NOSING AROUND TOWN TO SEE WHAT’S UP

by Tony Farina

Flynn Back in Full Campaign Mode After Primary Win

John Flynn, fresh from his Democratic primary win over Acting DA Michael Flaherty earlier this month, took one day off to play golf after his narrow victory and is now back in full campaign mode to take on Republican-Conservative Joe Treanor in November. “People have been calling, the response has been tremendous,” Flynn told Artvoice this week as he moves to raise money and make his case against Treanor, a retired military lawyer who defeated Flynn in the Conservative primary but has no experience practicing law in New York.

“I respect him for his military service,” said Flynn, “but that’s not the question.  Are you qualified to be district attorney with no criminal experience in New York State? I have been a JAG officer myself for 20 years after serving eight years of active duty in the navy, but I’ve also prosecuted criminal cases in the district attorney’s office and have been a judge (Tonawanda).”

Flynn has $3,977 left in his campaign account after raising $333,099 for the year, but he says checks have been coming in since the primary and he has scheduled a fundraiser Oct. 17 at the Market Arcade in Buffalo.

Treanor’s self-funded campaign account shows $2,806 available. GOP Chairman Nick Langworthy has said publicly he may help Treanor, but that might depend on how he thinks Trump is going to run in Erie County and whether he will have enough coattail strength to help Treanor overcome the strong Democratic advantage in the county.

Treanor showed up at last Saturday’s Conservative breakfast hosted by party Chairman Ralph Lorigo, although the party endorsed Flynn before Treanor won the line in the primary.

While Langworthy and the little-known Treanor may be counting on Trump, Flynn believes county voters are interested enough to evaluate races independently and will realize he is the most qualified candidate for the job of DA.

Teachers Union Backs Small in 60th District Race

In the 60th District State Senate race, Democrat Amber Small scored a major endorsement this week that could add plenty of dollars to her campaign war chest against the well-financed Republican candidate, Chris Jacobs.

The New York United Teachers (NYSUT) with 600,000 members has endorsed Small for the important seat, which could decide which party controls the State Senate next year.

In 2014, NYSUT spent more than $1 million to elect Democrat Marc Panepinto, who is not seeking a second term.

Karen Magee, president of NYSUT, said “Amber Small’s commitment to her community, to women and public service make her the right choice to represent the 60th Senate District in Albany.”

How much money NYSUT will spend remains to be seen as she will need a truckload of campaign dollars to tackle Jacobs, who spent more than $190,000 in the GOP primary and still has $326,184 in the bank to take on Small, with plenty more on the ready from state Republicans and his own sizeable bank account.  Small currently has a balance in her campaign account of less than $17,000. Will the help she needs materialize against the overwhelming financial advantage of Jacobs? The NYSUT endorsement is a step in the right direction, but she will need that money and much more to be competitive in November, even with Democrats holding a nearly 2-to-1 enrollment advantage.

Another Hit for Solar City

More bad news for the  Buffalo Billion centerpiece this week as Fortune magazine reports that Solar City has been accused of intellectual property theft by Cogenra Solar, a wholly owned subsidiary of SuPower, and Khosla Ventures.

The suit, filed in San Francisco, alleges that Solar City gained undue advantage of Cogenra’s Shingling technology that helps in manufacturing high-efficiency commercially viable solar panels.

Solar City, the nation’s largest solar provider, is facing several lawsuits challenging Solar City’s much-needed merger with Tesla Motors, which would provide badly needed cash.

This latest lawsuit, filed by Cogenra Solar, could hardly come at a worse time for Solar City, which is also facing the loss of solar energy federal tax credits at the end of the year. And, of course, there’s also the corruption charges against members of the Buffalo Billion construction project by the U. S.  What’s next?