Name: Joe DioGuardi
Age: 69
Party Affiliation: Republican Party/Conservative Party
Occupation: Certified Public Accountant
Decision to Run: Washington is addicted to spending and borrowing. While Main Street suffers, Capitol Hill continues to spend money we don’t have, which forces us to borrow from countries, like China, that don’t share our values. These choices in Washington are dramatically affecting the bottom lines of all taxpayers as well as the entire Empire State economy. New York cannot afford to maintain the status quo.
Major Issues: A lack of jobs is the number one issue in New York – and America for that matter. Nearly 1 million New Yorkers are unemployed, and in June, the Empire State lost more jobs than every other state, but one. We need to let the private sector do what it does best – launch new ideas, products and services, which, in turn, create a higher demand for a more robust workforce. Without private sector growth, job creation won’t occur, and consumer spending will continue to decline.
Second, Washington’s debt is hitting New York’s bottom line and the residents of Queens. About 30 percent of our state budget comes from the federal government; so, when Washington can’t pay its bills, New York schools, police forces and other public services suffer. Since entering office, Senator Gillibrand has repeatedly put added pressure on the federal bottom line, voting for the ineffective “stimulus” package, so-called healthcare reform, and the big-government financial sector overhaul.
Top Priority: Jobs. I will promote public policies that put New Yorkers back to work. I will lift that burden from the shoulders of small businesses, entrepreneurs and innovators by working to reduce taxes, ease regulations, promote initiatives that create a pro-growth environment, and get the banks we bailed out to process badly needed loans to small businesses around the state.
Name: Kirsten E. Gillibrand
Age: 43
Party Affiliation: Democrat
Occupation: I am currently a U.S. Senator for New York. Previously, I have served as a U.S. Representative from New York’s 20th Congressional District and as Special Counsel to U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Andrew Cuomo, in the Clinton Administration.
Decision to Run: It has been an honor and privilege to serve New Yorkers in the U.S. Senate. I want to continue to fight to create jobs for our middle class families and ensure New York gets its fair share from Washington.
Major Issues: As I spend time in all 62 counties across the state, the number one issue New Yorkers say they’re concerned about is the economy and jobs. My top priority is creating good paying middle class jobs right here in Queens. With almost 9 percent of Queens residents currently facing unemployment, we must get the economy moving again. I have proposed cutting taxes for the middle class, increased tax breaks for businesses that create new jobs and easier access to loans from credit unions and community banks for the city’s almost 200,000 small businesses.
I also believe that Queens residents deserve greater transparency in government. Everyday people are not being heard because too much business is happening behind closed doors. My reform agenda aims to clean up Washington by making government more transparent and making members of Congress more accountable to the people back home.
Top Priorities: I will continue to focus on my first priority since day one – turning this economy around and creating good paying jobs for New York’s middle class families by cutting their taxes and increasing lending to small businesses.
