Republicans form new club
Dissidents call town group too secretive
By John Sullivan
Times Herald-Record
January 29, 2008 6:00 AM
WOODBURY — Dissatisfied with what they claim is a secretive and dictatorial party leadership, current and former members of the Woodbury Town Republican Committee have broken off to form their own election machine.
"They (the town Republican Committee) don't seem to exist for any particular reason, except to have a meeting once a month, if they have it at all," said town Councilman Mike Queenan, spokesman for the new splinter group known as the Republican Club.
The club established its bylaws and mission statement last week and counts about eight members, including town Councilwoman Geraldine Gianzero and former Councilwoman Lorraine McNeil.
It is modeled after other Republican clubs in Orange County and around the country, Queenan said.
The club will serve as a political election committee, campaigning and raising funds for its own candidates, as well as mobilizing votes in the community.
Voting and non-voting memberships are offered to registered Republicans in Woodbury.
The club's formation comes in the wake of outcries against leaders of both parties. Critics allege that members of the Republican Committee, including Ralph Caruso, the chairman, worked with John Burke, a Democrat and the town supervisor, as well as other Democratic Committee members, to oust McNeil and Mike Aronowitz from the Town Board.
Queenan alleged that Caruso runs a committee that barely holds meetings, operates on proxy votes from absent officers and acts like a "kangaroo court" for Caruso's will.
Deals Caruso has made in the past have undermined the committee's purpose, as well as hurt the democratic process, Queenan said.
Caruso did not return calls for comment.
"We feel a lot of people don't know what's going on, and that's detrimental to everyone," Queenan said.
The splinter club will likely also mean a break with the Orange County Republican Party, which holds loyalties to Caruso and does not tolerate dissension within the ranks, Queenan said.
County Republican Party Chairman Bill DeProspo could not be reached for comment.
jsullivan@th-record.com
Saturday, February 02, 2008
Friday, January 25, 2008
Hall defends $521K for Kiryas Joel radios
News
Hall defends $521K for Kiryas Joel radios
By John Sullivan
Times Herald-Record
January 25, 2008 6:00 AM
WooDbury — Rep. John Hall answered questions about national tax rebates, improved benefits for veterans and a new energy policy.
But it was a question about $521,700 earmarked for the Hasidic Village of Kiryas Joel that got the most attention at a Town Hall meeting yesterday in Woodbury.
Hall, D-Dover Plains, had been instrumental in securing the money, part of a $516 billion appropriations bill passed by Congress at the end of 2007. Kiryas Joel asked Hall's office for the money to purchase a radio communications system for its security services.
The village of more than 20,000 Satmar Hasidim does not have its own police department. Radio communications would help protect it from hate crimes or terrorism, the village had argued in its application, Hall said.
Some in the audience, however, considered the funding favoritism.
Woodbury police Chief Robert Kwiatkowski argued that Kiryas Joel's request should have fallen under the purview of Orange County's E-911 system. Hall replied that Kiryas Joel asked for the money; the county did not.
Hall said the money represented a small fraction of the money he was able to receive for local governments.
"When it comes to appropriations, we will do our best for any project worth funding," he said.
jsullivan@th-record.com
Hall defends $521K for Kiryas Joel radios
By John Sullivan
Times Herald-Record
January 25, 2008 6:00 AM
WooDbury — Rep. John Hall answered questions about national tax rebates, improved benefits for veterans and a new energy policy.
But it was a question about $521,700 earmarked for the Hasidic Village of Kiryas Joel that got the most attention at a Town Hall meeting yesterday in Woodbury.
Hall, D-Dover Plains, had been instrumental in securing the money, part of a $516 billion appropriations bill passed by Congress at the end of 2007. Kiryas Joel asked Hall's office for the money to purchase a radio communications system for its security services.
The village of more than 20,000 Satmar Hasidim does not have its own police department. Radio communications would help protect it from hate crimes or terrorism, the village had argued in its application, Hall said.
Some in the audience, however, considered the funding favoritism.
Woodbury police Chief Robert Kwiatkowski argued that Kiryas Joel's request should have fallen under the purview of Orange County's E-911 system. Hall replied that Kiryas Joel asked for the money; the county did not.
Hall said the money represented a small fraction of the money he was able to receive for local governments.
"When it comes to appropriations, we will do our best for any project worth funding," he said.
jsullivan@th-record.com
Saturday, January 05, 2008
The return of Mike Aronowitz
Fred I have complete respect for you that you didn’t support me because of my vote on WP3. You also showed guts not signing it “anonymous”. What I don’t understand is why the three of them didn’t want to campaign on issues but rather make up lies about me after we all shook hands and said we wouldn’t do that.
The return of Mike Aronowitz
Published: January 3, 2008
To the editor:
Yes, I hope that Mike does return to the political scene. Past elected officials in Woodbury have just faded away. It takes a special individual to enter today’s political environment, one filled with disrespect and attacks (often anonymous) from those who never will step up to the plate and run for office.
I served for several years with Mike on the Woodbury Parks Commission. Mike showed talent and was able to get his message across. I contributed to and supported his first campaign.
As for his second campaign and the “flier” incident - politics, unfortunately, is and always will be dirty. However, Mike lost my vote, and I believe the election, because of his failure to adequately explain to the public his position change on Woodbury Junction.
Fred Ungerer
Highland Mills
The return of Mike Aronowitz
Published: January 3, 2008
To the editor:
Yes, I hope that Mike does return to the political scene. Past elected officials in Woodbury have just faded away. It takes a special individual to enter today’s political environment, one filled with disrespect and attacks (often anonymous) from those who never will step up to the plate and run for office.
I served for several years with Mike on the Woodbury Parks Commission. Mike showed talent and was able to get his message across. I contributed to and supported his first campaign.
As for his second campaign and the “flier” incident - politics, unfortunately, is and always will be dirty. However, Mike lost my vote, and I believe the election, because of his failure to adequately explain to the public his position change on Woodbury Junction.
Fred Ungerer
Highland Mills
Tuesday, January 01, 2008
Woodbury's topsy-turvy politics
Woodbury's topsy-turvy politics
By John Sullivan
January 01, 2008
Times Herald-Record
WOODBURY — It's not always easy to know who your friends are if you're a politician in this town.
Where else would you find a Democrat shouting at her own party committee boss for allegedly working with Republicans? Republican Committee members campaigning for Democrats? And Republicans and Democrats attacking their own party heads for suspected involvement in a misinformation campaign to oust two Town Council members?
Crossing party lines is not uncommon at the municipal level, but current and former elected officials claim that the two-party machine in Woodbury has been replaced by a practice of backroom deals. The culprits, these critics say, belong to an old guard of power brokers in Republican and Democratic parties.
Sparking the outrage was the distribution of fliers meant to smear Republican council incumbents Michael Aronowitz and Lorraine McNeill. Supervisor John Burke, a Democrat, has taken responsibility for the fliers, which falsely blamed Aronowitz and McNeill for raising tax assessments in a populous town-house complex.
But some Republicans say they believe that members of their own party had a hand in the plot. Aronowitz said he believes that the chairman of the town Republican Committee worked directly or indirectly with Burke to oust him and McNeil.
He is joined by Republican Town Board members Geraldine Gianzero, Mike Queenan and former Republican Supervisor Sheila Conroy in condemning what they believe has been a practice of quarterbacking elections by a small group of power brokers in both parties.
Manny Mangual, the town Democratic chairman, denied any knowledge of such cooperation among members of his committee. Ralph Caruso, head of the Woodbury Republicans, could not be reached.
But Gianzero, who is former vice chairwoman of the Woodbury Republicans, said the latest elections wouldn't have been the first time that members of the Republican and Democratic committees worked together.
"We call them the Republicrats," said Gianzero. "They are a few Republicans and a few Democrats, who have joined forces to get only their own people, whether Republican or Democrat, elected."
Some in the town talk of mutiny by several Republicans, as well as a few Democrats, against their party leaderships over the issue of development.
On one side is a new generation of politicians led by Gianzero and Conroy, who claim that the older, entrenched group of town leaders want control of both town and village governments and will use any tactic to get their puppets into power.
On the other side are leaders, including Burke, Caruso and former town Democratic Committee Chairman Bob Donnelly, who view a new group of leaders as too accommodating to developers.
"From now on, it's going to be who represents the developers and who represents the people who live here," Donnelly said.
jsullivan@th-record.com
By John Sullivan
January 01, 2008
Times Herald-Record
WOODBURY — It's not always easy to know who your friends are if you're a politician in this town.
Where else would you find a Democrat shouting at her own party committee boss for allegedly working with Republicans? Republican Committee members campaigning for Democrats? And Republicans and Democrats attacking their own party heads for suspected involvement in a misinformation campaign to oust two Town Council members?
Crossing party lines is not uncommon at the municipal level, but current and former elected officials claim that the two-party machine in Woodbury has been replaced by a practice of backroom deals. The culprits, these critics say, belong to an old guard of power brokers in Republican and Democratic parties.
Sparking the outrage was the distribution of fliers meant to smear Republican council incumbents Michael Aronowitz and Lorraine McNeill. Supervisor John Burke, a Democrat, has taken responsibility for the fliers, which falsely blamed Aronowitz and McNeill for raising tax assessments in a populous town-house complex.
But some Republicans say they believe that members of their own party had a hand in the plot. Aronowitz said he believes that the chairman of the town Republican Committee worked directly or indirectly with Burke to oust him and McNeil.
He is joined by Republican Town Board members Geraldine Gianzero, Mike Queenan and former Republican Supervisor Sheila Conroy in condemning what they believe has been a practice of quarterbacking elections by a small group of power brokers in both parties.
Manny Mangual, the town Democratic chairman, denied any knowledge of such cooperation among members of his committee. Ralph Caruso, head of the Woodbury Republicans, could not be reached.
But Gianzero, who is former vice chairwoman of the Woodbury Republicans, said the latest elections wouldn't have been the first time that members of the Republican and Democratic committees worked together.
"We call them the Republicrats," said Gianzero. "They are a few Republicans and a few Democrats, who have joined forces to get only their own people, whether Republican or Democrat, elected."
Some in the town talk of mutiny by several Republicans, as well as a few Democrats, against their party leaderships over the issue of development.
On one side is a new generation of politicians led by Gianzero and Conroy, who claim that the older, entrenched group of town leaders want control of both town and village governments and will use any tactic to get their puppets into power.
On the other side are leaders, including Burke, Caruso and former town Democratic Committee Chairman Bob Donnelly, who view a new group of leaders as too accommodating to developers.
"From now on, it's going to be who represents the developers and who represents the people who live here," Donnelly said.
jsullivan@th-record.com
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