I attended a “community forum”‘ held by Lee Zeldin at Suffolk Community College Riverhead campus today. It was a highly controlled event. Attendees had to show ID proving residence in CD1 and were corralled through a gauntlet of law enforcement who seemed to be there for the intimidation factor. We were told that video or picture taking would be forbidden, but the powers that be backed off with a little push back on 1st Amendment freedoms.
The questions were collected on cards and presented by a moderator who didn’t actually read the questions, but provided his own interpretation of them.
No one was allowed to directly engage with Mr. Zeldin. I never got the chance to present my question. So I submit it here in hopes that Mr. Zeldin will respond.
Donald Trump ran on a promise of “draining the swamp” in Washington, but has appointed a cabinet chock full of rich white Goldman Sachs executives, former CEOs and the most inexperienced, incompetent team imaginable. He has assigned top security clearances to white nationalists, and wholly unqualified family members, and essentially delegated the presidency to his son-in-law.
He has gutted virtually every department from State to the EPA and has appointed people to head those departments who have demonstrated a willingness to undermine and destroy the agencies they are now charged with running.
He has extensive business interests in foreign countries that present obvious conflicts with U.S. interests.
There is mounting evidence that his campaign actively colluded with Russia to influence our election, activity that may very well have continued into his administration.
He is playing a dangerous game of chicken with North Korea that puts the lives of literally tens of millions of people in the region at risk.
At least two of his key campaign advisors, Paul Manafort and Mike Flynn have had to register retroactively as foreign agents. Others have been identified as “foreign assets” to Russian intelligence operations. He, and his associates are under investigation by multiple intelligence agencies. New information is being revealed almost daily that raise legitimate concerns about his administration’s ties to foreign interests and whether those ties represent national security risks.
He is using the office of the presidency to enrich himself and his family at the expense of US taxpayers, even as he refuses to release his tax returns.
The cost of secret service protection for Trump and his family has already reached unprecedented levels as they saddle taxpayers with the costs of their extravagant lifestyles and business trips.
Trump is currently pushing for Congress to approve funding for his border wall as part of the upcoming continuing resolution to keep our government operational. What makes you think he will ever get Mexico to reimburse us? How will his so-called Border Tax help ordinary Americans?
Mr. Zeldin, I know it was important to you that Republicans got to fill the Supreme Court seat stolen from President Obama so they could advance their corporate agenda and further entrench power attained through some of the worst gerrymandering and voter suppression this country has ever seen.
So, my question is:
Is there no depth of corruption, conflicts of interest, nepotism and outright incompetence to which the Trump administration can sink that would lead you to take a stand against him? What would it take for you to not only demand that Trump release his tax returns, but to sign onto legislation forcing him to do so in the name of national security? Are you a partisan or an American?
Please answer the question without any reference to Hillary Clinton. She is not president and any comparisons would be hypocritical false equivalence.
I await your response.
Sincerely,
Chris Cangeleri
Manorville
