Scott Murphy's virtual town hall 3/10/10

by: HylasBrook

Thu Mar 11, 2010 at 09:42:45 AM EST

I was told there 8300 people on the call.  After Murphy gave an overview of what he was doing, there was a Q&A session.  Questioners were lined up by the order in which they queued up.

Most important question - HCR.  Murphy still says he'll vote against it because he's concerned about how the government is going to pay for the reform.  He's especially concerned about its impact on small business.

He's more supportive of the Senate bill because it has less mandates for small business, making it more affordable for them. He's still reading the Senate Bill - he's half-way through the 2000 pages.  

The rest of the questions were interesting - unless they were screened out by Murphy's staff, we didn't have any looming crazies on the call.

One caller liked Gillibrand so much that he called Paterson to thank him for appointing her.  Now he's unhappy because she's become too liberal.  
Other questions were about Rural Broadband access (Murphy says we're getting federal funds for that); standard deficit worries, pro DADT.

There were some conservative leaning questions, but not regurgitated Conservative talking points.  Questions on Tort reform, too much government interference.

I thought it was a useful experience.  Murphy is very well prepared for the questions and could respond with specifics for each question.  

I'm not happy about his not supporting health care.  But I wouldn't be surprised if he is getting a pass on this being a freshman rep in a district that just flipped to Dem 2 election cycles ago.

NY-20: Murphy explains disappointing HCR vote UPDATED

by: devtob

Sun Nov 08, 2009 at 18:55:05 PM EST

In a press release (posted in full, below), Murphy argued that the bill was fatally flawed because it does not do enough to "curb costs and keep health care affordable in the long term."

I'm no expert on HR 3962, and I'm sure that it's not perfect. But it is, evidently, the best bill that is politically possible right now, and there is no realistic prospect that further delay will improve it.

So I'm disappointed with Murphy's vote, and even more disappointed with a rather obvious whopper he told in the release.

More, below.

Call Your Reps Right Now

by: phillip anderson

Sat Nov 07, 2009 at 12:46:22 PM EST

But we need to smoke out the rest of them. The ad on the left side of this page makes calling these Reps easy. Just click it, fill in the info and click the "click to call" button and you'll be automatically connected to the Rep's office.

While you're at it, ask them how they will vote on the anti-choice Stupak Amendment.

This is it, folks. It's now or never. Too many of these guys got their seats with netroots support. (Rep Massa, I'm looking at you.) It's time for them to put up or shut up.

Make the call.

Several NY/Tri-State Reps on the Fence on the Public Option

by: BingChester

Wed Oct 21, 2009 at 15:00:09 PM EDT

Jim Himes: CT-4
Timothy Bishop: NY-1
Scott Murphy: NY-20
Steve Rothman: NJ-9
Albio Sires: NJ-13

source

These are tangible targets that can be pushed into supporting the public option.  While Timothy Bishop and Scott Murphy may be in competitive seats, the public option is strongly supported by non-Southerns in polls and will vastly increase our bargaining power at the table with the Senate.  Our New York State reps should stand up for their constituents, even in more competitive seats.  If Eric Massa stands for Medicare for All in his district, then Murphy and Bishop can absolutely stand up for the robust public option in their districts.

Call them up before it's too late!

1-866-220-0044

NY-20: Murphy turns in strong fundraising numbers.

by: Adama D. Brown

Fri Oct 16, 2009 at 22:23:10 PM EDT

The complete report can be found here, but the short version is this. Murphy raised $325,347 in the third quarter (his first full quarter as an elected representative). He also posted operating expenses of $78,489, leaving him with $501,045 cash on hand.

Those numbers substantially outpace comparable upstate districts such as Eric Massa's and Chris Lee's, and for the entire state runs a narrow fourth place behind Dan Maffei.

The official Murphy press release also made a point of noting that he's now raised over $3 million dollars since the beginning of the special election cycle in February.

It's no doubt good news for Murphy, since signs suggest that semi-vanquished candidate Jim Tedisco is planning to try again for the seat next year.

This comes amid financial disclosure issues for Tedisco relating to the now defunct campaign:

ALBANY-Assemblyman Jim Tedisco's Congressional campaign committee-which was just terminated after his failed bid against Scott Murphy this spring-failed to report more than $110,000 worth of contributions in its quarterly filing just before the election. The filings have since been amended.

Oops.

Obama-hating Tea Party Express rolls into Albany

by: devtob

Fri Sep 11, 2009 at 15:24:19 PM EDT

This media/organizing event, extensively promoted on Fox News and talk radio, is bankrolled by the California conservative Republican group Our Country Deserves Better PAC, and features unemployed radio talk show host Mark Williams, "Marine Mom" Deb Johns, "union-thug victim" Ken Gladney, and a handful of D-list entertainers.

A former talk show guy in the market, Williams chose Albany so he could continue Our Country Deserves Better's jihad against Congressman Scott Murphy (NY-20), but Murphy went unmentioned, as the program was mostly about hating on our President and the Democratic Congress.

Details, and more pix, below.

NY-20: Murphy stands up for public option at final recess event

by: devtob

Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 16:59:14 PM EDT

The local teabaggers, many of whom are securely in the Paul/Bircher/Beck anti-government fringe, had targeted the event, and turned out about 60 or 70 people.

But so did we, and the 50/50 balance in the crowd limited the teabaggers' tendency to be rude, disruptive assholes, as they have been at other events to Murphy and Paul Tonko (NY-21).        

Details, below.

NY-20: Teabaggers target Murphy meet-and-greet

by: devtob

Sun Sep 06, 2009 at 17:00:13 PM EDT

Tomorrow, Labor Day, he will be doing two of those, plus visiting the Rensselaer County Fair.

Our local teabaggers, many of whom are securely in the Paul/Bircher/Beck anti-government fringe, have targeted one Congress on your Corner for disruption      

Which one, below.

NY-20: Tedisco wants a rematch

by: devtob

Thu Aug 27, 2009 at 14:27:03 PM EDT

But, with his finger to the teabag wind, Tedisco's been getting back in the media lately, opposing a $200-per-child state grant to welfare families for back-to-school expenses (paid for with stimulus funds and a grant from a George Soros foundation), and proposing a state constitutional amendment to allow recall elections for state elected officials.

And today, Tedisco told Maury Thompson of the Glens Falls Post-Star that he has been "meeting with county GOP chairmen in the 20th District to discuss a possible rematch next year."    

Details, below.

NY-20: Scott Murphy Congress-on-your-corner

by: Andrew C. White

Mon Aug 10, 2009 at 20:06:51 PM EDT

Or Congress-in-your-coffee-shop as this one happened to be.

Democratic Representative Scott Murphy has been holding a series of events around his sprawling 10 county rural district. These events are not specifically health care events rather they are what he would have been doing anyhow picking up a particularly successful practice of his predecessor Kirsten Gillibrand by energetically spending his home time travelling the district meeting constituents in small local venues.

Saturday's event in Valatie has already been well diaried here. This one was held at a much smaller venue in a more rural hilltown area. It also happened to be in my beautiful neck of the woods in eastern Rensselaer County.

Scott Murphy Congress on the Corner August 8 - Possible Right-Wing Target

by: prince nekhlyudov

Thu Aug 06, 2009 at 11:20:18 AM EDT

An Open Letter To Rep Scott Murphy On Health Care Reform

by: John Minehan

Mon Jul 27, 2009 at 13:44:27 PM EDT

I strongly support your decision on July 24th to oppose the currently proposed House and Senate Health Care Reform Bills, a decision which must have been both politically and personally difficult.  While health care reform is sorely needed, we need real reform, rather than the creation of a less robust version of the troubled Canadian Medicare system.

In your letter declaring your position to your constituents, you raised several issues that needed to be addressed in the reform process.  The following are some suggested practical solutions to the issues you raise.

NY-20: Murphy gets to work, and thanks supporters

by: devtob

Mon May 11, 2009 at 09:59:41 AM EDT

He hired staff, cast his first votes, began looking for an apartment in D.C., posted a thank-you diary here, and had a very busy Saturday, with four events, including a thank-you for supporters that I attended.

Details, plus bonus wingnuttery, below.

NY-20: Tedisco finally talks

by: devtob

Thu Apr 30, 2009 at 10:32:38 AM EDT

For more on that, check out yesterday's coverage here, with great photos, and a very nice story in the Albany Times Union.

But this diary will be about something else -- Jim Tedisco's first interview with anyone since he conceded Friday afternoon.

It was an informal interview with a friendly blogger, Bob Conner of Planet Albany, but it provides an interesting post-mortem from the other side.

More, below.

NY-20: Past and Present

by: phillip anderson

Wed Apr 29, 2009 at 16:28:23 PM EDT

To everyone at The Albany Project

by: Congressman Scott Murphy

Wed Apr 29, 2009 at 15:06:16 PM EDT

The stakes in this race were high, and all of us as New Yorkers recognize what happened here. Our state and our country have rejected our recent culture of exclusion, and have instead chosen a new, more progressive path. New Yorkers voted overwhelmingly for President Obama, and this special election is another indicator (among many) that we will continue working toward what is best for our state and our country.

This election was so important because it re-affirmed the fact that our state is in sync with this new direction. It took a lot of people to make it happen, and I wanted to thank everyone at The Albany Project for being a part of the victory.  

NY-20: It's Official. Murphy Sworn In

by: phillip anderson

Wed Apr 29, 2009 at 14:16:20 PM EDT

From an emailed release:

On Tuesday, Scott Murphy was officially sworn-in as the Congressman for New York's 20th Congressional District on the House floor.  Scott is looking forward to getting right to work and helping to solve the current economic crisis.

"I am humbled by the faith and trust the people of New York's 20th Congressional District put in me and I will spend every day working to make their lives better and being their voice in Congress," said Congressman Murphy. "I look forward to rolling up my sleeves in Washington to bring jobs and economic relief back to Upstate New York."    

"I have dedicated my career to creating jobs, helping small businesses grow, working with people of all backgrounds and parties to solve complex challenges.

"The challenges we face are some of the greatest we've ever known. These challenges affect Democrats, Republicans, and independents all the same.

"I pledge to work with each and every Member of this House to put our people back to work, to protect the taxpayers of today and tomorrow, to give our kids a 21st century education, and most of all to summon the true spirit of cooperation it'll take to ensure that our best days remain ahead.

"We must never forget that our goals are the same - to create good-paying jobs for our workers, to keep our families healthy and safe, to help our small businesses grow, to build a cleaner energy future, and to harness the talents and innovation of the American people to create a more prosperous future for our nation."

UPDATE: A Pic from immediately after the ceremony:

Just 'cuz You Waited So Long....

by: robinia

Wed Apr 29, 2009 at 13:14:18 PM EDT

Looking forward to his further adventures with our new Congresscritter in his new digs in DC!

Tedisco's Loss was Also a Rejection of Albany

by: Roatti

Wed Apr 29, 2009 at 01:51:36 AM EDT

And Murphy was certainly as great a candidate as Tedisco was a terrible one.  

But there were many attributes of Tedisco as a politician and individual that were just so underwhelming, so uninspiring, and so ill-informed, that Tedisco was just so Albany.  And the voters found that so unappealing.  

First off, it was Tedisco's sense of entitlement.  It's not that anyone who lives outside a district they want to represent is automatically a bad choice.  But Tedisco's whole approach to the election was that he deserved the nomination because he was the big man in the nearby Republican machine.  It didn't really matter who his constituents would be because in Albany the politicians choose the voters, not the other way around.  It's almost like Tedisco just expected to gerrymander himself into the district after the next census, like any Albany politician has the power to do.

It was also Tedisco's inability to take a clear stand on the issues.  This was never better demonstrated than by Tedisco's waffling fiasco on the Stimulus Bill.  Not being one of the 3 men in the room all those years meant Tedisco never really had to think or make decisions about policy.  Sure, he had a lot of general stances that were required to make him acceptable to the Republican primary electorate, all that matters when districts are gerrymandered to the point of making the general election theoretically uncompetitive.  But keeping up-to-date on current events and the ramifications of policies just isn't required in Albany if your name isn't Sheldon Silver, David Paterson, or Malcolm Smith.  In that light, Tedisco's Stimulus PR failure makes a lot more sense.  

And finally, it was Tedisco's lack of real connection to the voters in his district.   Aside from his obvious situation of not living in the district, he ran a terrible campaign and couldn't find a salient issue to run on.  I attribute this to plain old political atrophy.  Being in Albany so long since his first election in 1983 in his gerrymandered Assembly district and all the benefits of being an Albany incumbent had guaranteed him re-election over the last 26 years.  Essentially  all he really had to do to keep his seat was not get caught with a "live boy or a dead girl," as they say.  He just didn't understand that he needed to earn the House seat because he never had to earn any of his Assembly elections since 1983.  

So while the reasons for Tedisco's loss are numerous, let's also consider that the voters might not have rejected a candidate who wasn't just so Albany.

NY-20: Scott Murphy Sworn In Tomorrow

by: phillip anderson

Tue Apr 28, 2009 at 11:18:24 AM EDT

Speaker Nancy Pelosi will hold a ceremonial swearing-in for Congressman-elect Scott Murphy of New York on Wednesday afternoon at approximately 3 p.m.  Murphy will be sworn in tomorrow afternoon on the House floor to fill the 20th district seat of New York left open when Kirsten Gillibrand resigned to replace Hillary Clinton in the Senate.

Thanks to everyone who pitched in on making this happen. Our ActBlue effort raised close to $8K between the election and legal funds and plenty of folks from this community worked their tails off to send Murphy to DC.

Congratulations to all of you.