Democratic state committee member Matthew Silverstein dropped out of the race for his party’s nomination in the 19th Council District race last weekend.

Silverstein, a resident of Bay Terrace, was seeking the Democratic nod to take on Councilman Dan Halloran (R-Whitestone).

Call it the story of a local boy trying to do well for his hometown.

A familiar face to the corridors of power, Bayside native Austin Shafran kicked off his run for the City Council’s 19th District on Feb. 19, touting years spent working within the bounds of the political system, at the local, state and federal levels.

The Democratic primary for the 19th Council District was rather crowded four years ago. The field is thinner this year, but a familiar face from 2009 with a well-known last name entered the fray this month: Paul Vallone.

The attorney, son of former Council Speaker Peter Vallone and brother to borough president candidate and Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. (D-Astoria), unabashedly wears his political heritage on his sleeve.

For many Queens residents, 2012 will be forever married to Superstorm Sandy and the havoc she wrought. For good or ill, North Queens was spared the brunt of the storm.

A sizeable number of downed trees and power outages hit the area, but most counted their luck. Compared to the borough’s southern edge, Sandy was forgiving to Flushing and its satellite neighborhoods.

Dear Editor:

The one thing made crystal clear in the days since Hurricane Sandy hit is now is the time to rebuild New York City’s infrastructure. As a candidate for New York City Council (19th CD) in 2013, I feel this issue must be put front and center.

The images of flooded subway tunnels, downed power lines, major hospitals being evacuated and destruction of homes are overwhelming. We must all come together and develop a comprehensive plan to rebuild our great city. Whether it’s building storm doors for our tunnels, metal gates that will seal entrances to subway stations, creating levees, or moving all power lines underground, all options must be put on the table.

With a 9.3 percent unemployment rate in October 2012, rebuilding our aging and outdated infrastructure is the perfect way to put New Yorkers back to work. Historically, every time the United States economically struggled we built infrastructure like the Erie Canal & Transcontinental Railroad in

the 1800s, or the Interstate Highway System in the 1950s. These projects helped our economy recover. I am confident rebuilding the city’s infrastructure will secure and protect our city and do the same for today’s economy. Yes, the cost will be high and these projects will take a long time. We must find a way to move these projects forward. Our future depends on it. When elected to the New York City Council next year, I will be a strong advocate in the City Council for these projects. I know that together we will make a difference!

A candidate for the City Council seat currently held by congressional-candidate Dan Halloran (R-Whitestone) slammed the councilman last week for scheduling a fundraiser for a major Jewish holiday.

Halloran, who is running for the 6th Congressional District against Assemblywoman Grace Meng (D-Flushing), had a fundraiser on Tuesday, Sept. 25 at the Safari Beach Club on Bell Boulevard in Bayside from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m.

A candidate for the City Council seat currently held by congressional candidate Dan Halloran (R-Whitestone) slammed the councilman last week for scheduling a fundraiser for a major Jewish holiday.

Dear Editor:

In the Aug. 9 issue, Democratic City Council candidate Matthew Silverstein stated that if elected he “would fight every day to block companies such as Walmart from entering our community” (“Not if I’m elected,” Letters). His argument is that Walmart is anti-union, pays low wages and benefits and would kill off mom-and-pop stores.

Let’s have a reality check. Walmart is popular because it offers a wide selection of goods at low prices. If companies like Walmart are prohibited from operating in the city, the effect would be a tax on the poor and middle-class people Mr. Silverstein claims to represent. People would have to pay higher prices at existing stores, making it harder to stretch the money they have.

No one is forced to work at Walmart. Liberals like Mr. Silverstein would rather see people unemployed than work at Walmart. Let the workers make that choice. Also, Walmart’s competition is mainly other large stores, not mom-and-pop stores. It should be pointed out that mom-and-pop stores usually offer low pay and little or no benefits. Why not complain about them?

Is the city’s unemployment rate so low that we could afford to turn away potential employers?

Mr. Silverstein should realize that if elected he would represent all the people and not just the unions.

Dear Editor:

Last week I opened the New York Post and read an article about the possibility of Walmart opening a store in the newly proposed Willets West development. Republican New York City Councilman Dan Halloran said that Walmart would be a welcome addition to Queens. He said “Generally, advertised prices on groceries and other consumer products at Walmart are below retail prices in other stores.”

I completely disagree with Councilman Halloran. Walmart is not a welcome addition to Queens and New York City. Walmart has a history of being anti-union, and their low wages and employee benefits are concerning. Their discounted prices are achieved on the backs of their employees. Big box stores need to pay their employees a living wage and offer comprehensive benefits to them and their families. We should not sacrifice our mom-and-pop stores, the backbone of our community, in order to accommodate big box stores such as Walmart and Target. We need to be encouraging manufacturing jobs to return to the United States. Companies like Walmart have only helped to ship those jobs overseas.

It is time for the 19th Council District to have a council member who is in touch with middle-class voters. The economic damage that Walmart would have on small businesses is completely unacceptable. If elected to the City Council I would fight every day to block companies such as Walmart from entering our community.

Two new but not unexpected Democratic candidates have announced they will run for office in northern Queens.

Yen Chou declared last week that she is seeking the hotly contested 40th District Assembly seat. Matthew Silverstein said he is running for Dan Halloran’s 19th District City Council seat. Both had previously indicated their intent to run.

Matthew Silverstein, the Democratic state committeeman from Bayside who reportedly turned down a run in his party’s crowded primary for the new 6th Congressional District, revealed today that he has his eyes on a more local prize: Dan Halloran’s City Council seat.

Silverstein announced the creation of an exploratory committee for a run next year for the 19th District seat. Its first event will be a May 2 fundraiser in Manhattan.

Matthew Silverstein, the Democratic state committeeman from Bayside who reportedly turned down a run in his party's crowded primary for the new 6th Congressional District, revealed today that he has his eyes on a more local prize: Dan Halloran's City Council seat.

Distraught over a dark secret from his past being revealed by the media, longtime political functionary and retired teacher Jeff Gottlieb of Flushing quit the race for the 6th Congressional seat today.

The four-way Democratic primary for the new 6th Congressional District got a little more interesting over the weekend, when the New York Post reported that one of the candidates set his own home on fire 40 years ago.

The Queens Democratic leadership appears to be pulling out all the stops to ensure that Flushing Assemblywoman Grace Meng will be the party’s nominee for the newly redrawn 6th Congressional District this fall.

But the latest maneuver is infuriating to many of the rank and file and, above all, one lawmaker faithful to the party who’s been in office for nearly six years, Assemblyman Rory Lancman of Fresh Meadows.

The announcement over the weekend that Jeff Gottlieb, who is Jewish, has entered the Democratic primary race for the 6th Congressional District had drawn outrage from the other Jewish candidate, Assemblyman Rory Lancman, over tactics by the county Democratic Party and another of his opponents.

Lancman discussed what he called the “complete sham candidacy” of Gottlieb on Monday, adding: “It’s an outrageous and cynical tactic. And I think it will backfire badly.”

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Tony the Tiger

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   Lies and land grabs

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AEDs save lives

When the county Democratic Party endorses a candidate for the 26th Assembly District race later this month, one factor under consideration will be how well that person’s ideals match those of Tony Avella.

Citing his energy and passion as setting him apart, Ed Braunstein announced on Saturday he is running in a crowded race for the 26th Assembly seat being vacated by Democrat Ann Carrozza.