Letter to the Editor:
We have a critical election coming up on November 3rd in CD-17. The race should not be Left against Right, it should be Right against Wrong. Let’s see what wrongs the MAGA agenda and the Big Beautiful Bill (BBB) have in store for us, and what we will be losing.
We know that Mike Lawler says he is a moderate, we know he is very helpful to individual constituents who have a problem and we read about his accomplishments in his newsletters, including what he has done to help CD-17.
What he does NOT tell us, and not everyone realizes, is that the damage that he has helped create by voting with the MAGA agenda will not start until January 2027, well after we have all voted. The BBB passed 218-214, and, despite many of us begging Mike Lawler to vote NO, he followed his MAGA “conscience” and voted yes. His one vote and only 2 other “no” votes could have saved us from the following. (all info from Congressional Budget Office, CBO):
$1.2 TRILLION cuts from Medicaid through 2035, in addition to a new work requirement and more confusing reporting requirements which will certainly cause many people to lose Medicaid, despite their qualifying for it. The CBO estimates there will be 13.1 million fewer Medicaid enrollees by 2035.
$211 BILLION cuts from SNAP (Supplemental NUTRITION Assistance Program), which provides low-income families with funds to put food on the table, thereby freeing up tight budgets for other basic needs, like housing and medicine.
$330 BILLION cuts from Education. If the President gets his way, we will not have a Department of Education either. An uneducated country will NOT Make America Great!
Please remember, these are just three things that will NOT go into effect until AFTER the election.
While voting to cut these vital social services, Lawler has supported the war in Iran, a war that was started illegally and which is costing us lives and untold billions. (The Constitution states that Congress has the SOLE power to formally declare war – yet the Republican Congress remains silent.)
Mike Lawler is also in favor of reopening Indian Point, a 1950-1960’s built nuclear power plant with stored radioactive material on the premises. AND it sits on 2 fault lines. Those of us who live in the area, (Croton Cortlandt Peekskill) have experienced mild to moderate quakes, but what if there was a severe quake under the older operating nuclear power plant? Could it cause equipment failure, loss of cooling, or the worst outcome, a radioactive release threatening millions in the region? (FYI, Conley is opposed to the re-opening of Indian Point.)
Believe it or not, Mike Lawler is not always truthful. Less than a week after he signed the OBBBA with all of its brutal changes to Medicaid, his July 12, 2025 newsletter stated “I was proud to speak to the Westchester Medical Center Annual Legislative Breakfast and reaffirm my commitment to protecting Medicaid…”. WHAT?! My email query of how he reconciles that statement with his voting record was unanswered.
As for affordability and the $4000 “tax cut” Mr. Lawler’s constituents will receive, who thinks that will be enough to cover medical care for you or your families? Don’t wait for your check to show up – he’s referring to the increase in the SALT deduction cap, which will help the wealthy, a portion of the middle class, but not help lower income families one iota.
Mike Lawler does not seem to understand how voting in the government works. In one of his many ads, he accused Conley of voting against the SALT tax proposal. Did he not realize she is ineligible to vote until she takes his seat? (That ad may have been removed.)
BTW, without that proposal, the Republican imposed SALT tax cap would have expired on Dec 31, 2025, and we would have gone back to NO cap on our state and local tax deductions.
In another ad, a woman working in a commercial kitchen said how pleased she was that she would no longer have to pay income taxes on her tips or overtime, thanks to Lawler. However, if Republicans stay in office, we won’t know until 2027 how much our health insurance will cost; I suspect it will be more than the money she will have saved on her income taxes. It’s a “trade” that no sensible working person would choose to make; the Republicans are essentially giving us a fish and taking away our poles and boats.
Based on Mike Lawler’s full support of MAGA and his lack of honesty, I urge all of you to look at Conley’s website (caitconley.com.policy) and read her policies. If you are undecided, I think you will be convinced that Cait Conley is the best choice for all of us. Cait will work for us, not for corporations or her own benefit, as this Administration has and continues to do.
Maria Modica-Snow
Peekskill, NY