The People's Congressman Mike Lawler

In the history of the country, there's less than 12,000 people who have ever served in the United States House of Representatives. I get attacked constantly, every day, all day, from all sides because of the way that I choose to legislate. And on the Democratic side, they say, "He's not a real moderate. He's He's not really bipartisan. He's MAGA." None of your business, Oshi. None of your business, Michael. It's the None of Your Business Podcast, hosted by Michael and Oshi. Welcome back, everybody, to another amazing episode of the None of Your Business Podcast. I'm your host, Michael Greenfield. Joined with me is our co-host, Oshi Schwartz. We are sponsored by Twillery and produced by the Prime Source Production Team. And today is a very, very special day because we are here with none other than the 17th District Leader, Congressman Mike Lawler. Welcome to the program. Thanks for having me. You know, I always said to my friends, 17 is my favorite number in roulette, and I never really knew what the difference is between different districts, you know, 17, 18. But when I learned what it was, I was like, "Wow, I'm living in a lucky town." And we're lucky to have you as one of our leaders of this beautiful, beautiful town as Rockland County. And I know that you're responsible for so many districts within here. It's more than Rockland, right? Yeah, I have Rockland, northern Westchester, Putnam County, and three towns in Dutchess County. So, it's about 780,000 residents. Wow. Well, that's a lot. And I've seen you at many, many different events. And every time I see you, I'm like, how how How do you show up from one event to the next? I I literally like it almost doesn't make sense to me that you travel so much to so much. How do you keep up? During uh Well, it's definitely not easy, but during uh my last term, we did over 1,200 in-person events. So, it's uh you know, it's a lot of a lot of shuffling around and uh trying to, you know, hit every community and engage with folks all across the district. >> Well, I have to say thank you. So, on behalf of our entire community for always literally showing up. Thank you. And uh we have a little >> showing up, Michael, but showing up big. I think there's a big difference between showing up and showing up the right way, and he's been doing it for a long time. Our reps can learn from him, by the way. 1,200 events. I think our reps need to do 1,300, 1,400 events. Like they got to get out there and start networking. I mean, they got to make some more sales. Never enough. Yeah, so it's part of it, just getting to know the community and building the relationships, which is amazing. We have a little thing here we like to call Chat GPT Said What? Which is a way to our our you know, our audience to get to know you. I think most of the people already know you. Right. But have you ever done this to yourself? I I I Somebody actually did it to me a few weeks ago, and I I laughed at the uh the the bio they popped out. But let's let's hear it. >> Well, you know what? Uh I'm I'm kind of impressed just reading it. So, first, it starts with, "Represents Rockland and actually lives like a local, not a visit-on-weekends politician." That's great. That is pretty cool, right? Which uh which it mean you know, I guess a lot of politicians just you know, run around back and forth, but A lot of my colleagues live uh in DC. And uh you know, they go back to their districts, but I I go back every weekend, every every time that we're at a session, I'm there. So, it's uh you know, we're usually in session Monday through Thursday or Tuesday through Friday, so. Well, speaking of turning down a run for governor, doubling down on serving your district instead of chasing headlines. Whoa. Very disappointed. As were lots of people, you should know. And we thought now was the time. We felt like we needed now more than ever. And uh when you basically announced and told everybody that you're not doing it, you're going for re-election to be you know, for Congress again, uh what part of me was like, "Oh, it's great, you know, we need somebody like you in Congress. That's wonderful, but we probably need a little bit more a little bit of change in in in governing in in New York. So, that was a disappointment. Well, there's no question we need more change in New York uh and and you know, our neighboring state of New Jersey, but um you know, look at at this moment, it wasn't the right thing for me and my family, and uh I very much love what I'm doing. I love serving in Congress. I love representing my district. I love uh dealing with the issues that we uh work on, especially foreign affairs and serving as chair of the Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee. So, it's a lot of work uh to deal with down in Washington, and and I'm excited to continue it. Mhm. What is the Foreign Affairs Committee? I know that you chair that, right? I chair the the subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa. >> I watched a couple of the lines of questions that you had you know, what exactly do do they do? Uh the focus is primarily on the relationships between the US and other foreign governments. We pass legislation uh in relation to that, whether it's sanctions bills or uh you know, foreign assistance. Uh we have oversight of foreign assistance. We have oversight of the State Department. Uh so, Secretary Rubio and all the under secretaries come before our committee and testify, and uh we work uh closely with them on a number of uh items pertaining, generally speaking, to uh the the uh you know, foreign affairs and how it's conducted. Love it. It's so fascinating to me. You know, I watch like people like watch soap operas or reality TV. I like to watch like when the house is in session and and they're bringing out witnesses, you know, and they're asking them questions. To me, that's it's fascinating. I love it. And sometimes, you see the way these questions are being posed and the answers are being given, and you're like, "What? Did he Did they just say that? Like are they listening to themselves? Like something is not adding up over here." And I always wonder like what comes of this? Like this can't be real. Like this can't really be happening. And and sometimes like it's a circus. It's like a clown show. And you know, me as the casual citizen just listening to this, I'm like, "This can't really be going on." And like I I feel like I want more to happen. Like right there, somebody should get punished like on the spot. They should be fired or something. Like Like if we were an employer and like we were having you know, our employees being interviewed and we asked those like hard-pressed questions, and there just wasn't a justifiable answer, and it makes them look even worse. Like, "All right, uh you got 30 days' notice. You're out. That's it." But it seems like it just keeps going on and on. Like how do we get more action to to actually happen and more accountability like the private sector has? How do we get that more in in in our government as well? >> of these hearings, obviously, are designed to hold accountability and hold those in power accountable or uh expose information about a specific issue. Um you know, the last last year, we did a lot of work extensively on the Biden administration's uh failures when it came to uh the fall of Kabul and uh you know, the bombing at Abbey Gate and the death of 13 US service members, and um you know, trying to hold the administration accountable for that. So, it just depends on uh the issue, but we you know, we produced a a pretty extensive report on what happened and why, and um you know, what the communications were within the administration, etc. So, you know, we we try to bring things to uh light uh both from an oversight and accountability standpoint, but also in terms of you know, our allies and our adversaries and and uh what is actually happening around the globe. Yeah. And it's great. It brings awareness. It keeps the public engaged. I feel like, you know, we're somewhat more than just spectators. Like you know, we're involved, and they know that it's being viewed by millions of people. Yep. So, like you know, it means something. >> some of these hearings really do get good exposure, and >> Yeah. And you get outcomes from >> engaged in it. And yeah, you do. Yeah, whether it's legislative or action taken by the administration. I'm going to go off script for a second and just ask what What is the moment you realized you're doing this? Can you just take me back to that day? Or where were you? And what was that like? What was your life like then? Like so much of what you're doing like you know, you're watching it and you're like asking yourself questions and like you know, poking fun at it perhaps at times, looking at it as Yeah. And I'm wondering like what made you get into this? Who are you? I don't I got to put this away and listen a little bit. I agree. And Michael, by the way, at a very young age, our Congressman Mike Lawler here is not a 50, 60-year-old man. I mean, you're you're very young, if I remember correctly. >> I just turned 39. There you go. He's under 40. >> Un- Unlike Jack Benny, I'm actually 30. >> Did it just happen? Like you're you're a September baby? Oh, happy birthday. >> Happy birthday. Nice. Oh, for God's um but um no, look, it's uh you know, I got started in this uh as an intern for John McCain back in 2008 on his presidential race. That's how I got kind of hooked on politics and government, and um you know, went on to work for the State Republican Party and Ed Cox, uh who served as chair. I became executive director of the State Republican Party in New York, and then went on uh to, you know, uh start my own consulting firm. I ran Rob Astorino's campaign for governor back in 2014. Worked in local government. Um you know, became a lobbyist, etc. And then and then went on uh to run for uh State Assembly in New York in the 97th District in 2020 during COVID. Was that your first official public office? Uh that was the first official office that I ran for. I was appointed to uh deputy town supervisor in the town of Orangetown, where I live. Um but the uh you know, the Assembly race, you know, I was the only Republican pick up in the whole state. We flipped a a two-to-one Democratic district, defeated a 14-year incumbent, uh and then you know, ultimately ran for Congress in in '22 when the the maps were thrown out, and you got a fair congressional map drawn by by a court-appointed special master, and uh decided to take the the risk and defeated the chair of the DCCC, the first time that's happened in over 40 years, and um you know, it was a big a big win, but I'd say the the moment I was like, "Oh, all right, we're doing this" was really on day one uh uh you know, January uh 3rd, when we had to go through 15 rounds trying to elect Kevin McCarthy as speaker of the house. >> I remember that. I was right in the in the middle of it you know throwing throwing haymakers and and you know right in the middle of the fray supporting Kevin and and you know really just It's been non-stop ever since. That was chaos on the floor. It was it was the first time in over first almost it was the first time in over a hundred years that you know there was a contested speakers race and it really uh obviously with TV and social media it was made for TV drama. And Matt Gaetz was in middle of like the thick of things you know Yeah he was the he was the ringleader. He was the ringleader and look where he is now. Yep. No longer in no longer in Congress. >> No longer in Congress you know I was I used to be a huge fan of Matt Gaetz. I thought he was very well spoken. I thought especially by the impeachment hearings. Uh he was a strong supporter a defender for Donald Trump and that whole thing obviously was uh just a witch hunt and a scam and a waste of our taxpayer dollars. Um but he was right there and he and he made a lot of eloquent points and he really did a great job up there and I thought he had a really nice future in the Republican Party. Um and then it just went off the he he I don't know what what happened to him. Now he's also very like anti-Israel and all of that and him and Marjorie Green Taylor and a bunch of these uh uh like what like you think you know somebody and you're following them and I was a fan and he had lots of people. And now just like he went off the rails. Yeah. Um as as my dad used to tell me you know use your talents and skills for good Mhm. uh and you know I think Matt is exceptionally talented he's very smart he's very articulate. Sure. Um but I think often times would not use his skills and talents for good uh and was you know somewhat destructive within the conference uh and you know really impeded the ability to get a lot of different things done. Yeah. You know who I was upset that we lost I think a lot of us are. Uh Tucker Carlson. Mhm. What a shame. That guy was gold for so many years. He was always on the right side of all the issues but again another person who was very well spoken had a big fan base a big file big platform and again just fell off the rails it's just unbelievable. >> you know certainly within an element of the far right there's you know this isolationist strain that is coming through and and um you know some of the points they make I agree with and obviously when you look at how we spend money domestically the things we focus on domestically we have a lot of challenges that require our attention and really require uh you know an an execution on the policies. But that doesn't mean that you retreat from our role in the world or you know really abandon our allies and I think when you look at the focus the focus should be on getting our allies to do more. It shouldn't only be on on you know the backs of Americans. I agree with that and I think the president certainly has pushed for our NATO allies to do more No one did a better job than him. >> allies in the Middle East to do more um and that's right. >> Yeah. But that doesn't mean that you completely absolve yourself of a leadership role and I think that's where there's been a a challenge within you know a small element to the party I think most of my colleagues still believe very strongly in in America's role in the world. >> Yeah. I think it's bipartisan for the most part. I think that 70% of Congress you know stands behind Israel for the for the most part. >> Mhm. And at the end of the day Michael uh if something God forbid happens in the world and America needs help who's who's the number one person American can count on? I mean that alone is worth its weight in gold to support Israel in the time of need is knowing that they'll reciprocate when when it it should never come but if the time does come they will be there first front lines and I think that is what a lot of these people are missing. Why are we you know foreign aid and we can use the money at home America first isn't that the movement? Again the some of the thing the points that are raised are not wrong. You look at foreign aid some of the abuses of our foreign aid were egregious and the misappropriation of funds and frankly the lack of oversight of USAID and they were operating in a silo separate apart from the State Department doing things that frankly undermined uh America's interest and frankly undermined our allies in terms of some of the things that they do or don't want within their country. Uh and so part of this is is you know reforming the system reforming the process those points are are valid and they're and it's a legitimate discussion but the idea that you're going to cut off all foreign aid is idiotic and that's where I I think you know it's recognizing the need for reform but recognizing the need for strong American leadership. Yeah yeah. I'm curious you know we're talking about people that changed their minds about certain things like I don't know cold. Exactly. Has there ever been a situation that you've spoken to a constituent or even an opponent and suddenly you said you know what wow good point. I think generally speaking if you do this right you engage in constructive dialogue you're going to listen to what somebody else has to say. You may not entirely change your point of view but you certainly will become way more articulate on the subject matter or way more articulate in making your case by learning from somebody else's perspective or experience. And I think too often in in politics everybody has this view of I'm right you're wrong and there's nothing really else to discuss rather than actually saying okay well look yeah this is my perspective this is your perspective number one where do we agree where is there commonality and number two what can I learn from what you're saying? Maybe I didn't know something maybe I didn't experience that. I mean so much of our perspectives are shaped by our own life experiences. And so that to me is something that you know I just think it's important to engage in constructive dialogue there's plenty of issues where you know as I go through whether it's on the committees that I serve on financial services and foreign affairs or whether it's you know a general issue where you know somebody walks me through their perspective or or viewpoint on something and I say you know what that makes a lot of sense. And um none of us are experts in everything you can't possibly be. Yeah. Um and so the question is how do you are you are you willing to engage for the purpose of legislating and providing solutions or do you just want to be right? And and I think there's a big difference between between the two. >> Well you're showing up to a lot of events so people are must be bombarding you with ideas and challenges. >> by the way that's one of the great things about legislating. You'll have constituents come up to you about issues that are not on your radar or things that you know you're not experiencing day to day because you don't work in that industry. Uh and they come to you with a problem or an example or you know an idea. Can you think of an example or an idea that someone came to you or someone said something and you're like oh that's interesting that's Oh sure I mean listen I deal with that all the time on foreign affairs you know because somebody is is from a country you know right now we're dealing with uh case in point Haiti and some of the challenges there and you know folks coming to us about economic support through Hope Helps you know it's it's expiring and we're trying to extend it and so there's there's issues all the time where you know you get involved or you focus on because people come up to you and and engage and you some some much of you know the Middle East legislation there's people who do a lot of work in the Middle East who uh have a lot of experience and they and they're you know come and explain uh a challenge or a situation that they're dealing with and you just you have to be very willing from a legislative standpoint my view is we're there to be legislatively active we're there to come up with legislation. Now not just to pass legislation for legislation's sake but to actually solve a problem. And so the question is you know do you do you proactively try to find ways to legislate or or not? I'm a very aggressive legislator. I passed 11 bills six of which were signed into law by President Biden during my first term. Wow. You know SALT obviously was a big issue in the tax bill and I and I was proud to get that done. You know that was a big priority for me I fought like heck uh along with some of my New York and and New Jersey colleagues and we got it done but you have to be willing to exert you know your leverage and and understand how to actually legislate but how to negotiate to yes. You know if you want to pass legislation you can't just be no no no no no there's going to be compromises along the way and you got to be willing to make them. >> For all those married people listening um could you tell us how to that? That's That's I always I always say that line. Like, anybody who's ever been married knows you're not going to get everything you want, and that's just the reality. And if you do think that, you're not going to be married very long. I mean, that's just, you know, so legislating is no different in reality. >> I like that line, how to negotiate to a yes, which is, you know, under what circumstance will we say yes? And uh Can you tell me a little bit about that salt thing you mentioned because it said it here in ChatGPT, and I was wondering a little bit about it, but What does it say on there? You're very salty. The uh Yeah, salty is a new term the kids are using these days. >> Is it? Yeah, I I found out from my 8-year-old one day, he said, "Oh, Daddy, you're so salty." And I was like, "What? What did you say?" >> that's where it's coming from. >> I was getting older when I realized there's there's lingo that I didn't know about anymore, and he explained it to me, and >> I'd love to hear about these accomplishments of yours, how you went through this. >> This was the biggest issue I ran on when I ran for Congress back in 2022, and I said I would never support a tax bill that doesn't lift the cap on SALT. And so, we were very clear that if we did not come to an agreement, like, I would vote no on the bill. And we were, you know, very up front about that. I didn't hide that. I didn't try to be coy. I was very blunt and direct because the reality is, if you know where where, you know, one of the the red lines are, then you can deal with it. And so, I wanted to be able to deal with leadership, to deal with the White House, to deal with the president, and get to a yes because it mattered to my district. You know, I represent one of the highest tax districts in the country, Rockland, Westchester, Putnam counties, three of the top 16 highest property tax counties in America. And so, when you look at state and local taxes and your ability to deduct that on your federal income tax return, that $10,000 cap severely impacted our district. People uh got hurt. They had to pay more in federal income taxes than they otherwise would have. And so, you know, we we negotiated. It was hard fought. Um not many of our colleagues were on board, and nobody in the Senate wanted to do this. Um you know, the president wanted to do something, but, you know, he was he he left it to us really to negotiate, but ultimately, you know, we had to negotiate with the Treasury Secretary to get the deal across the finish line, and you know, we were able to to get a big win for New York, for my district, for high-tax districts all across the country, a $40,000 uh SALT cap with $500,000 income limit, 1% growth uh over 5 years, and we fixed uh within the tax bill uh a provision with respect to pass-through entities so that they could deduct their state and local taxes as well, which is huge for small businesses. So, this was a a hard-fought win. It was the single biggest tax cut in the whole bill, and 90% of my constituents will be able to fully deduct their state and local taxes, whether they itemize or um you know, use the standard deduction uh if that covers, you know, the the the state and local tax burden among other other tax benefits. They're going to be able to fully deduct, and that's a big win. Mhm. Thank you for that. >> Huge win, yes, thank you very much. Um I'm very curious how it works when someone like you uh wants to propose a certain bill. And now you got to get your colleagues to come on board to sign off on it. I imagine you have to have a certain majority that votes on it in order for it to pass. Right. How So, I watched House of Cards, right? Great show. Great show. Uh they say supposedly it's one of the more accurate depictions of what goes on behind the scenes in Washington. They They say >> Minus the the murdering. >> Yes, exactly. I'm curious, is there a show that you enjoy that you think that >> Oh, actually, I liked House of Cards. I liked Homeland. I love The Sopranos. Which But but Which show do you think depicts very, like, you know, the most accurate to what goes on in Washington? >> Well, he said The Sopranos. In Washington, I would I would I mean, House of House of Cards certainly uh along with Veep, I think there's some you know, there's levels of there's elements of truth in all of them. >> In all of them, yeah. Um you know, West Wing obviously was one that I think was very good about uh being able to to accurately depict uh what goes on between the executive and the legislature and some of the the internal fights, and So, I remember All good All good shows. >> They would basically trade favors with each other. Like, you support my bill, I'll support your bill. Um and, you know, you'd pick up the phone, you'd call people, and you would have to whip up the votes, you know, in order to get people to support you. Like, what what how does things like this get done? >> happens a little bit, but not it is much more focused on the issue specific. And you got to work it. You got to You got to build consensus. I mean, obviously, you may have a bill that is timely. So, for instance, after the second assassination attempt on President Trump's life last uh year, I had in- I had already introduced a bill to enhance Secret Service protection for candidates running for president. Um but after the second one, I was able to get my bill on the floor uh a week later, and it passed unanimously, and it passed the Senate unanimously, and it was signed into law all within a week. Wow. That happened because of a current event that helped drive the the uh the legislation. Sometimes it takes years to move a bill. You know, you got to build consensus, and and Relationships. >> It's slow work the phones. Slow but sure, you know? And so, you know, there's a lot of bills that I have that I think would be great pieces of legislation, but, you know, not every bill I introduce is going to move immediately. You know, so you got to You got to build consensus. You got to talk to your Democratic colleagues, get bipartisan support, which always helps move a bill on suspension, um which is the fastest way to to move legislation. Um you know, and if you can build bipartisan cooperation, you know, it has a much better chance of becoming law than if it's a entirely partisan bill. Yeah. And so, that's where I I really spend my time focused on introducing legislation that is bipartisan in nature, that's more likely to get broad support, that's focused on substantive, serious issues, not partisan, you know, political uh issues that are really just more of a political statement than a legislative exercise. So, that's where I spend a lot of my time focused on actually trying to legislate. >> maybe we can help you speed things up. Is there anything you're working on now that our listeners, you know, we've had some politicians on our program before. What What's something that you're working on now that you might think, "Oh, it might take me a long time, but we can help Well, I think I have I I've already introduced uh this year, I think, over 50 bills. You know, we're we're working on getting uh Wells Crowther, the man in the red bandana, the Congressional Gold Medal. I have legislation on housing. I have a lot of foreign policy legislation. We're working through the NDAA, and I have a a bunch of amendments uh that I've added in there uh that are bills that I've introduced. So, we're working through a lot of a lot of different angles. Um you know, I think a big part of it, again, is just it's building consensus among colleagues and support, going to leadership, advocating for them to bring the bill to the floor. Um you know, you got to remember there's 435 members. Everybody's, you know, believes their bills are the most important and the and the best uh legislation. So, you know, you In some respects, you're competing against colleagues to get legislation moved, but I think a big part of it, again, is can you build consensus? Are you building bipartisan support? Are you building public awareness and support? And so, I, you know, I do a lot of press around legislation that we introduce um because building that awareness matters. Yeah. Who has the record for introducing the most bills that gotten passed? Is there somebody that holds that record? >> I'm sure there's a record somewhere. I I don't I don't That's what Stefan is here for, to check the facts. off the top of my head. I'm curious, who got the most off the top of my head. Because that's got to be an accomplishment. >> I I'd be I'd be curious uh That's a big accomplishment because it's not easy to get things passed. And uh he must be a very well-liked person, I imagine, that had a lot of, you know, on both sides of the aisle. I'm thinking the job consists of sales, marketing, negotiating. >> I I and that's part of the reason why I I try to talk to everybody. I go talk to colleagues all across the aisle. Um you know, we don't We don't all agree on everything, and that's a good thing. That's not a bad thing. That's why we have a constitutional republic. If we all agreed on everything, then we wouldn't need a Congress. I mean, that's Right. So, I think there's we've lost perspective on this. Um you know, I think as a country, like, robust debate is a good thing. And and we should engage in constructive dialogue and debate. Stop using names to attack, you know, people we disagree with. Attack the idea. Go after the idea. Yeah. Substance. You know, disagree on the substance of it as opposed to just demonizing the person who's, you know, Who doesn't share your opinion, yeah. Senator Ted Kennedy Yeah, that would make sense. And more than 300 laws. A Democrat. Yeah, I mean, both of them served, you know, 47 years? >> John Dingell, you know, 50 59 years. Ted Kennedy, 47 years. I mean, Yeah. to to pass a lot of legislation, you Obviously need They had longevity. You know, I look I mean, you mentioned 435 congressmen that are in Congress. Very small number in comparison to the country. You guys are the 1% of the 1%. Uh it's it's a big deal to make it all the way, you know, that far up. And I could see why. Like, you could see that the the individuals like you I don't even know you for like 15 minutes now, just seeing you. I've seen you all over TV. I've heard you speak many times. Um but I can tell you're a very even-tempered uh like you know, you're speaking you don't you don't have highs and lows. You're worked on person clear and people in this position that's what I expect. Somebody who makes it to that position, you know, came through hard work. And then sometimes you meet and I'm not going to say names cuz I have respect to what you just said is look at the the arguments and the substance not the name-calling and all. But sometimes you see people and like what? How is this How did they get here? We have 435 people that represent our country and they're this is the best America has? This is the best we could have done. How does that happen? >> When I when I first decided to run for public office one one of the things that kind of was driving me was you know, if that person can get elected I can I can get elected. And and part of it was because unfortunately, I think there are a number of people both in Congress and in state legislator legislatures who are not serious about the legislating part. They're not serious about the importance of actually engaging in constructive dialogue to actually advance long-term legislation that's going to last. It is easy in this hyper-partisan error to [Music] jam through a partisan bill. Especially if you control everything. But the problem is the moment the the pendulum swings the other side tries to repeal it. Or demagogues it. If we actually spent the time focused on where we agree and focused on how to advance critical legislation to that end we'd be able to more substantially and more positively impact the country the economy, national security, etc. So I I try very hard at that. Because I just think long-term that is a much better way to legislate than pontificating about things that are unlikely to become law because you don't have consensus behind it. And even if you do pass a law on it, it's going to be very controversial and it's going to be hyper-partisan and it's not going to solve the problem long-term. Yeah. And so that's where I try to look at this from the standpoint of what type of legislator do I want to be? What type of representative do I want to be? I get attacked constantly every day all day from all sides because of the way that I choose to to legislate and you know, on the Democratic side they say he's not a real moderate. He's he's not really bipartisan. He's mega, you know, they they just they throw everything they can at you cuz they they don't it's political. It's not about actually doing the work whereas my colleagues that I deal with on the Democratic side would never say that because they understand I really do make that effort and I'm serious about it. So it's um doesn't mean we're going to agree on everything. You know, I am a Republican. I ran as a Republican for a reason. But you know, I do try to find area of commonality. >> Yeah. Who's the one individual on Democratic side that you really really respect? And that you say well, he's he or she great great person somebody who's doing it right. Is there do you have that person that >> I have a number of people that I work closely with that I respect. Somebody in the Senate somebody in the Senate. My well, in the house my closest colleague and friend is is Josh Gottheimer Okay. >> Democrat from New Jersey. We we have neighboring districts, but we're very similar similar sense of humor and >> that I see it. You know, we uh we like working together and finding area of agreement. We don't agree on everything. But we don't demagogue each other and we don't we don't take it personal that we have a difference of opinion on something. >> Beautiful. Um and frankly don't waste time focusing on that. We try to find where we agree and let's let's advance that legislation. Um but there are, you know, I mean in the Senate side um you know, I've I've done some stuff with Chris Coons from Delaware um you know, a Democratic senator especially on on foreign affairs. Uh you know, we've spent some time uh there. I mean John Fetterman and I agree on a lot when it comes to Israel and uh John Fetterman is a Republican wearing Democratic clothing, but he's he's pretty much come over to our side. >> he's he is certainly shifted rightward on on a number of fronts, but >> And we were against him in the beginning. >> But but I think it's also, you know, within the base of the Democratic Party they have gone so far to the left. >> Crazy. Um you know, I try to find area of commonality with Kirsten Gillibrand one of my senators from New York. You know, there's issues pertaining to child care, women's health or um you know, other areas that we we've tried to work together on. Um you know, and you really again, you try to find people who are serious about doing the work and advancing legislation cuz that's why we're there. What else are you there for? >> Yeah. You know, I mean if you're not going to try to legislate, I don't really understand why you would serve in Congress. Well, I understand it cuz I'm a shallow person. So I get it. There's a lot of glamour that comes along with this role. It's a lot less glamorous than people realize especially if you're in a district like mine and you're working 7 days a week. But there is a little bit of notoriety that comes along with this and that's probably one of the reasons that some people have ulterior motives to get into this position of power. You know, look, you're doing things for the right reasons and there are others like you out there that are representing us well. A lot of my colleagues are very serious about this. They want to legislate. They want to find area of commonality. They're they're not interested in the daily back and forth. Yeah, there's going to be some sharp differences. Yes, there's going to be sharp words used at times. Yes, there's going to be real you know, political disagreements and legislative fights. But it's not personal. Too many of my colleagues take it way too personal and they drive other people Americans, voters to take it so personal and when you see what just happened with Charlie Kirk, when you see, you know, the two Minnesota lawmakers getting shot. This is not how our politics should be conducted. It is not how we should be legislating. It's not how we should be engaging in discourse and certainly violence is not an answer to a political or legislative disagreement. Duke it out at the ballot box. Let the voters decide and respect what the voters decide. I think majority of Americans really have all agreed at this point that what happened in the wake of Charlie Kirk's tragedy is tragic. That I think that we all can agree that we need to tone down the rhetoric and political violence is never even remotely close to being the answer. But you know what I was very disappointed about that happened last night. Really disappointed. I'm not surprised, but I'm disappointed. So last night was the Emmy Awards. I don't know if you watch any of these shows. Most people tuned out of Hollywood a long time ago. But I'm still watching it. I like watching the Oscars, you know, and the Grammys and MTV and all of that. So I didn't even know last night was the Emmy Awards. I had no idea because you know what? I'm actually kind of distracted. Like there's real things going on in the world right now that I literally did not know. And I'm scrolling through my phone and what? The the Emmys was last night? Interesting. I'll watch some highlights. Let me see who won. And I'm going through it and not a mention not a word of what just happened that just rocked the entire country. I mean this is the biggest news going on in the world not just in our country all over. Everybody's talking about it. And Hollywood which has a major platform and where a lot of other people unfortunately get their news from. That's who they emulate, you know, and those are their heroes and and they're listening very carefully to what those people are saying. So they have a responsibility to say the right things which unfortunately we know worst of what the liberalism has to offer the progressive has to offer. I'm not saying that all of liberalism is bad. They're they're probably the worst parts of it not all of Hollywood a big chunk of Hollywood. Not one mention. It really pained me because that was a great opportunity to stand up and to tell people what just happened was not okay. And by being silent is almost being complicit. >> I think every everyone elected officials, the media celebrities everybody has to reflect on how they are conducting their own behavior. It's very easy to point the finger at somebody else, but the old adage goes when you're pointing the finger there's three pointing right back at you. >> That's okay. >> And and I think that's that's the there's got to be a recognition that we all have a responsibility. And I think what's unfortunate about it is that could have been an opportunity they could say how most of them there I'm sure disagree with the things he fought for, the beliefs that he had and that's fine. But the importance of the dialogue because as as Charlie Kirk said many times, when we stop dialoguing, that's when violence happens. And I think the objective should be to have a much more honest and thoughtful and constructive dialogue between Americans because at the end of the day we're all Americans. And too many people have put on their red or blue jersey and and failed to recognize that we're actually all in a red, white, and blue jersey and that's and that is really where our politics has gotten so coarse, so corrosive. Um the the the vitriol that is spewed, the de humanization of those we disagree with. Um, you know, fascist, racist, bigoted, xenophobic, homophobic, all the terms that just constantly get thrown out. Uh, no matter what the conversation is. Uh, rather than actually drilling down on the substance of the disagreement. Um, or again, trying to find an area of agreement, which I think is way more important. We spend way too much time focused on where we disagree. And that that is the basis of the conversation as opposed to, "Hey, this is what we're focused on. This is where we can actually get stuff done." Yeah. But do you agree that the Hollywood should have said something? >> missed an opportunity. >> And it's just it it is emblematic, obviously, of the of of the viewpoint that is often pushed out of out of Hollywood uh, or on television without recognizing, "You know what? We have a role to play in this, too, and and we should we should try to uplift They should try to uplift the dialogue. >> try to uplift the dialogue. Exactly. The NFL did a pretty good job at it. Most of the teams, not all the teams. >> Yeah. Um, But you know what? I think that's a a positive thing. And again, I'd rather focus on the fact that many of the teams did, and that was great, versus the ones that didn't. That's why I didn't point out the NFL because there were a lot of teams that did. I'm not going to focus on the couple of teams that didn't. It doesn't matter. But, you know, for the most part, they got it right. >> Right. But Hollywood spitefully didn't do it. >> Yeah. But I think what what what what what was most interesting was the reaction by the American public. Most Americans took this as an opportunity to pray, to be together, to join in peaceful solidarity. They weren't burning down the streets. They weren't looting businesses. They weren't uh, committing violence against other Americans in response. That is a positive step forward, and I think we need to continue >> Yeah. Charlie Kirk would be proud. He would be very proud seeing how, you know, we're we're coming together, and and his message is actually being magnified right now. I think he would be very very proud. Um, I'm very curious about Mike. I'm sorry. You go I I I tend sometimes to disrupt. >> no, I'm loving it. Are you kidding me? This is This is my This is my Emmys. >> This is a big deal. I don't get to sit with a US Congressman every single day. Like, uh, I'm actually just curious about >> I'm following you wherever you're going from here. Where's he going next? I'm We got to I got some meetings, and then I got to fly to DC. You're going back to Washington. >> Yeah. What's that like? What what is it like going to Washington into the White House? Your first time going into the White House. What was that experience like? >> just I swear that was my question. >> That was the next question? >> Yeah. Yeah. Cuz I was curious like, you know, when you >> Most of us never ever get to experience that. >> it. You know it's coming, but then you get there, you close the doors, and you're like, "Hey, guys, I made it." Like, what's going on? >> I've been to the White the White House itself >> No, no, as an employee of the White House. >> multiple times. Well, I've not been an employee of the White House, but I've gone to the White House uh, you know, a number of times for events in in in prior administration. But, uh, obviously, going into the Oval Office the first time uh, is pretty awe-inspiring. It It's you're you're pretty amazed by the uh, you know, the fact that you have the opportunity to walk in there and and talk to the President of the United States, and obviously, so many important decisions are made uh, behind the resolute desk, and uh, just the the uh, awesome responsibility that comes with uh, this job, comes with being a member of Congress. As you pointed out, you're only one of 435. In the history of the country, there's less than 12,000 people who have ever served in the United States House of Representatives. So, >> That's an interesting way to look at >> It really is uh, you know, you you have a lot of weight on your shoulders when you're dealing with these issues. Um, but to be able to to walk into the White House, to be able to serve in the capital where so much history uh, has happened. Um, it really is an awesome responsibility. Uh, I love it every day. I I I don't get tired of it. I'm not jaded by it. It's uh, you know, if you don't if you don't look at the um, the beauty, the majesty of of where you work, or uh, the fact that you get to engage on on these issues, that you get to vote on them. Um, you know, it really it it really is inspiring. Mhm. I have to say, sitting here speaking to you, what's There's so much that is clear to us. You know, your your demeanor, your your values, and it speaks volumes of who you are as a person. I'm curious to go back to where where that was. What camps did you go to? What schools did you go to? Did you have a job? What did you work as? >> that stems from my my parents. So, what's what was Where are they from? Like, Where were you born? Uh, Rockland County, born and raised. My family, you know, in one form or fashion has been in Rockland over 100 years. Um, you know, my mom's Italian, my dad was Irish. Uh, you know, my parents taught us uh, good values and work ethic at a very young age. Um, you know, and always uh, impressed upon me, you know, the the belief that to whom much is given, much is required, and that I've been given a lot of skills and talents uh, from God, and and to use them to do God's work, and and keep my moral compass about me. Uh, doesn't mean I'm perfect. Doesn't mean I don't make mistakes. I do. But I uh, I carry that with me. Those Those are the last words my dad said to me when he died back in 2013. Um, you know, and it's it's something that they impressed upon me throughout my childhood, and um, you know, I obviously uh, you know, there's so many things in my life that have kind of shaped uh, my world view or or who I am, but you know, obviously 9/11 was uh, was a big inflection point, you know, living in New York, and being a freshman in high school uh, that that day. Uh, and obviously, you know, shaped shaped my high school years and my college years. Uh, you know, became an intern for McCain while I was in college. Um, that another inflection point uh, in in my life, and certainly uh, uh, kind of changed my trajectory of where I was going. I I went to school for accounting and finance, and I was planning on going to law school, and kind of totally shifted course, and um, you know, was was extremely passionate about it. And um, you know, when then you know, when my dad died, I was 26. And so, you know, that certainly had an impact on my life and and my view of things, and and uh, what's important, what's not. Um, and you know, obviously, as I've worked my way up in in politics and government, you know, I've generally been of the mindset you know, you have to be willing to take risk, and you have to put yourself out there, and ultimately, the the people will decide, and um, you know, I I I think uh, you know, it's uh, you know, the old Wayne Gretzky adage, you know, you never miss any of the shots you don't take. >> Mhm. You know, so you got to be willing to take the shot, and you may miss, or you may you may score. But uh, to me uh, it's not about winning and losing. It's very much about uh, the ability to serve, and I've loved every minute of it, and and doing the job, and you know, the team that we have that that works tirelessly on my behalf and on behalf of the constituents. Um, that's what matters. Doing doing the work, and ultimately you leave it to God. It'll It'll be what it'll be. And uh, if if uh, I continue to serve in this capacity, great. And if in the future somebody else does, and and I'm no longer in office, that's great, too. I mean, I I that to me it's a it's not about me. It's about the people that were elected to serve, and I'll keep doing the job uh, for as long as people will have me. Wow. For the record, Michael, him and I are the same age. And I don't Do you see a difference? Like, It's crazy. It does You're very young. >> a little bit more gray in your >> lot more gray. Yeah, yeah. And you just you seem to have it together in the way you talk. I mean, you're a true politician. Um, you You're worked on. You're a professional. That's why I say politicians encompass a lot of different traits, and a lot of different They'd make great businessmen. They really would. Um, because they they have the They're just They're people They're like They're like They're sales people. There's marketing. There's everything all infused into one, and it's it's it's really amazing. What's the next shot you're going to be taking? Like, Wayne Gretzky, what's the next big shot that you're going to be taking one day? >> right now, I'm running for uh, for re-election. And uh, you know, as as I said, this is something that I love doing. I I think it's a a tremendous opportunity uh, to serve. I love the issues that we deal with on a on a daily basis, and I know how important my district is uh, to control of Congress, and and advancing forward uh, you know, key priorities. So, right now, that's the focus. Uh, whatever the future holds, whether it's governor, whether it's Senate, something else, we'll see. Yeah. I'm not uh, I I don't get too caught up in uh, that. My general view is um, you know, certainly God has a plan, but moreover, um, you know, you you you look at the opportunities as they come, and you make a determination, and whatever the determination is, I'm fine with. >> I I love the attitude. I love also the concept of just looking at all the positive, and talking about that. Um, you know, with so many great messages we can take out of this uh discussion. And, you know, there's a few things that we like to wrap up with before we uh we finish up. One of those things are, and I think this this time it it will make a bigger difference than usual because we're voters, constituents, do you have any questions for us? Uh I would say, "What is your you know, what is your biggest uh concern right now? What is what is the issue or issues that's kind of keeping you guys up at night, whether it's the economy, whether it's obviously the situation in the Middle East, anti-Semitism, what you know, what's driving your concerns?" I would say my concern is the the hate, the the the I'm scared sometimes of of thinking about what's going on. And I think someone like you in your position can do a lot in terms of bringing them all together. When I say them, I mean all races, all religions, all people. And living in Rockland County, growing up in Brooklyn, I'm very aware of the idea of getting along together with all different, you know, people. And you know, that's what I would be curious about. Like how can we do more to bridge that gap between all of us living together? You know, you have so many people that want more housing. Yeah, you know, I'm living in a neighborhood where you want sidewalks because you want safety for children, but then you don't want sidewalks cuz then you turn it into a Brooklyn, New York. So I'm curious how does someone in your position go about bringing that all together? >> Um I think the number one thing for me is that I talk to everybody. I engage everybody. I don't uh you know, I don't leave any community out. I I continue uh to dialogue even with people who don't like me or uh attack me uh on a daily basis cuz I think it's important. Um you know, obviously we're not going to agree on everything. And and there are some real differences and even in local politics about uh land use decisions, you know, and and and uh development. And and there's some legitimate concerns and discussions to be had. But I think the moment it turns to attacks on people because of who they are or what they believe or how they practice their faith, I think that's where it uh goes off kilter. And and so I, you know, I've made a very conscious effort, especially, you know, within uh Rockland and and the Orthodox uh and Hasidic communities, of being present, of showing up, of of uh engaging, and posting about it, and letting people see like, "Yeah, I do engage there." Because, you know, what? We're all in one community. And yeah, there may be there may be areas of disagreement or difference, but you know, what? Rather than just attack each other on social media or or say things, go engage. Go have a dialogue. Go have a conversation. Let people know, "You know, what? Look, we understand you need more housing, but here's why we have concern." Have an actual discussion as opposed to, you know, the the vitriol that just gets spewed. And that's that's been my objective, my modus operandi, is to show up, to engage, to have conversation. Doesn't mean we're going to agree on everything, but I'm always willing to say where I stand and why. I feel like I should have asked the question a little differently. What can I do? What can we do as a community to really because other than showing up to court, you know, when someone's applying for a zoning >> a big part of it, honestly, is there's got to be greater dialogue. There's got to be greater dialogue between people in the community and uh not in the community. And and uh you know, especially uh you know, showing up at at community events, public events uh throughout the whole county. And and really engaging in a more constructive dialogue. I think it's good for everybody. And it shows people like, yeah, you know, we we all want to live together. We all want to live amongst each other. We're not looking to be in our own little bubble, but like, yeah, there's going to be some differences, but let's Absolutely. >> commonality. A lot of the legacy media stokes a lot of this fear because they're spreading a lot of this information. And you think the worst of the worst is out there and someone's coming to get you and you're always looking over your shoulder because of what they're putting out there. We don't hear enough the good things. Yeah. I've said this last time also, Michael. We don't hear enough about the beautiful parts of each of our cultures. Yep. Of Christians, of Jewish people, of Muslims. We don't hear enough about that. We're not educated enough. We're not teaching the children of all the beautiful good things about it and they're just seeing it. All the hate. They're seeing all the bad stuff. They're seeing the bad apples. They're seeing the people that are doing violent things, terrible things. And you know, what, Michael? It's very unfortunate, but I'm not kidding you. I went to Dunkin' Donuts this morning. I promise this happened to me. I went to Dunkin' Donuts this morning and uh somebody walked in and uh I don't know, to me it looked a little suspect and I was like, "Well, I'm talking to the person next to me. I'm just like keeping on the corner of my eye was I'm like I'm wearing I'm wearing a yarmulke." And I'm nervous. Is this person like a I I never used to live that way, but because of what's going on, what I'm seeing, what I'm hearing, I might be delusional. You know, what? It was silly what I was doing. I really shouldn't think that way. But because of what's around me, we got to spread more positivity. We got to put more resources, just like we if for every bad story we post on Fox News or on CNN or whatever, let's do a good story also. Let's show some helping hand that somebody did, some intercommunity event that's going Let's Why can't we do more of that? Agree. I you know, look, I think unfortunately, you not you're not being uh delusional. You it's you got to be cognizant. I mean, unfortunately, we've seen obviously an uptick in anti-Semitic hate crimes. Um but moreover, look, it's something that I'm way more cognizant about this Congress than I was last Congress. I wasn't as concerned about my safety or my family's safety or my staff's safety last Congress. I am this because the vitriol, the hatred, the anger, the the uh just leveled up rhetoric uh that has been spewed and and the violence that we're seeing. It's just it's unconscionable and obviously it's it creates such strain within society and and in our country. And again, it's easy to point the finger. I think everybody's got to take a little bit of a introspective look here and say, "What can I do better? How can I uplift the dialogue? How can we, as you're saying, you know, in the media, how do we highlight positive stories? You know, yes, we got to show the negative in terms of what's going on or somebody, you know, hurt or or an incident, but how do we uplift cuz there's so much more positive in our community, in our society, in our country. We live in the greatest country in the world. And the American people are the most generous people in the world. And there's so much good going on. And the question is, where do we focus our effort and our time and our energy? Do we focus on the negative in the area of disagreement or difference or do we focus on the positive and the area of commonality and agreement? Yeah. We definitely like bringing people on that talk about positivity and growth and both personally and professionally. And it was an honor having you here today. We really, really appreciate it. Is there anyone that you can recommend that would fill that seat as a guest on our podcast that can help in our mission? I think you'd love to talk to Josh Gottheimer. He'd be a good >> He'd be awesome. a good representative to talk to. Ritchie Torres would be uh would be another. Ritchie is a strong supporter of Israel also. You know, he posts about it unabashedly. And he gets a little bit of hate from his So why are you always so busy with Israel? You know, what about over here at home? And he doesn't care. And he's still out He's got a great story, you know, so um yeah, those would be two two good ones. >> mind asking them for We're not going to put We're not going to put you on the spot like we normally do because we respect your time and privacy. But yeah, if you can ask them to join us, that would be great. Thank you to all of our listeners, our subscribers, the Prime Source production team, to Twillery, our sponsor. You ever heard of Twillery, by the way? Okay, good because I Probably they're becoming the congressman knows what Twillery is. What is this? Do you have anything from Twillery? No, I don't. >> We're going to ask Twillery to ship out something. >> You know, what? Yeah, I think we're going to get you a shirt. Just try it. You're going to enjoy it. >> is really, really nice. >> And it saves you on dry cleaning. >> Yeah. >> Which apparently is, you know, bills that keep going up. So we appreciate you being here. Really, thank you so much. And uh happy New Year to uh all of our listeners. And thank you very much for being here. Happy and blessed Rosh Hashanah. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Be well. It's a wrap. >> And that's a wrap. [Music]