BY FRANK VERNUCCIO
For students, June is report
card month, a time when
their accomplishments (or lack
thereof) are noted and relayed
to parents. The young fi nd out
whether they will advance to
the next grade, or be subjected
to that most dread of all experiences,
summer school.
The Biden Administration’s
fi rst half year has been, by any
objective standard, not a success.
Its border policy has been
an unmitigated disaster. The
promise of improved race relations
has fallen fl at. The
White House energy policy has
driven prices sky high, not just
at the pump but in most other
items as well. Indeed, infl ation,
which had been comparatively
tamed for decades, is back with
a vengeance.
The economy has begun a
modest recovery from the excessive
COVID lockdown, but
has not roared back the way it
should due to both infl ationary
fears brought about by
Washington’s excessive spending
and its bizarre policy of encouraging
government dependency
rather than job growth.
The White House’s push for tax
increases has played a harmful
role. It’s been particularly diffi
cult for blue collar, minority
workers and job seekers, who
made signifi cant gains under
Trump.
Fairly soon after information
about a virulent new disease
emanating from Wuhan
emerged, serious questions
were raised about its origins.
However, criticism of that nation
was seen as ratifying then-
President Donald Trump’s
warnings about Beijing’s
growing threat to the world.
Shortly after the outbreak became
known, Trump closed
off travel from China. He was
harshly criticized as being “xenophobic”
by Biden and others.
To emphasize that point,
local offi cials in progressiverun
cities such as New York
urged their constituents to ignore
BRONX TIMES REPORTER, J 90 UNE 25-JULY 1, 2021 BTR
White House warnings.
Now that the campaign season
has concluded, Democrats and
their media allies are looking
at Beijing’s negligence and dishonesty
about the origins of the
pandemic. The Biden Administration,
to its credit, is reopening
the investigation begun by
its predecessor into how the
disease came about, and how
it spread throughout the world.
Foreign affairs have suffered.
Putin’s aggression
against Ukraine during the
Obama-Biden Administration
was followed by a period of relative
quiet during the Trump
presidency, but has now fl ared
up again. The new president’s
killing of the Keystone XL
pipeline and other anti-energy
policies has strengthened Moscow’s
hand, particularly in its
infl uence with Europe.
China’s imperialist ambitions
in the Indo-Pacifi c were
seen most clearly in its assault
against the Philippines’ Exclusive
Economic Zone during
Obama-Biden, a move which
that White House wholly ignored.
Now that the staunch
anti-China Trump Administration
is gone, Beijing has resumed
its moves on Manila,
as well as its numerous other
worrisome acts. In that same
region, it is worth noting that
North Korea has resumed substantive
missile testing, which
had gone into a quiescent period
during the prior administration.
The Middle East had been
trending signifi cantly towards
peace during the four years of
the Trump White House, with
the implementation of its Abraham
accords, improved relations
with Saudi Arabia, its defeat
of the ISIS caliphate, tough
sanctions against Iran, and
steadfast support for Israel.
Those accomplishments have
been diminished by Biden’s appeasement
of the Tehran Mullahs,
its tilt towards Islamic
extremists, and estrangement
of Israel. Much of his administration’s
regional policy can be
seen as a nod towards the large
and growing anti-Israel faction
of the Democratic Party.
The assaults by extremist
groups such as Antifa have
not relented, despite broad
media hints that they would
diminish under Democrat
leadership in Washington.
Biden’s fi rst six months
in offi ce have not been encouraging,
earning failing
grades in just about every
area. As a start, it must move
away from the extremism of
the Progressive wing of the
Democratic Party and put
the good of the nation above
partisan politics.
CIVIC CENTER
Community Action
Civic Association
Last week a two-part
small business regulatory
reform package was
passed by myself and my
colleagues in City Council,
of which I am the fi rst lead
sponsor of one and a co-lead
sponsor of another. They
now await signature from
the Mayor. Mentioned in a
previous week’s column,
this package consists of a
short-term bill and longterm
bill. My short-term
bill provides a temporary
amnesty period for small
businesses to pay previously
levied fi nes at significantly
reduced rates. The
long-term bill, to activate
when the short-term bill
lapses, will substantially
overhaul over a hundred
city violations, including
adjustment to the fi ne
schedule.
By reducing fi nancial
penalties against small
businesses, often for a
myriad of otherwise minor
violations, they will be
better capable to attend to
operating costs, keep their
employees and meet other
challenges. A strong small
business core will crucial
as we exit the COVID-19
crisis phase and begin economic
recovery, with particular
emphasis on small
business recovery and employment
maximization. I
look forward to the signing
of these two monumental
bills.
On the constituent affairs
side of my offi ce, we
will have hosted with cooperation
of the Bronx
Borough President’s offi
ce and other community
organizations, a revival
of the immensely popular
Orchard Beach fi reworks
extravaganza on Thursday.
Last week, on our district’s
“Family Fun Day”
in Pelham Parkway, area
residents were able to enjoy
COVID-safe mini golf,
music, food and magicians.
It was a great event,
and one of many to come
this summer for District
13!
For all questions
and district-related concerns,
please contact me
at either (718) 931-1721 or
at MGjonaj@council.nyc.
gov. Thank you and stay
safe.
BY AL D’ANGELO
Welcome to Dodge City, a
city where rioting and looting
are an acceptable practice,
where gun play is soaring,
and peaceful citizens hide behind
closed doors, where the
sheriff has gone fi shing and
the deputies have no leadership.
The lawless have taken
over the town. Where is Wyatt
Earp when you need him.
We are living in a city where
crime pays, where DA’S have
dropped charges against hundreds
of looters, where carrying
a loaded gun gets you
a slap on the wrist and violators
are released with no bail.
Where police are vilifi ed and
limited in their ability to prevent
crime. A once great city
where people from all over
the world came to visit is now
a shadow of itself. Their place
has been taken over by illegal
immigrants. The Big Apple is
now the Big Easy (no refl ection
on New Orleans), a sanctuary
city costing New Yorkers billions
of dollars each year in
medical expenses, education,
and housing. How about the
health of American citizens
who have been on lockdown
for over a year and travel restrictions
in place to keep us
safe? How do you justify that
and allow illegal immigrants
from countries where the vaccine
rate is less than 6% to infi
ltrate our cities? Where is
the concern for American citizens?
We have gotten to a place
where elected offi cials, who
have sworn an oath to protect
and defend the constitution,
pick and choose what laws to
enforce. It’s not supposed to
work that way. The word illegal
means against the law so
sanctuary cities are protecting
law breakers. We didn’t
make the laws they did. If they
don’t like a law, they have the
power to change it, but as long
as the law is on the books,
they must enforce it. You can’t
ignore laws you don’t agree
with. The citizens must obey
the laws politicians put into
practice. Why then can politicians
pick and choose which
laws they obey. Most people
agree something has to be
done to fi nd a pathway to citizenship
for those who have
been in this country illegally
for years, but it must be done
with a plan so as not to punish
them but to assist in becoming
citizens Letting anyone
in who crosses our southern
boarders again sends the message
that crime pays. There’ll
be a new sheriff in town hopefully
he/she can turn this cow
town into a peaceful place we
can call home.
CIVIC CENTER
Morris Park
Community
Association
From Councilman Mark Gjonaj
NEED STAND ALONE PHOTO
Naushod Grant casts his vote at the Tom Giordano School at 2502 Lorillard Place
polling site on June 22.. Photo by Dean Moses
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