To the editor:

When reading state Sen. Dan Stec’s comments about Tupper Lake needing to spend between $25 and $40 million but only having 2,000 customers — a financial situation faced by similar communities with small populations — I cannot help but wonder how Stec and these small communities have supported President Trump, Rep. Elise Stefanik and previous Republican administrations.

What Stec complained about is precisely why the tax cuts and the small government mentality have undermined the importance and need for a collective society where such economic burdens are shared. So much more can be said about Trump’s actions and their negative effect on our Constitution and democratic republic. But staying on the topic of infrastructure, consider the Infrastructure and Investment Jobs Act passed under the Biden administration. The bill provided federal funds for infrastructure projects, but Stefanik, whom Stec supports and Tupper Lake voted for, voted against it. Yet, here is Stec trying to help Tupper Lake solve its water crisis by asking others to pay for it.

The IIJA would not have directly provided funds for the Tupper Lake water project, but Stefanik’s vote and Stec’s plea are emblematic. When will the smaller communities in NY-21 realize they have been voting against their own self-interest? Look what has happened to the federal deficit, the wealth gap and the rule of law under Trump. What is happening is threatening our collective and free society.

Bob Hunter

Lake Placid