GOP Candidate Massey: De Blasio Is 'Corrupt,' Out Of Touch With Police
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Real estate businessman Paul Massey believes he is better suited to run the city than Mayor Bill de Blasio.
As CBS2's Hazel Sanchez reported, Massey, 57, laid out his plans to make the city safer on Monday.
Massey took to the steps of City Hall Monday, accepting the endorsement of the Rev. Michael Faulkner – the Republican candidate for comptroller – and then quickly took aim at Mayor Bill de Blasio.
"We've got a mayor who is corrupt," Massey said. "He has to go, and Michael and I are going to make that happen."
In his campaign to unseat the mayor in November, Massey on Monday focused his agenda on public safety. He laid out his plans to make New York safer, including restoring trust between police and City hall, recommitting the NYPD to prosecuting and preventing quality of life offenses, and expanding community policing.
"I've been talking to police officers in the hardest-hit crime neighborhoods, who are telling me that they don't have the resources to take lunch, never mind be active with community policing and building a relationship with our communities," Massey said.
Massey could not detail specifically how he planned to fund the additional police resources. But he had no trouble pinpointing whom he blamed for the diminishing morale in the NYPD – referencing a February 2016 Patrolmen's Benevolent Association survey of NYPD officers.
"Right now, the mayor has a horrible relationship with the Police Department, where more than 90 percent of our uniformed officers don't feel in sync with the mayor's policies," Massey said.
The Mayor's office responded by saying: "Mayor de Blasio has driven crime to record lows, putting two thousand new officers on the beat. Expanded neighborhood policing, retraining every officer, and body cameras are bridging the divide between the police and the communities they serve."
Massey said another way he plans to boost police and community relations is by paying officers at $10,000 bonus for living in the same borough where they work.
Massey has already released his education platform, and he plans to unveil his policies on jobs, housing and homelessness in the coming weeks.
