Fifth District Republican congressional candidate Jon Golnik has opened a new campaign office at 364 Littleton Road in Westford, just 2 miles from the site of the four-alarm fire that destroyed his previous office location. The Golnik campaign held a grand opening celebration Monday night.
For more on the fire, please see Story, Page 10.
The fire did not slow Golnik's campaign.
Golnik addressed the controversial mosque being built near Ground Zero by questioning why the religious institution needs to be built near to the site of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attack perpetrated by Islamic extremists.
"The construction of a mosque so close to the twin towers that landing gear from an airplane fell through the building ... is an unwarranted provocation and abuse of our freedoms which were attacked on 9/11," Golnik said.
Explaining that he's not against religious freedom but for human sensitivity, Golnik says that the building of the mosque is not just a New York issue.
"This is an American issue," he said. "Many people that perished that day called Massachusetts home, and we share the pain and horror of that day and this new fight."
To educate potential voters about the issues, Golnik launched "The Bright Board," a weekly video series on his website explaining the policies coming out of Washington. The first installment looks at the $787 billion stimulus package.
Golnik is one of four Republicans who will square off in the Sept. 14 state primary election. The winner will represent the party in the November mid-term elections and will challenge incumbent Congresswoman Niki Tsongas.
More mosque opposition
Republican candidate Tom Weaver agrees with Golnik and addressed the mosque issue in an open letter to President Barack Obama.
"How can the citizens of New York truly recover when there is an open wound in Manhattan?" asked the 5th District hopeful. "And now a group wants to build a mosque a few blocks from Ground Zero, even though few live in lower Manhattan."
Weaver argues that Ground Zero needs to be rebuilt first — as an image on America.
"When we rebuild Ground Zero, then, embracing our Constitution, we can invite all the religions to build houses of worship around our new symbol of America in the heart of lower Manhattan," he said.
The record that counts
Weaver is defending Golnik's voting record, a hot topic among the Republican candidates fighting to win the party's nomination on Sept. 14, and calls the discussion a "distraction."
"We should be discussing issues and what needs to change," he said.
Weaver said that the candidates should be judged on their respective resumes, and that his is the only one that can match up to Democratic incumbent Niki Tsongas.
"I am running because after evaluating the other candidates' resumes, I came to the conclusion they could not defeat ... Tsongas," Weaver said. "It is time to refocus on Niki Tsongas' resume, and the only way to do that is to compare hers to mine."
Among Weaver's top concerns is putting Americans and residents in the 5th District back to work. His Business and Jobs Bill is a multi-step process to ensure private-sector job creation without government interference by:
Cutting the corporate tax rat to 10 percent
Decreasing the capital gains rat to 10 percent
Lowering the top income tax bracket to 25 percent
Eliminating the death and savings account tax
Reinstating the five-year income averaging program
"The government must stimulate the economy by rewarding savings, investments and thrift," he said. "When private money is invested in the United States, jobs are created in the United States."
A return to the five-year income averaging program would increase assurance that private business could obtain capital in down years, Weaver said.
"Positive cash flow means more investment and more jobs, without going into debt," he said.
To contribute to this column, contact Staff Writer Ross Marrinson at rmarrinson@hgazette.com. You can follow Ross on twitter.
