by Bea Peterson
US Congressman Scott Murphy, of the 20th District, addressed about 25 people Tuesday, June 1, in a Congress-On-The-Corner session at noon at the NYS Armory in Hoosick Falls. He told the group that he was interested in economic development for the rural areas of his district that covers 137 towns from Lake Placid to Poughkeepsie. He’s concerned about the farmers, he said. “Milk prices are at historic lows.”
“Government can’t solve all the problems,” he said, “but they can help in areas of infrastructures such as broadband internet and improved cell phone service and water and sewer projects.” He wants to see more funding for small businesses and greater educational opportunities for young people. Congress, he said, recently eliminated subsidies to banks for student loans. This allows the government to offer those loans at lower interest rates.
He touched on the oil spill and said bad decisions were made. “We weren’t making people accountable. Now we will, and there will be no more drilling until we know it is safe.”
Fran Downing, armed with pages of facts and figures, confronted Congressman Murphy over his first no vote and then yes vote for health care, particularly as it relates, Downing claimed, to taxpayers picking up
coverage for small businesses. The Congressman agreed there are problems with the bill and it needs improvement. In further response to Downing he said bailouts resulted because of failures with regulators. “These bills are working,” he said. “They are a dramatic step forward.” He admitted Washington is a mess and has been a mess for some time. He added that the government has done well so far in getting bailout money back.
Winnie Restino, who has been asking for help on the Wood Brook problem from the Town, Village and State for years, asked the Congressman for help. She thought the brook was on a list of projects to be undertaken by the Army Corps of Engineers, and she wondered about its status. Murphy referred her to a member of his staff for more information.
Joyce Davis complained that the Village is being deprived of the third year of a three year teen drug and alcohol abuse grant. After October, she said, with the grant gone, the Hoosick Falls Police will
no longer be able to respond to calls at the school and the school will once again have to rely on State Police or the County Sheriff’s Dept. The loss also undermines work and salaries at the Youth Center. Murphy told her cuts are being made across the country to try to bring down the deficit and many projects have been terminated.
Louise Ciuk and others expressed concerns about Medicare and the changes brought about by the health care bill.
Deb Mahar lost her small business through this recession, and her husband has had to take a pay cut at his job. She said her children have big dreams, and she doesn’t see them being fulfilled. She has a college degree, and she told Murphy “I feel like we are 18 again, with none of the hope we had then.” The Congressman admitted it is a difficult time for small businesses. He sees economic improvement for this area in the near future, he said.
He spoke briefly about the huge failure in Washington regarding immigration. “Every state should not have to make its own law,” he said. President Bush had a good plan, he said, agreeable to both parties, but it was never acted on. He does not support amnesty. He believes those coming into the country should pay their fair share of taxes and learn English.
Several people at the gathering had been to other sessions with Murphy. One woman said she has written him so often she thinks of him as a pen pal. It is difficult to say how much of his message got across, but everyone certainly had much to say to him about the state of affairs.
