Two of the most respected and nationally known men in New York have are putting their bids in for the top Orange County spot of County Executive; one a lifelong Republican, the other a staunch Democrat.
Last week the Orange County Democraticc Committee endorsed Michael Sussman, Esquire, a longtime Democrat (though a “Green” candidate for a short time while running for the spot of NY Attorney General in 2017.) Sussman has long been the #1 prominent and passionate civil rights attorney in the region,
One of hundreds of Civil Rights Events Sussman has attended and defended
But he has also gained major recognition for his dedication to finding fair resolution of several major Orange County issues.
Perhaps the best known County issue he fought for was prevention of the transfer of ownership of the county’s Valley View Nursing Home to a Committee called LDC that was set up by former CE Ed Diana during a time that many believed nursing care costs were about to skyrocket. Sussman led the charge to protect the continued good care provided there. Legislator Mike Anagnostakis sorted through all of the complex bookkeeping for the facility and found that the facility's finances were actually quite good, and proceeded to recommend revisions of documentation that showed current status more accurately. (Editor's Note: while as a journalist for The Chronicle Newspaper, I uncovered a lot of disturbing shady facts about the potential buyers, one being known as "The most unscrupulous landlord in New York City". Also, Sussman and Agnostakis emphasized that the land had been deeded to the County for particular purposes (purposes that would use the open space on the land for commercial entities rather than the peace for residents it was deeded for. )Sussman articulated the case at numerous hearings including at the Second NY Appellate Courthouse Litigation Session, and the transfer was blocked. He has protected dozens of individuals both in criminal cases and discriminatory acts.His current top community projects are: Protesting continued operation of the CPV Power Plant in Waywayanda because of the environmental damage and risks he says it poses to public health. Sussman was also active during the OC Govt Building’s massive renovation and the battle over whether to demolish the historic Paul Rudolph building or renovate it. He represented 3 plaintiffs whose lawsuit claimed that the $71M rebuild and expansion was excessive and that another much more economic alternative was available. Sussman has also been vocal about the Star CIO controversy over whether lack of following proper policy when seeking and implementing a new IT Chief in the Government Center reached a degree of criminal corruption. Sussman has charged that that current County Exec Steve Neuhaus has to take responsibility for the lack of proper RFP since he signed the authorizations. An initial legal review of the issue decided that while proper procedures were not always followed, the process flaws did not reach to a level of criminality. Neuhaus has since made corrections to the official process in attempt to ensure that from now on correct RFP processes are conducted. The FBI is continuing a requested review by Senator James Skoufis.
Orange County Democratic Convention at Chester Senior Center
Michael Sussman, Candidate for Orange County County Executive
Comments