The Fighting 29th

All about New York's 29th Congressional District

A reader was granted an audience with  Randy Kuhl at a recent town hall meeting.  Here are some excerpts from his report:

I brought my 3 mailers. You had to sign in with the watchdogs and they escorted you back to a conference room where he was sitting. I asked him about NCLB, the tax rebate and why he sends out the mailers. I didn't bring a recorder, so I can't give you any direct quotes, which was the whole point of the format as anyone could see.

The wait was between 25 and 35 minutes. I didn't see him until 10 mins. after he was supposed to leave and he spoke to me for 20 full minutes. At 10 - 15 minutes a piece, he saw less than 10 people including me.

Kuhl was actually well spoken. I was obviously not a supporter, but he was able to talk a good game. Very slick, he blinded me a little with bullshit.

Somehow we got onto the format of these one-on-one meetings and he got a little red-faced about how others might not let me speak and would be shouting me down if this was a regular open format. I wasn't quick enough to say something to the effect of it is their right to freedom of speech and that I'd rather that sort of thing not be limited. I also should have asked what he would have done if there were 5 or 10 more people out there waiting their turn to speak to him and they couldn't.

NCLB: he said there needs to be changes. He wasn't specific.

Taxes: Some of the money is going to help small businesses. Basic supply-side economics stuff. I told him I was going to put it into a savings account and not spend it, and he didn't disagree with me.

Mailers: Basic "I need to get information out to people who might not hear about it" answer. Seniors for example might not have heard about some of the regulations with the rebates..

Thanks for the report.  Anyone else who attended is welcome to send their view for publication or background.