17. Steve Israel

In the past, we have shied away from listing LI congressmen because it’s difficult to judge one as being more powerful than any of the other four. But we believe that Israel has delivered so much for his district (even as a member of the minority) that he deserves special men- tion. He’s able to represent a mix of worldviews: military hawkishness, fiscal conservatism and social progressivism. And he helped bring about $70 million in federal funds to LI in the most recent budget.