Here's the most important thing you have to do - Pay attention!

My money is on another outsider to take Stefanik's seat

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The hard work these next few years will be paying attention.

Every day.

Weighing the rule changes, executive actions, hirings and firings that could change the very foundation of our country.

It is happening already.

Earlier this week, the Trump transition team proposed that the new majority leader in the Senate allow Trump to use "recess appointments" to seat his cabinet.

This is more than some nuanced parliamentary action, it is a request for the U.S. Senate to default on one of its most important functions -  advise and consent - for nominated members of the president's cabinet who will be leading our government.

I suspect few of us had ever heard of a "recess appointment" before this week.

And even fewer knew it was used in the 1800s when Congress went months without meeting. That is no longer the case. Members of Congress ride in airplanes.

The nuance here was that President-Elect Trump does not want anyone to tell him what to do.

Not the people.

Not the U.S. Senate.

Trump wants the Senate to trust him to choose not only cabinet positions and ambassadorships, but the inspector generals who are the watchdogs who provide the critical oversight to guard against corruption.

This comes from a chief executive who has been reported to be choosing cabinet officials by reviewing television videos of them praising.

But it gets worse.

The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that the Trump administration has suggested it will sign an executive order creating a board of retired senior military officials to review high-ranking generals and admirals to be removed if they are deemed "unfit for leadership."

It would allow Trump to fire any general who refused to carry out an order they considered "unconstitutional," such as using the military against other Americans or shooting protesters.

Trump wants control of the military.

That seems especially clear after appointing attack-dog congressman Matt Gaetz as his attorney general.

Trump regular promised during the campaign that he would retaliate against his perceived enemies.

With Gaetz in charge of the Justice Department that definitely seems like it could happen.

We will not lose democracy in a January 6-like event, we will lose one rule change at a time.

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Praising Stefanik

Tim McNulty, a Queensbury Town Board member, praised Elise Stefanik in The Post-Star this week.

"She’s an outstanding choice for U.N. ambassador,” McNulty said. “Her background in democracy and in our government will send a strong message to the U.N. members on the direction President Trump wants to go in the U.N. We all would like to see him succeed and him putting Elise Stefanik there gives the US an opportunity to help shape some of the decisions that will be made in the near and mid-term.”

McNulty does realize that Stefanik met with Trump in the Oval Office two days before the Jan. 6 riot, that she voted against certifying the election results in Pennsylvania, told Kristen Welker those convicted of Jan. 6 crimes were "hostages" and never wavered in her contention that the 2020 election had been stolen.

McNulty needs to explain how that "background in democracy" is good for the country.

It made me wonder what type of "democracy" McNulty sees in the future in Queensbury and Warren County.

Then, I remembered he was also Warren County GOP chairman.

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Who's next?

The Republicans in the 21st Congressional District really have no say in who will be their next congressperson.

Since Rep. Jerry Solomon stepped away from Congress, the Glens Falls region has been represented by a series of outsiders: Republican John Sweeney, Democrat Kirsten Gillibrand, Democrat Scott Murphy, Republican Chris Gibson, Democrat Bill Owens and Republican Elise Stefanik.

The closest native was Owens who lived in Plattsburgh, but he was only our representative briefly.

I would not put any faith in some of the local names you are hearing as a possible replacements.

Tim McNulty, the Warren County GOP chair, added this bit of reality when talking to The Post-Star. He said he expected that Trump and Stefanik will also play a role in who is next in our district.

So while Stefanik will be gone, nothing will change.

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A free press

Press organizations are showing their angst these days.

The Committee to Protect Journalists issued a statement after Trump's election:

“At this pivotal moment in U.S. history, we urge the next administration and decision makers across government and business to recognize the free press and the factual information that journalists provide as an essential component of democracy, stability, and public safety.

“The fundamental right to a free press, guaranteed by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, must not be impaired. Legal persecution, imprisonment, physical violence, and even killings have sadly become familiar threats for journalists across the world. They must not now also become commonplace in the United States, where threats of violence and online harassment have in recent years become routine.”

The fact that a press organization even has to issue that type of statement should be chilling to us all.

Reporters Without Borders wrote:

“On the campaign trail and during his previous administration, President-elect Donald Trump has frequently deployed violent language and threats against the media. His election to a second term in office marks a dangerous moment for American journalism and global press freedom. The steps he takes in the early days of his next administration could chart the course for the years to come, with implications far beyond U.S. borders. Rather than doubling down on the hostility he has espoused towards the media so far, Trump should take the opportunity instead to repair the domestic press freedom climate and reposition the United States as a global leader in press freedom.”

I doubt we are going to see that.

The Freedom of the Press Foundation said:

“Just like his last term, Trump is likely to try to censor social media outlets and interfere with the editorial discretion of publishers. His campaign against free speech online will be even worse this time around, especially if he gives the world’s biggest free speech hypocrite, Elon Musk, a prominent role in his administration. At the local level, Trump’s anti-press rhetoric has already emboldened everyone from governors to county-level politicians to retaliate against the media. With their leader back in the White House, Trump wannabes nationwide will feel even more empowered to harass the press — and they’ve spent Trump’s years in exile priming their base to tolerate it.”

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Message from Stef

Elise Stefanik reached out to me with a text message on Wednesday asking me to thank her for defending our families.

Honest, she wanted me to thank her.

I imagine she wanted a lot of people to thank her even thought she is leaving her current post and never even said goodbye.

Oddly, Stefanik included a small ad for social media where he insisted that Congress must "back the blue" even though the last time she appeared on Meet the Press she described those serving time for their Jan. 6 offenses as "hostages."

Don't forget that one.

Obviously, Elise does not realize that crime in the North Country is not its biggest problem. She would have to spend some time her to know that.

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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.