To the Editor:

The recent publication in North Country Now of the list of elected Republican and Conservative town, village and county officials backing the re-election of Elise Stefanik in the 21st Congressional District has raised some concerns. What has caught our attention are the positions the Congresswoman has taken during her time in Congress. We understand she wants to be a candidate for Vice President, but find her positions on critical issues facing our country problematic. She appears to be marching towards an autocracy.

To wit:

• She supported the false narrative that the 2020 election was stolen from Trump, with no evidence to support that position.

• She declared, initially, that the rioters that attacked the capital should be punished to the full extent of the law. She has now reversed her posture and refers to them as “hostages,” and has removed from her website her original description of their unlawful actions.
• Immediately after a racist killed black citizens in a Buffalo convenience store, she attempted to normalize the “replacement theory” espoused by the racist shooter.
• She has publicly blamed the E. Jean Carroll court decision on the “woke” media, claiming that she doesn’t believe the decision of the jury in the rape case against Trump was valid, but was all part of a giant corrupt effort by the Biden administration and justice department.
• She wants NY Governor Hochul to embrace the tactics of Texas Governor Abbott in dealing with border issues that are clearly the purview of the federal government, not state government.
• She refuses to hold public forums in her district. When she makes the rare appearance, it is strategically timed to be purposely inconvenient for working voters and questions are screened beforehand. Her few ventures into the 21st are usually reported after the fact.
• She is campaigning for an individual entangled in multiple trials whose personal behavior is built on lies and slander, and is facing potential jail time.
• She refuses to engage with local media in a discussion of her positions.

Perhaps those GOP and Conservative elected officials who have signed pledges of support for Stefanik could explain why they endorse her. Is it "party over country" that leads them to support her authoritarian and conflicted positions as she runs for re-election with their support?

David Duff, Hammond
John Casserly, Canton
David Bradman, Canton
Bob Washo, Canton
Karen Johnson-Weiner, Canton