The Inside Press

Magazines serving the communities of Northern Westchester

Politics

Governor Hochul Announces $23.7 Million in Grant Awards to End the Gun Violence Epidemic

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Funding Supports Gun Violence Prevention Efforts Including Job Training and Placement, Community Activities, and Expansion of Gun Violence Intervention Programs

Governor Hochul: “Everybody deserves to live on a street that’s safe. It breaks my heart as a mom and as a human being to know that Black children are ten times more likely to lose their lives to gun violence than a white child. How does that happen? Every child matters. Every life has dignity, and every life should continue on. It’s not the fault of these families or these individuals. We need to give them hope, get them out of these desperate situations and give them an alternative.”

At the GodSquad 11th Anniversary Evening Celebration tonight, Governor Kathy Hochul announced funding for several gun violence prevention efforts, which include job training, community activities, and intervener staffing in communities seeing the highest concentration of gun violence.

 

Gov. Hochul Announces Agenda to Affirm Abortion Rights in New York State & Stands with Sen. Gillibrand to Fight for Reproductive Rights

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In response to anti-abortion laws in Texas and across the country, Governor Kathy Hochul today announced an agenda to affirm abortion rights and cement New York’s status as a place to welcome women seeking abortion care. Governor Hochul was joined by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand to lay out their combined efforts to fight for reproductive rights. As part of these efforts, the Governor is directing State agencies to coordinate a statewide public information campaign, including the development of a patient bill of rights, in coordination with stakeholders. This campaign will help women know their rights and legal protections and ensure this information is accessible and widely available. The Governor also directed the Department of Health to take immediate action to develop and widely distribute modern and comprehensive provider guidance on the right to provide abortion care and to ensure updates to existing regulations are adopted so that medication abortion can be more easily accessed during telehealth visits.

“Abortion access is safe in New York – the rights of those who are seeking abortion services will always be protected here,” Governor Hochul said. “This plan will affirm that in our state, and leaders like Senator Gillibrand will fight on a national level. To the women of Texas, I want to say I am with you. Lady Liberty is here to welcome you with open arms.”

Gov. Kathy Hochul, joined by Senator Gillibrand, elected leaders, and advocates, makes an announcement on New York’s response to Texas abortion ban.

Recognizing that national attention on abortion issues may make misinformation more likely to spread, the Governor also wrote a letter to Facebook urging the company to provide information on any current efforts to mitigate the spread of abortion misinformation online and to take new action to combat misinformation about abortion laws, regulations, and availability.

Senator Gillibrand said, “Having control over your own body and your own future is a basic human right. But that right is being threatened every day. The recent law in Texas – and the Supreme Court’s refusal to block it – is dangerous and disturbing. This law is not just unconscionable, it’s unconstitutional. At the federal level, we must pass the Women’s Health Protection Act, which would create federal protections against state restrictions that fail to protect women’s health and intrude upon personal decision-making. Here in New York, we luckily have a governor who understands and champions fundamental reproductive rights. I stand ready to support Governor Hochul’s efforts to ensure that providers, patients and the people of New York have the best information about abortion care and the resources to get the care they need.”

Representative Carolyn B. Maloney said, “The Supreme Court’s failure to block the draconian Texas anti-choice SB8 law flies in the face of decades of precedent and is a major blow to Americans’ constitutional right to an abortion. SB 8 makes it illegal to end a pregnancy under nearly all circumstances after 6 weeks – before most people even know they’re pregnant. This devastating ruling by the highest court will most impact BIPOC and lower income individuals who often do not have the same access to health care or ability to travel out of state to access an abortion. The House has already voted to repeal the Hyde Amendment, and we must pass the Women’s Health Protection Act.  Here in New York, I’m so proud

to have a governor like Kathy Hochul, who I know will work each and every day to protect New Yorkers’ reproductive rights.”

New York Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said, “In New York, we have shown that we are ready to protect women’s right to choose and access high quality reproductive healthcare,” “I want to thank Gov. Hochul and all the partners involved in this campaign, for amplifying the message that in New York, we will continue to be the standard bearers for women’s reproductive rights. With this campaign we are saying that in New York, women’s health matters, women’s decisions matter and the reproductive rights of ALL New Yorkers’ and visitors alike are protected.”

Senator Liz Krueger, Co-Chair of Bipartisan Pro-Choice Legislative Caucus said, “For many years before we passed the Reproductive Health Act in New York, we were told by opponents of choice that it was unnecessary, because the Supreme Court would never overturn Roe v. Wade. And yet here we are: just two years after passing the RHA, a Court packed with radical extremists has upheld Texas Republicans’ flagrantly unconstitutional forced-birth law. Opponents of reproductive freedom have made clear that their attacks on women will not let up, so neither can we. I thank Governor Hochul for taking a strong stand for the rights of women and families to make their own reproductive decisions without government interference.”

Assemblymember Deborah J. Glick said, “Texas’ draconian abortion ban is deeply disturbing, but not surprising. Despite a majority of Americans supporting a pregnant person’s right to choose, anti-choice extremists continue to try to undermine our constitutional right to seek reproductive health care, including abortions. I have worked tirelessly to protect and strengthen reproductive rights, and I am proud to have led the charge to codify Roe v Wade in New York State state law in the Reproductive Health Act for just this eventuality. Texas’ disgraceful law shows us why we must continue to fight to protect our right to choose.”

Assemblymember Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, incoming Chair of the New York State Assembly Task Force on Women’s Issues said, “We cannot allow oppressive, anti-woman bans on our bodies to penetrate our state or nation. The GOP-led stripping of women’s rights in Texas must be stopped. We need to protect women from the Court’s inaction, which could jeopardize our reproductive rights everywhere. I am grateful to the Governor, Kathy Hochul, and Sen. Gillibrand for taking a stand to make sure these archaic laws never undermine our health care in the state of New York.”

Assemblymember Kimberly Jean-Pierre, Chair of the Legislative Women’s Caucus said, “Make no mistake, Texas’s draconian new abortion law is an unconstitutional attack on the reproductive rights of women across our nation. Here in New York, we will always stand up for the right of women to make their own reproductive health choices, and under the leadership of Governor Hochul, I know that our state will continue to be a safe haven for women and their access to care in the face of this abhorrent assault on our fundamental rights to reproductive freedom.”

Assemblymember Karines Reyes, Co-Chair of Bipartisan Pro-Choice Legislative Caucus said, “The abortion ban recently enacted in Texas is completely reprehensible. A women’s right to an abortion is just that – a right – and in New York we will always do everything we can to protect a women’s right to choose. I thank Governor Hochul for taking aggressive actions to affirm abortion rights in New York and making sure that every woman in New York knows her rights.”

Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer said, “While other states are cracking down on reproductive rights with needless and extreme laws, here in New York State Governor Kathy Hochul is taking action to ensure that we remain a beacon of hope. All reproductive health, including abortion must be legal, safe, accessible, and affordable. That’s what today’s announcement by Governor Hochul aims to promote.”

Robin Chappelle Golston, President & CEO of Planned Parenthood Empire State Acts said, “Make no mistake – there is a national effort to destroy access to abortion in this country and we must be just as aggressive to expand reproductive healthcare. This is our moment, to not just hold the line on access to abortion here in New York, but to boldly advance it. Everyone deserves the freedom to control their own body, make personal decisions and shape their own future. I want to thank Governor Hochul for her shared and unwavering commitment to this vision, and for the steps she is taking to ensure New York remains a beacon of freedom and access for all.”

Donna Lieberman, Executive Director of the New York Civil Liberties Union said, “We’ve done it before and we’ll do it again: New York will open its doors to those in need of an abortion and stand up against any state that puts a bounty on reproductive freedom. In the face of Texas’ blatantly unconstitutional attacks on abortion access, we applaud Governor Hochul’s decisive action in partnering with experts and stakeholders to ensure New York is a haven state for all who need abortion care. We will not let Texas, or any other state that tries to follow suit, turn back the clock.”

Camille A. Clare, MD, MPH, CPE, FACOG, chair of ACOG District II said, “In a time when women’s reproductive healthcare is under attack across this country, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, District II is proud to stand with Governor Hochul as she prioritizes access to comprehensive abortion services. Abortion is health care and ACOG District II supports and uplifts the voices of the women seeking abortion services and the medical professionals who provide them. New York State must become a safe haven for anyone seeking abortion care and our medical leadership looks forward to partnering with the Governor and the Department of Health as they work to ensure a comprehensive and transparent system of abortion care here in New York.”

Andrea Miller, President of the National Institute for Reproductive Health Action Fund said, “Texas has passed the most extreme abortion ban in the country, leading to a crisis point for abortion access. The NIRH Action Fund is pressing forward in every state and city we can to secure equitable access to abortion care — because everyone who needs care should receive with it with support, with dignity, and without fear. We applaud Governor Hochul for taking bold action to ensure that New York State is doing all it can to ensure access to all New Yorkers and all those who travel here for care. We invite governors and legislators in states across the country to follow her lead.” 

Plan to Ensure the Right to Abortions in New York State 

In an effort to ensure the right to abortions in New York State, the Department of Health will develop webpage on the provision of abortion care, complete with a Patient Bill of Rights. This will include information on abortion care in New York State, patients’ rights to abortion care within New York State, and links to identify providers who offer abortion services.

DOH will convene a group of experts to develop and issue a guidance document on the provision of abortion care in New York State. This will include collaboration from American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists, National Abortion Federation, National Institute for Reproductive Health, Planned Parenthood Empire State Acts, New York Civil Liberties Union and clinical providers with an expertise in abortion care. Webinar on guidance document and clinical considerations will be open to providers across New York State and recorded for ongoing availability on the DOH website.

Guidance for Individual Provider Discretion Under Reproductive Health Act

The New York State Department of Health will develop guidance with an emphasis on clarifying the full scope of individual provider discretion under the Reproductive Health Act, and the definition of the term “commencement of pregnancy” as it relates to abortion care. The New York State Abortion Guidance Document will be shared with all New York State clinical providers able to perform abortion in New York State via the Health Commerce System.

Regulatory Updates

The Department of Health will enact regulatory updates including to allow for provision of services via telehealth. These updates will ensure that medication abortion is more easily accessed during telehealth visits, and with the goal of making this an option irrespective of the pandemic.

News via a release from the office of the New York State Governor

17th District Candidate Asha Castleberry-Hernandez Aims to Restore American Leadership

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Asha Castleberry-Hernandez

Asha Castleberry-Hernandez, 36, highlights her national security and foreign policy credentials as key strengths as a candidate for the 17th District Congressional seat. 

Castleberry-Hernandez joined the U.S. Army after the 9/11 attacks and was deployed to the Middle East in 2012, serving a 30-month deployment supporting U.S. Central Command in Iraq, Kuwait and Jordan.

In the Obama administration, she served as a special advisor at the State Department and at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. She is now a Major in the US. Army Reserves.

Since Trump took office, Castleberry-Hernandez says she has seen American leadership on the global stage erode. She points to the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord and pullback from nuclear non-proliferation efforts.

“I believe in American power. I believe that we should lead in the world,” she says. “When we pull out, Russia and China fill that vacuum. You are seeing that in Africa, you are seeing that even in the Middle East.”

At the same time, she stresses the need to “end these endless wars” and refocus spending towards addressing challenges at home.

Domestically, Castleberry-Hernandez says her top priority is addressing healthcare. She favors a public option as a pathway to an eventual single-payer plan, but believes that the latter is not affordable at this moment.

“If I could snap my fingers and give you Medicare for All, I would do it,” she explains. “We just don’t have the money to provide that right way.”

Overall, Castleberry-Hernandez’s domestic policy views skew towards the progressive wing of the Democratic Party. She supports a Green New Deal to reduce carbon emissions, reparations for descendants of slaves, the cancellation of student loan debt and a $15 minimum wage. She also favors repealing President Trump’s 2018 tax cuts and raising taxes for the top 5% of earners.

“I know what it feels like to live paycheck to paycheck,” she say. “I know what it is to face student loan debt.”

Along with raising taxes for high earners, Castleberry-Hernandez would look to end tax loopholes that these high earners use to lower their tax burden. She previously considered supporting a wealth tax, but says she researched the issue and believes it would not pass constitutional muster.

Castleberry-Hernandez now teaches Foreign Policy and Grand Strategy at Baruch College. She was previously a lecturer at Fordham University and taught at George Washington University in Washington D.C. She supports expanding STEM and believes community college should be free.

Castleberry-Hernandez lives in Elmsford with her husband, Vladimir, and their daughter Aaliyah.

“We need diversity in Congress,” she says. “We need more women. We need more people of color. We need more vets. We need more teachers like me.”

For more information visit www.ashaforcongress.com.

 

 

 

 

Maureen McArdle Schulman: Trump Supporter Offers a Conservative Agenda for NY17

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Another first-time candidate for office, Maureen McArdle Schulman is a 61-year-old retired firefighter and Yorktown resident.

She joined the New York Fire Department in 1982, when women were first entering the department. Out of 10,000 firefighters, less than 50 were women.

“You could imagine what that could have been like,” says McArdle Schulman, who served for 21 years in the department. “And I just worked really hard to gain people’s respect.”

McArdle Schulman says she first considered running for office after New York State passed the Reproductive Health Act allowing abortion through the third trimester.

“I actually got sick to my stomach that a woman can have an abortion up until her due date, and that really upset me,” says McArdle Schulman, who says she would make unborn children a federally protected group. “I am very pro-life, which might be a problem for some people.”

McArdle Schulman says she agrees with most of President Trump’s policies, pointing to the strong pre-COVID economy, though she adds that she tries not to pay attention to his tweets. She supports the effort to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexican border, but would also consider a path towards legalization for some immigrants who entered the country illegally.

“I feel bad for these kids who came here as children and don’t know any other country,” she explains. She highlights the New Way Forward Act, which would remove some drug crimes as deportable offenses, as one initiative that she strongly opposes. “You have to go through a background check. Have you gotten in trouble? Then you’re gone.”

McArdle Schulman says she supports Trump’s 2018 tax reform, though she would like to move towards a flat tax.

“A tax code that encourages home ownership is important,” she adds.

And while she favors cutting waste, she would not make significant cuts to Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid.

To lower healthcare costs, McArdle Schulman would allow people to shop for insurance across state lines.

The former owner of a small boutique dancewear shop, McArdle Schulman stresses that the economy must be restarted following the COVID-19 shutdown.

“It is killing small businesses,” she says. “We should get the economy going as soon as possible. If there are certain people who need to be protected, let them self-isolate.”

McArdle Schulman says she did not get involved in politics until after she retired. She stressed her honesty – “I am not going to promise things that I can’t deliver,” she says – and her willingness to work with a broad range of constituencies.

“Governor Cuomo is saying that there is no place in New York State for conservatives,” she adds. “I’ve been a New York State resident my entire life. Don’t tell me I don’t belong here.”

McArdle Schulman has been endorsed by the Westchester Republican Committee.

For more information on her platform, visit www.maureen4congress.com.

Yehudis Gottesfeld on Policies she Favors (and those she doesn’t) in a Run for the 17th District Seat

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Yehudis Gottesfeld, a 24-year-old Rockland resident, says her decision to run for office came after a meeting with a policy director for New Consensus, an advocacy group backing the Green New Deal.

As a chemical engineer working on nuclear and environmental issues, Gottesfeld agreed to meet with the group. But she says she was put off by what she describes as their unrealistic views of quickly transitioning to renewables and their flippant attitude towards the cost required.

Gottesfeld went home and reached out to Republican groups including Empower America, a conservative advocacy group, which encouraged her to run.

“I’ve always been involved with the community and given back to the community,” she says. “I never thought I’d run for office. I’ve been involved in policy, not politics.”

Gottesfeld says the most urgent concern facing the country is getting the economy back on track following the COVID-19 shutdown.

“At the end of the day, if you want to recover you need to empower people to get back on their feet, get their small businesses back and running, reopen the economy so people can provide for their family,” she says. “Once the economy is open, we have to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”

To ensure that the country’s economy and security is not dependent on China, Gottesfeld supports incentivizing businesses to return production to the US through tax breaks.

Gottesfeld favors a flat tax at a rate that would be revenue neutral against current tax law. While she says she understands the decision to cap the SALT deduction, she said help is needed to alleviate the tax burden residents in Westchester and Rockland face.

To cut spending, she says she would address waste in the federal budget. Gottesfeld points to large omnibus bills as part of the problem, as these massive spending plans impede a sufficient examination of government spending.

Gottesfeld sees competition as the key to lowering healthcare costs and would like to see insurance sold across state lines. To lower drug prices, she favors enacting a “most favored nation” policy which would force drug companies to sell price at the lowest price they are sold abroad.

Gottesfeld also sees the free market as the key to reducing carbon emissions.

“A lot of companies are going green, and the free market is allowing that,” she says.

In foreign policy, Gottesfeld favors maintaining a strong alliance with Israel and standing up for U.S. interests abroad.

Gottesfeld has the backing of the Rockland Republican Committee, and is endorsed by the Westchester Conservative Party and Rockland Republican Party.