In 2006, I made my first run for Congress as a Democrat in New York's 19th congressional district. It was truly an amazing experience.
A large army of dedicated volunteers and supporters from the Hudson Valley area, online supporters from across the country, unions representing two million wage-earners, environmental organizations, and newspapers ranging from the New York Times to the Poughkeepsie Journal, and many others, believed in this campaign and decided it was time for change.
Since being sworn in, I can report some successes: Congress passed the first increase in the minimum wage in ten years, made college more affordable with the College Cost Reduction Act, passed an energy bill with the first increase in automobile gas mileage standards in 32 years, and helped our veterans with the largest increase in VA health care funding in the 77 year history of the VA.
On the other hand, we were frustrated by President Bush's two vetoes of our Children's Health Care plan. We have passed several bills setting out a timeline for withdrawal of our forces from Iraq, but do not yet have the votes to override his vetoes.
Next year can, and will, be different. To be here as part of that change, I need your help with my 2008 reelection campaign. We won the last race honestly, fairly, and on the strength of our ideas and our plans for the future of this country. We will do so again in this upcoming election. I ask you to join us.
August 28, 2008
DENVER - Congressman John Hall of Dover Plains Wednesday joined Michelle Obama and Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America to pack CARE packages for U.S. troops serving overseas. Hall serves as chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Disability Assistance.
Mid-Hudson News: Big Green Bus Pulls into Town
August 24, 2008
Nearing the end of the summer, the students Friday made a stop in the Town of Warwick, where they dropped off Congressman John Hall in his district along their way up to New Hampshire.
News from Cornwall & Cornwall-on-Hudson: Disabled Veterans Take to the Water
August 22, 2008
Twenty disabled military veterans and U.S. Congressman John Hall went kayaking this morning in the Hudson River thanks to an effort by the Storm King Adventure Tours (SKAT) in Cornwall-on-Hudson.
Times Herald-Record: Hall Goes to Bat for Widow
August 21, 2008
Lawmaker gets VA to restore benefits fast
NEW WINDSOR — Rosemarie Greene greeted the reporters and congressional staffers who crowded into her living room Wednesday morning.
Poughkeepsie Journal: Hall Fundraiser to Feature Raitt, Others at Bardavon
August 20, 2008
Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter and slide guitarist Bonnie Raitt will headline a fundraiser Oct. 12 for U.S. Rep. John Hall, D-Dover, at the Bardavon 1869 Opera House in Poughkeepsie. Nanci Griffith and John Sebastian will also perform. Raitt and Griffith will play acoustic sets. Hall, who with the 1970s band Orleans sold millions of records, is running for re-election this year against Republican Kieran Michael Lalor of Peekskill.
Hudson Valley Press: $800,000 Coming to Stewart Airport
August 15, 2008
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Rep. John Hall (D-NY19) announced today that the U.S. Department of Transportation has authorized federal funding to help pay for the New York-New Jersey Port Authority’s upgrade of Stewart International Airport. The grant, totaling $807,500.00, will be used to fund an overhaul of Stewart’s Weather Instrument Power (WIP) Circuitry, a critical component of the airport’s navigational aid systems.
Putnam County Courier: Congressman Hall Pushes for Heating Cost Relief
August 14, 2008
Congressman John Hall has proposed new legislation that will hopefully combat home heating costs.
The Dover Plains Democrat who represents constituents in all of Putnam County and sections of Dutchess, Rockland, Westchester and Orange counties, has proposed a tax credit for households spending more than $1,500 a year on home heating oil.
Harlem Valley Times: Students Raise Political Awareness with 'Register for Change' Rally
August 14, 2008
DOVER - Students and recent graduates from Dover High School held a political rally on Aug. 9 in the Town of Dover to promote the importance of voting, as well as to inform the public about presidential candidate Barack Obama's policies.
