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Women for Maffei hit back on some Katko comments

Ryan Delaney
/
WRVO
Rep. Dan Maffei (D-Syracuse), left, and John Katko, GOP candidate for the 24th Congressional District.

Some supporters of Rep. Dan Maffei (D-Syracuse) are pushing back on recent comments made his Republican challenger, John Katko.

Katko, a former federal prosecutor, has recently said he doesn’t support a law aimed at equalizing pay for women and men. And he says his Catholic faith guides his views on abortion.

Those comments to The Post-Standard have upset female supporters of Maffei, a Democrat.

"These are radical positions that threaten the rights and health of women," said Andrea Wandersee, a small business owner and member of Women for Maffei. "And these positions are outside the mainstream of central New Yorkers."

She also takes issue with Katko's stance on coverage for women’s contraception under the Affordable Care Act.

"Decisions about these issues are private and they should be made by women and women alone. Not their boss or a politician," she said on a conference call Tuesday. 

Katko says he’s against the Paycheck Fairness Act because employee pay information would be made public.

Maffei is trying to win re-election in the 24th Congressional District. Maffei and many Democrats support the bill because they say it will level pay differences between men and women.