Latimer Opponent Calls for Tax Cap
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- June
- 30
Republican Assembly candidate Rob Biagi made a property-tax cap the first issue of his campaign when he announced his candidacy Sunday against Democratic Assemblyman George Latimer.
Biagi, a resident of New Rochelle, said a cap is critical, indicating what will be a fight in many races this election year as lawmakers left town last week without addressing property taxes.
“We’re getting crushed by massive property tax increases that keep going up and up. We need to stop the unfunded mandates, which cause our county and towns to increase property taxes, and deliver effective tax relief to Westchester families by capping taxes,” Biagi said.
Latimer said this morning that a cap may be an answer but more discussion is needed on a remedy to the state’s high taxes. He said mandate relief is also needed.
“Legislation of that nature needs to be analyzed and vetted,” he said. “The push to do the property-tax cap alone and not looking at the circuit breaker and mandate relief seems to be as being opportunistic.”
The 91st district includes the towns and villages of Mamaroneck, Rye, Larchmont, Port Chester and Rye Brook as well as the cities of New Rochelle and Rye.
This entry was posted
on Monday, June 30th, 2008 at 10:43 am by Joseph Spector.
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Latimer gave a sane and sensible response. Biagi’s reading from the textbook Republican Rhetoric 101
Latimer may be the only elected official in NY State that sponsored and pushed through legislation to remove a property tax cap. New Rochelle had a property tax cap for city taxes for over a decade and one of the first things Latimer did when he got to Albany was to lift the tax cap. He could not even get it co-sponsored by his NR colleague Amy Paulin, who did not want to left the cap. Now we have the Democratic Governor advocating for a tax cap, along many state legislators and most of the public, and Latimer is on the wrong side of history.
I cannot imagine that anyone who cares about high property taxes will vote for Latimer in November based on his very clear record against property tax caps.
Now here’s the real story of New Rochelle’s Tax Cap. The South End Republicans are a minority in the city, and they don’t like what the Democratic majority does. But they don’t have enough votes to win a majority of the Council in NR elections. But they got Ron Tocci, the long-term Assemblyman Democrat-turned-Republican to place on the tax cap…and keep it in place for 12 YEARS…to put a vise around the neck of City Hall Democrats. For 10 years, it worked – Tocci’s cap made the City Hall majority twist and turn to fund city services.
Tocci was challenged by Noam Bramson – lost a Democratic Primary, but won the general, and kept the Tax Cap in place for two more years. Two years later, Latimer – a very popular guy in the rest of the district to this day, decided after looking at it to lift the cap.
The New Rochelle South End Republicans hate him. But everywhere else, he is well-liked. Thje only opposition he has ever had was from that NR Republican base – Latimer even gets cross-over Republicans in Rye, Mmk, Lmt, elsewhere.
Soooo…his opponent, once again, a South End NR Republican wants to make everyone else along the Sound Shore believe that Latimer is not good on taxes: Latimer voted to cut property taxes 3 times as Chair of the County Board, and voted for two other tax freezes, and has a similar record back in his Rye Council days. In his 4 years in the Assembly, he hasn’;t voted for any increase in state sales or income taxes.
But, see it doesn’t matter what he does or has done. He’s a Democrat, and the highly motivated South End NR Republicans want to sink his boat. This fellow Biagi has started out with his guns blazin’ – and his rhetoric cranked up high.
On Election Day, Latimer will win – he’ll even beat Biagi in NR
Well folks, now we know who Ziggie is? It is none other than George Latimer himself. No one in the world would know that much detail on this issue than Latimer. This guy is so nutty and such a do-nothing assemblyman that he actually posts anonymous blog entries about himself. Can someone please recommend a shrink for George?
No, here’s the real story: Latimer is a Democrat in the NY Assembly, saluting Shel Silver as he rides by on his taxpayer funded chariot. None of them, NONE, after Silver explains to them the way it will be, has ANY fiscal responsibility. NONE. They will raise your taxes; they will see to it that the schools and unions strangle you to death ad infinitum and they will try to hide the fact that NY is failing, is the highest taxed state in the nation and that they LIKE it that way. Ron Tocci tried to buck that corrupt system, and they finally ran him out. His replacement? Latimer.
No, I ‘m not him…but I wish I were in office so I could really say what I think beyond this blog. But I know Latimer, and I know a lot of the other active Democrats – I’ve been with them and see what they do. And I know that whether it’s Latimer or any number of these folks that you trash every day, they’re good people – not the people you angry Republicans say they are.
I’m AM a proud Democrat, and I’m not afraid to stand up to the blog-world full of conservatives who are wrong, but repeat their error with such vehemence they want the world to believe wrong is right.
I know many of them, too. And most of them ARE good people. The problem is that they (and many Republicans) have developed a devil-may-care tax and spend philosophy. They have good social consciences, but know little about business and economics. They don’t understand that a business or a legislature of any kind does not survive forever by offering shoddy products at high prices. The answer, when any business is in trouble, is not to simply raise prices ad- infinitum. Nice were it that easy. They have become inured within a proprietary system that does just that. And they are rushing headlong into a very stubborn, unforgiving wall.
Come on now George, I mean Ziggie. What is it like to be so obsessed with politics that you must put up posts here praising yourself. You really need to get a life. It is kind of like those letters to the editor you often write for your buddies to sign. I expect you will win again, because the only thing you ever do is run around the district glad-handing. It is not like you have any legislative record to speak of after all these years. Remember they used to call Seinfeld the show about nothing, you are the legislator about nothing. The only thing you believe in is that you should be in public office to maintain your self-esteem. OK George Latimer or Ziggie, you better go make up a new phony name for future pathetic posts where you tell everyone how great you are!
Since when is meeting and listening to your constituents ‘gladhanding”? Only when wackadoo Conservative (and jealous, shame on you Republicans like yourself) say so.
Well I ain’t buying it and neither are residents of the Sound Shore. I predict George Latimer will win big in November and even carry the south end of New Rochelle.
James Bond meets Nostradamus. Confucius say: Speak your mind to Silver and credibility will rise.
Hey George…I mean “pgalore”
You came up with a new phony name pretty quickly. For the record, I am not registered in any political party.
I am glad you are predicting your win in November. It is nice to have such confidence. And you should win. The district has a large Democratic majority of voters and you keep flooding the district with those taxpayer funded newsletters bragging about how great you are, which you get for being such a nice lapdog for Silver. Plus, you play politics 24 hours a day, while the rest of us have real jobs.
But, let’s face it, you have been part of the problem for over a decade. A self-absorbed, career politician that is obsessed with self-promotion, while doing very little to affect the real issues facing the people of the State. High taxes caused by unfunded mandates and massive county and state spending inceases – all happening under your watch – continue unabated and you have done NOTHING but attend events and shake hands with people for so many years.
Hey, Bob, I mean “Rob Biagi”. Your stuff shows you’re just another pol yerself. You’re too busy figuring out who’s writing for the blogs…I guess it’s hard for you to think that people like me actually like a Democrat. You have to assume I am the politican myself!
Fact is, people all over Westchester are voting for Dems for every office…they believe in a Democratic philosophy. We’re not “fooled” by Dems, we like what they say and believe in them. We don’t believe in Bush, and Cheney, and the people you think are great.
When I quoted Latimer’s record – your response was “you must be Latimer”—- but you didn’t refute anything. You state he’s running around glad-handing – but what are you doing…you’re running around blogging and mouthing off. At least Latimer and Judy Myers come to my town, sit at a diner – and I was there two months ago to see them – and talk with me. I helped George out four years ago, and I’ll do it again this year. And I’ll help out Tom Murphy, an aces guy in Mmk Village…and Ernie Odierna who hustles and cares. And Toni Ryan who’s salt of the earth in the village. I don’t need Rob Biagi – all he cares about is one section of NR; I read about his release in the Sound View News, which parroted the same phrases you, Bob, used: “career politician”. So, Bob – Rob – or whoever you are, I don’t really care – the majority ain’t buying what you’re selling.
The BIG problem is, and remains, angry Republicans who led us down the primrose path in Washington—you took over DC and Albany in 1994, with the same words as today, and your buddies delivered Seinfeld’s nothing. No tax savings from Pataki-Bruno-Gingrich-GW Bush. Unnecessary war in Iraq, lousy reponse on Katrina, and gas profits for your oil friends. There’s your Republican Record.
You recycle the same attacks. They worked on Dukakis and Kerry, so you’ll use ‘em on Obama, and local officials, too. If you keep stating that Latimer is a glad-hander, you think someone will believe it.Other than in NR, they won’t…and probably not even there.
You don’t really know what most people think – only what your circle of people angry with government think. The Democrats are winning statewide, locally and nationally, because independent people aren’t buying what you’re selling anymore – constant attacks on Democrats, liberals, and the like, but no real progress on anything.
Blog on, dude.
George…I mean Ziggie…I mean pgalore…so nice to hear from you again and see that you cannot stop promoting yourself (it is kind of sad actually)...did you ever get that appointment with the shrink? I may have to vote for you because if you ever lost an election you might jump off a roof since being a politician defines your whole being.
I am not a Republican…I am a registered independent…and vote for both parties, but yes, more for Republicans. However, your psycho diatribe against Republicans does not do much for me. I don’t care. I left that party several years ago and became an independent. The Reps are almost as bad as the Dems in this county.
I do live in south half on NR and will never forget how you stuck a knife in the back of every single person in New Rochelle by eliminating our tax cap. You did this because you are controlled by the New Rochelle Democratic Machine. You are their puppet, cannot think for yourself and are a disgrace to public service. You really should be ashamed of yourself for the damage you have done to seniors on fixed incomes and working families. But you don’t care about real people, because you are a career politician that only cares about re-election. I am not down on Democrats, we have several good Dems representing New Rochelle. Dems Jeff Klein and Amy Paulin stood up for the hard working people of New Rochelle and refused to support you pathetic lifting of our tax cap. Nita Lowey does a good job as well. No George, it is you that is an embarassment of a State Assemblyman that can never measure up to Ron Tocci, another great Democrat that I always voted for. I hear you stuck a knife in Ron’s back as well!
George, I cannot wait to read you next kooky post about how wonderful you are – isn’t it sad that an elected official has to stoop so low as to post anonymous blog items to raise his self-esteem?
The truth is that George Latimer is a puppet for NR Dems! He has the strings and nose to prove it, Geppetto told me so! George is a fence-sitter who hedges his bets, that’s why he introduced two bills (one to keep and one to eliminate) the NR tax cap. Only after NR Dems like Idoni & Bramson leaned on him did he cow down and remove the cap. He has also flip-flopped on term limits. Latimer will win big and probably even the south end of NR because any republican running this year should have their head examined considering the anti-war, anti-Bush sentiment. The bottom line; if the masses come out in November to support change then George must go as part of the existing dysfunctional state government. George has no allegiance/respect as he knifed Ron Tocci in the back after Ron was one of a handful of Latimer supporters in his failed attempt to become lieutenant governor. While he is a nice guy, his only saving grace is that he’s a Mets fan. As to Ziggie being George; if ain’t George it’s an identical twin Junk Yard Dog who enjoys licking himself as much as George!