Rep. Mike Lawler Has “Donald Trump’s Leash Around His Neck” Says Congressman Dan Goldman

When U.S. Representative Mike Lawler (R-NY) announced last week that he voted in favor of President Donald Trump‘s domestic policy bill, he wrote: “I voted yes to stop the biggest tax hike in history and deliver real wins for our district.”

Lawler’s congressional colleague Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) replied to Lawler: “Mike promised not to cut Medicaid, then ripped health insurance away from 32,216 constituents. He promised to repeal the SALT cap then passed a weak fix. He pretends to be moderate but chooses billionaires over New Yorkers. Let’s make sure @Lawler4NY never represents NY again.”

Note: Lawler pushed to change the limit for federal deductions for state and local taxes (known as SALT) from $10,000 to $40,000 in Trump’s bill and succeeded although the new cap is temporary (the cap will revert to $10,000 in 2030).

Lawler, who is running in the 2026 New York gubernatorial election, replied to Goldman: “Nothing like being lectured to by a multi-millionaire trust fund baby, whose biggest accomplishment in life is being part of the lucky sperm club.”

[Note: Goldman, an heir to the Levi Strauss & Co. fortune, is among the wealthiest members of Congress.]

Goldman replied again to Lawler: “I don’t think your 32k constituents who will no longer have health care because you voted to take it away care very much about me. But I bet they’d rather have a Congressman who protects their health care than one with Donald Trump’s leash around his neck.”

Note: According to data from the Tax Foundation, Lawler’s push to raise the SALT deduction cap will primarily benefit wealthy taxpayers.