Zeldin Promises Major Changes in 'First 100 Minutes' if Elected NY Governor (Newsmax)
By Sandy Fitzgerald | Sunday, 16 October 2022 02:54 PM EDT
Rep. Lee Zeldin said Sunday he doesn't only have big plans for his first 100 days in office if he's elected as governor of New York, but he plans major changes in his first 100 minutes in office.
"I want to do everything I possibly can in the first 100 minutes," the New York Republican, who is challenging incumbent Gov. Kathy Hochul, said on Fox News's "Sunday Morning Futures With Maria Bartiromo." "I want to have a very active day one."
Zeldin said his first action will be to declare a "crime emergency" in New York.
"I'm going to suspend New York's cashless bail laws and some other pro-criminal laws that have been passed and force the legislature to come to the table to negotiate an improvement because we have to take back our streets," said Zeldin. "We need law-abiding New Yorkers back in control of the streets instead of criminals."
Hochul's fight against crime became even more serious last Sunday afternoon when two teenagers were shot outside his family's Long Island home while his twin 16-year-old daughters were home. They were not injured in the shootings, which are believed to be gang-related.
The congressman also had a close brush with crime in July, when he was attacked while on the campaign trail by a man wielding a sharp object.
But Hochul and the Democrats who control the state legislature "feel like they haven't passed enough pro-criminal laws," said Zeldin, and he plans to bring that to a stop.
"I previously announced that my first action on day one is telling Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg that he's being removed, but it doesn't stop there," he added.
Zeldin also insisted he'll "unapologetically" back the men and women in law enforcement, including the New York City Police Department.
"They should have all the tools and resources they need to do their job safely and effectively," he said. "I was raised in a law enforcement household. My running mate, Alison Esposito, just retired, after 25 years in the NYPD. So we are focused on taking back our streets and absolutely supporting our men and women in blue."
Now, as his poll numbers are close to Hochul's leading pollsters to call the race a toss-up, Zeldin said he's feeling his support growing.
"I don't care whether I'm in a Republican county or a blue county, talking to Republican, Democrat, independent, a lot of New Yorkers are just really fed up with Kathy Hochul," he said. "She's doing a terrible job as governor. New Yorkers are leaving this state more than my other state across the entire country, and the reason why is because Albany has been attacking their safety, attacking their wallets, and they're heading for opportunities elsewhere."
Former President Donald Trump, a native New Yorker, on Sunday endorsed Zeldin's campaign, commenting on his Truth Social that as a congressman, "Lee Zeldin is a WINNER who GOT THINGS DONE. He will be a GREAT Governor of New York, and has my Complete & Total Endorsement."
Zeldin also on Sunday spoke out about the immigration situation after New York City has had to respond to the crisis. "They're getting free housing, they have access to schools, they have access to hospitals," he said. "They are able to, in many respects, get incentivized and rewarded from the federal government, the state government, and the city. And that's only encouraging more people to come across every day."
But nothing will happen unless President Joe Biden takes action on the federal level, even if local officials agree on a solution, said Zeldin.
"The Biden administration must lead or this will never get tackled," he said. "We need to see them secure the southern border. They need to finish construction of the border wall, end catch and release, and enforce the remain in Mexico policy."