Q&A With Congressman Mike Lawler, Yossi Gestetner & Local Mayor: Why Have So Many Endorsed Him?

Congressman, >> this is a this is a very popular vlogger in our community from Feder. Yeah. >> You want to put it on? >> Sure. >> Okay. Let's let's You want to do it standing? >> Michael. Mike, I want to tell you I'm from New Jersey. Actually, I came all the way from New Jersey. drove two hours because wherever I go I watch the news your name always comes out the top. I never saw a politician anywhere in New York, New Jersey, anywhere in the world that does is doing such a good job especially with the Jewish community. You tell us the secret why everybody loves you so much in this community and why you and >> very simple show up and engage everybody. Uh you know we respect the rebu respect the leadership within the community but at the end of the day it's about the people and we go directly into the community. We talk to everybody. We talk about the issues that matter. Uh and we make ourselves accessible. And I think moreover the constituent service work where we help people directly. They don't have to go through uh their local leadership. They can come to us and we take care of the situation. And I think that level of access, that level of uh work that we do, I think matters to people. >> Yeah. We get any push backs from anti-semitism, you know, kind of stuff that people. >> Yeah. Sure. Look, >> people uh unfortunately anti-semitism is on the rise and uh I as a practicing Catholic, as somebody who represents a very large Jewish community, I believe very strongly uh that it's incumbent on all of us to push back against it. And so, you know, I've I've seen it firsthand. I've seen uh the way people uh respond and uh it's something that I'm resolute in my support of the Jewish community and uh a strong USIsrael relationship and we'll won't yield in that to anybody. One question I want to ask one question on behalf of uh the audience I should say is um I think in addition to to being an advocate for the things that you believe in and for this community um and for your whole district and for a strong uh US defense strong border and so on. You you reshaped how constituent services are done in in an insane way. And you know, everyone gives credit to Rafie for doing a a lot of work and your staff and you credit him and so on and so forth. But on a practical basis, how does one congressional office carry the weight of so many officers? I mean, anyone who lives in our community anywhere, Brooklyn and Orange County and New Jersey, everyone knows if their own lawmaker, you know, if if their own lawmaker is is nowhere to be found, your office trusts it. So on a on a bandwidth basis, how how does it get done? Look, my staff works tirelessly and and they understand how important uh it is to be able to serve constituents. Uh and so when people reach out to us, regardless of where they're from, uh we do our best to help them. And uh my staff understands that is a priority for me and I think it's why we've been successful uh across the district. But you know in terms of recognition from folks around the state and the country it's it's because we do the work doing this for such a long time these is coming more easier the job or it's becoming that or you have to work harder >> listen I I love the job so for me the job is easy in the sense of what we do uh I live for it I I eat sleep and breathe it just but um you know unfortunately politics has gotten so nasty and you know uh it it does take a grind you know on you uh and it certainly can be very taxing. >> What's your main goal for doing for the next two years? What's your main goal that you see that's most important for the next few years? Look, I have a lot of issues I want to continue to tackle from immigration to health care to energy policy uh and continue to lead on foreign policy as chair of the Middle East and North Africa subcommittee focused heavily on normalization between Israel and Arab states and uh ending the malign threat of Iran and taking on China and their malign influence around the globe. So >> amazing. Thank you so much. Pleasure meeting you. >> Don't wait till election day. Get out and vote. Get your neighbors, your friends, your family, your mother, your father, your children. Get them out to vote and make sure that everybody exercises their voice. With that, happy to take any questions, comments or insults that anybody has. >> Here we have the higher mayor or New Hamstead. The name is >> Ape Sicker, right here of the village of New Hamstead. Mayor, tell us tell us mayor tell us why is it so important that you've been running against >> He's the first congressman since I've been mayor. He's been congressman four years. I've been mayor approximately 12 years. First congment that's actually brought serious money for infrastructure and approachable and getting any needs that are done for everybody not just you know large voting groups. >> How long are you mayor already? >> Approximately 12 years. And how many congressmen do you have throughout your mayor throughout your your job? >> There was a few a bunch more others. >> He's by far the most >> most approachable most informative reaches out to us what he can help and things like that. >> Thank you so much. politicians represent from the state level the local level from the federal level. Okay. Yeah. I got I got to picture the mayor. This is just by the way from Pomona from Hamstead which is my hamster. I'm not going there. I'm not a man. I told him I told him I'm not running for office. I told her on the floor. You sit on the floor. [laughter] Now you can take take a photo. >> You want this mayor? >> Look at this. Mayor, >> this is this is my my mayor. I moved away from New Hampshire and as the other mayor said, woof, he got rid of me. >> I'm not sure we're happy to have him, but we'll find out how it goes. [laughter] >> So far, so far he's been a model citizen. >> Yeah. Very good. A half a year ago. But the point is the point is this. Um we we are all always busy with the big picture politics. Trump says this and um and that congressman said that. But I think what makes government work most and easiest and most efficient is on the local level on direct level. It's the mayors of the villages. It's the town supervisors and as he said before he's mayor for 14 years and previous uh congress people didn't even reach out to mayors. So what we're taking for granted now, what we see in Lawler is unheard of and it's so effective that it it it goes beyond party lines. >> You know what I didn't say? He ler is a model for what a congressman should be in terms of serving a local community. Forget the political, you know, national level stuff. On a local level, he is doing a fantastic job. >> He loves helping people. That's what you said. Absolutely. >> He's not just there just for the name. Other people should other Congress people should learn how to do their jobs from him. >> How long are you mayor already? >> About 14 years. >> How many Congress people he had in? >> He's the first one I've ever met. >> Oh, really? >> Yeah. >> Nobody got involved. >> Do you understand how how insane this is? Lawmaker I mean the Congress people generally don't don't don't bother with these local stuff and what we take for granted is actually what he uh what he created. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Just on >> one more question. Yeah. >> Explain for the event. People that don't understand politics. This is the job for a congressman because they kind of rose from the local. >> A congressman in a nutshell is no no. A congressman represents the people of his district. The United States they have 435 congress people divided in districts. Uh I think the smallest district uh the average district is around 750,000 people. >> It's like a visual district into Michael. >> No ler represents one district. You have 435 districts congressional district and he's one congressman. Now in a in in a district you have multiple counties sometimes uh not sometimes multiple counties towns and villages and there are um you'll have >> no I'll I'll switch to Yiddish >> okay okay you know he does one so what I'm saying is sometimes you have sometimes you have a regional thing for example we live in Rockland County and it's very difficult to get to New York City due to the infrastructure being bad one of the things that that for years doesn't understand why these lawmakers are not making it easier to go from rockland to the city and back which which would help the economy and jobs and so on and so forth. So that's something that he can help with infrastructure. >> Uh he can born there. >> Yeah. No, he can he can help. He can find the money. He can bring the money here on a local level. Sidewalks has become crucially important for the literal survival of our people uh with all the cars and all the children and it's impossible for local governments, local villages to to fund it. >> Correct. No, it's not. It's okay. So you just he just mentioned that uh locally you have issues with the school district. The issues that you have with the school district we bam squared away a couple years ago an is running now for the assembly. So it didn't spiral out of control the way it's happened by you. I'm not putting it on a or anyone. I'm saying it's just >> oh sidewalks help the local township sidewalks >> but again but there are many places where the you don't have developments you still need sidewalks. They need crosswalks and so on and so forth. And then constituents have individual individual needs uh border issues, passports and so on and so forth. If you don't have a responsive congressman, you don't have anything. Mr. Mayor, thanks for your time. I appreciate it. >> L and the congress people. Okay. >> Yeah. >> Hello. >> The the law and under the congress mention is the fash issue. Lakewood is so completely different Vimy because developments can the township of the developer in yes buyers develop developer and everybody wants to do it because that's how you sell your your condos in sing to right. If Lola was a normal congressman, we would still be pounding pavement on the same exact issue. actually difference from the president. early in person. I think too late.