An Undistinguished Record as Fiscal ‘Houdini’ Defines the Incumbent
(Long Island, NY) Former Nassau County Comptroller Howard Weitzman welcomed Comptroller George Maragos to the Comptroller’s race following Maragos’s official campaign kick-off, his third such campaign kick-off in four years.
“After spending a year campaigning unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate as a darling of the far-right Tea Party, Maragos is launching his third campaign in the last four years,” said Weitzman. “While Nassau County’s residents are now accustomed to George Maragos launching a new campaign, it is time that the County has a full-time comptroller who will pay attention to the critical condition of the county’s finances. Maragos has spent more time courting the Tea Party across New York and playing fiscal ‘Houdini’ at home than doing the serious work that his office demands.”
George Maragos lost the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate last year after basing his campaign on aligning himself with the Tea Party. The unsuccessful hard-right campaign by Maragos prompted the editorial board of the New York Post to write:
“Still, Republicans could do a lot worse than nominating Turner — specifically, by picking Nassau County [sic] George Maragos, a stooge for county GOP boss Joe Mondello and a fellow guaranteed to embarrass himself and his party should he win Tuesday.” – New York Post, 6/22/2012
“The county comptroller’s office is in dire need of professional leadership to tackle the county’s tough financial problems, not more of the status quo where George Maragos spins deficits into surpluses with smoke and mirrors and creative accounting.”
About Howard Weitzman, CPA
In 2001, Howard Weitzman became the only CPA ever elected to the office of Nassau County Comptroller after a 30 year career as a healthcare financial executive. He was subsequently re-elected to a second term in 2005. During his eight years as Comptroller, Howard Weitzman played a central role in the financial rescue of Nassau County. Under Howard’s leadership, the office of Comptroller became a national model for transparency and accountability while at the same time developing a reputation for groundbreaking audits, independence and integrity. A graduate of Brooklyn Technical High School and Queens College, Howard is the former Mayor of Great Neck Estates, where he and his wife resided for 35 years and raised three children. He is currently a resident of North Hills.
