State of the State Address
Governor Cuomo gave his annual State of the State address Tuesday and as we feared, we are in for another long year
The Governors perennial window dressing ignored that, for much of New York, there’s nothing left in the store. Families are leaving in record numbers because the state is becoming more and more unaffordable, with crippling taxes making it harder and harder to get ahead.
Staring down the barrel of a $6 billion budget deficit, Governor Cuomo is proposing billions in new spending while Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie proposes new taxes. Thing’s don’t get better for small business owners or small property owners as the Democratic State Legislature has made the ability to improve existing properties or build additional ones, much more difficult.
To add injury to insult, all common sense appears to be lost as violent criminals and anti-Semites are being released onto the street without bail hours after committing heinous crimes.
New York is a rudderless ship taking on water under Democratic leadership. It will take all of us to ensure a mutiny of common sense leadership is brought back to New York State.
Iran Escalates Conflict in Middle East
Last week, President Trump drew his red line in the sand and enforced it when he ordered the air strike that killed Iranian Major General Qasem Soleimani, a terrorist directly responsible for over 600 American casualties. Soleimani was a murderous thug that posed a direct threat to the United States and the Middle East.
In response to the attack that killed Soleimani, Iran launched 12 missiles on bases used by U.S. troops in Iraq. Thankfully, no American lives were lost in the attack.
“We didn’t start it”, President Trump said. “They started it by killing one of our people and wounding badly other of our people. So that you call retribution.”
Iran would be smart to heed the warning of the President and numerous other military officials. It is clear President Trump is a man of his word when he says he will protect Americans at all costs.
Thursday, we learned the Iranian’s may have another issue. During Tuesdays attack, a Ukrainian passenger plane carrying 176 crashed shortly after takeoff. Now, intelligence reports from both the United States and Canada, suggest the airliner was shot down by an Iranian surface-to-air missile. Iranian officials have refused to turn over the black box recordings to investigators.
Democratic Sponsored Bail Reform is Massive Failure in First Week
Senate and Assembly Democrats touted the importance and significance of their bail and discovery reform legislation over the course of the last year. In the ten days since the new law took effect, they have failed miserably while putting law abiding citizens in harm.
Conveniently enough, Governor Cuomo omitted everything regarding bail reform from his State of the State address, while Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D-Bronx) disinvited New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio from a reception following the State of the State due to his suggestion that State Democrats re-visit their bail reform legislation.
Republicans from across the Senate and Assembly, including a small number of Democrats, have asked their leaders to consider making changes to the law. Recent comments from Senate Majority Leader Andrew Stewart-Cousins and the actions of Speaker Heastie, make it very clear Democrats are not interested in revising the law.
Since January 1, countless career criminals and violent offenders have been released from jail including Paul Barbaritano, who choked & stabbed a woman to death and admitted to the crime. State Democrats consider this a “non-violent crime”. Thursday, we learned Zachary Gulini would be released from prison this week. Gulini, the owner of a 10-year criminal history, is a violent sex offender who also failed to register as an offender.
We have much to be concerned about this legislative season. I strongly urge you to make sure your local elections matter in 2020.
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