Hudson Valley Rep. Mike Lawler touted his willingness to stand up to President Trump during the negotiations over the state and local tax deduction (SALT) cap to save New Yorkers thousands on their taxes.
During a dueling Sunday show appearance with his Democratic foe, veteran Cait Conley, Lawler (R-NY) defended himself over claims he’s too close to Trump, contending that it helps him deliver wins for his district.
“In order to get anything done, you have to be able to reach across the aisle and also work within your own party,” Lawler told CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday.
“When Joe Biden was president, I was able to get things done. When Donald Trump is president, I’m able to get things done.”
“I have been able to bring back tens of millions of dollars to my district, and I delivered one of the biggest wins for New York by standing up to President Trump on the issue of SALT.”
During the arduous negotiations over the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Lawler had been one of the most outspoken blue state Republicans advocating for a higher cap, threatening to kill the megabill over the issue.
His aggressive negotiating antics briefly drew Trump’s ire. But when the dust settled, Lawler and other GOP members of the SALT Caucus helped secure an increase in the cap on SALT deductions from $10,000 to $40,000 — a huge win for homeowners in high tax states like New York.
The congressman also boasted about how he worked on 17 bills that became law during this past session of Congress.
Lawler is vying for reelection in one of the toughest House races in the country, a contest that is among the Cook Political Report’s list of 21 toss-up seats. Conley has tried to paint him as a Trump sycophant.
Later this week, Lawler is slated to speak at the GOP midterm convention in Dallas, Texas, dubbed by the Republican National Committee, “Trump-a-Palooza.”
“Part of what I will be highlighting in my remarks is the ability to not only agree when we must, but disagree and deliver for my district and stand up for the people that I was elected to represent, including the Gorman family, who will be speaking at the convention,” he teased.
Lawler has been advocating on behalf of the family of slain 18-year-old Sheridan Gorman, a Loyola University Chicago student from Yorktown Heights, whose alleged killer was an illegal immigrant.
During her appearance on “State of the Union,” Conley was pressed on attacks her party has faced over the rise of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).
But Conley declined to firmly disavow the DSA in the way that Long Island Dem Rep. Tom Suozzi recently did, outright calling on Dems to reject the insurgent leftist group.
“I look at what we’re trying to do, which is unite this country, where we have seen partisanship, to include partisanship within our own party, absolutely divide people to render government dysfunctional,” she replied.
“What I see coming out of Washington is corruption on both sides, extremism on both sides that is fueling hate, fueling dysfunction.”
The DSA’s platform calls for eliminating the Senate, making the president and Supreme Court subservient to Congress, and defunding the Pentagon.
The libertarian-leaning CATO Institute recently published a study concluding that the DSA’s proposed spending spree could cost some $200 trillion over a decade. For context, the size of America’s gross domestic product was about $30.77 trillion last year.
