Meet Elise Stefanik: An Election Denying MAGA Minion Vying To Be Donald Trump’s VP Pick
February 23, 2024
As Elise Stefanik speaks at CPAC today, DNC Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd released the following statement:
“Elise Stefanik calls herself ‘ultra-MAGA’ – and we believe her. She’s backed up her claim of being a far-right extremist with her support for a national abortion ban and her attempts to overturn the 2020 election. Now, she still won’t say if she will certify the results of the 2024 election as she continues defending Trump’s inflammatory and divisive rhetoric as part of her desperate play to be his VP nominee. But whether she’s on the ballot or not, voters aren’t letting Stefanik and Trump get anywhere near the White House in November.”
Stefanik is a Trump loyalist who has latched on to his extreme MAGA agenda to get onto Trump’s VP shortlist.
Stefanik: “I am ultra-MAGA. And I’m proud of it.”
Time: “The ‘Handmaiden of Trump’: How Elise Stefanik Went From Moderate to MAGA”
MSNBC: “How Elise Stefanik went from Trump critic to MAGA loyalist”
NBC News: “’She’s a killer’: Trump eyes Rep. Elise Stefanik as a potential VP pick”
“At the thought of Stefanik as a possible choice for vice president, Trump nodded approvingly. … Trump and a growing group of allies have started to look more closely at Stefanik as a running mate.”
Wall Street Journal: “‘I would be honored to serve in the Trump administration in any capacity,’ Stefanik said in a recent interview when asked if she was open to the vice president post.”
Politico: “Stefanik silent after Trump says immigrants are ‘poisoning the blood’ of US”
Stefanik attempted to overturn the 2020 election results, promoted baseless election lies, and downplayed Trump’s role in the January 6 insurrection.
CNN: “Elise Stefanik tried to get election overturned, promoted election lies”
“Stefanik … supported a lawsuit that tried to get the Supreme Court to invalidate Joe Biden’s victory. On January 6, after Trump supporters stormed the Capitol, she voted to reject some of President Joe Biden’s electoral votes.
“Both before the riot and immediately afterward, Stefanik made false claims about the conduct of the election in some of the states Biden won. And in previous remarks, she amplified baseless claims that there were major ‘irregularities’ with both voting and election software.”
CNN: “In December, Stefanik was one of 126 House Republicans to sign on to an amicus brief in support of a Republican lawsuit that asked the Supreme Court to toss out Biden’s win. … On January 6, Stefanik was one of 147 Republicans to vote against certifying Biden’s electoral votes from at least one state. Earlier that day, prior to the storming of the Capitol, Stefanik had told constituents in an open letter that she planned to object to certifying Biden’s wins in all four of Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan and Wisconsin.”
NCPR: “’Dominion’ voting conspiracy, which Stefanik amplified, debunked in Jan. 6 hearings”
CNN: “In the open letter on January 6, Stefanik wrote that, in Georgia, ‘more than 140,000 votes came from underage, deceased and otherwise unauthorized voters – in Fulton County alone.’ This is just false. Nearly two months before Stefanik’s letter was published, journalists had already debunked claims that there might have been 132,000 ineligible voters who cast ballots in Fulton County, which contains most of Atlanta. It’s not clear if Stefanik was referring to these same claims or to some other tale, but she was wrong regardless.”
NCPR: “North Country Congresswoman Elise Stefanik voted to object to one of two state’s electors as Congress certified Joe Biden as the President-Elect early Thursday morning. … Those concerns have already played out in lawsuits Trump lost in those states.”
WWNY: “[Stefanik] said President Trump did not cause what happened [on January 6], even though President Trump encouraged his followers to come to Washington for Wednesday’s congressional debate over the results of last November’s presidential election. ‘This is not encouraged,’ Stefanik said.”
Stefanik has only doubled down on her extreme election denial – she recently called January 6 insurrectionists “hostages,” signaled she would not have certified the 2020 election as vice president, and refused to commit to certifying the 2024 election results.
Forbes: “Trump Loyalist Elise Stefanik Won’t Promise She’ll Certify 2024 Election Results”
The Hill: “Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) on Sunday stopped short of saying she will certify the 2024 election results, saying she will ‘see’ if this year’s election is ‘legal and valid.’ Pressed on NBC News’s ‘Meet the Press’ over whether she will vote to certify the 2024 election results no matter what the result is, Stefanik said, ‘We will see if this is a legal and valid election.’ The question was sparked after Stefanik’s comments earlier in the interview when she discussed why she objected to certifying Pennsylvania’s 2020 election results on Jan. 6, 2021.”
ABC News: “Rep. Elise Stefanik, possible Trump VP contender, signals she wouldn’t have certified 2020 election”
“‘I would not have done what Mike Pence did,’ Stefanik said.”
Stefanik: “‘I have concerns about the treatment of January 6 hostages.”
Stefanik supports the same extreme anti-abortion agenda as Trump, which includes banning abortion nationwide.
Washington Examiner: “House GOP conference chairwoman calls for 15-week federal abortion ban post-Dobbs”
“When pressed on a definitive statement regarding a federal abortion ban, Stefanik said that ‘we do have a role’ at the federal level … ‘We should embrace this debate,’ Stefanik said, noting the vital role of the local, state, and federal governments in fulfilling the ‘promise of new and better policies.’”
2024: Stefanik received an A+ rating from extreme anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America.
Stefanik helped write the RNC’s platform in 2012, which called for ending Social Security and Medicare as we know them.
ABC News: “Stefanik is no stranger to Washington. … [Stefanik] helped author the Republican National Committee’s platform in 2012.”
New York Times: “When it comes to Medicare … the Republican platform would reshape the program for those under 55 so they would get ‘an income-adjusted contribution toward a health plan of the enrollee’s choice,’ including a government plan. And while the Democratic platform opposes any privatization of Social Security, the Republican platform says younger workers should be given the option of ‘personal investment accounts as supplements to the system.’”
Just like Trump, Stefanik supports repealing the Affordable Care Act, which would rip away health care from millions of Americans.
Press-Republican: “[Stefanik] said she is in favor of repealing ‘Obamacare’ … ‘It’s an overreach of government, and it is costing businesses too much,’ she said.”
NBC 5: “New York Rep. Elise Stefanik voted in support of a House bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act. … The American Health Care Act of 2017 passed by a vote of 217 to 213.”
KFF: “Analysis: 6.3 Million People with Pre-Existing Conditions Would Be at Risk for Higher Premiums under the House’s Health Bill”
Stefanik sides with the NRA and the gun lobby over the safety of our communities.
NBC 5: “Stefanik reaffirms position against gun control after school massacre”
“[Stefanik] received an A+ rating from the National Rifle Association in 2020, with the group’s head touting her as ‘New York’s strongest defender of the Second Amendment.’”
Times Union: “N.Y. Reps. Faso, Stefanik support concealed carry bill”
Stefanik has voted against legislation that is helping hardworking American families – and she’s shamelessly bragged about funding that she opposed.
Politico: “Elise Stefanik is touting $12.9 million to support rural hospitals in her district. The source of that funding? Biden’s $1.9 trillion Covid aid package — which she voted against last year.”
“A repeating pattern: Stefanik has done this before, touting the receipt of another $1 million Rural Development Grant back in August.”
North Country Public Radio: “Stefanik votes against infrastructure bill to fund roads, bridges and broadband”
2022: Stefanik voted against the Inflation Reduction Act.
2022: Stefanik voted against the CHIPS and Science Act.