Millionaires Club

There are 535 House and Senate seats in a nation of over 300,000,000 people.

Scarcity means these pretigious seats have value for those not living paycheck to paycheck. The uber-wealthy, like NYC Michael Bloomberg, see high office as the last challenge after finances were no longer an issue in their lives.
That is why talk in the soon to vacate 23rd Congressional District centers around the monied class.
Democrats may well run lawyer Dan French, a child of the old money crowd of Thousand Islands Park on Wellesley Island, in New York's Thousand Islands region.
Word is he works part time for a Syracuse law firm and is ardent in his desire to be a Member of Congress. By marrying into the Pillsbury fortune, he is indeed a Dough Boy.
That's what it will take to win a quick six week campaign in the sprawling eleven county district.
For Republicans, it's a case of old money as Assemblyman Will Barclay of Pulaski is touted as the next John McHugh. The prep school educated Barclay was labled the "Barclay lad" by Democrats when he ran and lost the race for the 48th Senate seat. Class warfare worked for opponent Darrel Aubertine, as long as the Cape Vincent farmer had party money to match Barclay dollar for dollar in a nasty 2008 race.
Now I hear a Deutchebank millionaire with a house on Watertown's Paddock Street is promising to spend $5 million on the Congressional race.
Heck, I am the mayor and didn't know there was so much money so close in search of a mission. Frankly I would rather the guy spend his money on fixing roads, but , alas, no such luck.
Before you sit at the table to talk to the parties about their nomination, you had best bring a strong balance sheet.
That's why I chuckled when a Times reporter was sent calling local pols to see who was throwing the proverbial hat in the proverbial ring.
If I took all the money earned in a lifetime to the table,it would not be enough to be taken seriously.......
The days of the local boy made good like John McHugh are over. This race will be among two wealthy lawyers......We just have to decide which wealthy lawyer gets the prize.


JG