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Audio Feature: This week in news for Rep. John Faso
Jan 13, 2018 11:43 am
Here's the week in the news for Rep. John Faso (R-Kinderhook), the District 19 Congressperson for the WGXC listening area. Faso returned to Washington D.C. this week where Fivethirtyeight.com currently reports Faso votes with Donald Trump's positions 85.2 percent of his votes, up slightly from last week. Click here to download or play an audio version of this report (4:31).
• Rep. John Faso (R-Kinderhook) announced on Jan. 8 three rare local public appearances, including one in Greenville on March 2. Faso will host three Veterans Resource Fairs, and his Kinderhook office confirmed to WGXC that he will be in attendance. "Unfortunately, many veterans have a difficult time getting access to the benefits that they have earned from serving their nation," said Faso. "The purpose of these fairs is to create a one-stop shop for whatever issue a veteran may have by bringing together professionals from multiple agencies and organizations, veteran service officers, and my staff.” Faso will be at the Greenville American Legion, Post 291 at 54 Maple Ave. in Greenville from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. March 2, and at the Chandler Young Veterans Association, 7 Lyon Lakes Road in Nassau from 10 a.m. to noon Jan. 20, and at the Joyce-Schirick VFW, Post 1386, 708 Easter Chester St. in Kingston from noon to 2 p.m. Feb. 9. Faso has made few public appearances since being elected, and has stopped listing any public events on his Public Schedule website page.
• The Ulster County Chamber of Commerce says Rep. John Faso will speak at the group's January Breakfast Meeting. "Faso plans to discuss his second-year agenda for improving the local business climate. He is also expected to detail the reasoning behind his vote against the recent tax reform bill," according to the group's website. The event is at 7:30 a.m. Jan. 25 at the Best Western at 503 Washington Ave. in Kingston, and reservations are required. The cheapest ticket is $25. The event is not listed on Faso's Public Schedule website, which has been blank for several months.
• Charlie Savage, Eileen Sullivan, and Nicholas Fandos report in The New York Times that Rep. John Faso voted Jan. 11 to continue to allow the National Security Agency to spy on Americans without a warrant. The vote, 256 to 164, continued an expiring law that permits the government, without a warrant, to gather communications of foreigners abroad from United States firms such as Google and AT&T — even when they are talking to Americans. The bill still needs Senate approval, which is expected, and a signature from the president. Donald Trump seemed to be both for and against the bill in tweets this week, but is expected to sign the bill. Faso released a statement explaining his vote, writing, “Our intelligence community is critical in our efforts to protect the nation from terror threats. We have made significant improvements since 9/11 in reducing the siloing of information among intelligence agencies to prevent large scale terrorist attacks.” Earlier in the day, Faso voted against an amendment to the bill that would force the NSA to obtain a court order before getting any American's personal information. Read the full story in The New York Times.
• This week on Twitter, Faso commented on New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. "@NYGovCuomo’s laughable attempt to sue the federal government will go nowhere, wastes taxpayers' money and does nothing to address the spending and high taxes in New York that have been driving families and businesses out of our state for years," his Twitter feed read on Jan. 11. "@NYGovCuomo has blown $354 million in New York taxpayer dollars on a tourism campaign over the past several years with "no tangible results". When so many people are fleeing our state, this is hardly a good usage of funds. We need to bring business back," his Twitter feed read on Jan. 9.
• Rep. John Faso (R-Kinderhook) released a statement on Twitter about President Donald Trump's racist, profane comment Jan. 11. "President Trump’s comments regarding Haiti and Africa are wrong and deeply offensive. This type of language is counterproductive and undermines the U.S. and our relations around the world." Trump said a word that cannot be said on the radio before 10 p.m. when describing that country and continent in front of other senators in the White House.
• Rep. John Faso (R-Kinderhook) announced on Jan. 8 three rare local public appearances, including one in Greenville on March 2. Faso will host three Veterans Resource Fairs, and his Kinderhook office confirmed to WGXC that he will be in attendance. "Unfortunately, many veterans have a difficult time getting access to the benefits that they have earned from serving their nation," said Faso. "The purpose of these fairs is to create a one-stop shop for whatever issue a veteran may have by bringing together professionals from multiple agencies and organizations, veteran service officers, and my staff.” Faso will be at the Greenville American Legion, Post 291 at 54 Maple Ave. in Greenville from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. March 2, and at the Chandler Young Veterans Association, 7 Lyon Lakes Road in Nassau from 10 a.m. to noon Jan. 20, and at the Joyce-Schirick VFW, Post 1386, 708 Easter Chester St. in Kingston from noon to 2 p.m. Feb. 9. Faso has made few public appearances since being elected, and has stopped listing any public events on his Public Schedule website page.
• The Ulster County Chamber of Commerce says Rep. John Faso will speak at the group's January Breakfast Meeting. "Faso plans to discuss his second-year agenda for improving the local business climate. He is also expected to detail the reasoning behind his vote against the recent tax reform bill," according to the group's website. The event is at 7:30 a.m. Jan. 25 at the Best Western at 503 Washington Ave. in Kingston, and reservations are required. The cheapest ticket is $25. The event is not listed on Faso's Public Schedule website, which has been blank for several months.
• Charlie Savage, Eileen Sullivan, and Nicholas Fandos report in The New York Times that Rep. John Faso voted Jan. 11 to continue to allow the National Security Agency to spy on Americans without a warrant. The vote, 256 to 164, continued an expiring law that permits the government, without a warrant, to gather communications of foreigners abroad from United States firms such as Google and AT&T — even when they are talking to Americans. The bill still needs Senate approval, which is expected, and a signature from the president. Donald Trump seemed to be both for and against the bill in tweets this week, but is expected to sign the bill. Faso released a statement explaining his vote, writing, “Our intelligence community is critical in our efforts to protect the nation from terror threats. We have made significant improvements since 9/11 in reducing the siloing of information among intelligence agencies to prevent large scale terrorist attacks.” Earlier in the day, Faso voted against an amendment to the bill that would force the NSA to obtain a court order before getting any American's personal information. Read the full story in The New York Times.
• This week on Twitter, Faso commented on New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. "@NYGovCuomo’s laughable attempt to sue the federal government will go nowhere, wastes taxpayers' money and does nothing to address the spending and high taxes in New York that have been driving families and businesses out of our state for years," his Twitter feed read on Jan. 11. "@NYGovCuomo has blown $354 million in New York taxpayer dollars on a tourism campaign over the past several years with "no tangible results". When so many people are fleeing our state, this is hardly a good usage of funds. We need to bring business back," his Twitter feed read on Jan. 9.
President Trump’s comments regarding Haiti and Africa are wrong and deeply offensive. This type of language is counterproductive and undermines the U.S. and our relations around the world.
— John Faso (@RepJohnFaso) January 12, 2018
• Rep. John Faso (R-Kinderhook) released a statement on Twitter about President Donald Trump's racist, profane comment Jan. 11. "President Trump’s comments regarding Haiti and Africa are wrong and deeply offensive. This type of language is counterproductive and undermines the U.S. and our relations around the world." Trump said a word that cannot be said on the radio before 10 p.m. when describing that country and continent in front of other senators in the White House.