you will never see.
-Kyle
It would appear another lame attempt at dirty tricks and voter fraud has been exposed and the DFC are guilty again. They can steal the party but can’t win a general election. The clock is approaching midnight for Ron Kim and his bloated self will be back representing deadbeats for pocket change. And then instead of starting every line with “you know I’m a lawyer” the conversation will be “You know I was Commissioner of Public Safety”
Ben,
Everyone should already know the County intake was moved up-stream because that was what gave the County BOS comfort in keeping his or her positions on the board.
Before you make another comment, I would suggest that you take a look at all the research Kyle York has collected with the factual documents from DEC and Niagara Mohawk because these are real, actual documents, which demonstrates that the PCB's in the sediment in the Hudson River have migrated upstream, and the maps of the hot spots taken from year to year have proven this.
When Kyle York started to work on this research he caused such a stir (pardon the pun), that Bill Daigle was moved to a different department in DEC, and their websites, (that I personally viewed online as well did others), started to disappear and were no longer available. This is not made up stuff; this is what really happened. This information, when FOILED was denied because DEC said all of the information that was collected on this issue was in draft form and therefore could not be foiled. That information is the missing link to this puzzle and one can only surmise it is not available because it would cause a public outcry. Most state drafts go into report form in weeks; for years, this information has never been put in a report.
The official documents that Kyle has accumulated are very dense and most people (no offense) don't have the time, patience, interest, or intelligence to understand it. Kyle tried to explain all of this in non-technical language in a video, which I am sure he would be delighted to give you a copy, but again it is not a survivor show and most people are just not interested.
This is the end-result of much of our society (including government officials and their staff – if they have staff) that does not or cannot read above the fourth grade level. The New York Times is supposedly a twelfth grade reading level newspaper. Let’s be honest here, it is easier to say this is all bullshit than it is to take the time to learn about the subject and I am not just talking about this particular subject, but all subjects on issues that will have an effect on our lives and the lives of our children. Nothing pleases me more than having my son prove me wrong with information that defied the information I found and could prove beyond a doubt that I was wrong. In this particular case, I have yet to believe I am wrong because I have not been given the information to prove otherwise.
If this is any indication of the future, we should start thinking of a name for our new third world country. But then again, we might not know how to spell it. By the way, in Flesch-Kincaid grade levels, this was an 11.7 reading level.
However, this subject is mute because of the projects approval and you will be consuming water extracted from the Hudson River as soon as the Board of Supervisors can figure out a way to please you by raising your taxes to pay for the system and its maintenance.
maybe dfc cloned john tighes wife!
maybe dfc cloned john tighes wife!
Kyle & 8:53,
As Kyle knows, I've seen a good deal of his research. Yes, its possible for PCB's to migrate upstream, and the unique circumstances for that phenomenon may be present in the deeper water downstream of the intake where past migration has been noted. But that does not prove the existence of PCB's at the County intake.
Therefore, I believe, its disingeneous to claim people's drinking water WILL be contaminated with toxins when thats not necessarily the case. Especially since Kyle knows equipment used for the express purpose of filtering PCB's is to be installed at the treatment plant.
It does, however, justify the release of any undisclosed mapping showing further potential migration.
Just wanted to make sure we're dealing in facts. And please do correct me if I've mistated anything. Thanks
I think before I personally hooked into this water system I would demand to see some independent testing done on this water.
Pat southworth & John Ogle are very nasty people. We do not want them running our committee or involved in any way with the Town of Ballston Democrats. I'm going public with voter fraud committed by our Town Chairman Mr. Southworth and voter intimidation by Mr. Ogle. Then I will straighten out the mess they left us. I am no longer afraid, please watch this weeks news!
Jeff Wait is on board. Johnny Franck is next, because they know who's in charge. It sure ain't the Mctygue boy's. The voters fired their ass yet again!
Ben 5:03
The water intake was moved...twice. But don't give the credit to Master Designer Dan Loewenstein. When Dan determined site 1 had to much rock, he moved it a wee bit upstream completely and utterly unaware of the 10-acre PCB sediments. Lucky for Danny, NiMo's Jean-Pierre Moreau wrote him a letter and gently suggested placement WAY more upstream to be above the PCBs. When Dan took the advice, he announced his THIRD intake spot was chosen because his own choice #2 was on property that was "too steep" to pump from.
But we're still in deep water, even sucking from the "downstream" intake being built.
Why? Because the PCBs in the top 2 inches of the river sediment are moving UPSTREAM.
Slopw down flamers, not so fast.
Engineers first mapped the sediments in 1994. The same firm promised to return in 2001 to see if the PCBs has all "drifted away" or been "gobbled up by bacteria" or "sank deeper" or any other outright lie being propagated in the '90s by GE.
So the same researchers went back to the same stretch of river and were greatly stunned to discover the PCB field has moved 300 feet downstream and closer to the Queensbury water plant. The field had also oozed its way deeper towards the deeper center of the river. AND the sediment mapping experts determined that the PCBs had moved slightly UPRIVER as well. Yes, you read correctly-- "slightly UPSTREAM."
With iimmense alarm due to the speed and the multi-directional expansion, the sediment experts requested another re-mapping with attention to a much larger sampling area. The test were done in MAY of 2002 and a THIRD sediment map (1994, 2001, & 2002) was COMPLETED...
...but it was never released to the public. Nobody, nohow, no way. No response even to a professional FOIL request by Post-Star Editor Mark Mahoney. But my sources who have access to that third map said the upstream migration...movement TOWARDS the INTAKE being built...the migration noted in May 2002 was "significant."
One can only wonder where the PCBs are now...SIX YEARS after the last study, the map you can't see for the Project (#557012) no one at DEC wants to talk about.
-From the Village Blowhard,
Kyle York
Prediction: the Dem committee throws out everyone who refuses to take a secret loyalty oath and join NIXIUM. They then declare victory and go on to lose every election for the next 50 years blaming McTygue’s grandchildren.
So I hope you got down on your hands and knees and apologized for all the nasty slanderous lies you spread about Waits family.
Yea Right; Lets start with the lies you spread about Waits daughter. Next you could crawl to John Franck and beg his forgiveness for all your lies and insults against him. Then while you’re at it you could kick Ron Kim to the curb and then maybe we’ll talk.
ballston dfc:
what ARE you talking about?
the only intimidated voters in this county are those democrats at the hands of republicans.
ogle
Praise Vanuguard
DEMOCRATS FOR JOHNSON 2009
Putting what’s best for the city above politics.
We are now excepting designs ideas for Bumper Stickers and Lawn Signs.
Ben 11:35
Thank God you care. As always, here I come again to blow hard. And while you technically do NOT "misread," your document collection is understandably thin.
FIRST of all, the ancient and dust-covered and out-of-date map from May of 2002 certainly WOULD tell a great deal about the proximity of PCBs to the County Water Intake... IF you could see it. My sources who HAVE seen it say PCBs are BooCoo closer. With major UPSTREAM migration documented between August 1994 and May 2002, one must ask how much additional UPSTREAM migration has ocurred between May 2002 and September 2008?
SECOND excellent question is HOW any river sediments could move UPSTREAM at ANY time. The Hudson at Queensbury is NOT the raging roiling Colorado. It is a pond with dams controlling water flow at BOTH ends.
When a mild & traditional water flow is underway, the shoreline structure (underwater rocks, tree, coves)... the STRUCTURE creates eddy currents, currents that flow UPSTREAM, a river reality know to every canoer and kayaker.
But when power demands or river volume require both dams to be closed or RESTRICTING flow, the river sediment is under no unrelenting pressure. IN FACT, when an all-too-common Nor'Easter blows in, the river's East-West course at Queensbury is such that waves and surface waters flow WESTWARD and UPSTREAM...moving a pingpong ball from the PCB area Westward over the proposed intake. That same hydrological force works on the river sediments, just like the pingpong ball.
FINALLY, the GREATEST mistruth of any PCB protection was flatly and unequivocally pronounced by Master Designer Dan Loewenstein. Prior to a County Water Committee meeting, I had noticed an obvious addition to the treatment system of Dan's design. PAC filters (Powdered Activated Charcoal) were slipped into a slide of the site layout. PAC is the ONLY treatment approved by the EPA for PCB removal. But the size of the PAC tanks were entirely inadequate to take on the difficult task of BigTime PCB removal. Armed with my information, ex-Supervisor Cheryl Keyrouze asked Dan about the PAC system. In response, Dan Loewenstein stated that the PACs were NEVER INTENDED to filter PCBs because NO PCBs were in the area. He said the PACs were there to control odor from natural growths of algae in August...and he is absolutely correct. PACs control odor at a zillion water plants around the world.
BUT Supervisor Keyrouze pressed him on the capacity of the six PAC tanks indicated on the site plan. Supervisor Keyrouze showed Top Engineer Dan Loewenstein an image of one of the world’s largest PAC units, a standard of the industry made by the TIGG company. I had researched all PAC treatment manufacturers and I presented Supervisor Keyrouze with the photo of the filter from the company's website.
When Cheryl asked Engineer Dan Loewenstein if HIS proposed tanks would be similar in capacity, Mr. Dan glanced at the image and said it was "A Storage Silo, not a working filter." Supervisor Keyrouze politely disagreed and asked Dan to have a closer look... and she pushed the color photo towards Lord Loewenstein.
I was there for every single second. Without missing a beat, Dan got a smug grin on his face and pushed the paper back towards Supervisor Keyrouze. With great condescension, Dan Loewenstein said "I don't need to see it again. It's a storage silo."
The Republican Male Supervisors all had a good laugh as Cheryl was humiliated and belittled.
I-BLOWHARD personally researched and prepared that image of a 200 gallon-per-minute PAC filtration unit manufacturer by the TIGG Corporation. I’ll gladly share it with anyone with half a brain. Well, that rules out a second chance for Dan Loewenstein.
So Ben, my truly respected friend, we ARE at great risk. The County System is NOT designed to safely filter ANY PCBs. The LOCATION of the PCBs may be within a few HUNDRED feet of the intake. And if this Winter includes a few standard-issue Nor'Easters, the PCB/water from the County taps won't do a DAMN bit of harm to you and I, my macho-testoreroned friend.
BUT...a pregnant woman sends every microgram directly through the placenta to her fetus. Spontaneous Abortion will be a painful probability. Stillbirth will be a more heartbreaking possibility. A child born with severe neurological and sexual malformations... THAT is a certainty. A CERTAINTY. It is a Life Sentence I would not wish upon my worst enemy.
If there is a God, which I doubt, Dan Loewenstein will be damned to Hell. But my lifelong grief will be with the County families suffering because I could do no better that wander the internet as a Blowhard.
Ben and Horatio, I thank you both. You don't have to support me. But you DO offer me a forum to do ALL that I can for people I will never know and children I will never be able to face.
-Kyle York
kyle@york44.com
Looks like Saratoga isn't the only one with a divided Democratic Party.
Horatio,
Keep this analysis for yourself if you feel it's too long to publish.
From today's Daily KOS....
"NY-21: By the Numbers - The Vote
by Soundpolitic
Sun Sep 14, 2008 at 08:19:29 PM PDT
Paul Tonko Wins 5-Way Primary with Strong Base of Support
Last Tuesday, Paul Tonko won the five-way Democratic Primary to replace retiring Representative Mike McNulty with 39% of the vote in one of the most heavily contested campaigns in New York State. The final results for the entire district were as follows:
Tonko, Paul 14,827 39%
Brooks, Tracey 11,329 30%
Steck, Phillip 7,046 19%
Shahinfar, Darius 3,879 10%
Sullivan, Joseph 657 2%
But as in most elections, these numbers don't represent the full spread. A county-by-county analysis, as well as information from the largest township in the seven-county-district, reveals that Paul Tonko owes his victory to stronger-than-average support in the western portion of the district and a split vote in the county where over two-thirds of the votes were cast The end result produces a victory map for Tonko that looks like this:
NY-21 Results
Full analysis of the spread below the fold...
* Soundpolitic's diary :: ::
*
Cross-Posted on The Albany Project.
Albany County
While the county accounted for roughly 55% of all registered Democrats in the district, over 65% of the 37,738 votes cast district-wide were cast in Albany County. That is
Tracey Brooks: 8,419 votes (34%)
Paul Tonko: 7,879 votes (32%)
Darius Shahinfar: 2,684 (11%)
Joe Sullivan: 478 (2%)
Phil Steck: 5,187 (21%)
Total Votes: 24,647 (65%)
This represents a very close race between Paul Tonko and Tracey Brooks was waged in Albany County. For her part, Tracey Brooks should feel proud about winning the most votes in Albany County in its most heavily contested race in decades. On primary day, Tracey Brooks had gotten a court order to impound all election machines throughout the district in anticipation that the race would be similarly close in other counties, yet Tonko's victories in the western portion of the district shattered the need for this.
Worth noting is Phil Steck's strong showing in Albany County thanks to his win in the Town of Colonie. No official results are being relied upon for these numbers, just word from the Steck campaign, as the counties aren't posting precinct results. Like Tonko, Steck won his base in the town where he is Democratic Party chair and an Albany County Legislator. If anything, the results are significant because it proves the staying power of the Town Democrats' historic win over 112 years of Republican government last year.
Phil Steck will remain on the General Election ballot on the Independence Line, but will not actively campaign. Also, he will step down from his position as party chair in Colonie. This link provides some interesting Albany County information as well as a kind of "aftermath" article:
Observers, including Colonie Democratic committeeman Dick Barrett, have pointed out that Albany County Democrats did their part to hand the congressional primary to former Assemblyman Paul Tonko, of Amsterdam, by working against themselves.
The county Democratic committee with its suburban majority endorsed Steck, while Albany Mayor Jerry Jennings, the most influential city Democrat, backed Tracey Brooks. Other city politicians, such as current county Co-Chairman Frank Commisso backed Tonko.
::
The five-way primary divided the Albany vote so extensively, Barrett said, that it helped hand the race to Tonko, the only candidate not from Albany County, who crushed all opponents in Schenectady County, which is closer to his home.
Emphasis added.
Expect more primary fallout from the 21st Congressional Primary in the Albany County Democratic Party at the Sept. committee meeting. There, the current co-chairs, including Tonko-backer Commisso, will be ousted; also, expect the seeds to be planted for a challenge to Albany Mayor Jerry Jennings, who backed Brooks and is becoming more unpopular in the city by the day. It remains to be seen if Tracey Brooks will campaign again, but if she does, she'll likely make note of her 34% win in Albany County in the 2008 primary for Congress; Phil Steck will remain 1st Vice Chair for the Colonie Democrats and an Albany County Legislator, and so his voice in Albany County politics will still carry. Darius Shahinfar's political future is uncertain, and Joe Sullivan simply adds another loss to his long list as both a Democrat and Republican in Albany County politics.
Schenectady County
The second-largest vote-getter in the 21st clearly played the largest role, giving Tonko his most important county landslide on primary night. Given that he only won the entire district by a margin of about 3,500 votes against nearest rival Tracey Brooks, the numbers from Schenectady County speak for themselves:
Paul Tonko: 3,342 (59%)
Tracey Brooks: 969 (17%)
Phil Steck: 747 (13%)
Darius Shahinfar: 501 (9%)
Joe Sullivan: 66 (1%)
Total Votes: 5,625 (15%)
In the last half-decade of his tenure as State Assemblyman, the 105th AD that Tonko had represented since 1983 was re-drawn to include most of the City of Schenectady, obviously where the most voters in the county reside by far. Yet he has been representing the three western towns of the county since first entering the Assembly, helping explain the three-to-one margin he won agianst all three of his strongest Albany County opponents.
Rensselaer & Saratoga Counties
The 21st contained just portions of the eastern side of the Hudson River, but included the beefiest urban areas of the cities of Troy and Rensselaer. Here are the results from the other side of the river:
Tracey Brooks - 1,429 (41%)
Paul Tonko - 878 (25%)
Darius Shahinfar - 373 (11%)
Joe Sullivan - 60 (2%)
Phil Steck - 724 (21%)
Total Votes: 3,464 (9%)
Rensselaer County was framed as "the battleground" of the district from an early standpoint. The County Party Committee made no endorsement and none of the candidates were from the county. It's proximity to the City of Albany, where Brooks performed well, likely had something to do with her carrying the county with her widest margin of the night. And the fact that Paul Tonko was farthest from the district coupled with Phil Steck's former service as Assistant District Attorney in the county is the best explanation I can think of to explain why this was the only area of the district where Steck's showings were at all competitive with Tonko's.
While the district is often described as containing "portions" of Saratoga County, it's really only one portion: the Town of Watertown, the farthest town south in Saratoga County, wedges between Albany, Schenectady, and Rensselaer Counties. Here's the Watertown results...
Paul Tonko: 78 (34%)
Tracey Brooks: 95 (41%)
Phil Steck: 25 (11%)
Darius Shahinfar: 28 (12%)
Joe Sullivan: 6 (2%)
Total Votes: (8 distritcts) 232
...and they continue the pattern of Brooks wins in the big urban areas. Yet so few votes were cast here in comparison (the smallest number in the district) that any bragging rights are almost insequential, and I question why the Town of Watertown isn't included in the neighboring 20th Congressional district to keep the counties together. But, for what it's worth, Saratoga County was the only county in which Darius Shahinfar bested Phil Steck, albiet by three votes.
The Western Counties
Here is where the Paul Tonko victory really happens and becomes truly incredible. If you've been tabulating along, you can see a close race between Brooks and Tonko. But on election night, these were the districts that reported first. The first results came in first from the lowest populated and most rural county, Schoharie County:
Tracey Brooks: 124 (13%)
Paul Tonko: 632 (68%)
Darius Shahinfar: 72 (8%)
Joe Sullivan: 8 (1%)
Phil Steck: 89 (10%)
Total Votes: 925
In Tonko's first Assembly district drawings in the 1980s, he represented all of Schohaire County. All that time, and the people of the Schoharie valley never forgot Paul Tonko. The district breakdown linked to is even more amazing, as there are a number of precincts in the County where Tonko was virtually the only vote-getter, providing him with a buffer that helped put him over the top.
The remainder of the district containted all of Montgomery County, including the City and Town of Amsterdam, as well as the Town of Johnstown in Fulton County to the north, which contains the cities of Johnstown and Gloversville. While neither county has it's unofficial results posted to their websites yet, the final numbers can be determined by treating both counties as one district and subracting the rest of the county results from the final district-wide totals.
The math results in one of the biggest primary landslides in district history:
Fulton & Montgomery Counties
Paul Tonko: 2,018 (71%)
Tracey Brooks: 293 (10%)
Phil Steck: 274 (9%)
Darius Shahinfar: 221 (8%)
Joe Sullivan: 39 (1%)
Total Votes: 2,845 (8%)
That more than made up for the Brooks lead in Albany County against Paul Tonko. In Albany County, Brooks defeated Tonko by a margin of only about 500 votes. But in the Fulton & Montgomery Counties, Tonko pulled out well over three times that many votes over his closest opponent. Paul Tonko was first elected as a Town Supervisor in Amsterdam in 1975 and was Chairman of the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors for several years before representing the entirety of the County in the Assembly for a full decade of his 23 years in the Assembly. Put it all together, and the county's favorite son's continued support put him well over the top.
Some reporters in the mainstream media said that the western portion of the district was "important" to Tonko's victory on Sept. 9. That's got to be the understatement of the election cycle; the western portion of the district was critical to Tonko's victory, and he'd had them wrapped up since before he even announced. In that sense, it's debatable as to whether this actually was a competitive race to begin with, as Tonko was the odds-on favorite to win since Mike McNulty announced his retirement.
But Tonko would not have won without having made inroads in the larger counties with which to augment his support in the west, and with the second-highest level of support in the more populous eastern counties, Tonko stands poised to unite Democrats behind him with little to no delay as he brings his energy-focused campaign into the general election. In that, he was undeniably aided by the contention within the Albany County Democratic Party, which is itself a larger campaign that continues even past November 4.
Soundpolitic Blogger's Note
On that day, I predict that the numbers will again show a resounding victory for Paul Tonko, who will go down in history as one of the Capital Regions most respected and resilient political forces whether he serves only this one next term or as many as the current Congressman. I plan on putting in time on the ground with the Tonko campaign where they see help is needed most, and it may be needed in Schenectady County, the home of Tonko's Republican opponent, Jim Buhrmaster, who is also casting himself as an "energy expert" because he owns a home heating oil business with rather large name recognition.
But I will disclose that even though I want to help Paul's campaign, my vote in November will go for Phil Steck, who retains the Independence line. I've put in far more time with his campaign and still honestly feel he'd be the best representative in Congress. But I will not encourage other Democrats to follow suit, and I don't anticipate that large enough number would do so to result in a "spoiled" election. One of the biggest things you hear while canvassing for any candidate is that when you ask voters what party they are registered, this is the most common response:
"I don't vote for the party, I vote for the person."
And the person I'll be voting for is Phil Steck. But the party that will win in November will be the Democratic Party, and it's nominee is overwhelmingly, by the numbers, Paul Tonko."
proof positive that Albany County was the big cheese battleground in the district. Here are the final results for the county from their Board of Elections page:
ballston DFC:
while i usually avoid the blog for the reason of not having to deal with anonymous miscreants, i've decided to take your continuous attacks to heart:
1) you clearly aren't on or related to the ballston dem committee, or you'd have made your opinions known (since we're pretty good at that) which means
2) you didn't do anything to help get patti or cindy amrhein elected, which means, if you are an activist, its for the republicans. i know this because it was my ass, and the rest of the committee who did the door-dooring.
3) if you knew me, or even recognized me, you'd realize that i have the physique of a skinny, tall nerd who smokes and is out of shape. because i am. so i'm probobly not terribly 'threatening' to most people. also, because i'm a nerd, i tend to focus on people's arguments, rather than the person.
4) even if you were still 'intimidated', you probobly wouldn't announce it on the internet, because even idiots know that 'anonymous' postings leave an IP adress trail. if i was really that scary, you wouldn't want to do so.
5) given this, you're probobly not really into political activism anyways, because being on the witness protection program isn't good for a political career.
6) so all of this tells me you're probobly
a) not a ballston democrat
b) are using anonymity to cover the fact that you are probobly
i) a republican troublemaker
ii) one of the minority disaffected democrats in ballston, ie: robyn carr, disgruntled wife of previous water authority employee wes carr, or carol blowers, close personal friend of shawn thompson, who might be motivated to write these things
iii)thompson himself, or one of his cronies
iv) larry bulman, who also has an axe to grind, and is the only one who could comfortably kiss bulman's ass the way you did in your first post.
anyways, feel free to get ahold of me, it's not like i'm unreachable. or scary. :)
-john ogle
Open auditions for new incoming hot babes, Thursday night.
Where: 5 Wells Street (Nxivm/DFC HQ)
Report to Vanguard
Make checks payable to Kim for Mayor 09 and Keehn for Supervior 09.
KoolAid will be served
I heard the same thing. That Keehn is readying to run for Supervisor.
Unreal.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
The latest is Joyce Tighe is running against Keehn for supervisor! Now we have to look at Drago-Face Tighe on mailers to our houses? Her mug will certainly get our attention around halloween time!
Val is honest? You must be kidding me.
If she was so honest, then why didn't she mention that charter reform was part of her agebda when running for office?
If she is so honest, then why doesn't he admit he backroom election deal with Skippy?
If she is so honest, then why doesn't she admit her NXIVM relationship?
If she is so honest, then why did she lie about the firing of her first deputy?
If she is so honest, then why doesn't she admit her involvement with the 'Tommy spilled his drink and didn't clean up his mess' call to EnCon?
If she is so honest, why didn't she tell the city's Democrats that she was hellbent on takng over total control of the party if elected ---before she announced her candidacy?
Shall I continue?
Mr & Mrs John Tigue,
Sir and Madam: if you would like my assistance in launching a libel suit against the individual who submitted the 5:45PM posting (and previous ones a well), leave some sort of followup contact message on here and I would be glad to help. Pro bono.
This kind of crap just exposes them for who they are. They call themselves pro women but call their opponents whores and hookers {by the way Tighes’s wife is a maid at skidmore}.So if you disagree with them they won’t debate facts just slander and lie. Ask Val about it and all she can do is stare with her trademark empty eyes. Their tactics have not only hurt their own candidates but have put the more mainstream Democrats like Russo and Gillibrand at risk.Real democrats are being painted with a broad brush and suffering for the sins of this demented lot.
Trout21,
This is way late, but I wanted to commend you on a great and very insightful piece on Shawn Thompson. I couldn't agree more with your assessment. He's only a big fish in the fetid small pond of Saratoga Politics.
Trout21,
Ditto, it was an insightful comment that I have enjoyed reading several times.
I especially like the description.
"Basically, at forty-one years of age, Mr. Thompson is a kind of aging bat boy."
Post a Comment
<< Home