Stefanik would vote against Christmas morning

Iowa reporter aquitted

Friday, March 12, 2021

Morning Briefing

I’m pretty sure that Rep. Elise Stefanik would vote against Christmas morning if a Democrat sent her a present.

If she is against a big check for those in need, my guess is that she also is against pizza, baseball and mom’s apple pie.

This week she voted against you getting that $1,400 check. She voted against local communities getting aide that will help keep your property taxes in check.

Post-Star reporter Kathleen Moore compiled a chart on Wednesday that showed what financial help local municipalities might get from the American Rescue Plan, including $12.4 million for Warren County, $12.2 million for the city of Glens Falls and $11.9 million for Washington County with hundreds of thousands of dollars going to rural local towns and villages as well.

Rep. Stefanik voted against that - twice.

Rep. Stefanik is developing a track record for voting against things that will help her constituents. Remember when she voted for “repeal and replace” of Obamacare without having a replacement plan.

Now, during a national pandemic she is voting against needed money many desperately need. While she may not qualify for a check herself, a great number of her constituents did qualify. This will be a godsend for them.

As a fiscal conservative, I worry too about how this will be paid for, but this plan at least gets money directly into the checking accounts of people who need it.

I stumbled on a chart that compared who benefited from the tax cut a few years ago compared with who will benefit from this rescue plan. The top 20 percent received 65 percent of the benefit. They get just 11 percent from the American Rescue Plan.

Maybe that’s Rep. Stefanik’s objection.

The people who send her money won’t benefit.

Rep. Stefanik has a long list of complaints of what is wrong with the bill. Aaron Cerbone of the Adirondack Daily Enterprise does a great job of breaking down a lot of her complaints.

For instance, Stefanik complains that prisoners will get a stimulus check. That doesn’t seem right because it actually isn’t right. You only get a check if you file a tax return while in prison. That’s a big detail to leave out.

The same with undocumented workers. Stefanik objects because illegals will get a check. That is only true if they file a tax return using a Social Security card. Another big detail to leave out.

The late Pew poll found that 70 percent of adults support the American Rescue Plan which begs the question will the other 30 percent send their checks back? Will they donate them to the charity of their choice?

Rep. Stefanik claims she has brought millions of dollars to the district.

It hasn’t shown up in my checking account.

Iowa reporter acquitted

The Iowa reporter who went to trial this week has be acquitted.

Andrea Sahouri, the Des Moines Register reporter was arrested while covering a Black Lives Matters protest last year, was found not guilty by the jury after a three-day trial.

While that is good news, the fact that it even went to trial is troubling, especially since Ahouri was heard in a videotape telling officers that she was a reporter and just doing her job.

She was arrested anyway.

The Poynter Institute reported that more than 100 journalists were arrested last year covering protests, and while the majority of the charges were dropped, some of those cases are still pending.

Try PBS Newshour

It is clear to me that many people are trying to find credible sources for their news. When I hear that, I regular urge them to watch PBS Newshour. It’s national newscast runs at both 6 and 6:30 p.m. and is an hour long without commercials. I have found it to have more depth with less political coverage while providing a world view that none of the networks provides.

A nationwide survey that was released February, “found that PBS to be America’s most trusted institution.” It found that 76 percent of respondents trust PBS’ compared with other institutions and media outlets. But here is perhaps the most important thing, the survey found it had a diversity of viewers from extremely liberal to extremely conservative.

“Our findings indicate that when Americans watch PBS news, they do so because they find the programming trustworthy and unbiased or neutral.”

Considering “trust” in media outlets is at an all-time low, that is remarkable.

That’s remarkable in this current climate. I urge you to watch and judge for yourselves and let me know what you think.

Quote of the Day

“It’s important for journalists to be on the scene and document what is happening. Protests erupted don’t just across the country but all over the world. I felt like I was playing a role in that. I know we are a small city, but I felt like I was playing a role in that.”

Andrea Sahouri, reporter for the Des Moines register while testifying about her coverage off a Black Lives Matter protest last year.