Candidate Questionnaire Responses
When in office, what will you do to reduce harm and ensure there is social and economic equity for Black Long Islanders? If you are an incumbent, what policies/initiatives/laws have you supported that do this?
As a longtime journalist and historian, I understand that resistance to multi-racial democracy has been a constant struggle of the American experience. The fact that we have the opportunity to elect the first Black female president and the first Black Speaker of the House highlights the stakes of this election.
But even if we achieve these historic milestones, we have a lot of work to do to see that the legacy of bigotry and discrimination are overcome and the ideal of equality of opportunity achieved. I have made rebuilding the middle of our politics and the middle of our economy the core theme of my campaign. It will be how I think about every policy issue that comes before me in Congress. It's not a coincidence that the middle of our politics has been hollowed out at the same time that the middle of our economy has been hollowed out. America needs a strong middle class where families who work hard and play by the rules can rise up the ladder of success to achieve their American dream.
The middle class built Long Island – and Unions, the GI Bill and community colleges built the middle class. That’s why I’ll work with Unions and businesses to deliver good jobs with fair wages to Suffolk County.
One of the leadership roles that a Member of Congress can take is serving as a convener and connecter among the stakeholders in the district. I plan on taking up that responsibility and will make it a priority to help apprenticeship programs connect to communities of color in New York’s first congressional district – especially in our emerging clean energy technology industries - and help make sure that good jobs are accessible to everyone who is willing to work hard. Some communities need special attention, like Gordon Heights. Gordon Heights has never had its own zip code and is split four ways with the surrounding hamlets. This limits and obscures the available local data that helps determine how public resources are invested. Everything from traffic stops, homeownership rates, housing density, health statistics are all muddled between the four hamlets and prevents Gordon Heights from getting the attention it deserves. When I get to Congress, I will fight for a Gordon Heights zip code and get it done after decades of talk. I will place a district office in Coram and conduct regular town halls. I will always work to ensure that we are making measurable progress towards our goal of creating a more perfect union.
Is there anything else you'd like us to know about your campaign?
I'm a native New Yorker, the grandson of immigrants and the father of two young kids. I’ve worked most of my career as a journalist and author, recently as a CNN anchor and senior political analyst, where my Reality Check segments aired on the morning show and across the network. I joined CNN fulltime after working as Editor-in-Chief and Managing Director of The Daily Beast for five years – during which time we won 17 awards for journalistic excellence I’ve written four books – Independent Nation, Wingnuts, Washington’s Farewell and Lincoln & the Fight for Peace. Previously, I was a columnist and served as chief speechwriter to the Mayor of New York during the attacks of 9/11. I first became engaged with politics because I was inspired by Bill Clinton’s presidential campaigns and his centrist Democrat “third way” approach to politics. My wife is Margaret Hoover, the host of Firing Line on PBS. I live in Sag Harbor. I decided to get in the arena and run for office when I realized that the future our democracy was still at stake. I believe that now is the time for our generation to step up and defend our democracy – and I didn’t want to look back and tell my children that I could have done more when it mattered most. Together, I believe we can rebuild the middle class and rebuild the middle of our politics. That’s why I’m running for Congress.