NY-22... Just Doomed

Richard Hanna is an old fashioned conservative multimillionaire who hasn't served long in Congress but has had enough of it's pointless, hyper-partisan dysfunction. He's retiring and doesn't seem to regert that he won't be enmeshed with his Republican congressional colleagues in the future. He's not going to the convention and he told a local paper that "The Republican Party is not capable of nominating anyone who is electable nationally." He refused to vote for Trump, Cruz or Kasich on Tuesday, saying "I can't support a candidate who doesn't support women's health care... I think the orthodoxy of the Republican Party is really hurting the party and pushing it to the extreme. These are people I never imagined would gain national prominence, and yet here they are." He refused to rule out voting for Hillary in November.

We didn't include Trump-like Martin Babinec, a multimillionaire who started a successful online employment agency, in our survey of congressional self-funders, mostly because he's a third-party candidate with little chance to win in the race for the swing district (NY-22) the independent-minded Hanna is giving up in a weirdly disjointed district that slices New York in two, from Pulaski on Lake Ontario, through Rome and Utica and all the way down past Cortland to Binghampton and the Pennsylvania border. The district basically tied 49-49% both times Obama ran. Hanna won the district in 2010 from clueless Blue Dog Michael Arcuri. By 2014, the pathetic Democrats didn't bother running a candidate against him. There are 3 Republicans, 2 Democrats and a Libertarian in the race, as well as Babinec, who's running on the Independence Party. Babinec has given mostly to conservative Democrats, particularly just over $15,000 to Hillary Clinton and 11 contributions to Blue Dog congressman Scott Murphy amounting to around $17,000. Straight from Trump's rich-people hymnal: "I'm running for Congress as an independent, to be a voice for all the people who are forgotten, and if elected I will beholden to no one but the voters."

Republican Steven Wells, another rich businessman who founded a vending machine company, had already self-funded $100,000 when Babinec tossed his hat + a $1,000,000 check of his own, into the ring.

The other rich person looking for a congressional seat-- and remember, both the DCCC and the NRCC actively discourage candidates from middle class and aggressively recruit rich people-- is Kim Meyers, daughter of Dick Stack, founder of dick's Sporting Goods. She sounds like a typical Democratic Party weeny: "I'm running for Congress because we do things the right way here. But that's not what happens in Washington. There's too much partisanship. Common sense doesn't carry the day... The only way we're ever going to change anything is to elect good people, who have their heart in the right place, who are willing to work together to put jobs and families first, and have the experience to get things done for their community."

The other Democrat in the race, Dave Gordon, openly brags that he's a conservative and was planning to take on Hanna from the right before Hanna announced his retirement. The Oneida County Conservative Party, where he's a county legislator, gleefully ranks him as the most conservative lawmaker in the county. "The district constantly elects moderate Republicans," he said. "How about electing a Conservative Democrat?" That sounds like some race shaping up-- a lesser of 7 evils kind of contest! Which brings us to right-wing nut case, Assemblywoman Claudia Tenney who has an internal poll she's pushing on the media, showing her beating ex-Broome County legislator George Phillips and Wells 48-13-9%. She's better known than anyone else because she ran a crazy teabagger campaign against Hanna last cycle-- and lost in a close call for Hanna, 54-46%. The NRCC hates her and is working to sabotage her crackpot campaign but in an anti-establishment environment, their opposition could help her. The NRCC added Phillips and Wells to their Young Guns program and very ostentatiously left out Tenney. She was, however, endorsed by the New York State Conservative Party, so even if she loses the June 28 primary, she'll be in the general election. In 2014, she spent $183,284 smearing Hanna, $112,000 from her personal bank account. The NRCC is still fuming. So far she's self funded this cycle another $50,000.

Tenner told that media that she's "the only conservative Republican running for Congress in the 22nd district with a proven record of championing our conservative principles. In Congress, I will stand up to the political class and special interests to advance commonsense reforms to create economic growth, cut taxes and spending, secure the border, rebuild our military and protect our values. Like I have done in Albany, I will fight to end the failed policies in Washington that are punishing low and middle income families in New York, and driving jobs out of our country." She has an A from the NRA and has been endorsed by far right hate groups Citizens United and the Family Research Council.

The Democratic crackpot in the race, Dave Gordon has $66 cash on hand so it isn't likely that the fortunate daughter is going to have too hard a time beating him in the Democratic primary.