NY-17: Mike Lawler (R)

REPLACING:

Mondaire Jones (D)[i]

WORK HISTORY:

New York State Assembly (Assemblymember, District 97); Checkmate Strategies LLC (Partner); Town of Orangetown (Deputy Town Supervisor); Massey for Mayor (Senior Advisor); Julie Killian for State Senate (Campaign Manager); Westchester County (Senior Advisor to the County Executive); Rob Astorino for Governor (Campaign Manager); New York Republican State Committee (Executive Director / Political Director / Special Assistant to the Chairman)[ii]

EDUCATION:

Diploma, Suffern Senior High School; BBA, Manhattan College[iii]

CAMPAIGNED ON:

Affordability & Opportunity; Prioritizing Public Safety; Fully Funding Education & Empowering Parents; Securing Our Border & Fixing Our Broken Immigration System; Protecting the Environment & Responsible Energy Policy; Preserving Social Security & Medicare; Supporting Our Veterans & Expanding Care; National Defense/Military; Protecting Our Disabled Community, Seniors & EBT / SNAP Families[iv]

ON THE ISSUES

REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS:

Lawler is pro-life but has said he would oppose a federal ban on abortion.[v] He believes abortion should be legal “in cases of rape, incest, or if the life or health of the mother is in jeopardy.”

ECONOMY, JOBS & TAXES:

Lawler has said he would combat inflation by “slashing government spending,” adding that doing so would also help stave off a recession. [vi]  “We are currently teetering on the brink of a massive recession, with bubbles existing in the labor market, real estate market, and elsewhere,” he said. He would restore the SALT deduction to lower property taxes, expand domestic oil production to lower gas prices, and pass tax reform that benefits the middle and working class.[vii]

HEALTHCARE & SOCIAL SAFETY NET:

Lawler has said he will “fight to protect Social Security and Medicare and work with people of goodwill from both parties to develop a long-term plan to keep these programs solvent and functioning.”[viii] He also has said we must do “everything possible to empower the low income, and to provide them with the tools that they need to succeed, while supporting the federal safety net called EBT/ SNAP food stamps.[ix]

IMMIGRATION & BORDER SECURITY:

Lawler has promised to “fight tooth-and-nail to get our borders under control” and stop the flow of illegal immigration. He has called the situation at the border a “mockery to the rule of law” and “a genuine threat to national sovereignty and the health and well-being of our citizens,” meanwhile noting that legal immigration is the “hallmark of our country.”[x] [xi]

CRIME & PUBLIC SAFETY:

Lawler has touted his record opposing “radical progressives demanding the defunding of the police,” adding that he introduced legislation in the New York Assembly “to repeal the catastrophic cashless bail law that returns dangerous criminals right back on the streets [and] worked to restore judicial discretion in holding violent criminals in custody.”[xii] During the 2022 campaign, he forcefully criticized Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney for his support of cashless bail.[xiii]

GOVERNMENT INSTITUTIONS & ELECTION SECURITY:

Ahead of the 2022 election, Lawler said he would accept the results. He has said Joe Biden was the rightful winner of the 2020 presidential election. [xiv]

EDUCATION:

Lawler has said he will fight to secure more education funding for the Hudson Valley, building on his efforts to secure state education aid for the region as a member of the New York Assembly.[xv] [xvi] In an apparent reference to the purported teaching of LGBTQ content in schools, he also said he would “empower parents to push back against age-inappropriate curriculum within their school districts.”[xvii]

CLIMATE CHANGE, ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT:

Lawler supports an “all of the above” energy strategy that balances renewables and fossil fuels. He has vowed to protect the environment in his district “while ensuring energy costs don’t spiral out of control due to a radical climate agenda.”[xviii] He has touted his environmental record in the New York Legislature, noting that he “supported dozens of pieces of legislation that improved the quality of our drinking water, cracked down on pollutants and contaminants, and protected our parks and open spaces.”[xix]

BIG TECH & DATA PRIVACY:

Lawler opposed the Amazon HQ2 deal in New York, calling it a “prime example of crony capitalism,” although he admitted such deals are “necessary in a state like NY, because [it has] the highest taxes, worst regulations, and worst business climate.” He said he would prefer to “cut taxes and regulations and allow the free market to work.”[xx] [xxi] [xxii]

GUN SAFETY:

Lawler has said he would support “certain red flag laws to keep guns out of those who are likely to harm themselves or others, banning ghost guns, prohibiting gun purchases by anyone with an outstanding warrant, and increasing penalties for the threat of mass harm.”[xxiii] To address gun violence, he has promoted strong public safety policies, saying, “if we are going to combat gun violence, we need to enforce our laws and stop with this woke nonsense.”[xxiv]

FOREIGN POLICY:

Lawler has said that, regarding hostile actions by Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran, he will “advocate for strong sanctions and resolute cooperation with our NATO allies in pushing back against aggression in all its forms.”[xxv] He has criticized the Biden administration’s handling of the Ukraine crisis, saying, “The failure on the part of the Biden administration, much like the Obama administration before it, to stop Russia from seizing land in Ukraine, is a stain on American leadership in the world.”[xxvi]