I am LTC Steve Holden, the Democratic candidate running to unseat Elise Stefanik in November. Unlike Elise Stefanik, I will deliver results for all the residents of New York’s 21st congressional district. My Mission Priorities include addressing Rural Infrastructure, Social Security and Medicare protections and expansion, Veteran’s services and benefits, and most importantly, protecting the foundation of our nation, our Constitution, and Democracy.
I took an oath to defend our Constitution, to defend the laws of our land, and thus, our nation itself. I pledged this oath because I believe in our democratic principles, especially accountability and control over abuses of power. What we are seeing in our nation today is an immediate threat to those very principles.
“What makes Republicans consistent is we speak out against violent acts, no matter who commits them ... for example, on January 6th.” - Elise Stefanik
Trust and consistency should be paramount in Congress, yet Elise Stefanik’s words and actions paint a picture of hypocrisy. As a public figure, Stefanik's positions and statements shift with alarming frequency, leaving us to question if she has any convictions.
By now, we’re all familiar with her support of George Santos. She knew he wasn’t qualified, and she endorsed him. She remained silent when he was accused and remains silent today. The acceptance and silence were intentional, to allow the GOP to keep a majority. Not a majority that would be accountable, reliable, or trustworthy.
She recently pulled her endorsement of Ohio Republican candidate, Craig Riedel, for simply saying that Trump was “arrogant”. This seems extreme given the outrageous and dangerous things Trump has said over the years. For example, he would be a dictator, but only on day one. If that statement alone isn’t arrogant, I don’t know what is.
She claims that she supports Veterans, but she has consistently voted against benefits and services aimed at providing support to our nation's heroes. She claims she is proud to represent the Servicemembers at Fort Drum, so why did she vote against the PACT Act? As a Veteran on the Open Burn Pit Registry, this is the ultimate betrayal. We appear to be little more than a photo-op for her.
Elise has also claimed that immigrants are overthrowing the electorate, causing a “permanent election insurrection”. We can’t ignore her shout-out to “White Replacement Theory”. This is also why we can’t trust that her effort to end antisemitism is authentic. Not when she panders to a man who says that “immigrants are poisoning the blood” of our nation. Shouldn’t all people be treated equally, to live without fear of discrimination? That's a democratic principle, equality.
Elise says that Republicans consistently speak out against violent acts, no matter who commits them. Maybe initially. On January 6th she condemned the violence. Today, she considers those who committed those violent crimes as “hostages”. People who brought gallows to the Capitol, who shouted “Hang Mike Pence”, people who assaulted Capitol police, violent, destructive, angry, and hostile people who are criminals are not “hostages”.
I do want to take a moment here to explain, that while I use the term democracy, I am speaking about the principles of our nation. Yes, we are a Constitutional Republic. We became that by allowing citizens to participate in the process, and electing leaders they should be able to trust.
This weekend she said that she will only commit to certifying the 2024 presidential election results if they are “constitutional”. She continues to feed the election denial flames. The very flames that inspired the coup attempt, the insurrection on our Capitol. That isn’t speaking out against violence, that is an endorsement. A very dangerous endorsement. We don’t need a repeat of January 6, 2021, but Elise seems to be ready to star in the sequel.
We can make sure that she won’t have the chance to certify the election by sending her back to New York. Instead, please support me, LTC Steve Holden, a Veteran, who is ready to redeploy to Washington and serve as your representative in New York’s 21st Congressional District. I will certify the election and honor our nation’s principles. I have integrity. Elise has compromised hers.
You can help be part of mission to restore and protect our Constitution, our Democratic principles, by donating today. Every dollar strengthens our fight to beat Elise this November. Follow the link below. Thank you for your support!