Fox host corners Elise: Fanatic or phony?

Schenectady Gazette is sold; No Triple Crown as Belmont comes to Saratoga

Please consider supporting The Front Page with a paid subscription: HERE

Ten years ago, not long after Elise Stefanik won the Republican primary in the 21st Congressional District, a political consulting firm retained by Stefanik registered the web address "StefanikForPresident.com."

That should tell you all you need to know about the young woman's ambition.

Ambition, ego and a thirst for power are all staples of the modern political landscape, and Stefanik lacks none of them.

Elise Stefanik is no longer the same young woman she was when she came into politics. Initially, she crafted a brand as a "model moderate millennial," but with Donald Trump as president, the old Republican Party faded away.

In his Dec. 31, 2022 story, New York Times reporter Nicholas Confessore writes, "it was becoming painfully clear that (Stefanik) was the future of a Republican Party that no longer existed."

Like a chameleon, she changed right before our eyes.

We saw its beginnings here in Glens Falls the summer of 2018 when Rep. Stefanik first refused "not to lie" during her campaign, then refused to denounce supporters who were threatening a local newspaper with violence.

Confessore's reporting that her career was in crisis after the 2018 midterms.

"The young congresswoman was sick of commuting to Washington from upstate New York and weary of dialing for campaign dollars," Confessore wrote in the 2022 article. "She was demoralized that Republican primary voters had spurned so many of the women she had helped persuade to run for Congress."

With her ambition still intact, she changed.

"Instead she embarked on one of the most brazen political transformations of the Trump era. With breathtaking speed and alacrity, Ms. Stefanik remade herself into a fervent Trump apologist, adopted his over-torqued style on Twitter and embraced the conspiracy theories that animate his base, amplifying debunked allegations of dead voters casting ballots in Atlanta and unspecified "irregularities" involving voting-machine software in 2020 swing states. The future of hopeful, aspirational politics in America now assails Democrats as “the party of Socialists, illegals, criminals, Communist Truth Ministers & media stenographers.” In the process, she has rocketed from the backbench to the party’s No. 3 House leadership job, presiding over the conference’s overall messaging."

And maybe Trump's next running mate.

But we here in the 21st Congressional District know all this, so why is the question now whether she is a 100 percent fanatic or 100 percent phony.

That was the question Fox News Sunday host Shannon Bream asked when she interviewed Stefanik on Sunday. And when Bream brought up the year and a half old New York Times article, fireworks ensued.

When Rep. Elise Stefanik is challenged about a belief, about a position she has changed, about something she might have said or done, she revs her engine and talks over anyone or anything in her path.

I know, I've been there and seen it first hand.

Over the years, I've interjected, interrupted the monologue of rapid-fire talking points to interject she had not answered the question.

It didn't help.

Members of our editorial board often came away from meetings unsure of what she believed or where she stood, but perhaps that was the goal.

It was surprising Bream wanted to revisit Stefanik's shift from moderate to MAGA and even more surprising she brought up the Times article.

What was old news for me was probably news for Fox viewers.

Stefanik is used to answering question in the fast lane and as she shifted gears Sunday at Bream's show, it was Indianapolis 500 worthy.

"Elise Stefanik Blows a Fuse After Being Reminded of Sudden Trump Pivot" was the headline online for The New Republic.

Bream took over Fox News Sunday from Chris Wallace after he left the network after its lies about fake election results were exposed. She has boosted ratings for the show, especially among younger viewers.

Under a headline beneath a photo of the host and Stefanik - "Rep Stefanik on change of view in Trump" - the interview began.

Bream brought up the the New York Times article saying, "They say you called him a whack job at one and they add this, In August 2015, she told a New York radio station that he was `insulting to women' and that his candidacy would hurt the party’s efforts to attract female voters."

And they were off.

Stefanik declared it was a "disgrace" for Bream to even bring up the New York Times article because it was an attempt to "smear" her. For 20 seconds or so they talked over one another in a heated exchange.

Bream struggled to maintain the line of questioning and get Stefanik to answer the question. That is no easy task.

Stefanik pushed back against Bream and challenged the validity of the Times' reporting.

"Shannon, they’re not quoting my friends. Those names are not included because they are false smears. I was attacked Shannon," said Stefanik.

"To be fair, there are a number of names," Bream began to say.

"No Shannon, Shannon, Shannon, Shannon, no no, Shannon, let me correct you" Stefanik interjected. "Shannon, let me correct you."

Looking back at the article, there are many friends and acquaintances of Stefanik mentioned by name.

Bream ended by saying,  “Folks can go read that article for themselves."

And they should, especially if you are a voter in the 21st Congressional District.

Bream ended the interview saying, “There are plenty of names, people who went on the record and we’ll leave it there. Clearly, you’re supportive of him now.”

Later there was this headline from The Daily Mail,  "Elise Stefanik explodes at Fox News anchor and brands her a 'disgrace' as VP candidate is grilled about previously 'calling Trump a whack job'"

And this from The Daily Beast, "Stefanik Rages at Fox News Host For Bringing Up Her Past Trump Hatred."

The Times article says that "One by one, many of her oldest and closest friends have stopped speaking to Ms. Stefanik, leaving a trail of embittered final texts and emails."

That is the cost of ambition.

That is the cost of power.

That is the cost of selling your soul.

"Over dinners and group chats," Confessore wrote,  "they sometimes talk about what happened to the talented woman they once loved and respected. What really made her abandon her old political self? What had they missed?"

Perhaps, that's what Bream was trying to find out Sunday.

It's the same question voters should ask themselves.

But let me leave you with this one story from Confessore's profile:

"In truth, she had loathed Mr. Trump from the start. In August 2015, she told a New York radio station that he was “insulting to women,” and that his candidacy would hurt the party’s efforts to attract female voters. That December, at a friend’s wedding in Australia, she made Mr. Trump the butt of an elaborate rehearsal dinner toast, according to four people who attended. Whipping out a red MAGA hat, she glared at the other guests with mock suspicion, warning them not to post pictures or videos of the speech online, where they might get back to her constituents. Winding up, she placed the hat on the groom, a tech entrepreneur known for his socialist politics and friendly debates with Ms. Stefanik. Everyone laughed. (Her spokesman denied it was a MAGA hat and said the toast did not mock Mr. Trump.)

Fanatic or phony? That is the question still unanswered.

You be the judge in November.

Alito flag

Adhering to an ethics policy are important in some professions than others.

As an editor of a community newspaper, it was important for me to be as impartial as possible when it came to politics.

While I did belong to a political party - that was not against our ethics policy - it would have been unseemly to have signs supporting a political candidate in my yard, even if my wife wanted one.

We should have the same expectations for judges, especially Supreme Court justices. So when Justice Samuel Alito released a statement blaming his wife for flying an upside down American flag in the weeks after the last presidential election, it was a clear violation of the ethics policy, but since there is no ramifications for someone with a lifetime appointment, Alito just blames his wife.

He should recuse himself from any case involving the 2020 election or Donald Trump.

Gazette sold

The Daily Gazette in Schenectady is about to be sold to its current publisher, John DeAugustine.

The Hume-Lind family has owned the daily newspaper for over 100 years. Family newspapers have generally speaking been more invested in their business and not prone to the dramatic cuts other newspapers face at the hands of hedge funds and corporations.

Let's hope, the Gazette can continue its tradition of robust coverage throughout the Capital District.

No Triple Crown

Seize the Gray led wire-to-wire in the mud at Pimlico on Saturday to ensure there would be no Triple Crown winner this year.

It shouldn't matter since there should be plenty of interest in the Belmont Stakes when it is held at Saratoga on June 8.

The third jewell of the Triple Crown will be held at Saratoga the next two years while b Belmont Park is rebuilt on Long Island.

Success story

The Warren County Coalition released its report on the impact of the Winter's Dream light show at Fort William Henry this past winter.

It reported that local hotels rented 7,700 more rooms over the same period than a year earlier and that generated nearly $70,000 in more occupancy tax revenue.

The report also said that the event drove a 31 percent increase in visitors from the New York City area.

Warren County and Lake George businesses each invested $3 million to get the project going.

Ken Tingley spent more than four decades working in small community newspapers in upstate New York. Since retirement in 2020 he has written three books and is currently adapting his second book "The Last American Newspaper" into a play. He currently lives in Queensbury, N.Y.