"As the facts in the low income housing project slated for East Northport become clear, it is obvious that Gary Ackerman (D - Queens) has put the priorities of his liberal supporters ahead of the needs and concerns of the people he represents," declared Grant Lally. "Gary Ackerman is nothing more than a pawn of Housing Help Inc. and the Federal Department of Housing and Urban Development. He does not represent us at all."
Questions abound with Ackerman's dealings with Housing Help Inc. Although Ackerman claims to have played "devil's advocate" with Housing Help Inc. and A Better Community Civic Association of East Northport, facts prove otherwise.
| "It was announced that Housing Help would honor Mr.Ackerman at it's upcoming fundraiser." -The Observer, March 7, 1996 |
| "We originally asked Gary Ackerman to make sure Housing Help was talking with us. In the end, He wasn't doing that. He was talking for Housing Help. And we felt like we were being strong-armed." -Ginny Volpe, -The Record, March 14, 1996 |
Gary Ackerman also shares a special relationship with the Federal Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Ackerman has voted to fund the Department of Housing and Urban Development 11 times since he became a Member of Congress. Those bills Ackerman voted for totaled $779,262,786,183 of governmental spending. Ackerman voted against the 1996 VA - HUD Appropriations bill (HR 2099) because it cut 10.5 billion from the HUD budget. 12 million dollars of the 20 million dollar Matinecock Court project comes from the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Ackerman blindly called his "limited equity" scam a "huge victory" for East Northport even when it became evident that the only winner would be Gary Ackerman's cronies at HUD and Housing Help Inc.
"The Huntington Town Board, which gave its blessing to a controversial East Northport affordable - housing development, last night withdrew its support for the project." -Newsday, March 13, 1996
"As the facts behind Matinecock Court become clear, it is evident that Gary Ackerman, Housing Help Inc., and the Department of Housing and Urban Development are strong-arming themselves onto East Northport," concludes Lally. "Ackerman should move into our Congressional district to understand that such heavy handed tactics simply do not work here. Any rhetoric to the contrary is simply a smokescreen by Ackerman that cannot hide the fact, that, after eighteen years of siding with liberal social welfare special interests over his constituents, it's time to retire Gary Ackerman."