Our Time is Now.

Election day is fast approaching and John McHugh is still unable to face reality.

In Iraq, John McHugh has said we will "have to begin to face reality" at some time in an unspecified future. McHugh continues to support the "Stay the Course" occupation of Iraq (H. RES. 861) despite the almost 3000 dead soldiers and untold scores of Iraqi dead with no real plan for victory.

In his most recent debate with Bob Johnson, McHugh tried desperately to distance himself from Bush and the National Republican Party, but the facts show McHugh voted the GOP party line 91% of the time in Congress (GOPAuctionHouse.org). Despite claiming to support the troops in his advertising McHugh again is simply out of touch with his own record:

• Rep. McHugh voted to continue awarding contracts to Halliburton even if the Pentagon's own audit processes found that more than $100 million of their contractor's costs in Iraq were unreasonable.
• Rep. McHugh opposed expanding access to the military's TRICARE health insurance program to thousands of Reservist and National Guard members, even though 20 percent of all Reservists do not have health insurance, and 40 percent of Reservists aged 19 to 35 lack health coverage.
• Rep. McHugh voted against granting a bonus to grant a $1,500 bonus to every American service member serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, including National Guard and Reserve forces. (GOPAuctionHouse.org)

Much like his neighboring Republican Rep, John Sweeney, John McHugh voted to increase the pay for Congress, while voting against increasing health care for our troops. In a simple yet devastating ad for VoteVets.org, Tomas Young - a disabled Iraq war veteran, blasts Sweeney for his votes. The ad's ending comment on Sweeney could correctly applied to McHugh as well. "John MCHUGH voted against the troops. Now vote against him."

As a veteran and a doctor Bob Johnson understands everyone needs better health care, but our troops deserve the best health care possible. These heroes, like my cousin Jim Stewart, put their lives on the line for this nation every day, and we must do everything possible to make sure they are taken care of.

"Looking at the reality of a situation should not be an afterthought, and it shouldn't be a last resort. When I take office in January, facing reality in Iraq will be the first job on my list." - Bob Johnson

In the first part of Bob Johnson's Agenda for Renewing America he will:

Create a Select Committee to investigate corruption and war profiteering in Iraq and Afghanistan: Untold billions of our tax dollars have been wasted through rampant corruption and war profiteering in Iraq. Drivers have been sent to their deaths driving empty trucks into war zones because the contracting company was being paid by the convoy instead of by the amount of cargo delivered. Our troops have bathed in water containing raw sewage because the company contracted to purify the water never did so but was paid anyway. All of this needs to stop. It's wasting our tax dollars, it's harming our foreign policy, and, worst of all, it'’s costing lives. This bill would create a committee empanelled to hold the corrupt accountable and create a contracting system in line with our American values. Incumbent Representative John McHugh, with a seat on the Armed Services Committee, was in a position to do something about this. He did nothing, in fact voting three times against the creation of a committee like this one. We must get a handle on the situation in Iraq; this bill on the first day begins that process. (JohnsonforCongress.org)

We will win on November 7 if we all work together to make sure everyone knows that Bob Johnson will provide the representation we desperately need in Washington. Though some have written off the 23rd district, the fact remains we are not being served by "our" congressman, and the time for new leadership is now. The field of competitive races expands everyday, and there is no reason we should not be added to it. With recent support from Eliot Spitzer, Senator Schumer, and President Clinton the momentum is ours.

"Once pessimistic about making gains in the Republican bastion of upstate New York, Democrats have now made the region a focal point in their campaign to retake Congress..."

"...even some Republicans privately acknowledge that the overwhelming leads held by Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, the Democratic candidate for governor, and Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton may dampen spirits among Republican voters and boost Democratic turnout across the state."

"Democratic leaders in Washington say they see an opportunity to provide additional momentum to candidates in New York who had once been considered long shots." (New York Times)

As Bob Johnson states in his TV ad "A New Direction," "You won't get new ideas from the same old crew." I strongly encourage all North Country voters to join me in supporting New Ideas, New Solutions, and a New Direction for America by sending Bob Johnson to Washington.