Lefty lawmakers' war on cows is another senseless progressive beef with upstate farmers
Is it any wonder why Upstaters hate New York City, at least the jerks we elect?
Animal-rights obsessive Manhattan Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal has teamed-up with Brooklyn Democratic Socialist state Sen. Jabari Brisport to push a limit of 700 cows per farm — a move that would slam an important industry and not help the environment one whit.
Advertisement
The barns for younger cows and calves on Stein Farm in Le Roy, New York, outside of Rochester pictured on November 2, 2022.
Annie Wermiel/NY Post
The two Democrats claim that their bill protects the environment and preserves small, family-owned farms from becoming corporate 'factory farms.'
Except upstate farmers face no such threat and want nothing to do with these lawmakers and the big-city condescension.
Advertisement
'Placing a cap on the number of cows on a dairy farm means placing a cap on growth and success,' argues the New York Farm Bureau.
Nor did Rosenthal or Brisport visit any actual farming communities before moving to 'fix' them: Their measure relies on a 2024 report from Food & Water Watch, an offshoot of Ralph Nader's lefty Public Citizen funded by a slew of progressive charities.
The lefty legislators plainly also know nothing of the state Department of Environmental Conservation's work in ensuring dairy farms adhere to the nation's most stringent standards and land-management practices.
Sign at North Harbor Dairy farm reading 'Make Milk Great Again,' featuring a cow designed in the style of the American flag.
Spectrum News 1
Advertisement
But they surely do know that countless urban 'environmentalists' are convinced that cow flatulence is a prime cause of global warming.
Gov. Kathy Hochul reportedly calls the measure 'insane' and no doubt annoyed that the Rosenthal-Brisport fantasy comes as Great Lakes Cheese, Fairlife and Chobani are investing billions in upstate dairy communities.
So the bill won't become law this year — but if progressives keep growing their majorities in the Legislature, anything goes: Knowing nothing never stops the progs from imposing their ideas whenever they have the power.
Advertisement
The result, of course, would simply be forcing consumers to get more milk from producers in Midwest states without such nutty laws — continuing the long hollowing-out of Upstate.
Hmm: That population loss would further boost progressives' power in the Legislature; they'll be running everything by the time they completely destroy the entire state.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Boston Globe
7 minutes ago
- Boston Globe
Republican bid to help Trump move past Epstein falls flat
On Monday, Representative James Comer, Republican from Kentucky, the chair of the House Oversight Committee, said the Justice Department would begin sharing its Epstein records with his panel by Friday. He also suggested the release of the documents would take some time, all but ensuring that questions about the Epstein affair will drag on for weeks. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up At the same time, Democrats, in some cases with the help of Republicans, have laid a series of procedural traps that will make it all but impossible for the GOP to avoid confronting the issue again when Congress reconvenes in September. 'We're going to keep the pressure up — 100 percent,' Senator Ruben Gallego, Democrat from Arizona, said at an event in Iowa this month. 'As often as we can, until we know exactly what happened, why it happened.' Advertisement Even with Congress in recess, the Epstein case continues to generate attention in Washington. On Monday, William Barr, who was President Trump's attorney general when Epstein died, testified in a closed-door deposition for the Oversight Committee. Lawmakers of both parties concede the Trump administration could quiet the furor over the Epstein files on Capitol Hill and nationwide by simply releasing them to the public. Comer's statement on Monday was the only public indication to date that it might do so. All the while, several efforts connected to Epstein, a disgraced financier who was found dead in his prison cell in 2019, have been percolating and threaten to disrupt a busy month in which Congress also faces a Sept. 30 deadline to fund the government and avert a shutdown. Chief among them may be a maneuver led by Representive Thomas Massie, Republican fron Kentucky, who is a frequent Trump critic, to try to force a floor vote on the release of the files. Such a vote would thrust Republicans into a politically thorny position between Trump and constituents who are unhappy with the administration's handling of the case. Before leaving Washington, Massie and Representative Ro Khanna, a California Democrat, filed what is known as a discharge petition, which allows any member of the House to force legislation to the floor if a majority of members — 218 — sign on. Because of arcane procedural rules, the pair cannot start collecting signatures until they return in September, but they appear to have more than enough support to succeed. The timing all but guaranteed that the issue would hang over lawmakers throughout the August recess and that Republican leaders would be forced to address it when they returned. While they could try to table the effort, several rank-and-file Republicans earlier this year blocked a similar attempt to circumvent a measure that had majority support. Advertisement So far, 43 other lawmakers, 11 of them Republicans, have signed on to Massie and Khanna's initiative. Last week, the pair announced plans for a news conference with victims of Epstein and his longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell, to be held outside the Capitol on lawmakers' second day back from their break. Democrats on the powerful House Rules Committee, a panel controlled by the speaker that determines which legislation reaches the floor, also plan to continue pressuring Republicans over the issue. Republican leaders never found a solution to the committee's impasse, which led them to send the House home a day ahead of schedule. But they seemed to take solace in the Trump administration's request that federal judges release transcripts of grand jury testimony in three cases related to Epstein and Maxwell. Both House Speaker Mike Johnson and Representative Steve Scalise, the number two Republican, suggested such a move might help alleviate concerns, adding that the House could not address the Epstein files while the courts were weighing in. 'That process is underway right now,' Johnson said last month. 'Now, we've got to zealously guard that and protect it and make sure it's happening. And if it doesn't, then we'll take appropriate action when everybody returns here.' Yet so far, federal judges in two of those three cases have denied the government's requests. A judge overseeing Maxwell's case said that the Justice Department's suggestion that grand jury testimony 'would bring to light meaningful new information' was 'demonstrably false.' A third judge, who oversaw Epstein's 2019 case, is still considering whether to unseal grand jury materials connected to that prosecution. Advertisement And Republicans and Democrats alike have argued that the grand jury testimony falls far short of the promise that Attorney General Pam Bondi and other top officials had made. Instead, they have turned to legal maneuvers meant to force the Justice Department to provide the Epstein files to Congress. This month, the Oversight Committee issued a subpoena to Bondi asking the Justice Department to give the committee its files related to Epstein and Maxwell by Tuesday. Comer, a staunch Trump ally, was forced to send the subpoena after a small group of Republicans joined Democrats in voting to approve it at a subcommittee meeting last month. On Monday, he told reporters he was confident that 'we're going to get the documents,' citing 'productive' conversations with the Justice Department. Senate Democrats have already started to pressure Republicans over the matter using a little-known and infrequently tested maneuver to try to force Bondi to turn over the Epstein files. Under a provision of federal law, government agencies are required to hand over relevant information if any five members of the Senate's chief oversight committee requests it. Senator Chuck Schumer, Democrat from New York, the minority leader, and seven other Democrats had asked the Justice Department to give them Epstein-related materials by Aug. 15. They also asked that a briefing be held for the committee's staff before the end of the month. So far, the committee has not received any material, and the briefing has not been scheduled, according to two people familiar with the matter who said they were not authorized to discuss it publicly. Advertisement Schumer has said Democrats are prepared to seek legal recourse if the Trump administration does not meet the letter's deadlines. On Friday, he began publicly pressuring Senator John Thune, Republican from South Dakota, the majority leader, to appoint a lawyer who would defend the Senate's legal authority for congressional oversight. 'If he chooses complicity — we'll take them to court ourselves,' Schumer wrote in a social media post. This article originally appeared in .
The Hill
28 minutes ago
- The Hill
Scholten drops out of Iowa Senate race, endorses fellow state rep
Iowa State Rep. J.D. Scholten (D) announced Monday he is suspending his campaign for U.S. Senate and endorsing fellow State Rep. Josh Turek (D) in his bid to unseat incumbent Sen. Joni Ernst (R). 'Today I am suspending my campaign. I know this may come as a surprise but I made this decision because I think it's in the best interest of Iowans and myself,' Scholten said in a statement. 'From the very beginning, I thought a prairie populist athlete from Western Iowa would be the best candidate to win in the General election,' he continued. 'I still do, but instead of me, I have complete confidence that Josh Turek can take this on. That's why I am suspending my campaign and endorsing him.' Turek, a two-time Paralympics gold medalist for Team USA, announced last week he's entering the crowded Democratic primary to unseat Ernst in the 2026 midterm race. Scholten, who launched his Senate bid in early June, said his decision to end his campaign was 'founded on friendship,' pointing to their shared values and extensive history working together in the state Legislature. 'Ultimately, I decided he could carry the issues I deeply care about — universal health care, breaking up monopolies that are hurting farmers and consumers, getting special interests out of politics. As his friend, I'm proud to support him,' he added. Scholten made clear that he decided independently to drop out of the race and did not feel pressure to do so. 'I want to stress this is a decision of my own accord. I'm ending my campaign because I believe it's the right thing. I want Joni Ernst to be held accountable for her failed leadership. I want Democrats to win and I know we will if we elect Josh Turek,' he said. Ernst, who is seeking a third term next year, won reelection against a Democratic challenger by roughly 7 points in 2020. Republicans have long held on to Iowa's Senate seats, and President Trump won the state by 13 points in November. Scholten will join Turek for a campaign event Monday evening to formally announce the endorsement, Turek's campaign said. 'I am honored to have the support of J.D.,' Turek said in a statement. 'Over the last several years, J.D. and I have fought alongside one another in the state legislature to lower costs for Iowa's families, to make health care more affordable and accessible, to make housing more affordable, and to make life a little bit easier and a little bit better for Iowa's families.' 'We have an incredible opportunity to beat Joni Ernst in 2026, and I'm proud to join forces with J.D.,' he continued.
New York Post
37 minutes ago
- New York Post
Give up the green delusions, Albany — battery sites are too risky for New York
Luiz C. Ribeiro for New York Post If Albany's left-wing politicians are good at anything, it's trampling sensible energy policies to pursue short-sighted partisan goals they'll struggle to implement. The state has banned the safe extraction of natural gas, gas hookups in new construction and gas stoves, and is striving to end the sale of gas-powered vehicles in New York. Now, state Democrats are putting residents' safety and well-being at risk with their reckless handling of Battery Energy Storage Systems. Advertisement These sprawling installations of lithium batteries have cropped up in our neighborhoods under the banner of 'green' progress. On Monday, I visited Long Island to speak with Hauppauge residents who oppose a proposed BESS site in their community. Locals have raised serious concerns about the potential for toxic emissions from the site and contamination of the Nissequogue River watershed, as well as its close proximity to residences, schools and playgrounds. Advertisement The area's volunteer fire departments lack the specialized training and resources needed to respond to lithium battery fires, which can burn for weeks and release hydrogen fluoride and other dangerous chemicals. These aren't hypothetical risks. The San Diego Gateway fire involving nearly 15,000 lithium batteries burned for almost two weeks, requiring comprehensive environmental cleanup — taxpayer dollars spent to undo a preventable environmental disaster. Another California BESS fire in Moss Landing forced the EPA to install air monitors in nine locations across the entire community. Advertisement From Suffolk County to Staten Island, Western New York and the North Country, New Yorkers have been vocal about their BESS safety concerns, but state officials have largely ignored them. In fact, Albany has sidelined local voices with a barrage of legislation that minimizes community input. The 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act set impossibly ambitious targets that even the state's own Draft Energy Report admits cannot be met. The state allocated $350 million in tax incentives under this law to deploy 1,500 megawatts of energy storage this year and 3,000 MW by 2030, because energy derived from intermittent sources like wind and solar must be stored. Advertisement Since then, 6,000 battery storage projects in New York have been connected to the electric grid, creating about 440 megawatts of storage capacity with an additional 1.3 gigawatts under contract — far behind the state's lofty 6-gigawatt target. So Albany has doubled down with laws designed to bypass local zoning processes and speed up BESS development. In particular, the 2024 RAPID Act placed permitting authority for many projects under the Public Service Commission's purview — taking the decision-making power away from municipal boards elected by communities where the projects will go. The new state-mandated regime instead established automatic approval deadlines that guarantee controversial BESS facilities can move forward. The RAPID Act gives state bureaucrats final say over projects of 25 MW or larger, even when local communities overwhelmingly oppose them. Host communities are reduced to spectators in their own backyards, stripped of the zoning authority that is part of the foundation of local government. New Yorkers should not be forced to accept BESS facilities without informed consent, robust emergency plans and fail-safe protections for schools, homes and hospitals. Advertisement That's why the Environmental Protection Agency has announced the first-ever BESS federal safety toolkit, addressing such projects' complete lifecycle — from siting through emergency response. Rather than dismissing community concerns, the agency is listening to Americans who have experienced these risks firsthand. The agency's unique expertise, developed through EPA's direct response to major BESS fires nationwide, provides the science-based guidance that rushed state policies like New York's lack. For example, in wildfires across California and Hawaii, lithium-battery fires— capable of spontaneous reignition even after appearing extinguished — have created some of the most dangerous cleanup challenges. Advertisement Get opinions and commentary from our columnists Subscribe to our daily Post Opinion newsletter! Thanks for signing up! Enter your email address Please provide a valid email address. By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Never miss a story. Check out more newsletters Earlier this year in Los Angeles, EPA completed the largest ever wildfire cleanup in agency history in just 28 days, safely collecting and removing more than 1,000 electric vehicles and bulk energy storage systems. Local fire departments are first responders. But EPA manages the environmental fallout of these fires, from monitoring to cleanup. Advertisement While New York has rushed these facilities into communities across the state, EPA is providing the technical knowledge that local officials and first responders desperately need. EPA's safety toolkit is a resource for communities contending with BESS risk. It is designed not only to protect our environment, but to empower local residents and officials to demand accountability and genuine safety standards for BESS facilities. New York's race to deploy large-scale lithium battery storage has put speed over safety, installing industrial facilities in residential areas while bypassing local zoning laws and brushing off community input. Advertisement The state itself admits it cannot meet the 'green' benchmarks that partisans have forced into law. Time for Albany to set those delusional goals aside — and put constituents' voices, and their safety, first. Lee Zeldin, who represented Suffolk County in the US House of Representatives, serves as administrator of the EPA.
