Press-Republican - Woolf Pushes Women's Rights

News Article

By Felicia Krieg and Joe LoTemplio

With a group of local women supporters standing behind him, congressional candidate Aaron Woolf took stances on wage inequality, women's health-care rights and the federal minimum wage.

Woolf is the Democratic candidate for the 21st District seat. Elise Stefanik is running on the Republican and Conservative lines, and Matt Funiciello is the Green Party candidate.

EQUAL PAY

At the news conference on Friday at his campaign headquarters on Margaret Street in downtown Plattsburgh, Woolf said Stefanik has a track record of not supporting legislation that would better the lives of American women.

The Woolf campaign recently released a television advertisement touting his support for women's issues.

He said a female full-time worker makes 77 cents for every dollar a man earns in the United States.

And he supports the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would ensure women be paid the same amount as men for the same job and the same hours of work.

He said that while Stefanik now says she supports the legislation, she, as policy director of the 2012 Republican platform, explicitly excluded the Paycheck Fairness Act from the platform, and he won't allow her to "sweep that under the rug."

"Was equality for women less important to my opponent then than now?" Woolf asked. "Our district deserves a congressperson who isn't afraid to say that if you work hard and you take responsibility, you deserve a fair paycheck at the end of the day."

FAIR MINIMUM WAGE

Funiciello said there are many theories on the statistic Woolf referenced, so he goes beyond the topic of gender in regard to equal pay.

"I ignore the whole issue and say everyone should be paid fairly, and pay all workers at least $15 an hour, and stop worrying about it."

He said raising the minimum wage to $10 an hour would be just enough money to remove the average low-wage worker from government benefits.

"You have people that can't afford to take the standard of living that America is supposed to promise," Funiciello said. "If you pay workers a reasonable amount of money, they spend it all immediately right here."

Woolf also addressed the minimum wage, saying he would back the Fair Minimum Wage Act if he's elected and that it would create 140,000 jobs and generate $33 billion in three years, giving much-needed revenue to local businesses.

"But Elise Stefanik said during her primary (campaign) that she wouldn't support raising the federal minimum wage. And now she's backpedaling, which has become a common habit. She still refuses to take a firm stance either way," Woolf said.

MOVED TO AREA

Woolf is from Manhattan but moved into a family home in Elizabethtown in Essex County to run for Congress. Stefanik is from the Albany area and did likewise in Willsboro, also in Essex County, to seek the seat.

Funiciello is from Glens Falls.

The district includes 12 counties from Lake Ontario in the west to Lake Champlain in the east.

WOMEN'S HEALTH CARE

Health-care decisions should be made by women and their health-care providers without interference from the government, Woolf said, referring in part to abortion.

He said Stefanik has repeatedly said she "does not believe in this right."

In an earlier interview, Stefanik said she opposes abortion except in the instance of rape, incest or danger to the life of the mother.

"Simply put, there's no room for government in our nation's bedrooms, in our clinics, in our doctor's offices," Woolf said on Friday. "And it doesn't matter whether you're a Democrat or a Republican. It doesn't matter whether you're a man or a woman -- your representative should know that."

Funiciello has a similar view.

"A women should absolutely have the right to choose," he told the Press-Republican. "Her body is hers. It does not belong to the government."

Asked whether his emphasis on women's rights is partially to show voters who care about those issues that they don't have to vote for Stefanik just because she's a woman, Woolf said, "What I'm saying is keeping women safe, keeping women strong, educating women and guaranteeing equal pay for women is the best possible thing we can do for our society and for our economy."

'ALL ARE WOMEN'S ISSUES'

Stefanik downplayed Woolf's attempt to make headway with female voters.

She said more women and their perspectives are needed in Washington, D.C., regardless of party.

"All issues are women's issues," she told the Press-Republican.

"I am the only woman in this race, and I am talking about how we need to grow the economy and increase economic opportunity for the women in this district, how we need to ensure that our constitutional liberties are stood up for and give us more of an opportunity and more of a voice.

"I am the only candidate that can speak to those issues because I am the only woman running to represent this district."

"Being a woman does not qualify you to represent women any more than being a multi-millionaire from New York or Washington, D.C., qualifies you to represent workers living in the Adirondack Park," Funiciello said.

'FRESH VOICE'

Stefanik said she believes that women look at most issues just like any voter does, and what they want most is a "fresh voice, a new perspective in Washington to fight back against the gridlock."

She said women are also better policymakers because they get things done.

"Women are often the people that balance the checkbooks in their family, and, as I said, they make decisions about their health care," she said.

"We need people who are willing to roll up their sleeves to move this country forward and surpass the gridlock that currently is happening in Washington, and that's what I am committed to do. I will work with anyone regardless of their political affiliation to solve these issues."

'NOT PROGRESSIVE'

Plattsburgh City Councilor Rachelle Armstrong (D-Ward 1) spoke at Woolf's news conference.

"We are here to demand a future of full equality for our sisters, daughters and granddaughters," she said.

"We will not stand by and allow leaders of the far right to block progress and pen regressive policies that move us backwards. Elise Stefanik has aligned herself with those men who want us to live in the past."

"When women succeed, we all succeed," Woolf said. "It's time that legislation and Congress reflect that."

PHONE BANK

Lola Johnson of Plattsburgh and Valencia Baldwin of Chateaugay volunteered to work on a phone bank for Woolf, calling women in the district and speaking to them about his position on women's rights.

"Ethical people are few and far between anymore, and I recognize that quality in this candidate so I am here on the phone," Johnson said. "I believe someone with those values belongs in a position that has a big ripple effect."

"Aaron is really going to help women," Baldwin said, calling Stefanik a "political operative out of Washington."

"We need to stand up and say, 'Look, this is the North Country -- we've been independent for years, and we continue to want to be.'"

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