NY lawmaker lambastes failed commemoration of Oct 7 attack, as Dem leadership accused of 'antisemitism'
The New York assemblyman behind an effort to formally commemorate the Oct. 7, 2023, terror attack in Israel lambasted leadership for tanking what was supposed to be a "poignant" bill remembering the tragedy.
Assemblyman Lester Chang, R-Brooklyn – one of the few GOP members from New York City in the 103-47 Democratic-majority chamber – said he had been working on a resolution for New York state to officially remember the terror attack since hostage negotiations began a year ago.
"I'm a Navy veteran of 24 years and I did a tour in Afghanistan. So I understand what war is all about," said Chang. "I've seen atrocities out there."
Once American figures like then-candidate Donald Trump began helping hostage negotiations, Chang said he directed his staff to craft a message – which he said took more than a month of back-and-forth to make sure it was "balanced" and did not have a partisan streak.
"We submitted it in January, as a resolution, and it was rejected… because [leadership] said it was 'controversial,'" Chang said.
"We were astounded but not surprised. So we converted it to a bill," he said, adding that, in the end, a bill would be better because a resolution only commemorates an event for that year, while a bill would codify the remembrance for eternity.
With a handful of Democratic co-sponsors, Chang and colleagues believed they had the right balance to attempt to put it up for a vote, but as the New York Post reported, it was reportedly ultimately blocked by House Speaker Carl Heastie, D-Bronx, and other top Democrats.
Chang said the bill, destined for the smaller governmental operations committee, was redirected to the larger Ways and Means committee, and that four members were "switched out."
The top Republican on that panel, Assemblyman Ed Ra, told the New York Post that remembering Oct. 7 and/or combating antisemitism should never be "political."
Republican Assemblyman Ari Brown, who, like Ra, represents Long Island, accused Albany Democrats of "veiled antisemitism," telling the Post the legislature is "rotten" with it.
The assembly also tanked a resolution from Brown that complimented Chang's bill.
Compounding that was, as Chang described, no GOP bills have been successfully put through the process at all this session.
"Having me as a Republican [sponsor] – that would [procedurally] choke them – not because of me, the person, but as a member of that party."
Chang said he would just as soon "give this bill to a Democrat" to sponsor if it meant commemorating the Oct. 7 attack.
He added that, as a person of Chinese ancestry who represents largely Asian and Italian Bensonhurst, he has no religious horse in the race.
"That should make it more poignant as a non-Jewish person pushing this bill in a mostly Christian and Buddhist district," he said.
At least seven Democrats did come out in support of the Oct. 7 remembrance legislation, all of whom hail from New York City.
Senate Minority Leader Rob Ortt, R-Niagara Falls, echoed Chang's concerns in comments to Fox News Digital.
"Many New Yorkers had loved ones injured or worse in the terror attacks in Israel on Oct. 7," Ortt said. "The least we can do is commemorate this tragic day."
"Instead of taking commonsense action, Albany Democrats would rather play politics, and have time and again refused to defend our Jewish brothers and sisters."
Fox News Digital reached out to Heastie for comment and response to the allegations but did not hear back.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNN
42 minutes ago
- CNN
Republicans might redraw House maps in Ohio and Texas to try to protect narrow majority
CNN — Facing the possibility of losing control of the U.S. House next year, Republicans are weighing aggressively redrawing congressional districts in two states in hopes of ousting several longtime Democratic lawmakers. In Ohio, a quirk in state law is giving Republican state legislators another run at drawing new lines for the state's 15 congressional districts. The goal would be to knock off two Democratic members of the House, giving the GOP a 12-3 advantage in the state's congressional delegation. State lawmakers could go even further and target a third Democratic seat. In Texas, meanwhile, Republicans are considering whether to hold a special legislative session to undertake a rare mid-decade map-drawing that supporters hope could result in the GOP picking up as many as five additional seats. Democrats need a net gain of just three seats to win the House, raising the stakes for Republicans and President Donald Trump, who could see a Democrat-led House block his legislative agenda and open new investigations of him in the second half of his final term. But redistricting is a double-edged sword: In drawing new lines, both states could also endanger GOP lawmakers by moving safe Republican territory into districts currently represented by Democrats. Adam Kincaid, president and executive director of the National Republican Redistricting Trust, favors an aggressive redistricting approach. 'It's a priority to keep the House, and Republicans should be looking for as many seats as we can get,' he said. The GOP's redistricting gains in 2022 were key to the party flipping the chamber in that election and retaining their majority in 2024, he added. 'There were a handful of seats that weren't politically possible to get before that may be possible now,' he added. 'It makes sense for Republicans to try ahead of 2026.' Redrawing maps is potentially risky for GOP incumbents if 2026 proves to be a favorable year for Democrats. Republicans will have to run in a year when Trump himself is not the ballot, helping to boost conservative turnout. 'It's both a gamble and an opportunity,' said Kyle Kondik, the managing editor of Sabato's Crystal Ball, a newsletter published by University of Virginia's Center for Politics. 'From the White House's perspective, would an aggressive Texas redraw increase their chances of holding the House next year? Yeah, probably. But it wouldn't guarantee anything.' Redistricting generally happens at the start of each decade to account for population shifts and ensure that each congressional and state legislative district holds roughly the same number of people. Some Democrats have denounced the potential rounds of mid-decade map-drawing, arguing that Republicans are trying to rig the process. 'Republicans are exploring further manipulation of egregious gerrymanders in red states like Texas and Ohio for one reason: they are terrified of the voters,' said Marina Jenkins, executive director of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, in a statement. 'It's a brazenly corrupt attempt to shield themselves from accountability at the ballot box and it must be stopped.' A third redistricting battle, meanwhile, is playing out in Wisconsin where two legal actions filed last month are challenging a congressional map that favors Republicans in a battleground state that's narrowly divided along partisan lines. Both cases are before the state Supreme Court, which has a liberal majority. Texas could go after border Democrats All but one Republican member of the Texas congressional delegation won their seats with more than 60% of the vote last November. All 25 GOP-held districts voted for Trump by at least 15 points in 2024, Kondik noted. A new GOP map in Texas is likely to shift voters from safely red districts into ones held by Democrats to help boost the number of Republicans that Texas sends to Congress. Currently, under a 2021 map, Republicans control 25 of the state's 38 House seats. (One safely Democratic seat in the Houston area is vacant following the death of Rep. Sylvester Turner. The current Texas congressional maps are the subject of litigation brought by groups representing Black and Latino voters who contend the lines drawn in 2021 discriminate against voters of color.) Clear targets include Democratic Reps. Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez, who represent border communities that have shifted to the right in recent years. Trump won both districts in 2024, part of a broader realignment among Latino voters. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a New York Democrat, argued recently that an aggressive redraw could backfire on Republicans. 'If you make any changes to that map … they are going to endanger four to six Republican incumbents who are serving in the Congress right now,' he said to reporters. 'Be careful what you wish for.' Other Democrats have condemned any effort to change the district lines to further benefit the GOP. 'Texas Republicans should stand by the rule of law and the maps they drew four years ago, or they should finally work with Democrats to draw fair, independent congressional maps,' state Rep. Gene Wu, who chairs the Democratic caucus in the Texas House, said in a statement. 'Anything less is a desperate power grab from a party that knows Texas voters are ready to show them the door.' The White House did not respond to a CNN inquiry about the effort, which has been the subject of recent closed-door meetings in Washington among members of the state's congressional delegation. The state legislature, which finished its regular session earlier this month, is not scheduled to meet again until 2027. But Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has the authority to call special sessions and determine the issues lawmakers will address. Aides to the Texas governor did not respond to CNN inquiries. Last week, Abbott told reporters that he had not 'identified a need for a special session,' according to the Dallas Morning News. The governor, however, did not close the door on the possibility, saying he was reviewing bills from the regular legislative session that could result in vetoes that would require him to summon lawmakers back to Austin to address outstanding matters. Abbott also declined to tell journalists whether Trump had asked him to order a redraw. Ohio GOP looks for as many as three seats In Ohio, the mid-decade redrawing of its congressional districts is an outgrowth of a state law that requires maps approved without bipartisan support to be redrawn after four years. Crafting new maps for next year's midterms will ultimately fall to the Republican-controlled General Assembly. The current map, crafted by a GOP-led legislature in 2022, has 10 Republicans and five Democrats. Two Democratic incumbents are viewed as likely targets of the GOP: Reps. Marcy Kaptur, a veteran lawmaker who represents northwestern Ohio, and Emilia Skyes, whose district includes Akron. Last year, Kaptur eked out a win even as her district went for Trump. Skyes, meanwhile, represents a highly competitive district that former Vice President Kamala Harris barely won. If Republicans choose an even more aggressive approach, a third Democrat, Rep. Greg Landsman, who represents Cincinnati, could be endangered.
Washington Post
an hour ago
- Washington Post
Israel-Iran live updates: Trump envoy in correspondence with Iranian officials, White House says
Israel and Iran continued to exchange strikes overnight as the conflict entered its ninth day. President Donald Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, remains in 'correspondence' with Iranian officials, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told The Washington Post, though Witkoff did not attend talks between the top diplomats representing Iran, Britain, France, Germany and the European Union in Geneva on Friday. Trump was dismissive of the talks, which ended without a breakthrough: 'Europe is not going to be able to help on this one,' he told reporters. The Council of the Arab League issued a statement condemning Israel's actions in Iran as 'a clear violation of international law and a threat to the security of the region' and calling for a return to negotiations, after a meeting in Istanbul on Friday. 'The only way to resolve crises in the region is through diplomacy and dialogue,' the statement, which was shared by the Jordanian foreign ministry on social media, said. Four days after President Donald Trump abruptly left a summit of global leaders in Canada, calling on civilians to 'evacuate Tehran' and stoking global talk of war, the president on Friday said he still wanted more time to decide.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Trump's Ex-Chief Of Staff Spots 1 Glaring 'Problem' With New White House Flagpoles
Ex-White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney — who served in Donald Trump's first term — warned Wednesday that at least one of the massive, newly-installed flagpoles at the White House could prove to be 'problem.' Mulvaney told NewsNation's 'The Hill' that the 88-foot flagpole on the South Lawn could interfere with the president's Marine One helicopter, which departs from and lands on the same lawn. 'I imagine they considered this, they'd be landing someplace else but I'm looking at this going — as the chief of staff, who's in charge of military operations at the White House — 'Where are we landing the helicopter without creating an increased risk for the president of the United States?'' he said. 'I don't know the answer to that yet.' Both of the flagpoles including one on the North Lawn have been praised as 'beautiful' by the president who — amid a rambling press conference — was asked whether any 'adjustments' needed to happen in order for Marine One to continue to safely use the South Lawn. Trump dismissed such concerns, claiming that the installation is 'very far away' from the designated area for the helicopter's departures and landings. 'We did it in conjunction with the Air Force, with everybody, everybody signed off on it,' he declared. 'We have to have it far away ... you have to have a certain distance, we're about three times that distance.' It's unclear what the distance is between the South Lawn flagpole and the Marine One landing area, or whether the helicopter has been cleared to continue using the lawn. Trump has described both flagpoles as a personal 'GIFT,' telling reporters Wednesday that they cost about $50,000 a piece. HuffPost has reached out to the White House, which was not immediately available for comment. Even The Set List For Bruce Springsteen's New Tour Is A Dig At Trump Democrats Ambivalent On Trump's Possible War Despite It Being Deeply Unpopular Lawmakers Rip Musk And Trump For Spreading 'Hate Speech' After X Sues Over New Law
