By Mark Hallum
Former Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi says he is ready to come back from private law practice and enter the political arena again to run for the congressional seat currently held by Steve Israel.
The Democratic contender told TimesLedger in a visit to the newspaper’s office that he wants to be the candidate who puts the highest importance on the Queens portion of the district, which stretches through Nassau into Suffolk County.
Suozzi is one of five Long Island residents running in the June 28 Democratic primary for the district, covering the neighborhoods of Whitestone, Bay Terrace, Douglaston, North Shore Towers, Glen Oaks, Floral Park and Little Neck.
He was the youngest mayor of Glen Cove, then became the first Democrat to win the county executive seat in 30 years in 2001. He served in that position for eight years, then lost the Democratic primary for governor to Eliot Spitzer in 2006 and was defeated twice in bids to recapture the county executive post.
The issues that matter to Suozzi are immigration reform, helping people suffering from mental health disorders and substance abuse, and creating jobs by integrating green technology and energy sources.
As the son of an Italian immigrant, Suozzi said he does not see how deporting undocumented workers will solve any problems.
“Resolving an issue that is as controversial as this, we need to rely on basic American principles. No. 1, all men and women are created equal. Not all men and women with a green card are created equal or all men and women with a passport are created equal. This cannot be an excuse for racism. We have to treat people with human respect. The second American principle, all men and women are equal under the eyes of the law,” he said conversely, arguing that immigrants have to be expected to follow the law.
“There is a human aspect certainly. But then the country could be making so much money if we legalized people, gave them a pathway to citizenship. They’ll be paying Social Security and income taxes in the future.”
The 3rd Congressional District has a large immigrant population, and Queens is ranked as the most diverse county in the nation.
Suozzi said he would like to combat drug, alcohol and mental health issues destroying the lives of people in his district through civic action. Veterans and those living in poverty could benefit from a program he set up in Nassau known as “No Wrong Door,” which enables people with behavior or addiction problems to go to one location for a solution. This is a pet issue for Suozzi , who said the prevalence of heroin is a major concern.
“As a congressman, I would advocate very strongly for changing the way we allocate money. That you would give money to programs that are designed for this preventative role, instead of this horse-is-out-of-the-barn method that we have now.”
Suozzi would like to create jobs by rebuilding roads and bridges as well as making it more lucrative for corporations to operate within the United States.
“There are millions of dollars overseas that they won’t bring back to America because the corporate tax rates are so high. President Obama and the Republicans both agree that we should provide a program to bring that money back into America,” Suozzi said.
. He mentioned that welders often make six figures salaries, yet there are not enough welders, and providing job training for these types of jobs is paramount to giving people the best possible opportunity to succeed.
“I’ve got a big focus on the idea of creating jobs for people so that the middle class can come back in America,” he said.
Reach reporter Mark Hallum by e-mail at mhall
