Bill Clinton in Sullivan County

By LIAM MAYO
Posted 11/8/22

HURLEYVILLE, NY — The last time a president came to Sullivan County it was Jimmy Carter, who came to perform the first cast in 1980, according to Sullivan County Democratic Committee chair Anne …

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Bill Clinton in Sullivan County

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HURLEYVILLE, NY — The last time a president came to Sullivan County it was Jimmy Carter, who came to perform the first cast in 1980, according to Sullivan County Democratic Committee chair Anne Hart.

President Bill Clinton came to Sullivan County under more contentious circumstances, visiting the Hurleyville Performing Arts Center with a slate of Democratic candidates on November 3, in the closing days of the 2022 campaign season.

“I think most of what goes on in politics today is nuts,” said Clinton. “You read the names people call each other, and the things they say, and it doesn’t make a lick of sense and it doesn’t matter if it’s true or not—in the end this is about you, and your kids and your grandkids and the future.”

Clinton was in Sullivan County because the NY-19 race was one of the most important in the United States, he said. Pre-election day polling has Democratic candidate Josh Riley slightly favored to win the district over Republican candidate Marc Molinaro.

The country had too much inflation and too much crime, acknowledged Clinton, but the Republican approach to both didn’t amount to a “hill of beans.” He highlighted the track record he’d had on both issues while in office, and specifically pushed back against the campaign to defund the police: “[The Clinton administration helped reduce crime rates] by putting more police on the street, in the communities, knowing their neighbors, working with people, trained to use violence as a last resort.” He also highlighted the accomplishments of the Biden administration which Republican members of government had largely declined to support, including COVID-19 relief, U.S. semiconductor manufacturing capabilities and the government’s ability to negotiate prices on drugs.

The Republican playbook relies on making people miserable and convincing them that their misery was the other side’s fault, Clinton said. “I’m pleading with you, go out and talk with your neighbors; deliver this congressional district to a superbly qualified person who’s got the right positions on the issues, who cares about you, and will be fair to [you],” he said.

Statements from the candidates

Members of and candidates for the Democratic party in Sullivan County made speeches prior to Clinton’s arrival at the event.

“This is a historic year for so, so many reasons, and one of those reasons is there are so many women on the ticket, up and down,” said Hart, introducing the event. She emphasized the three female candidates for State Supreme Court Justice, including Sullivan County District Attorney Meagan Galligan.

Galligan emphasized the shared legal background of herself, Josh Riley and Clinton, and emphasized the values of truth and the rule of law. She took a stance in support of the criminal justice community, “to offer help to those who need it, and to make sure that our neighborhoods are the kind of places we can be proud to be from. I’m proud to be from Sullivan County,” she said.

Assemblywoman Aileen Gunther said, “As a nurse, I served our constituents around Sullivan County and Orange County, and this job allowed me to do the same thing but just a little bit more.” Gunther emphasized the importance of the election for reproductive rights and for democracy.

Candidate Josh Riley emphasized his support for organized labor and for law enforcement. Riley rejected the claims made in attack ads against him that he was an extremist who wanted to defund law enforcement; his mother worked in law enforcement, he said, and he’d had to call her and promise he wasn’t going to defund her once those ads ran.

Riley drew a contrast between himself and his opponent Marc Molinaro on the issue of reproductive rights; Molinaro believed abortion should be an issue decided by the states, and Riley was a strongly pro-choice candidate.

The issues of inflation and the economy were ones Riley addressed through attacking the profits large corporations had made during difficult economic times. “As I’ve been campaigning across 11 counties, I’ve met with so many families, and usually the first question I ask is ‘What’s keeping you up at night?’... No matter what the answer to that question is, I’ve found that you can draw a direct line from it to the corrupting influence of corporate money in politics,” Riley said.

Bill Clinton, Sullivan County, Josh Riley, Meagan Galligan, Aileen Gunther

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