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Displaying items by tag: Donald Trump

WILTON — Earlier this month U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik visited with President Donald Trump at Camp David, where she said the president talked extensively about the research and development that’s going into a COVID-19 vaccination, as well as the “reopening” of the country. 

“The president is very supportive of the safe reopening of the economy, which he’s delegated it to the states, and that was the right decision,” said the Congresswoman during a visit to a Belmonte Builders construction site in Wilton on May 26. “I want to see it at the state level – the delegation to the County Public Health Offices. I think that’s the right call moving forward because they’re the most connected.” 

Stefanik represents the 21st Congressional District, which includes parts of Saratoga. 

As the community prepares for its potential Phase 2 reopening next week, Stefanik said she believes preparations are also underway should a rise in COVID-19 infections hit the region. 

“In my communications with the county public health offices and the hospitals, we are watching the data very, very closely. Our (increased) testing capacity gives us a better understanding of the real data in upstate, because initially we were undertested in this region,” she said. “But certainly, there are plans and discussions going on if there is a second surge in the virus transmission. It’s part of the conversation about reopening schools - we have to reopen schools safely and there are ways to do that - but many of our students who are underserved either in the disabilities community, or who are unable to access online education, they have atrophied so much during this crisis. I feel very confident that those conversations are being professionally handled by the county public health offices.” 

Stefanik’s visit coincided with a joint announcement that she and U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko made. Tonko represents the 20th Congressional District, which like the 21st District also includes parts of Saratoga.  The announcement heralded a $61,515 award from the Federal Communications Commission to improve telehealth for Saratoga Hospital Consortium in Saratoga Springs. The funding is intended for remote diagnosis and monitoring equipment and other telehealth equipment to treat patients with COVID-19 infection and to expand telehealth to other patients with symptoms of COVID-19 infection.

“Out of necessary efforts to prevent further spread of COVID-19, telemedicine has quickly become the primary method of connection between a patient and their doctor,” Saratoga Hospital CEO and President Angelo Calbone said in a statement. “Unfortunately, anyone who doesn’t have access to internet services and equipment can’t participate. Sometimes, a video visit can’t provide enough clinical information about a patient’s current status for those with chronic or serious conditions, such as diabetes or heart disease. This grant enables us to pilot a Facilitated Telemedicine program that will provide essential medical care to these underserved populations without having to leave their homes.”

Published in News
Thursday, 23 March 2017 14:55

Parents Push Back

SARATOGA SPRINGS – After discovering what they saw as a questionably one-sided graphic in their childrens’ schoolwork, a local group of conservative-minded women decided to take action, and soon found themselves in the national spotlight on the popular morning news and talk program, “Fox & Friends.”

“Saratoga Conservative Chicks” is a Facebook group that launched early on March 22, but prior to that, its members had been chatting daily through social media and sharing information since early last year.

The group has grown exponentially in the past 6 months,” said Amy, a member of the group who wished to be referred to only by her first name for the sake of her family.  “We chat daily through social media, etc., and last week a concerned parent brought to our attention the assignment by a classroom teacher at Saratoga High School.”

The graphic in question was from a power-point discussion in a 10th grade class at Saratoga Springs High School on the topic of the rise of fascism during World War II.  Within the power-point, cartoons depicting President Donald Trump with facial hair similar to Adolf Hitler, as well as comparing the President’s appearance to Benito Mussolini, were used to link the topic of the lesson with current events.  Once the concerned parent showed them the cartoons, the group mutually agreed that the content was “one sided and inappropriate.” 

The particular power point in question here was about WWII,” said another group member who wished to remain unnamed for the sake of her children.  “Trump was not president then and has no relevancy to that war. I would be equally upset finding a cartoon like that of Obama, or Bush, or Clinton inserted into this lesson in this manner. It is clearly biased, clearly pushing an agenda. The power point and the fascism debate handout support the lack of balance in this lesson. That is what is at the crux of this group and how we formed.”

At an earlier point, the graphic and its accompanying lesson were available online through the teacher’s website, for the sake of student reference.  However, as of March 22, the site has been closed-off from public viewing. 

Following this, a member of the group got in touch with conservative columnist and commentator Todd Starnes with the information.  Starnes, a frequent “Fox & Friends” contributor, conducted his own research on the issue for a column on his website.  According to Amy, Starnes’s involvement with is what led to their group’s spot on “Fox & Friends,” as the interview process “escalated quickly” after he began looking into the issue.  Starnes also states in his column that the lesson became blocked once he started asking questions about it.

We are very proud of the two women who represented us on Fox News,” Amy said.  “They did a great job in a short amount of time.”

As of 11 a.m. the day after their interview, their segment had received 144,000 views on the “Fox & Friends” Facebook page.

Amy said that the group’s hope moving forward is to encourage members of the local community to join them in debate and discussion of these issues.

“Especially young girls,” Amy said.

In an official statement, the Saratoga Springs City School District (SSCSD) said that after an investigation into the lesson, they found that it did not violates the district’s rules about keeping classroom activities non-partisan, as the images were used to visually display the idea of potential media bias.  Further, the school found that the lesson was used to teach students to debate and research fascism on their own terms.

We continue to reinforce the District’s policy which states that employees will in no way impair the non-partisan position of the schools,” said Michael Piccirillo, superintendent of schools for SSCSD. 

Do you have any feelings on this issue?  Let us know in the comments section below.

Published in Education

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