New York Representative Sean Patrick Maloney and Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand

            Sean Patrick Maloney is the representative from New York’s 18^th district. He took office in 2013. He’s New York’s first openly gay congressman. Maloney’s major focuses are education, agriculture and energy, the budget and the economy, transportation, and security for seniors. He’s on the Committee on Agriculture including the Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management and the Subcommittee on Horticulture, Research, Biotechnology, and Foreign Agriculture. He’s also on the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure including the Subcommittee on Aviation, the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit, and Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment. Before he was a representative, Maloney served as a senior advisor in Bill Clinton’s White House as part of a team that worked on the budget and the nation’s debt.

            Maloney drew controversy when he crossed party lines to support No Budget No Pay, which would make sure that Members of Congress don’t get paid till they pass a budget. He also faced criticism for voting with Republicans to pass a budget, which included provisions delaying the implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. His vote drew the ire of LGBT groups that usually support him strongly. Another incident of criticism was when he bought a house in Cold Springs before the election, never having previously lived in the district. He was questioned for how he would represent the interests of the members of that district.

Maloney has been active in both sides of the “Two Congresses.” After the Metro-North accident earlier this year, Maloney introduced the Rail Crossings Safety Improvement Act to help improve safety at grade crossings. Also this year, the House unanimously passed Maloney’s Human Trafficking Prevention Act. His priorities in the 113th Congress include strengthening the health and financial security of America's retirees, creating economic opportunity for New York families, and balancing the budget the right way. Locally, he held a grand opening event of his district office in Newburgh. Many city and county officials were present at the opening, and Maloney received praise for establishing a physical presence in the city. Maloney is the first elected official to open an office in Newburgh in at least three decades.

One Senator from New York is Chuck Schumer, a Democrat. He took office in 1999 and is up for reelection this year. He is Ranking Member on the Committee on Rules and Administration and also sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee where he is Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Immigration, Refugees, and Border Security, the Senate Finance Committee, the Joint Committee on the Library, and the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee.

Schumer has spent some time and effort appeasing his constituents in New York. From his first term in office, Schumer began a tradition to visit each of New York’s 62 counties every year. This helps his constituents believe that he is representing all of them. He helped deliver $20 billion in aid to New York after 9/11 and Schumer also sponsored and cosponsored bills that helped to improve New York’s economy.
            Recently, Schumer has been active in his opposition to President Obama’s Iran deal. His position leaves him on the outside of negotiations and debates over the deal. Schumer is at odds with many Democrats who supported the president. His belief that the deal is weak and should be much stricter aligns him more with key Republicans that have opposed the deal. In fact, Schumer has acted as a leader of this opposition. Because of this, many Democrats have suggested, both subtly and blatantly, that Schumer should removed from his positions of leadership and replaced. Schumer is likely to be the next Democratic leader in the Senate, taking over for Harry Reid, and the White House has already expressed its disapproval in that.

            Kirsten Gillibrand is New York’s junior senator. She took office in 2009 and is up for reelection in 2018. She is notable for her transparency and openness as a Member of Congress. Gillibrand became the first congressperson to post her official public schedule, personal financial disclosure, and federal earmark requests online. She also became to first Senator to publish her personal tax returns for every year she has served in office on her own website. She sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee, the Agriculture Committee, and the Aging Committee.

            Gillibrand’s main focus as a senator is pushing anti-sexual assault bills, working to reform how the military handles sexual assault cases. Gillibrand also played a major rol in repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” She has appealed to New Yorkers by helping provide health care and compensation to 9/11 first responders and community survivors. She also wrote legislation to improve the New York economy and worked on the 2012 Farm Bill for New York.

            Gillibrand was in the news just this week about a flub confusing two amendments. At the New York State Fair, she referred to the amendment that gave women the right to vote as the Fourteenth Amendment, when it really was the Nineteenth Amendment. Gillibrand also just spoke in Corning to renew and bolster the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act. She is also scheduled to speak at a National Cannabis Industry Association conference, where she’d become the first sitting senator to give a keynote speech for a cannabis industry conference.

http://www.washingtonblade.com/2013/10/02/sinema-maloney-obamacare/

http://www.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303754904577533312246504528

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/obama-schumer-iran-deal-critics_55e47cbae4b0c818f618854a

http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/chuck-schumer-peter-king-lee-zeldin-react-to-iran-deal-s-expected-passage-1.10801094

https://medium.com/@SenSchumer/my-position-on-the-iran-deal-e976b2f13478

http://blogs.rollcall.com/white-house/iran-deal-whether-dump-chuck-schumer/?dcz=

http://dailycaller.com/2015/09/04/gillibrand-confuses-19th-amendment-with-14th-amendment-at-womens-day-luncheon/

http://auburnpub.com/blogs/eye_on_ny/sen-kirsten-gillibrand-fighting-back-against-attempts-to-weaken-school/article_e5133232-5241-11e5-b5d9-5f479f143b29.html