By JIMMY THE SAINT
In a race rated to watch because the demographics seemingly allow for a shift in either direction, Lee Zeldin deserves re-election. Elected in 2014 as New York’s 1st congressional district member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Zeldin has served his constituency well in his first term.
An attorney who previously worked for the prestigious Manhattan/Long Island criminal defense and litigation firm Raiser and Kenniff, Zeldin is also a Major in the U.S. Army Reserve. He previously served as a Second Lieutenant with Military Intelligence, was a federal prosecutor in the 82nd Airborne Division, and was a member of the New York State Senate.
Zeldin, who is currently the only Jewish member of the House of Representatives, has brought his military and legal experience to Congress, generating smart results. He has been active in his congressional role, sponsoring a wide range of bills including: the Counterterrorism Screening and Assistance Act of 2016, a bill To authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to make grants to State and local entities to carry out peer-to-peer mental health programs, the Protect America Act of 2015, legislation to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for the non-application of Medicare competitive acquisition rates to complex rehabilitative wheelchairs and accessories, and a bill to improve the provision of adult day health care services for veterans.
A member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee, and Terrorism, Nonproliferation and Trade Subcommittee, Zeldin is recognized as a leading proponent for the necessity to identify and abolish the terrorist threat of ISIS and other highly dangerous organizations. He has vowed to remediate the Iran Nuclear Deal debacle.
Also a top advocate to grow our economy, Zeldin states that he “voted against Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) and opposes the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) in order to improve the negotiation of trade agreements to better fight for American companies, and most importantly, the American worker. Trade is an important engine of the American economy and can be strengthened.”
He further advises that he is a “strong supporter of the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act (H.R. 427), which has passed the House to stop executive overreach, including burdensome and unnecessary bureaucratic red tape.” And he says he is an “advocate of a much needed simplification of our tax code to allow more Americans to pay their taxes on a form as simple as a postcard.”
His Democrat rival, Anna Throne-Holst, who formerly worked at the U.N. Department of Peacekeeping and has served as the Southhampton Town Supervisor, offers no worthwhile reason why she should unseat Zeldin, minus stakes to liberal positions which would only serve to damage the first district’s constituency. As an effort to articulate her position for “gun control,” Holst uttered:
“Unfortunately, Lee Zeldin votes right down the line with the NRA, refusing to even expand background checks to all commercial gun sales. Lee Zeldin is the only member of the Long Island congressional delegation who refused to support the no-nonsense legislation to prevent suspects on the terrorist watch list from purchasing firearms.”
The past U.N. Department of Peacekeeping worker doesn’t seem to understand – or care about – the Second Amendment. Zeldin, however, does.
Holst boldly shouts that she is “pro-choice and thinks women should be able to make health care decisions in consultation with their doctor and without government intrusion.” And she brags that she “is endorsed by Emily’s List, one of the nation’s leading pro-choice advocacy groups.”
She mocks Zeldin for “trying to take away a woman’s right to choose and attacking Planned Parenthood.” Holst specifically attempts to knock Zeldin by frothing at the mouth with:
“Lee Zeldin has voted repeatedly to defund Planned Parenthood, taking away their ability to provide critical and affordable health and pregnancy prevention care for families and young adults who otherwise do not have affordable care options. Lee Zeldin supports letting employers deny women access to birth control, he supports outlawing some of the most effective forms of contraception, and Lee Zeldin even co-sponsored a national abortion ban.”
Holst’s “denouncement” is all the more reason why Empire State News is endorsing Lee Zeldin for New York’s 1st Congressional District post.
COMMENTS DISABLED BY SITE.
YOU MAY, HOWEVER, COMMENT THROUGH FACEBOOK.