Don Hassig, the enigmatic Green Party candidate in the 21st Congressional District, issued a news release today encouraging voters to pick Rep. Bill Owens, D-Plattsburgh, at the polls.

Mr. Owens faces Republican Matt Doheny and, of course, Mr. Hassig.

Here's a full news release — pardon the formatting funkiness.

"I have given much thought to what is best for the 21st Congressional

District with regards to who is representing the people of this area.

There must be a transition from the representative being a person who

favors the wealthy, corporate people to the representative being a

person who favors the common people. If Matt Doheny were to be

elected to Congress, the district would have a representative who

favors the wealthy, corporate people even more than Congressman Owens

does. Thus, I believe that it is best for William Owens to continue

as the member of Congress for this area until I am able to succeed in

obtaining that office.

A recent independent poll shows a very close contest between

Congressman Owens and candidate Doheny. This is the last window that

we will have on the outcome of the election until after the close of

the polling places on November 6th. There will be no exit polls to

gauge running vote counts on Election Day. I want Congressman Owens

to win. Thus, I am setting in motion a strategy that is likely to

insure his victory on Election Day. I will vote for Congressman

Owens. I am asking my supporters to vote for Congressman Owens. I

have called key supporters and requested their assistance in spreading

the word on this strategy. I have stated my strategy to insure

victory for Congressman Owens to the news media of the 21st

Congressional District.

With such a strategy in operation I am confident that Congressman

Owens will win. This will insure that the representative does not

become one who favors the wealthy, corporate people more than is the

current situation. I want the change in representation to be

continuously in the direction of more favoring of the common people.

I believe that my influence upon the politics of the 21st

Congressional District is causing Congressman Owens himself to move in

this direction. When I take over from him in 2020, the transition

will be complete. At that time the people will have a representative

who is truly representative of them.

On November 7th, I want all of my supporters who voted for Congressman

Owens to call his district offices and share the fact that they

switched their vote to assist with his reelection. I want my

supporters who helped reelect Congressman Owens to tell him that they

want him to change his mind about fracking and become a strong

opponent of shale gas and shale oil extraction by fracking or by any

other technology. I want these voters to thank Congressman Owens for

the good work that he has done to assist Cancer Action NY in the work

of using scientific knowledge to prevent cancer in America. I want

them to express their support for his office taking further actions to

establish cancer prevention based in government provided warnings of

avoidable cancer hazards as the central strategy in the war against

cancer. I want my voters who voted for Owens to tell him that he must

become a strong opponent of the wars of aggression that our country is

waging in the Middle East. I want my voters who voted for Owens to

tell him that he must become an advocate for a ban on factory farming.

With all of this good guidance Congressman Owens will become ever

more a representative of the common people."

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