Congressional candidates attend Union Square Park rally
From Patty MacEwan, photos by Joshua Johnston,
250 people braved the 20 degree temps on Saturday March 28 to express their love of democracy. The No Kings Hornell went off without a glitch, had a whopping 3 counter protestors, and a Trump truck. The program was great, lots of people signed petitions, they were fired up, and shared a great sense of community.
Allegany County Democratic Chair Karen Ash remarked:
“Another inspiring event, bringing together hundreds of patriots with a single goal: to fight for the rule of law and reject this despicable regime.”
A Steuben County Republican, who asked to be unnamed, commented:
“Though none of the attendees at the Hornell event was even questioned about their political affiliation, this rally differed from previous by turning attention to a more immediate and achievable goal than removing Trump from office or changing his behavior. Saturday’s rally brought two candidates for the congressional seat now held by Republican incumbent Rep. Nick Langworthy, Langworthy has been identified by both candidates as a “Trump enabler.””
Hornell Democratic Committee Chair John Clinton Bradley:
“Over 250 people showed up in freezing weather to express their resistance to the Trump agenda. The rally had four inspiring speakers. Susan Gray reminded us how Adolph Hitler took power in Germany. Aaron Gies, a Democratic candidate for the NY23 congressional district, warned us not to allow the United States to fall into autocracy. Jim King, a moderate Republican candidate for the NY23 congressional district, accused Trump of ruling by decree rather than law. And the Rev. Alex Wright described the moral bankruptcy of the Trump regime.”
Candidate Aaron Gies, attended multiple No Kings rallies in the region and said this on social media statement:
We went to 3 rallies in 3 counties, but tens of thousands of people across our district are uniting over their love for our country and its democratic freedoms. If you don’t think there’s something different about this time, you need to get out more.
Tioga County Republican Jim King made the trip to Hornell and had this to say about the reasons these nationwide rallies drew so many large crowds. King is a Republican candidate seeking to challenge sitting Congressman Nick Langworthy in a June primary election. Speaking after the rally, King said,
“This president has broken every promise made in the campaign. Millions of Americans are hungry today because of his cuts in the SNAP program. Millions more can’t any longer afford health care. While food prices continue to go up, he’s also started a war making it nearly unaffordable to buy gas to even get to a grocery.“
