By Kathryn G. Menu;Photography by Laurie Barone Schaefer

While the economy was the central topic in Monday night’s debate between incumbent Democratic Congressman Tim Bishop and his Republican opponent Randy Altschuler, the candidates for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives also spoke at length about the contentious, sometimes admittedly ugly, campaign that has been waged between the two. The candidates also addressed the influence of Super PACs on the political landscape, abortion and continued an ongoing debate over whether cutting taxes does, in fact, lead to actual job creation.

Monday night’s debate, held at the Bridgehampton School, was sponsored jointly by The Press News Group and the Times/Review Newsgroup and was moderated by Press News Group executive editor and editor of the eastern edition of The Southampton Press Joe Shaw.

The second in a series of three debates sponsored by the newspaper groups, Monday night’s forum was largely dedicated to jobs and the economy, in an effort to allow substantive conversations about specific issues, said Shaw.

Fundamentally, Altschuler — who also has the endorsement of the Conservative and Independence parties — and Bishop — who carries the endorsement of the Working Families line and is seeking a sixth term — have different approaches and visions for how the future of this country should be charted.

On Monday night, Altschuler says he fundamentally believes cutting taxes does create jobs, citing his 10-points jobs plan and the goal to provide more small business owners tax relief and make it more desirable for companies to stay in the United States.

“We have the highest corporate tax rate in the world,” he said.

Bishop would later note that while the U.S. does have the highest corporate tax rate in the world, it is fourth from the bottom in terms of the actual taxes it collects from corporations because of tax loopholes and subsidies.

Bishop said he does not believe there is factual data directly tying cuts in taxes to job growth, however, he does support tax cuts for the middle class, reductions in payroll taxes and has personally supported over 18 tax cuts that would benefit small businesses.

Altschuler rebutted that he did not believe tax cuts alone would get the country financially where it needs to be, but on the street he hears people crying for tax relief. Bishop, he charged, voted against extending the Bush era tax cuts for people making $250,000 or more.

Bishop countered he did support tax cuts be extended for people who make below $250,000 and that 97 percent of Americans fall into that category. For those making above $250,000 they will be returned to the Clinton era tax rates, which was an economically prosperous time, he added.

In 2010, when Altschuler lost his first race to Bishop by a mere 594 votes, he had signed Grover Norquist’s Taxpayer Protection Pledge, essentially vowing to oppose all actions that would increase income taxes for businesses or individuals, including opposing any action that would reduce or eliminate deductions or breaks on businesses.

On Monday night, Altschuler said he has not resigned that pledge this year.

“When you sign a pledge you put a stake in the ground that is sometimes impossible to move around,” he said, adding the way to fiscal health will also be found in compromise between the two major parties.

Bishop agreed compromise was critical, but added in the last two years dozens of candidates have been elected to the House of Representatives who think “compromise is a four letter word.”

He added he did not believe Norquist sees his Taxpayer Protection Pledge as an annual pledge, as Altschuler maintained. Bishop added because of pledges such as this, talks concerning the deficit have largely fallen apart — because, he said, there is an unwillingness to compromise in terms of discussions about adding new revenues, or taxes.

Altschuler responded by charging Bishop has been “fiercely partisan in his political life,” voting with Democrats 93 to 98 percent of the time.

“My opponent is not even a member [of Congress] yet and he has signed on to one of the most partisan, ideologically extreme divisive documents in Washington — the Grover Norquist pledge,” countered Bishop, adding that as a member of the minority party he is only able to vote on bills that Republicans allow on the floor of the House of Representatives.

The two candidates did discuss how they have demonstrated an ability to work with their rival political party.

Bishop signed onto the Go Big Coalition, a group of Democrats and Republicans backing the bipartisan “gang of six” Senators working on a deficit reduction bill to go beyond cutting the $4 trillion deficit, by putting all options on the table, he said.

“We said we were willing to step out of party orthodoxy and come out as reasonable people, charged by the American people to solve a problem and I think that really is bi-partisanship,” said Bishop.

Altschuler noted that he breaks with his majority in believing — like Bishop — that infrastructure construction on Long Island is critical, specifically fixing roads, looking at the creation of sewer districts and dredging projects. He added he would oppose any cuts to Stony Brook University or the Brookhaven National Laboratory.

Economic development of the Enterprise Park at Calverton (EPCAL) in Riverhead was also discussed.

Bishop said his offices have begun working on aiding Riverhead Town in dealing with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), which has asked the town for more specificity in its vision for EPCAL. The 2,900-acre property once leased by Grumman Corporation is now proposed as a mixed-use, sustainable development project meant to draw in businesses, and jobs.

“This is what we do all the time,” he said. “My office serves as a facilitator that brings the federal government to the table to help solve problems.”

Altschuler countered that finding a way to develop EPCAL has been a problem since Grumman left the site. He said he plans, if elected, to devote a staffer solely to job creation in Suffolk County. He said the Congressman serving the First Congressional District would need to be aggressive and that has yet to happen.

“That is simply not true,” bristled Bishop, noting there has been tremendous economic development at EPCAL, including the addition of a railroad spur bringing the Long Island Railroad back to the site — a critical method of transportation for many businesses.

“I have been in office for 10 years and every single time anyone from Riverhead has approached me we have done what they have asked and with results,” said Bishop. “That is simply not accurate.”

Altschuler continued to hammer home his point that it was tax cuts and reducing government regulation that would help local business.

“What our small business need more than anything else is customers,” said Bishop. “I go to Catena’s Market in Southampton and I can guarantee you they are not wringing their hands over federal regulation — they need more customers.”

Altschuler said businesses need certainty, and programs like the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare, leaves businesses with a sense they don’t know what to expect down the road.

The candidates also touched on outsourcing — a theme in the attack ads towards Altschuler in this campaign. Bishop has been critical of Altschuler’s former business, Office Tiger, a company which Bishop maintains outsources administrative jobs overseas to places like India.

“I think it is one of the scourges of the American economy,” said Bishop, adding that he has proposed legislation that will make companies that outsource call center jobs ineligible for federal grants.

“I am not going to talk about the ad — everyone wants more jobs in America,” said Altschuler. “The question is why there are not more jobs in America and why don’t we bring them back here.”

The candidates also touched on their views on abortion. Altschuler is pro-life. Bishop is pro-choice.

At a Hampton Bays debate, a high school student largely stole the show when she scolded both candidates for their negative campaigns. Shaw wondered if the addition of super PACs (political action committees), which can raise and spend unlimited monies on political campaigns, has been beneficial to the process and this campaign specifically.

“I don’t think anyone is happy with how the campaigns are handled today,” said Altschuler, who said his first commercial featured his wife, his single mother and his 10-points jobs plan.

“It is unfortunate but it is the card we have been dealt and we are dealing with it,” said Altschuler.

“I think Super PACs fundamentally threaten our democracy,” said Bishop, adding before his campaign ran a single ad in July, Altschuler held a press conference in front of Bishop’s office criticizing his daughter who has raised money for Bishop’s campaigns as well as his wife, a pre-school teacher. Altschuler charged both had benefitted from Bishop’s tenure at Southampton College and as a Congressman. Bishop has staunchly denied both claims.

“So please, don’t be the choir boy,” said Bishop. “I think even within the context of an ugly, bruising campaign, family should be off limits.”

Altschuler called the comments “disingenuous.”

“I don’t think it is fair for either one of us to say we cloaked ourselves in glory,” said Bishop, again calling for a moratorium on ads attacking family members.

“I would never do it and I will never do it,” he said.

Late last month, the Long Island Contractors’ Association (LICA), joined by the Operating Engineers Local 138, Laborers Local 1298, Teamsters Local 282 and the Northeast Regional Council of Carpenters, announced their endorsement of incumbent Democratic Congressman Tim Bishop for re-election at the Laborers Local 1298 headquarters in Hempstead.

In a press release issued by Bishop’s office, LICA Executive Director Marc Herbst announced that its PAC is breaking with their traditional policy of not offering political endorsements, “because as an industry, as a region and as a state faced with an extraordinary crisis Tim Bishop has volunteered to pick up the burden of being the region’s champion for federal funds earmarked for roads, bridges, water systems and more. It is imperative to support the one public official who has demonstrated the courage and capacity to stand up and speak out forcefully on behalf of all of us.”

The only other time LICA’s PAC has ever endorsed a political candidate was for Congressman Bishop’s last re-election bid two years ago.

Congressman Bishop is the only Long Island representative to serve on the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.

“We won’t be able to outspend my opponent but we will outwork them,” said Bishop of the endorsement. “I am grateful for your support because it is so terribly important.”

Bishop is facing Republican, Conservative and Independence Party candidate Randy Altschuler for the second consecutive race for the First Congressional District seat in the United States House of Representatives.

“We are in an era when government spending is viewed as `spending’ as opposed to an investment,” said Bishop. “Yet it is clear that there are certain things we need to invest in so we grow our economy and infrastructure is at the top of that list.  Not only do we put people to work but infrastructure investment also helps the rest of our economy flourish.”

Republican, Independence and Conservative Congressional candidate Randy Altschuler will speak at an East Hampton Chamber of Commerce luncheon today, September 20, at The American Hotel in Sag Harbor.

The luncheon will cost $50 and will feature Altschuler, who is facing off against Democratic Congressman Tim Bishop this November.

It will be the second race between Altschuler, a businessman who lives in St. James, and Bishop, a lifelong Southampton resident.

According to a press release issued by the campaign of Congressional hopeful, Republican Randy Altschuler, former Suffolk County Police Commissioner and Chief Investigator of the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office, Bob Creighton, has sent a certified letter to the non-partisan Office of Congressional Ethics formally requesting an investigation into Congressman Tim Bishop fundraising practices. The letter comes after a Politico story called into question a donation made by a Southampton resident who Bishop aided by helping a fireworks company gain permits for his son’s bar mitvah.

Newsday originally reported the story on Creighton’s letter.

According to the Altschuler camp, in his letter, Creighton writes, “[I]t seems clear that Representative Bishop and his staff clearly violated House Ethics rules and may very well have violated criminal bribery and illegal gratuities statues. I trust that you will take this matter serious, review all the facts in a timely manner, and open a full investigation into Representative Bishop as a result.”

“As a former Suffolk County Police Commissioner and Chief Investigator for the District Attorney’s Office, Bob Creighton’s willingness to publicly request a congressional investigation into career politician Tim Bishop’s pay-to-play fundraising practices speaks volumes,” said Altschuler Campaign Manager Diana Weir.  “The House Ethics Rules are crystal clear on this issue: Soliciting a campaign contribution linked to official action is strictly prohibited. We agree with Mr. Creighton, Newsday’s editors and virtually every other major newspaper in the area who all believe Congressman Bishop’s actions should be thoroughly investigated and proper disciplinary action taken.”

“As Representative Bishop has said, any fair-minded review of the facts will conclude what we already know and what the donor in question has stated — there was no wrong-doing,” said Bishop campaign spokesman Bobby Pierce. “Over the next ten weeks, Randy Altschuler is going to do everything he can to get distract voters from the fact that he made millions of dollars outsourcing American jobs, that he is still invested in outsourcing American jobs to the tune of a half-million dollars, that he supports a budget that raises taxes on the middle class, and that he holds the extreme anti-choice view of Todd Akin that puts a rapist’s rights over a victim’s rights.”

By Karl Grossman

The National Research Council issued a report this month identifying “a number of deficiencies” in an “updated risk assessment” done by the federal government for the National Bio and Agro Defense Facility (NBAF) it wants to build in Kansas to replace the Plum Island Animal Disease Center just off Long Island.

Congressman Tim Bishop, who has been challenging the project, issued a statement praising the report because “it bolsters” his view “that building NBAF in America’s agricultural heartland…is unacceptably risky.” He cited “the potentially devastating consequences of a release of the most virulent animal diseases in the heart of cattle country.” The Southampton Democrat also cited, as he has repeatedly, “the jobs of over 100 Long Islanders” threatened by the closure of the Plum Island center, and the NBAF’s $1 billion cost.

Randy Altschuler, a St. James Republican now in a second run to replace Mr. Bishop, although differing with him on most issues, on this agreed. He said in an interview last week that building the NBAF in Kansas to replace the Plum Island center “doesn’t make any sense.”

The National Research Council report, done by a variety of experts in veterinary medicine, engineering and other fields, said the “updated risk assessment” was an improvement over a 2010 “version.” But it still “underestimates the risk of an accidental pathogen release.” It said “the updated probabilities of release are based on overly optimistic and unsupported estimates of human-error rates” and “low estimates of infectious material available for release.”  Of great concern is the impact of a release on the many livestock, notably cattle, in the region. The malady on which most research on Plum Island is done, to be taken over by the NBAF, is foot-and-mouth disease which affects cattle.

But a release from Plum Island could impact on the many people in this region — and there have been releases at the Plum Island center. While Kansas is a center for cattle-raising in the United States, Plum Island is in close proximity to a national center of human population — a mile-and-a-half off the North Fork of Long Island with crowded Long Island and then New York City to its west, Connecticut, Rhode Island and then Boston to its north, .

Untrue is the claim — repeated this month by CBS News’ “Sunday Morning” which presented a segment on Plum Island — that there isn’t a link between diseases studied there and people. CBS reported that “the government says the germs stored on the island only affect animals.”

As noted by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in its 2003 report about the danger of terrorism and the Plum Island center, a camel pox strain researched at it could be converted into “an agent as threatening as smallpox,” and the Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus worked on could be “developed into a human biowarfare agent.” The GAO declared that there is a substantial risk that “an adversary might try to steal pathogens” from Plum Island and use them against people or animals in the U.S. Further, it said, the center “was not designed to be a highly secure facility.”

And it can never be. Plum Island sits exposed amid busy marine traffic lanes. The main Plum Island laboratory sits astride a beach.

Moreover, the Plum Island center has been on the target list of al Qaeda. In 2010, Aafia Siddiqui, dubbed “Lady al Qaeda,” was convicted in Manhattan of attempted murder. Among the documents in her possession when she was captured in Afghanistan in 2008 were hand-written notes about a “mass-casualty attack” and targets including: the Empire State Building, the Brooklyn Bridge, the Statue of Liberty—and the Plum Island center. Also found with Pakistan-born Dr. Siddiqui (who has a doctorate in neuroscience from MIT) were jars of poisonous chemicals and details on chemical, biological and radiological weapons. A relative of 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Muhammad, she was found guilty of trying to kill Americans who came to question her. In 2002, U.S. Army commandos and CIA agents found a dossier on the Plum Island center in a raid on the Afghanistan residence of nuclear physicist Sultan Bashiruddin Mahmood, an associate of Osama bin Laden.

Plum Island is a sitting duck for terrorists. That’s a major reason why the Department of Homeland Security, which after 9/11 took over running the center from the Department of Agriculture, wants it replaced by the NBAF. But can’t the proposed NBAF be put in a highly-secure location that is not in a center of cattle or of people?

It’s official. The race for the 1^st Congressional District will be a rematch.

On Friday, Ronkonkoma attorney George Demos officially dropped out of the race to be the Republican candidate who will attempt to unseat incumbent Congressman Tim Bishop, a Democrat, this fall.

Demos was set to face off against St. James businessman Randy Altschuler in a battle for the Republican seat next month and has sharply criticized both Altschuler and Bishop in campaign literature over the last several months.

In a press release issued Friday, Demos cited his upcoming nuptials to Chrysa Tsakopoulis as the impetus for his decision to withdraw himself from the race.

“Everyone who knows me knows of my deep commitment to public service and to being a strong voice for the conservative cause,” said Demos. “Equally, everyone who knows Chrysa and me, knows of our deep commitment to each other and the joy we are sharing in preparation of our wedding a week from now. These two facts have now come together. Both my impending marriage and my race for Congress are deeply important to me. But our marriage comes first. Therefore, today, I am going to set aside my political aspirations for a while so that I can focus on our family. Both Chrysa and I look forward to reentering the political debate in the near future and fighting for the conservative Republican values we share.”

Last week, the New York State Independence Party announced it would endorse St. James businessman Randy Altschuler as its candidate for the 2012 Congressional First District in New York.

The party backed incumbent Congressman Tim Bishop in 2010.

Altschuler, a Republican, will have to face off against Ronkonkoma attorney George Demos for the Republican nomination, although he has received the support of the Suffolk County Republican Committee. That primary is slated for June 26.

This will be Altschuler’s second run for Congress. In 2010 he narrowly lost to Congressman Bishop by just 593 votes. Of the 196,000 ballots cast, Bishop earned 7,370 on the Independence party line.

According to a spokesperson for New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, the United States Department of the Interior will designate the Montauk Point Lighthouse – New York State’s oldest lighthouse and one of the first seacoast lighthouses authorized by Congress —as a National Historic Landmark some time Monday afternoon.

Since last year, Senator Gillibrand has urged Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior Ken Salazar and the National Park System (NPS) Advisory Board Landmarks Committee to designate the site as a National Historic Landmark.  The Lighthouse would be the twelfth place in Suffolk and Nassau counties to achieve landmark status.

“This is great news,” said Senator Gillibrand in a press release issued Monday morning. “The importance of this iconic lighthouse, which helped make New York Harbor the nation’s premier port, is indisputable. Montauk Point Lighthouse can finally take its rightful place as one of our National Historic Landmarks.”

Last November, Senator Gillibrand wrote in a letter to Ronald James, Chair of the NPS Advisory Board Landmarks Committee, “I strongly encourage you to recommend that the Montauk Point Lighthouse be designated as a National Historic Landmark to Secretary Salazar after the Advisory Board’s upcoming meeting… The Montauk Point Lighthouse has a rich history and continues to serve as a vital navigation feature to this day.  In 1969, the lighthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places, and the time has come for this iconic structure to be designated as a National Historic Landmark.”

The designation was also strongly supported by Congressman Tim Bishop, a native of the East End.

With Montauk Point Lighthouse becoming an iconic part of Suffolk County’s landscape, Senator Gillibrand pointed out that the landmark status would have the potential to greatly enhance tourism and economic activity in the surrounding area. The National Historic Landmark designation would provide greatly needed resources to preserve this site, which played a pivotal role in America’s history, guiding ships from Europe to New York. Built in 1796, the Montauk Point Lighthouse promoted New York as the receiving port for British manufactured goods in America.

At Hook Mill on Friday, East Hampton Town Supervisor Bill Wilkinson and Councilpersons Dominick Stanzione and Theresa Quigley endorsed St. James businessman Randy Altschuler’s second campaign for New York’s First Congressional District.

East Hampton Republican Party Chairman Kurt Kappel, East Hampton Town Conservative Party Chairman Vincent Downing and East End Tea Party Chair Lynda Edwards also endorsed the candidate who is vying for the Republican Party line in hopes of facing off against Congressman Tim Bishop for a second time. George Demos, a Ronkonkoma attorney who waged a primary battle against Altschuler in 2010, is also running for the seat.

“I am very grateful for the endorsement and support of East Hampton’s most important elected officials and party leaders,” said Altschuler in a statement. “East Hampton, under Bill Wilkinson’s leadership, is a model for the country. In the midst of the Obama-Bishop national economic calamity, Bill Wilkinson, Theresa Quigley and Dominic Stanzione have rescued East Hampton from fiscal ruin and the irresponsible management practices of the past. I also acknowledge the efforts of Vince Downing, Lynda Edwards, and Kurt Kappel, whose steadfast support of the Wilkinson administration’s policies are critical to East Hampton’s continued success.”

“[Randy Altschuler} will bring to the United States Congress, extraordinary intelligence, integrity and a solid record of job creation success,” said Supervisor Wilkinson.

Wainscott resident Diana Weir, a longtime public servant on the East End of Long Island, has been tapped to lead Randy Altschuler’s 2012 Congressional contest campaign, according to a press release issued by Altschuler’s office on Monday morning.

Altschuler, a Republican, narrowly lost his first bid for a Congressional seat against incumbent Democratic Congressman Tim Bishop in 2010.

Altschuler cited Weir’s “deep roots in the community and vast private, public and political experience,” as the reason he has selected her to serve as his campaign manager in his second bid for a seat in the United States House of Representatives.

Weir is the former Executive Vice President of the Long Island Housing Partnership and is currently a member of the Long Island Power Authority Board of Trustees.

She was the first Hispanic councilwoman elected to the East Hampton Town Board and formerly served as Chief of Staff to Congressman Michael Forbes, directing his offices in Washington and Long Island before resigning when Forbes became a Democrat in 1999. Most recently, she has served as the chairwoman of the Wainscott Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) to the East Hampton Town Board and is also a new member of the town’s planning board.

“Diana is widely-respected across Long Island in the private, public and political arenas,” said Altschuler. “I am thrilled to formally announce her hiring today as the person leading my team on the ground. Today’s news continues the positive momentum my campaign has demonstrated since I announced my plans to seek a rematch against Congressman Bishop last spring.”

Prior to serving in government, Weir served as Senior Vice-President at the Bank of The Hamptons, and prior to that, as Senior Vice-President and Corporate Secretary for Smithtown Bancorp. Weir was appointed by Governor Pataki to the SUNY Stony Brook Council, served as a Suffolk County Human Rights Commissioner and co-chaired the Economic Development panel at the Long Island Hispanic Leadership Summit. Weir’s honors include New York City El Diario / La Prensa’s “Distinguished Latinas,” Suffolk County Hispanic Heritage Month’s “Hispanic Role Model” and the U.S. Small Business Administration’s “Small Business Minority Advocate of the Year.”

“Given the depressed state of our local economy, Long Island is in desperate need of a representative with Randy’s business experience and proven track record of creating jobs,” said Weir. “Raised by a single mother, Randy overcame his humble beginnings to turn himself into a successful entrepreneur. Randy embodies the American Dream and I couldn’t be more excited to take on this challenge and lead the charge to defeat Tim Bishop in November.”