2016 Election Preview: 4th Congressional District

Freshman Democratic Congresswoman Kathleen Rice is being challenged for her seat as the representative of the 4th Congressional District by Republican newcomer David “Bull” Gurfein.

Rice was first elected in 2014, replacing longtime Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy, who stepped down. Before her election to Congress, Rice spent nine years as the Nassau County District Attorney.

Gurfein, the president of a health and wellness business, is also a Marine Corps veteran who served 25 years. He served in the first Gulf War, Afghanistan, Iraq, Panama, Korea and Africa.

The 4th Congressional District encompasses Atlantic Beach, Baldwin, Bellmore, East Rockaway, East Meadow, the Five Towns, Floral Park, Franklin Square, Freeport, Garden City, Hempstead, Long Beach, Lynbrook, Malverne, Merrick, Mineola, Carle Place, New Hyde Park, Oceanside, Rockville Centre, Roosevelt, Uniondale, Valley Stream, Wantagh, West Hempstead and Westbury.

Kathleen Rice (Democrat, Women’s Equality)
Age: 51
Hometown: Garden City

David “Bull” Gurfein (Republican, Conservative, Independence, Reform, Tax Revolt)
Age: 51
Hometown: Manhasset

Patch: What do you think is the most important issue facing the 4th Congressional District, and what will you do to combat it?

Kathleen Rice: I think the most important issues in our district, and really throughout the country, have to do with security – keeping our country safe, preventing gun violence in our communities, ensuring that Long Island families have real economic security and retirement security.
And in our district specifically, one of the most important issues is that too many Sandy survivors are still fighting to get back in their homes almost four years later. That’s unacceptable, and it’s been a priority for my office to help people cut through the red tape to get the resources they need to rebuild, to prevent FEMA from clawing back money from people who were overpaid through no fault of their own, to help secure federal funding for our communities to rebuild and make our infrastructure more resilient, to reform the National Flood Insurance Program in order to increase transparency and accountability and prevent the kind of fraudulent activity and systematic underpayments that we’ve seen in the aftermath of Sandy. And we can’t talk about Sandy recovery without talking about climate change. We have to prepare for the effects of climate change by continuing to make our shoreline and infrastructure more resilient, and we need to take aggressive action to combat climate change by transitioning away from fossil fuels and expanding our investments in clean energy.

David Gurfein: Security. I talk to constituents throughout the 4th Congressional District every day, and they are concerned about National Security, and rightfully so.
Our federal government’s primary responsibility is national defense, yet our current policy of continual defense-and-deterrence is ineffective and has no end state.
Our enemies continue to get stronger and will improvise, adapt and overcome, while our government continues to restrict our civil liberties and encroach upon our privacy in the name of security. As our Founding Fathers pointed out, those who are willing to sacrifice freedom for security deserve neither.
At the state and local levels, we must support our law enforcement, who have incredibly tough jobs and who do an outstanding job protecting our freedoms and way of life on a daily basis.
At the federal level, we need to align with our allies and with the majority of moderate Muslims throughout the world to destroy ISIS and the more than 100 violent Islamist supremacist organizations in the world, just as we did the Nazis in World War II. This would not only eliminate the present threat to our society, but would also send an unambiguous message to others who might intend to follow suit that they are heading down a dead-end path. This is truly the only viable option.

Patch: The national election has been extremely divisive this year. If you are elected, what will you do to help heal the divide in America?

Rice: There’s no question that there are serious divisions in our country, and we’re not going to be able to come together to take on the big problems ahead of us unless we make it an immediate priority to start healing those divisions. I think that too often, politicians encourage and exacerbate and deepen those divisions – that’s been the case not only in this election, but over the past several years in Congress. It’s the thing I find most frustrating about Washington – when a problem comes up, instead of trying to solve it in a bipartisan way, the first reaction is usually to point fingers, blame the other side, make them out to be the enemy. I went to Congress determined to do things differently, lead by example, and show that I’ll work with anyone from either party who wants to solve problems for the people we serve. I believe that kind of approach is the only way to start healing the divisions in our country and moving past the constant partisan gridlock.

Gurfein: I am incredibly disturbed by the divisiveness that is growing within our country, fomented by those who sadly stand to gain by dividing us by whatever categorization suits their purposes.
We can only stand strong as a nation if we work together.
I learned at an early age that one person can make a difference: from leading the effort to change my high school’s mascot from the Confederate Rebel to the American Patriot Rebel to pulling down posters of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, helping change the tone of the conflict to one of liberation.
I swore an oath to support and defend, and with great pride went in harm’s way more than once on behalf of something larger than myself. It was an ideal: one America. It was not a “White America,” a “Black America,” a “Hispanic America,” nor an “Asian America.” Not an America that segregates, nor discriminates, and not an America that preached intolerance.
It was one inclusive America, consistently endeavoring toward equality and justice for all. One America believing in life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for each and every American.
Please continue reading about my vision of one America on my website.

Patch: What makes you the best person for this position?

Rice: As a prosecutor, I always had to maintain real political independence, build partnerships with people from both parties, and work together to take on big problems. That’s the same approach I take in Congress. I didn’t go to Washington to be one more partisan politician. I went there to be an independent, effective advocate for our district, break through the gridlock and get things done. We have real challenges to overcome in the years ahead, and in order to overcome those challenges, we need leaders in Congress who can bring people together, find common ground and solve problems in a bipartisan way. That’s what I’ve done throughout my career, and that’s what I’ll continue doing as long as I have the honor of representing our district in Congress.

Gurfein: We must remember that the primary focus of our national government is defense; secondary to that is large-scale economic and trade issues.
I’m in a unique position based on my experience serving 25 years in the United States Marine Corps, both internationally and on Capitol Hill, having earned a Masters in Business Administration from Harvard, and having run businesses.
As an Infantry Officer, I served overseas in Panama, in the first Gulf War, Afghanistan and again in Iraq. Politicians have read intelligence memos, but I have been there, fighting alongside locals, negotiating with tribal leaders. Most importantly, I know where successes have been won and mistakes have been made.
I spent time with the Special Operations Command as a congressional liaison, escorting our elected representatives to conflict zones to see the situation on the ground, and sadly, I have seen firsthand how many in Congress put party loyalty above national interest because they don’t have the background or experience to truly understand the implications.
I am also a Harvard Business School graduate, with experience in how business operates and how government often gets in the way of business, especially small business, which is the economic blood of our nation.

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