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Rep. Engel On Protests: ‘If I didn’t have a primary, I wouldn’t care’

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Congressman Eliot Engel, a Democrat who has represented New York in the House of Representatives for more than 31 years and is facing a primary challenge, was caught on a hot mic at a district event Tuesday, after another day and night of looting in New York City.

“If I didn’t have a primary, I wouldn’t care,” Rep. Eliot EnGel On Riots

“If I didn’t have a primary, I wouldn’t care,” Engel, who serves as Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told Bronx borough president Ruben Diaz, Jr. (D) at a press conference Tuesday that was held in response to unrest and vandalism in his district related to the recent protests and riots. 

After Diaz, Jr. failed to hear Engel’s comment (which was muffled by his mask) he asked him to “say it again.” Congressman Engel proceeded to repeat the sentence.

“Don’t do that to me,” replied Diaz, Jr.

Rep. Engel has also faced questions about his absence from his district. He represents New York’s 16th Congressional District, which includes portions of The Bronx and Westchester County, including the communities of Mount Vernon, Yonkers and New Rochelle.

Engel’s district was an epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak in the U.S.

Later in the day, Rep. Engel issued a statement to NBC News in response to the backlash from his controversial remarks.

“In the context of running for reelection, I thought it was important for people to know where I stand, that’s why I asked to speak,” he told NBC. “Of course I care deeply about what’s happening in this country, that’s what I wanted to convey. I love the Bronx, grew up in the Bronx and lived here all my life. I would not have tried to impose on the Borough President if I didn’t think it was important.”

Engel’s primary challenger, Jamaal Bowman, took him to task on Twitter.

“This is so incredibly painful to watch,” Bowman said of Rep. Engel’s hot mic moment. “It hurts. We need to be taking care of our communities right now — whether it’s election season or not. It’s clear that we need new leadership in (our district).”

SaraACarter.com will continue to follow events in New York City and around the nation.

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Elections

RFK Jr. announces lifelong Democrat, advocate of left-leaning causes, CA native as running mate

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Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. announced Tuesday that attorney and tech entrepreneur Nicole Shanahan will be his vice presidential running mate in the upcoming election. The Independent candidate announced his choice for the 38-year-old Oakland, California native by praising her insight into “how Big Tech uses AI to manipulate the public,” her athletic ability, and willingness to be a “partner” in a number of policy areas, including on securing the border.

Fox News writes that Shanahan is a philanthropist with a long history of donating to Democrat and left-leaning causes, including supporting President Biden in his 2020 election bid before switching to Kennedy when he launched his own run for the Democrat nomination last year.

She is the founder and president of Bia-Echo Foundation, a private firm that describes its mission as focused on “new frontiers in reproductive longevity & equality, criminal justice reform and a healthy & livable planet.”

Fox News reports Shanahan initially dropped her support for Kennedy after he decided to run as an independent, but later got behind him again by giving $4 million to the super PAC that boosted his candidacy with a John F. Kennedy-themed campaign ad that ran during the Super Bowl in February.

Shanahan also previously donated to Democrat presidential candidates Marianne Williamson and Pete Buttigieg during the 2020 presidential race, and threw more than $150,000 behind progressive Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon’s 2020 election bid.

Shanahan, a life-long Democrat, told the crowd that she was leaving the party.

“The Democratic Party is supposed to be the party of compassion. It is supposed to be the party of free speech, and most importantly, the party of the middle class and the American dream,” Shanahan said.

“While I know many Democrats still abide by those values…I do believe they’ve lost their way in their leadership,” she continued.

And she urged “disillusioned” Democrats and Republicans to support Kennedy’s independent White House bid.

 

 

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