12 MAY 30, 2019 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Ideological purity threatens DA race
A few weeks ago, aft er Queens lost
its 28-year district attorney,
Richard A. Brown, we
expressed a wish that the borough’s
next top prosecutor put the job ahead
of their own politics.
That was the kind of prosecutor
Brown was, never seeking to bring
attention to himself. He didn’t
actively seek the limelight or to
curry favor with certain political
groups. The job always came first.
Of all the elected positions
we have in city government, the
county’s district attorney’s office
is one which we can least afford to
be pulled too far to the left or right.
This is the office entrusted to help
fight crime and represent those
who can not or could not defend
themselves. It must always act in
the interest of the borough first, not
political ideology.
So far, the ongoing Democratic
primary campaign seems to be a
contest among the seven candidates
over who can please the far left
the most. It continues a political
trend around Queens of late, and
it’s evolving into more of a test of
EDITORIAL
Betty Lugo speaks at a candidates forum in Jackson Heights in April leading up to the June 25 Democratic primary
for Queens District Attorney. Photo: Mark Hallum/QNS
ideological purity than a campaign
over ideas and qualifications.
This is the kind of campaign that
has made American politics what it
is today. To be sure, that’s not good
for anyone.
The primary system has become
the breeding ground for polarization
on the left and right. An incumbent
who votes 85 percent of the time
with Democrats, for instance, is
vilified by another who votes 90
percent of the time with Democrats.
Likewise, a Republican who votes 90
percent of the time with their party
is challenged by someone who votes
95 percent of the time.
Too many of the parties’ voters
search for the perfect candidate
— and, too often in the end, wind
up electing ideologues who can
spout off platitudes but are wholly
incapable of governing.
For decades, the Queens DA’s
Office has been virtually immune
to “politics as usual,” but the new
normal appears to be setting in
through this primary process.
Political polarization threatens to
undermine the office’s independent
work at prosecuting offenders and
protecting the 2.3 million residents
of this great borough.
This publication has covered
this race extensively, including
participating in various debates
across Queens. We plan to hold one
of our own online next month.
We urge every reader who is
planning to vote in the June 25
primary to carefully consider the
positions and merit of each candidate
and choose wisely. Don’t look for
the perfect candidate, because
none exists.
To quote the tongue-in-cheek
words of the late Ed Koch, “If you
agree with me on nine of 12 issues,
vote for me. If you agree with me on
12 of 12 issues, see a psychiatrist.”
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ESTABLISHED 1908
Co-Publishers
VICTORIA SCHNEPS-YUNIS
JOSHUA SCHNEPS
Editor-in-Chief
ROBERT POZARYCKI
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DEBORAH CUSICK
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MARLENE RUIZ
Reporters
EMILY DAVENPORT
MARK HALLUM
CARLOTTA MOHAMED
BILL PARRY
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