Press release:

Jane Corwin and Kathy Hochul are professional politicians. They are lying about me and my record. They lied about their own past history, taking credit for work done by others. 

In the real world, any employer would fire both of them for dishonesty. Sadly, their behavior is considered politics as usual. I refuse to accept it.

My morality and upbringing require me to tell the truth. My opponents have no such loyalty to the truth. We have seen politicians from both parties say one thing in campaigns and do another when elected. Jane Corwin and Kathy Hochul fit that mold.

My honesty and my reputation have enabled me to build a successful business in Western New York. They are also my qualifications for serving the people of the 26th district in the U.S. Congress. 

I will not lend my integrity and my reputation for honesty to a forum with two politicians who will say anything to get elected.

After thinking about this long and hard, I have come to a decision that I will not participate in the alleged debates. Jane Corwin and Kathy Hochul can use the television time to explain how both political parties have sent our jobs overseas and spent our nation into debt. 

I will speak directly with the voters who want and deserve honest answers. I will hold an electronic town hall on Saturday May 21st where voters can ask me any question they want and get an honest answer.  

Jane Corwin's campaign issued this response:

WILLIAMSVILLE -- Matthew Harakal, Communications Director for Jane Corwin for Congress, made the following statement this evening regarding Jack Davis' withdrawal from tomorrow's scheduled debate:

“This is exactly why Jack Davis can’t be trusted by Western New Yorkers – he backed out of the debate and he’d back out on them. Tomorrow’s debate will show a clear contrast between career politician Kathy Hochul and businesswoman Jane Corwin. Unlike Democrats Jack Davis and Kathy Hochul, Jane Corwin has never been one to back down from a fight, and you will see the type of leader she will be in Congress during tomorrow’s debate.”

Betty Zaffram celebrated her 90th birthday this afternoon with the cafeteria staff of Oakfield-Alabama Central School.

After more than 50 years of service to the school district, Betty is retiring.

She returned to work today after recuperating from surgery, just in time to celebrate her birthday with her co-workers.

Photo submitted by Bernadette Easton.

Press release:

The NYS Department of Health has issued a Certificate of Excellence to United Memorial for the Maternity Departments efforts to prevent the perinatal transmission of the Hepatitis B virus (Hep B).

A recent medical record review revealed 100-percent compliance with requirements under public health law mandating testing, reporting and recording of Hepatitis B status for all pregnant women and a minimum 90-percent birth dose rate of HBV vaccine was given to all newborns.

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Hepatitis B is a viral infection that can lead to chronic liver infections, liver failure and liver cancer. It may be transmitted through contact with body fluids from an infected person, sharing contaminated needles and from infected mother to newborn.

The Hepatitis B vaccination is recommended for all infants, older children and adolescents not previously vaccinated and adults at risk for Hepatitis B infection. The rate of infection in the United States has declined by 82 percent since 1990 when the vaccination of children for Hepatitis B was implemented.

Approximately 500 babies are delivered each year at United Memorial Medical Center in Batavia.

Members of the Genesee County Harley Owners Group were out on Route 98 recently picking up trash as part of an ongoing effort to help keep local roadways clean.

The Harley club does clean-ups four times per year.  

The group is responsible for Route 98 from the Thruway to Elba.

Pictured are Paul Ballard, Bob Aiken and Fred Devore.

Photo submitted by Frank Capuano.

A 30-year-old man is unconscious following a motocross accident at Area 51.

East Pembroke Fire Department and Mercy EMS are responding. Mercy Flight in Batavia is on ground standby.

Area 51 is located at 3500 Harloff Road.

UPDATE 6:05 p.m.: Mercy Flight is requested to the scene.

UPDATE 6:06: Mercy Flight is canceled.

UPDATE 6:45 p.m.: Howard was told by the manager of Area 51 that the man was knocked unconscious but provided no other details. This was not a fatality, but we have no further details about his condition, where he was transported or if he was transported.

James D. Qutermous, 52, of 9484 Putnam Road, Batavia, is charged with grand larceny, 4th. Qutermous is accused of accepting a $1,500 down payment to paint a house in Le Roy, and cashing the check, but never returning to start the work or return the money.

Troy Anthony Hokenson, 42, of Wood Street, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Hokenson is accused of stealing $49.11 worth of merchandise from Kmart.

There's a one-car accident at the corner of Oak and Main streets with possible injuries. The vehicle struck a tree.

UPDATE (by Howard) 1:33 p.m.: The driver apparently lost brake power, according to police, and swerved to avoid hitting another car.  The driver was transported by Mercy EMS to UMMC for evaluation, but is not believed to be injured.  City Fire Department responded, as well.

Good overview from the Buffalo News this morning on outside spending on the NY-26 race, which now includes a $250,000 television buy from congressional Democrats.

... the committee responded to the American Crossroads effort purchased $250,000 in ad time -- in addition to nearly $100,000 it quietly had steered toward Hochul's effort, a Democratic operative said. About $47,000 of that was spent on communications, research and other political help, while the Democratic committee raised $50,000 for Hochul's campaign.

That was just the beginning of the committee's fundraising effort. Robby Mook, the group's executive director, sent would-be contributors an e-mail Tuesday, saying, "We can win this race, but with Election Day just two weeks from today, we will need $150,000 by midnight tonight for urgent rapid response resources."

UPDATE: Roll Call has more, and some pretty interesting stuff, on spending in the race, especially on the Democratic side. The article indicates the DCCC was quietly helping Hochul prior to yesterday, but were trying to keep it quite so as not to alert the big GOP spenders. Now that Karl Rove's American Crossroads is in the race, Democrats are ramping up efforts. But their Super PACs are newer and not yet infused with cash. The DCCC has $8 million in debt holding it back as well.

UPDATE: More recommended reading, the Daily Caller.

Batavia resident and one-time congressional hopeful David Bellavia is planning to endorse a candidate in the NY-26, according to neoconservative magazine The Weekly Standard, and it won't be Jane Corwin.

About Jack Davis, Bellavia said:

"Jack is a veteran. Jack is a self-made man," Bellavia said. "He's a guy who will leave his factory to his workers when he dies. He's right on immigration. He's right on jobs. The issues that I disagree with Jack, I disagree with all three [candidates]. There's not one pro-life candidate in this race."

As for Kathy Hochul:

Bellavia said Hochul is a "smart, honorable, decent woman" who's had to "move left" to appeal to her party. "I do respect her and I do like her."

A few people seemed to find this afternoon a good time to fish the Tonawanda Creek.

Above is Kyle Kendall, 7, and a student at John Kennedy School, who had just caught a northern pike when I happened by, which his father, Dave, displays for him.

The GOP is apparently spoked by recent polling data indicating Jane Corwin could lose what was considered a safe Republican seat and so a group lead by former White House Chief of Staff Karl Rove is stepping in with a pledge to buy $350,000 in television advertising.

If that doesn't work, the group is prepared to dump another $300,000 into the race, according to USAToday.

"This race has become artificially competitive because liberal Democrat Jack Davis is now trying to pass himself off as a conservative while the other liberal Democrat, Katie Hochul, is benefiting from his trick," said Jonathan Collegio, communication director for American Crossroads.

"This ad buy seeks to expose the Democrat trick for what it is," Collegio said.

Rove's group, American Crossroads, is what is now known as a Super PAC -- a new kind of political action committee that doesn't have the spending limits of a traditional PAC.  Super PACs were created by the FEC in response to a Supreme Court ruling that determined corporations were persons and their political contributions couldn't be capped.

Meanwhile, CNN reports that congressional Democrats are finally about to jump in the race, having raised $100,000 on behalf of Hochul.

Democrats are accusing the GOP of being in full panic mode.

UPDATE 9:45 p.m.: According to Roll Call, Jack Davis has loaned his campaign another $500,000, bringing his personal investment in his election bid up to $2.1 million.

Amy Showler was doing a little spring cleaning in her apartment on Pearl Street this afternoon. She had just returned from taking a few things to storage and was cleaning her kitchen with bleach, so she decided she needed to open a window in her living room.

When she went into the room, she saw flames climbing up a wall.

She tried putting the fire out with water, but that didn't work, so she found her fire extinguisher, she said.

"By then the room was filling up with smoke, but I took my extinguisher and started putting out the fire," Showler said.

About that time, Cory Paris, who has a used car dealership across the street, arrived with his own fire extinguisher and started spraying the flames on the second floor exterior from the ground.

"A young man playing in the park ran over and asked to use the phone," Paris said. "When we looked, we could see the flames coming out, so we grabbed the fire extinguishers and ran over."

"The flames were pretty big," he added.

City Fire Department responded to the call and finished putting out the blaze.

The cause of the fire has not been determined.

Showler said shortly afterward that she didn't know yet how much of her property had been burned or damaged by smoke or water.

(Initial Report)

Press release:

WILLIAMSVILLE – Jane Corwin, successful businesswoman and candidate for New York’s 26th Congressional District, today signed a written pledge to Western New York taxpayers to fight against any tax increase on Western New York working families and small businesses. Corwin was joined for the signing by Ogden Supervisor Gay H. Lenhard, who understands the effect high taxes have on the welfare of the community.

Corwin signed the “Taxpayer Protection Pledge,” sponsored by Americans for Tax Reform, a nonprofit organization committed to fighting for lower tax rates and reforming our tax code. As a signer of the pledge, Corwin committed to opposing “any and all efforts to increase the marginal income tax rates for individuals and/or businesses.” Additionally, Corwin pledged to “oppose any net reduction or elimination of deductions and credits, unless matched dollar for dollar by further reducing tax rates.”

“Just last week it was announced that our unemployment rate rose to 9 percent, and the last thing we want to do in a struggling economy is raise taxes on the job creators that will lead our economic recovery,” Corwin said. “As someone who has helped run a small business in Western New York, I know firsthand the devastating effect high taxes have on a small business’ ability to grow and create jobs. Washington has a spending problem, not a revenue problem, and if honored to be Western New York’s next representative in Washington I will fight to fundamentally reform our tax code to allow hardworking taxpayers to keep more of what they earn and small businesses to invest in themselves and create jobs,”

Corwin gained her firsthand perspective of the detrimental effect of high tax rates while working in the private sector. Corwin helped grow her family’s company – The Talking Phone Book – to more than 700 employees.

“Democrats Jack Davis and Kathy Hochul think that raising taxes on job creators is the way to grow our economy but they just don’t get it,” Corwin added. “Shrinking government and growing the private sector is the only way we can plan for long term prosperity, and that all begins with making our tax code more competitive so Western New York families can keep more of their hard-earned money and our region’s small businesses can compete on a level playing field so they can grow and create jobs.”

As a result of her legislative efforts to reduce taxes and make Western New York a more economic friendly environment, Corwin received a perfect 100 percent rating from Unshackle Upstate, a pro-growth, pro-jobs reform organization.

Press release:

Today, American Crossroads, Karl Rove’s super-PAC funded by anonymous deep-pocket donors purchased $650,000 of television air time, and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee launched an effort to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars to spend in NY-26.  Both groups seek to influence the special election and defeat Jack Davis in the special election on May 24th.

Jack Davis issued this statement:

This is further evidence - if any were needed - that Jane Corwin is owned by Karl Rove, Washington lobbyists and Wall Street bankers. It's no coincidence that John Boehner travelled to Wall Street yesterday after appearing with Corwin. Jane Corwin could pay for her own campaign, but she'd rather have the special interests she's working for pick up the tab. 

As far as Kathy Hochul, her own disclosure report shows she has taken thousands of dollars from bankers, lawyers and Democratic insiders. Today, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which claims it is not involved, sent out a nationwide "emergency email" trying to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars to pour into this race. 

Kathy Hochul will be ordered around by Nancy Pelosi and Wall Street, just as Jane Corwin will be ordered around by John Boehner and Wall Street.  I will take my orders from you. I have not taken any money from the special interests that have shipped our jobs overseas.

I have not taken one penny from any special interest, political party, lobbyist or influence peddler. It is clear who is on the side of the people of this district and who is on the side of the special interests.

A single-engine airplane apparently reported electrical trouble and was planning on making an emergency landing at the Genesee County Airport.

The original call gave the plane a 10 minute ETA.

Within minutes of the Town of Batavia Fire Department being dispatched, an airport official called in and said the plane made a safe landing.

All Batavia units were put back in service.

The cause of a trailer fire in Darien last night remains under investigation by the Sheriff's Office.

The fire was reported at 9:06 p.m. at 11198 Tinkham Road.

The trailer was owned by Charles Flagg and used for storage. The total loss from the blaze is estimated to be less than $1,000.

Flagg recently made news by planting more than one thousand lawn signs supporting Jack Davis for Congress on his property.

While the cause of the fire has not been determined, there's no indication the fire and his political support of Davis are connected.

There were no injuries reported.

The Darien Volunteer Fire Department responded quickly and extinguished the fire.

A fire in an upstairs apartment is reported at 107 Pearl St. City of Batavia Fire Department is responding. Medics, too.

UPDATE 12:50 p.m.: City command reports fire is knocked down. They are checking for "extensions" of the fire.