In a hotly contested debate between two battleground congressional candidates, Rep. Brandon Williams (R-N.Y.) and state Sen. John Mannion, sparks flew Tuesday over their records on Israel. .
When Williams accused Mannion of remaining “silent” after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, Democrats fired back, clearly irritated.
“My opponent is not ashamed,” Mannion began.
“It is outrageous and disgusting to portray me as someone who does not support Israel. This is another example of my opponent attempting grandstanding on a serious issue,” he continued. Ta.
“You were silent that day, John, you were silent,” Williams retorted.
“When anyone checks my Facebook page; A statement was issued on October 7th,” Mannion yelled back, his microphone appearing to be turned off.
“We did it. It's absolutely shameful,” Williams continued, before touting his standing with Jewish students at Syracuse University and threatening the university's president for failing to contain pro-Hamas protests.
The exchange was the culmination of several expletives exchanged by both candidates since the beginning of the debate.
First, each contestant was asked by a moderator to respond to an attack ad challenge in a battleground area where millions of dollars of attack ads have been spent over the past few months. They include ads highlighting several accusations that Mannion and his wife abused staff.
“They're not true. They should be rejected. And what we've seen is the infiltration of mean-spirited politics by representatives of places like Texas that should be excluded,” Mannion said. Ta.
“The moral accusations against my opponent are completely true, they are completely serious, and those women deserve to be heard,” Williams countered.
Williams also supported a national abortion ban and pushed back on claims that it would cut Social Security.
“I have been very clear that I would not vote for a national ban,” he said.
Despite the harsh words, both candidates tried to project bipartisanship.
Mannion, who hasn't had to compromise with Republicans in the Democratic-controlled state Senate, said he has good working relationships with many of the local Republicans in his district.
“There are more registered Republicans in my district than Democrats. There are 42 Democratic senators. I'm the only one with that distinction,” Mannion said.
Williams pointed to several examples of bipartisan support for single-funding legislation for Ukraine Assistance and the Social Security Fairness Act.
He also used the opportunity to accuse Mannion of influencing New York City's zoning plan, which he said packed more Democrats into the district.
“He voted twice to gerrymander this district, once in a way so bad that it was overturned by a New York state court, and the second time in a way that specifically favored his re-election.” said Williams.
On immigration, Mannion has criticized Williams for not supporting a short-lived bipartisan agreement in the Senate to address immigration and border security.
“In many ways I agree with him about what we need to do,” Mannion said. “The difference is, there's one person standing on this stage who could have done something, and he didn't. He keeps talking about it. . He continues to use harmful language.”
Williams said successful bipartisan negotiations on the other side of the Capitol yielded no results and were unacceptable to Williams anyway.
“It did not solve the border crisis. In fact, it sought to codify the border crisis. It will continue to allow illegal immigration into this country,” Williams said.
Statistically, this race is Democrats' best chance to flip seats in New York this year. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report rates the 22nd District as “Lean Democratic,” the only district currently held by a Republican to hold that designation.
