Congress

WASHINGTON – Nancy Pelosi just gave Republicans another reason for celebration. The newly elected Minority Leader insisted Sunday Dems aren’t looking for a “new direction” even after the bruising Election Day defeats and a GOP monopoly in Washington. A defiant

Kirsten Gillibrand called on Washington to boost outlays to protect religious minorities from the spike in hate crimes that has followed Donald Trump’s election. via Kirsten Gillibrand Wants More Federal Funds to Protect Mosques and Synagogues — Observer

New York State’s longtime Senator Chuck Schumer (D-Brooklyn) has been elected Senate Minority Leader, making him the most powerful Democrat in America. Many influential members of the incoming Congress are pushing to amend its rule to bring back the practice of earmark

Rep. Brian Higgins (D-Buffalo) is considering a bid to unseat Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) as Minority Leader of the House Democrats, says a source close to the Congressman. Pelosi is weathering a storm of critics following a fourth consecutive loosing election for House

BY T.W. HEWITT The popular Buffalo businessman Eddie Egriu is being urged to challenge Conservative Democrat Brian Higgins, an entrenched establishment figure in local politics for nearly three decades. For the last few months operatives have whispered that Higgins is seriously considering retirement. Egriu is

Eddie Egriu, the popular Buffalo businessman who ran a spirited campaign for Congress two years ago before being removed from the ballot on contrived legal grounds, is considering another run against a lackluster incumbent with a shallow base of support. A secret

As we look forward to 2016, the election calendar dictates that it will be a big year in politics — especially for Western New York. The Presidency It’s a presidential election year, so expect turnout to be high in the general election for

Congressman Brian Higgins is at the epicenter of the United States’ National Security apparatus, with assignments to both the House Homeland Security and House Foreign Affairs committees. On Homeland Security, he is the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Intelligence and

Republican Party operative Michael Caputo, who enjoys a “public relations” contract at the Erie County Water Authority, broke a story last month that was later retracted, after a staffer from the local congressional office complained. Some say that the story was

Last month, the digital tabloid founded by the late publisher Joe Illuzzi, circulated a rumor that Congressman Brian Higgins (D-South Buffalo) is considering retirement. The current publisher of that ‘scandal sheet,’ as it is often referred, is Michael Caputo, a local political

Renee Schaeffer is a professional DC fundraiser and the founder of Schaeffer Strategies, which has been doing work for Congressman Brian Higgins. The Congressman’s relationship with the attractive female operative has begun to raise questions. On the Congressman’s behalf, Schaeffer has

March of this year Congressman Brian Higgins (D-South Buffalo) advanced a self-drafted plan to reform campaign finance laws pertaining to Congressional elections, titled “Restoring Confidence Through Smarter Campaigns Act,” (HR 1495). On its face, the bill would seem to advance

It was widely reported that County Clerk Chris Jacobs declined to run for County Executive based on the supposed strength of the incumbent’s poll numbers. That remains a point of dispute among political operatives. As the late great Steve Jobs

Governor Andrew Cuomo is being blamed for staggering Democratic Party losses in the House of Representatives. Despite the Governor fundraising upwards of $45 million for his own reelection campaign and finishing with many millions still in the bank, his beleaguered fellow

President George W. Bush signed the Energy Policy Act of 2005, creating renewable biofuel incentives that included a mandate that gasoline contains at least 10% corn-based ethanol. In 10 short years, those ethanol policies — widely considered patronage for the politically pivotal Iowa corn growers — has devastated

Out of 435 Congressional districts – district 26 is one of the worst performing

Our local Congressman, Brian Higgins, serves as the most powerful Democrat on the House Homeland Security Subcommittee that oversees the National Security Agency and the nation’s intelligence apparatus. He simultaneously serves on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and receives regular

Woman make up greater than 50% of the US population. The House of Representatives has fewer than 1 in 5 members that are female. One would expect that the League of Woman Voters whose mission is to empower and support