One of the delights of having Google Alerts sent to your e-mail is the strange stuff you find out. Case in point, from Buffalo Business First (note the irony in the publication’s title):

A Western New York congressman, Randy Kuhl, is among the 100 best golfers in Washington, according to new rankings from Golf Digest.

Kuhl’s handicap of 15 puts him in 74th place among the senators, congressmen, appointed officials, lobbyists and power brokers rated by the magazine.

I don’t know what to make of this. Should we be proud? Should we wonder how our leaders have time to work on their golf game? Maybe he just has natural ability. It’s just the line about lobbyists and power brokers that struck me. It’s all very clubby (pardon the pun).

Kuhl is the only New York representative to make the top 100.

Why does this bug me so much? I don’t know, maybe because there’s a war going on, 47 million Americans don’t have health insurance—many of them children—and there’s the rising unemployment rate and blatant discrimination against domestic partners. Somehow golf doesn’t fit in my To Do list, so how does it fit in Randy’s?

At last evening’s County Legislature meeting, during the public hearing, The Reverend Frank Florence was escorted to the podium by Bob Bonn, who was bearing olive branches. It soon became apparent what the purpose of this bouquet was. From WHAM channel 13 News:

Community activist, The Reverend Frank Florence, literally extended an olive branch of peace to Republican County legislators Tuesday night.

Florence also asked legislature president Wayne Zyra for a meeting next Thursday.

Florence said a potential lawsuit against the County Legislature for violating open meeting laws is on hold, pending that meeting.

The only Republican to refuse the olive branch was Dick Yolevich from Parma.

picture-county-leg-3-2008.jpg

Here, we see Bob Bonn handing an olive branch to each Legislator on the Republican side. Yolevich is the guy slouched in the back row. He turned his head away when the branch was extended to him.

Others who spoke on this issue last night were:

• Brighton Supervisor, Sandy Frankel-It’s time to rebuild bridges to restore dialog for future selection of the Public Defender.
• Gary Pudup, from the Civil Liberties Union-When leaders of the faith community are arrested when trying to speak at a public forum this is contrary to the spirit and intent of the constitution.

Will a truce be called? Can we have a do-over? Only time will tell.

update:  You can see some great “attitude” pics over at sconsetmonkey. (photos courtesy of best photographer in Rochester-thanks again Monkey-man)

Details here.

Eric Massa, challenger to Rep. Randy Kuhl in NY-29, held a press conference this morning and began with the following statement:

I am not disappointed with Eliot Spitzer, really I’m disgusted. This is a personal and professional betrayal to myself and the people of New York. He should have already resigned. His crimes [have caused] incredible damage to the voters. My prayers are not with Eliot Spitzer, they are with his family and the people of New York state. I directed my staff to sever all ties with anything having to do with Eliot Spitzer.

I went outside yesterday with a tea kettle of hot water and scraped off my bumper sticker of Eliot Spitzer. I’m Italian in my heart and soul and when someone treats a member of my family this way, we walk away from them. And I have walked away from Eliot Spitzer. It is unforgivable what he has done to the state of New York.

On good news: the business of governing continues. I’d like to call attention to the ongoing budget discussions. At a time when the Iraq war is costing us $12 billion a month, that’s just not acceptable. We need a massive infrastructure rebuilding project [in New York]. The business of good government must continue. That is what I have dedicated my life to.

Bob Ricotta of The Leader had the first question: What do you know of David Patterson and can he clean up this mess?

This is a tremendous black eye for Democrats. No doubt about it. It’s bigger than that. Patterson’s challenge, should he become governor, is to rebuild confidence in New York. My prayers are with David, he’s a personal friend. He’s a man who listens, much like Lyndon Baines Johnson was able to get done what JFK couldn’t get done.

I asked Massa if he thinks Americans still hold politicians to a higher moral standard?

No. We are disgusted with politicians. Congress is full of men and women with histories similar to Mr. Spitzer. It’s gonna take one person at a time to change that. I think they have very low expectations and I don’t blame them. There’s no way to sugarcoat what Spitzer has done and I don’t blame them.

I also asked if the previous missteps of Troopergate and the driver’s licenses for illegal immigrants made this money-for-sex scandal that much more unacceptable, if this had happened in isolation would have it have been forgiven by the voters:

Troopergate is a grain of sand on the beach in comparison to this. There is no way to explain what I’m reading in the papers and on TV today.

__(’Read the rest of this entry »’)

I’ve heard from a few sources that Spitzer will resign this morning.  The time I’m hearing is 11:30 am.

From Roll Call (subscription required):

Also added to Red to Blue were 2006 nominee Eric Massa, challenging Rep. Randy Kuhl (R) in New York’s 29th; former Michigan Lottery Commissioner Gary Peters, challenging Rep. Joe Knollenberg (R) in Michigan’s 9th; state Sen. Mark Schauer, challenging Rep. Tim Walberg (R) in Michigan’s 7th; and marketing executive Dan Seals, challenging Rep. Mark Kirk (R) in Illinois’ 10th.

The DCCC credits Red to Blue with raising $22.6 million for 56 campaigns during the 2006 cycle, an increase of $15.1 million over what was spent in the 2004 cycle, when 27 Democratic House candidates benefitted from Red to Blue at an average clip of $250,000 per campaign.

(I think we can leave out the part about “fighting all who rob or plunder”.)

Is this part of some new NRCC strategy?

Even after calling himself the underdog candidate for the post, U.S. Rep. John “Randy” Kuhl, R-29, has officially tipped his hat into the ring for his third term in Washington.

[...]

Kuhl, who said he is far behind in a fundraising war with Massa and does not expect much help from the National Republican Congressional Committee in terms of financing, said his desire to help his district keeps him going.

I always thought candidates were supposed to express confidence. Do we give him points for honesty?

Also a very minor point. Kuhl explained his decision to announce his candidacy at Monroe County GOP headquarters, which is technically outside his district, thusly:

“It is easier for me to come to the chairman of Monroe County than for him to come to me,” Kuhl said. “This is just on the verge of the district. This is the central core, if you will, of Monroe County.”

If you will.