 |
| Legislator-Elect Chad Lennon File Photo |
In an exclusive interview with Lennon this week, the 6th District Legislator-Elect talked about his campaign and plans once he takes the helm on January 2nd. Lennon, a Major in the Marine Corps Reserves and an attorney in private practice with a specialty in military and veterans law, said he will "scale back" duties in the law practice to focus on his Legislative jobs and responsibilities. Lennon, who is also a part-time Congressional aide for Nick LaLota, will leave this position.
Along the campaign trail, Lennon said he believes it was his message that resonated with voters that ultimately led to his victory 'The two biggest issues that I saw and heard about from constituents were public safety and affordable," Lennon noted. To that end, Lennon reported that he will work with his colleagues to suspend the energy tax. "We have to make sure we can make this county affordable," Lennon said, adding, "we will also have to advocate to the federal and state governments to create an affordable environment because the high cost of living is creating a burden on people."
As for the location of the 6th Legislative Office, Lennon said he is ironing the details out as to whether he will retain Anker's current office or settle into a new location. "I'll immediately be working to find a location and also on staffing, as well as reaching out to the community and hearing their ideas so on January 2nd we can hit the ground running," Lennon said.
Once in office, Lennon said he is looking ahead to working with County Executive-elect Ed Romaine on getting Suffolk County's fiscal house in order. "Mr. Romaine and I see eye to eye to get this County's fiscal health to improve; it's been getting better over the past few years but we're nowhere near where we have to be," Lennon said.
Another hot button issue Lennon said he will work to address is the unvetted migrant situation: "It's a huge concern first from a public safety standpoint, (we had 200 terrorists who were captured at the border), and these are only the ones we know about," Lennon explained. The issues of drug, sex and human trafficking are what Lennon says would be overwhelming for Suffolk's infrastructure to support. "And it's not just Hispanics-it's Chinese and Afghans who come in and are also creating a financial burden on the education in our schools," Lennon added. With an attorney working in conjunction with the city and state, Lennon said Suffolk County is "pushing back where we will be notified if immigrants are going to be bussed in." To effectively address this particular issue, Lennon explained: "We're paying for positions (in the County budget) that have not been filled; we can put people back in these positions in a way that will pose no further burden on Suffolk County's taxpayers," Lennon said.
Speaking to his election night victory, Lennon, a Rocky Point resident, thanked his wife and two children for their support, and the voters who propelled him to the Legislative seat. "Now," Lennon said, "I want to do the job for the people of the 6th Legislative District and Suffolk County, and communication is going to be crucial."