On Election Night 1999 the voters of Nassau County sent a clear and unequivocal message to the Republican Party: "don't touch my pocketbook!"

Let me emphatically state that the Republican Party has received the message loud and clear. In a time of great economic prosperity and robust municipal budget surpluses the people of Nassau County were not willing to tolerate a county administration that had produced a record budget deficit and then turned to a despised real estate transfer tax - among other questionable fiscal practices - to the flow of red ink.

Let's set the record straight: the Democrats beat us soundly - and deservedly - in 1999 because the Republican Party and its elected officials made a mess of the county's finances and then turned to the homeowners of Nassau County in order to pay for our mistakes . Republicans came out in droves on Election Day and voted their anger, frustration, and pocketbooks. In past years they had rightfully come to view the GOP as the party of competence, professional government, and fiscal leadership. This year, they found it lacking in the current county administration and they decided to take their frustration out on all of the Republican candidates who appeared on the ballot this year, even in jurisdictions like the towns of Hempstead and Oyster Bay, which continue to benefit from fiscally conservative and prudent budgetary practices that are the traditional hallmarks of Republican governance.

The 1999 election results were a complete rejection from rank and file Republicans who felt that their own party had betrayed and disappointed them.

That's a tough pill for our party to swallow. But the sooner we acknowledge our mistakes and admit our failures - and take substantive action to restore the county's financial footing without resorting to new taxes- the sooner the Republican party can begin the long and laborious task of regaining the public's faith and confidence.

Nassau Republican leadership has heard the people of this county and the clear message they sent on Election Day. Nassau's taxes are high enough, so don't even think about resorting to tax hikes to close the budget gap that is the result of the county administration's fiscal mismanagement. Don't be timid about standing up and saying - to elected officials of both parties who feel higher taxes are the first and only resort of a cash-strapped government - "Your policies are wrong and there is a better way to do this to protect county taxpayers."

It is a lesson that my party has learned the hard way - but we have learned it!

In the next two years the Republican Party will reaffirm our historic commitment to lower taxes, smaller government, and less bureaucracy. We will work to re-establish our reputation as the party that is at the forefront of prudent fiscal practices and innovative government that preserves the suburban dream.

We will work with the new Democratic majority in the county legislature on the very tough decisions that are going to be necessary in order to restructure and reshape county government in such a way as to ensure the continued delivery of vital public services without the position of a new crushing tax burden.

We will work to reclaim the mantle of leadership as the party of Ronald Reagan - in the never-ending fight against big government and high taxes.

We will return our party to its core roots and principles and become once again what the electorate has always expected Republicans to be: diligent and responsible managers of the public purse. It should not be a difficult task since the voters need look no further than Hempstead and Oyster Bay town halls and the administrations of Supervisor Richard Guardino and Supervisor John Venditto to see Republican leadership that is managing public tax dollars with tight-fisted precision, holding property taxes in check, and succeeding in taming the always over-reaching and self-perpetuating bureaucracy.

As only Norman Rockwell could, the artist once captured the disconsolate spirit of election night defeat in one of his classic paintings. The politician sits in the middle of discarded posters and buttons, slumped in a chair and still uncomprehending how this could have happened to him. It is a vivid image that reminds us that in our American Democracy some are doomed to never learn from their mistakes. Some are destined to come back stronger, wiser, and ready for the next contest. The Nassau County Republican Committee stands ready to rise from this adversity, regain the public's trust, and once again, play a leadership role in the life of this great county.