Saying it fits into a strategy to create green jobs, Democratic Congressional candidate Bill Owens took the media on a tour of a biomass facility in Lewis County. Though some pundits see the three-way race for the 23rd Congressional District as a referendum on the policies of Barack Obama, Owens disagrees. "What we're hearing, the people are concerned about jobs, that's what they're focused on."
Bill Owens is a lawyer who lives in Plattsburgh. He's an Air Force veteran who has served with a number of community organizations. Owens says he's committed to health care reform, job creation, veterans and agriculture.
Republicans say if Owens wins, he would be another democrat doing the bidding of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. "I'm going to vote based on what I believe to be the best interest of this district." Owens responds, "If that requires me not to vote with the leadership, that is something I would clearly do."
Owens claims to have attracted 2-thousand jobs by recruiting businesses to become part of the redevelopment of the Plattsburgh Air Force base. Republican political ads say Owens jobs record is false. When asked to respond to the republican claims, Owens told reporters, "We've been part of a process and I've always said that I helped create those jobs. We've been part of a process that brought 250 companies to the Clinton County area and created over 2-thousand jobs in the process."
According to a recent Siena college poll, Owens is leading republican Dede Scozzafava and conservative Doug Hoffman in a congressional district that has traditionally been a republican stronghold. Many say Owens lead is the result an ideological battle between Scozzafava and Hoffman that has split the republican base. Again, Owens disagrees. He says more people support him because his message is resonating with the voters.
