POUGHKEEPSIE – Republican House Member Christopher Gibson (NY-19) and Democrat Sean Patrick Maloney (NY-18) often sound like they are members of the same political party. Both are known for reaching across the aisle in legislative work.
They discussed their efforts to team up at a Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress “Across the Aisle” forum in Poughkeepsie on Wednesday.
Maloney shared some of the areas Gibson and he have had successful collaborations on so far.
“Right now, we’re still working on what we call the ‘Blue Water Navy Bill’ that will help extend benefits to veterans of the Vietnam War who were on Navy ships and exposed to Agent Orange and in addition, we passed the most important Lime Disease legislation that has ever been passed at the federal level; that will make a real difference in our communities,” said Maloney. “These are all measures Chris Gibson and I have worked on together.”
Also, Gibson and Maloney are currently working on a bill to promote agriculture in New York State by allowing farmers who have successfully paid their acquired loans for 10 years to receive loan forgiveness after that 10-year period.
For education, the two candidates are working on the Higher Education Bill which will help alleviate student debt and improve paths to employment.
Although Gibson and Maloney are, and have been, successfully working together, they do not agree on everything. Most notably, according to Maloney, is the push by Gibson of a federal Republican agenda that he feels will not work at the state level. However, despite their disagreements, Gibson said it is important for them to work together as best as they can because they are, in fact, hired by their constituents in order to meet their needs.
“There’s an expectation that once the voting is done, that we will come together and govern and I think a forum like today shows that we are able to do that,” said Gibson. “We still have our differences but, we find common ground where we can and we get important legislation enacted for the American people.”
Maloney, meanwhile, said it is important to work collaboratively.
“It would be better to set aside some of our ideological differences to look at the human being on the other side of the table and feel a sense of connection because none of us is going away. We are all in this together and we will either rise or fall together,” he said.
Maloney and Gibson said they will continue to work together on behalf of their constituents until Gibson’s tenure is up. Gibson is not seeking reelection this year, but may consider running for governor in 2018.
