Election years have a way of revealing uncomfortable truths about politics.
Positions that were once “impossible” suddenly become popular. Policies long dismissed are abruptly embraced. Voters are told, “I’ve always supported this,” even when the record shows otherwise. For many New Yorkers, this pattern has become all too familiar — and deeply frustrating.
When Kathy Hochul recently reversed course to support “no tax on tips” after previously opposing the idea, it reignited a broader concern that goes far beyond one policy or one official. It exposed a system where power often matters more than principles.
The problem with career politics
Career politicians are not inherently bad people. But they operate inside a system that rewards one thing above all else: staying in office.
That reality creates predictable behavior:
- Positions shift when polls shift
- Tough decisions are delayed until after elections
- Popular ideas are embraced only when backlash becomes unavoidable
- Messaging is calibrated for votes, not honesty
Over time, governance becomes reactive rather than principled. Leadership becomes transactional. And voters are left wondering whether decisions are being made for the public good — or for political survival.
This is how trust erodes.
When representation feels like performance
Most New Yorkers do not expect perfection from their leaders. But they do expect consistency, transparency, and accountability.
What angers voters is not simply a policy change — it is the absence of honesty about why that change happened. Was new information discovered? Did circumstances evolve? Or did the political math change?
When leaders fail to explain themselves, people reasonably conclude that:
If the politics hadn’t shifted, the position wouldn’t have either.
That is when governance starts to feel less like representation and more like performance.
Why this does not apply to me
I am not a career politician. I am a career accountant.
That distinction matters.
In accounting, there is no room for spin. The numbers must reconcile. The facts must line up. You do not get to change the outcome because it is inconvenient — you explain it, own it, and fix it.
That mindset is exactly what New York government has been missing.
I do not view public office as a prize to be protected. I view it as a responsibility to be honored. I do not rely on political consultants to tell me what I believe. And I do not measure success by how long I hold power, but by whether people’s lives actually improve.
Putting people before politics
New Yorkers are tired of being managed. They want to be respected.
They want leaders who:
- Say what they mean — even when it is unpopular
- Explain hard truths instead of avoiding them
- Make decisions based on facts, not fear
- Govern with integrity, not desperation
Putting people first means governing with principles before polls. It means doing what is right even when there is no immediate political reward. And it means trusting voters enough to tell them the truth.
Disrupting the status quo
The status quo in Albany is not broken because of one party or one person. It is broken because too many leaders have accepted a system where power is the goal, not progress.
I am running for governor to change that.
New York does not need another politician skilled at surviving elections. It needs a leader willing to disrupt a culture that values reelection over results.
Principles should not be seasonal.
Leadership should not be conditional.
And power should never come before the people.
If New Yorkers choose to elect me, they won’t be getting a career politician learning how to govern — they will be getting a professional who already knows how to lead with accountability, discipline, and integrity.
That is the difference.
That is the disruption.
And that is the future New York deserves.