Congress
How a Trump sign could pave the way to Congress
ALBANY, New York — A 42-year-old boxer in upstate New York is leveraging the 100-foot sign he built to support Donald Trump — and allies like Roger Stone and the president-elect’s son — into a bid to succeed Rep. Elise Stefanik.
The man behind the sign, Anthony Constantino, wants Stefanik’s House seat and has been meeting GOP leaders with the power to select a nominee to replace her.
Constantino, who founded the printing company Sticker Mule, has ties to the Trump family. He told Blue Light News he ate dinner with Donald Trump Jr. earlier this year and visited Mar-a-Lago in November. He’s also received support and unpaid advice from Stone, a longtime Trump ally.
Now, Constantino is applying the recognition he received for his enthusiastic Trump support — and a public fight with local officials over his sign — to a House run. His platform, in large part, is to counteract hatred toward the incoming president.
“The country needs more people like President Trump, Elon Musk, people like myself who don’t aspire to be politically involved people, but just want to do what’s right for the country,” Constantino said in an interview.
A special election for the sprawling, heavily Republican district — which runs from the outskirts of Albany to the Canadian border — has not been called, and Stefanik remains a House member as her nomination to the U.N. is pending Senate confirmation. A direct endorsement in the race from Trump or Stefanik would likely be one the biggest factors for county leaders in making their selection. It would also be highly coveted by the candidates, but many have kept a low profile — in part out of deference to Stefanik and to not be seen as over eager.
“Why would you not want to hear the input from Team Elise and Team Trump?” Fulton County GOP Chair Susan McNeil said. “Of course we want to hear from them.”
Trump has dipped into the House GOP conference to stock his administration — selections that will trigger special elections in states like New York and Florida. Those moves will temporarily shrink his party’s already narrow majority, but the incoming president could solidify his hold over the party by choosing favored successors for those lawmakers.
In the past, Trump has had a mixed record with his political endorsements — with sometimes disastrous consequences for Republicans. He backed scandal-scarred Senate candidates like Alabama’s Roy Moore and Herschel Walker in Georgia; both lost to Democrats.
Constantino, who has a flair for self-promotion on conservative podcasts and cable TV, fits into the mold of a new wave of candidates who’ve emerged in the Trump era. He has a near-constant presence on X where he shares his media appearances, highlights his business and promotes charitable causes.
If he becomes the nominee, he would leapfrog stalwart Republicans who are also vying for Stefanik’s seat. The group includes state lawmakers, a former House candidate and the party’s 2022 nominee for U.S. Senate, Joe Pinion. But Constantino has taken a more circuitous route to both the campaign and politics, underscoring how Trump has upended the regular order of the Republican Party — even on a local level.
Trump’s transition team did not respond to messages seeking comment on a possible endorsement.
Constantino is a former Democrat, having registered in the party when a high school friend was running for office in Albany. He recently changed his registration to the GOP, but one Republican county chair told Blue Light News they did not see the party conversion as a deal-breaker.
All of the prospective candidates are pro-Trump, in keeping with a party that has been subsumed by the president-elect’s base. Stefanik, who was initially critical of Trump, zealously defended him during his first impeachment trial.
But Constantino fits into a different category entirely with his support of Trump. Compared to his rival Republicans, he would likely draw the most national attention.
The boxing pro gained fame among Trump supporters over the summer when he constructed a giant sign in the upstate New York city of Amsterdam in support of the GOP presidential nominee. Constantino said he was moved to do so after the attempt on Trump’s life at a Pennsylvania rally.
“One of the biggest problems in the country is anti-Trump hate and hatred toward Trump supporters,” Constantino said.
The sign led to controversy, and the city’s Democratic mayor sought a court order for it to be removed on the grounds it was too distracting for drivers. Constantino’s subsequent fight with the local government turned him into an overnight star with Trump’s MAGA base — and with the incoming president. Stone took notice and reached out, and Constantino received a letter of support from Trump himself. He later dined with Don Jr.
A state court ultimately sided with him over the sign, allowing it to stay up in time for a party. The mayor, Michael Cinquanti, did not return messages seeking comment.
The dispute with municipal bureaucrats and elected officials brought Constantino attention from conservative media outlets like Newsmax and Fox News. Stone, who has been active in New York politics over the years, praised him on a podcast, comparing him to Trump and Ronald Reagan.
“I would argue that your lack of political experience is not a negative, it’s actually a plus,” Stone told him. “This is what the Founding Fathers actually envisioned.”
Stone did not return messages seeking comment. But Constantino — who acknowledged “there is a mixed opinion about Roger” — is taking advice from the notorious Republican operative whose 40-month prison sentence for obstruction was commuted by Trump in 2020.
“Roger appreciated what I did with the sign,” he said. “I got to know him through that. He’s been one of my biggest advocates.”
Constantino founded Sticker Mule, a company that sells customized stickers, labels and packaging in 2010. He employs more than 1,200 people and is based in Amsterdam, an upstate city about 40 minutes west of Albany. The majority of the company’s workers are based in upstate New York, but it also has a presence in Italy to service the European market. In 2022, Constantino became a professional boxer. He has a 4-1 record, which includes three professional fights, but has put his fighting career on hold.
Entering the political ring, of course, is a different type of challenge. He formed a campaign committee this month and, if he’s not tapped by local Republican leaders to run in the special election, plans to run outright for the GOP nomination in the 2026 election.
Constantino will fund his campaign with $2.6 million he said was earned when investing in the electric vehicle company Tesla — stock purchased when the share price dipped after Musk bought Twitter. Constantino posted a screenshot purporting to be his brokerage account as evidence he has the money.
Republican county chairs in the district are not expected to make their decision until after Stefanik receives Senate confirmation. Still, some local GOP leaders are intrigued by Constantino’s unusual path to politics.
“Like millions of Americans he’s become politically aware following Donald Trump — and a new brand of politics,” Saratoga County Republican Chair Joe Suhrada said.
Adam Hamilton raised $10.6 million in the third quarter of 2026 across his Senate campaign and his joint fundraising committees, his campaign tells Blue Light News, a significant haul for the Kansas Democrat.
The fundraising total illustrates Democrats’ newfound bullishness about flipping a Senate seat in the deep-red state for the first time since 1932.
“This grassroots support sends a clear message: with three weeks until Election Day, Adam Hamilton is building the momentum to win,” said Hamilton campaign spokesperson Tyson Brody.
Hamilton’s third-quarter figure is nearly triple his $3.66 million second-quarter total. His campaign did not provide a current cash-on-hand total.
National Democrats began pumping money into Kansas in recent days, a sign of their growing hopes that Hamilton could win. Last week, Senate Majority PAC — Senate Democrats’ top super PAC — reserved $5 million in television ads backing Hamilton. American Bridge PAC and Lower Costs Now, a new group affiliated with former Vice President Kamala Harris’ super PAC, have spent in Kansas in recent weeks.
Republicans have also flocked to Kansas to prop up Marshall: Senate Leadership Fund, the Senate GOP’s top PAC, has spent or reserved nearly $11 million backing Marshall in the past week, according to tracking firm AdImpact.
“It took us five months to raise $15 million. [Marshall] got it in a day,” Hamilton said at a campaign event in Lawrence, Kansas on Monday. “So please help us.”
Marshall’s campaign has yet to release his third-quarter fundraising totals. As of mid-July, Marshall had over $5 million in the bank to $1.73 million for Hamilton.
A bipartisan Senate duo is urging Trump national security officials to “bring its full capacities to bear” to stave off threats posed by artificial intelligence — sooner rather than later.
Washington Sen. Maria Cantwell, the top Democrat on the Senate Commerce Committee, and Republican South Dakota Sen. Mike Rounds, who serves on the Senate Armed Services cybersecurity subcommittee, are calling for a full government response to a growing number of cybersecurity breaches.
“Recent AI security incidents should serve as a warning,” the senators wrote in a Tuesday letter to Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton and White House Science and Technology Policy Director Michael Kratsios. “Advanced AI agents have escaped testing environments, bypassed safeguards, and gained unauthorized access to real-world systems owned by government agencies and private organizations.”
Spokespeople for Clayton and Kratsios did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Their letter comes as lawmakers struggle to hash out what legislation on AI safety, if any, might look like. Members are currently in recess ahead of the November elections and there’s little hope progress can be made by the year’s end.
But those lawmakers who have been engaged on the topic for years now have mapped out administrative actions the Trump administration could move on now, without waiting on Congress.
The Cantwell and Rounds priorities include: strengthening federal AI safety and security standards at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, or NIST; expanding independent testing capabilities at the Center for Advancing Innovation and Standards for Super Intelligence, Department of Energy and the national labs; and working with the tech industry to develop and deploy defensive AI tools.
Specifically, the senators wrote, new NIST standards should address the risks posed by advanced AI capabilities, including the “potential misuse by malicious actors” to conduct sophisticated cyberattacks, automate attacks at scale and agents that threaten external systems and critical infrastructure.
They also said the federal government capacity should be complemented by universities and other research organizations, as well as by private sector, third-party evaluators.
Finally, they point to ways the government could use existing programs at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency to work with AI labs to help detect threats and reinforce vulnerable systems.
A bipartisan group of senators urged President Donald Trump to rescind his recent diesel deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, amid bubbling anger on Capitol Hill about Trump’s announcement.
In a letter sent to the White House, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the senators warned that the president’s deal with Russia will not “achieve just ends” or benefit Americans.
“Granting Moscow the ability to sell Russian diesel freely in global markets damages American security interests and is a betrayal of the people of Ukraine, who continue to defend themselves from Putin’s murderous, illegal war,” wrote the lawmakers, led by Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.). “This deal is a gift to our adversary and a betrayal of our Allies; it should be rescinded.”
On Sunday, a smaller group of senators called on the president to “immediately reverse course” on the plan in a statement. Retiring Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) — who signed on to both — said Sunday there may be “a legitimate case for saying the president’s not following the law.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump announced in a social media post on Friday that Russia would “immediately supply” diesel fuel to global markets — including potentially the U.S. — to help relieve high prices driven, in part, by the ongoing war with Iran. Though Trump has repeatedly defended the U.S.’s actions against Iran, on Saturday he demanded an end to Ukrainian drone strikes that have crippled Russian oil refineries that he argues have caused the record-high oil prices.
The senators on Tuesday argued that the deal with Russia will have a “negligible impact” on fuel prices while providing Putin with “more fuel to finance his war machine” as Russia continues its “brutal attacks on Ukrainian civilians.”
The deal with Russia is a sharp pivot from a sweeping sanctions package signed into law last month. That legislation — championed by the late Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) — was meant to deplete Moscow’s resources by targeting Russian officials, banks and a shadow fleet of oil tankers. It drew widespread bipartisan support in both chambers of Congress.
Senators on Tuesday referenced the package as they condemned Putin as a “tyrant.”
“For decades, America has stood as the bastion of freedom against tyranny, and American presidents have embodied our nation’s resistance to tyrants. Putin is a tyrant,” the letter reads. “Withdraw from this agreement, rescind General License No. 135, and execute the authorities provided under the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026. Maintain our legacy – and the duty America holds – as leader of the free world.”
In addition to Blumenthal and Tillis, Tuesday’s letter was signed by Democratic Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (N.H.), Dick Durbin (Ill.), Sheldon Whitehouse (R.I.), Jack Reed (R.I.), and Chris Coons (Del.) and Republican Sens. Mitch McConnell (Ky.), Susan Collins (Maine), Alan Armstrong (Okla.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and John Cornyn (Texas).
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