Early Spring Break

Working on the house, spending time with the kids and our regular job are the reasons why there has been a lull in updates. Fear not dear reader, we are back.
Check out our archives and assorted links.

Resume'

"I think if you put my resume next to my opponent's, I come out on top." That is what Schmitt said during the 2003 race for the legislator. Let's look at Schmitt's resume

Pete J. Schmitt
50years old
Graduate of Hofstra University 1973
1984-1995 - Commissioner of the Department of Community and Youth Services for the Town of Oyster Bay.
Directed efforts to update the mission and operations of both the Town's Drug and Alcohol Abuse Program
1996-Present - Legislator
Involved in local organizations .

At 53 years old Schmitt has never worked in the private sector. His degree is in Political Science so there was only one path: politics. Schmitt worked his way through the nassau GOP earning his stripes by driving officials around, taking down Democrats' signs and kissing up to leaders. Schmitt hit pay-dirt as a political appointee with the Town of Oyster Bay getting paid full-time for a part-time job. The "job" provided by the republican machine afforded Schmitt time to join dozens of local organizations to build his bona-fides in the community. If the town supervisor like John Venditto can be seen tooling around North Massapequa in the middle of the day during the week, how much work did Schmitt have? When he was charged TWICE with drunk driving, he kept his job and amazingly was involved in the town's drug and alcohol abuse program.
Schmitt went from one well-paid part-time job to another well-paid part-time job in teh legislature. As Deputy Presiding Officer from 1996-2000 Schmitt earned $62,000 a year. His current salary as Minority Leader is the same. Having a well paying part-time job gives Schmitt the time to run around to events to have his picture taken.
Verdict: Schmitt is a professional politician riding through life living on the taxpayers teat.


His opponent in 1999 was
59 years old
Graduate of Yale
Book author specializin in Politics, Health and Economics
Executive Editor for Energy Times

In 2001:
30 years old
College Graduate
Computer Programmer

In 2003
33 years old
Graduate of St John's University 1991
Lufthansa German Airlines
1995- Present - Broadcast Satellite Manager for CBS Television Network
Responsible for millions of dollars in programming and advertising daily
Broadcast Operations manager at the 1998 Nagano Olympics

each opponent had real world private sector experience and got ahead without the need of a political party and Schmitt talks about his resume.

Jefferson espoused the concept of the "citizen legislator" and that is what we need.

Blowback UPDATE

Newsday.com filed a story on the press conference. According to Newsday, Ed "$80,000/yr part-time spokesperson" Ward is trying to throw the issue back at the Suozzi administration and saying that they broke the coinfidentiality agreement by meeting with womens groups about the situation. We've now gone through the looking glass. Ward also tells Newsday that the republicans are not bound by the confidentiality agreement. "The confidentiality didn't include the legislature. We weren't a party to it,"
So what Ward is saying is that the republicans and their leader Schmitt feel that it is okay to make public the name of a victim of sexual abuse. What a disgusting position to take. It doesn't matter who the confidentiality agreement pretains to, what matters is that a victim's name was made public and she was subject to public humiliation by Schmitt and his degenerate cohorts. Schmitt and Ward ought to resign.

"All the work that the groups like ours have done over the years to encourage women to come forward under the security of confidentiality will unravel if actions like those of the legislature continue." Lillian McCormick, Women on the Job

Blowback

Blowback is a methaphor used by the CIA to define unintended consequences. In the case of Schmitt v. Propriety "blowback"is what Schmitt has reaped after disclosing the name of the young woman who accused Peter Sylver of sexual assault.

To recap: The woman in question did not want her name disclosed but Schmitt who intimidated her to show up at the hearing, made the accusation against Sylver, accused the Suozzi administration of a "cover-up" and brought the woman into the public eye brought the woman to tears with his actions.
The woman went to administration officials over Sylvers conduct and was moved to a different department and chose not to press charges which would have made the incident public. The woman expected confidentiality and got that from the Suozzi administration. She did not get that from Schmitt.

Now the "Blowback." Womans groups are rightly outraged that the name was made public in a legislature hearing and held a press conference today blasting the breach of confidentiality. Schmitt expected to gain political ground by trying to smear Suozzi with a sex scandal but instead brought the wrath of womans groups on himself. Schmitts actions were reprehensible and his attempt at political gain by using a young woman deserves to be publicized.

President's Day

Who was the first president? Check here.

Launch of Pete King Watch

We are expanding our political coverage to Congressman Peter King (3rd-NY). Pete King Watch will be officially online and updated frequently starting February 15th. King Watch is dedicated to exposing the truth about Peter King.
Visit www.kingwatch.blogspot.com

And as always, we welcome comments via the e-mail address on the right-hand column and please check out our archives.

Coming soon:
Venditto Watch
Politics r Us - Local and National Politics Commentary and Analysis.

Here it comes

Thanks to Schmitt and the Gulotta republicans, the 1999 sale of Nassau University Medical Center for $82million - a one-shot deal to pump cash into a nearly bankrupt county - we are going to be paying now in 2004. The one-shot didn't do much to help the county and now because of the sale agreement if NUMC is unable to pay the debt on the bonds it sold in 1999, Nassau will assume the debt. Over the life of the boinds, that could mean $560million. The republicans got $82million in 1999 and now if the financial situation at NUMC doesn't change, we the taxpayers are going to have to cough up 7 times that amount.

Nassau County needs NUMC because the hospital provides a needed and important service for residents of the county. We need to maintain quality healthcare but also make sure taxpayers aren't going to take a huge hit.

More people seeing through Schmitt

A letter in Newsday

"Confidentiality agreements are generally strictly enforced ["Confidentiality Deals Normal," News, Jan. 28].

If this directive is to include Democrats and women, perhaps the next headline should be along the lines of how the Nassau County legislature minority leader, Peter Schmitt, brought a young woman to tears and caused her public humiliation."

Schmitts uncaring and tactless actions in the legislature and his intimidation in his office are a betrayal of a young woman who had gone through enough.

Presding Officer Judy Jacobs summed up the situation rather well in a letter to Newsday "The information should have never been produced during a public meeting. The fact that it was tells me the Republicans were more intent on grandstanding than maintaining the integrity of this young woman's identity. For that, we should all be outraged."

Outrage is something Schmitt cares little about. As long as he gets his votes he does not care what people say.

Intimidated by Schmitt

There are a few questions not explored in articles about the Sylver case. Why did the young woman feel "intimidated" by Schmitt and Ward when she was summoned to meet them? What did Schmitt and Ward say her? Why didn't Schmitt take the young woman to the DA's office? Why did Schmitt break the confidentiality of the young woman in an open hearing? And why are other republicans feeling very uncomfortable with Schmitt's direction?

DA Dillon must subpeona any and all notes, e-mails and corrsepondence by Schmitt and Ward regarding this situation.

More to come.....

Some reading

Others see it too

A letter entitled "Waiting for the Facts" was published in today's Newday that sums up what alot of people have been saying.

"Suozzi has done a magnificent job of turning the county around. The Republicans can't stand it because he has been so successful and will use any means possible to destroy him."

"Peter Schmitt, leader of the county legislature's Republicans, has deliberately inflamed and politicized this issue."

"We finally have a decent county executive, but the Republicans want their power back even though they almost ruined Nassau."

Fantasy Island

In the November 13th Massapequa Post Schmitt is reported saying on election night "I’m glad the people could sift through the fantasy and see what’s really going on."
The sad fact is that Schmitt and the Gulotta Republicans were able to sell their BS and survive (as the minority) for two more years.
Schmitt bemoaned turnout, deluding himself to believe that the republicans could have won the majority. Schmitt goes on to say "People who vote in the evening after their city commute are usually Republican voters." Say what? This shows how little Schmitt knows about the real world and the people who get up everyday and take the hour commute from Massapequa to Penn Station.
Steve Labriola chimed in with his fantasy about republican losses "If it had anything to do with that connection (taxes), it is because of the myth that has been perpetrated by the Democrats that this was a Republican-created problem." Um Steve..uh... the re-assessment and the near-bankruptcy of Nassau County is quite clearly a "republican-created problem." What do they put in the Kool-Aid at GOP headquarters?
The republicans were lucky that a) it was an off-year election and b) the weather was bad. Incredibly Schmitt says that "the party might have done better without the rainy weather and a two-hour mass transit delay out of New York City." The question is "what transit delay??" and Schmitt seems to be going against political conventional wisdom that says that Democrats do worse in elections when there is bad weather. Then again, no one has ever accused Schmitt od knowing what he is talking about.

Who is Pete Schmitt pt. 2

Why is it that the anti-Schmitt sentiment in Massapequa is so visceral? Why are little old ladies using trucker language when referring to Schmitt? Isn't he the guy who spends all his time showing up at every event to shake hands and have his picture taken?
It's because the people that have seen the real Schmitt know what kind of a person he is.
Example #1:
During the legislature campaign in 2003 it was well-known that Schmitt's opponent John Rennhack's wife was at the end of her pregnancy with twins. At events Rennhack would say that if he has to leave early it is because his wife needs him to take her to the hospital.
At an event for the Massapequa Historical Society, Rennhack was unable to attend because it looked as though the twins were due soon. In fact a few days before the event Rennhack's wife was in the hospital for observation. Larry Weiss a candidate for TOBAY Town Council offered Rennhack's apologies for not attending. In front of the group at the event, Schmitt was heard saying derisively "Another event he [Rennhack] doesn't show up for."
Weiss, a friend of Rennhack's retorted "He's home with his 8 month pregnant wife." The crowd that heard Schmitt saw the real Schmitt up close. Rennhack's wife was admitted to Winthrop 2 days later and gave birth to twins.

Coming soon: Part 3 - A Letter to a Senior Citizen