Here's the latest on the Remington story... hope everyone who reads this is sitting down and not eating anything they might choke on ...
Schumer pledges support for Remington
Posted by: "Jacob J. Rieper, Legislative Director"
jrieper@nysrpa.org nyrkba
Wed Jul 4, 2007 6:34 am (PST)
(Yes, it's really Independence Day and not April Fools Day.)
http://www.uticaod.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007707030328U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., pledged Monday to do everything in his power to ensure Remington Arms continued operating in Ilion.
Schumer met with residents, business owners and political leaders at the Municipal Building to discuss the county's economic development and listen to concerns from constituents.
"This is my ninth visit to Herkimer County," Schumer said. "I want to know how I can help Herkimer County. If you need certain things, let me know."
Remington Arms, a gun manufacturer, is one of the county's major employers. Since being bought by Cereberus Capital Management, many have wondered about the plant's fate.
Schumer said he would work on behalf of the company and its employees. "When I meet with the hedge funds, I'll lobby for our local companies," he said. "Tell the guys at Remington I'll keep them here. They have a friend in me."
Schumer also pledged to renew the Milk Income Loss Contract Program, which provided payments to eligible dairy farmers when the price of milk fell below a certain point, and expressed his opposition to the proposed New York Regional Interconnect power line project. Ben Gottfried, a farmer in Richfield Springs, and his wife, Kathy Muller, said they were impressed by Schumer.
"It's good to see his attention to local issues," Muller said. "He
was informed on these issues."
"We wanted to hear what he had to say on economic development,"
Gottfried said. "We're farmers, so we certainly think things are going well."
One local business owner questioned if the ideas discussed could become a reality.
"From a meeting like this, to the Senate floor, there is a long way in between the two," said Harrison J. Hummel IV, vice president of technology at Hummel's Office Plus. "I'm not cynical, but I have to be realistic. How much can be accomplished?"