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WGXC Congressional Report 20200302
Mar 02, 2020 12:01 am
This is WGXC's Congressional Report, tracking the votes, words, and actions of Rep. Antonio Delgado, a Democrat from Rhinebeck representing the 19th Congressional District, and Paul Tonko, a Democrat from Amsterdam from the 20th Congressional District. The Fivethirtyeight.com website reports that, so far, the first-term Congressperson Delgado votes with Donald Trump's positions 4.3 percent of the time. Since Democrats took over the House of Representatives Tonko also votes with Trump's positions 1.4 percent of the time. In the previous Congressional session, Tonko voted with Trump 22.6 percent of the time. Click here to play or download an audio version of this report.
• MidHudsonNews [dot] com is reporting the Republican committees located within the 11-county 19th Congressional District have endorsed Millbrook attorney Kyle Van De Water as their choice to challenge incumbent, Democrat Antonio Delgado. Van De Water defeated designer Ola Hawatmeh for the endorsement. “For the last two years, Congress has failed to deliver on the promises of fixed healthcare, ignored important infrastructure needs, and has overlooked our small businesses,” said Columbia County GOP Chairman Gregory Fingar. Greene County Chairman Brent Bogardus said, “As a military member, attorney, and family man, Kyle gives us the best chance at taking back this congressional seat and winning back Congress.” Van De Water was born in Rhinebeck, and grew up in Poughkeepsie. He is a U.S. Army veteran and currently a practicing attorney. He served as a Millbrook Village Trustee from 2017 and 2018. Read the full story at MidHudsonNews [dot] com.
• Ariél Zangla reports for the Daily Freeman that Rep. Antonio Delgado, a Democrat from Rhinebeck, said he still has not heard back from Environmental Protection Agency Region 2 Administrator Peter Lopez to a letter he sent on Jan. 31, asking the federal agency to set a "maximum contaminant level" for PFAS chemicals in drinking water. The toxic forever chemical PFAS has been found in drinking water in Newburgh and Hoosick Falls, and PFOS is in the drinking water in Cairo, in Greene County, all in Delgado's 19th Congressional District. "This is an issue that I'm going to continue to beat the drum on," Delgado said. "It's really unfortunate that we can't get things done here, things that we think are appropriate." Delgado is backing the PFAS Action Act, a bipartisan bill to keep water safe. But he called the lack of urgency at the EPA on the issue "deeply problematic." Read more about this story in the Daily Freeman.
• Ariél Zangla is reporting for the Daily Freeman U.S. Rep. Antonio Delgado said February 27, the country needs to make sure it has the necessary resources to protect the public's health in light of the coronavirus threat. The Rhinebeck Democrat also noted the Trump administration should make sure it does not undermine the nation's ability to tackle the issue. "I think it's important that we have the resources that we need to have a defense system and make sure that we're protecting public health," Delgado said. He said he found it "concerning" the president's proposed budget calls for significant cuts to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as approximately $25 million from public health preparedness and response allocations. The 2019 global novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, has symptoms similar to the flu and first emerged in December in Wuhan, China. This week, the CDC warned the American public to prepare for a U.S. outbreak of the disease."We have to be aggressive in terms of making sure that we're communicating with China and other countries that are being impacted to make sure that we are requiring transparency and accountability across the country and across the globe," Delgado said, "and to make sure that we are incredibly forthcoming when it comes to the impacts that are on the ground." Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.
• It is not too often that the Hudson Valley delegation in the U.S. House of Representatives votes together, as Republican Elise Stefanik rarely agrees with Democrats Antonio Delgado, Paul Tonko, and Sean Maloney. But on Feb. 26, they all voted for the Emmett Till Antilynching Act. The bill would, if approved, make lynching a federal hate crime for the first time. The House vote was 410 to 4. The Senate passed a version of the bill last year. The bills will be reconciled, then sent to President Donald Trump, who is expected to sign the measure.
• Mid-Hudson News reports that Rep. Antonio Delgado will run for re-election in November. The first-term Democrat from Rhinebeck has yet to make a formal announcement, but said Feb. 26 that, “My focus is just making sure that I keep doing the work. When I am home I am talking about the issues. I’m learning from the constituents. I’m focusing on the needs on the ground and I have to be relentless in that regard, whether it’s broadband, whether it’s PFAS contamination, whether it’s helping develop our workforce, whether it’s tackling climate change." Delgado, who beat incumbent Republican John Faso in 2018, has several announced opponents. Republican Millbrook attorney Kyle Van De Water and Republican fashion designer Ola Hawatmeh are running in a primary election later this spring, and Green Party candidate Steve Greenfield, from New Paltz, is also running for the 19th Congressional District seat. Read more about this story at the Mid-Hudson News website.
• Paul Tonko does list any public events this week on his website. Antonio Delgado lists public appearances on his website only if his staff organizes the events, and he currently does not have any listed.
• MidHudsonNews [dot] com is reporting the Republican committees located within the 11-county 19th Congressional District have endorsed Millbrook attorney Kyle Van De Water as their choice to challenge incumbent, Democrat Antonio Delgado. Van De Water defeated designer Ola Hawatmeh for the endorsement. “For the last two years, Congress has failed to deliver on the promises of fixed healthcare, ignored important infrastructure needs, and has overlooked our small businesses,” said Columbia County GOP Chairman Gregory Fingar. Greene County Chairman Brent Bogardus said, “As a military member, attorney, and family man, Kyle gives us the best chance at taking back this congressional seat and winning back Congress.” Van De Water was born in Rhinebeck, and grew up in Poughkeepsie. He is a U.S. Army veteran and currently a practicing attorney. He served as a Millbrook Village Trustee from 2017 and 2018. Read the full story at MidHudsonNews [dot] com.
• Ariél Zangla reports for the Daily Freeman that Rep. Antonio Delgado, a Democrat from Rhinebeck, said he still has not heard back from Environmental Protection Agency Region 2 Administrator Peter Lopez to a letter he sent on Jan. 31, asking the federal agency to set a "maximum contaminant level" for PFAS chemicals in drinking water. The toxic forever chemical PFAS has been found in drinking water in Newburgh and Hoosick Falls, and PFOS is in the drinking water in Cairo, in Greene County, all in Delgado's 19th Congressional District. "This is an issue that I'm going to continue to beat the drum on," Delgado said. "It's really unfortunate that we can't get things done here, things that we think are appropriate." Delgado is backing the PFAS Action Act, a bipartisan bill to keep water safe. But he called the lack of urgency at the EPA on the issue "deeply problematic." Read more about this story in the Daily Freeman.
• Ariél Zangla is reporting for the Daily Freeman U.S. Rep. Antonio Delgado said February 27, the country needs to make sure it has the necessary resources to protect the public's health in light of the coronavirus threat. The Rhinebeck Democrat also noted the Trump administration should make sure it does not undermine the nation's ability to tackle the issue. "I think it's important that we have the resources that we need to have a defense system and make sure that we're protecting public health," Delgado said. He said he found it "concerning" the president's proposed budget calls for significant cuts to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as approximately $25 million from public health preparedness and response allocations. The 2019 global novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, has symptoms similar to the flu and first emerged in December in Wuhan, China. This week, the CDC warned the American public to prepare for a U.S. outbreak of the disease."We have to be aggressive in terms of making sure that we're communicating with China and other countries that are being impacted to make sure that we are requiring transparency and accountability across the country and across the globe," Delgado said, "and to make sure that we are incredibly forthcoming when it comes to the impacts that are on the ground." Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.
• It is not too often that the Hudson Valley delegation in the U.S. House of Representatives votes together, as Republican Elise Stefanik rarely agrees with Democrats Antonio Delgado, Paul Tonko, and Sean Maloney. But on Feb. 26, they all voted for the Emmett Till Antilynching Act. The bill would, if approved, make lynching a federal hate crime for the first time. The House vote was 410 to 4. The Senate passed a version of the bill last year. The bills will be reconciled, then sent to President Donald Trump, who is expected to sign the measure.
• Mid-Hudson News reports that Rep. Antonio Delgado will run for re-election in November. The first-term Democrat from Rhinebeck has yet to make a formal announcement, but said Feb. 26 that, “My focus is just making sure that I keep doing the work. When I am home I am talking about the issues. I’m learning from the constituents. I’m focusing on the needs on the ground and I have to be relentless in that regard, whether it’s broadband, whether it’s PFAS contamination, whether it’s helping develop our workforce, whether it’s tackling climate change." Delgado, who beat incumbent Republican John Faso in 2018, has several announced opponents. Republican Millbrook attorney Kyle Van De Water and Republican fashion designer Ola Hawatmeh are running in a primary election later this spring, and Green Party candidate Steve Greenfield, from New Paltz, is also running for the 19th Congressional District seat. Read more about this story at the Mid-Hudson News website.
• Paul Tonko does list any public events this week on his website. Antonio Delgado lists public appearances on his website only if his staff organizes the events, and he currently does not have any listed.