Washington, D.C., 2/2/2023… Congressman Mike Lawler (NY-17)  was joined by 8 of his Republican colleagues from New York in sending a letter to Governor Hochul and New York State Education Department Commissioner Betty Rosa demanding an investigation into how an anti-Semitic question appeared on a statewide Regents Exam.

“I was appalled to see this blatantly anti-Semitic question on the New York State Regents Exam,” said Rep. Lawler. “It displays a serious lack of oversight at the New York State Education Department and calls into question the review and approval process for the exam. How someone could have signed off on this, a question that seemingly calls into question the very right for Israel to exist, is beyond absurd.”

“Which is why we are calling on Governor Hochul and Commissioner Rosa to open an immediate investigation into this matter, so that we can hold those responsible accountable for this heinous action,” concluded Rep. Lawler. “It is imperative that we take on anti-Semitism wherever it attempts to take root and a thorough investigation into this matter should help prevent a question of this nature from ever appearing on a state Regents Exam again.”

“The inclusion of the anti-Semitic question in the New York State Regents Exam in Global History and Geography is unsettling and demonstrates a startling lack of oversight by the New York State Education Department in reviewing their testing materials.  Sadly, proponents of antisemitism continue to use all tools at their disposal to advance their hate filled ideology as is evidenced by the anti-Israel verbiage included in this winter’s statewide global history and geography test.  Governor Hochul and state education department officials must investigate this matter, ensure the proponent of the anti-Semitic question is held accountable, and work to prevent such hateful language from ever appearing in Empire State testing materials again,” said Congressman D’Esposito.

“Israel has the right to exist and any effort undertaken by the New York State Education Department to undermine this fact is shameful. In light of recent crimes against the Jewish community and a pair of deadly shootings in Israel over the weekend, we need to be doing more to combat antisemitism and reinforce the relationship between the United States and Israel,” said Congressman Molinaro.

“Anti-semitism in any form is vile, unacceptable, and I condemn it in the strongest way possible. New York students should be learning and tested on real history, not ideological revisions. I urge Governor Hochul and Commissioner Rosa to act in the best interest of our students,” said Rep. LaLota.

“It defies comprehension how such a blatant anti-Semitic question passed through the layers of approval process in our state’s education system, but unfortunately, it’s a reflection of the far-left anti-Israel ideology that is permeating our government. I stand with my colleagues in condemning these teachings and calling on them to be immediately removed from our Regents exam with a public apology to New York’s Jewish community,” said Congressman Nick Langworthy.

New City, NY… Rockland County Republican Chairman Lawrence Garvey today announced his campaign for New York Republican State Committee Chair in a letter to County Chairs, Committee Members and Republican leaders and activists across the state.

Chairman Garvey said, “We proudly stand up for our values in Rockland and successfully pull voters across the aisle each and every election to win. As we reflect on the 2022 elections, it’s imperative that we look at the full picture. The positives and the negatives, in order to move forward and build a brighter future for our Republican Party. We must take account of the massive strides we have made, not just on a statewide level, but in each of our respective counties. Our gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin came within 330,000 votes of beating Kathy Hochul. As Republicans across our state, we helped elect and re-elect 11 Republican Members of Congress – the most since 2000. We helped elect and re-elect Senators and Assemblymembers across the Empire State. Together, we will build on what worked, fix what didn’t and elect more Republicans up and down the ballot.”

In the letter, which you can read below, Garvey outlines his record of success in flipping and keeping seats red in Rockland County, including Michael Lawler defeating the head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Sean Patrick Maloney, Bill Weber taking down incumbent Elijah Melnick and electing John McGowan to Lawler’s former Assembly seat. In a county with a 2:1 Democrat to Republican enrollment disadvantage and a 1:1 Independent to Republican enrollment, Chairman Garvey and Rockland Republicans have consistently won races year after year. The County Executive is a Republican and 3 of the 5 towns are now in Republican hands. He also outlines his vision for the path forward for the NYGOP and replicate Rockland’s success across the state.

Dear Fellow Chairs and Committee People,

I hope this letter finds you well and healthy this holiday season. I’ve been speaking with many of

you and I wanted you, as a Party leader and activist, to be among the first to know, I’m running for

Chairman of our New York Republican State Committee (NYGOP.)

As we reflect on the 2022 elections, it’s imperative that we look at the full picture. The positives

and the negatives, in order to move forward and build a brighter future for our Republican Party. We must take account of the massive strides we have made, not just on a statewide level, but in each of our respective counties. Our gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin came within 330,000 votes of beating Kathy Hochul. As Republicans across our state, we helped elect and re-elect 11 Republican Members of Congress – the most since 2000. We helped elect and re-elect Senators and Assemblymembers across the Empire State. Together, we made countless phone calls and knocked on even more doors to get our Republicans across the finish line.

In Rockland, where I’ve had the honor of being Chairman for the last 9 years, we had a fantastic

year. Michael Lawler slayed the proverbial dragon and head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Sean Patrick Maloney. Our Congressman-Elect will be taking office in January and we couldn’t be more proud. Bill Weber, our now Senator-Elect, worked hard to take down incumbent Elijah Melnik and we’re excited to see all that Bill does for the people of Rockland. We also elected John McGowan to Michael Lawler’s former Assembly seat. John’s a popular Legislator who will now head to Albany on our behalf. In a county where we have a 2:1 Democrat to Republican enrollment disadvantage and a 1:1 Independent to Republican enrollment, we have consistently won races year after year. Our County Executive is a Republican and 3 of the 5 towns are in Republican hands. We proudly stand up for our values in Rockland and successfully pull voters across the aisle each and every election to win.

This is the mentality we must bring statewide. In a Democratic state, we must work harder and

smarter to attract voters from all backgrounds, all political persuasions, all religions, all corners of our state. Our focus must be to even the playing field and that begins with voter registration drives. It’s critical that we grow. New Yorkers believe in our message and they agree with our principles, let’s enroll them and make it official!

Our Party must build a significant fundraising foundation. High dollar and low dollar donors

alike. Not just to operate, but to help our Counties to grow their respective coffers too! With the new Campaign Finance Matching Program being implemented by the State Board of elections, the NYGOP must be a resource for all County Chairs and elected officials. Under my Chairmanship, the State Party would look to support the County Parties, not the other way around.

And we must go back to basics, building a ground game that is untouchable and unstoppable.

An organized base of individuals that works to spread our Republican message with the ultimate goal of electing more Republicans from Village Board to Governor. We must focus on recruiting and supporting Republicans at all levels, and build a strong bench across the state.

Communication and coordination is key. My pledge to you is that as Chairman, I will implement

policies that ensure constant and timely communication, and make sure every single Committee

Member and Chair can meaningfully participate in the functions of our State Party and that you have a seat at the table. You will be involved in the process, every step of the way. We will be a grassroots led party from the ground up – not from the top down. I won’t be calling you to inform you of what’s happening, I will be calling you before anything happens to get your input so we can move our party forward together, as a statewide team.

I believe in our Party’s future and I’m not giving up on our beloved New York State. I’m

running for NYGOP Chairman to build off of the successes we have had and make our Party the force I know it can be. Stand with me and we will strengthen our county organizations and our NYGOP.