I first met John Tierney in 1995 when he asked if I would consider helping him in his run for Congress. I agreed and have chaired the finance committee for his successful campaigns since then. Over this time, I’ve consistently found John to be a bright, hardworking, honest fellow, and a passionate and effective representative for our District. Despite the power and glitter of the position, he’s also never changed, remaining the same down to earth guy from a modest, middleclass family.

Given what I know about John it pains me to see him attacked, and so unfairly and savagely in this campaign. I say “unfair” because the assertion that John knew of the crimes of his brothers in law and his wife’s “willful blindness” is just not true. If there was even a scintilla of evidence against him, be assured that the zealous Federal prosecutor who pursued John’s wife would have included a sitting Congressman in those indictments in a heartbeat. Furthermore, the Federal District Court Judge in Patrice Tierney’s case went so far as to state on the record that John Tierney had no involvement whatsoever in the matter. Yet John’s Republican opponent, sensing a political opportunity, has made John’s “involvement” the centerpiece of his campaign supported by a $3 million dollar nasty advertising blitz from the far right Republican “Young Guns” Super Pac of Paul Ryan and Eric Cantor.

Tierney has been a stalwart champion of working families and the middle class. He is a strong supporter of the whole range of important women's issues, especially the right to choose abortion, and has fought Republican efforts to strip Planned Parenthood of funding. Tierney has also worked diligently to ensure that the nuclear power industry is properly regulated, and is a leader in the bipartisan effort to police waste and misspending in the Afghanistan war. And Tierney is a staunch defender of gay rights and a committed advocate of marriage equality.

Tewksbury, MA – On Sunday, Congressman John Tierney (MA-6) and Congresswomen Niki Tsongas  (MA-5) campaigned together in Tewksbury, one of the towns redistricted into the district now represented by Tierney. Tierney and Tsongas talked with voters directly at their doorsteps.

They introduced themselves to people and listened to their concerns. Tierney received a positive response and identified new supporters in a neighborhood near the intersection of Main Street and Shawsheen Street.  

Peabody, MA – Tonight, Vice President Joe Biden will be debating Republican Vice Presidential nominee Paul Ryan and Richard Tisei will be clapping and nodding his head in agreement as Ryan lays out the Tea Party agenda.

Richard Tisei thinks that Paul Ryan’s plan to end Medicare's guarantee benefit is just "a good starting point."  Tisei said that he will only take money from PACs he “ideologically agrees with” and then took more then $1 million from Paul Ryan’s super PAC. After Tisei got a private briefing from Paul Ryan on his radical budget proposal, he agreed to support keeping the Republican majority in power as they advance their extreme right-wing agenda.

"Today we pause to remember those innocent people who lost their lives in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. We share the sorrow of their family, friends and communities. All across the country-including in the towns and cities of this district-people join together to honor them and all those American heroes who put themselves in harms way as they responded to the tragedy. The men and women of our armed forces, Intelligence services and civilian personnel serving this country in Afghanistan and throughout the world in response to their country's call to action are honored as well. In remembering, we express gratitude and attest to the strength and fortitude of Americans everywhere." - Congressman John Tierney

Peabody, MA – “On Labor Day we honor hard-working Americans who are the backbone of our great nation. Today is an opportunity to pay tribute to the working men and women who continue to keep our country moving forward on a daily basis. American workers deserve our thanks for their contributions to our communities here in the 6^th District and across the country.

We cannot have a vibrant economy with out a vibrant middle class. That’s why I will keep fighting to create jobs, put people back to work, and build a stronger middle class. I look forward to continuing to work with organized labor, entrepreneurs, and small businesses to accelerate our economic recovery. I am honored to have broad support from organized labor in this campaign and proud to stand with the working families of Massachusetts.”

To the editor:

I was confused last week by an essay on Medicare by Richard Tisei, published in The Daily News. He stated that Obamacare was going to reduce Medicare by $700 billion over the next decade, suggesting that Medicare will be $700 billion poorer if Obamacare proceeds in 2014, as scheduled. He also promises to vote against Obamacare if he is elected.

From what I understand, Obamacare will allow Medicare to reduce its payments to hospitals over the next 10 years by $700 billion because Obamacare will make up the difference to the hospitals. In other words, Medicare will now have $700 billion more in its assets in 10 years than it would have if Obamacare were repealed. That sounds like a good thing for Medicare.

My question is: Is the Republican candidate for Congress confused about Medicare or is he just trying to confuse the voters?

Michael Sandberg, MD

Newburyport

Recently, Congress had a simple choice to make: tax cuts for the wealthy or tax cuts for the middle class. The Republican-dominated Congress chose the wealthy.

Our country faces this choice because the Bush-era tax cuts are expiring -- that's how former President Bush and the Republican Congress set them up 10 years ago. At the time, everyone understood that we couldn't afford to extend them beyond that without exploding the federal deficit, and we can't afford to keep all of them now. So President Obama suggested a sensible compromise that helps as many Americans as possible: continue tax breaks for the middle class and allow the tax breaks on every dollar over $250,000 to expire for the ultra wealthy. This means lower taxes for 100 percent of all Americans, but for the top 2 percent a slightly higher tax on income over a quarter of a million dollars. That will save the average Massachusetts middle- class family about $2,000