Suffolk Needs Financial Responsibility for Future
I was not yet born when John Fitzgerald Kennedy was elected to the highest office in the United States. However, Americans post-Kennedy have grown up in the shadow of his reign, of his legacy with a barrage of coverage both broadcast and print that doesn’t seem to wane.
A riveting and celebrated life was his and one of the mantra’s for the Kennedy family was ‘to whom much has been given, much is expected’. He, his siblings, their children and even their grandchildren are known for their public service, be it in elected office or championing causes to better the lives of others.
Public Service, some say, is a calling and for Smithtown’s own John Kennedy, nothing is closer to the truth. The core belief of this Suffolk County Legislator is that his employer is the residents of Suffolk County; that he works for taxpayers. And work he does. I have been in the news business for over twenty years. As the daughter of a NY Times newsman I began my career writing for New York City papers and have been writing for various Suffolk County papers for fourteen plus years. I have covered politics and politicians extensively.
I have personally never witnessed an elected official who works harder and longer for his constituents than John Kennedy. As the minutes countdown to the November elections, the fiscal conservative is all over Suffolk County trying to ascertain votes for the position he is seeking; Suffolk County Comptroller.
Kennedy’s work ethic is unparalleled but it is not the only reason he should be elected as our county’s next Comptroller, he has the voting record and the education to back up his resume. The man in addition to his law degree has an M.B.A. in Finance with a Specialty in Capital Budgets. Finance and Capital Budgets – Kennedy has been trained to do this very job.
He has worked for five county executives in various governmental positions. John Kennedy knows Suffolk County government. He has spent thirty-nine years serving the people.
He is outraged that the County presently has approximately 2.2 billion dollars in bonded indebtedness. That number rises daily. He grunts when asked about police cars and says he doesn’t understand why the Department has about one-hundred cars sitting in the yard waiting to be repaired with just one mechanic. He says that makes no financial sense whatsoever. Kennedy says there are many decisions made in Suffolk County that are counter-intuitive from a financial perspective.
He says we (government) use other people’s money and we must be very careful with their money. And careful Kennedy has been; his offices are in a county building in an old storage room. His furniture is what he likes to call ‘repurposed’. Its old but it’s functional.
By using a County office, Kennedy has saved Suffolk County taxpayers over 400 thousand dollars already in the four years since he and his staff set up camp in Hauppauge. In addition he has hired about 50-60 interns in his ten years as a Legislator. He says it’s a cost-saving measure but equally important it provides students an opportunity to learn governmental operations firsthand.
During a recent visit, I found him on the phone and his people, including his interns, feverishly at work. How much work does it take to tout over 2,000 cases of successful resolutions, mitigating constituent complaints? Well it takes weeknights well into the evening and weekends as well. The man works seven days a week at pace that would impress any thirty-year old.
I’m not a Republican, I’m registered as a member of the Independent Party but Kennedy has my vote, he’s the man for the job of Comptroller. Like our late President’s quote above, the dire financial situation of Suffolk County needs a bipartisan effort to turn it around. It’s time Suffolk County officials accept responsibility for the financial future for this great county and that’s why Kennedy is my man.