Stefanik actions don’t fit with Conservative Party standards

By Ken Tingley

I can be a bit of a nitpicker when it comes to political pronouncements.

I think it’s more important than ever for elected officials, for political leaders of all kinds to be accurate with the words they use. And when they are not, when they choose cliches, when they throw out the same tired phrases to describe the opposition, I think they should be called out.

Carol Birkholz is chairwoman of the Warren County Conservative Party. The work of her and her committee is is important because is assures endorsed candidates a place on the Election Day ballot.

But Birkholz’s committee represents just a fraction of the registered voters in Warren County. There are just 785 members of the Conservative Party in Warren County compared to 19,397 Republicans and 12,750 Democrats. That is just 1.6 percent of the county electorate.

Birkholz has been submitting endorsement letters for each candidate the Conservative Party endorses for as long as I can remember. When I was editor of The Post-Star, she used to call to make sure we received the letters.

Birkholz had a letter to the editor printed in Tuesday’s newspaper laying out what the Warren County Conservative Party stands for.

She wrote it was proponents of the U.S. Constitution. (Is there a party that isn’t?)

She wrote it promoted its message in a professional and civilized manner.

She wrote it treats all candidates with respect.

She also said the Warren County Conservative Party does not engage in “negative politics.”

That was refreshing to hear, but I’m guessing committee leaders for the Democrats and Republicans would probably say the same thing.

But then came this paragraph:

“The local uninformed, uncultured, far-left leaning candidates and their leaders have no clue what the Conservative Party exemplifies.”

Meet Ken Tingley, nitpicker.

That paragraph bugged me.

First, after 21 years interviewing candidates for public office - Republicans, Democrats, Green - I have met very few “far-left leaning” local candidates in these parts. Heck, most of the elected Democrats are right of center.

So I emailed Birkholz and asked her who she was referring to in her letter.

She told me to read social media postings that had been critical of the conservatives. She wrote that she did not want to give these candidates any attention. She also wrote there is a movement in the state to “destroy” the Conservative Party.

I told Birkholz she did not answer the question. I just wanted to know who was the “far-left leaning” candidate she was referring. I wanted to confirm she was not just grouping every single member of the Democratic Party into one group like so many people do these days.

I was nitpicking.

Twice more I asked Birkholz to name any “far-left leaning” candidates in the North Country without result.

My larger point was to make sure she wasn’t stereotyping one group of political candidates.

There should always be room for moderates.

Not every Republican is the same. Not every Democrat is the same.

Birkholz ended her published letter to the editor by writing, “Our rigorously vetted endorsed Conservative Party candidates have integrity. They are trustworthy and loyal to their constituents. We need honest representation. No personal agendas.”

I had read right past that paragraph the first time, perhaps incensed by the “far-left leaning” indictments. It was the kind of pronouncement every local political committee should state and follow.

But that paragraph raised more questions for me.

I went back and found that the words of the Warren County Conservative Party did not match their actions in one very important instance.

In March 2022, it endorsed Rep. Elise Stefanik for re-election.

Considering that Rep. Stefanik refused to take a pledge “not to lie” in 2018 and her campaign hired a 17-year-old to spy on her opponent, I had questions about how closely she was vetted regarding her integrity and trustworthiness.

Stefanik continues to support Donald Trump and his long disproven theories of election fraud. It was Stefanik who called into question the election results in several states in the hours after the Capitol riot on January 6.

And while the Warren County Conservative Party says it does not engage in “negative politics,” Stefanik has done that repeatedly.

Carol Birkholz’s next letter should address how Rep. Stefanik fits into the Warren County Conservative Party’s commitment to “integrity.”

Stigma of suicide

There was an obituary in the Thursday Post-Star that said the deceased died by the “result of suicide.”

We have seen this done many times in recent years as the stigma of suicide and the problem of mental health is addressed.

The Post-Star has twice done significant in-depth reporting on suicides and mental health. With the honesty of obituaries like we saw Thursday, it helps to remove the stigma surrounding those who struggle with mental health.

I’m sure it was not an easy decision to make, but I suspect it does some good.