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Craig Herskowitz

TBR News Media is endorsing Sen. Mario Mattera for this year's election. File photo by Raymond Janis

By TBR Staff

This election cycle, TBR News Media is endorsing incumbent Mario Mattera (R-St. James) for New York’s 2nd Senate District. Mattera has served in this position for two terms  and has been proven true to his word.

His track record displays his commitment to his constituents. From assisting with Smithtown-area sewer projects to helping restore Foundation Aid for schools across the state, Mattera is respected for his ability to get his boots on the ground and fight against the issues that plague our communities.

Mattera’s strong approval for both Proposition 2 on this year’s ballot, as well as his position as ranking member on the state’s Energy and Telecommunications Committee, shows a concern for environmental issues. He is a proponent of carbon capture technology and green hydrogen development, which serve to mitigate emissions in power plants and waste facilities.

His efforts to keep our communities employed is quite impressive. Mattera’s championing of legislation that requires project labor agreements for projects worth over $10 million has been extremely beneficial in increasing employment rates, as the agreement stipulates that these public works only employ local laborers.

Craig Herskowitz (D) is a very intelligent man and seems to genuinely care about the community in which he lives, as well. His thoughtful and curious demeanor is refreshing, and his clear respect for the incumbent was palpable. While his policy ideas are well-intentioned, he simply lacks the seasoned experience of the incumbent. Giving up his post as a judge to commit himself totally to this campaign is admirable, and if his spirit and willingness to learn is any indicator of his future, this is not the last time we will hear of him.

Correction: In our paper editions, it was stated that Sen. Mattera supports Proposition 1. That is incorrect; he supports Proposition 2.

NYS Senator Mattera (left) and challenger Craig Herskowitz (right) met at the TBR News Media office to discuss topics related to State Senate District 2. Photos by Toni-Elena Gallo

By Peter Sloniewsky

In their recent meeting at the TBR News Media office, New York State Senate incumbent Mario Mattera (R-St. James) and challenger Craig Herskowitz (D) clashed largely over issues of criminal justice reform and immigration while also emphasizing their relative comradery. 

NYS Senator Mario Mattera

Mattera is running for his third term in State Senate District 2, which covers Smithtown, Huntington, Northport, Commack and Melville. He presents himself with a deeply local focus, having been a union leader and plumber prior to his time in public service. He describes his tenure in Albany as being “vocal” on the Senate Energy and Telecommunications, Labor and Transportation committees, as well as emphasizing a focus on environmental issues like carbon capture technologies. 

Herskowitz, born in Huntington and raised in Northport, is not a stranger to public service either. After working on Capitol Hill and later attending law school, he worked on narcotics and drug issues for the FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice Criminal Division before joining JPMorgan Chase. Throughout the COVID pandemic, Herskowitz worked in crisis management. Prior to running for office, he was a New York City administrative law judge but has since resigned. 

The main point of their discussion was largely centered around bail reform legislation passed by Gov. Kathy Hochul (D). Mattera drew on his endorsements from law enforcement across Suffolk County and listed a number of alleged local and national cases of bail reform leading to additional crime, attributing a perceived rise in crime rates to such reform. 

Craig Herskowitz

Alternatively, Herskowitz emphasized his personal experience in criminal justice work to dismiss Mattera’s rhetoric as a “lot of fear tactics.” He suggested that the state alternatively invest in mental health resources, to which he attributed most failures to appear in court. He added that bail reform has been a benefit and would not be repealed in any way that the Republicans would hope for. That being said, Herskowitz did acknowledge a weakness in Democratic messaging on the subject. 

Mattera also established concerns with the treatment of illegal immigrants in New York state and in New York City, referring to them as a “sanctuary state” and “sanctuary city.” He cited financial statistics meant to emphasize the heavy expenditure of both levels of government on such migrants and drew on his past experience as a union leader to say that “if we need people in the workforce … there’s a reason we have green cards.” 

However, Herskowitz emphasized that most illegal immigrants simply overstay visas and that demonizing migrants coming here for a better life is a “nonstarter.” He added that most migrants are honest people and that immigrant labor has been a huge boost to the economy. He also pointed out that it’s a largely federal issue and that the main stoppage has been on the Republican end.

Both candidates, however, agreed that Long Island and New York as a whole require more federal funding. Mattera especially emphasized the importance of Foundation Aid for education and his own efforts in preserving it. 

In a welcome relief from divisive political climates, both candidates concluded the debate with positive words about one another. Herskowitz said that he respected Mattera’s work as a labor leader, while Mattera said that “when I win, I’m going to take him out to lunch.” 

Election Day is Nov. 5. Early voting is still available through Sunday, Nov. 3. See www.suffolkcountyny.gov for Suffolk County locations and times.

By Aidan Johnson

Three out of the four Democratic congressional candidates for District 1 — Nancy Goroff, Kyle Hill and Craig Herskowitz — attended a meet-the-candidates night at the Brookhaven Town Democratic Committee headquarters Tuesday, Feb. 6. During the meeting, the candidates addressed why they are running, their most important issues and policies they would support. The fourth candidate, former District 5 state Sen. James Gaughran [D-Northport], was unable to attend. The current congressional seat is held by Nick LaLota (R).

Introductions

Goroff, who has formerly served as the chair of the chemistry department at Stony Brook University, and previously ran for the congressional seat in 2020 against former Congressman Lee Zeldin (R), said that she was running “to protect our right to bodily autonomy” and “to build an economy that’s going to work for everybody,” along with environmental issues such as coastal erosion, climate change and water quality.

Herskowitz has interned for Sen. Edward M. “Ted” Kennedy (D) and Rep. Steve Israel (D). The candidate believes that his “judicial, legislative and executive experience, as well as criminal prosecution and criminal defense experience,” which includes him working at the Office of the General Counsel in the U.S. Marshals Service, the FBI and the Department of Justice, before being appointed as assistant counsel to Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D), before working as a criminal defense attorney and being appointed as an administrative law judge within the New York City Department of Finance, will allow him to connect with the congressional district. 

Hill went to graduate school at Stony Brook University, after which he worked for Israel on Capitol Hill, where he “became a health care policy expert.” He worked on rallying congressional support to update the organ transplant rules, and since coming back to Long Island, he has become a volunteer EMT and is involved with the Brookhaven Town Democratic Committee. He has become frustrated “every single day with [Congress’s] dysfunction,” and believes that by winning the CD1 seat, along with gaining a Democratic majority, Congress can function better. 

Health care

Hill would support passing the Social Security 2100 Act, which, among other things, would change the current law that caps earnings subject to the Social Security tax which, at the time the bill was introduced, was $160,200, but now stands at $168,600, to instead have earnings over $400,000 once again be subjected to the tax. However, all earnings in between would not be subject to the tax. He also said that it is necessary to build upon incentives for doctors and health care agencies to keep folks healthy and out of the hospital

Herskowitz said that he was “the only candidate in this race that’s supporting Medicare for All” and said that “we need to make sure people are paying their fair share of taxes,” and that “people that are damaging our environment are paying more for our health care system because they are the ones who are polluting our water, polluting our air.” He also said that “we need to find ways to ensure that Social Security is available to everyone.”

Goroff called Social Security and Medicare “two of our most successful government programs ever.” She said that it is necessary to “lift the cap on salary at which we take Social Security taxes,” adding, “That one change would make Social Security and Medicare both financially secure going into the future.” She also said that the age to receive Medicare should be reduced. 

Voter engagement

Herskowitz said that it is important to fight against misinformation, activate the voters and get people excited to vote, adding that a strong grassroots campaign was necessary to make sure “every single voter is touched, several times throughout the campaign, to make sure that people come out to vote.” He also said that it was necessary to appeal to the moderate center voters.

Hill said that “we’ve seen cycle over cycle that the Democrats who are coming out to vote have become fewer and fewer and more folks are registering as unaffiliated,” adding that it was necessary to figure out why they are not coming out to vote, and that it was necessary to have a message that brings out both Democrats and those in the middle. He said that Democrats need to lean into their strengths, citing issues such as infrastructure, drug pricing reform and the cost-of-living crisis.

Goroff said that in order to get people to vote who don’t automatically do so, or who vote for either a Democrat or a Republican, “it’s not about the issues, it’s about them believing that this person is going to represent them.” She said that she is committed to making sure voters know who she is as a person, educator and community leader, adding that it matters that they know they would have someone working hard for them “versus somebody who is just spewing talking points.”

Climate change

Hill said that he supports changing every car that the federal government owns to an electric vehicle, including from government agencies such as the post office. “We can use the purchasing power of the federal government to shape the market and make EVs more available, bringing down the price, make it more accessible, have more charging stations everywhere, and that’s something the federal government directly controls and already has its hands on,” he added.

Herskowitz said that it was necessary to move away from fossil fuels and invest in technologies that could remove carbon emissions from the atmosphere and nitrate from the soil and ground that leaks into the water. He also said that it was important to combat misinformation surrounding renewable energy.

Goroff said that the United States should be carbon neutral in energy production by 2035, and in transportation and buildings, along with the rest of the economy, by 2050. She supports the Inflation Reduction Act, which would invest in clean energy: “We need to be investing in clean energy and technologies now, making sure that we’re having proper oversight, and investing in new technologies for the future.”

Immigration

Goroff said that DACA recipients need a pathway to citizenship, and that it’s important to recognize the challenges for communities in getting resources for large numbers of migrants and nonnative English speakers. “The only way we can deal with that fairly is for the federal government to make sure that for school districts, like in Riverhead where they have very large numbers of nonnative speakers of English, that they’re getting adequate funding for those programs,” she said.

Herskowitz said that the vast majority of people who are in this country illegally do so by coming here legally and overstaying their visas, and clarified that coming to the border and requesting asylum is 100% legal, adding that more judges are needed to adjudicate asylum claims. “The migrants that are here want to work, and they should be able to work, and we should be able to expedite [that] so they can work, they can pay taxes, they can contribute to the economy,” he said, adding that comprehensive immigration reform was needed because “obviously the immigration system is broken.”

Hill said that it is necessary to address what’s causing the issues, “which is the rampant gang violence in Central America. Part of all of these comprehensive solutions has been greater investment in our southern neighbors to make sure there’s economic development [and] a reason to stay in their home.” He added, “Every time these comprehensive packages don’t end up happening, those things get left off the table.” He also said the budget, which Congress has yet to pass, would be an opportunity to address the concerns by “more appropriately [targeting] our foreign aid,” and better funding for the Department of Justice “so that judges can adjudicate asylum claims so that folks can enter society and be part of the society.”

The Democratic primary is on June 25.