Latest news with #ClaudiaTenney
Yahoo
04-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Tenney gets first challenger for Congress in 2026 -- Democrat Kastenbaum of WNY
Jul. 4—Claudia Tenney has her first declared opponent in her run for reelection to represent New York's 24th Congressional District — Diana K. Kastenbaum, a former manufacturing CEO from Batavia, Genesee County who once sought the Democratic nod for the now-defunct 27th District nearly a decade ago. In an announcement shared on Wednesday, Kastenbaum said she would seek to focus on "kitchen table" issues like Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, rural healthcare, veterans services, education and workforce shortages in the district, which stretches from Jefferson County to Niagara Falls, largely following the southern shore of Lake Ontario. "Our rural hospitals and nursing homes depend on Medicaid funding to serve our communities," Kastenbaum said. "Our farmers need workers who are willing to do the essential work of feeding America. Our veterans deserve the services they've earned through their honorable service. These aren't partisan issues — they're neighbor issues." Kastenbaum has retired from running her company, Pinnacle Manufacturing, and currently serves as a trustee on the SUNY Genesee Community College board. Kastenbaum has been slowly rebuilding her political presence in the district, launching a series of town hall events across the district with the group "Concerned Citizens NY-24", a nonpartisan community group that aimed to host community forums across the district after the start of the Trump administration. In an interview Wednesday, Kastenbaum said she started organizing that forum with other politically-minded people in western New York to provide a forum for local residents to discuss their thoughts on federal policies and actions, and to better understand the scope of what was going on. Kastenbaum had invited Tenney to attend the nonpartisan forums, but the Congresswoman did not take her up on the offer, and has not hosted a town hall of her own in the district in months. Kastenbaum said it was her experience with the health care system that pushed her to run — she cared for her father and then her husband, former Seinfeld cast member Hiram Kasten, before they died, and said she found the health care system very difficult to successfully move through. "I thought, if I'm having these problems, other people must be too," she said. Kastenbaum said she wants to pitch a stable rural health care system, and said that Republican actions in Washington are doing the opposite. She pointed to the "One Big Beautiful Bill," President Trump's keystone legislation package that includes major cuts to Medicare and Medicaid that are likely to push thousands of Americans off of the government-sponsored health insurance program. Kastenbaum said that bill is going to rip health coverage away from thousands of NY-24 residents, push regional hospitals into financial ruin and make quality of life worse. "I don't know why Claudia Tenney supports this," she said. "She doesn't see what it's going to do to her constituents. She's never here to hear from them." Kastenbaum said she has experience running in a heavily Republican district like NY-24, referencing her previous campaign in NY-27 back in 2016. In that race, she carried 32.8% of the vote to then-Congressman Chris Collins 67.2%. Kastenbaum said she has seen concerns among area Republicans just as much as from Democrats about the direction the country is taking and the priorities the GOP is pursuing in D.C., and she said she thinks there's bipartisan backlash to what's being done. She said the results of the "One Big Beautiful Bill," which House GOP members were debating throughout the day Wednesday, will give local voters a lot more to be mad about. Kastenbaum has been touring the district to meet with local county Democratic committee chairs, and said she's met all of them. She said there are other candidates planning to announce their campaigns in the coming days, and there's likely to be a primary election for the Democratic party in NY-24 this year. Her advantages, she said, are business acumen, a long history in the district as a native born and raised in Batavia, experience in local politics and a passion to fight. "I decided I had to fight, and the best way to do that is to run," she said. As of Wednesday, Kastenbaum and Tenney are the only two candidates to have filed with the Federal Election Commission to run for the seat — Kastenbaum has not recorded any financial information yet because her campaign is too new, but Tenney reported that she has raised $638,790 since January of this year, and has spent $312,046.
Yahoo
01-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Health care union criticizes Trump spending plan, urges Tenney to vote no
Jun. 30—WATERTOWN — A local health care union is urging U.S. Rep. Claudia L. Tenney to vote no on the president's spending bill, citing concerns of potential cuts to Medicaid. The bill, dubbed by President Donald J. Trump as the "One Big Beautiful Bill," was heavily criticized during a press conference at the Butler Pavilion in Watertown on Monday afternoon. "We're here to tell Claudia Tenney to vote no on the big ugly bill because there is nothing beautiful about this bill," said Mark Spadafore, upstate New York political director for 1199 SEIU. 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East represents more than 450,000 members in New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Maryland, Florida and Washington, D.C. Spadafore said that the bill would cut nearly a trillion dollars from Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act. "That's what's at risk today and the effect it's going to have here in Watertown, across the 24th Congressional District, across New York state and the country will be devastating to our health care system," he said. A recent analysis done by the University of North Carolina showed that rural hospitals across the country could be faced with steep cuts, including Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center in Ogdensburg; Massena Hospital; Clifton-Fine Hospital in Star Lake; Gouverneur Hospital; and Lewis County General Hospital in Lowville. The hospitals would be hurt because rural hospitals often have a significant portion of their patients in Medicaid or Medicare programs that serve poor and elderly people. Mike Richmond, a union member and Oswego County hospital worker, has worries that the potential Medicare and Medicaid cuts could result in staff and care being cut. He also worries that people would have to drive long distances in order to receive care. "If we have to travel that far without our community hospitals, more people are going to be harmed," he said. Richmond had to rely on Medicaid for his son's medicine while he went to school to become a nurse. He said if his son did not have Medicaid, Richmond would not have been able to become a nurse and his son would not be contributing back to the community. "I am resolved to get this message out there to show that there's alternatives. To show that we need Medicaid not to be cut," he said. Politico has reported that Planned Parenthood funding is also at risk of having funding cut. Crystal Collette, CEO and president of Planned Parenthood of the North Country New York, called the bill a "direct attack on our health and our freedom" while adding it puts almost 200 health centers at the risk of closing and could block over a million patients from receiving essential care. "The American people do not want Congress to eliminate this essential care and defund Planned Parenthood," she said. 1199 SEIU area Vice President Mary Wilsie said she is extremely concerned about the proposed cuts. "This funding loss threatens the existence of our health care facilities," she said. "We do not deserve to see these cuts, job losses, or facility closures." Advocates of the bill have stated the bill will cut "waste, fraud, and abuse." The president wants the bill on his desk to sign by the Fourth of July, which is Friday.
New York Post
28-04-2025
- Politics
- New York Post
Trump could pull funds from sanctuary states, cities under House GOP bill
WASHINGTON — A new House Republican bill would give the Trump administration the legislative green light to pull federal welfare funding for illegal immigrants from so-called 'sanctuary' states and localities — if their officials refuse to help with mass deportations or other enforcement, The Post can reveal. Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY) filed the Law Enforcement Solidarity Act in the House on Monday to condition federal funding for food, housing, health care and legal services on a jurisdiction's coordination with the Department of Homeland Security. 'Law enforcement officers who respond to the emergency call from their fellow officers should be celebrated, not chastised,' Tenney told The Post. 'Yet, Rochester city officials are seeking to penalize the RPD officers who quickly responded to assist ICE during a traffic stop, simply because of Rochester's unlawful sanctuary city policies.' Advertisement 4 A new Republican bill could help President Trump's admin pull federal welfare funding for illegal immigrants from so-called 'sanctuary' states and localities — if their officials refuse to cooperate with immigration authorities. REUTERS 'That's why I'm introducing the Law Enforcement Solidarity Act to make federal funding conditional on allowing local law enforcement to cooperate with federal law enforcement,' she added. 'No law enforcement officer, local or federal, should be abandoned because of reckless policies driven by the Left's political agenda.' The Federal Emergency Management Agency already told New York City officials this month that the US government was cutting $188 million in grants earmarked to deal with the migrant influx. Advertisement In all, the Big Apple is counting on $7.4 billion in federal funds for its fiscal year 2026 spending — roughly 6.4% of its total budget, New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli estimated earlier this year. 4 'Law enforcement officers who respond to the emergency call from their fellow officers should be celebrated, not chastised,' Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY) told The Post. Jamie Germano/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images Tenney's bill comes ahead of an executive order President Trump will sign Monday afternoon 'to provide a list of sanctuary cities in which local officials are not complying' with the feds, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Monday. A San Francisco federal judge had dealt a blow to the president last week by ruling that earlier executive actions aimed at revoking US taxpayer funding for sanctuary states and cities were unconstitutional. Advertisement Those orders — Protecting the American People Against Invasion and Ending Taxpayer Subsidization of Open Borders — were found to be 'unconstitutionally vague' and in violation of due process rights as well as the states' rights outlined in the 10th Amendment, US District Judge William Orrick wrote in an order granting a preliminary injunction. 4 The Trump administration has also been battling with New York State and Chicago over their sanctuary policies in federal court. DEA The cities of San Francisco; Sacramento; Portland, Ore.; Santa Fe; Seattle; and New Haven, Conn., as well as Minnesota's Twin Cities, were all listed as plaintiffs. The Trump administration has already been battling with New York State and Chicago over their sanctuary policies in federal court. Advertisement Tenney's bill will also require Attorney General Pam Bondi to submit annual reports to the House and Senate Judiciary Committees listing each jurisdiction that fails to cooperate with the feds on immigration enforcement. 4 Tenney's bill will also require Attorney General Pam Bondi to submit annual reports to the House and Senate Judiciary Committees listing each jurisdiction that fails to cooperate with the feds on immigration enforcement. REUTERS Long Island GOP Rep. Nick LaLota ushered a bill last year through the House that would have pulled all federal aid funding for sanctuary jurisdictions — but it never was taken up in the Democrat-controlled Senate. In fiscal year 2024, New York City spent $3.75 billion on migrant welfare services, according to previous disclosures by City Comptroller Brad Lander's office, $237.3 million of which came from federal funding. White House border czar Tom Homan revealed Monday that around 139,000 illegal immigrants have been deported since Trump returned to office Jan. 20.
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
House lawmakers want Trump to pressure EU to sanction Iran military group
Two House lawmakers are calling on President Trump to pressure the European Union to designate as a terrorist organization Iran's premier military force, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Reps. Claudia Tenney (R-N.Y.) and Brad Schneider (D-Ill.) are reintroducing a resolution that passed the House in the previous Congress. It is updated to encourage Trump to take action. 'The Encouraging the EU to DESIGNATE Resolution urges our allies to join our efforts to combat the IRGC by immediately designating this group as a terrorist organization,' Tenney said in a statement to The Hill. 'This will send a strong message that the West is united against the IRGC's malicious actions and that we will hold them accountable for their vile acts of terrorism.' The EU has specific members of the IRGC on a sanctions list, but is facing growing calls to designate the IRGC as a whole as a terrorist organization. In November, members of the European Parliament introduced a resolution calling for the EU to sanction the military group. And the French parliament in January passed a resolution urging the EU to blacklist the IRGC. The IRGC is Iran's leading military body and largely responsible for its export of terrorism across the world, and in particular the Middle East. The IRGC provides technical, financial and military support to proxies like Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis in Yemen and proxy militias in Iraq. 'The IRGC is the backbone of Iran's global terror network, arming proxies like Hezbollah and Hamas while aiding Russia's war against Ukraine,' Schneider said in a statement. 'With Tehran more isolated than ever, now is the time to tighten the screws— we must not ease up or give the IRGC room to regroup. The U.S. and Canada have already acted, and I urge our European allies to join us in formally designating the IRGC as a terrorist organization.' Trump designated the IRGC as a foreign terrorist organization during his first term and greenlighted the targeted killing of the group's top commander, General Qassem Soleimani, in January 2020. Trump, his former national security advisor John Bolton and former secretary of State Mike Pompeo are under threat of assassination from Iran in retaliation for the Soleimani killing. Trump recently revoked the security details protecting both former officials. Trump is generally antagonistic toward European partners, criticizing them as relying on American military might without increasing their own defense spending. On Wednesday, he threatened to impose 25 percent tariffs on EU imports, saying the group of 32 nations was treating the U.S. unfairly. A planned U.S.-EU meeting was abruptly called off in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, with officials citing 'scheduling issues.' The cancellation reportedly took the European delegation by surprise. European foreign ministers are expected to meet in March to discuss Iran. Israel has greatly weakened Iran's proxies Hezbollah and Hamas. It also targeted for assassination a top Hamas leader in Tehran last year and conducted a military strike taking out significant Iranian air defenses. But there's concern that cornering the Islamic Republic's leaders may trigger its sprint toward a nuclear weapon. A nuclear watchdog report released on Wednesday said the Islamic Republic has dramatically increased its stockpile of nuclear weapons-grade uranium fuel – enough for six nuclear bombs. Germany, France, the UK, Russia and China are facing a July deadline to vote in the United Nations Security Council to reimpose sanctions on Iran that were lifted with the signing of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA), if they view Iran as in breach of the agreement. Trump pulled the U.S. out of that deal in 2018 but announced on Feb. 5 that he is open to diplomacy with Iran, calling for a 'Verified Nuclear Peace Agreement.' In a post on his social media site Truth Social, Trump said reports that the U.S. and Israel are working together on a military plan against Iran 'ARE GREATLY EXAGGERATED.' Updated at 10:59 a.m. EST Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
27-02-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
House lawmakers want Trump to pressure EU to sanction Iran military group
Two House lawmakers are calling on President Trump to pressure the European Union to designate as a terrorist organization Iran's premier military force, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Reps. Claudia Tenney (R-N.Y.) and Brad Schneider (D-Ill.) are reintroducing a resolution that passed the House in the previous Congress. It is updated to encourage Trump to take action. 'The Encouraging the EU to DESIGNATE Resolution urges our allies to join our efforts to combat the IRGC by immediately designating this group as a terrorist organization,' Tenney said in a statement to The Hill. 'This will send a strong message that the West is united against the IRGC's malicious actions and that we will hold them accountable for their vile acts of terrorism.' The EU has specific members of the IRGC on a sanctions list, but is facing growing calls to designate the IRGC as a whole as a terrorist organization. In November, members of the European Parliament introduced a resolution calling for the EU to sanction the military group. And the French parliament in January passed a resolution urging the EU to blacklist the IRGC. The IRGC is Iran's leading military body and largely responsible for its export of terrorism across the world, and in particular the Middle East. The IRGC provides technical, financial and military support to proxies like Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis in Yemen and proxy militias in Iraq. 'The IRGC is the backbone of Iran's global terror network, arming proxies like Hezbollah and Hamas while aiding Russia's war against Ukraine,' Schneider said in a statement. 'With Tehran more isolated than ever, now is the time to tighten the screws— we must not ease up or give the IRGC room to regroup. The U.S. and Canada have already acted, and I urge our European allies to join us in formally designating the IRGC as a terrorist organization.' Trump designated the IRGC as a foreign terrorist organization during his first term and greenlighted the targeted killing of the group's top commander, General Qassem Soleimani, in January 2020. Trump, his former national security advisor John Bolton and former secretary of State Mike Pompeo are under threat of assassination from Iran in retaliation for the Soleimani killing. Trump recently revoked the security details protecting both former officials. Trump is generally antagonistic toward European partners, criticizing them as relying on American military might without increasing their own defense spending. On Wednesday, he threatened to impose 25 percent tariffs on EU imports, saying the group of 32 nations was treating the U.S. unfairly. European foreign ministers are expected to meet in March to discuss Iran. Israel has greatly weakened Iran's proxies Hezbollah and Hamas. It also targeted for assassination a top Hamas leader in Tehran last year and conducted a military strike taking out significant Iranian air defenses. But there's concern that cornering the Islamic Republic's leaders may trigger its sprint toward a nuclear weapon. A nuclear watchdog report released on Wednesday said the Islamic Republic has dramatically increased its stockpile of nuclear weapons-grade uranium fuel – enough for six nuclear bombs. Germany, France, the UK, Russia and China are facing a July deadline to vote in the United Nations Security Council to reimpose sanctions on Iran that were lifted with the signing of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA), if they view Iran as in breach of the agreement. Trump pulled the U.S. out of that deal in 2018 but announced on Feb. 5 that he is open to diplomacy with Iran, calling for a 'Verified Nuclear Peace Agreement.' In a post on his social media site Truth Social, Trump said reports that the U.S. and Israel are working together on a military plan against Iran 'ARE GREATLY EXAGGERATED.'
