44°
They say we are known by the company we keep. The spurious and anonymous fliers in our mailboxes in support of Terence Murphy are nothing short of despicable. And a violation of NYS Election Law. The somewhat tepid protestation from the Murphy camp is telling (and I use the singular on purpose!)
Be that as it may, my purpose in writing today is in praise of Bob Castelli, a man who deserves our support in the Republican Primary Election on Tuesday.
Full disclosure: I have known Bob for almost 40 years, when he was a much younger (and thinner) New York State Trooper and I was a much younger (and thinner) Pound Ridge Police Officer. He began his life in public service first having served our country in Vietnam; then as a State Trooper, a Lewisboro Town Councilman; college professor and New York State Assemblyman. While he has served with distinction in all of his endeavors, his term in the Assembly is where he truly shined.
From day one he reached across the aisle to his Democrat colleagues in a spirit of bipartisanship and, dare I say it? statesmanship—a concept so severely lacking in Albany (and Washington) that it seems almost foreign. Gerrymandered out of office (an all too frequent occurrence in Albany) after two terms in office he now seeks the 40th District Senatorial seat currently to be vacated by Greg Ball.
We need a two-fisted fighter in Albany, not another hand-picked in the backroom by the leadership candidate who will march to the party line and continue to perpetuate the Albany grid-lock. Is Bob that fighter? You bet. Against all odds his petitions to run in the primary were accepted by the courts after facing a withering challenge from the entrenched Party bigs—including the rather insulting challenge of the validity of his own signature! And all done, I will add, with local grassroots organizers and no machine politicos choreographing the show.
Enough said. Bob’s stellar service over all these many years has earned him my full support, and I believe that of all Republicans in the 40th District. Most importantly, regardless of whom it is you ultimately wish to choose, make that choice on Tuesday, Sept. 9. Standing on the sidelines serves only to get you the government you deserve, rather than the government you should have. Your vote is your voice. Make it heard on Tuesday.
Respectfully,
Richard B. Lyman Pound Ridge Town Supervisor
Click here to follow Daily Voice Pound Ridge and receive free news updates.
