Snow excuse
Today is special election day in Nassau and Queens and the weather is not cooperating. For voters who haven’t cast their ballots yet for Democratic congressional candidate Tom Suozzi, we’re sorry for the slog, but it’s well worth your time to make your choice for the onetime Glen Cove mayor.
Legislative races at their core are about a contest between two people, and on this front Suozzi, also a former congressman and onetime county executive, has a clear edge. He’s got a strong legislative record that, contrary to the bad-faith claims of GOP opponent Mazi Pilip, is in line with the policy preferences of the district. If Suozzi is a leftist, then someone should let the leftists know, because they certainly don’t seem aware nor make any attempt to claim him.
If anything, the candidates have similar views on a range of issues — Suozzi earnestly while Pilip, it seems, because that’s what the Nassau Republican boss said — except where it really matters. Pilip was all over the place in trying to describe her approach to abortion, which means one thing: she’s aware that her actual position is deeply unpopular and wants to skirt around the issue.
Pilip also finally revealed that she voted for Donald Trump — which she had earlier ludicrously argued was a personal decision she didn’t have to talk about — and would welcome him to campaign for her, coup attempt notwithstanding.
On that note, this is also about more than the individuals on the ballot. House Speaker Mike Johnson is using his perch leading the razor-thin GOP House majority mainly to kill bipartisan legislation and launch democratically ruinous impeachments. These are not the people’s work, but circuses meant largely to please the main clown, Trump himself. With every additional vote in his block, Johnson is empowered to keep the show going.
By contrast, consider what might actually be accomplished if this margin thins further or is reversed. With only a couple defections necessary, we wouldn’t have to go down to the wire on stupidity like the attempted impeachment of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas — which only failed because Democratic Rep. Al Green unexpectedly showed up while still recovering from surgery. Perhaps the Congress might actually, you know, pass meaningful legislation, as opposed to having Republicans demand deals they then back out of.
There’s no real reason to think Pilip would have any interest in meaningfully bucking the party; she’s running practically as an infill of the Nassau GOP, parroting its official lines and trying to avoid any specific stances that might prove controversial. Even asked directly, she tries mainly to deflect, hoping to run out the clock until the voters elect her by default just because she’s the GOP nominee.
Two years ago, that nominee was George Santos, a man who also did not have much name recognition or trajectory, but whom voters picked at least in part because he seemed new and refreshing, and had the right letter next to his name. We all know how that turned out. Do the voters of this district, who have for a couple of years now lacked real representation as their congressman was exposed as a fraud and ostracized by his colleagues, really want to roll the dice again? Vote Suozzi.