Owens campaign pushes back against "under the radar" image
I reached out to the Bill Owens campaign this week to find out where the Plattsburgh attorney — and newly minted Democratic candidate — had gone.
We had tried to reach his campaign, tried to gather information from the Owens website, and wanted to attend a political event with Owens over the Labor Day weekend.
No luck.
The Associated Press also reported that Owens had declined to be interviewed. Here’s the AP’s treatment:
Owens didn’t respond to requests over two days for an interview. His staff said he wasn’t available.
Curious in a politician who’s scrambling to create a political brand across a vast House district — the biggest East of the Mississippi.
When I raised the question, I got a couple of emails from a Democratic official with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, who sent a link to a video of Owens appearing in Massena.
Turns out Owens was on the stump, after all.
The same party official also pointed out that Owens is using the same team that Scott Murphy used successfully in the 20th House district race. That’s pretty big news.
Finally, Owens spokesman Brad Katz sent this statement:
“Bill has been busy talking to voters about his experience creating jobs and bringing economic development to the region.
Those efforts will continue through out the course of this campaign and are sure to ramp up once the seat is officially vacated and an election date is set.”
Obviously, the timing and rhythm of this race is peculiar. Rep. John McHugh is still in the seat and won’t move on until he’s confirmed as Army Secretary.
And Owens gets a big news-cycle boost from his event with Vice President Joe Biden today in Syracuse.
But as a brand new candidate who never even registered with the Democratic Party before, Owens will need every hour to introduce himself to the region’s far-flung communities.
