Tannousis Sworn into Assembly
Assemblyman Michael Tannousis (R – Bay Ridge, Staten Island) the lone GOP lawmaker representing any part of Brooklyn, has officially been sworn in as the new assemblymember for the 64th Assembly District.
Tannousis also proudly announced that he has been named ranking member on the Aging Committee and will also sit on the Codes, Judiciary, Cities and Government Employees committees.
“I am eager to get to work and deliver real, positive change for the residents in our community,” said Tannousis. “We have faced some of the most challenging times any of us have ever seen, but we are going to get through it together. With common-sense policies, we can help struggling families and businesses to recover from the pandemic and get back on their feet. By bringing sanity back to our state government, good policy and good governance will prevail. We will defeat this virus, and we will show future generations the strength and resilience of the people of New York.”
Bichotte Congratulates Schumer Becoming Majority Leader
Assemblywoman Rodneyse Bichotte (D-Flatbush, Ditmas Park) yesterday lauded Brooklyn’s own U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer in being set to become New York’s first U.S. Senate majority leader post, on January 20.
Schumer was born and raised in Brooklyn and graduated from James Madison Highschool in the Marine/Flatbush section of the borough. He currently lives just off of Grand Army Plaza.
“Yesterday’s attack on our country will not diminish the pride Brooklyn Democrats feel,” said Bichotte. “Senator Schumer has been a loud and strong voice for the people, from his roots representing Brooklyn in the Assembly, to his activism for Democrats across the nation in the Senate. We are all cheering, knowing that the country will finally get the representation that we have been privileged to for more than four decades.”
Frontus Rallies for Revenue as Legislature Convenes
Assemblymember Mathylde Frontus (D-Brooklyn) called on the state to raise the revenue needed to confront New York’s looming fiscal crisis.
Frontus joined nearly 100 activists and legislators in putting the need to raise revenue at the top of New York’s legislative agenda. Citizen Action of New York organized the event to support passage of the Invest in Our NY Act, a package of six bills that would raise $50 billion in revenue from inherited wealth, capital gains and income from a handful of billionaires whose net worth has increased by hundreds of billions of dollars during the pandemic.
“Last year, we dropped the ball and we dropped the ball big time. How could it be that we passed a budget last year that brought in no new revenue for the state of New York? It is utterly disgraceful,” Frontus said. “I’m not being hyperbolic when I say this is one of the darkest hours for the people of New York. The least that we can do – it’s actually the least that we can do…is simply tax the rich. It’s a serious statement which takes responsibility and says this is something that we can do. This is easy for us to do. And I’ll tell you the truth, we should have done this a long time ago.
“We are here not a day too soon. We are here without a moment to spare. This is our time to fix the wrongs. This is our time to get this right. In other societies, people are stepping up for their citizens. Government is stepping up. People are getting checks sent to them every single month. And here, in the United States, we have multi-millionaires arguing over whether Americans should get a measly check of $2,000, and they think that that’s too much money, that Americans don’t deserve a one-time check for $2,000. We have a lot of introspection to do. We have a lot of things to really reflect on in terms of our values. I’m here today to say that I’m standing for a humane government. We have to pass humane legislation. We have to show the people of New York that we give a damn about them…I’m fired up and ready to go.”
James Announces Arrests in Decade-Long Ponzi Scheme
New York Attorney General Letitia James announced the arrests of two defendants charged with operating a nearly decade-long Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors from throughout New York and the rest of the nation of more than $1 million.
James filed a 42-count felony complaint charging Carl R. Carro (59, of Walton in Delaware County) and James W. Doyle (72, of White Plains in Westchester County) — the purported managing directors of headhunting companies Endeavor Management Solutions, LLC and Endeavor Consultancy, LLC — of multiple counts of Money Laundering, Grand Larceny, Securities Fraud, and Scheme to Defraud.
“When New Yorkers put their hard-earned savings into an investment, they expect their money to work for them, but the greed of the operators of these corporations never gave victims a chance to make a profit,” said James. “After nearly a decade, the Ponzi scheme perpetrated by Carl Carro and James Doyle fell like a house of cards, robbing most victims of thousands of dollars. Today, we’re holding these two men accountable for cheating investors and using investment funds to enrich and dig themselves out of a hole. My office will continue to use every resource at its disposal to hold accountable anyone who tries to cheat innocent New Yorkers out of their hard-earned savings.”
