Congressman Mike Lawler, with members of Agudath Israel
By Dan Murphy
Westchester Congressman Mike Lawler, who represents mid-northern Westchester Rockland and Putnam Counties, in the 17-District , has proposed legislation with House democrats, expressed continued support for Israel and Ukraine, and has attacked far right members of his own House republican caucus that have called for the removal of another republican Speaker.
To those of us who are independent voters in the district, and who want to see our leaders in Washington to do a little less grandstanding and get a little more work done, Lawler’s words and actions are a breath of fresh air.
Lawler has recently appeared on CNN and MSNBC to talk common sense. “For someone like me, coming from a district that voted for Joe Biden by 10 points and has 80,000 more registered democrats, I’m here to govern. The question for all of us to understand is, you aren’t going to get everything you want. You have to find compromise, and to continually block legislation does nothing to advance your cause,” said Lawler, who added that he does not agree with the tactics of fellow republican congresswoman Majorie Taylor Greene, who has called for the removal of House Speaker Mike Johnson.
“The vast majority of the (House republican) caucus supports the Speaker, and the reality is that you have to compromise. If we advance another motion to vacate (remove the Speaker), we will ensure a republican minority in 2025.
“We have a responsibility to govern. You can fight for the issues important to you all you want, and debate, but ultimately you have to advance legislation and get it across the finish line. If you don’t like it-that’s life get over it. Why throw the country into chaos? The American people elected a republican house majority to govern and to serve as a check and balance on the Biden administration, not to fight among ourselves.”
Lawler, who voted for former President Donald Trump in the recent NY Presidential Primary, reiterated his continued support for Israel. “Senator Schumer and former Speaker Pelosi are throwing Israel over the bus because there is a revolt in the base of their party. Hamas is a terrorist organization responsible for the October 7 attacks against Israel and the aftermath. They are continuing to hold hostages, including American hostages.”
“For anybody to demand a cease fire and not make it abundantly clear that any agreement must include the release of these hostages is putting politics over any other consideration. I stand by Israel.”
One of Lawler’s pieces of legislation in the House that he introduced with democratic Congressman Josh Gottheimer is the Stop Harboring Iranian Petroleum (SHIP) Act. The SHIP Act passed the House last November by a bipartisan 342 to 69 margin. It would weaken Iran’s ability to use its illegal oil sales to fund terrorist proxies across the Middle East.
“Iran is the number one state sponsor of terror in the world. For years, they have funded Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and other terrorist organizations,” said Congressman Lawler. “They backed Hamas’ barbaric October 7 attack against Israel – the largest mass murder of Jews in a single day since the Holocaust. And they fired hundreds of rockets at Israel just last weekend. All of this is made possible by the money Iran receives from its illicit oil trade – which has amounted to over $88 billion since President Biden took office.”
“Enough is enough. We must hold Iran and its backers accountable – especially China, the number one purchaser of Iranian petroleum,” said Lawler.
Key Background Information on the SHIP Act include imposing sanctions on foreign ports and refineries that process petroleum exported from Iran in violation of U.S. sanctions. It also extends primary and secondary U.S. sanctions to refineries that knowingly process petroleum originating from Iran and extends U.S. sanctions to any entity that transports, offloads, or otherwise deals in petroleum originating in Iran, including vessels engaging in ship-to-ship transfers of petroleum. These sanctions include asset freezes and visa bans.
But the US Senate has not taken up SHIP Act for four months. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee is now slated to mark up the SHIP Act’s Senate companion bill this week.
Lawler partnered with another House Democrat, Rep. Jared Moskowitz in calling on the U.S. Senate to immediately vote and pass the Stop Harboring Iranian Petroleum (SHIP) Act.
“For months, the U.S. Senate has sat on the SHIP Act and failed to pass it. After this weekend’s unprecedented attack from Iran on Israel, it’s clearer than ever that the U.S. must further sanction Iran and weaken their ability to promote terror across the Middle East. That’s a message the Senate must get behind,” said Representatives Lawler and Moskowitz.
Lawler has sponsored another piece of legislation, The Iran-China Energy Sanctions Act, which would expand sanctions to cover Chinese financial institutions that purchase petroleum products from Iran. The bill also requires an annual determination as to whether Chinese financial institutions have engaged in sanctionable conduct. The bill passed the House by a vote of 383-11.
“I’m proud to help lead and pass this bipartisan legislation with my fellow Problem Solvers Caucus member, Congressman Lawler. Our legislation holds two members of the ‘Axis of Evil’ — some of our most dangerous adversaries — Iran and China, accountable for their nefarious activities,” said Congressman Gottheimer. “After Iran’s unprecedented attack on Israel and as its regime of terror deepens ties to China, we are reminded that they cannot be trusted. Iran has directly, or through their terrorist proxies, killed hundreds of Americans and attacked our bases and our allies in the region.”
“The Iran-China Energy Sanctions Act, along with the SHIP Act we passed last November, and which is finally coming up in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee tomorrow, will kneecap Iran’s ability to export murder and instability across the region. I urge the Senate to pass them both as soon as possible,” said Lawler.
Lawler is running for reelection this November as one of a handful of congressional contests that are toss ups. Former democratic Congressman Mondaire Jones is challenging Lawler. Jones represented parts of Westchester from 2020-2022.
Lawler was elected in 2022 by only 2100 votes, in a non-presidential year. With this year’s Presidential election also on the ballot in November 2024, more turnout is expected in Westchester and in Lawler’s 17th District.
