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Congressman John Katko, who represents Syracuse in New York’s 24th congressional district, said he never did his work alone. Instead, Katko said he sees himself more as a frontman in a band with his staff as his band members.

“Many of the bandmates are here and they did a terrific job. So when I talk about what we’ve achieved tonight, it’s because of them,” Katko said.

Katko gave his farewell address at Syracuse University’s National Veterans Resource Center on Monday night alongside Grant Reeher – a professor of political science at SU and the director of the Campbell Public Affairs Institute.

During the event, which was part of the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs State of Democracy lecture series, Katko acknowledged the work his staff did for him during his time in office.

He wanted his staff to solve problems as seriously and efficiently as he does. He recalled telling his staff during their original interviews that their worst nightmare would be him hearing that they didn’t respond fast enough to a message from a constituent.

Katko thanked his staff for holding him accountable to not introduce a bill without a Democratic co-sponsor, a remark which fell in line with the conversation’s focus on Katko’s bipartisanship. According to a 2021 report from the Luger Center, Katko was the third most bipartisan member of the House of Representatives’ 435 voting members.

“We had over 100, or close to 100, bills passed in my time in Congress,” he said. “It’s because of all the work, as they say ‘behind the scenes,’ and my commitment to bipartisanship.”

Katko said Congress is designed to be a place where disagreements happen, not where a body of representatives is completely left- or right-aligned.

“What I think people don’t understand in modern times is that (Congress is) built on compromise,” he said. “It’s not built on all or nothing.”

Katko added that many politicians continue to only focus on what will allow them to keep their seat instead of doing what’s right. Members of Congress can only be truly bipartisan if they accept the possibility of losing their position, he said.

When Katko was a federal prosecutor, he received death threats. But he received far more while in Congress, he said.

During the address, Katko thanked his entire family, who were sitting in the audience, for supporting him throughout his time in office.

“They didn’t make the decision to run, Robin and I did,” he said. “(My family) had to see a lot of things I’ve gone through, and I’m sorry about that.”

Katko also specifically thanked his wife Robin for being “strong” and handling the threats for as many years as she did.

In addition to threats, Katko said acting as a bipartisan legislator brought moral and ethical challenges. Katko said the aftermath of Jan. 6, 2021, when he voted to impeach then-President Donald Trump, was “the darkest time in my career.”

In the time leading up to Jan. 6, Katko said fellow Republican politicians approached him saying they wanted to certify the election but didn’t want to create political trouble for themselves in their home states.

“That was very disturbing to me because it was for the wrong reasons,” Katko said. “They get so locked in to what they have in Washington that they can’t fathom not being there, so they compromise everything to stay there.”

Still, he said his decision to vote in favor of Trump’s impeachment was an easy one to make. The night before the vote, Katko said there was a “sense of calm, but also a sense of foreboding” among himself and his staff.

Although Katko was one of only 83 House Republicans to support the certification of Arizona and one of 64 House Republicans to support the certification of Pennsylvania’s election in 2020, he said he could not pinpoint those – or any other vote – as his most difficult. Looking back, Katko said, he wouldn’t want to do anything differently.

“I’m at peace with what we’ve accomplished,” he said.

Published on November 29, 2022 at 12:46 am