Nick Langworthy
Acceptance Speech July 1, 2019
#newyorkgop
#newyorkcomeback
We are gathered in our State's Capital, where taxpayers are ignored and corruption runs unchecked. Liberal radicals have taken hold of Albany and with every stroke of the pen are making government bigger, taxes higher, and favoring rule breakers over hard working families.
Drunk on power from one party Democratic rule, Andrew Cuomo and his radical liberals have chased away transformational economic opportunities, legalized 9-month abortion, and given driver's licenses to illegal immigrants.
In the same breath, these Liberals are driving away hard-working, lifelong New Yorkers, to states like Florida, South Carolina and Tennessee.
Rather than deal with the real, kitchen table issues affecting everyday life in this state, these new socialists have chosen to ram through their own radical agenda.
Andrew Cuomo has done nothing to cut our wicked tax burden; The highest in the Nation;
He has done nothing to end the rife corruption that clouds his administration - in fact, he's been complicit in it.
He's done nothing to stem the tide of people leaving New York for opportunity elsewhere; except to blame the weather.
Nothing to bring jobs to a state that lags behind the nation in private sector job growth.
And no talk about how to make it easier for the middle class to live, work and raise a family in New York State.
While the Trump economy is breaking records across this nation, we, in the President's home state are left behind because of the corrupt, socialist agenda permeating the Democrat party in New York.
And while we're talking about a socialist agenda, let me be clear, I and the Republican Party of New York condemn the antisemitic rhetoric of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar. We stand in support of Israel, and will fight for the safety and security of our Jewish neighbors across this nation.
The radicals on the left are going down a dangerous path to rewrite history. First they came after Christopher Columbus. Then they tried to whitewash the worst attack on our nation as "just some people who did something" and now they are trying to minimize the murder of 6 million Jews in concentration camps.
The silence of the so called "tolerant" Democrats, refusing to stand for what is right is deafening.
And make no mistake, AOC's Democratic stardom is no flash in the pan. She proved it just last week by throwing her support behind Tiffany Caban, the Democrats' nominee for Queens District Attorney.
The Democrats nominated a chief law enforcement officer who doesn't want to enforce the law and credited her win to the inmates in Rikers!
Today's Democratic Party is being controlled by the extremists, and last week's Democratic presidential debates confirmed it.
And in Albany, rather than help struggling New Yorkers, radical socialists in our State Assembly and Senate passed the Criminal Bill Of Rights. Geriatric Parole releasing hard criminals at 55, Pardoning Cop Killers, Pedophiles and Rapists to give them their right to vote, and rewarding illegal immigrants with drivers licenses. In Cuomo's Democrat Party, Criminals come first, Taxpayers come last.
As Republicans we stand with our law enforcement behind the thin blue line, we do not spit on it. The men and women who put their lives on the line each and every day deserve our respect and we will stand with them now and always.
The taxpayers of this state deserve a Republican Party that will stand up, and fight to put their needs first. We have comeback from the bottom before and now we will do it again.
In the 1990 election in New York, our Republican nominee for Governor received 22% of the statewide vote. So dire was our performance that pundits put the New York State Republican Party on a death watch.
Three Years later we elected a Republican Mayor of New York City and kept control of city hall for 20 straight years.
Then in 1994 we elected a Republican Governor George Pataki, fired a Governor named Cuomo, and protected taxpayers from the Governor's office for 12 years.
To those who proclaim that our Party is about to draw its final breath, you are dead wrong.
I say that a new dawn has come to New York. Our day is here. A new generation of leadership is reporting for duty.
Starting today we will rebuild, retool, and revitalize the Republican Party in the State of New York.
That work begins here. That work begins now - with each of you in this room today.
There are those that have said Nick, how are you going to succeed when the professional liberal class of attack dogs and the media are going to come after you? Ladies and gentlemen, if we've learned one thing from President Trump it is that we have to be tough enough to fight back and be aggressive. We are done playing paddy cake in the Republican Party in the State of New York.
And in 2020 we will make sure that President Donald J. Trump gets the support he deserves from his home state. I am proud to support our President, as he has delivered economic success to our country that we have not seen in over a century. Record low unemployment for all Americans and every ethnic segment. And a stock market that has had incredible growth on his watch. Can you imagine what our President would have gotten done if he hadn't been met with the hostility he has every single day by the press and the Democrats in Congress! Our President has Made America Great Again and the NYGOP will help him to Keep America Great!
Don't let them fool you… Our future looks bright. We have a path to victory and our first step is to take a cold hard look at our past.
New York City casts one third of the vote in a statewide election. The math does not add up if our candidates are getting less than 20% of the vote in the 5 boroughs. You know this. I know this – and that is why We will take this Party to places in this state that have not seen a Republican candidate in years. We will run a candidate for every single New York seat in Congress in 2020.
And I want our party to stand boldly with Congresswoman Elise Stefanik to expand her vision of electing real, Republican, change making women-leaders to office. We will go county by county. Town by Town. From the grassroots up, we will recruit and elect women at every level of government.
Congresswoman Stefanik has recruited over 170 women to run for office, including some of this years incredible candidates here today:
Chele Farley in New York's 18th District;
Liz Joy in New York's 20th District;
Nicole Malliotakis in New York's 11th District who will take back Staten Island and Brooklyn.
And I would be remiss to leave out Erie's very own Lynne Dixon running for County Executive. She is the first woman ever to run for Erie County Executive and we very proud. She has a strong example in Cheryl Dinolfo, who is keeping Monroe strong.
It's leaders like these who make the real difference, and keep our party grounded.
Voters expect more from us than platitudes and slogans. We need to listen to the single moms in the suburbs who are juggling family, school, children and a full-time job. We need to listen better to those who waited their turn, abided by the rules and came to New York in search of a better life in this country of opportunity. The Republicans in New York are the Taxpayer's Party, and we are fighting to protect the American Dream.
But as we are sitting here today, the American Dream is slipping away from too many New Yorkers. Property taxes are driving people out of their homes, fueling the exodus from New York to states that tax less. We have the worst business climate in the nation. We will soon have the highest bridge and tunnel tolls in America.
The mass transit system in New York City is crumbling, and it costs twice as much to build a mile of subway tunnel in New York than any other nation on earth. A record number of public schools in New York are coming up short in the way they teach kids how to read, write, add and subtract.
For the second year in a row, New York City has lost population. In the last eight years, 1.2 million people, taxpayers, have left this state.
The tax-and-spend liberal majority had their shot to fix this. They robbed desperate families their school of choice. Instead of cutting taxes and fees, they raised them. Instead of encouraging the construction of new housing, they made it harder to build.
Now contrast that to the fact that it is now easier for an illegal immigrant to get a driver's license in New York than a law abiding citizen. And it's easier for the illegal immigrants to send their children to college than it is for a disabled army veteran or the daughter of a tax-paying factory worker in Syracuse.
This war for hearts and minds is about priorities – and let me make it clear today, that it is the duty of every elected Republican from Niagara Falls to Montauk to put Taxpayers First.
I say this with confidence because we are on the right side of history. The right thing isn't easy, but nothing worth doing ever is. We have done it before, and we know how to do it again. Millions of New Yorkers believe in our cause and the principles on which we stand.
We know that socialism doesn't work, and never will. I have never been more proud of our President Donald Trump than when IN his state of the union address he proudly declared that America will never be a socialist country.
The people flourish not when government takes more of their money, but when government taxes less. That economic growth comes not from regulations written by bureaucrats, but by the free marketplace that rewards innovation and the entrepreneurial spirit.
I am confident that we can do it because we have done it. Nine years ago, I was elected Chairman of the Erie County Republican Committee in bleak times. We assembled a brave band of true believers to revive a Party that had fallen on its knees. We went to the grass roots of our Party and we listened. We walked the streets, knocked on doors, and asked the taxpayers what they needed. We recruited great candidates, provided them manpower, and gave the voters a clear message and a clear choice.
Erie County has twice as many Democrats as Republicans – but the fact is, they are all taxpayers. Despite our 2:1 Democratic enrollment disadvantage, we have won 8 of the last 10 county-wide elections. We've proven that when you listen, learn and work to solve real problems the voters respond.
I am confident about our future because millions of New Yorkers believe in our cause and the principles we are here to defend.
We must send a message to voters of all affiliations that we are a Party that they are welcome to belong to if they believe in common sense.
If you believe that New York should open its doors to jobs and opportunities for our families, then the Republican Party welcomes you.
If you believe that New York State spends too much money with no regard for the hardworking taxpayers that are actually paying the bills in this state, then the Republican Party welcomes you!
If you have questioned your future in this state, because taxes are just too high and we don't enjoy the freedoms that people in other states do, then the Republican Party welcomes you!
If you've felt alienated by the extreme, liberal agenda of New York State's one-party socialistic democrat regime, that worships at the alter of partial birth abortion, then the Republican Party welcomes you.
We believe that the United States is a sovereign nation, a nation of laws and secure borders. We believe that a sovereign nation has the right to control its own destiny. This is the land of opportunity, and we must reward those who follow the rules.
We believe that parents with children trapped in failing schools should have the choice to send their kids to a thriving charter school.
We believe the people of New York City deserve a fully functioning safe, modern and clean transit system where trains actually come and go on time so people can get to work.
We believe that people who are forced to live in public housing in New York City have a right to expect buildings where the heat comes on in the winter, the air conditioning works in the summer and hallways are free of punks and drug dealers.
We believe that our natural coalition is not confined to the small towns and countryside of upstate New York. That we are a party with natural appeal to our suburban and downstate neighbors, a party whose natural coalition includes like-minded Asian Americans, Hispanic Americans, African Americans, Caribbean Americans, people of all religions, the poor and the middle class, homeowners and renters, private sector employees and those who serve the public.
Our work begins today, and it starts with us in this room. We need to do a better job of listening. We need more dialogue. We need to do a better job of recruiting candidates, and providing them with the manpower they need to win elections. We must acknowledge that we cannot win statewide elections without first winning the hearts and minds of taxpayers of all political stripes, including Independents and Democrat.
The work of our party must not stop there. Victory will not be ours until we have built the infrastructure that we need to get our voters to the polls. We are long overdue for a Republican registration drive in New York, to narrow the gap of enrollment. We must develop our small donor network. We need to do a better job of supporting our county chairs with critical staff, data and technical support because they are the backbone of our party. We help will revitalize our county committees, support our republican leaders, and build the infrastructure to win a statewide election.
The mission of this Party and what I will focus on every day that I go to work as your State Chairman will be to defeat Andrew Cuomo and elect the next Republican Governor of New York in 2022. That is our mission.
This is our path to victory, and I will not rest until we have knocked on every door, rallied every voter, and delivered our taxpayer first message loud and clear.
I cannot do justice to thanking those that have made my election as Chairman possible or we would be here all night. You know who you are and I am eternally grateful for your friendship and loyalty. I do have to recognize a few.
First and foremost I thank God. God has made all of this possible.
I could not accept this without the love and support from my wife Erin and my 5 year old daughter Madeline.
Erin, my rock, my sounding board, my greatest political advisor, the greatest mother of our beautiful daughter Madeline Liberty. She is a woman of incredible toughness and patience and an incredibly sharp political operator in her own right. She is dedicated to this mission with me, and has been willing to endure countless nights without me being home to help out, and talking on the phone until all hours of the night.
Thank you Erin and Madeline. I love you.
