Tom Suozzi, the Democrat contender in the 3rd Congressional District’s special election, is proposing a bipartisan Ellis Island 2.0 plan that would tackle the nation’s immigration crisis by streamlining migrant processing and securing borders.

”Big problems require big solutions,” Suozzi said.

Suozzi is running against Nassau County Legislator Mazi Melesa Pilip (R-Great Neck) in Feb. 13 for his old congressional seat to finish out the term of George Santos, who was expelled from Congress earlier this month. Suozzi represented Nassau in the House from 2017 to 2023 when he resigned to stage an unsuccessful primary run for governor of New York against Kathy Hochul.

On Tuesday morning, Suozzi said during a virtual press conference that he sent letters to President Joseph Biden and Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson and Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries to urge them to resolve the immigration issue.

“There is a crisis going on related to immigration, and it’s not just at the border. It’s in the nation’s capitol,” Suozzi said. “It’s a failure of our leaders in Washington for over 30 years… and it’s getting worse and worse and worse.”

In order for the immigration issue to be sorted out, Suozzi said it will require bipartisan support and working across the aisle to find a solution. He said complicated issues, such as immigration, cannot be solved through “an environment of fear and anger with everybody yelling at each other.”

Suozzi said a bipartisan compromise on the issue is necessary to secure the border while still “treating people like human beings” and delivering results to both Republicans and Democrats alike.

“To move forward as a country we have to do both of these things,” Suozzi said.

He advocated for the establishment of a large immigrant intake facility on the southern border comparable to Ellis Island. He said this is where immigrants could be processed to determine their entry into the country at a more efficient rate.

He said the country’s infrastructure to process immigrants is dated and insufficient, leading to the failure of the system.

Suozzi said a facility with an adequate number of immigration judges, border agents and processing technologies would streamline the intake process and make it more effective.

While Suozzi said his Ellis Island 2.0 idea may not come to fruition, it is a start to bring attention to the need for advanced processing of migrants and develop bipartisan solutions that are feasible.

As for what needs to be done in the meantime, Suozzi said that increased federal funding needs to be parceled out to local communities to address large influxes of migrants.

Pilip has said that securing the border is a priority of her campaign, saying on X that the influx of migrants is “unsustainable.” She has also condemned Biden’s immigration policies as a “complete disaster.”

When asked whether he was using the issue of immigration as a litmus test for the political campaign landscape ahead of the 2024 election, Suozzi said he is campaigning on issues not as a “guinea pig” but as a way to advocate for the interests of the district constituents. He said immigration is one of the issues constituents care about.

“This is what my people are talking about in my district and this is what I think needs to be done,” Suozzi said.

In his call for bipartisan support on this issue, Suozzi criticized Pilip’s lack of bipartisan efforts and willingness to debate the issues with him.

Nassau County District 11 Legislator Delia DeRiggi-Whitton, who joined Suozzi at the virtual press conference, gave insight into the Republican candidate’s work through what she had observed while serving alongside her in the Legislature.

DeRiggi-Whitton said she has been disappointed in Pilip’s lack of involvement in the Legislature’s internal workings.

“From what I have seen, again, sitting 10 feet away from his opponent for the last two years, I don’t think she has a clue about the ins and outs of Nassau County, and that’s a very small, small district compared to the entire nation,” DeRiggi-Whitton said.

She criticized Pilip for her adherence to the Republican Party and not working across the aisle to seek solutions.

“To me that just shows someone who is there for a purpose,” DeRiggi-Whitton said. “She follows the orders of her party. She conveys the same message that you’re going to hear from any of them, stepped in line completely, and that’s not what we need in this position.”

Missed bipartisan efforts given by DeRiggi-Whitton included Pilip voting against a budget amendment to hire 100 additional police officers and not supporting the spending of opioid settlement money to address the crisis.

“She could really have a voice, in my opinion,” DeRiggi-Whitton said. “She has remained silent.”

Suozzi, whose campaign has been putting pressure on Pilip to accept debates after she has turned down invites, said he hopes Pilip will participate in debates with him to discuss how they plan to solve problems.

“I’m asking for debates because I want to really debate the issues that our country is facing and talk about the bipartisan type solutions that we need to solve these problems instead of just the same old talking points given from party bosses or from the party leadership, and try and actually solve problems,” Suozzi said. “It’s not worth doing this stuff unless you’re actually solving problems. And that’s why I encourage debates in this short window of an election.”

Pilip has not accepted any debate invites as of yet, and it was recently announced by the Lakeville Civic Association that she would no longer attend its debate.

Pilip’s campaign manager, Aidan Strongreen, told Blank Slate that she never agreed to participate in the civic association’s debate due to a scheduling conflict, despite their announcement that she would be attending.

Strongreen said Pilip is committed to participating in a televised debate and that her campaign is working to accommodate as many media requests as possible.

As for how he’s going to combat Long Island’s red wave and its Republican stronghold of public offices, Suozzi said he is going to advocate for the desires and needs of the constituents.

“I’m saying what the people are saying,” Suozzi said. “And I think that message is going to win out… the best politician is the politician that says what the people are thinking already. I think this is what the people want. I think people want us to stop with the game playing and the fingerpointing and they want us to work together to actually address the things that affect their lives.”