New York Rep. Lee Zeldin heaped praise on President Trump for his response to the coronavirus pandemic when the New York congressman delivered his remarks Wednesday, on the third night of the Republican National Convention.
“When my hometown Suffolk County executive told me late one Saturday night in April that the county’s stockpile of PPE was depleted because of COVID-19, I immediately thought of our doctors and nurses. Jared Kushner was on the phone with me right away and late into that night, wanting to help however possible,” Zeldin said.
“The very next day, President Trump announced he was immediately sending 200,000 N95 masks to Suffolk. It actually ended up being almost 400,000. That number quickly grew to a staggering 1.2 million items of PPE in just one month, including masks, gowns, and more,” he added.
Zeldin, a Long Island native who was first elected to New York’s state Senate in 2011, served one term in Albany’s upper chamber before moving on to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2014 after defeating Democrat Tim Bishop.
The New York Republican serves on both the House Committee on Financial Services and House Committee on Foreign Affairs, on which he serves as ranking member of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.
As a key player during the House Democrats’ impeachment of Trump, Zeldin routinely defended the president against accusations that members of Trump’s 2016 campaign and transition team colluded with Russian operatives to meddle in the last presidential election.
Zeldin, a former military intelligence officer, prosecutor, and military magistrate, is running for his fourth term this cycle, facing off against Democrat Nancy Goroff. The Cook Political Report announced last week that it changed its rating for New York’s 1st District from “likely Republican” to “lean Republican.” He won his last election by 4 percentage points.
Earning the endorsement of local law enforcement unions on Long Island, Zeldin criticized his opponent, saying she wants to defund the police. Goroff rejected this accusation, saying she wants police, public safety, and social services to have what they need to protect their communities.
The New York congressman introduced a resolution Tuesday denouncing calls to “defund,” “disband,” “dismantle,” or “abolish” law enforcement and encouraging states to adopt statutes to establish essential rights for law enforcement officers.
During his remarks Wednesday night, Zeldin referenced the law enforcement family he grew up in and talked about the theme of the evening — “Land of the Heroes.”
He continued, “The president’s phenomenal effort delivered for our front-line workers. In the midst of a once-in-a-century pandemic, an unforeseeable crisis sent to us from a faraway land, the president delivered for our everyday heroes.”
