Letter to the Editor: Michaelis Campaigns With Negative Attacks

One might expect that, right out of the gate, candidate Peter Michaelis would tell the voters what his plans and goals are, especially when he is looking to unseat a proven incumbent in the County Legislature, Pete Harckham.

However, instead of facts, Mr. Michaelis’ campaign rests on a steady stream of negative attacks and divisive rhetoric. It’s an unfortunate strategy from what appears to be a thin playbook.

When he first ran for County Legislature, Pete Harckham clearly laid out his campaign promises: to cut the size of our county government, to streamline and improve the delivery of vital services, and to work to fashion bipartisan solutions.

Legislator Harckham cut taxes by 2.2 percent—more than twice the tax cut offered by the Astorino Administration; he saved taxpayers more than $30 million moving ahead by cutting the county workforce by 10 percent; and in horrible economics times his bipartisan leadership made sure that the essential services of the County Crime Lab and the Department of Emergency Services weren’t the victims of partisan cuts and that hundreds of Westchester families were protected from foreclosure. These are solid achievements from a seasoned leader, who has established himself as a trusted elected official.

Voters are of sick and tired of government gridlock and ideological attacks that echo the Tea Party. It’s time for Mr. Michaelis to begin explaining why he would want to continue a campaign that is fueled solely on negative spin and attack.

Sincerely,

Marianne Delaney

Bedford NY