Gas Tax Cap Proposal Full of Schmitt

What's worse than taxes?
A badly planned psuedo-tax cut.
Pataki and the NYS legislature passed a cap on gas tax which went into effect July 1st. The cap is set at $2.00/gallon.
Now Schmitt and his republican soldiers are proposing the same in Nassau.
"Minority Leader Peter J. Schmitt and members of the Republican Caucus to the Nassau County Legislature have filed a bill which would not only opt Nassau County into the elimination of State tax on gasoline passed over $2.00 a gallon, but also provides for Nassau County to eliminate its tax on gasoline over $2.00 a gallon.
Recent New York State legislation will cap the New York State Sales Tax on gasoline at $2.00 per gallon and Republican Legislators have introduced legislation to also cap County Sales Tax at $2.00 per gallon."
Sounds good right?
"Minority Leader Peter J. Schmitt stated, “We want to be ready to give much needed tax relief on the ever-increasing price of gasoline to our residents.”
“Legislation in Albany will soon be passed and we want Nassau County to be ready to not only join in eliminating the State Sales Tax over $2.00 a gallon but also the County tax on the same amount continued Schmitt.”
The higher price of gasoline has especially burdened Long Islanders who use their cars to commute to work. With the upcoming summer, residents are expected to vacation locally, and while good for the Long Island economy, they will be using their automobiles at a higher rate.
“If the Administrators of Nassau County would stop thinking about taxing our residents and proposing new tolls on our highways, they could begin to attempt to eliminate some of the taxes all our residents pay”, stated Legislator Schmitt."
Wow, a grand burden will be lifted from us taxpayers.
But Wait!
All is NOT what it seems.
While the proposed savings could be up to 8 cents per gallon, reality just happens to get in the way. Gas prices are still going up and the savings are lower than 3 cents per gallon if that at all.
But the the real problem is the cost - the REAL cost - to taxpayers.
It might make a nice sound-bite to motorists who are paying alot at the pump but a few pennies saved won't compare to the loss the state and the county will incur.
On the state level, Nassau is looking for more school aid which would bring down school taxes which are the bulk of our taxes. With this cap, the state will lose $450 million this year.
Wouldn't it be better to apply this $450million to alleviate school or property taxes instead of literally nickel and dimeing taxpayers with such a miniscule "tax cut" that will come to a few dollars over the year?
And where will the state make up this loss?
What gets cut next year and what gets increased?
Now Schmitt and company want to cap the Nassau portion of the tax.
We all know that the county, because of Schmitt and the Gulotta republicans, sank to near bankruptcy. Schmitt says “We want to be ready to give much needed tax relief on the ever-increasing price of gasoline to our residents.”
It's not the taxes but the actual cost of the gas that is hurting consumers. And by capping the Nassau portion of the tax, Schmitt will make the fiscal situation in Nassau worse.
Other counties in NYS are already seeing the problem with the cap "In Albany County, as Comptroller Michael Conners is prudent enough to point out, the loss of revenue is likely to be $2.7 million a year for the county itself, and $1.8 million a year in money the county shares with cities, towns and villages.

In Broome County "when (County Executive) Fiala found out the cap would cost the county about $2.3 million annually with current prices, she modified the proposed gas tax cap to $3 per gallon. That would help taxpayers if costs continue to rise at the pumps, although it currently affects only higher grades of gas.
Any county losses would have been made up by increasing property taxes, Fiala said.
"We didn't want to give with one hand now and take from the other later," she said."

Republican mayor Bloomberg in NYC said the city could lose up to $50million. From the Gothamist "Fifty million dollars a year is probably a thousand cops, close to a thousand cops, close to a thousand teachers," he said. "If we don't have the money, we can't have these things. What do we want to do without?
Reducing taxes when you're trying to end energy dependence on foreign cartels is not exactly a terribly smart policy
The long-term solution in this country, which nobody wants to hear, is to use an awful lot less energy and to get away from fossil fuels, particularly oil, that mostly comes from overseas."

What will Nassau lose?
How much revenue that could go to funding youth programs, hire more police or keep property taxes stable will disappear for a cheap stunt pseudo-tax cut?
Wouldn't it be better to use the gas tax revenue to continue to revive the county?

And wouldn't it have been smarter for our state legislators to properly fund our schools instead of trumpeting a "tax cut" that will hurt us in the long run?

Congratulations Assemblyman Saladino!

Our esteemed state lawmaker Joe Saladino from the 12AD has gotten his very first bill passed in the Assembly.
We know what a tireless photo-op seeker.... err.. legislator he is, and it comes as no suprise that after almost 2 1/2 years in the Assembly he got a sponsered bill passed.
Assembly Bill A11171 calls for the designation of the Striped Bass as the official New York State Salt Water Fish.
We already have a Fresh Water Fish in the Brook Trout. It is about time that there be an aquatic equivilent in the salt waters that splash upon the shores of New York State. True representation of the gilled inhabitants has finally arrived.
Reading from the bill is completely worth it even if you don't like the web of legalize you can encounter in important legislation.
"It is the purpose of naming an official fish, bird, animal (mammal), tree and so forth, to give the state an identity, to assist with its promotional and tourism endeavors and to educate the
public as to ):he bounty of its resources, characteristics, strengths, cultures or especially a commonality or pride found within. While the State of New York prides itself on the tremendous fresh water fishing opportunities within its borders, there are plenty of species found to the south especially in the tidal portions of the Hudson River and surrounding the Long Island sound the bays and ocean shores of New York City and Long Island.
"Morone Saxatilis stripped bass grows to an average of 18 to 35 pounds as an adult with the largest of the species caught off Long Island`s east end reaching a record of some
75 pounds.
"This fish is a prized and well sought game fish contributing to the 4 billion dollars the fishing and boating industry generates annually on Long Island alone each year. It is one of the most tasty marine species to consume and the striper`s resiliently is clearly evident in the speediness of the species recovery and abundance following a moratorium and limit restrictions in New York which proved to be a template for success known nationally in the field of marine resource management. There is, without a doubt, room for both an official fish and official marine fish of the State of New York and no better species of salt water swimmers to catch and associate with New Yorkers than the strong, majestic and domestic Striped Bass."

Kudos to Assemblyman Saladino.
A NYS Legislators job is never done and it's tackling the tough issues that make them strong.

And now back to reforming the public school aid formula, right?



Assemblyman Joseph Saladino (R-Massapequa Park)
meets with lobbyist Ken "Big Mouth" Bass

Gotta Know Someone

Lois Schmitt, wife of Nassau Legislator and Republican Minority Leader Peter Schmitt is on the Town of Oyster Bay Zoning Board.
When did that happen?

Long Island Marathon Outrage

May 8, 2006 (Mineola) The results are in for the Long Island Marathon and the Republican delegation of the Nassau County Legislature has denounced the results. "Once again we see that Tom Suozzi and the Democrat party are giving Queens residents preferential treatment." Minority Leader Peter Schmitt said refering to the winner of the marathon Carlos Grisales living in College Point. "I don't know why Suozzi could not get a Nassau County resident to win." Schmitt continued, "Democrat Legislator Dave Mejias even ran the race and didn't do anything about it. Mejias is just another Suozzi rubber-stamp."
Republican spokesman Ed Ward said in a prepared statement "Of the top five runners, only one was from Nassau County. Three were from Queens and the other came from New Jersey. If County Executive Suozzi would spend more time in Nassau County instead of running for governor, this wouldn't happen. We need a full-time county executive who will make sure the Long Island Marathon is won by the taxpayers who pay his salary."
Legislator Denise Ford (R-Long Beach) tells NGW "I say whatever Peter Schmitt says. That's my own opinion. I am an inpependent thinker and I independently thought to agree with whatever Peter Schmitt says."
Legisaltors Nicollelo, Muscarella, Gonsalves, Mangano, Becker and Ciotti all said the same thing Leg. Ford said.
Legislator Dennis Dunne (R-Levitown) said "I was stuck in my car on Old Country Road for a couple of hours. Whats with all the people in the street?"
The Nassau County Republican party plans to use the race results in a new series of television ads called "Suozzi Can't Run from Marathon Results." The ads are expected to blanket local cable channels by weeks end.

State Senators on the Run

from George Pataki.
The Albany Times-Union reports that pollster Frank Luntz is telling state senators that Gov. Pataki is radioactive in this years election. The republicans state-wide are afraid that the state senate will change hands and they are doing whatever they can to save thier skins. Locally, Nassau pols like Balboni opted out of a higher office run (Attorney General) because Majority Leader Sen. Joe Bruno needs all hands on deck to keep control.
From the Albany Times-Union "According to someone who was in the room, Luntz, who has been advising the Senate Republicans for over a year now, provided the majority conference with results from a recent poll on the state budget fight.
As it turns out, this source said, voters are overwhelmingly not in Pataki’s corner, even in strong GOP districts, and the spread in the Senate Republicans’ favor in key swing districts (think Sen. Nick Spano’s Westchester County seat, or Sen. Joseph Robach’s Monroe County seat) is even wider."

We guess these pictures won't be in campaign literature this year...

Schmitt Loses in Court Again

A State Supreme Court has ruled that Legislator Peter Schmitt must bear the cost of the $10million defamation lawsuit against him.
Leg. Dave Mejias tells Newsday "The taxpayers of Nassau County should not have to pay for Peter Schmitt's personal, political attacks and lies,"
The lawsuit stems from charges made by Schmitt in 2004 about the law firm of Crowe-Deagan. Schmitt accused the firm of false billing, illegal campaign contributions and tampering with evidence.
The New York Law Journal reports "At a Jan. 12, 2004, news conference and in an accompanying statement, Schmitt said the nine-lawyer firm, which he said was hired to represent several county agencies without bidding, was receiving "exorbitant, unauthorized amounts of money for work they did not perform." He also said the firm had exceeded campaign contribution limits to give "illegal money" to David Mejias, a successful Democratic legislature candidate. "
"Schmitt moved for summary judgment on the grounds that his statements were either true or constitutionally protected opinion. He also argued that the law firm was a public figure unable to meet the actual malice standard set by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1964's New York Times v. Sullivan, 376 U.S. 254. That landmark case required public figures, such as politicians, suing for defamation to establish that false statements about them were made knowingly or with reckless disregard to the truth of the statements."
State Supreme Court Justice Lally denied a request for dismissal of the lawsuit by Schmitt saying "Legislator Schmitt made statements ... outside the protection of legislative immunity," which means he is liable for any defamatory comments he makes.
Mejias tells Newsday that this "proves once and for all that Peter Schmitt will say anything, even lie, to take back control of Nassau County."
The judge ruled that because Schmitt cited actual figures, "While the term exorbitant may constitute protected opinion, language stating that Crowe Deegan received an unauthorized amount of money for 'work they did not perform' and language stating that the firm contributed 'illegal' money 'over the legal limit' to Legislator David Mejias is precise and capable of being proven true or false,"
Schmitt gets hoisted on his own petard with that one.
Schmitt has frequently cited false numbers to bolster his arguments and has been called out on it. Now his words are in a court of law and he can't say he misspoke or change his story as he usually does.
Schmitt tried to play it too cute with the "illegal campaign contributions" to Dave Mejias. Schmitt charged that the firm gave Mejias $4000 which is over the $2000 limit.
Schmitt didn't get that the firm is a partnership and as Lally ruled "A partnership by definition includes at least two persons," which means two partners can give $2000 each which is the $4000 Schmitt was using.
Schmitts attorney Paul Millus argued that it's okay for Schmitt to lie. He actually makes a case for lying "Politicians have to have the flexibility to say things in the public interest."
As a side note, remember last year during the election the republicans complained and complained about non-nassau county residents working for the county and firms employed from outside too?
So who does Schmitt go to?
A Manhattan-based firm Snitow Kanfer Holtzer & Millus

Ed Ward Follies - American Idol Edition

Sixteen year old Kevin Covais of Levitown is a contestant on the FOX show American Idol. It's nice to see a Nassau County teen doing well and getting the attention for his talent he deserves.
Getting into the spirit to support Kevin in his quest to be the the next winner of American Idol, County Executive Tom Suozzi sent an e-mail to county employees to ask them to call the show and vote for Kevin.
According to Newsday, Suozzi wrote "Kevin's father is a retired captain from the Sheriff's Department and his uncle is currently a police officer in the Third Precinct. Your support for Kevin would be greatly appreciated. Let's show the world that Nassau County residents are the best. Go Kevin!"
Great idea right?
Rally the county employees to help Kevin win.

Enter republican legislative spokesman Ed "89,000/year part-time" Ward.

Ward pipes up and says "Is this a legitimate use of taxpayers' money when he's e-mailing all county employees to rig a national election on a television show? Has he nothing better to do?"

Did everyone else just get a headache??
What exactly is the surcharge per e-mail Suozzi sent?
Why there isn't one of course. The e-mail which probably took a minute or two to type and send to "ALL" really didn't cost the county a dime... or even a penny.

And "rigging a national election?????"
What exactly is wrong with Ward?
How is rallying county employees to support Kevin Covais rigging anything???

Suozzi Spokesman Ian Siegel says to Ward "Lighten up. This isn't Watergate. It's just 'American Idol."

Kevin Covais is making us proud and getting him more support is something "better to do."

Friends and family are rallying support for him and according to Newsday, "Pat Gentile, a construction worker and fan who lives down the street, fired up his blue truck and spent hours Saturday putting up posters throughout Long Island, Brooklyn and Queens, urging people to vote for Covais. Gentile and his wife, Patty, also had a party Sunday for about 60 Covais supporters and friends, and on Monday he was back in his truck putting up more posters."Kevin is a decent kid in school," said Gentile. "Kevin does not need 'American Idol' as much as our country needs Kevin as an American idol. He is everything decent and fair."

Tune in to FOX Ch. 5 Wednesday at 9pm and help Kevin by voting for him.

And if you feel like it, call Ed Ward at (516) 571-6212 and ask him why he wants to politicize American Idol.

The Song Remains the Same

With the Presiding Officer imbroglio only over a few weeks, republicans are now trying to "shame" Democrats into voting for what they want.
In a Public Works Commitee fracas reported by Newsday on Feb 28th, Leg. Edward Mangano (R-Bethpage) said "It's not that you're going against the administration, it's that you're doing your job."
So in order for Democrats to "do their job", they HAVE to vote against proposals by CE Suozzi. This is the only way to "prove" they are independent.
It's not enough that the Democrats agree with a proposal, it's what republicans want what they can't have; ways to defeat plans they don't like
How absurd.
Just because the Democrats agree with the party leader, doesn't mean they aren't doing thier jobs
Maybe Mangano or one of the other brave, independent, reform-minded republicans can just once vote outside of their caucus. It seems Ed and his buddies just vote what ever way Peter Schmitt wants them too. According to Manganos logic, he and his gang aren't "doing thier jobs."
We saw that during the Presiding Officer fiasco where republicans would be told how to vote to get more power even if it meant voting for Democrat Roger Corbin. Republicans do as they are told. No breaking ranks to "do thier job."

Republican spokesman Ed "$89,000 a year part-time" Ward told Newsday "There's no changes. This is what happened before."

What, that Democrats vote they want to and they want to vote for Suozzi's proposals?
What a wacky notion.

Newsday Letter

Legislature flap Mondello's fault
Regarding the letter to your paper from Nassau Republican chairman Joseph Mondello: Does he really believe the people of the county think he has nothing to do with the recent legislative mess ["Don't blame the Legislature," Letters, Feb. 9]? A political move such as the one that stalled the legislature could not have been made without his consent.
He leads the Nassau GOP, and when his party could not win a majority, it was time for plan B. Lure two susceptible Democratic legislators with the promise of money and power, much like the serpent luring a susceptible Eve with the apple, and then sit back or slither away and see what happens. You win either way. If the other Democrats allowed the deal with Roger Corbin to go through, Mondello would have had control of the legislature - albeit tacitly.
Shame on Mondello for the problems he's caused, for the thousands of our tax dollars wasted and for thinking we were stupid enough to believe he had nothing to do with it.
Tom Cappiello
Wantagh

Jilted!

Like a jilted prom-date left to stand and wait, corsage in hand, date never to arrive, Schmitt through Ed Ward wears his heart on his sleeve in today's Newsday "Neither one of them had the decency to come into his office, after they had been running into the office all week... Neither of them had the decency to call."
Yes, Peter misses Roger and Lisanne. They were such a fixture in his office as they conspired to unseat Presiding Officer Judy Jacobs. Now they are back in the fold and Peter feels betrayed.
Gee, a betrayer feeling betrayed by other known betrayers. Try wrapping your head around that one.
Schmitt expected Corbin to be the 10th vote last week to put him in the Presiding Officer seat. Ward says "It was always understood that Corbin would swing the vote,"
Yeah, Corbin would really want to be the #2 to Peter Schmitt. The whole gambit was for Corbin to be PO. That didn't work out as he was abandoned on the first vote by Schmitt and his rubber-stamp caucus.
Did Schmitt really believe that Corbin would risk losing all party support and have a long line of people ready to primary him?
The Love Affair has ended and it's back to work for the legislators.
For Schmitt, he leaves a little part of his heart behind.......


Cue music and photo montage...

Mem’ries, Like the corners of my mind
Misty water-colored memories
Of the way we were
Scattered pictures,Of the smiles we left behind
Smiles we gave to one another
For the way we were
Can it be that it was all so simple then?
Or has time re-written every line?
If we had the chance to do it all again
Tell me, would we? could we?
Mem’ries, may be beautiful and yet
What’s too painful to remember
We simply choose to forget
So it’s the laughterWe will remember
Whenever we remember...
The way we were...
The way we were...

End of an Error: Schmitt Not Presiding Officer

The Appealate Court panel ruled that it does indeed take 10 votes to be Presiding Officer.
The Legislature held another vote and Corbin and Altmann joined with thier fellow Democrats to vote for Judy Jacobs to continue her excellent work as Presiding Officer.
Schmitt tells Newsday "I've never been so happy to lose an election as this one."
All we have to say to Schmitt is 'Start getting used to it.'

There He Goes Again - Schmitt Contradicts Himself

As we pointed out a little over a week ago, Schmitt told the December 30th Anton Newspapers
"There will be an election on Jan. 3 for presiding officer. Someone needs to get 10 votes."

Now in the Feb 10th Massapequan Observer (published by Anton Newspapers), "The wording in the charter is clear [where] it says 'he who has the highest number of votes wins presiding officer and the person from another party with the second highest number of votes is minority leader.' It never mentions 10,"

So the "charter is clear." Why was it unclear to him a month ago? As someone who wants to be presiding officer and a member of the legislature for 10 years, you'd expect a person to be well-versed in the rules that govern the legislature. Or even just be aware of it before you spout off.

Back in December when Schmitt made his first pronouncement (and he made the same one many times after) that you need 10 votes it looked as though his plans could be foiled if Judy got a majority of votes and not 10 or more.
Now that a judge says a PO needs 10 votes and Schmitt is one shy of ten, he changes his story.
Kinda like his college graduation date.
Or many other issues.
Word from his office is that he wasn't sure what the charter said when he was saying that 10 votes are needed. But if the charter is "clear" then he should have known what it said.

Schmitt really has to go.

Why Schmitt Can't Lead

The most important factor in leadership is being able to bring people together. If you can bring people with different ideas together to accomplish a goal, then you are a true leader.CE Suozzi has annouced a plan to fund a program to reduce abortions.
The proposed $3million would go to such diverse groups as Planned Parenthood and Life Center of Long Island.The idea is to bring to help each group to reduce the need for abortions which all sides agree on. It's not a matter of making it legal or illegal but lessening the need for them.Schmitt in his usual manner just doesn't get what is going on. Suozzi is working to bring groups together for a common goal.
Schmitt tells the NYTimes "Leadership is not pandering to both sides of a contentious issue by using taxpayer dollars. I have pro-abortion people calling concerned that pro-life people are being funded, and pro-life people calling concerned that pro-abortion people are being funded. You can't be on both sides of this issue."
This is exactly why Schmitt is not leadership material. Finding common ground is what a real leader does. Schmitt is too used to being a polarizing, partisan figure to know better

Our State Legislators and Their Slush Fund

Did we say slush fund?
Actually the pile of cash just sitting around is called "Members Items."
Members Items are a wonderful incumbant re-election tool available to New York State Senators and Assembly-members in both parties to dole out cash in thier districts.
Ever see Chuck Fuschillo or Dean Skelos hand out some over-sized check like the one Senator Kemp Hannon is handing out below?


That's a "Members Item" check.
You would think that state legislators are fighting hard to bring money to the district. I fact, they just make a request for $2000, $5000, $10,000 etc, have an over-sized check printed up and arrive for a photo-op like heroes. They are not putting the items they are getting money for in the NYS budget but pulling money from this slush fund. And it doesn't take much to get the cash.
Azi over at the Fifth Estate blog has an exchange between Sen. Balboni and former Nassau republican County Executive candidate Bruce Bent at a panel discussion.

"When Manhattan Insittute released their scathing report on Albany, State Senator Michael Balboni got into an interesting exchange about member items with Nassau businessman Bruce Bent who had a suggestion about what to do with all that money.

Michael Balboni: "Put yourself, ladies and gentlemen, in my shoes for just a second, and Seymour [Lachman's, fellow panelist and former legislator]. If you arrive in Albany...and they say, okay, here's an allocation of dollars. You can spend it in your district and we're not going to spend it on a statewide basis, and we're going to do it individual[ly]. "It's almost like an independent contractor. You're in charge of your district and meeting the needs, and this is member items. And the problem with member items is that it's not done on a statewide basis. They vote on it, but they don't really get into the nuisances, and they don't do the individual evaluation of the allocations like Bruce is saying."But what are you going to do? Not spend the money? Now wait a minute. Now wait a minute. If I didn't support the district, then we're not doing a Mineola Downtown Revitalization Project. We're not doing the elimination of the grade-crossing program. We're not doing the Roslyn Viaduct. So I can point to 70 or 80 programs that were crucial, transportation programs, that I was able to support within the district."

Bruce Bent: "Put them in the budget."

Balboni: "They are in the budget."

Bent: "But the state treasury is not a cookie jar."

Balboni: "It's not a cookie jar, but why do you vote for somebody to get into office? So they go to Albany and let somebody else take the money away from us?"

Bent: "Take it away from all of them."

Balboni: "And do what with it?"

Bent: "Reduce our taxes!"

Balboni: "I voted for a tax increase once in 17 years Bruce and you know that. Once. It was a temporary tax. I voted for more tax reductions than anybody in this room. So don't tell me about voting for tax cuts. But the problem is this: how do you design a better system. We always talk about the member items and the pork but we never talk about a better way to allocate it. I'll go with a better way..."

Moments later, Seymour added:"I am opposed to member items...I think they cause more harm then good...I've been asked to be a member of the other party and I was offered more member items. That is outrageous."

We agree with Bent and Seymour. Put the money back into the budget and then get each item as a budget allocation. At a time when we have problems funding schools and we are being crushed by medicaid costs maybe the "Members Items" cash can be used for that.
The slush fund and the over-sized checks are a re-election tool. The money is more like a taxpayer provided campaign contribution.
Balboni says "We always talk about the member items and the pork but we never talk about a better way to allocate it. I'll go with a better way..."
Maybe he can step up to the plate and offer a better way.
The first way would be to kill the "Members Items."

Truant Legislators

The following legislators where supposed to be present to vote for a Presiding Officer today and did not show up for work. They have not perfromed any work for the past month and refuse to do so. Call or e-mail them and tell them they are being paid to work.

Roger Corbin - 516-571-6202; RCorbin@nassaucountyny.gov
Peter J. Schmitt - 516- 571- 6212; PSchmitt@attglobal.net
John Ciotti - 516- 571- 6203; JCiotti@attglobal.net
Norma L. Gonsalves - 516- 571- 6213; NGonsalves@attglobal.net
Denise Ford - 516- 571- 6204; DFord@NassauCountyNY.gov
Dennis Dunne, Sr. - 516- 571- 6215; DDunne@attglobal.net
Francis X. Becker, Jr. - 516- 571- 6206; FBecker@attglobal.net
Vincent Muscarella - 516- 571- 6208; VMuscarella@attglobal.net
Richard Nicolello - 516- 571- 6209; Richard.Nicolello@mail.co.nassau.ny.us
Lisanne Altmann - 516- 571- 6210; laltmann@nassaucountyny.gov

Last week Judge Spinloa ordered a new vote for Presiding Officer and it was scheduled for today. Needless to say that did not happen.
Why are these legislators collecting pay checks?

Schmitt Profiled in Newsday

Newsday ran an not too flattering profile of Schmitt today. Here are a few excerpts....

“Tom Gulotta, the Republican county executive from 1987-2001, said Schmitt has grown and matured in the past few years in the legislature and, if he ultimately keeps the post, would succeed at it.’That maturity is going to enable him to handle his responsibility with great skill. He has become, I believe, a very pragmatic public official, much more contemplative of weighing both sides of an issue’”

So while he was Deputy Presiding Officer of the legislature, Schmitt was not mature? He’s 55 and a public official for the past 30 years and he just reached maturity? This isn’t exactly the best of compliments.

“Continuing with his education, Schmitt finished his bachelor's degree in political science at Hofstra, which awarded the degree eight years after he started, in October 1976, university records show. That date is at odds with his public statements in recent years. In 2004, he gave the graduation date as 1972 to Newsday. It is listed as 1973 on his Legislature Web site. And in 2003 he gave the date as 1974 to Massapequa weekly newspapers. Schmitt said giving the wrong graduation dates was an "oversight.”

An “oversight?” Official biographies that have appeared on campaign literature and his own legislative website have been wrong for so long and he never noticed? In the grand scheme of things this is a small matter but it seems Schmitt can’t even get the small things right.


"In 1983, while a deputy commissioner overseeing Oyster Bay's drunken-driving prevention program, Schmitt was arrested twice for driving while impaired, state criminal records show. He was convicted on one charge and pleaded guilty to a lesser crime on another, and had his license revoked, the records show. He declined to say how long his license was revoked."That is a chapter of my life that is a quarter of a century old," he said in an interview last week after his election as presiding officer. Schmitt, who became a Nassau GOP executive leader, did not lose his Oyster Bay town job due to the convictions and was promoted a year later to commissioner of community and youth services."

Notice the lack of contrition. Not once but twice. Once is a mistake, twice is a willful disregard for the law and the safety of others.We wonder if Schmitt thought of his own arrests back in 2002 when he was attacking convicted former Democratic legislator Patrick Williams who was given a job at OTB. Schmitt told lipolitics.com, “PATRICK WILLIAMS AND OTB: An absolute disgrace. He's a convicted felon who filed false instruments. He's now at OTB filing other forms. Suozzi, Newsday and the Democratic leadership are all at fault here.”

So who is at fault for keeping a convicted drunk driver as a Deputy Commisioner and then give him a promotion??

Legislator Dave Mejias gets it right when he says "When Mr. Schmitt was in control, Nassau County was facing a state takeover, nearly bankrupt, $3 billion in debt, and had a bond rating one step above junk. In 1998 alone, Mr. Schmitt passed a budget with a $300-million deficit," Mejias said. "We were rated the worst-run county in America ... just four short years ago. Clearly, Mr. Schmitt lacks credibility when discussing issues of governance."

One of the funniest things in the article was “Schmitt said that he accepts part of the responsibility for the county's fiscal woes but said he later became an adversary of the Gulotta administration. "No one was harsher in their criticism of Tom Gulotta's failure to act than myself," he said.”

Let’s get some fact straight here, Schmitt didn’t get religion until the republican majority in the legislature was wiped out. Up until November 1999, Schmitt was a rubberstamp for Gulotta. After passing horrendous budgets for the man, suddenly losing the majority causes Schmitt to start attacking Gulotta. The fact is, the republican legislators were running fast and hard away from Gulotta for self-preservation not good government.

And Schmitt keeps going right to the end "Watching it happen was actually a feeling of disbelief," Schmitt said, recalling the moment he took power in the legislature."

Is that why he had a prepared statement? Schmitt was prepared to be Presiding Officer the whole time.

"I still find it hard to believe that the Democratic majority was so foolish, so hate-driven. ... They did what they did knowing that they were going to tip the legislature into my hands."

The funny part is that Schmitt pledged his support for Corbin but backed out. What happened to Schmitt insisting that there should be a Democratic Presiding Officer?

No Schmitt

The only P.O. that Schmitt is now is Pissed Off.
The judge has ruled in the favor of the Democrats that the vote for Presiding Officer requires 10 votes as a majority vote and not the 9 that Schmitt got. So really, the judge agreed with what Schmitt said a month ago which we posted about yesterday.
The judge has ordered a new vote which is scheduled for Monday the 6th and any actions Schmitt has taken as Presiding Officer have been made null and void.
The question now is how that vote on monday will go. We know that Schmitt's gang of 8 will vote lock-step for him as they always do.
Where does that leave Corbin and Altmann?
They have to vote for either Schmitt or the Democratic candidiate whether it be Kevan Abrahams or Judy Jacobs.
In the last vote, they had an out by saying "we voted for Roger and the Democrats ruined Democratic control by voting for Abrahams." Now they can't get away with that. They can side with the Democratic majority or they can vote for Schmitt and end thier careers in Nassau politics with a single vote. Corbin and Altmanns constituents might accept them being mavericks and voting for Corbin over Jacobs or Abrahams but they will be less forgiving if the votes are cast for Peter Schmitt.
Schmitt could stick with his original deal and instrcut his people to vote for Corbin but that opens him up to losing Minority Leader to Jacobs of she runs.
An appeal is most likely being filed so we'll have to see what happens next.

Schmitt Talking Out of Both Sides of His Mouth

Can Schmitt ever make up his mind and stick to one talking point? Back in December, Schmitt told the Anton Newspapers that "The Democratic majority on the legislature is fractured. There will be an election on Jan. 3 for presiding officer. Someone needs to get 10 votes. I have nine. Roger Corbin has three or four. Judy Jacobs has five or six. Nobody has 10. I don't want to be presiding officer of a legislature that is a Democratic majority. To break the logjam, several members of my delegation have agreed to support Roger Corbin as presiding officer."

What was that again? "Someone needs to get 10 votes."

I'm sorry, can you repeat that Peter? "Someone needs to get 10 votes."

That's what I thought I heard him say.
Why is this important?
Because the lawsuit brought by the Democrats says that since no one got 10 votes, Schmitt is not the Presiding Officer.
Schmitts lawyer is saying that he doesn't need 10 votes. Yet Schmitt himself said the exact opposite a month ago.
Schmitt's lawyer is actually fighting what Schmitt himself stated as fact.

Ed Ward Follies - Is He a Liar or Just Ignorant

We'll go with "LIAR."
In the Jan. 28th Newsday article about the possibility that Charles Wang will take the Islanders hockey franchise to Suffolk if the new coliseum plan isn't worked out, Ward said "If [County Executive Thomas] Suozzi doesn't step up to the plate, Nassau is really threatened with the loss of the Islanders,"

WHAT? He's blaming the delays on Suozzi?????
That's simply not in the realm of reality.

Back in September 2004 Schmitt started by saying "He's got a long way to go. He has to build community consensus and there's zoning issues with the town."

In July of this year, Souzzi said to Newsday "I understand that the pace of government is very frustrating. Welcome to my world."

You see, Schmitt started to question Wang's plans in an election year because Suozzi and the Democrats liked the plan.

Ward said that July "A project of this magnitude changes the footprint of the county," adding that the approval process takes time."

Remember, the republicans were using the Wang project as a campaign issue claiming it would cause Nassau to be a "sixth borough."
Wang said at the time "It saddens me ... to see this being politicized. This is not a Suozzi project. It is not a Republican or Democrat project. This is a Wang project."

Republican County Executive candidate Greg Peterson chimed in calling for a slow-down of the process "“A homeowner couldn’t even get plans done to re-design a kitchen in that limited amount of time, yet Suozzi wants potential developers to submit plans for a major transformation of the region in that short a span---something which has not been done since the Levittown housing development decades ago,” stated Peterson. “Suozzi can’t be serious. His action reflects nothing less than a backroom deal without input from competing bidders. Taxpayers will lose out in the end.”

The call from republicans to SLOW DOWN the process for the redevelopment and the call for more plans by Suozzi meant more ideas and a longer process to get the deal done.

Before Wang dropped his plan to build the "Lighhouse Tower" only a month or so ago Schmitt said before the election "This doesn't help him get the approval. It doesn't change the fact that the process Suozzi went through is fatally flawed."

And Ed Ward put the kibosh on any forward movement even without the tower when he said in Newsday Dec. 29, 2005 "He proposed to build a tower. Now he's taking it out, but he's not saying what he's substituting, so you have an unknown amount of acreage with unknown development ..."

When Suozzi was sworn-in earlier this month he said "Together we will work to ensure that the Coliseum redevelopment will happen and it will happen responsibly. Additionally, we will build on our relationships with village mayors to make the vision of New Suburbia a reality."

So to blame Suozzi for holding up the redevelopment plans is just a big lie by Ed Ward.
And now after an extended bid time that Schmitt wanted plus final approval by the Town of Hempstead zoning board on any plan, it will take time but it's certainly not Suozzi's fault. What more does Ward want Suozzi to do?

Did Schmitt Just Call Suozzi a Nazi?

In the New York Observer ‘The Politicker’ column Schmitt is quoted as saying about CE Suozzi “He’s run this county like a stormtrooper for the last few years.”

“Stormtrooper,” eh?

For some reason we’re not seeing him making an allusion to the white-armored Star Wars charatcters.
What comes to mind is exactly how the word Stormtrooper is defined:
“storm trooper (n. )
A member of the Nazi militia noted for brutality and violence.
One who resembles or behaves like a member of the Nazi militia.

So Suozzi has been running the county like a nazi?
If Schmitt feels that way, why doesn’t he just come out and say it?

And this is on the heels of an exchange yesterday after the vote between Leg. Dave Mejias and the usually invisible republican Fran Becker as reported by Newsday:
Legis. David Mejias (D-North Massapequa) stayed to object. "This is an illegal coup by the Republicans," he said.
Legis. Fran Becker (R-Lynbrook) called out, "This is not South America."
Mejias then asked Becker, "Is that a slur on my mother, who comes from Ecuador? You're a punk."