Rep. Vito Fossella's fall from grace left many conservative
Staten Islanders with the difficult decision on whom to vote for
in today's primary. Both Republican candidates, a former
assemblyman, Robert Straniere, and Dr. Jamshad Wyne share many of
the same political positions. Mr. Straniere, however, has won the
endorsement of Governor Pataki and most of the Republican Party
officials. It probably won't mean much to the electorate, but I
will be voting for Dr. Wyne.
Until just a week ago, I was undecided because I've met both
candidates and knew that they would represent our conservative
borough and pro-life community better than Michael McMahon, the
Democratic candidate, who is pro-choice. The Republican
congressional candidates are both for cutting taxes and
government spending and for drilling offshore and seeking
alternative energy solutions.
Because Mr. Straniere is a seasoned politician, I was seriously
considering him over Dr. Wyne. What gave me pause was a comment
he made to a local news reporter. A front page article in the
Staten Island Advance noted that the race was getting down and
dirty and both candidates were slinging mud. By itself, that's
expected in the world of politics, but interjecting ethnicity is
an unworthy tactic. Mr. Straniere was quoted as saying Dr. Wyne
has been using the name "Jim" on the campaign trail
because "he is trying to remake himself into something other
than who he is. He obviously doesn't want people to know he is
Pakistani and a Muslim."
This January I met Dr. Wyne to write about the two free health
clinics he had opened in honor of his deceased parents. When I
met Dr. Wyne, he asked me to call him "Jim," a name
that he has used for many, many years, and this was before the
Fossella scandal opened the congressional seat. Every Staten
Islander must be aware that he was born in Pakistan, as are many
of the island's residents, and assume that all Pakistanis are
likely to be Muslim. We have a very large Asian business and
residential community here, so why did Mr. Straniere mention
this?
I contacted him to verify that the article was correct, and he
explained, "In a response to a question from a reporter
about why Dr. Jamshad Wyne was referring to himself with a
different name, I said he should be more focused on the issues of
concern to Staten Island and Brooklyn families than concealing
his Pakistani and Muslim roots. The voters won't vote against Dr.
Jamshad Wyne because of these silly issues; they will vote for me
because of my conservative philosophy and my 24-year track record
of reducing taxes and representing hardworking taxpayers."
What Mr. Straniere should have done was tell that reporter to
pose that question directly to Dr. Wyne. Instead he mentioned his
background and religion, which I feel reflects poorly on Mr.
Straniere's character.
It is true that Dr. Wyne has no direct elective experience,
although he has been involved as finance chairman for the
Richmond County Republican Party. Having a doctor in the House
seems like a good idea, since everyone is so concerned about
health care. I'm also well aware that there are questions about
the doctor's medical history. Mr. Straniere said of his opponent,
"These are the rantings of a desperate man seeking to divert
attention away from the highly publicized determination by the
New York State Health Department's Board of Professional Medical
Conduct of the negligent practice of medicine which placed him on
probation for three years."
But the charge that was levied had nothing to do with his
practice of medicine but was about his record-keeping. He's never
been sued, while Mr. Straniere has been sued by his business
partners and had been a controversial figure on the island before
he moved to Manhattan. Mr. Straniere told me that he will take up
residency again regardless of the primary results.
When Dr. Wyne announced his candidacy for Congress, I admit I
felt some regret because I feared that he would be forced to
suspend the activities of his two free clinics. Dr. Wyne,
however, assured me that his wife will continue operations as
director and the two clinics, which he pays for out of his own
pocket, will continue providing care in this borough, which is
the only one without a city hospital.
"Change" is the campaign buzzword, but before we
changed to a Democratic Congress in 2006, regular gas sold for
$2.19, unemployment was 4.5%, consumer confidence was high, and
the Dow Jones Industrial Average hit 14,000. I hope whoever wins
the primary will signal a change in the right direction.