Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor,

I feel that it is important for me to respond to the letter-to-the-editor by Joel Gingold dated Sept. 3.

First of all, I’m confused why a letter from a resident of Croton-on-Hudson would be published in a newspaper that circulates in Rockland County. I don’t care what people in Westchester have to say. Rockland is distinctly different from Westchester with our own set of challenges.

Furthermore, Mr. Gingold’s rambling letter is filled with accusations and misstatements that are factually untrue and unfair. Let me set the record straight.

Congressman Lawler has done remarkable work for Rockland County and the rest of the residents in District 17. He has helped bring over $80 million to the district to protect clean drinking water, support the local economy, modernize sewer infrastructure, upgrade roads and bridges and bolster public safety and police. He seems to personally attend every important community function and his office has closed over 10,000 constituent cases.

Contrary to the claims by Mr. Gingold, Congressman Lawler has helped to provide tax relief to hard working, middle class families and has voted to block any cuts to social security and Medicare. He authored six bills in the first bipartisan housing affordability law in 36 years and negotiated a special provision in the new tax law that quadrupled the SALT deduction. That provision, which raised the SALT cap to $40,000 for five years with a $500,000 income cap and 1% growth,  has saved most families $4,000 this year and created a new deduction that allows most seniors to fully offset taxes on their Social Security benefits! The law also eliminated federal taxes on tips and overtime!

At a time when our government leaders in Washington, D.C., seem more divided than ever, Congressman Lawler is one of the most bipartisan members of Congress and has disagreed with President Trump on many key issues. It’s very clear to me that Congressman Lawler’s top priority is to fight for what’s best for Rockland County.

I am very proud to have Congressman Lawler represent me in Congress and I plan to vote to re-elect him on Nov. 3.

Guido Porcelli

Congers

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Editor’s Note

As Mr. Porcelli pointed out, I have been including Letters to the Editor from outside of Rockland County. These letters have all been a part of our Congressional District 17, and I have chosen to include them because I believe it is important to know what our neighbors in the same district are thinking and feeling ahead of the election. Also, I have found that these letters inspire Rocklanders to share their thoughts and feelings. As always, I encourage readers to reach out to me at editor@rocklandcountytimes.com with thoughts and feelings on anything and everything.

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Dear Editor:

At this month’s Republican Convention, Trump had followers pledge to vote as if he were on  the ballot. He had them pledge “to the greatest president in the history of the United States,  that loves us so much he can’t even breathe…” and urged them, in voting, to “cheat like hell  like they do.” (The Guardian 9/11)

You know who “they” are. Anyone who opposes his corruption and his policies. Trump is right. He’s on the ballot. Key to stopping MAGA is voting out supporter Mike Lawler. 

Lawler voted for the Big Beautiful Bill (BBB) .Many cruel cuts to social services including SNAP —which feeds hungry children—won’t be truly felt until after the November election.

Trump also said “I’ve delivered on every single promise I made.” No foreign wars? Making  things affordable? A reckless war in Iran is costing us multiple billions in military spending and  lots at the gas pumps.

Mike Lawler supported all of these MAGA policies, including the tariff frenzy. 

Lawler is so important to the MAGA agenda that Elon Musk, is pouring money in Lawler’s  campaign against Cait Conley. 

Before believing Lawler’s well-funded lies about her, check out her policies at caitconley.com.policy An AI expert, she’ll fight for regulation of AI. She does not support a  data center at Indian Point. 

Please don’t let Musk buy your vote! 

In Congress, Conley will look out for everyday people—not corporations and the ultra-rich.

Sincerely,

Barbara Lalicki

Briarcliff Manor

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Dear Editor,

YOUR MEDICARE AND SOCIAL SECURITY ARE UNDER ATTACK -… …YOU’RE GOING TO NEED A FRIEND IN THE HOUSE. 

WITH YOUR SUPPORT, THAT FRIEND WILL BE CAIT CONLEY

Without action from Congress, your Social Security retirement fund will run out of reserves in 2032, just 6 yrs. from now.

Incoming taxes will cover only 78% of scheduled retirement benefits resulting in a 22% reduction in your planned retirement payments.

Why is this happening? 

1. Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act lowered tax liability on benefits, reducing overall trust fund revenue. Lawler signed it.

2. Slower immigration growth reduces the number of active payroll contributors. Mike Lawler backs ICE.

3. Lower projected birth rates mean fewer workers paying into the system

What solutions might best protect your social security?

INCREASING REVENUES- Raising the combined employer-employee payroll tax rate- from its current 12.4% by a small %…or adjusting the current taxable maximum cap from $184,500 so high earners pay taxes on elevated earnings.

REDUCING COSTS/ADJUSTING BENEFITS – Raising the full retirement age (beyond 67) to reflect rising life expectancies…or modifying Cost of Living adjustments (COLA) and applying some form of means testing.

Where does that leave us?

Unfortunately, with false promises of financial retirement protection from our House representative, Mike Lawler and his even less credible boss, Donald Trump.

Both continue to refer to this insurance as some kind of” gifted entitlement” rather than monies you have contributed to and earned over your entire working lives.

In fact, going forward, this Administration is already actively moving toward privatization! 

Six States are currently testing new constraints on traditional Medicare thru the WISeR model, requiring prior authorization for 17 specific tradition fee-for-service Medicare procedures. They are using  private contractors, utilizing AI to screen for eligibility, with final $ compensation based on rejection rates.

End the chaos…. A vote for Cait Conley will elect someone who represents your interests and cares about seniors who deserve a well-earned and comfortable retirement.

Jay Forbes

Peekskill

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To the Editor,

On the twenty-fifth anniversary of September 11th, I find myself reflecting on what it means to be a hero and a patriot when the unthinkable happens.  And upon reflecting, my mind turned to NY 17 Congressional Candidate Cait Conley.

Cait Conley was an 11th grader at Pine Bush High School when September 11th happened.  To quote her from her 9/11 FB post, she knew that the world had changed, and that whatever happened, she wanted to serve her country to ensure we never had another 9/11.  She applied and was accepted to West Point, becoming the first in her family to graduate college.  She served six overseas tours of duty including Iraq and Afghanistan, became one of the first women to serve in Special Operations leadership, and earned three Bronze Stars.

Cait is an individual who has chosen service above all.  Similar to the fire fighters and first responders who ran into the Twin Towers to save people in distress, Cait has worked in the most dangerous places in the world to try to keep America safe.

I have had the pleasure to speak in person with Cait a few times. Her sincerity, drive and wish to be of service is palpable.  She spoke from the heart about meeting folks all around NY 17 who feel hopeless because things are too expensive, jobs are too difficult to find and keep, and being a homeowner is out of reach. Her passion about wanting to serve folks who feel hopeless was striking and made me speculate that it was similar to the drive that she felt as an 11th grader to do something after the Twin Towers fell.

In my mind I characterize Cait Conley as a “servant leader”.  When I think about who I want to represent me in Congress, she is the person I feel excited about.  If you look at her website, read her Facebook or Instagram posts, what you see there is really who she is – someone who has spent her whole adult life being of service to others.

If you have not already done so, I encourage you to learn more about Cait Conley’s run for Congress at www.caitconley.com and then vote for her this fall, either by early vote October 24-November 1 or on Election Day, November 3.  Her story is compelling and her record of service is honorable.  She will continue to be a servant leader for us all.

Sincerely,

Bettina Mayer

Croton on Hudson

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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