Roundup: Two races for U.S. Senate

Schumer-Townsend

New York’s senior senator, Chuck Schumer, is running for his third six-year term this November. The Democrat from Brooklyn is being challenged by Republican Jay Townsend, who lives upstate in Cornwall-on-Hudson.

Schumer, who was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 1998, began his political career in the New York State Assembly in 1974 when he was 23 years old. He was a supporter of the federal economic recovery package, which he says will create 200,000 in New York alone. He also has successfully fought for the passage of a $2,500 college tax-credit to help middle-class families. 

Townsend said he is running because of his disgust with the course of the nation and the decline of New York. Federal spending is out of control, he says, and the next generation could be saddled with a national deficit of $13 billion. He says that the federal government must learn to live within its means and that the growth of the national budget should be less than the rate of inflation.

The health care reform passed earlier this year will raise taxes on those who can least afford it, Townsend said, criticizing Schumer for voting in favor of the bill. Townsend said it will actually prevent people from having access to quality health care, and if elected said he will seek to repeal the bill.

Schumer has secured $11 billion in emergency Medicaid assistance for New York state, and said he is working with the Obama administration to make sure the health care bill is implemented in a way so more American can afford good, quality care.

Locally, Schumer has called on the Federal Emergency Management Agency to review its newly implemented flood maps on Long Island.

The 59-year-old Schumer is married with two daughters. Townsend, 56, is founder of the Hudson Valley-based Townsend Group, a market research and consulting firm that provides advertising and consulting services to companies and public figures. He is married with three sons. 

Gillibrand-DioGuardi

Kirsten Gillibrand, New York State’s junior senator, was appointed two years ago after Hillary Clinton was named U.S. Secretary of State. Gillibrand, a Democrat from upstate New York, is facing off against Republican Joe DioGuardi for the remaining two years of Clinton’s term.

Since taking office, Gillibrand said she has traveled across the state from Long Island to Buffalo to learn about the issues facing New Yorkers.

DioGuardi is a certified public accountant from Westchester. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1985 to 1989. He topped challengers David Malpass and Bruce Blakeman in the September primary to challenge Gillibrand. 

There is a lack of fiscal responsibility in Washington, D.C., DioGuardi says, which is why he is running for Senate. He said he wants to finish the job he began in 1985 and said the levels of federal debt have put the country in serious financial jeopardy. Social Security and Medicare are underfunded by $45 trillion, he says, and wants to pass legislation requiring a balance budget.

DioGuardi also supports 12-year term limits for senators and representatives.

Gillibrand says her top priority is creating jobs in New York, and wrote legislation that would give tax breaks to companies for new hires. She said she is also fighting for the state to receive a fair share of federal money to replace New York’s aging infrastructure, including roads, bridges and public transportation.

She said that health care is a right, not a privilege, and said the reform bill will expand health care access to millions of Americans. Also, she said it will lower prescription drug costs for seniors, and make health care more affordable for small businesses.

Gillibrand, 43, is married with two sons, and began her political career when she was elected to Congress in 2006. DioGuardi, 70, is married with two children.