http://www.adn.com/news/politics/elections/story/8356267p-8251767c.htmlYoung's most generous donors from Outside
CONTRIBUTIONS: Transportation earmarks make Lower 48 builders happy; they return the favor.
By LISA DEMER
Anchorage Daily News
Don Young, in his 34th year as Alaska's lone U.S. representative, has amassed one of the richest campaign accounts in Congress.
The 73-year-old Republican from Fort Yukon has more than $2 million in the bank. His Democrat challenger, Diane Benson, has raised just more than $100,000 and is spending it as fast as she brings it in.
Young, famous for his annual pig roast fundraiser at a Veco executive's home and his crab feed in Washington, D.C., has no trouble stacking up checks from Alaska to Arkansas.
In fact, road builders, doctors and others in Pine Bluff, Ark., are among the most generous donors to Young's re-election campaign. Looked at by ZIP code, the list shows that more money comes from two sections of Pine Bluff than from any ZIP code in Anchorage, Fairbanks or anywhere else in Alaska.
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Contrast Young's shameless arrogance toward average Alaskans with this report on Diane Benson's campaign.
http://www.adn.com/news/politics/elections/story/8356266p-8251756c.htmlBenson banks on grass-roots support
By LISA DEMER
Anchorage Daily News
For every dollar that Democrat Diane Benson raises in her long-shot bid to unseat Republican Rep. Don Young, the 17-term congressman brings in nearly 20.
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"We don't consider it a money race, by any shot," said her campaign manager, Kris Pierce. "We are not trying to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars. It's a different mind-set." He said the campaign had gotten contributions from more than 1,000 people and groups.
"We've had donors who have given $5," he said.
Benson knows she won't catch him, but she's been scurrying to bring in all she can during the campaign's last days. In the first 18 days of October, she raised more than $38,000. She's having regular fundraisers, including one on Oct. 15 at the Wilda Marston Theatre in which her campaign showed the film "Iraq for Sale: The War Profiteers." She's running for Congress because of the war. Her son's legs were blown off by a roadside bomb and she's calling for an exit strategy.
She's getting contributions from a mix that includes the Democratic faithful, fishermen, teachers, environmentalists and Alaska Native and American Indian groups.
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Young probably wants the hefty account to discourage challengers and be ready if one with big money jumps in, says Curtis Thayer, a former Young staff member and campaign manager.
"If you have $2 million in the bank, not too many other candidates will show up to race," Thayer said.
Please, DUers, if you have any money at all to spare, support Diane Benson in this race. Don Young does NOT represent Alaskans. He is a continual embarrassment to us, and his antics in Washington ("bridges to nowhere" among others) have given real Alaskans a bad name.
Check out Diane's website. She is the real deal.
http://www.bensonforcongress.com/
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