The soaring cost of living, rampant corruption, and the desecration of democracy.
Cait Conley, the Democratic nominee for New York’s 17th Congressional District in the lower Hudson Valley, and former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg promised to fight all three during their packed rally at Tarrytown Music Hall on Sept. 16.
That put them in alignment with the capacity crowd of almost 900 people, many of whom told Courier New York that they were fed up with their current congressman, Republican Mike Lawler, who they felt was ignoring their needs by fully supporting President Donald Trump’s agenda.
Lawler has represented the district since his election in 2022. He has drawn particular scrutiny for voting for Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill,” which is expected to cut health insurance for an estimated 32,000 people in the district. More recently, he’s faced criticism from Conley over repeatedly voting to support Trump’s ongoing war in Iran.
“My promise is to make an America that we love and all believe in again. To end the corruption and lower costs,” Conley, a decorated military veteran who served for 16 years, told the cheering crowd. “Corrupt politicians are selling us out to billionaires and big corporations. That’s not the America that I fought for. I chose to go to West Point because I wanted to serve this country.”
‘He’s the epitome of Washington corruption’
Before running for office, Conley undertook six tours overseas, was awarded three bronze stars, and served in the Biden administration working on counterterrorism for the National Security Council and on election cybersecurity.
In her speech last week, she took very sharp aim at Lawler, drawing a contrast between her record of public service and his record.
“While I was putting my life on the line, Mike Lawler was profiting off of it as a lobbyist. He’s the epitome of the Washington corruption that’s running this country,” she said.
In June, Politico reported that Lawler’s former firm continued paying him while he was in Congress. The arrangement raised conflict-of-interest concerns but was not illegal, according to ethics watchdogs.
“I will fight like hell to end corruption by banning insider trading for members of Congress and instituting term limits,” Conley told the crowd.
Conley took aim not just at Lawler, but also at Big Tech, promising to “ensure that no more data centers will be built here. We won’t be a dumping ground for Big Tech.”
Eleven data centers, spanning five sites, have already been built in the district in Rockland County. Lawler has criticized Gov. Kathy Hochul’s moratorium on hyper-scale data centers, which Conley supports.
While Lawler has co-sponsored legislation intended to protect consumers from the possible energy costs affiliated with data centers, he’s not taken a stance on the expansion of a Rockland County data center operated by a Texas-based company, according to New York Focus. The project has received significant local tax breaks and has become unpopular amid fears it could cause energy bills to rise and pollute the region’s water.
Conley has opposed the project.
Rally attendees unhappy with Lawler
Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who co-headlined the rally to support Conley’s campaign, accused Lawler of “not protecting our communities.”
“It doesn’t have to be this way,” he told the crowd. ”We’re paying more for gas, and diesel is at the highest price ever recorded as a result of the Iran war.”
“We’re paying more for interest rates because of the deficit created by [ Republicans] giving tax breaks to the wealthy. We’re paying more for healthcare because they got rid of [tax credits] for the Affordable Care Act,” Buttigieg said. “And you know that Donald Trump promised that he’d drain the swamp, but the only thing he’s drained is the reflecting pool!”
Conley and Buttigieg’s remarks reflected the concerns raised by voters who attended the rally.
Voters who attended the event expressed dissatisfaction with both Lawler and Trump.
“Mike Lawler seems to support Donald Trump on every single vote. He said when he first ran that he supported women’s rights but he has no interest in women’s rights, and he has no interest in helping the immigrants who contribute to our community and saving them from horrible detention camps,” said Mary Jo Bramson.
Another voter, Robert Goldsmith, highlighted Conley’s previous military service. “Cait’s like me, a veteran. She served our country with courage … and she’ll make sure we still have a constitutional republic,” Goldsmith said.
“This administration has cut back on veterans benefits. The president has disrespected military men.”
Attendee Tom Gardner said the Trump administration was “ignoring the concerns of working class Americans.”
“They’re not helping people put food on the table or get jobs,” said Gardner. “Every one of his policies, including this incredibly stupid war in Iran, is designed to drive up prices and to line the pockets of members of the Trump administration.”
