Aug 12, 2019 — North Country Rep. Elise Stefanik, a Republican, is escalating her war of words with the Glens Falls Post-Star, one of the region’s major daily newspapers.

In a post on her campaign Facebook page - not her official congressional site - Stefanik and her staff accused the Post-Star of censorship, a claim which appears to be factually untrue.

She also continued to portray activists who protested outside her Glens Falls office last Thursday as “socialists" linked to her Democratic opponent's campaign, which is also inaccurate. 

The rally was organized by three progressive groups — including a small organization calling itself the Southern Adirondack branch of the Democratic Socialist Party — who oppose the use of migrant detention camps on the U.S.-Mexico border.   

The Cobb campaign played no role in the protest.  

“We had nothing to do with this whatsoever,” said Tony Coppola, a spokesman for Democratic candidate Tedra Cobb. "We had zero knowledge of this before it happened."

Stefanik's attacks

NCPR reached out to Stefanik and her team for comment, but they declined to respond or correct the record, instead sending a brief email again attacking Cobb.

Stefanik has portrayed herself as a bipartisan centrist devoted to advancing policy ideas and broadening the appeal of her Republican Party.

The tone of her 2020 campaign marks a significant shift from earlier political fights waged by the congresswoman, which were much more focused on issues, especially this early in the race.

“I am proudly not a Socialist,” Stefanik wrote on Facebook. She went on in the Thursday post to use a denigrating and factually inaccurate nickname for Cobb, her only Democratic opponent so far in the NY21 House race.

“A big thank you to this paper [the Post-Star] for propping up my opponent’s Socialist Party supporters!” Stefanik added. 

“We didn’t even know it was happening,” countered Cobb campaign manager Coppola, though he acknowledged some low-level or past volunteers may have taken part without his awareness.

Post-Star responds

In a blog post responding to Stefanik’s criticism, Post-Star reporter Michael Goot corrected Stefanik’s account of how he reported the story, writing that he attempted to interview Stefanik and secure a relevant quote from her. 

Instead he received quotes written by campaign communications director Lenny Alcivar.

“The Post-Star has a policy of only accepting words of the candidates themselves, either quoted directly, or delivered through a statement,” Goot wrote. According to the newspaper, the policy adopted last year is applied to all parties, not just the GOP.

Goot also noted that the Stefanik campaign’s response – and her eventual statement – didn’t speak to the issues of border security and detention camps covered in his article.  

Instead Stefanik focused repeatedly on her claim that activists gathering outside her Glens Falls were “socialists.”

“Representatives from the Democratic Socialists of America, were present at the event,” Goot wrote, “but it would be a stretch to say that everyone there was a socialist.”

At issue:  controversial detention camps and President Trump's border wall

The protest, which the Post-Star reported was attended by roughly 50 people as well as 25 counter-protesters, called for closing controversial detention camps on the US-Mexico border. 

An internal report from the Department of Homeland Security published last month found that living standards at the facilities are substandard.

The Trump administration’s border policy has also drawn widespread condemnation, including from Stefanik herself, for separating thousands migrant and refugee children from their families.  

Counter-protesters, meanwhile, urged the President to push forward with construction of his proposed border wall. Stefanik made no comment about those issues to the Post-Star or on social media.

In his blog post, Goot note that his article — which was syndicated in newspapers across the North Country region — quoted from pro-Trump counter-protesters who support the President’s border policy.

Were the protesters "socialists"?  Does it matter?

Thursday’s rally was organized by the Saratoga Peace Alliance, the Saratoga Immigration Coalition, and the Southern Adirondack branch of the Democratic Socialists of America.  

Six people, including climate activist Bill McKibben, a seasonal resident of Johnsburg in the Adirondacks, were arrested on misdemeanor trespassing charges.

Stefanik has used the “socialist” label more aggressively in recent months, including jabs at liberal Democratic lawmakers whose policies – ranging from universal healthcare to free college tuition – she opposes.

Use of campaign name-calling

Beginning in 2018, Stefanik has also frequently declined to use Cobb’s full name in campaign ads and statements, instead referring to her as “Taxin Tedra,” even after journalists debunked the attack.

Using labels or epithets rather than proper names is an uncommon practice in North Country politics, one Stefanik didn’t embrace in prior campaigns against Democratic opponents Aaron Woolf and Mike Derrick.

The Stefanik campaign declined to answer NCPR's question about why they choose to refer to Cobb in this fashion.

Cobb campaign spokesperson Tony Coppola noted that they haven’t used similar tactics. “We focused on Stefanik’s record,” he said. “We haven’t given her a nickname."

Stefanik, first elected to represent the North Country in 2014, defeated Cobb in the 2018 House race by a 14-point margin. So far, Cobb is the only candidate to challenge Stefanik in the 2020 campaign.