Two more for Legislator Trotta

Two more for Legislator Trotta

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Suffolk County Legislator Rob Trotta with his dog Buddy. Photo from Susan Eckert

The incumbent advantage is the name of the game in the race for the 13th Legislative District in Suffolk. And to Legislator Rob Trotta (R-Fort Salonga) go the spoils.

A focused and practical lawmaker, Trotta has served his district — the Town of Smithtown and a small portion of Huntington Town — well in the last two years.

He is a watchdog, unafraid of pulling punches, particularly when it comes to the county’s financial standing. He says the municipality is heading in the wrong direction, that money is being spent unnecessarily and that the county needs to increase its sales tax revenue.

He blasts the Suffolk County Red Light Safety Program, calling it a money grab, and he’s passionate about cleaning up the cozy relationship between campaign contributors and politicians.

He’s also not afraid to admit when he feels he’s messed up — he told us that he wishes he voted in favor of raising the tobacco purchase age from 19 to 21.

Trotta’s opponent Rich Macellaro, a Democrat, has a noble platform — to consolidate school districts into one per town — but we ask, how? County government has really no jurisdiction over that kind of local change, and so we question how much having a position in the Legislature would work in getting the job done.

Macellaro also works for the Suffolk County Red Light Safety Program and feels the initiative helps with a safety issue. While it does address some safety concerns, on the whole we side with Trotta and other GOPers in the notion that the program is a money grab and does not do enough to address the crux of the issue.

Trotta is on a roll, and we say give him two more years. We endorse Rob Trotta for Suffolk County Legislature.