Orange County Executive Fails to Alleviate Fears Over Chester Concentration Camp
On February 13, Orange County Executive Steve Neuhaus issued a problematic statement regarding the DHS and ICE's purchase of 29 Elizabeth Drive in the Village of Chester
Howdy.
Before we get into this, just a few reminders:
-If you oppose the concentration camp in Chester or want to help flush out Orange County’s “Do-Nothing Democrats” (Skoufis, Eachus, etc.) and MAGA Republicans (Neuhaus, Hoovler, Arteta, etc.), you can join us on Facebook in the new Hands Off Hudson Valley group. Just make sure to include the name of your mayor or town supervisor to be let in. This is how we screen out the MAGA sock puppets and bots.
-There is a protest scheduled outside ICE’s offices in New Windsor at 843 Union Avenue on Monday, February 16, at noon. See below:
And finally …
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The following is the transcript from Orange County Executive Steve Neuhaus’s statement published on Friday, February 13th, 2026, alongside our notes on his misstatements, half-truths, and omissions.
We have cleaned up the transcript a bit for clarity and brevity when possible, but no edits were made to the actual content itself, which you can hear in the above video.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “Hey, Orange County and probably the rest of the greater Hudson Valley, New York State, and everyone else paying attention to this issue. My name is Steve Neuhaus; I’m the Orange County executive, and today is Friday the 13th—go figure.
I wanted to give everyone an update about the ICE facility and some of the ICE operations in Orange County. Right after the New Year, we learned that ICE was looking to buy the vacant Pep Boys warehouse in the village of Chester. It’s a 400,000-square-foot building that recently became vacant. We heard about it because the federal government had filed a permit to do work in the wetlands. That work would involve, let’s say, having the building—a 400,000-square-foot building. They wanted to be able to work in the wetlands to build a fenced-in area to allow detainees to have some, I guess, fresh air, if you will, right?” (emphasis added.)
The Monroe Gazette response: No. The story broke in The Washington Post, and then the DHS notice was unearthed after being buried on DHS’s website. The link to that notice is still active, but the content has changed to remove any mention of Chester.
Nobody knew about the exact location and ownership of 29 Elizabeth Drive until The Monroe Gazette reported that story, but Neuhaus wouldn’t be the first not to give us credit.
Pat Ryan did it, too, this week when he announced that ICE had been operating in New Windsor for some time—another story that The Monroe Gazette broke following Wired magazine’s coverage, which indicated that ICE was looking into 843 Union Avenue in New Windsor. (This is why you should become an annual subscriber to The Monroe Gazette: We break news stories that your politicians later claim they knew all about.)
Now, let’s see how this guy feels about all that “fresh air” and the limited time outdoors for detainees. And keep in mind, this comes from CBS News, which is now about as MAGA as Neuhaus.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “We were never notified by the federal government. We just saw that it was filed. The governor and I talked about it, and everybody has been identified—the village of Chester mayor and the village of Chester supervisor*—everybody concerned about it, the greater community concerned about it. We filed objections and letters saying that we didn’t think it was a good idea, but we didn’t file a lawsuit. I’m not a lawyer, but I have a great county attorney and a great team of lawyers who are filing lawsuits on behalf of the county—or they will if we need to. But we can’t sue yet because there hasn’t been any action.”
(*Reader note: Neuhaus means Chester Town Supervisor, Brandon Holdridge.)
The Monroe Gazette response: Kathy Hochul’s office is currently pretending not to have any documents related to 29 Elizabeth Drive in their possession, based on the current FOIL response received by The Monroe Gazette. We have sent them an appeal. As noted in previous posts, Kathy Hochul does not like to cooperate with FOIL requests, especially ones that will make her look bad.
We have also placed a FOIL request for any and all property transaction notices or records in the possession of the Orange County Clerk.
Given how often Steve Neuhaus compulsively lies and claims his emails don’t exist in FOIL requests, we also requested all documents and records related to ICE from his office via FOIL.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “We have received rumors, not official word, from the federal government at all. Zero communication from ICE that they’re coming here. ‘We want to talk to you. We have to do this. We’re ordered to do’—zero, nothing. So, once they file, there’s been no indication that they bought this property in Orange County. Once they do, we are planning on moving forward with certain things. So let’s expand more on this. They are planning on, and from what we’ve seen across the country, I’m a member of the New York State Association of Counties as well as the National Association of Counties, and I’m active in both—second vice chair of the state, and I’m active on the national level. We’ve asked our national partners, what’s going on in other counties?”
The Monroe Gazette response: What’s going on, Steven, is that at least one county—see the video above—passed an emergency ban on prisons and detention centers, which is something you refuse to do.
Therefore, The Monroe Gazette is encouraging readers to send you ice scrapers in the mail until you pass that legislation and end the contract that allows ICE to house detainees at the Orange County Jail.
We are getting a ton of photos just like this one, which came in just as I was writing this story.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “When ICE comes in, are they filing permits?* Are they working with the local authorities?** Are they doing this or that?*** For the most part, they have not worked with anybody. I’m not trying to criticize them, but that’s their MO, right? We see this happening in other places. I can predict this, obviously, or we can predict this happening here in our own community. So what does that mean?” (Emphasis added.)
Reader Note:
*No
**Nope.
***They offered to leave Minneapolis in exchange for voter roll data—something New York readily provides via FOIL. I know this because I have, via FOIL, a spreadsheet of every registered voter in New York, along with many of their phone numbers and emails. What am I going to do with this data? Not a damn thing. What is Pam Bondi going to do with this data? Purge the voter rolls. So, do yourself a favor and make sure you are still registered to vote, and get yourself a passport just in case.
The Monroe Gazette response: What I can tell you is that the Village of Chester has behaved in a belligerent manner through its clerk, Angela O’Neill, and attorney, Brian Nugent, concerning FOIL requests that involve how the Village Police will protect residents who want to protest, what data they are currently sharing with DHS and ICE (if any), and whether two of the Village Trustees, Alan Battiato and Brian Boone, are MAGA and cheering this concentration camp on while saying nothing to the public.
Below are some of the questions we sent to Village of Chester Police Chief Timothy McGuire, that we received a “No comment” on from Brian Nugent:
What are the Village PD’s current policies and procedures, if any, concerning protests within the Village of Chester? What are the current policies and procedures concerning protests on private property, such as 29 Elizabeth Drive?
What polices and procedures, if any, are in place to protect protestors who are practicing non-violent acts of civil disobedience from ICE / DHS in the Village?
Assuming protestors are practicing non-violence and not instigating, what policies and procedures are in place, if any, to criminally charge members of ICE / DHS for assaulting protestors?
Does the Village of Chester Police, like Monroe Village Police, utilize facial recognition technology in its pods and cameras? If so, how is that information stored and deleted (if at all.) Does Village PD share this data with other agencies such as DHS / ICE or third party contractors?
Are there any village regulations that apply concerning the time, place or manner of protest at 29 Elizabeth Drive? If not is there a police policy concerning those matters? For example: how close could protestors get to the building, during what hours, and how many days per week?
The FAA has expanded no fly zones to DHS facilities such as 29 Elizabeth Drive to within 3,000 feet of their facilities and vehicles. How / if at all, will Chester Village PD enforce these rules concerning the use of drones to document activity at the facilities?
Does the Village PD make use of FLOCK and their related software and hardware? If so how is that data stored, retained, and protected? Is this data (including all raw meta data and ancillary data) and other related information shared with third parties such as DHS / ICE?
Each member of the Village of Chester board needs to tell the public where they stand on the presence of the concentration camp, so too does its chief, and all the local police chiefs — including this fucking guy — regarding how they plan to protect protestors.
The Monroe Gazette has also reached out to the New York State Police for further comment on how they will protect protestors and what information they currently share with DHS and ICE, if any.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: They’re going to come in here or they’re planning on coming here, right? They set up an operation. It’s going to take them some time to get this Chester site, if they do, if and when they do come here, in operation. But let’s say they get what they want or what they’ve been doing in other places: start rounding up people,* bringing them into a facility here. It attracts lots of protesters—thousands of protesters. The country is divided on this issue. It’s a hot topic.”
Reader Note:
*ICE has been “rounding people up” — re: Kidnapping people, including US Citizens, since denying people due process and taking them against their will is the legal definition of kidnapping — since this Summer in Monroe and Newburgh. I guess Steven didn’t have a problem with this until the concentration camp came along to inconvenience him.
The Monroe Gazette response: No. We are not divided. It’s the vast majority of us versus a tiny, very online, very loud, minority made up of weak, snowflakes. MAGA are the most fragile (mostly white) people who tell you, for example, that they need guns to protect themselves from the government but then cheer on the government when it invades cities.
Or say they have the First Amendment right to express themselves but immediately fall to pieces the second they face any sort of reaction for their statements.
We do not need to accommodate them.
These people are not the majority. I can prove it. According to a new NBC News poll, 3 out of 4 Americans want major changes to ICE. Consistently, more than half of all Americans disapprove of the Trump Regime and its policies. And of course, last year in 2025, America saw three of the largest mass demonstrations in its 250 year history. (No Kings 1 and 2, Hands Off.)
America is not divided. This is a myth spread by the corporate news media and MAGA to make it look like their policies are more popular than they actually are.
It’s a myth peddled by Democrats who want to find an excuse not to do anything, like claw back all $75 billion that the “One Big Beautiful Bill” aka the MAGA Murder Bill gave to ICE. Or in Kathy Hochul’s case, to try and weasel her way out of passing New York For All.
We are only “divided” if you live inside the MAGAverse. Let those people think what they want. You can’t help them. You can’t argue with them. You can’t reason with them. Either the fly finds its way out of the bottle, or it doesn’t. But you can, and should, fact check people repeating their mythology like Steve Neuhaus.
Remember friends: MAGA represents, at most, 30-35% of Americans. They are NOT the majority. They inflate their numbers online through sock puppets and bots. The overwhelming majority of Americans do not like MAGA, do not like MAGA policies, and do not want to see MAGA continue with this tyranny of the minority bullshit. It is inaccurate to say we are divided, and it’s malpractice by the corporate media to continue to “both sides” fascists.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “So now you’re going to have a facility where you’re going to have thousands of protesters coming here at the same time, or they’re operating here in an industrial park.”
The Monroe Gazette response: Oh God, no—not the industrial park!
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “There are businesses all around the industrial parking area. There’s a commuter parking lot that is very actively used by people commuting to New York City by bus. So I am concerned about it.”
The Monroe Gazette response: So, you’re more concerned about the protesters than the concentration camp? Do I have that right? It doesn’t bother you that at least 3,800 children are held in custody across America right now in facilities just like the one that’s about to open in Chester?
Maybe that can be Steve Neuhaus’s campaign slogan next time he runs for office. “Fuck Them Kids.”
I bet Neuhaus would still win as long as James G. Skoufis and Zak Constantine are in charge of the Orange County Democrats.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “I asked the governor—this is one of my requests for her today. I asked her to have the New York State Police help my local village, town, city, and sheriff’s office—all that law enforcement that’s going to be tasked with responding to large crowds, protesters, and counter-protesters. I’ve asked her to have the New York State Police provide us with all the resources available to augment the law enforcement strain. It’s going to cost thousands of dollars. They had a protest in the town of Chester not too long ago that already cost over $10,000 to local taxpayers and police there to protect the crowds, right?”
The Monroe Gazette response: We tried to fact-check this $10,000 amount from the Village of Chester police. We’ll find out the exact numbers in our FOIL request with the Village Police Department and Town Police Department, so don’t hold Neuhaus to that number until it’s confirmed.
I’ll also point out that while I don’t doubt “counter-protesters” exist, they were nowhere to be found in Chester last month. Again, their numbers are few and far between in reality.
As I said, the sheer amount of MAGA activity you see on X and Facebook is mostly bots and people in the Philippines being paid about $3 per post by some wealthy American to troll you. Not enough people have read the Mueller Report, and it shows.
That said, what assurance do we have that if these “counter-protesters”—they’re called Nazis, Steven—assault a protester exercising their First Amendment rights, that David Hoovler will charge them with a crime?
David M. Hoovler let Monroe Town Councilman, Sal Scancarello, off the hook after hitting Maureen Richardson in the chest with his elbow.
David M. Hoovler let Woodbury Town Councilman Brandon Calore off the hook for allegedly assaulting a disabled teenager in an ice cream shop’s parking lot.
David M. Hoovler hasn’t charged Joel Stern and Isaac Ekstein with anything despite literally being handed a smoking gun that demonstrated electoral fraud in 2022, which he then turned over to the FBI.
And let’s not forget about the “bang up job” Hoovler did concerning Megan McDonald.
So. What assurances do we have from the Orange County District Attorney’s office that they will prosecute the Nazis, and ICE / DHS, if they get out of line? I’m not holding my breath here based on Mr. Hoovler’s track record.
So, Steven seems less concerned about your First Amendment rights than he does about the cost of protecting the concentration camp.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “I also asked for the National Guard to be on standby.”
The Monroe Gazette response: LOL. No, he didn’t. This is like the time Steven told everyone he had top-secret security clearance at the Pentagon over the drone thing and that he emailed the Pentagon, yet those emails never actually existed. (According to Neuhaus anyway.)
But just in case he did contact the National Guard, why? Who are we trying to protect here—the heavily armed white supremacists or the people protesting the heavily armed white supremacists? Only one of these groups carry guns, and it ain’t the protestors.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “We’ve seen this happen before in other states. It’s been a complete dumpster fire, all right?”
The Monroe Gazette response: By “this” do you mean the murders of Renee Good and Alex Pretti? Because in Minnesota, overwhelmingly, those protests have been peaceful.
So what exactly is the dumpster fire? People like Marimar Martinez being shot?
Or do you mean what’s happening in Broadview where ICE shot a priest in the head?
Oh wait. I bet he means the time ICE used tear gas on children in Portland, right?
I mean, that’s CLEARLY what Steven is referring to, right?
… Right?
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “I don’t want that here.”
The Monroe Gazette response: An easy solution is to pass that emergency ban on new prisons and detention centers, Steven, but you didn’t mention wanting to do that in your sweet little video.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “You don’t want that here. I will tell you one of the things that has unified every elected official in my county and in the region: I have not had one elected official in New York State, in the Hudson Valley, or in Orange County call me and say they’re for this.”
The Monroe Gazette response: I don’t know; Brandon Calore, Sal Scancarello, and at least two of those Village of Chester Board members could very well be cheering for this concentration camp. Legislator Peter Tuohy too.
Sheriff Paul Arteta’s department has a big financial interest in their presence, too, and the Orange County Deputy Sheriff’s Patrolman Benevolent Association refuses to comment on this Facebook post …
So don’t go telling us everyone is against the concentration camp, Steven.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “Every Republican, my legislature, my partners there voted 21-0 last week against this.”
The Monroe Gazette response: Uh, are we forgetting Peter Tuohy’s questionable actions and his comments? Because that guy only voted against the bill because he saw the crowd watching him.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “Most of my town supervisors, whether they sign letters or not, don’t want this in their local towns. So, this has galvanized political support because we know what happens when this comes in. Now I’ve got to make sure that the commuter lot is not infiltrated with thousands of people who are upset about what’s going on here.”
The Monroe Gazette response: Listen, I’m one of the people who may or may not be involved in the planning of such a protest, and I can tell you that nobody is looking to hassle commuters or use their space. This is a peaceful, non-violent movement powered by the working class. It wouldn’t exactly be supportive of our efforts to unify the working class if we’re messing with our ability to commute to work now would it?
What everyone is interested in is having the questions I sent to the Village of Chester Police answered, which includes where, how, and when they can protest with minimal disruption to the surrounding businesses—something the Village of Chester has not responded to.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “Despite the fact of what ICE has been doing here, they haven’t had operations here for decades. George Bush, Barack Obama, Trump 1.0, Biden, and now Trump. Now, they’ve had a presence in our community, locking up felons and people who are accused of a crime.”
The Monroe Gazette response: We can argue about whether or not DHS should be abolished (it should, because it failed in its singular mission of merging our intelligence agencies together after 9/11), and ICE should be abolished (it should, because being here without documentation is not a crime; it’s a civil penalty, much like littering or driving without a license). Immigration is only portrayed as “criminalized” because, if we fixed the border and our immigration system, most Republicans and some Democrats would have absolutely nothing to run on.
But comparing ICE prior to the Trump regime and ICE now is like comparing the Knicks now to the Knicks of the 2000s when they mostly sucked. Same team, VERY different players.
(Also, I think the coach is going to tire this Knicks team out with the pace he wants to play at, and Oklahoma City is probably going to run right over them in the Finals, but that’s a conversation we can have later.)
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “What we’re seeing across America, particularly in the last year, is a lot different. They’re rounding up a lot of people who have come over the border over the last few years and putting them in these detention centers.”
The Monroe Gazette response: Nope. Not accurate. They are literally rounding up anyone and everyone they can, including people whom Trump keeps revoking citizenship protections for, like the Venezuelans, Afghans and (eventually) Haitians. This is because Stephen Miller — one of four people actually in charge of America — has a quota he wants DHS and ICE to hit, and in order to meet that quota, they have to grab everyone they can. (The other individuals are Elon Musk via his DOGE flunkies, Russell Vought in the Office of Budget and Management, and Vice President Couch Fucker. You should know their names. The only thing Trump is capable of managing these days is his diaper.)
So. This is not a sudden surge of arrests of people who came here recently. This is arresting everyone who isn’t white, including U.S. citizens, and holding them indefinitely (unless they’re connected enough to know a congressman or a reporter) in concentration camps, and then deporting them often without any sort of due process.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “So my problem with ... many problems on this is that I have zero communication. They’re not even calling the New York State Police or the governor. We have a right to be informed; I’m an elected official. I represent over 400,000 Orange County residents and have received zero communication from them on this. If they want to be a partner and operate here, okay, I’m trying to be as polite as possible.”
The Monroe Gazette response: Well, dude, that sounds to me like Orange County has a case it can file against the federal government using the Guarantee Clause in the Constitution. But I don’t think Mephistopheles (Orange County Attorney Rick Golden) is smart enough to try that one. Most people aren’t. But it’s there:
"The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic Violence."
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “Ah, I said, you know, once it actually happens. Right now, we’ve still been hearing rumors and we’ve seen the press releases on them, but once they actually purchase it and that deed is filed, that’s when we can start filing legal actions.”
The Monroe Gazette response: This is true. Once the sale is on paper, the county and other interested parties can sue. The thing is, as our attorney, Amy Lavine, told us, “deeds are filed whenever people feel like filing them. Most people file deeds immediately, because filing protects you from any later claims that other people might make saying it’s their property and not yours. But it’s not unheard of for people to wait months or years, or never get around to filing deeds, sometimes because laziness, but sometimes for secrecy reasons so nobody can find out about the conveyance.”
So, the question then is: Can ICE / DHS just not file the paperwork and continue setting up their concentration camp? At this time, nobody knows.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “We’re concerned about, in my case, the sewer capacity. So you can imagine a warehouse of 400,000 square feet—maybe they have 100 or 200 workers there. I’m not going to get into the sewer usage, but if you have a couple hundred people, let’s say, working there during the day or even on 24-hour shifts, they’re not using as much sewer capacity as thousands of people—refugees or detainees—who are staying there for a week or so, bathing, showering, and being processed. So they don’t have the sewer capacity.”
The Monroe Gazette response: My dude, we don’t know how many workers, but we know the number of victims—and they are victims—is somewhere between 500 and 1,500 according to documents leaked to The Washington Post. The Monroe Gazette was told by a source that ICE had asked for a proposal for 500 beds, but we could not confirm that independently.
And those people aren’t “staying there for a week.” In many cases, people are being held indefinitely. I know you must think of this place as some kind of Latino Airbnb, Steve, but it’s not. It’s a concentration camp.
And for those of you reading this who are like, “but all those people have committed crimes!” nope. Everyone is innocent until proven guilty in America, regardless of citizenship, and many of the people being held have not been convicted. According to the VERY CONSERVATIVE CATO Institute, 73% of detainees have no criminal convictions.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “The Village of Chester is out of sewer capacity now. They’re part of the system that goes into the county sewer treatment plant. So that is one of many arguments we have, and they know it. We’ve already voiced our concerns, but we legally can’t file an action until this actually moves forward, but we’re on it. I made a call today with our municipal leaders, the local villages, mayors, supervisors, and police chiefs. We also had our hospitals on the call because this could be a public safety issue.”
The Monroe Gazette response: I agree. Having an invading army of heavily armed white supremacists rounding up anyone who isn’t white and invading the privacy of everyone else in the area is absolutely a public safety issue. But that’s not what you mean, right? In fact, I don’t think you’ve once mentioned the moral outrage here of housing people who have committed no crimes in a concentration camp simply because they don’t speak English or don’t look white enough.
So, to be clear: You can talk all day about infrastructure man, but what’s happening here is wrong. Period. Full stop. It was wrong when we did it to the Native Americans. It was wrong when we did it to Black Americans before the Civil War. It was wrong when we did it to German Americans during World War 1. It was wrong when we did it to Japanese Americans during World War 2. It was wrong after 9/11 when we did it to anyone with a “funny sounding name.” And it’s wrong now. We don’t have to keep repeating ourselves. We can choose to be better than this.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “First and foremost, besides the political stuff that I have to do as your county executive, I am in charge of emergency management for Orange County. I need to make sure that you all are safe, and that if somebody has a protest, they’re safe. We had over 25 Black Lives Matter protests in Orange County. I attended every one of them with emergency management to make sure that they were safe, to make sure they had everything they need.”
The Monroe Gazette response: I don’t believe that for a second, do you? Can you picture Steve Neuhaus at a Black Lives Matter protest? I mean I’m sure he briefly appeared at a few for a photo-op and then quickly bounced. I believe that. But I don’t believe this man was calling for police reform and accountability and signing any legislation to back those calls up. Not for a second.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “Our police do a great job.”
The Monroe Gazette response: So, no comment then on that Sheriff PBA Facebook post? Or what about these reports of mistreatment in Orange County Jail, which is overseen by Sheriff Paul Arteta? Because we did ask you to comment on that …
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “Our EMS, our fire, and the rest of our emergency management team are great, but this is something on a scale that could grow really off the charts. So this is where mutual aid comes in.”
The Monroe Gazette response: Actually, we’ve been asking you to do away with the volunteer model that has caused shortages of fire and EMS across Orange County and to move to a consolidated model where the county runs EMS and fire and pays them for their work. We should not have all these different fire and EMS companies competing with each other for volunteers and resources in the form of State grants.
However, you haven’t shown any interest in fixing this problem, and here we are with a shortage you created on your watch through your refusal to have our firefighters and EMS paid since your tenure began as county executive nearly a decade ago.
Mutual aid is needed to clean up your mess. That’s kind of funny given how often Neuhaus and Orange County Republicans complain of “unfunded mandates” from New York State.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “This is where being prepared comes in. So when people have a protest, these are not always like having a Fourth of July fireworks show when you know they’re scheduled on a certain date at a certain time. Some protests, unfortunately, these are the ones I don’t like. So if you are doing a protest or looking to do one, do it where you call your local community and work it out where you can protest and what time so we can prepare to protect you.”
The Monroe Gazette response: This is not true. The Village of Chester was asked specifically when it would be okay for the protesters to gather—what days and where. And the Village of Chester did not answer.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “That’s our job—to make sure these things are done peacefully and done in the right way.”
The Monroe Gazette response: You mean like how you’re protecting the ICE detainees at OCJ? Because these additional reports say you’re doing a bang-up job there.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “They’re also done in a way that they’re not marching down people’s neighborhoods or disrupting commerce, like local villages with pizzerias, restaurants, and other things that your family needs to access—along with roads being blocked off, which we’ve seen in other parts of the country. So, that is kind of where we are right now.”
The Monroe Gazette response: Please provide examples. No one is looking to shut down anything. In fact, these gatherings can actually be a huge win for local businesses. Where do you think people are going to go eat or discuss what they’ve learned at one of these events? If you guessed a local business, you guessed correctly. I would be THRILLED to call out local businesses who are supportive of the protestors efforts in Chester and will do so as I learn of them.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “Ah, it is unfortunate that we’re in this situation. None of us are happy about this. The supervisors and mayors I’ve talked to are not looking forward to this. We have a lot of other work that we need to get done for you. But we will get through this like we’ve gotten through everything else before. I kind of tell everybody the way it is. I don’t pull any punches.”
The Monroe Gazette Response: Nah, you just lie compulsively and let the Kentucky Fried MAGA-Brained Orange County Republican Committee repeat the lie for you. Plus there is WTBQ in Warwick and Straus News who will do the same.
These people, the Orange County Republican Committee, are so devoid of ideas that they seriously think convicted felon Tim Mitts should run against Skoufis for State Senate because their bench is so badly depleted over their refusal to support a sane, moderate Republican, who would probably do really well in this area given how much people hate Skoufis.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “Like I said, I’m working hand-in-hand with our other partners, regardless of political background, regardless of where they stand on this issue.”
The Monroe Gazette Response: Again, the vast majority of Americans hate MAGA. ‘Regardless of where they stand on this issue’ is code for ‘I don’t want to upset my friends who like this Nazi shit.’”
It’s time for everyone to grow a set of ovaries and tell the MAGA people: Nobody likes you. You are not the majority. Your opinions are crazy and dangerous. Fuck you. Crawl back under the white supremacist rock you were hiding under. I’m pretty sure you can find it under the bones of George Wallace and Charles Lindbergh.
Steve “International Man of Mystery” Neuhaus: “Ah, nobody’s happy with the current situation and the proposals in front of us. So that’s all I’ve got for you. If I need to get something out more substantive, I will. But we are doing everything we can to protect the community, and hopefully this doesn’t happen. But if it does, we will be ready.”
The Monroe Gazette response: We’re ready too. Send this man your ice scrapers and email him with the following:
Email SNeuhaus@orangecountygov.com and SNeuhaus73@aol.com (he claims not to check his County email, so here’s his AOL email.)
Put the following as your subject line: Take Legal Action Against ICE NOW!
Put the following in the body in your email. You can also call 845-291-2700 and read the letter to him yourself.
Mr. Neuhaus,
Recently, you stated that Orange County was taking legal action against ICE. This turned out to be false, but I have good news. Now that ICE has formally purchased 29 Elizabeth Drive and announced their intentions to open the facility, you can now actually take legal action against them. If that doesn’t work, you can also acquire the property through eminent domain.
Although County Attorney Rick Golden can often be confused with Mephistopheles, I don’t discount his ability as a lawyer. But. Just in case he isn’t aware, ICE is required to comply with Executive Order 11988 (Floodplain Management), NEPA, and the Endangered Species Act. ICE is also required to apply for all applicable state permits concerning their activities at the site, and to fully consider all relevant municipal zoning and related ordinances. They have, thus far, demonstrated a failure to follow these procedures and the executive order properly.
Therefore, it is now your responsibility, and Mr. Golden’s, to take DHS to court and prevent the concentration camp from opening.
Time for the “International Man of Mystery” to put on his big-boy pants and get to work.
(Put your name here.)