You can tell a lot about a politician by looking at who salutes him
Local Congressman Marc Molinaro (R-NY19) spent 2023 demonstrating over and over that he’s a hypocrite, and not nearly as moderate as he pretends to be. As a GOP member of one of the most unproductive House sessions anyone can remember, Molinaro voted with extreme members of his party on several significant amendments, resolutions and pieces of legislation. Hence our nickname: MINO (Moderate In Name Only) Marc.
One of the most notorious examples of Molinaro’s loyalty to party over country was his decision to go along with the GOP insurrectionists by voting to authorize a frivolous and obviously political impeachment investigation into President Biden. Molinaro did this while remaining absolutely silent on the egregious behavior of the twice impeached, four times indicted former president and leader of his own party. Such rank hypocrisy is hard to stomach.
Molinaro has also danced around the abortion issue. He knows most New Yorkers believe women should have reproductive choices. Yet, he voted with his party for amendment 222 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which would forbid the use of Department of Defense funds to reimburse members of the military who travel out of state for abortions. Other acts of political cowardice include Molinaro’s pro-censorship, anti-climate and anti-equity votes.
A good measure of Molinaro’s appeal to the extremists in his party is the enthusiastic support he receives from the New York Young Republican Club (NYYRC)—a club whose featured speakers in 2023 included Donald Trump and Matt Gaetz, and whose 2023 honored guests list is a roster of insurrectionists that includes Rudy Giuliani, Steve Bannon and Jeffrey Clark. The NYYRC specifically commended Molinaro for his role in elevating ultra-conservative Congressman Mike Johnson to Speaker of the House, stating, “Congressman Molinaro put his career on the line to challenge the status quo, thought outside the box and maneuvered brilliantly to ensure the House elected a principled conservative to the Office of Speaker.”
Did he lay his career on the line when he masterminded the elevation of one of the most extreme people ever elected Speaker? By voting Molinaro out of office this year, we can answer that question with a resounding “YES!”
by Ann Reichlin