newyorkstateflag.jpg(Please welcome Blue America candidates Eric Massa, Dan Maffei and Jon Powers in the comments — jh)

In 2002, when the Republicans looked at Rochester, New York’s third largest city — with a population of around 200,000 — they were eager to make sure it’s Democratic propensities stayed within its own boundaries and didn’t effect the rest of mostly suburban Monroe County (whose population at the time was around 750,000), let alone the Greater Rochester Metropolitan Area, which also includes parts of Genesee, Livingston, Ontario, Orleans and Wayne counties.

The area is outrageously gerrymandered (NY-28), to connect downtown Rochester to downtown Buffalo in a snake-looking district that manages to encompass almost every person of color in Western New York. It’s overwhelmingly Democratic (Bush managed to get 35% and 36% of the vote here) and it left the area with 3 sure GOP districts, the 25th, 26th and 29th.

Today we’re here to talk with the three progressive Democrats who are hoisting the Republican plan on its own petard. After November there will be no Republican districts left in Western New York.

You don’t want to be Tom Cole, the hapless chairman of the RNCC — and not just because of the goofy expression he can never wipe off this face. Cole brazenly promised to help New York State Republicans reclaim the three upstate districts the GOP lost in 2006. (Pennsylvania provided 4 freshmen to NY’s 3 but two of the Pennsylvanian’s — Carney and Altmire — frequently vote with the GOP on substantive matters, so I’m still giving New York the cake, where all 3 — John Hall, Mike Arcuri and Kirsten Gillibrand — have been loyal Democrats.) Anyway, Cole took off like a bat out of hell after the 3 New York districts.

Now he’s trying to sell the candidate slots to high bidding self-funders and whining to the press that the near bankruptcy he’s brought the NRCC to make "it more difficult to have offensive opportunities when you have to defend what you have.” In other words, John, Mike and Kirsten won’t have to worry about NRCC money coming into the district just whatever the local wingnuts manage to scrape together in desperation for some fifth tier "candidate."

Instead, the NRCC will be deciding if they will try to save Randy Kuhl or Tom Reynolds, James Walsh already having raised the white flag in despair and marched off the battlefield. In barely matters what the NRCC does at this point. Their incumbents are tied to the hated Bush-Cheney policies they both assiduously rubber-stamped and each faces an outstanding challenger.

In fact, all three of these men have already been guests at Blue America and I urge you to go through our latest discussions with them (at the links on their names) before they join us here today for a little catch-up.

Now the odds-on favorite to win the 25th, east of Rochester, is Dan Maffei who came within 4,000 votes of winning on his first try against the now departed Walsh. Eric Massa was a Blue America fave in 2006 and he came 6,000 votes shy; he’s way better known now than he was then — and many voters in the district see he’s been correct on everything he said in the 2006 campaign. Jon Powers didn’t run in 2006. Having come back from running a sector of Baghdad as a U.S. Army captain, he was busy running War Kids Relief in Washington at the time. But he’s home in the Buffalo suburbs now and will likely finish off what local Democrats started 2 years ago when they came within about 7,000 votes of knocking off Tom Reynolds, then the Foley-tainted head of the NRCC.

You can help Eric Massa, Dan Maffei and Jon Powers at our Blue America page.

And keep in mind that these three districts are all significantly reached by the relatively inexpensive Rochester media market (more petard hoist), so think about also making a donation to our PAC today, which will allow us to do some independent expenditures on three of our favorite candidates (for the price of one). And while you’re considering making a donation, take a look at this short video clip from the one first-time candidate of the three future members of Congress:

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