Fossella’s Hometown Paper Calls for Resignation

9 May 2008 // One of the most notable features in the saga of Representative Vito J. Fossella is the clear reluctance on the part of his fellow politicians, Democrat or Republican, to weigh in on the matter publicly. But his local paper, The Staten Island Advance, showed no such reticence, calling this morning for Mr. Fossella to resign immediately.

Mr. Fossella, a Staten Island Republican, was arrested on May 1 in Alexandria, Va., and charged with drunken driving. On Thursday, he issued a statement that he had had an extramarital affair with Laura Fay, a former Air Force lieutenant colonel, and that the two of them have a 3-year-old daughter together.

In an editorial published this morning The Staten Island Advance called on him to step down. The editorial said:

In order to avoid prolonging the agony for his family, his friends, and even himself, he must leave now, remove himself from the public eye and allow this vicious one-two punch of scandalous behavior to recede into ignominy.

He must do so for the sake of his family, his supporters and all his constituents in Staten Island and Brooklyn. He can no longer be of use as an elected representative now given his self-inflicted wounds.

The Advance is known for being an influential part of the political landscape of Staten Island, which makes up two-thirds of the 13th Congressional District (it also includes several neighborhoods of southern Brooklyn).

Its stand was in marked contrast to the first response of the borough’s local officials.

The Democrats might have been expected to show even a little enthusiasm at the possibility of their improved prospects of taking a coveted Congressional seat. But the Staten Island Democratic Party chairman, John P. Gulino said: “I have no comment on the matter. This is not the time for that.”

Even City Councilman Domenic M. Recchia Jr., a Democrat who is planning to run for Mr. Fossella’s seat, declined to comment. “It’s nothing I want to talk about,” Mr. Recchia said.

Republicans, perhaps understandably, are equally reluctant to discuss Mr. Fossella’s troubles and whether the five-term congressman should resign. For years, they have come to know the congressman well and have all developed a close working relationship with Mr. Fossella, the only Republican member of Congress from New York City.

Whether politicians will now be as forthright with their opinions remains to be seen. City Councilman Michael E. McMahon, a Staten Island Democrat, said that the reluctance is based largely on the fact that Mr. Fossella’s troubles are so deeply personal, and that he should be afforded to time to work things out with his family.

“The family and his wife have been through a lot,” Mr. McMahon said. “It’s a story that doesn’t need a narrator. It’s been unfolding on its own.”