COURIER L 20 IFE, AUGUST 14-20, 2020
OPINION
Why should taxpayers balance
the Democrats’ books?
Taxpayers around the
country should not have
to bail out Democrat-led
state and local governments,
including New York, for their
failed policies. Yet, this was
the main priority of House
Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and
what caused the stalemate
over another round of coronavirus
relief legislation in
Congress last week.
Think about it — why
should taxpayers from
around the country be forced
to balance the books of those
areas that have enacted fiscally
irresponsible policies
for years, and pay for the ongoing
repairs caused by rioters
allowed to inflict their
chaos by Democratic mayors
and governors?
Until these officials implement
some fiscal sanity
and allow law enforcement
to do their jobs, they will
continue to bear a financial
burden, including from
a reduced tax base because
of f leeing families. In fact,
a recent story in the New
York Post reported how this
is happening on the Upper
West Side in Manhattan because
a sense of lawlessness
has taken over the neighborhood.
Even worse, one
only has to look at all of the
the moving trucks around
to see that this mass exodus
is happening throughout
our city.
The GOP-controlled Senate
held their ground and
did not give in to the demand
of Pelosi and House
Democrats that all taxpayers
should have to pay for
the incompetence and irresponsibility
of some elected
executives. As a result, the
president signed executive
orders to provide more relief
to Americans suffering
due to the pandemic.
Specifically, Trump’s actions
will provide a “payroll
tax holiday” until the end of
the year putting more money
in the pockets of Americans
making less than $100,000
annually. They will also halt
payments and interests for
many student loans, extend
the moratorium on home
evictions, and continue unemployment
benefits. All of
these measures should have
been logical components of
legislation designed to help
Americans struggling directly
because of the coronavirus
devastation.
Instead, Democrats focused
on bailing out states
and cities that are in a
deeper financial hole because
of their own past and
current failed policies.
As usual, Gov. Andrew
Cuomo led the pack in hypocrisy
and double standards
when he attacked the
president for signing these
executive orders because
the act bypassed Congress.
Yet, as Staten Island GOP
Councilman Joe Borelli
noted, “Everything the state
is doing on Covid is an executive
order… his orders… and
unlike Trump his party has
a majority in both houses.”
Cuomo’s edicts include
telling bars and restaurants
what types of food they must
serve with alcohol to prevent
getting shut down. Yet,
he has the gall to criticize
the president for issuing executive
orders that actually
help people.
Democrats may choose
to file lawsuits to block the
president’s executive orders.
If they do, it will hand
a political victory to Trump
as they would be blocking
needed assistance to struggling
Americans.
Bob Capano has worked
for Brooklyn Republican and
Democrat elected officials,
and has been an adjunct political
science professor for
over 15 years. Follow him on
twitter @bobcapano.
THE RIGHT
VIEW
Bob Capano
‘Words of Rizzdom’ from the road
I said last week this week’s
column would be about
the Brooklyn Democratic
Party, but I’ve decided
to once again make
it about weird transportation,
among other topics. I
write from my vacation —
I am taking a week to bicycle
from Hudson, New York
back to Brooklyn.
There’s so much I’ve enjoyed
about biking up here.
For instance, I can get a
lot closer to wildlife than I
would if I were driving a car
whose motor noise would
scare them away. Most of
all, I enjoy the feeling of selfsufficiency
in that I can return
to these places another
time under my own power,
almost regardless of what’s
occurring in the world at
that time.
Bicycles are suddenly extremely
popular. Most bike
shops in the city are sold
out, and every one that I’m
aware of is extremely busy
repairing old bikes. There
are still bikes for sale as
far north as Hudson, but every
bike shop in the Hudson
Valley was slammed and
by Beacon and below they
have sold out of inventory.
There’s a sign on the street
in Beacon listing a number
with a Westchester area
code, offering cash for used
bikes.
The Hudson Valley, on
both sides of the river, is
clearly booming.
A number of people have
recently purchased houses
there sight-unseen. There is
very little real estate inventory
coming on the market.
I believe most of the buyers
are from the New York
metropolitan area, though
many of them are coming
from the closer-in suburbs
rather than the city. Unfortunately,
very little new development
seems to be likely
near current Metro North
train stations. The southwest
corner of Dutchess
county — the part of the
region I’ve spent the most
time in, which includes the
towns of Wappinger and
Fishkill and the city of Beacon
have, for example, all
made it illegal to convert a
single-family home into two
or three units.
I don’t believe this trend
of moving further out of
the city will reverse after
coronavirus is cured. A lot
of what keeps people in the
city will no longer be here.
Large portions of the fashion,
restaurant, and hotel
industries, for example, are
not coming back.
Moreover, much of the
dense office space near the
center of the city that keeps
so many commuters nearby
will no longer be used. Tech
and finance — two wealthy
and aspirational sectors of
the economy — will stay almost
completely online, and
I suspect many other fields
will follow them.
Finally, coronavirus has
made so many of us eager to
spend more time outside, so
we’ll move to places that offer
us more of that.
On the other hand, some
of us will always prefer
the city. I send this column
from Westchester, but by the
time you are reading it, I’ll
(hopefully) be home again
in Brooklyn.
Nick Rizzo is a Democratic
District Leader representing
the 50th Assembly
District and a political consultant
who lives in Greenpoint.
Follow him on Twitter at
@NickRizzo.
WORDS OF
RIZZDOM
Nick Rizzo