Roundup: Neal trouncing challengers in money race; Herr, Lamb trade charges

Continuing their look at the finances of candidates for Congress in Central Massachusetts, the Telegram reported Wednesday that Rep. Richard Neal (D-Springfield) had nearly $3 million in his bank account at the end of the most recent filing period, far outpacing the two Republicans vying for the nomination to oppose him in November.

According to Federal Election Commision reports, Jay Fleitman (R-Northampton) had a little over $54,000 remaining, putting the physician at a 48-to-1 disadvantage to Neal. Tom Wesley (R-Hopedale) had even less money to spend, reporting under $27,000 in available cash. The sum is more than 111 times less than Neal has banked.

Both candidates have heavily self-financed, with Fleitman loaning his campaign over $73,000 and Wesley lending around $33,000 to his effort.

One of the best ways to cope with a lack of funds is through free media, and both Fleitman and Wesley have taken advantage of the opportunities over the last few days. On Tuesday, the two appeared on Channel 22 in Springfield for a televised debate.

Wesley appeared on WHYN-AM Radio in Springfield to talk about his campaign.

Fleitman also did a radio gig, speaking with Bax and O'Brien on WAQY-FM.

The Springfield Republican previewed the race between Fleitman and Wesley, anointing Fleitman as the "higher profile" candidate.

Neal visited manufacturing facilities in Webster and Spencer, talking to employees and entrepreneurs about jobs and international competition.

Third Congressional District
The big news in the Third District was also about campaign finance, but instead of discussing how much was raised, two of the GOP candidates for the nomination were sniping back and forth about House ethics and FEC rules violations. From the MetroWest Daily News:

With less than a week before the primary, two Republicans in the 3rd Congressional District race exchanged broadsides yesterday, accusing each other with not following election rules.


The dispute between Brian Herr of Hopkinton and Marty Lamb of Holliston stems from Herr's failure to meet a May deadline for turning in a financial disclosure form listing personal income, assets and liabilities. The snag was first publicized by the Daily News, not Lamb's campaign.

The dispute has devolved into a nice bit of schoolyard taunting:

"I am very disappointed that Mr. Herr would blatantly attempt to mislead voters, but it seems to be a pattern with him," Lamb spokesman Shane Hayes said in the statement.

Herr said his campaign would not have mentioned the filings had Lamb not repeatedly raised the tardy financial disclosure form.

"The issue here is people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw rocks," he said.

The Telegram and Worcester Magazine have more. CMassPolitics.com posted both Herr's and Lamb's press releases on Wednesday.

One candidate who hopes the voters send both candidates to detention is Michael Stopa (R-Holliston). Stopa has been making the rounds on local radio, touting his platform yesterday on WCRN-AM's Peter Blute Show and speaking this morning with WTAG's Jim Polito.

Fifth Congressional District
The Lowell Sun rounds up the voting records of the four Republican candidates for the seat currently held by Niki Tsongas (D-Lowell). While earlier coverage had focused on Jon Golnik (R-Carlisle) and his eight-and-a-half year refusal to even register to vote, the Sun's piece points out that most of the other candidates also have their gaps:

...Westford's Tom Weaver was the only one of the four Republican candidates to vote in the October 2007 special election that sent Tsongas to Congress to replace former U.S. Rep. Marty Meehan, who resigned to become chancellor of UMass Lowell.

"I think your public history matters, and that's comprised of voting record, community service and involvement and where you've worked," Weaver said. "People have to put whatever weight they feel is important on that, but I've been saying, tongue-in-cheek, that I'm the only candidate who has been running against Niki Tsongas since 2007."

Golnik, Sam Meas of Haverhill and Robert Shapiro of Andover all failed to vote in that special election that gave Tsongas her first electoral victory by just 6 percentage points over Republican Jim Ogonowski of Dracut.

Tsongas is scheduled to be a guest on Channel 5's "On the Record" Sunday morning. Portions of the interview have been made available online. 
 
First Congressional District
Rep. John Olver (D-Amherst) touted the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act in a visit to North Adams, saying the economy needs more stimulus spending in the near future to continue recovery.
 
A post on the liberal site Firedoglake.com touts Michael Engel (U-Southampton) as a "True Activist Progressive Leftist" and says he "is a true grassroots reformer, a democratic socialist in the mold of Bernie Sanders."

Congressional Roundup: Niki Tsongas? "Voters hate her."

The four Republicans running for the chance to defeat Fifth Congressional District Rep. Niki Tsongas attacked her repeatedly in a debate in Methuen Monday night. From the Lowell Sun:

METHUEN -- The four Republican candidates running for 5th Congressional District didn't do much to put distance between themselves during a debate last night....

"Voters hate her," said candidate Robert Shapiro of Andover during a debate last night hosted by the Eagle-Tribune of Lawrence. "I think any one of the four of us has a decent shot."

Along with Shapiro, candidates Jon Golnik of Carlisle, Sam Meas of Haverhill and Tom Weaver of Westford tried to set themselves apart from the competition. They agree on several issues, such as the deficit being too high, job growth being low and government spending leading to problems.

The Eagle-Tribune has more on the debate. They have also posted video of the forum on their site (although I haven't been able to get it to play).

Third Congressional District
The symbolic issue du jour led the Telegram's coverage of a Congressional forum held in Worcester yesterday. Each of the candidates who attended the taping of Charter TV's "Hank Stolz Experience" weighed in on the proposed Islamic Center a few blocks from the former site of the World Trade Center in Manhattan:

Candidate Michael P. Stopa of Holliston said he suspects terrorists would use the center to plot attacks. He said he wouldn't oppose construction if he knew the mosque would be under FBI surveillance once it opened.

“If violence is being planned, we have a right to defend ourselves,” he said this afternoon at a taping of “The Hank Stolz Experience” on Charter TV3. All five Republican candidates for the district were invited to the forum; four attended.

Brian J. Herr of Hopkinton immediately disagreed with Mr. Stopa, saying there is no need to spy on a house of worship. But Mr. Herr opposes the plan to build the Islamic center because he feels it is insensitive to 9-11 families and to people who live and work near ground zero.

Robert A. Delle of Paxton, formerly of Westboro, said he was concerned about something bigger — the growth of Islam.

MetroWest Daily News columnist Rick Holmes calls out Delle and fellow candidate Robert Chipman (R-Holliston) for their contention that Barack Obama is a secret Muslim:

Anyone who says Obama is a Muslim is either ignorant or unprincipled. Either they don't know the truth, or truth means nothing to them.

The Telegram also caught up with Herr, who has admitted to twice missing campaign finance reporting deadlines. As could be expected, the missing forms earned a slap from the McGovern campaign.

First Congressional District
John Olver (D-Amherst) joined HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan and Gov. Deval Patrick to announce a $24 million project to renovate Gardner's former Heywood-Wakefield factory into an assisted-living facility.

Congressional Roundup: GOP candidates on their own

The Sentinel and Enterprise reports today that despite Republican optimism inside the Fifth Congressional District, the National Republican Congressional Committee is not planning on spending any money to oppose Rep. Niki Tsongas (D-Lowell):

BOSTON -- The national Republican Party, eyeing a possible takeover of the U.S. House of Representatives this fall, has not been fully sold on the chances of Bay State congressional GOP candidates to tap into the Scott Brown magic.


In the 5th District, that could mean another election cycle that the Republican nominee will have to go it alone against a better-funded U.S. Rep. Niki Tsongas, who is seeking a second full term after her special election victory in 2007.

Despite the insistence that Tsongas could be vulnerable this fall, national Republicans are not yet willing to commit any resources to a race in Massachusetts still considered a reliable Democratic stronghold, even after U.S. Sen. Scott Brown's upset victory in January over Attorney General Martha Coakley.

The article discusses the chances of either Jon Golnik (R-Carlisle) or Sam Meas (R-Haverhill) to upset Tsongas. Tom Weaver (R-Westford) and Bob Shapiro (R-Andover) are relegated to the dreaded "also running" status.
 
That hasn't stopped Weaver, who took a shot across Golnik's bow with a press release calling news of Golink's eight-and-a-half year voting hiatus as a distraction and asserting that only Weaver's "resume" was strong enough to defeat Tsongas.
 
The Boston Herald looks at WTKK-FM radio host Lawrence “Huggy” Bergman, who doubles as a "campaign operative" for Meas. Bergman insists that there is no conflict of interest.
 
Meas continues to garner national recognition for the story of his emigration from Cambodia, this time in the Wall Street Journal.
 
In a post at Blue Mass Group, Tsongas uses the 90th anniversary of women's suffrage to argue for her re-election.
 
Third Congressional District
Three of the five contestants for the Republican nomination squared off in a televised debate in Hopkinton. Michael Stopa (R-Holliston), Robert Delle (R-Paxton), and Brian Herr (R-Hopkinton) differed on the size of the federal workforce and the acceptance of Race to the Top education funding. Video of the forum is available on the HCAM-TV website.
 
Rep. James McGovern (D-Worcester) visited Somerset to discuss future development possibilities on the town's waterfront.
 
Marty Lamb (R-Holliston) continues to get mileage out of his barf bag gimmick, with coverage on WCVB-TV and in the Attleboro Sun-Chronicle.

Tuesday roundup: More missing votes in MA-05

The Lawrence Eagle-Tribune followed up their weekend expose of Jon Golnik (R-Carlisle) and his eight-and-a-half year absence from the voting booth with a look at the 2007 special election won by Niki Tsongas (D-Lowell). It turns out that Golnik wasn't the only Republican in the Fifth Congressional District race who missed that ballot:

There are four Republicans campaigning against incumbent Democrat Niki Tsongas in the 5th Congressional District, but only Tom Weaver can say he voted against her in 2007....

Weaver voted for Ogonowski, but all three of his opponents in the upcoming Sept. 14 primary — Sam Meas of Haverhill, Bob Shapiro of Andover and Jon Golnik of Carlisle — did not cast ballots.

"Jon's got to answer where he was. So does Sam. So does Bob," said Weaver, a Westford resident. "I can make the statement that I've been running against Niki Tsongas since 2007 based on that. ... I cast a ballot against her. I can say it and no one else can."

The revelation could be particularly damaging to Meas, who has aggressively criticized Golnik for his voting lapse. Yesterday, Meas posted a YouTube video titled "Golnik -- A Voting Record" calling out Golnik for his absence at the polls. This afternoon, the video has been pulled from the server and replaced with another, slightly milder version.

Elsewhere...

Second Congressional District
Tom Wesley (R-Hopedale) has taken his campaign to Singapore, where he recorded his latest video update.

13th Worcester House District
The Telegram has more on the decision of Bruce Card (U-Worcester) to drop out of the race and endorse Paul Franco (R-Worcester). Red Mass Group posted the Franco press release.

Second Franklin House District
In a press release, Lee Chauvette (D-Athol) urged caution on the development of a virtual K-8 school and a proposed big box development in the district.

Third Congressional District
Finally, Marty Lamb (R-Holliston) has the solution for people sick of politics.

Friday Roundup: GOP Money Trouble

The big story today is courtesy of the Associated Press, which reports that despite a supposed anti-incumbent wave this fall, GOP challengers for Congress are trailing badly in the fundraising race. The chart from the Telegram shows the details:

(Just a note to the Telegram...while Democrats in Sterling would love to be in the Third District with Rep. Jim McGovern as depicted in the map, we're actually in Rep. John Olver's First District.)

Third Congressional District
Speaking of McGovern (D-Worcester), Worcester Magazine has a long look at the race in the Third District. It is the first time McGovern has faced an opponent in four years.

One of his potential Republican challengers, Martin Lamb (R-Holliston) is under fire for his voting record. The Telegram reports that Lamb first registered as a Republican in 2009 and voted as a Democrat in every state and federal election between 2000 and 2006. The news drew a strong reaction from challenger Brian Herr (R-Hopkinton). Previously, Lamb unveiled his "lamb chop plan" (seriously? lamb chop plan?) to save the country to the Milford Daily News.

For his part, Herr told the MetroWest Daily News that he hopes to avoid the "nasty, unproductive banter" of Capitol Hill if he is elected.

Robert Delle (R-Westborough) tells the MetroWest Daily News that "Barack Obama is a Marxist." He claims to know this because he was a "bonafide socialist" while in college.

Michael Stopa (R-Holliston) told the Holliston TAB that he decided to run because it was "a travesty" that McGovern was unopposed last cycle. Now he appears to be the moderate Republican in the crowded primary field.

Second Congressional District
Jay Fleitman (R-Northampton) came out strongly against the Wall Street Reform Act that President Obama signed last week.

Rep. Richard Neal (D-Springfield) confirmed that he is running for Ways and Means chairman. Neal also spoke to ABC News about extending unemployment benefits and allowing the Bush tax cuts to expire for people making over $250,000 per year.

Fifth Congressional District
A Wayland attorney is accusing town officials of violating the state's Open Meeting Law by not posting a meeting last November with Rep. Niki Tsongas (D-Lowell).

Speaking of openness, the Boston Globe suggests Tsongas could make it easier for constituents to find information about her earmarks.

Challengers Sam Meas (R-Haverhill) and Jon Golnik (R-Carlisle) both told the Lowell Sun that they would have voted against Wall Street reform. They were joined by candidates Robert Shapiro (R-Andover) and Thomas Weaver (R-Westford) in opposition to the extension of unemployment benefits. Tsongas voted for both bills.

Golnik told the Boston Herald that he opposes the road signs informing motorists of projects paid for by the stimulus bill.

WBUR profiled Meas, a Cambodian American who survived the Khmer Rouge as a child and came to the United States as an orphaned teen. The Lowell Sun says Meas is counting on strong support from Lowell's Cambodian community.