Republicans Bob Turner and Jane Deacy visited seniors at the Forest Park Senior center during a lunchtime meal of roast chicken, mash potatoes and string beans on Thursday afternoon to garner their support before the September 13 special elections for vacant Congressional and Assembly seats.
Turner, running for the 9th Congressional District, trails Democrat David Weprin by a six-point margin, according to the latest Siena College Poll released last Thursday.
In light of the unexpectedly close poll results, both candidates have amped up the intensity of their campaigns. Democrats have mailed fliers to voters about Turner, labeling him as a “Tea-Party extremist” who wants to end Social Security and Medicare. Turner said that these tactics are a part of politics.
“It may not be true, it may not be fair, but that’s the way the game is played,” Turner said to the crowd at the senior center.
Turner’s campaign responded with a recorded telephone message to seniors from former Democratic Mayor Ed Koch, who has crossed party lines to support Turner, denying those claims and accused Weprin of trying to scare seniors.
“David Weprin is making telephone calls trying to scare seniors,” Koch said in his message. “They’re nonsense. Weprin should be ashamed of himself. Bob Turner is running for Congress to protect your Medicare and your Social Security. And that’s why I endorsed Bob Turner for Congress.”
At the senior center, Councilman Eric Ulrich (R-Ozone Park) also said Turner was the right choice for seniors.
“I can assure you, that Bob Turner will protect Medicare. [He will protect] Social Security and he will look out for medical, financial and physical interests of people in their golden years,” Ulrich said.
Turner also stressed that, as a businessman, he is running against President Barack Obama’s administration, which has sent the country down the wrong path.
“There seems to be no plan to fix things,” Turner said. “Whether these things will be fixed in the next 15 months or so, I just don’t know. But I know we have to fight the battle.”
Deacy, who is running for the 23rd Assembly District vacated by Audrey Pheffer to become Queens County Clerk against Democrat Phil Goldfeder, said her focus is on creating jobs and cutting taxes so that young people can afford to stay in New York.
“If we can’t create jobs and keep our young people here, they’re going to be vacating New York State and taking their revenues with them,” Deacy said. “That’s going to be very problematic, not just for the young people, but for us as seniors as well.”
She wants eliminate certain of taxes, particularly the MTA Payroll tax, she says are damaging small businesses and families. Last week, Deacy signed a pledge, promising never to vote in favor of new taxes or fees.
Deacy also referenced her time in the NYPD as experience that prepared her to go into politics. She was one of the first women to serve in a patrol function.
“I can tell you the city never sleeps and I promise you, I won’t when I’m working for you in Albany,” Deacy said.
After each candidate spoke, Ulrich said that we must elect people that will be responsible with the amount of money government spends.
“It’s time that we send people into public office that understand that we cannot mortgage our future and just keep spending money that we simply don’t have,” Ulrich said.
He added that more money should go towards maintaining core essential services like garbage collection, police and libraries.
Donna Marie Caltabiano, the senior center’s executive director, said that it’s important for candidates like Turner and Deacy to visit centers so the seniors can personally hear what they have to say..
“Senior citizens are a good voting group and they want to know what’s going on,” said Caltabiano, a former Republican state Assembly candidate and a member of the Queens County GOP. “By him [Turner] coming here, it means a lot to them because they get to see the person face to face.”
By Luis Gronda
