Partisan politics eloquently illustrated why political gridlock exists in Washington. This is why we need to send some new blood to both the House and Senate rather than sending Congressmbember Steve Israel back for another term.
He is running in the new 3rd Congressional District which runs along the North Shore from Suffolk County through Nassau County and into Queens including neighborhoods such as Little Neck, Douglaston, Bay Terrace, Fort Totten, Whitestone, Beechurst and part of Bayside.
Israel is proud of being appointed by Democratic House minority leader Nancy Pelosi to head the 2012 Democratic National Congressional Campaign Committee. It is impossible for Israel to sell himself as an independent consensus builder willing to work in a bipartisan basis across the aisle with Republicans on behalf of constituents and nation. His goal is to place Pelosi back in the saddle as House Majority Leader along with re-electing the team of Obama/Biden to another four-year term and maintaining Harry Reid as Democratic Senate majority leader.
Israel would prefer that Democrats win the trifecta. This would place Democrats in charge of both the Executive branch (White House) and Legislative branch (both House of Representatives and Senate). There would be no system of checks and balances.
One-party control of both branches of government is a direct invitation to corruption, waste, fraud and abuse. It also opens the door to changing our current make up of the Supreme Court from one leaning more toward independent constitutionalist to one becoming highly judicial activist. This will be accomplished by the appointment of partisan ideologically committed liberals to future Supreme Court vacancies should Democrats control both the White House and Congress.
Since 2001, Israel has been a partisan straight down the line orthodox Democrat consistently supporting every local Democratic Party candidate on the town, county, state and federal level. He lacks the courage of former New York City Mayor Democrat Ed Koch to periodically cross the partisan divide and endorse a Republican for public office when appropriate.
How can Steve Israel represent the interests of the 3rd Congressional District when he is clearly marching lock step with the Obama/Biden, Reid and Pelosi team? As chairperson of the Democratic National Congressional Campaign Committee, he continues spending a significant amount of time running around the nation raising money and campaigning for other Democratic Party Congressional candidates.
This is what is expected when you accept this highly partisan position. This will only result in neglecting the needs of local constituents who sent him to Washington in the first place.
If you are looking for real change in Washington with an end to partisan politics and gridlock, consider another alternative.
Larry Penner
Great Neck
