Leaders Who Listen: Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado Joins Hudson Valley Residents for ‘Empty-Chair’ Town Hall in Rep. Lawler’s Absence
“Leaders welcome difficult conversations and tough decisions—Congressman Lawler should take notes.” - Lieutenant Governor Antonio Delgado
SUFFERN, NEW YORK — Yesterday, some 350 Hudson Valley residents gathered at Rockland Community College for an ‘empty-chair’ town hall meeting featuring Lieutenant Governor Antonio Delgado. The event was organized by a coalition of local advocacy groups and grassroots organizations frustrated by Congressman Mike Lawler’s refusal to face his constituents at in-person events. Rep. Lawler, who did not respond to an invitation to attend, has yet to hold a single in-person town hall this year.
Indivisible Rockland, Empire State Voices, Westchester-Putnam Working Families Party Chapter, Food & Water Watch, and Citizen Action of New York organized Sunday’s event.
Some 350 Hudson Valley residents gathered for an ‘empty-chair’ town hall meeting featuring Lieutenant Governor Antonio Delgado. | CREDIT: James Moore
Lieutenant Governor Delgado sat down with Rockland County Legislator Dana Stilley for two hours, answering a host of audience-submitted questions on everything from the affordability crisis and tax fairness to Republican efforts to gut Medicare and Medicaid. Representative Mike Lawler voted for the House GOP’s budget resolution last month, which authorized committees to cut up to $2 trillion in funding from federal programs and services in order to fund vast tax breaks for corporations and the wealthy. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has found that these goals will be impossible to achieve without steep cuts to Medicare or Medicaid.
"As elected officials, we have a duty to hear directly from those we serve," said Lieutenant Governor Antonio Delgado. "If you are willing to cut lifesaving safety net programs like Medicaid and SNAP in order to pay for billionaire tax cuts, you must hold yourself accountable to the folks you are leaving behind. Leaders welcome difficult conversations and tough decisions—Congressman Lawler should take notes."
“As elected officials, we have a duty to hear directly from those we serve.” - Lieutenant Governor Antonio Delgado | CREDIT: James Moore
“We thank Lieutenant Governor Antonio Delgado for being a leader who listens,” said Pascale Jean-Gilles, Co-Chair of Indivisible Rockland. “Medicare cuts, lack of affordable housing, the environment, and rising utility prices are everyday concerns for CD 17 constituents. It is refreshing to have an elected representative bravely speak to constituents and provide thoughtful responses to our concerns. Lieutenant Governor Delgado answered with clarity and compassion, even when the facts were difficult, proving that honest leadership doesn’t shy away from hard truths.”
“The people of Westchester and the Hudson Valley are demanding accountability, yet Congressman Mike Lawler is nowhere to be found,” said Maria Martinez, Executive Director of Empire State Voices. “If he’s going to vote for legislation that threatens to cut Medicare, Medicaid, SNAP, and veterans’ services, the least he can do is meet with his constituents and justify his actions face to face. Instead, he doesn’t even have the decency to look the New Yorkers of his district in the eye as he throws their family’s health and safety into peril—all just so he can fund more tax breaks for billionaires and corporations.”
Rep. Lawler, who did not respond to an invitation to attend, has yet to hold a single in-person town hall this year. | CREDIT: James Moore
While Congressman Lawler has been happy to attend events outside of his district and around the state, his constituents in Westchester and the Hudson Valley have been unable to get him to meet with them in person. Just last week, a similar event was held across the district in Peekskill. Rep. Lawler ignored invitations to both events, instead organizing his own telephone town hall with pre-screened, mostly friendly questions.
"The people of the 17th Congressional District need and deserve a representative who is willing to listen to their constituents and act in our best interest,” said Jennifer Cabrera, Chair of the Westchester-Putnam Working Families Party. “Rep. Lawler clearly thinks that by hiding from his constituents, he can get away with voting on behalf of the billionaire class rather than the working people of the district. We are not fooled by his doublespeak, and we will not be mollified by conference calls with pre-screened questions designed to evade true accountability. If Rep. Lawler truly believes he's doing right by his constituents, he should have no problem holding in-person town halls to answer our questions and address our concerns face-to-face."
“We need elected officials that will take action on the concerns of their constituents, not abandon us like Rep. Lawler has done,” said Melissa Hoffmann, Hudson Valley Organizer with Food & Water Action. “In New York, the pressure is on to stop Trump’s 'drill, baby, drill' agenda and Republican efforts to take away protections for clean water. Leaders like Delgado, who support legislation like the NY HEAT Act and want to transition New York to renewable energy, should listen to the growing movement of people opposing new fossil fuel expansion projects like the Constitution Pipeline and Project Maple and champion efforts to protect our air, water, and climate.”
“Let’s be clear: The times we are living in require leaders not just willing to make tough choices, but to listen to the people and stand on principles of fairness, democracy, and integrity,” said Isaiah Fenichel, Lead Network Organizer for Citizen Action Hudson Valley Chapter. “While Mike Lawler continues to ignore the very people he swore an oath to represent, Lt. Governor Delgado demonstrated what it really means to be a public servant. It’s about showing up, it’s about listening to the concerns of your constituents, and it’s about finding solutions that put their needs first.”
To learn more about Empire State Voices, please reach out to press@empirestatevoices.org
###
About Empire State Voices
Empire State Voices (ESV) is a multi-year campaign dedicated to amplifying the voices of everyday working New Yorkers. ESV is fighting for economic policies that make life more affordable for constituents and holding members of Congress across the state accountable when they fail to do the same.
