Cait Conley is a highly decorated military veteran running for Congress in New York’s District 17. This district covers parts of Westchester County and Rockland County, including Mt. Kisco and Ossining.

The primary election is tomorrow.

Republicans want to keep incumbent Mike Lawler in office. Trump visited the district to help Lawler. Republicans even created a phony political group–“Progressive Champions PAC”–to fund attack ads against Cait Conley.

Simon Rosenberg recently interviewed Conley:

Simon Rosenberg:
Welcome everyone. Simon Rosenberg, Hopium Chronicles, back with another great event today. Joining me is Cait Conley who’s running in NY-17, working to flip one of the most flippable seats in the country. Cait, welcome. Thanks for being with us today.


Cait Conley:
Are you kidding me, Simon… thank you for having me and thank you for highlighting this race and the importance of this race for the country.


Simon Rosenberg:
Well, listen, we’re going to get to the specifics of the primary in a second, but just tell us your story. Let’s start by talking about, you know, your’e a fourth generation member of your community. You’ve got a pretty storied military record. Walk us through the story and why you decided to run for Congress.


Cait Conley:
Yeah, so, very proud come from blue collar roots that go back here in the district for generations. To my great grandfather and grandfather who worked in the Montrose Brickyard to my dad, born and raised in southern Dutchess County as a construction worker. To my mom, born in Peekskill, who worked for the U.S. Postal Service for 48 years, serving communities up and down the Hudson Valley. And so it is really the values that my family and my community instilled in me — of service and standing up for what’s right, and doing the work that led me to pursue this path of public service.

I was a junior in high school when the terror attacks on 9/11 happened and our community got hit really hard. And so it was that — that inspired me to go off to West Point… that and Demi Moore and G.I. Jane, the 1997 classic… but went off, graduated the top of my class, and then went off and served 16 years as an active duty Army Officer. I deployed overseas six times. I had the privilege of a lifetime leading America’s sons and daughters in defense of this nation… was one of the first women in special ops leadership.
And then [in] my last two years in the Army, I was actually at the White House. I served as a Director for Counterterrorism on the National Security Council staff — the first two years of Biden and then went off and served as a senior executive at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency where we work to ensure the nation’s critical infrastructure security, including election security. I led the election security mission for 2024, pushed back on Trump’s lies that 2020 was rigged or stolen.

And Simon, so much of why I’m doing this today is because after everything I’ve seen and done, to truly believe that the greatest threat to America and to our future is coming from within our own borders right now, you know, I’m watching the country that I was willing to die for, that I’ve lost countless friends defending, becoming something I barely recognize. And Mike Lawler’s been complicit in that.


Simon Rosenberg:
Well, big time, actually. I mean who I think Mike Lawler was the first incumbent that Trump did a campaign event for, just in the last few months. That’s how important Mike Lawler is to Donald Trump — that he was the first person that he did in a campaign event for in this reelection period. So this is a deep ally and friend of Trump’s in one of these districts that we simply have to flip if we’re going to regain the House.
I’m having you on today because something’s happened in the race. I mean, we traditionally don’t get involved in primaries unless there are sort of special circumstances. And what’s happened across the country in recent months is Republicans have decided that they’re going to try to pick our candidates and not let the voters or the party pick our candidates. They’ve decided that they don’t want you to be the nominee, even though you’re ahead in the polls. They’re now running ads against you to sort of degrade you and take you down. Can you talk a little bit about what’s happened, and why all of a sudden it’s important that Democrats rally behind you?


Cait Conley:
Simon, right now, Mike Lawler and MAGA Republicans are so scared to have Mike Lawler face me in November because they know I will beat him… that they stood up a super PAC to run $1.5 million in attack ads against me, lying about my service and record to try to influence and direct the outcome of this Democratic primary. I have to tell you, if they think they’re going to intimidate me, they have no idea who they are messing with. And if they think they’re going to change the hearts and minds of voters here in New York 17, They are grossly underestimating them.
Because voters here are going to see through it. And I will tell you, though, them doing this is a reflection of how much the Republicans know I will beat Mike Lawler in November. They are so desperate to try to avoid that, they’re pouring everything they have to try to stop me here in the primary. But we’re not going to let them succeed.


Simon Rosenberg:
And in fact, a poll came out yesterday. It showed you up by 10 points in the primary. And I want to just be as clear as I possibly can about this to the audience here.

Republicans would only spend money against a candidate like Cait, like they’ve been doing in other places around the country, if their research assessed that Cait would be beating, would beat Mike Lawler and would be much more likely to beat Mike Lawler. They’re not doing this because they’re bored or they have tons of money flowing around. They’re doing this because they’re scared of her and they don’t want to run against her in November. So this is a confirmation that she is the strongest candidate, which is why we’re rallying for her today and asking the Hopium community in an emergency fundraising drive that we’re kicking off this afternoon to support her to make sure that she prevails in this primary, which is next week, right? Six days away.


Cait Conley:
Simon, I am so grateful because I will tell you right now, right, with the 1.5 million dollar infusion and attack ads in this final week they are out spending me and outreaching voters almost two to one. And so with that, now we’ve got to do as much as we can to tell voters the facts and to make sure that voters are making informed decisions, not being swayed by the political dirty tricks that MAGA is trying to throw at them. This is a fight I know I can win, but I can’t win it alone. And so the help, Simon, is so appreciated because, as you can imagine, we plan for a lot of things in this campaign, but a $1.5 million attack campaign by MAGA Republicans was not one of them… And what we’re being told is that is the floor, not the ceiling. So that number could keep going up and up…
We’re not backing down. We’re working hard to reach voters. But I will say defending democracy is a team sport and asking for folks’ help, putting the jersey on, getting out in the field with me because as you said, the voters of New York 17 and Democrats should know the truth and make their decisions based on that. Republicans shouldn’t get to pick what Democrat they face in November and that’s what they’re trying to do.


Simon Rosenberg:
I will say, you know, they’ve spent more than 1.5 million in some of these other races. They spent 1.7 million against Bob Brooks in Pennsylvania… in the millions down in Texas. So, I think you’re right. I mean, this is a sign of their desperation right… they know in the House the national tide is moving against them, and they’re now trying to pick candidates in these key late primaries that they’re much more likely to beat.
And so, you know, Cait, it’s an affirmation for you. Even though you’re a first time candidate, of the strength of your candidacy. And I want to ask one last thing before you go… I can’t keep you too long… you’re six days away from your election. You’ve got to be out with voters. How have you found the retail part of this? I mean, you’d been a soldier and a warrior for our country, you’d served in government, you know, going out and just being with people is sort of a new thing. I mean, how is that part of the campaign been for you?


Cait Conley:
Simon, in so many ways it’s very similar to leading soldiers. Right, as an Army Officer, your job is to go out and to tackle problems, remove obstacles so that your team, your unit can achieve the mission, can be successful. I think it’s a similar mission and responsibility as an elected official. You’re still a public servant. You’re there to serve. And with that, your job is to go out there, and government’s job is to solve problems. And what I’ve felt over the last year plus on the campaign trail is hope. What people are craving is hope that America’s best days are still ahead of us and that America can work for working people. And to have leaders that they can believe in again, where the dysfunction can end and we can get back to doing the necessary work to solve people’s problems. And so in that way, it really is the same.

It’s serving this country. It’s serving our community. It’s working hard to make sure America’s best days are still ahead of us.