Interview with Jonathan Makeley, Prohibition candidate for 146th Assembly District

2. Can you tell us why you joined the Prohibition party and why you chose to run for the state assembly?

Well I am a political moralist. I believe that the government should serve to protect and promote he wellbeing of the people. I am a teetotaler and supporter of temperance. The Prohibition Party seemed to best fit my political values, so I decided to join it.

As to why I decide to run for the state assembly. I am someone who is politically active and pays attention to state politics. I grew tired of watching the officials in state government pursue policies that were detrimental to the wellbeing of people in the state, and fail to undertake important reforms for improving the condition of the state. I was also inspired by the growing prominence of my party in recent years and the party’s hope for running more candidates for state and local offices. So, I decided to run for state assembly.

3. How are you a better candidate than Raymond Walter?

I stand for promoting good government for the people, based in moral principle, ethical public service, and advancing the public welfare.

Ray Walters on the other hand has rather consistently voted in support of bills which weaken state restrictions and promote the growth of the alcohol industry. I don’t know whether he does so because he’s unaware of the negative effects of these policies, because he’s misguided, or if he just doesn’t care that much about the public wellbeing. But what I do know is that I aware of the problem and am committed to promoting policies to increase prevention efforts, expand reform and treatment efforts, increase restrictions on the alcohol industry, and ending state support for the alcohol industry.

I support improving public health and safety, improving the quality of education, making college more affordable, undertaking fiscal reforms to lower the burden of property taxes, passing the child victims act, advancing holistic economic policies, improving ballot access laws, and establishing stronger ethics laws.

4. New York has the seventh highest amount of total DUI arrests and the fifth highest rate of DUI arrests per 100,000 people. What kind of legislation would you push for to tackle this?

In terms of direct response, the state should strengthen its efforts against drunk driving. I support assemblymen Ortiz’s bill to lower the blood alcohol limit for DWIs. I would also support the passage of a strong ignition interlock law. We must also up prevention efforts to discourage drunk driving. But the problem of drunk riving is part of the larger problem of alcohol in the state.

I would suspect the state’s weakening of restrictions on the alcohol industry, and the use of state agencies and funding to promote the growth of the alcohol industry at least plays a partial role in the growing problem of drunk driving in the state. We should end all state support for the alcohol industry, end all special tax breaks for the alcohol industry, and restore state restrictions to a level as strong or stronger than they were ten years ago. We must increase support for education and prevention efforts; including educating the public on the benefits of teetotalism. We must also increase support for reformatory efforts and addiction treatment. By working to reduce drinking in general, we will help to reduce the likelihood of drunk driving.

5. New York has a high illiteracy problem especially in New York City where 18% of its total residents are illiterate and in places like Queens, the Bronx, and Brooklyn over 24 percent of the residents are illiterate. What would you do in the assembly to alleviate the problem?

As someone from the western part of New York, I am not very intimately familiar with the school systems of New York City and their practices. So, the first step would be to study the matter. It would b important to consult teachers, parents groups, administrators, scholars of literacy, and the like, to get a sense of how they are currently doing things, what obstacles are being faced, what could be done to improve things, and what could be one in terms of state policies to help. Then the next key step would be to talk with other legislators, especially on the education committee, try to produce some consensus, and work to produce and pass bills to help on the matter.

6. Another education problem in New York as with the rest of the nation is the rising cost of higher education and the inability to pay back student loans. From 2006 to 2015 student loan debt rose 112% to $82 billion with the total amount of borrowers rising by 41% to 2.8 million people. Do you support the idea of raising taxes to have "free college" tuition?

Yes, I support working to help make college more affordable, and I believe the state should work towards a system where all students in New York have a reasonable opportunity to attain a debt free education any of our stat’s public and private non-profit colleges, universities, and vocational schools.

Governor Cuomo has misleadingly portrayed his Excellsior program as bringing about tuition free college for the average student. While it does provide some additional aid to some students at some colleges, most students do not receive any addition financial aid from it. In terms of near term steps to help improve college funding, I support expanding the states Tuition Assistance Program in terms of eligibility range and amount of assistance provided. I support improving financial aid for part time students and increase support for work training programs. And I would encourage the state to begin setting up long term plans for creating a system where all students in New York have a reasonable opportunity at attaining a debt free tertiary education.

Now granted such changes may incur initial costs, but thy would benefit the state in the long run. Such benefits would include the general increase in lifetime income that a tertiary education tends to provide, a more skilled population to fill high skilled jobs and attract new businesses, the increased ability to of young adults to spend their money in ways that stimulate the economy instead of debt payments, and the increased revenue from this increased economic prosparity which could be used to recuperate the costs.

7. In the past property taxes had been raised to finance the state budget causing some people to pay more in property taxes than in income taxes. How would you reform the tax system in New York?

I support reforming the tax system in New York to help reduce the burden of property taxes. One major factor driving the state’s high property taxes is the fact that the state requires local governments to pay for a significant portion of the state’s expenses (from what I’ve read over 15% of the state’s budget). This forces localities to raise property taxes to cover the costs. I would encourage the state to take more responsibility to pay for its own expenses, through its revenue, and try to get the local contribution level to 10% or less. One step which could be done, and which seems to have some significant support, would be to have the state take full responsibility for paying for its share of Medicaid.

I also contend that the state tax system should be reformed to remove the special tax breaks that politicians created to reward their big donors. The state should also work to reduce wasteful spending. For instance, the state gave S525,000 to help fund a expansion to their facility. While their are people losing their homes and lands to property taxes, while there are schools and other services that are getting underfunded, the state decided to give money to an industry whose products poison and kill New Yorkers. This needs to change.

8. Currently 23 percent of New York's electric power today comes from a variety of renewable sources, chiefly hydroelectric with significant contributions from wind, biomass and, increasingly, solar resources. Can you give us your opinions on renewable energy? Also would you support bills that would incentivise the growth of renewable energy?

It is important that our society work towards advancing the development of renewable energy. Eventually the planets fossil fuel supplies are going to run out and in the meantime, there are environment costs to using them. It is in our long-term interest that renewable energy sources be sufficiently developed and established within New York. I would support policies which would encourage the development of renewable energy, while aiming to make sure that such efforts are well balanced with our economic interests, energy needs, and environmental interests.

9. Recently it has been questioned whether or not the Supreme Court would overturn Roe vs. Wade. The overturning would not affect New York as abortion has been legal there since 1970. Can you tell us where you stand on the issue of abortion?

I would say that like many people I am more of a moderate on the issue. I would say that is important for our culture to take steps to work to avoid unwanted pregnancies before it gets to that point. I am against the practice of selective abortion: that is, the use of abortion as tool by eugenicists to try to eliminate groups they consider inferior or socially inconvenient.

10. There has been numerous corruption cases and convictions involving associates and members of Andrew Cuomo's administration with the most recent being the Buffalo Billions. Cuomo has also wagged the dog numerous times such as his announcements on legalizing marijuana and opposing Kavanaugh. Can you tell us your opinions on Cuomo?

I am generally opposed to Governor Cuomo. I believe in giving credit to officials when I find them to be doing what’s right and in criticizing them when I find them something that’s wrong. But, in my opinion, he has done a poor job as governor and should be replaced with someone who is more inclined to act in favor of the wellbeing of New Yorkers.

Governor Cuomo is perhaps the worst governor on alcohol issues since Herbert Lehman. His administration and its coconspirators in the state legislature have significantly weakened state restrictions on the alcohol industry, and have used state agencies and state funding to promote the growth of the alcohol industry. In doing so has undermined the health, safety, and wellbeing of New Yorkers.

The Cuomo administration has seen some significant corruption. As the string of indictments on high profile state officials has shown. His economic development programs have tended to have rather mediocre results. He has failed to undertake significant and needed reforms for important matters such as education and property taxes.

While I do not know what he thinks internally, his outward actions as governor have given me the impression that he lacks any political principal, besides advancing his own career.

In regards to Cuomo’s recent misguided decision to support legalizing marijuana, it is a terrible decision. First off, it has been reported that Cuomo ordered the state commission to produce a report supportive of legalization. That report is a farce and an act of politically motivated deception. Like legalizing alcohol, legalizing recreational marijuana is a terrible idea. It will allow greedy corporations to profit of selling a harmful substance (and yes, despite what the pro-drug propagandists say, it is detrimental to mental and physical health), remove many protections for the public against it, allow for its open promotion, and for corporations to promote a culture of drug use. It will, as it has other states that made the mistake of legalizing it, led to more addiction, more drugged driving, more youth drug use, and foster more drug induced criminal activity. It will allow drug companies to buy off politicians and undermine public efforts to address drug problems, as the alcohol companies currently do. There is a better alternative: keep marijuana prohibited, ban its production and sale, and use preventive, reformatory, and rehabilitative efforts to help reduce and eliminate its use. That would help to improve public health, reduce crime, reduce incarceration, and improve the general quality of life for our state.

11. Most people would incorrectly claim that the Prohibition party is a single-issue party like the Right To Life or Stop Common Core parties. Can you state some of the Prohibition party's stances on other issues?

Well you find the national Prohibition Party’s stances on a variety of issues in 2016 national platform. https://www.prohibitionparty.org/platform

You can also find the Prohibition Party of New York’s position on various state issues on the issue section of the Prohibition Party of New York website. https://newyorkprohibition.wixsite.com/new-york-prohibition/issues

The national Prohibition Party platform includes the following positions: a general opposition to all recreational drugs, opposition to gambling, a foreign policy centered on protecting American independence and security, support for fair and reciprocal international trade which protects the economic interests of American workers, replacing the federal reserve system with a national bank, banning predatory lending practices, support for the second amendment, support for ability of all workers to decide whether or not they wish to associate with a union, encouraging states to establish systems to provide free college education to all qualified citizens, promoting energy independence, promoting the development of green energy, protecting the environment, among other things.

Besides the stuff in the national platform The Prohibition Party of New York’s issues include: passing stronger state ethics laws for public officials, supporting passage of the Child Victims Act and ultimately abolishing the statute of limitations for rape and the sexual abuse of children, encouraging the state to reform its fiscal system to reduce property taxes, reducing the burden of state mandates on local governments, support for reforming state economic development programs so that they are more effective and more conducive to the needs and wellbeing of communities, revitalizing the state’s infrastructure, and improving the state’s ballot access laws.

Makeley Links:

• Campaign website: https://mrhistory956.wixsite.com/makeley-for-new-york
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Makeley-For-Assembly-605969106421059/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/MakeleyAssembly

This was originally posted on July 16, 2018