WHY I AM VOTING FOR ED MANGANO

For almost a hundred years, Nassau County was the most desireable county in America. We had almost everything going for us. Beautiful beaches, beautiful parks, great quality of life, well maintained roads, a solid business climate anchored by a well run, non intrusive government and a growing young population base. We still have the beaches and natural vista. But everything else is changing, or has changed. And it’s changed for the worse.

When Tom Suozzi came to office eight years ago, he promised a revolution and change. We got change alright; change of the worst kind. Nassau County went from being an affordable county to the highest taxed county in the nation. He promised to cut patronage and waste, but doubled it. He is spending $22 million of borrowed money more on patronage that any of his predecessors. Suozzi, after raging about the ‘GOP machine’ went on to build a machine of his own. A costly machine with one purpose: to put him in the governor’s mansion at the cost of our once great county.

But where has that left the people of Nassau County? Well, the budget deficit hasn’t gone away. It’s gotten worse. When Suozzi took office, we had a budget deficit of $100 million dollars. Now, after eight years and a state bailout, the budget deficit is $150 million and will be $225 million in 2012. Nassau County’s fiscal condition is much worse than it was before he took office in spite of massive tax and fee increases.

For years, people were drawn to Nassau County by our services and well run government. Under Suozzi, nearly all government services have deteriorated. But my pet peeve is our transportation system. Once, our roads were the envy of the world; under Suozzi, they are literally falling apart. I can’t drive down any road in the county without hitting at least a pothole every other block. In fact, I’m tempted to go and trade in my car for an SUV, since Suozzi’s inability to keep a county road paved has created a situation where even a drive to the grocery store is an off road excursion.

Over the last few weeks, Suozzi has been claiming that he has a plan for a ‘Property Tax Revolution’ and a master plan to keep young people from leaving the county. It sounds like change that we can believe in! Haha. The big secret is that he is planning to increase taxes for the next four years! And if you don’t believe me, just take a look at Suozzi’s ‘plan’ and the nonpartisan NIFA report.

Suozzi has had eight years to enact his property tax revolution. He’s eliminated the office of the Tax Assessor and turned it into a patronage job. If you want to have government without accountability, it’s brilliant. Angry voters won’t be able to vote their wallets and turn on an assessor who has been defending a system that costs the county $100 million a year. Suozzi, who since taking office has raised taxes by sixty something percent, can claim that the expert is responsible.

But let’s be honest with ourselves. The problem of keeping our young people in Nassau is directly related to the problem of high property taxes. High taxes make mortgage payments unaffordable. High taxes and obstacles to development make starting a new business untenable. The most stunning example is how Suozzi, after years of ranting and raving about how he was going to ‘Fix Albany,’ did absolutely nothing to fight the jobs-killing payroll tax levied on all local businesses and governments. Most jobs in America are created by small businesses and by entrepreneurs.

Suozzi has ignored the interests of small businesses and homeowners and lavished time, attention and money on large contributors. Suozzi’s ‘revolution’ is a plan of perverse redistribution that takes money from the people who pay taxes try to live their lives and hires people connected to the Suozzi organization and could possibly help Suozzi become governor.

Suozzi, who clearly has no ideals other than expediency and what is good for his campaign accounts and press releases at the moment, has sacrificed Nassau County on the alter of his ambition to be governor. He’s larded the public payroll with people whose sole purpose is to provide foot soldiers for his next campaign, and even rewards them for the efforts with a taxpayer funded ‘performance bonus.’ I object to his method of paying performance bonuses to cronies on principle, but it’s made even more outrageous by his poor judgment. Does anyone really think that an organization should be paying bonuses when it is at the brink of bankruptcy?

Is this the government Nassau needs? Can we really afford to be led down this path to disaster by a pied paper who just has good hair and a good press office?

There is a better way. A way that doesn’t pay people a Christmas bonus when our county is on the brink of bankruptcy; a way based on good governmen, lower taxes, a business climate that allows small businesses to flourish and thrive; a way that keeps property taxes low; a way to keep young people on Long Island and a way to make Nassau County what it once was: the greatest county to live in America.

This blog is going to sound the alarm exposing Suozzi’s smoke and mirrors. We’re going to talk about real solutions, the solutions offered by Ed Mangano, what they mean for you, the taxpayers, and make Nassau a better place to live.

Together, we can save Nassau County. We look forward to your reading this tomorrow. Please join me in supporting ED MANGANO FOR COUNTY EXECUTIVE.