Dear friends,
I will submit a voter registration form this morning changing my political party affiliation to the Working Families Party.
First, please know that my switch to WFP is certainly NOT based on its national organization’s foreign policy positions. Rather, I am much more closely aligned with the WFP’s domestic agenda, which in fact is more in line with the stated Biden agenda than with that of many Democratic officials in our region. Over the past two years especially, I have grown continually more alienated from suburban New York Democratic politicians, who are mostly good people but, in my view are often captive to a more cautious, corporate mindset.
My term in office at the County Legislature ends on Dec. 31, but there are still important days and hours of review and, I hope, some revision of the County Executive’s proposed budget for 2024. During this time, and in the long term as I continue as an activist looking forward with a progressive and anti-racist lens, I think the WFP will be a better space from which to advocate for….
Fair, affordable and integrated housing…. more aggressively pushing out the $200 Million we have appropriated in 2023-24 for Affordable Housing throughout the County…. expediting implementation of our Tenant Right to Counsel law and the promised amendment eliminating the sunset provision that the County Executive’s office inserted into the bill at the last moment.
Police Accountability…. insitutionalizing meaningful civilian oversight…. reducing rarely questioned increases in salaries, overtime and infrastructure for policing, punitive prosecuting and punishment.
Reducing income inequality and extreme wealth disparities with fair, progressive taxation.
More funding of academic or vocational education for 1-2 years beyond high school (e.g., free Westchester Community College and forgiving of debts owed to WCC).
More money for community-based nonprofits tackling the social and economic problems that harm our communities.
REAL environment initiatives encouraging less reliance of the private, one-person-commuting private car…. permanently lower or free county bus fares, true pedestrian and bicycle safety…. long-term strategy for car storage (aka parking) that encourages less, not more, private car use.
Stronger campaign finance laws…. putting serious funding into our Ethics Board or create an independent office of Inspector General or Comptroller…. curtailing big money from big real estate developers whose project are dependent on favorable actions by the various levels of government.
I look forward to working with you, my friends, on these and other crucial matters, now and after my term in office ends.
Damon