Election 2024 is to the greatest extent a contest of values, character and integrity. Trump, a convicted felon, fraudster, conman, has made lying, propaganda, threats, inciting violence the essence of his campaign – his VP pick, JD Vance, admitted that lying is a tactic.
The contest between Vice President Kamala Harris and former president and present felon Donald Trump may be the most animating, and rightly so because of the existential threat to democracy, individual freedoms and rights this election poses.
But it is clear from the election materials and mailings in state and local races where Republicans’ all use the same boilerplate fear-mongering tactics and false attacks on their Democratic opponents, no matter who or what the circumstance – lies about New York’s crime rates, the nonexistent migrant invasion, the attacks on the state’s Proposition 1, Equal Rights Amendment (transgender boys on girls sports! Aborting babies after they’re born!), to enshrine what already is law barring discrimination for gender, race, national origin, disability and age and protecting women’s reproductive rights, into the Constitution.
Any candidate whose campaign is based on manufactured attacks – like Republican State Senator Jack Martins accusing Democrat Kim Keiserman of being a “tax hiker” when she’s never held office to hike taxes and Republican candidate for State Assembly Daniel Norber attacking incumbent Assemblywoman Gina Sillitti for cashless bail, when she wasn’t in the Assembly when the original law was passed but has worked to remedy it– rather than speak to their record, their policies, or worse, taking credit for popular accomplishments which they actually opposed (like Martins boasting in a taxpayer-funded mailer about restoring school aid and the retail workers safety act) – is unfit for the office.
Long Islanders cite affordable housing and environmental protection as their main concerns (and yet, Republicans obsess about crime and the southern border) but Martins’ focus in Albany has been to obstruct real progress – for example, demonizing any plan to solve Long Island’s housing crisis rather than devise a solution that Long Islanders will embrace, and fabricating lies blaming Democrats for rising crime (crime rates are falling) and wanting to defund police (Democrats provided record funding), yet voting against sensible gun safety reforms. What Martins has worked hardest on is opposing measures to make voting easier and fairer – as co-chair of the New York Independent Redistricting Commission he made sure no consensus map would emerge.
Especially troubling is that Martins voted against protecting abortion rights in New York, voted against protecting doctors who provide care to patients fleeing states where abortions are banned, and is supported by rightwing groups who look to restrict reproductive freedom. He is leading the charge against passing the Equal Rights Amendment (having unsuccessfully tried to get it kicked off the ballot this November).
Martins is challenged by Democrat Kim Keiserman who has been a dedicated and accomplished grassroots organizer and activist fighting for the issues that are most important. I trust her when she says she will continue to fight for fully funded public schools, women’s reproductive rights, sensible gun laws, and combating antisemitism and hate; that she will seek solutions to climate change, protect the environment, support small business; will work for communities that are welcoming, affordable, vibrant and tackle the housing crisis in a way that allows local communities to shape the solution.
“The politicization of the [housing] issue, the divisiveness was unfortunate. It masked the fact this is incredibly important for the future of Long Island. We need to find a way to get this passed, bring people together at the local level – village mayor, town supervisors, others with a stake in the process – and identify and address the obstacles to having more housing options on Long Island so our kids can move back after college, seniors can stay, and we can attract workers to keep businesses open and thriving,” Keiserman told Reach Out America.
She held up one of Martins’ mailers which misrepresents her position, showing a single-family house surrounded by high-rise buildings. “Welcome to your neighborhood under Hochul and Keiserman” accompanied by bogus links and citations.
“How can i engage in a conversation with this man who is our state senator, after all, about housing policy or any other policy when he will turn around a week later and tell outright, bald-faced, demonstrable lies keeping our government from working, and keeping us from addressing our problems?” Keiserman later told the Port Washington Democratic Club. “I really believe we have the opportunity in this election to elect people who are serious about problem solving at every level of the ballot from Kamala Harris at the top to Gina Sillitti.”
Similarly Assemblywoman Gina Sillitti’s opponent, Republican Daniel Norber, parrots the MAGA Republican talking points – closing the border, for example (not the function of a State Assemblyman), when Governor Hochul and Democrats have been working for actual solutions for New York’s impacted communities while Republicans just like to fear-monger.
Most troubling is that Norber advocates dismantling our vaunted public schools that have made our communities so desirable, with his support for “federal voucher program” – a way to divert public money to parochial and private schools– so parents effectively pay twice. Our public schools are tops in the state and nation – what he is advocating is what his base wants most: subsidized religious education. Either school districts will have to raise taxes, but since they are subject to the 2% tax cap, will have to cannibalize their own programs in order to subsidize wealthy families’ private school tuition.
His website whines about what is needed – “improving life for middle class and the affordability crisis” – which sounds exactly like what Democrats have been doing – including getting lower cost prescription drugs, promoting affordable housing, paying down crippling student debt, installing renewable energy infrastructure, middle class tax relief – which Republicans have opposed.
I trust Gina Sillitti, who in her two terms in office has been a hard-working, responsive representative, when she says she understands the value of hard work and knows that anger, division and partisan politics only get in the way of results that Long Island families deserve. She has a record of working to pass common-sense legislation to keep our communities safe (delivered $2 million to local police and first responders; made commonsense changes to bail reform to give judges more discretion to keep dangerous criminals in jail until their cases could be adjudicated; passed laws to crack down on repeat offenders and retail theft; is committed to enacting commonsense gun safety laws); is working to lower the cost of living (lowered income taxes for middle class families and supports incentives for first-time home buyers); delivered $5 million in funding to support small businesses on the North Shore; brought millions for infrastructure projects and storm relief; is working with organizations and community leaders to combat antisemitism; and is a strong defender of women’s reproductive rights.
Indeed, Sillitti, who, with her infant in tow at one community event, described what it was like to become a mother for the first time at age 46 after years of heartache and struggle: “Every time something went wrong, and I wound up in the hospital, I said to my husband, ‘thank God we live in New York’ – that I got the care i needed when i needed it. Not everybody is that lucky.” In fact, one third of women of child-bearing age – 23 million – live in states that have abortion bans and in many of them, women who suffer miscarriages are being prosecuted for murder, other women are having to bleed out in parking lots and still not receive care.
“We will make sure no matter what happens later on with different governor, women’s rights, IVF, contraception, is protected. Part of that promise involves you voting for Prop 1. Flip over ballot and vote for the ERA to make sure enshrine into the New York State constitution – God forbid things change in New York.” She stressed that unlike the attacks from Republicans – for whom “equal rights” are anathema – the amendment does not make new law.
“It takes existing state law and moves it to the state constitution, so rights are protected forever.”
