“Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it”-Ronald Reagan
For Immediate Release
June 21, 2021
Contact: Shaun Marie
518-356-7882
www.cpnys.org @cpnys
Statement from New York Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar
Brooklyn, NY – “New York City has willfully surrendered to criminals under Mayor Bill de Blasio, tying the hands of police officers and dragging the five boroughs back into the chaos of the 1970’s and 80’s under the false name of ‘progress.’
“Now the Bronx and Manhattan district attorneys are in on the act, tossing out serious criminal cases involving looting, vandalism, and other street violence that occurred during anti-police protests last year.
The message this sends to would-be criminals is clear: crimes committed in the name of ‘progressive’ political speech will go unprosecuted, just like all the smaller offenses that officers are now instructed to ignore. Bronx DA Darcel Clark and Manhattan DA Cyrus Vance Jr. should reconsider their decision. A city with a sense of lawlessness is a lawless city.”
For Immediate Release
June 11, 2021
Contact: Shaun Marie
518-356-7882
www.cpnys.org @cpnys
Statement from New York Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar
Brooklyn, NY – “The 2021 legislative session in Albany was an unmitigated failure. It raised taxes, benefited criminals, hurt the middle class, and failed to hold Governor Andrew Cuomo accountable for his actions. They included the deaths of thousands of New Yorkers from misplacing Covid-19 patients in nursing homes, an attempted coverup of that mistake that almost certainly helped secure a $5.1 million book deal for him, the illegal use of state workers to help write his book, and multiple allegations of sexual misconduct waged against him from female employees half his age.
“Nothing in this session helped reverse New York’s continued economic decline relative to other states; nothing gave parents greater confidence in their children’s education or in their safety in public spaces. The only progress that occurred this session was the increasing realization among common-sense New Yorkers that one-party, ‘progressive’ rule in Albany must be brought to an end.”
For Immediate Release
June 2, 2021
Contact: Shaun Marie
518-356-7882
www.cpnys.org @cpnys
Statement from New York State Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar on Gov. Cuomo’s Stonewalling of the Media on $5.1 Million Book Deal
Brooklyn, NY – “Legislative leaders in Albany can’t allow Gov. Andrew Cuomo to get away with stonewalling the news media in its legal attempts to obtain documents related to Mr. Cuomo’s controversial $5.1 million book contract with Crown Publishing.
“Mr. Cuomo’s book deal stinks to high heaven, and everybody knows it. Let’s count the ways:
“The book contract was negotiated at the same time Mr. Cuomo was hiding data on the number of nursing home deaths in New York, a clear possible motive for his malfeasance;
“Taxpayer-paid state workers were used to help Mr. Cuomo write the book, at a minimum an ethics violation, and
“The hefty advance on Mr. Cuomo’s book, ‘American Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic,’ was way out of proportion with industry norms.
“Now, Mr. Cuomo is refusing to release documents about the book deal with the ridiculous argument that relinquishing the information could interfere with other inquiries into the deal. He further suggests that his own, handpicked ethics commission — which authorized the sale of the book — has the right to keep its deliberations secret.
“At least 120 Democrat state legislators did the right thing in calling on Gov. Cuomo to resign following multiple sexual harassment allegations levied against him. Those same legislators cannot remain silent over Mr. Cuomo’s latest abuse of power. The public has a right to know what went on with the Cuomo book deal. He is our employee, and his shenanigans must be called out forcefully.”
For Immediate Release
May 17, 2021
Contact: Shaun Marie
518-356-7882
www.cpnys.org @cpnys
Statement from New York State Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar on Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s Controversial $5.1 Million Book Windfall
Brooklyn, NY – “New York governors aren’t supposed to get rich from serving in office, but that’s exactly what Governor Andrew Cuomo got last year from his official duties — stinking rich — just as the Conservative Party has been saying for months.
“The estimated $5.1 million that Cuomo received for his book, ‘American Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic,’ is blood money: Cuomo and his cohorts in state government proactively concealed thousands of Covid-19 nursing home deaths as the book contract was being signed to further the myth that Cuomo was infallible in all things Covid-19. He was not, and early mistakes made by him should have been properly reported to the public, even if that would have killed the book deal.
“This $5.1 payment represents a sickening abuse of power. How Cuomo can keep even a dime of the money is beyond us.”
For Immediate Release
May 6, 2021
Contact: Shaun Marie
518-356-7882
www.cpnys.org @cpnys
Statement by New York State Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar on the Biden Administration’s Spurious Compassion
Brooklyn, NY – Afghans who worked for US plea for help after Biden announces exit. There is no excuse for this; the red tape holding up the special immigrant visa from the U.S. must be expedited to allow these brave Afghans to escape what will be a certain death once our troops have returned home.
Every American should be outraged that the Biden Administration encourages migrants to cross into America through our southern border looking for America’s generosity yet, has not opened America’s doors to welcome the Afghanistan interpreters who assisted our military men and women throughout the last two decades.
For Immediate Release
May 5, 2021
Contact: Shaun Marie
518-356-7882
www.cpnys.org @cpnys
Statement by New York State Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar on President Trump’s Backing of Rep. Elise Stefanik for Leadership Post
Brooklyn, NY – “President Trump is right to recommend Rep. Elise Stefanik for the leadership post currently held by Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming. Congresswoman Stefanik has the respect of her conference, and a positive, forward-looking vision for her party and nation. The Conservative Party urges her immediate appointment to the leadership post.
“Congresswoman Stefanik, whom the Conservative Party has backed since the early days of 2014, when she announced a Republican primary bid as a largely unknown figure, is now a risen star in Washington. Her ascendancy within the House of Representatives can only be beneficial to the people of New York State by gaining additional influence at the table. We proudly back her for this leadership position.”
For Immediate Release
May 4, 2021
Contact: Shaun Marie
518-356-7882
www.cpnys.org @cpnys
Statement by New York State Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar on Additionally Targeted Congressional Democrats in New York
Brooklyn, NY – “The announcement that four additional New York Democrats in Congress are being targeted by the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) in the 2022 midterm elections is welcome news to New Yorkers who care about the unsustainable growth of government in Washington and the Democratic Party’s alarming march toward socialism.
“The NRCC doesn’t add targets lightly: only 10 additional seats have been added nationally for 2022, and four of them are in New York — NY-4 (Kathleen Rice); NY-20 (Paul Tonko); NY-25 (Joe Morelle), and NY-26 (Brian Higgins). Already targeted by the NRCC were NY-3 (Tom Suozzi); NY-18 (Sean Patrick Maloney), and NY-19 (Anthony Delgado) bringing the 2022 target list to seven in New York.
“The new targeted seats have come about in part because of New York’s loss of yet another congressional seat to other states, and the consequent redistricting that will take place. That speaks volumes. New York’s steady loss of population and political significance in Washington is a direct result of failed liberal policies in New York over a period of decades.
“The New York State Conservative Party expects many more competitive congressional races in New York next year, but the fact that the NRCC has identified seven with which it will be substantially involved should tell New Yorkers that Republicans and Conservatives continue to believe in this state. Change is possible whenever superior candidates and ideas are presented to voters, and that will be the case in 2022.
For Immediate Release
April 29, 2021
Contact: Shaun Marie
518-356-7882
www.cpnys.org @cpnys
Brooklyn, NY — “President Biden’s address Wednesday night made it clear that America can’t afford the Democratic Party. His proposals, while nice sounding to some, would constitute an assault on our younger generations which have to bear the brunt of our already unmanageable debt. It’s easy to propose new spending; it’s quite another thing to govern responsibly.
“Senator Tim Scott, in his GOP response, described the America we all embrace; an America that fosters the American Dream knowing that America’s vision from its inception has always relied on a responsible approach to governance. He spoke to the common sense in each of us and it was a breath of fresh air.”
For Immediate Release
April 28. 2021
Contact: Shaun Marie
518-356-7882
www.cpnys.org @cpnys
Statement by New York State Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar
Brooklyn, NY — “Andrew Cuomo looks crooked to the core in his multi-million-dollar Covid-19 book scheme. It is impossible to believe that proceeds from the book — reported to be in the range of $4 million — had no bearing on his administration’s hiding of the Covid nursing home death data during the weeks in which his book advance was being negotiated with a publisher.
“Today’s startling New York Times exposé, revealing that top Cuomo staff members and Department of Health employees conspired to conceal accurate death data for a period of five months, leaves little doubt that something cynical, well beyond politics, was afoot.
“Governor Cuomo was given a lucrative book contract because of his carefully constructed image as a leader in the early days of the pandemic. Had the real numbers been released, that image would have been shattered. Denials from his administration that the book had no relevance simply don’t pass the smell test.
“By following the money, the truth is revealing itself.”
For Immediate Release
April 26, 2021
Contact: Shaun Marie
518-356-7882
www.cpnys.org @cpnys
Statement by New York State Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar on Losing a Congressional Seat
Brooklyn, NY — “New York’s loss of yet another congressional seat shows what more than a half century of unbridled liberalism, with few bright spots, will do to a former political and economic powerhouse. And progressives in Albany, under single-party rule, are only getting started — if common-sense New Yorkers don’t stop them first.
“In 1951, boasting 45 representatives in Congress and an economy that was the envy of the nation, ‘The Empire State’ nickname was confidently affixed to all New York license plates for the first time. How should our license plates read now that we’re down to 26 — ‘The Dwindling State?’ ‘The Dopey State?’ It’s a legitimate question.
“New York’s continuing loss of political representation — clout — in Washington doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It has serious consequences for struggling New York families. Is it any wonder, for example, that New York finds itself the largest donor state to Washington in 2021, with a negative balance of nearly $23 billion? Is it any wonder we’ve had to beg Washington for infrastructure loans as our roads and bridges crumble? This is what happens when a state doesn’t matter as much as it once did because its people and jobs have been chased away.
“This loss is the direct result of seventy years of mostly bad policy making in Albany, shortsighted policies that have sent countless families and businesses to other parts of the country. More than a million New Yorkers have left the state under Governor Andrew Cuomo’s tenure alone. Meanwhile, other states such as Florida and Texas, which have enacted conservative economic policies, continue to prosper politically and economically.
“The New York State Conservative Party has been unwavering in its advocacy for smarter policy making since 1962. We continue to remind New Yorkers that they have a choice to make: Keep doing the same things and watch our state continue to atrophy, or get back in the game with new, forward-looking, common sense leaders in Albany. The choice is clear. What we have now simply isn’t working.”
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20Apr
For Immediate Release
April 20, 2021
Contact: Shaun Marie
518-356-7882
www.cpnys.org @cpnys
Statement by New York State Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar
Brooklyn, NY “It’s a simple question, Governor Cuomo. How much did you make on the book?”
For Immediate Release
April 15, 2021
Contact: Shaun Marie
518-356-7882
www.cpnys.org @cpnys
Statement by New York State Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar
Brooklyn, – NY – “The New York State Conservative Party condemns in the strongest possible terms efforts to expand the U.S. Supreme Court from 9 to 13 members.
“In attempting to pack the court — a political impulse 75 consecutive Congresses have resisted — progressive Democrats are fiddling with the lock of a Pandora’s Box. If the Democrats succeed, what’s to stop Republicans from further expanding the court to 17 members when they next regain power? What’s to then stop Democrats from going to 21?
“The Supreme Court was never intended to be the plaything of temporary partisan passions, and it should not be now for the benefit of either party. Its role is to interpret the constitutionality of our laws, not advance shortsighted political agendas. We urge level-headed members of Congress from all political backgrounds to stop this ill-conceived bill dead in its tracks. It’s bad for America.
