FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com OCTOBER 20, 2016 • THE QUEENS COURIER 23 CAMPAIGN 2016 Photo courtesy of Meyer, Suozzi, English & Klein, LLP Joseph Suozzi Joseph Suozzi, father of Congressional candidate Tom Suozzi, dies at the age of 95 BY QNS STAFF editorial@qns.com/@QNS Retired Judge Joseph Suozzi, whose son, Tom, is currently running to represent northeast Queens in Congress, has died. Joseph Suozzi, 95, succumbed to natural causes on Oct. 16, Newsday reported. He made history in November 1949 when, at the age of 28, he became the youngest elected or appointed judge in the United States in becoming a city court judge for Glen Cove in Nassau County. A native of Potenza, Italy, Judge Suozzi immigrated to the U.S. with his mother in 1925. He attended school in Glen Cove and Oyster Bay and served as a member of the U.S. Air Force during World War II. Following the war, Judge Suozzi attended Harvard Law School and eventually was admitted to practice law in New York State, joining as a partner at a law fi rm in Glen Cove. After serving on the Glen Cove bench for six years, the judge stepped down in September 1955 to run for mayor of Glen Cove, a pursuit that proved successful. Joseph Suozzi served as Glen Cove mayor from 1956 to 1960, then returned to the courts in 1961 after being elected to a 14-year term as a New York State Supreme Court justice. After being re-elected to the Supreme Court, Judge Suozzi was appointed by then-Governor Hugh Carey in 1976 as an associate justice for the Appellate Division, Second Department. He resigned the bench four years later to return to private practice as a senior partner with the Meyer, Suozzi, English & Klein law fi rm. His son, Tom, followed some of his father’s footsteps, having served as Glen Cove mayor. In 2001, Tom Suozzi was elected Nassau County executive, a position he would hold for eight years. He is presently campaigning to succeed the outgoing Congressman Steve Israel as representative of the Third Congressional District, which covers northeast Queens, northern Nassau and northwestern Suffolk counties. Along with Tom Suozzi, Joseph Suozzi is also survived by daughter Rosemary Mancini Lloyd, Dr. William Suozzi and Christopher Suozzi. He was preceded in death by the late Joseph M. Suozzi. When contacted by the Ridgewood Times, the Tom Suozzi campaign said it was waiting for further information from the Suozzi family before commenting. Biographical information from the law fi rm of Meyer, Suozzi, English & Klein Congressional upstart Spotorno wants to do business in DC Tired of politics as usual, Frank Spotorno threw his hat into the race for Congress seeking to bring jobs back to his district and serve as a voice for the people. The Republican owns and operates Astoria-based Park Line Elevator Cabs along with an elevator inspection company based in Manhattan and a work apparel business. His candidacy is a moonshot considering he’s up against Congressman Joe Crowley, a nine-term incumbent and vice chair of the House Democratic Caucus who represents a heavily Democratic district. Still, Spotorno is optimistic that he can connect with voters in the district who feel dissatisfi ed with the direction the nation is heading. “To be honest, we have gone from a nation that has glory and pride to malaise,” he told The Courier in an interview. He pointed to trade deals that he said have caused the loss of American jobs through the years, and he pledged to champion legislation “to try and bring these jobs home.” Spotorno also wants the federal government to slash corporate taxes and create a modernized tax code that would ideally repatriate more than $2 trillion in income lost to overseas outsourcing of jobs. That theme, of course, refl ects one of the major talking points of the Republican nominee for president. Not surprisingly, Spotorno says he’s still voting for Donald Trump in spite of his recent controversies. He called Trump’s disparaging comments about women and allegations of sexual misconduct “disturbing,” but he shares Trump’s vision for bringing jobs back to America. Beyond job creation, Spotorno also wants the nation to boost the education system. He suggested that the federal government withhold billions of dollars in foreign aid to nations “that don’t support the ideology of our nation” and use that funding to improve public schools. Locally, Spotorno said he would champion for an extension of the elevated N train line from Astoria to LaGuardia Airport. He also pledged to be an active voice in the community, addressing even the most local of concerns from constituents. FEDS CLOSING IN ON DE BLASIO Federal prosecutors announced this week that they have subpoenaed thousands of emails and documents from Mayor Bill de Blasio, along with top aides, friendly lobbyists and 2013 campaign donors. Also subpoenaed was the Campaign for One New York, a nonprofi t de Blasio set up by his campaign team to advance his political agenda. Leading the investigation is Preet Bharara, the man who took down Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and New York State Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos last year on public corruption charges. One would be hard pressed to fi nd a track record better than that of Mayor de Blasio — for he holds the record for number of simultaneous investigations involving any sitting mayor, which at last count was fi ve. The mayor’s fi ve simultaneous inquiries by either federal, state or local law enforcement agencies into his political activities are actually a rather impressive achievement considering de Blasio’s short reign as mayor thus far. In mathematical terms, it basically computes to two investigations per year in offi ce. But with that many inquiries, it’s not impossible to also suspect that there could be a bit of a fi shing expedition going on. After all, the mayor probably has more political enemies than there are James Bond villains. Interestingly though, The New York Times revealed this week that investigators recently secured the assistance of Harendra Singh, owner of Water’s Edge restaurant in Long Island City, who has been indicted on unrelated federal fraud and bribery charges stemming from his business and political dealings in Long Island. Singh, a heavy de Blasio contributor who is infamous across Long Island for his alleged bribery schemes, may be the silver bullet that Bharara has been looking for. But only time will tell. Unfortunately for the mayor, the investigations are neither a quick or painless process. De Blasio, at this point, may just be praying that whatever is about to come down, comes down soon. At least that way he has time to put it behind him before his 2017 re-election campaign kicks off. Queens Politics & More BY MIKE FRICCHIONE
QC10202016
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