Rep. McMahon Clears $1 Million in Cash on Hand
A top target of House Republicans has more than $1 million in his campaign war chest as two GOP candidates battle to take him on.Freshman Rep. Michael McMahon (D-N.Y.) is prepared to report in his year-end campaign finance report that he raised slightly less than $400,000 in the fourth quarter of 2009, bringing his total cash on hand for his re-election campaign to more than $1,016,000. Since being elected to Congress, McMahon has raised more than $1.2 million.“In these challenging economic times, raising approximately $400,000 and having over $1,000,000 eleven months before the election means that I am on track to run a successful campaign and communicate my message of fighting for jobs, improving our local transportation and easing taxes for Staten Island and Brooklyn families,— McMahon said in a statement. McMahon is one of a half-dozen Democratic House Members in the Empire State whom Republicans believe are vulnerable this year. While McMahon was flipping the last GOP-held district in the Empire State into the Democratic column in 2008, voters in his district gave Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) 51 percent of the vote in the White House election.McMahon has been careful to carve a moderate image in the House, voting against some key Democratic initiatives. He also endorsed New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg (I), who racked up a huge margin in his district last year, rather than the Democratic nominee. Two Republicans are vying to take McMahon on: Michael Allegretti, a one-time aide to Bloomberg whose family owns an oil services company in the district, and Mike Grimm, a businessman and former FBI agent. Allegretti reported raising $118,000 in the last three months of 2009 and $307,000 for the year overall. He had $236,000 in his campaign account at year’s end. Grimm has yet to report fundraising figures.