Paul Massey: “If religious and parochial schools threw their kids back into our public school system it would collapse. So we owe those people our support”

Massey showed some early strength in his bid to unseat de Blasio. He raised more money than the incumbent mayor over the past six months but that pace has slowed down. The latest Quinnipiac University poll showed Massey trailing de Blasio in a head-to-head race by 21% to 63%.

Massey believes he can win by building a coalition of independent voters. “The way to beat a failed manager is to coalesce around one candidate who can deliver” he asserted. “Let’s look at a candidate me who can run a major organization who has been community-involved for 30 years in this town and who has been acting as a mayor-type figure my whole life.”

According to Massey de Blasio’s support for Israel and relationship with the Jewish community is also part-time and out of convenience. “He is a part-time mayor and he’s a part-time friend of Israel ” the Republican candidate alleged repeating it several times during the interview.

Massey revealed to Mishpacha that he’s planning to visit the Jewish state for the first time in the summer after receiving an invitation from Jerusalem mayor Nir Barkat. “Barkat is a man I admire and I can relate to because he’s a businessperson who became a mayor and I know he has done some fantastic things in Jerusalem and I look forward to being there ” said Massey.

Light on specifics Massey’s pitch to Jewish voters is that he will be an effective mayor for the 8.5 million residents of the city in which the Jewish community is an integral part. “I feel so close to the Jewish community here ” he says. “I think we need to support the Jewish community in the things that they think are important.”

On education Massey says he’ll back financial support to religious schools and yeshivos “one hundred percent.” “We need to support religious schools with money scholarships and tax credits ” he said. “If religious and parochial schools threw their kids back into our public school system it would collapse. So we owe those people our support.”

Another issue of mutual concern is the housing crisis. “The Jewish community wants to stay in New York. They are not happy that some of the younger adults feel the need to leave because they can’t afford to live here ” he said. “We need affordable housing for everybody including middle-class people. They shouldn’t feel like they are forced to move out of New York City. One of the things I have always loved about New York City is that it has these diverse and vibrant neighborhoods and I don’t want that to change.”

“Let’s get rid of Bill de Blasio and move forward in a positive way to fix our schools and create jobs that people want ” Massey said in closing. “And I think ultimately when people look at me as a serious alternative to Bill de Blasio they will realize I can do those things. We have had 20 years of strong leadership and everyone knows what that did for New York City. We are not so far beyond it that we can’t look back and say it’s doable. New York can be New York again.”

(Originally featured in Mishpacha Issue 663. Jacob Kornbluh is also the political reporter for JewishInsider.com.)