53rd Annual Political Action Conference
I want to first thank everyone who attended our 53rd Annual conference and made it a huge success. I am overwhelmed by the amount of support we received Sunday and Monday. I can only assume State Democrats have re-energized the party with their asinine legislation. The conference was a great start to the 2020 election cycle.
Day 1, we enjoyed a tremendous list of speakers that included consultants to the President and Vice President, leading New York policy guru’s, and a young rising star who is sure to be a force for many years to come. We gained valuable knowledge from experts who work every day to bring conservative values back to America.
Day 2, we were happy to feature Mike Pregent as our lunch speaker. A veteran of three wars, company commander in Afghanistan, foreign policy, Middle East, and terrorism expert. Mike designates terrorists for the United States, and advises decision makers how to proceed. To say he has an impressive resume is an understatement. We were honored to hear from him regarding the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and the role the United States will play going forward.
To end the conference, we presented New York State Senators Daphne Jordan, Rob Ortt, and Tom O’Mara, Assembly Members Dave DiPietro and Kieran Michael Lalor, with awards for their outstanding Conservative voting records for the 2019 legislative session.
We have more work to be done in 2020, but strongly encourage you to be part of our conference in 2021. It is truly a wonderful two days of learning, growing and networking amongst like-minded individuals with a strong interest in preserving constitutional freedoms and conservative values!
NYS Conservative Party’s Executive Committee Endorses President Trump, Vice President Pence for Re- Election
The Executive Committee of the New York State Conservative Party unanimously endorsed President Trump and Vice President Pence at the executive committee meeting held on Monday afternoon.
President Trump and Vice President Pence are keeping the promises they made to the American people, and I couldn’t be prouder to endorse them along with party leadership.
The decision was simple. Candidate Trump promised America would win again, and it has done just that. We are experiencing one of the greatest economic expansions in history with successful new trade deals, record low unemployment, and a virtual eradication of the most pernicious threats in the world, ISIS.
I was honored to speak with the President last week and discuss the future of New York State and the nation. We look forward to helping him, and Vice President Pence, win re-election in November.
Impeach Charade Drawing to a Close
As of this writing, Senate Republicans scored a big win late Thursday evening as Senator Alexander (R-TN) announced he would not be supporting additional witnesses in the impeachment trial of President Trump which Senator Alexander called “shallow, hurried, and wholly partisan.”
Republicans hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate and Alexanders decision all but ends the Democrats attempts to convene a kangaroo court at the expense of the taxpayers.
Democrats have spent over three years attempting to overturn the election results of 2016, all while President Trump has pushed forward, persevered and made America a stronger, more prosperous place to live, work and raise a family.
I look forward to the day when Democrats love this country more than they hate President Trump. Imagine what could be accomplished.
Conservative Call for Changes to State Budget Process
Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay, Assembly Members Phil Palmesano and Karl Brabenec, along with State Senator Daphne Jordan called for substantial reforms to the New York State budget process which has been significantly transformed under Governor Cuomo’s three terms in office.
“Once again, Governor Cuomo is misusing the budget process to push through radical legislation that might never see the light of day through regular legislative processes,” Senator Jordan said.
The Senator is right. There are three branches of State Government – not two – but you wouldn’t know it the way Andrew Cuomo has been running roughshod over the State Legislature.
Frankly, the fact that the Governor is pushing radical legislation by including them in the budget is constitutionally inappropriate at best.
“New York’s budget process has been hijacked to serve as a vehicle for policy initiatives that rightfully should be debated during regular legislative session,” Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay added.
The Senator, Assembly Leader, and I called for immediate consideration of two powerful legislative reform measures that would: 1) protect taxpayers against ever-escalating tax increases; 2) safeguard the traditional budget process, and 3) guarantee the proper parsing of legislative items that don’t belong in budget bills. Governor Cuomo has made folding legislative policy initiatives into budget bills to avoid debate and maximize leverage over state legislators, who only vote up or down on massive budget bills, his signature governing tactic, however is inappropriate.
The bills advocated are:
A. 6018-Barclay: An Act to set parameters for the content of budget bills, ensuring that budget negotiations are focused on financial, not policy issues, and
A. 3538-Palmesano: Creating a constitutional amendment requiring 2/3 vote for any bill that raises taxes or creates a new tax.
Additionally, Senator Jordan announced that she will be sponsoring companion bills to these measures in the State Senate in the coming weeks. Senator Jordan has already introduced a bill – S.3373 – that would amend the State Constitution to restrict the ability of the executive to make laws via the budget.
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