Second Trial Of Albany Three Men In A Room Starts: Skelos and Son
At Trial, Prosecutors to Detail Dean Skelos’s Favors for His Son (NYT) The corruption trial for the state senator and his son, Adam Skelos, begins Monday; both face multiple federal charges, including bribery and extortion. * Inside the Trial of Dean Skelos * Q. and A.: The Trial of Dean and Adam Skelos *The trial of former Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos and his son, Adam, in Federal District Court in Manhattan on an eight-count indictment that includes bribery and extortion charges is scheduled to begin today – just as the unrelated corruption case against Sheldon Silver, the former speaker of the State Assembly, enters its third week.
Monday Update: Still Nothing In the Papers About the Silver Trial Testimony Showing the Pay to Play 421-a Real Estate Deal That Paid Silver Millions
Sunday the Media Continues It Cover-Up Of the Damage 421-A Has Done to NYers
Corruption trials have little effect on New York
What Will Federal Rat Charles Dorego Testify About the the Agreement He Signed With Silver
Yes Nepotism At Manattan Courthouse . . . What Happen to Silvers Private Courtroom Investigation?
Have The Courts Covered Up Corruption In Their Own House?
Pols Blessed Vito Lopez's Votes Not His Soul
On 9-11, Le Monde's headline was "We Are All Americains"
Today we are all French
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Shelly Laundromat Washes the Financial Disclosure Laws -Lobbyist Meara Testifies
Juror Dozed Off During Meara Testifying
Jurors doze off, doodle during Sheldon Silver trial (NYP) Some jurors were behaving badly at Sheldon Silver’s corruption trial in Manhattan federal court on Friday. A woman nodded off during crucial morning testimony — and remained in dreamland for a full 12 minutes — while an alternate was more interested in doodling than paying attention. The woman’s catnap came as lobbyist Brian Meara was testifying about a meeting he arranged between the former Assembly speaker and a Glenwood Management bigwig to talk about legislation the real-estate company wanted passed in Albany regarding rent regulation and tax abatements. She dozed with her head slumped forward from at least 10:03 a.m. to about 10:15 a.m., when she woke with a start and started stretching her wrist. The alternate, meanwhile, spent much of the morning sketching a full page of cartoon-like faces in pen in his juror notebook, paying no attention to the testimony. Apparently, the judge, prosecutors and defense team were too absorbed in the testimony to notice the nap break and doodling.*
Glenwood LLCs Was Not Only Used to Contribute to Pols
Silver Used the Real Estate LLCs of Glenwood to Avoided Reporting His Pay to Play Fees
Meara's Testimony Shows How the Shadow Govt That Corrupted NY Works
Glenwood LLCs Took Over NY's Govt and Politics
In last year’s New York gubernatorial election, LLCs tied to Glenwood outspent all other donors, according to data from the good government nonprofit New York Public Interest Research Group. In 2013, Glenwood and its affiliates were the second-biggest political donor to state-level candidates, NYPIRG data showed. In the complaint against Silver, prosecutors peg contributions from “Developer 1” to candidates for state office and state political committees at more than $10 million between 2005 and about 2014. Meanwhile, a report from good government group Common Cause/New York found that since 2005, Glenwood and related LLCs donated a total of $12.8 million to state politicians, including $1.2 million to Cuomo. * Glenwood Management,LLCs and Public Corruption * Skelos complaint details Glenwood connection | POLITICO * Developer linked to Silver case tops 2014 donor list ...
Developers Who Have Destroyed NY's Govt Not Important to Break NY1 Shadow Govt Lobbyists Protection Racket
Developers Who Have Destroyed NY's Govt and Campaigns Are Lying Scum Bags
Pay to Play Agreement Signed by Glenwood Executives That Paid Off Silver for 421-a Tax Breaks and Other Real Estate Give Aways
The Lobbyist's Shadow Government
Skelos begs to keepCuomo ‘trash talk’ out of trial (NYP) Former state Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos and his son, Adam, fear that jurors will smell the “stink” of corruption if federal prosecutors get to play a secretly recorded conversation of their trash talk about Gov. Cuomo’s loved ones. Defense lawyer Christopher Coniff argued on Monday that the feds were relying on “prejudicial innuendo that creates a taint or smear” to convict the father and son on influence-peddling charges. “The introduction of all these little pieces is going to create a stink,” he said.* Federal District Court in Manhattan indicated during a pretrial hearing that she was inclined to allow prosecutors to present certain wiretapped conversations at trial. Long Island Corruption Investigation Update Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano’s heavily redacted public calendar shows no local appearances on dates that travel records obtained by Newsday indicate he was scheduled to take vacations arranged and paid for by indicted restaurateur Harendra Singh.Saturday Skelos Expresses Confidence That He Will Be Acquitted Ahead of Corruption Trial (NY1) Sunday Corruption Trial Begins For Ex-Senate Leader DeanSkelos, Son
Daily News Takes A Shot At Progressives an the UFT Machine
Those Wonderful People Who Gave Us Failed Schools, A Broken NYCHA and Homeless Gentrification Want 71% Raise
Monday Update
YOU POOR BASTARDS! City Council members say they will give up outside income for 71% raise — but most of them DON'T EVEN HAVE outside salaries (NYDN) A Daily News review found that 40 of 51 Council members report zero outside income — and most of those who do, pocket only small amounts as adjunct professors or part-time lawyers. Seven Council members did report part-time moonlighting gigs, but their minimum take-home income averaged around $1,000 to $5,000. One Council member, Barry Grodenchik, was elected in September and has yet to be sworn in. * Only three Council members reported what could be considered substantive income on the side: Chaim Deutsch (D-Brooklyn), the only Council member to report minimum outside income that topped six figures — between $100,000 and $250,000 from his real estate company, Chasa Management. Peter Koo (D-Queens) continues to collect a minimum salary of $70,000 from his pharmacy companies, K&F Drug Corp. and Koo & Co.
The maximum is $195,997. David Greenfield (D-Brooklyn), an attorney, reports a minimum salary of $60,000 (the maximum at $99,999) for part-time law work. On Thursday, the plot to inflate their paychecks received another body blow when Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito ridiculed the idea of a pay hike that steep. “It definitely is a ridiculous amount,” she told reporters. A commission appointed under the City Charter is mulling raises for elected officials. It’s expected to make a recommendation to the mayor regarding whether or not to grant lawmakers salary increases in early December. Mark-Viverito said she might support a raise, but hasn’t settled on an amount.* The vast majority - 40 of 51 - New York City Council members reported zero outside income — and most who do made small amounts, despite a plan hoping to give up outside income in order to get a 71 percent raise, the Daily News writes:
You Give Us 71% We Give Up Our Lulus and Outside Income that 40 out of 51 Do Not Have
Mayor Early to An Event Makes News . . . Give Him the 71% Raise
De Blasio wasactually early to the Flight 587 memorial this year (NYP) Mayor de Blasio made sure to show up to a memorial service for Flight 587 a half-hour early Thursday morning — after the families of crash victims blasted him last year for arriving 20 minutes late. The often tardy mayor made it to the ceremony in the Rockaways at 8:05 a.m., then stayed in his car until 8:30 a.m., when he got out to mingle with families who lost loved ones in the 2001 plane crash. It was a much different scene than last year, when de Blasio infuriated relatives after being so late that he missed the reading of the names of the victims, which begins just after a bell is tolled at exactly 9:16 a.m., marking the moment the American Airlines flight went down.
A judge accused New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton of “putting out a false narrative” about the prior treatment of the man accused of killing Det. Randolph Holder before sentencing him to the maximum sentence of 12 years on drug charges separate from the murder, the Times reports: * A state Supreme Court justice overseeing a drug case involving the man charged with killing a NYPD police officer last month said de Blasio should “look into a mirror” before blaming others for the officer’s death. * The judge, Patricia Nuñez, then sentenced the defendant, Tyrone Howard, to 12 years in prison — the maximum allowed — for breaking his promise under a plea agreement to go into a treatment program. Tyrone Howard, Man Charged With Killing Officer, Gets Maximum Term in Drug Case (NYT) Mr. Howard’s case has focused attention on the workings of Manhattan drug court, which offers treatment instead of prison to nonviolent addicts who deal drugs to support their habit.
De Blasio "should look into the mirror" beforeblaming others for officer's death, judge Patricia Nunez says.(WSJ) * De Blasio unloads on judge who freed ‘cop killer’ (NYP) Mayor de Blasio unloaded Friday on the judge who said he should “look in a mirror” before blaming her for accused cop killer Tyrone Howard’s not being held behind bars on a previous drug rap. “I think that’s outrageous. I don’t know this judge — by the way the judge attackedCommissioner Bratton too and I think she owes him an apology,” the mayor said on WNYC radio. “This is ludicrous. This judge was part of what happened here, it went horribly wrong. The judge apologized profusely, now suddenly is turning the table — that’s ridiculous,” he added.“I think someone who I think handled the situation wrong should own up to it, not try and cast the blame.”* ‘Outrageous’ and ‘Ridiculous’: Bill de Blasio TrashesJudge After Courtroom Rebuke (NYO) * The state Department of Financial Services and the state’s health exchange announced several companies have agreed to auto-enroll individuals who had been customers of the failed Health Republic co-op, State of Politics reports Saturday Sorry, judge: You still share the blame for Officer Holder’s death (NYP) * BLAME GAME: De Blasio says judge who let slain cop Randolph Holder’s accused killer off with drug treatment needs to look in the mirror (NYDN)
Skelos and Son Trash Talk Cuomo's Gal Pal and Want to Keep It Out of Jail
Daily News Takes A Shot At Progressives an the UFT Machine
Democrats vs.charters: Progressives are turning on an education movement that offers optionsand hope to many black and Latino families (NYDN) An idiot wind is blowing through the Democratic Party against an educational innovation championed by the last two Democratic Presidents — and it has swept up Hillary Clinton.After supporting charter schools for three decades, the party’s presidential front-runner suddenly gave voice to the baseless teachers union claim that the publicly financed, privately operated schools have rigged the game to show better results than traditional public schools.“Most charter schools, they don’t take the hardest-to-teach kids, or, if they do, they don’t keep them. And so the public schools are often in a no-win situation,” Clinton asserted, drawing the equally false picture that charters are damaging prevailing schools.The unions, backing Clinton, see charters as the enemy because they educate more than 2 million children nationwide, largely with non-union staffs. In parroting the union line, Clinton goes to bat for the status quo rather than support the enhanced opportunities charters give children to escape underperforming schools.Aides say she looked at new evidence indicating that charters are cherry-picking smart kids and dumping difficult ones, none of which they produced. In fact, charters enroll kids via lottery.
Those Wonderful People Who Gave Us Failed Schools, A Broken NYCHA and Homeless Gentrification Want 71% Raise
What the Council’sworth: How to raise the pay of New York City's legislature (NYDN Ed) De Blasio, Mark-Viverito and the rest should take their cue from subway fares. Often in the past, fearful governors and mayors let long periods of time pass between hikes, ultimately necessitating big hits to straphangers. More recently, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority has stuck with inflation-based increase every two years. The pain arrives in an orderly, measure way with comparatively little public upset. So, ban lulus and establish a four-year schedule of prospective raises pegged to inflation and be done with it.
YOU POOR BASTARDS! City Council members say they will give up outside income for 71% raise — but most of them DON'T EVEN HAVE outside salaries (NYDN) A Daily News review found that 40 of 51 Council members report zero outside income — and most of those who do, pocket only small amounts as adjunct professors or part-time lawyers. Seven Council members did report part-time moonlighting gigs, but their minimum take-home income averaged around $1,000 to $5,000. One Council member, Barry Grodenchik, was elected in September and has yet to be sworn in. * Only three Council members reported what could be considered substantive income on the side: Chaim Deutsch (D-Brooklyn), the only Council member to report minimum outside income that topped six figures — between $100,000 and $250,000 from his real estate company, Chasa Management. Peter Koo (D-Queens) continues to collect a minimum salary of $70,000 from his pharmacy companies, K&F Drug Corp. and Koo & Co.
As the Daily News reported, a group of Council members has been quietly pushing a plan to boost their paychecks to a whopping $192,500. They receive a base salary of $112,500, with some pocketing bonuses known as “lulus” for chairing committees. The average lulu is $8,000 but some — like the one Mark-Viverito gets as speaker — are as high as $25,000. The hope was that by agreeing to those concessions, some good government groups — who typically dislike lulus and pols holding outside jobs — would agree to back the generous pay package, City Council sources said. King Beyond Lulus New York City Councilman Andy King was slapped with a nearly $17,000 fine by the Campaign Finance Board for, among other things, paying thousands to his wife without justifying it with paperwork, the Postreports: * Bronx Councilman Andy King, who put his wife on his campaign payroll and used campaign funds to cover his home phone bill, was slapped with a $17,000 fine by the Campaign Finance Board.
Mayor Early to An Event Makes News . . . Give Him the 71% Raise
A Judge Attack de Blasio Because the Judge Let Cop Killer Go? de Blasio Basted Judge Back
Assembly Dems Plot to Back Incumbents in Primaries More Top to Bottom Control Of Campaigns
New Speaker Boss is Attempting to Run the State Like He Runs the Bronx Machine . . . What is Next New Assemblymembers Replacing Incumbents After Primaries?
Since 2010 DACC Has Paid WFP $100,000
Heastie Wants to Run the Assembly Like He Runs the Bronx
NY's Walmartiation Politics Drains Power Out of Communities and from Voters
Today the Media Protect the Corrupt Political Bosses, Ignaoring the Unfair Advantage Data and Field Gave Candidates in 2009, or PACs in 2013
Organized Crime Politics: IE PACs
de Blasio One NY PAC Slush Fund, Berlin Rosen, Bill Hyers, Red Horse
Since 2010 DACC Has Paid WFP $100,000
Heastie Wants to Run the Assembly Like He Runs the Bronx
The Post writes that Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie’s planto use Democratic Assembly Campaign Committee money on incumbents in the primaries is the kind of thing that allowed the corrupt Silver to rule with an iron fist. Carl Heastie is following in Sheldon Silver’s footsteps (NYP) The latest example is his decision to start spending Democratic Assembly Campaign Committee funds on incumbents facing primary challenges. ’Til now, the DACC has only spent on general elections — that is, against Republicans, not other Democrats. Talk about blows to democracy: The primary is often the public’s only real chance to oust an incumbent — because one party’s voters vastly outnumber the others’. (Of course, the speaker’s plainly not all that fond of democracy, as shown by his success in installing a new Bronx DA without giving the voters a chance to weigh in.) Note, too, that if reformers still manage to get a new face into the Assembly, these campaign funds give the speaker another way to legally bribe the new guy to play along with the establishment. Mainly, though, it will further entrench incumbents (on top of their other vast electoral advantages). Or, rather, entrench incumbents who play ball with Speaker Heastie — nicely bolstering his power. This is just the kind of thing that allowed Silver — now on trial for alleged corruption — to rule the Assembly with an iron fist.The excuse is that this move will blunt the impact of the Working Families Party and its union puppetmasters. Really? The Democrats and the WFP rarely find themselves at cross-purposes, anyway. And Heastie has already pushed similar schemes — like the “district allocations” pork that replaced member items — that work primarily to cement his power. Meanwhile, Heastie’s Assembly still hasn’t acted on a constitutional amendment (passed long ago by the GOP-run Senate) to retroactively strip corrupt public officials of their sweetheart pensions.
NY's Walmartiation Politics Drains Power Out of Communities and from Voters
WFP & DACC; Lobbyists Campaign Consultants Have Caused the Walmartization of NY's Politics . . . Using the Wal-Mart Business Model to Win Campaigns and Drive Out Candidates Loyal to Their District's Voters and Not the PACS Who Fund Them
NYC does not have a single Walmart because of the WFP and their friends in the progressive movement protesting the company unfair business practices. The protesters accuse Wal-mart of bulk purchasing and corporate financing to sell merchandise at low costs in order to drive competitors out of the market. WFP says the Wal-Mart's business model pushes mom and pop business out of the market creating an economic monopoly. It is now clear that less than a dozen lobbyists political consultants has use the Wal-Mart unfair business model to take over NY's politics by using unfir 2009 the WFP Data and Field model to give them and their candidates a competitive advantages in campaigns
Organized Crime Politics: IE PACs
de Blasio One NY PAC Slush Fund, Berlin Rosen, Bill Hyers, Red Horse
Airbnb Pay More Taxes But the Gentrification Damage is Done On Hoteliering Not Home Sharing
Will the Council Duck the Affordable Housing Gentrification Problem?
Airbnb vows to partner with cities, pay more taxes (NYP) ALBANY — After years of defying and vexing governments from New York to Berlin, Airbnb is taking a more cooperative stance and promising to “partner with cities” and pay taxes....*New York to Berlin , Airbnb is taking a more cooperative stance and promising to “partner with cities” and pay taxes.
Will the Council Duck the Affordable Housing Gentrification Problem?
Airbnb vows to partner with cities, pay more taxes (NYP) ALBANY — After years of defying and vexing governments from New York to Berlin, Airbnb is taking a more cooperative stance and promising to “partner with cities” and pay taxes....*
On the Animal Farm Some Are More Equal Than Others
Greedy City Council members seek whopping 71% raise that will bring salaries to up to $192G — as cops, firefighters face measly 1% to 2.5% hikes (NYDN) A rip-off at halfthe price: Say no to a City Council pay raise (NYDN ED) Whereas City Council members want to boost their pay to $192,500, up from $112,500, a 71% increase that would set their annual salary at almost three times New York’s median family income, and Whereas the Council would pull down a higher salary than received by members of Congress, as well as by even highly responsible, in fact, indispensable city workers, such as police and fire captains, and Whereas, the Council has passed budgets including minuscule raises for the municipal workforce, and Whereas, Council members routinely beat up on the 1%, into whose income neighborhood they would be moving, and
Hey Daily News Why You Keeping the Six Plotter For A Raise Secret?
On Time de Blasio Deserves A Raise?
Mayor's Lobbyists Berlin Rosen Working to Give de Blasio and Other Pols A Raise
FAO Schwarz to chair Mayor's Quadrennial Advisory Commission for the review of compensation levels of elected officials. Schwarz is the Chief Counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University Brennnan Center *
Daily News: "More than half a dozen Council members — who earn base pay of $112,500 — have been holding hush-hush meetings to try to engineer the huge raises, which would bring their salaries above those of the governor and members of Congress, multiple Council sources said."
EXCLUSIVE: NYC City Council members seeking 71% raise (NYDN) * 'I THINK IT'S RIDICULOUS': Speaker Mark-Viverito trashes proposed 71% raise for NYC Council members (NYDN) * New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito,reacting to a front page Daily News story, said council members’ push to give themselves a 71 percent raise in exchange for ethics reforms was “ridiculous,” the Observer reports:* Melissa Mark-Viverito dismisses idea to raise NYC lawmakers’pay by 71%
De Blasio has been working to address his tardiness problem, and has been mostly on time to public and private events – sometimes even arriving early.* Mayor Answers Questions on Education at Town Hall Meeting in Jackson Heights (NY1)
The Fix is In for A Raise
Some elected city officials say they don’t need a raise (NYP) Some elected city officials say they’re satisfied with their paychecks and aren’t looking for raises — even as a mayoral commission studies whether to boost their salaries for the first time in nine years. “I’m perfectly happy with my salary,” said City Councilman Alan Maisel (D-Brooklyn), who like other legislators earns $112,500 a year in base pay, plus bonuses for serving as committee chairs. “I’m not pining for a raise. I’m doing OK.” Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer echoed that stance Monday, but said it was not clear what the advisory panel would decide. The panel’s recommendations are due by the end of November.
Brennan Center Has Never Demanded That Berlin Rosen Register As A Lobbyists
A growing class of New York political consultants who enjoy close ties to elected officials but don’t register as lobbyists may well have to start doing so, in light of a proposed guidance issued by JCOPE. * The state Joint Commission on Public Ethics said consultants who take actions related to lobbying efforts must register as lobbyists, even if they do not directly ask officials to take action on bills,the Times Union reports: * ALBANY’S TOP 10LOBBYISTS: City & State features the top 10 lobbying firms in Albany in 2014, including a summary of each and an introduction to their key players in Albany: * Queens state Sen. Tony Avella, who has been pushing a bill to require more disclosure by political consultants, is praising new guidelines from the Joint Commission on Public Ethics, the Times Union reports
At the Al Smith Dinner Looks Like de Blasio Warmer Tone to Bloomberg is One Sided
Michael Bloomberg pokes fun at Bill de Blasio at annual Al Smith Dinner (NYDN) “It’s great to see Mayor de Blasio actually in
GATEKEEPERS AT DE BLASIO'S TOWN HALL MEETING
2nd Town Hall Ticket Controlled By de Blasio Supporter Dromm
De Blasio’s next town hall is ‘open to the public’ — with a catch (NYP Ed) Well, Mayor de Blasio’s next “town hall” won’t be as clearly rigged as the dog-and-pony show he put on last time, which was by invitation only. But don’t think for a moment that Thursday night’s session at PS 69 in
de Blasio Hiding Failed Schools
How de Blasio is hiding the failure of city schools (NYP) Mayor de Blasio today will hold yet another carefully choreographed event designed to obscure the real state ofNew York City schools. It’s unclear if attendees at tonight’s town hall...
How de Blasio is hiding the failure of city schools (NYP) Mayor de Blasio today will hold yet another carefully choreographed event designed to obscure the real state of
Daily News: The Truth About Homelessness in NY is that Cuomo, de Blasio and Advocates Failing, Leaving cop to Respond
Since the Mayor Has Not Fixed the Homeless Problem? NYPD's Bratton Also Has A Modest Proposal
Bratton's advice on how to treat New York's homeless factually flawed and morally bankrupt (NYDN) * Bronx woman shares her story about homelessness, says NYPD boss Bratton is wrong if he thinks the homeless will go away if they aren't given money (NYDN) * Bratton could’ve hit home: The truth about homelessness in New York is that C uomo, de Blasio and advocates are all failing, leaving cops to respond (NYDN Ed) In suggesting that New Yorkers help get the homeless off the streets by spurning panhandling, Police Commissioner Bill Bratton gave voice to the frustrations of a cop who has been asked to solve social ills via arrest.
Shocking de Blasio Cancles Iowa Presidental Forum as Cuomo Hits From the Left on $15
NYC politics right now: de Blasio sulks out of Iowa forum, Cuomo rallying for higher minimum wage
De Blasio group cancels planned Iowa iowa forum - Sorry the Reporters Had to Waste Their Time * De Blasio’s day today: Forum falls apart, Cuomo strikes from the left * Gov. Andrew Cuomo plans to unilaterally raise the minimum wage for all state workers to $15 an hour using executive authority, making New York the first state to set such a high wage for about 10,000 state workers, the Times reports: * Bill de Blasio Admits Planned Iowa Presidential Forum Wasa Failure (NYO)
Yes I Failed In Iowa But I Am Not Done With National Politics
State Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan said a conversation still needed to be had about the broader impact of the $15 minimum wage proposal and continued to raise concerns about the same wage floor for fast-food workers, State of Politics reports: -- The forum had become a political albatross for de Blasio, who had taken pains to distance himself from the planned event amid accusations that he was focusing too much on national politics at the expense of New York City 's own problems. The cancellation of the forum allows him to shed that baggage and move on. He recently followed a similar playbook on an interrelated front: his non-endorsement of Hillary Clinton ... Much as the forum seemed designed to elevate de Blasio's national profile, his reluctance to endorse Clinton until he learned more about her progressive credentials seemed both forced, and designed to enhance his national stature. Instead, he became something of a laughingstock. * "I don't want to insult my friend like this, but there is a sense it was a 'legend in his own mind' kind of phenomenon," said Doug Muzzio, a political scientist at Baruch College
Yes I Failed In Iowa But I Am Not Done With National Politics
NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio admitted his Iowa presidential forum collapsed because no one wanted to go, but said his forays into national politics are far from over.
NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio confessed his much-mocked planned presidential candidates forum in Iowa was a failure—a day after his left-leaning non-profit claimed it was called off because it had been such a success.
The Media Does A Sidebar with Silvers Defense But Does Not Ask Lawmakers to Comment On the Trial
Shelly Sidebar (YNN) During Sheldon Silver’s federal corruption trial, defense attorneys have now tried at least twice to suggest heavy handed tactics on the part of prosecutors to cajole witnesses into cooperating with their case. It fits in with overall defense narrative that there is just no case here and prosecutors have bent the rules and overreached. Practically speaking, the defense has not denied any of the facts laid out by the government. Silver’s team has disputed the government’s presentation of the facts, but not the basic facts that Silver steered public money to cancer research, and received referral fees for cancer patients. The defense simply maintains that all of that is legal, if unseemly. And none of it rises to the level of a federal crime.
IN DE BLASIO'S BACKYARD, CUOMO TACKLES ECONOMIC INEQUALITY
For $15 Dollars Cuomo Owns de Blasio's Left
Mayor de Blasio did the inevitable, canceled hispresidential forum after no one signed on to attend: @bpolitics * .@KarenHinton says Mayor @BilldeBlasio will not be issuing a statement tonight on decision to Iowa presidential forum (PoliticoNY) Faces criticism for Progressive Agenda event * Mayor de Blasio’s Group Abandons Plans for Inequality Forum in Iowa (NYT) The Progressive Agenda Committee, founded by Mayor Bill de Blasio, said the forum had become unnecessary, because inequality had already moved to the center of the 2016 presidential campaign.* The Progressive Agenda Committee, a liberal advocacy group founded by New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, abandoned plans for an Iowa presidential forum on income inequality not long after he endorsed Hillary Clinton, the Times reports * Gov. Andrew Cuomo joined a throng of union workers and other supporters of a $15 minimum wage in lower Manhattan and formally announced he would be using his executive authority to make sure it went up for at least one group of workers — state employees. * The wage increase will be phased in by the end of 2018 for state workers in New York City and by the end of 2021 for state workers elsewhere. About 10,000 employees could receive an increase as a result of the governor’s action. Cuomo said he expected other states would follow suit. * The increased hourly rate would appear to heavily affect the state’s part-time workforce, such as lifeguards and other seasonal workers at state parks, but it also will affect food service employees, clerical workers and a variety of blue-collar, health care posts that one state workers union said involves mostly entry-level government jobs. * Even as he made a concession to one of his longtime sparring partners – public sector employees – Cuomo took a jab at his main rival in the state Democratic Party: NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio. Asked if he thought the city should ensure the same pay rate to its employees, the governor answered in the affirmative. * Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan said the statewide $15-an-hour minimum wage Cuomo is seeking will be discussed in detail by his conference, predicting “some kind of compromise” next year. * Cuomo’s minimum wage move became an issue during last night’s GOP presidential debate, with Florida Sen. Marco Rubio saying if $15 becomes the national hourly pay then “all the automation that is replacing jobs and people right now will be accelerated.” * Organizers have canceled de Blasio’s planned presidential forum, set for next month in Iowa , following months of dispute over the event. A spokeswoman for the Progressive Agenda Committee said the group would move on to other ways of advancing its agenda.* New York 's governor is raising the minimum wage for about 10,000 state workers to $15 an hour over the next six years. Andrew Cuomo's office says that will initially affect about 1,000 office assistants, custodial workers and lifeguards in New York City, whose hourly wage will reach $15 by the end of 2018. Another 9,000 employees upstate will see wages rise to that level three years later. New York
@GersonBorrero with a great line re DEB $15 minimum wage 4 NYC employees "Put up or shut up"
Cuomo vs de Blasio War
Mayor, Governor Keep Their Distance at Somos El Futuro Conferenc * Gov. Andrew Cuomo is making New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s life miserable because it makes him feel good and provides focus and direction, but the rivalry may go back to their political mentors, sources tell the Post: *Cuomo’s top priority is to torment de Blasio: aides (NYP)
Mayor Secret Meeting to Fix Minority Contracting Problem
De Blasio holds secret meeting to boost minority real estate developers (NYP) Mayor de Blasio had a secret meeting Tuesday with minority real-estate developers and told them he’s considering rewriting city contracts to give an advantage to projects that use minority firms. De Blasio also discussed setting aside six development projects, valued at $200 million, for minority developers, sources said. During the City Hall meeting, which was kept secret from the press, the mayor also agreed to create $10 million to $20 million in revolving loan funds that minority developers can tap into to cover start-up costs. The powwow comes as de Blasio faces criticism for failing to significantly boost minority participation in city contracting.* De Blasio told real-estate developers he’s considering rewriting city contracts to give an advantage to projects that use minority firms and plans to set aside certain development projects for such firms, thePost writes:
Drivers Keep Killing Pedestrians, So the NYPD Will Crack Down On Jaywalkers
Drivers Keep Killing Pedestrians, So The NYPD Will Crack Down On Jaywalkers (Gothamist) A dozen pedestrians have been killed by drivers in the past twelve days. At least three of them were killed crossing the street with the right of way, and four of them were killed as they walked on the sidewalk. In response to one of those deaths, in which a hit and run casino bus driver killed a pedestrian in Flushing, the NYPD is going to start handing out more jaywalking tickets. *
Vito Lopez is Dead 1941-2015
Judge-maker meetshis judge; Vito Lopez has made his last dirty deal (NYDN Ed) reat political bosses are often charming rogues. Not Vito Lopez, former Brooklyn Democratic chairman. Lopez was an imperious fixer with little regard for the public good. He twisted the state’s primary affordable housing program to meet his aims. He installed his daughter, his girlfriend’s brother and a close woman friend in judgeships. He was driven from the Assembly for being a sex-harassing dirty old man. Now, Lopez is dead, claimed by leukemia. The public can rest in peace. May he as well.
Vito Lopez Was A Pioneer in Using Govt $$$ for Re-Elections Which Made Incumbent Re-Elections 98% Assured
Vito Lopez Built a Government Funded Social Services Political Machine That Was the Blueprint of Corruption of Albany
The Govt Funded Non-Profit
In 1993 the NY Times wrote:Growth of a New-Age Political Machine * Seddio Remembers Lopez’s ‘Legacy’ (YNN) “His legacy is the work he did for the poorest residents of Bushwick and Ridgewood, where thousands of people live in affordable housing on lots that were once burned out and garbage-filled,” the chairman continued. “He was the foremost champion of affordable housing before it became the cause that it is today.” “As he faces the judgment on the value of his life, my hope is that all the good work that he did will outweigh the unfortunate way in which his career ended.” * Disgraced Former NY Lawmaker Vito Lopez Dead at 74 ABC News *
Vito J. Lopez, Assemblyman Tainted by Scandal, Is Dead … New York Times * Former Brooklyn Assemblyman and Albany power broker Vito Lopez died at age 74 after long suffering from cancer and leaves behind a scandal-scarred legacy due to scathing reports of sexual harassment of female staff members, The New YorkTimes reports: * Vito Lopez and his Hour-of-Power | Deconstructing ... * Vito Lopez, Brooklyn assemblyman who resigned aftersexual harassment scandal, dies of cancer (Newsday) * Vito J. Lopez, Ex-New York Assemblyman Tainted by Scandal, Dies at 74 (NYT)
Mr. Lopez, a former community organizer and legislator, was a power broker in New York City and Albany until he was brought down by a sexual harassment scandal. * 'He deteriorated quite a bit the last six months': Vito Lopez, disgraced assemblyman, succumbs to leukemia at 74 (NYDN)
Albany Hush Fund Cover Up, Press Containment Timeline
Silver Created Hidden Pots of Gold for Himself Way Beyond Member Items Editorial Boards Silent
Prosecutors: Silver had final say over how grant money was spent (PoliticoNY) Sheldon Silver had sole discretion over whether to award funding to various groups from a little-known pot of money, federal prosecutors said Monday on the fourth day of his federal trial that hinges on whether the former state Assembly speaker was engaged in a quid-pro-quo with a Columbia University physician or whether it was simply business as usual at Albany. Witnesses for the prosecution repeatedly testified that it was Silver who had the final say on how money from the Health Care Reform Act (HCRA) was spent, and that other agencies reviewed those grants only to make sure the paperwork was in order. They would not have considered the merit, said Dennis Whalen, who at the time of the grants was executive deputy health commissioner for the state. "We were the banker and the bookkeeper," Whalen testified. "We didn't have any say over who got the money or how much." * Sheldon Silver’s Grants Suppressed in Budget Reports, Official Testifies in Corruption Trial (NYT) Testimony in the trial of Mr. Silver, the former speaker of the New York Assembly, focused on the extent of his power to approve discretionary financing without accountability.* * An Assembly staffer admitted to hiding former Speaker Sheldon Silver’s discretionary funds from public reports while testifying at Silver’s trial on corruption charges, The New York Times reports: * Sheldon Silver Trial Update: Gary Klein from Weitz &Luxenberg is back on the stand this am. #AlbanyOnTrial * In testimony during former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver’s corruption trial in lower Manhattan yesterday, prosecutors produced a document from January 2004, requesting a $250,000 grant for a mesothelioma research center out of Columbia University
Dying of Cancer Libous Will Not Be Sent to Jail
Federal prosecutors will not seek prison time for former state Senate Deputy Majority Leader Thomas Libous, citing a cancer expert who says he has a year or less to live and recommended house arrest and a substantial fine for the lawmaker, Gannett Albany reports: * Feds offer Libous no jail time, house arrest and substantialfine because of his cancer prognosis. * Thomas Libous avoids jail because he’s aboutto die (NYP) * Acknowledging that former state Sen. Tom Libous likely has a year or less to live, the office of US Attorney for the Southern District Preet Bharara has recommended that the Senate Republicans’ former deputy leader should be sentenced to home confinement and pay a substantial fine.
Dying of Cancer Libous Will Not Be Sent to Jail
2 Top Albany Lawmakers On Trial A Block Away From Each Other And This is All the Editorial Boards Say? DN: F Instead of the D given?
Editorial: F-minus Albany correction (NYDN) After surveying the anti-corruption laws and practices of all 50 states, the Center for Public Integrity has ranked New York the 30th worst in the country, with a grade of D-minus. This is so unbelievably generous that, absent the center’s rock-solid public integrity, we’d be inclined to shout that the fix must have been in. Otherwise, all we can surmise is that the graders have never strayed close enough to Sheldon Silver or Dean Skelos to witness the swallowing of ethics by governmental black holes.* New York received a D- in the Center for Public Integrity’s state integrity rankings for 2015. The numeric score of 61 the Empire State
Pay to Play Bribery is For the Public Good Albany Deputy Budget Director? Editorial Boards Silent
Silver’s defenseconvinces witness ‘illegal quid pro quo’ was a ‘public good’ (NYP) Sheldon Silver’s defense team got a state budget official to admit Monday that the research money the then-Assembly speaker funneled to a cancer doctor represented a “public good,” even though prosecutors say it was part of an “illegal quid pro quo” from which Silver reaped $3 million. Deputy Budget Director Victor Franco Jr. testified during cross-examination in Manhattan federal court that Silver doled out “dozens and dozens” of taxpayer-funded grants during his decades in power. “You’d agree that to fund cancer research is a public good?” lawyer Justin Shur asked. “Yes, I would,” Franco answered. * New York Assembly budget worker says he would ‘hide’ money for Sheldon Silver (NYDN) * Witnesses: Silver had sole control over funds (Newsweek)
Socking Home Heating Oil Racketeering
Nearly a dozen indictments unsealed detail a series of racketeering schemes that officials contend reveal widespread, institutional fraud in the heating oil industry across New York City and affected hundreds of buildings, theTimes writes: * Prosecutors Allege Persistent Heating Oil Fraud in New York City (NYT) The indictments, which were unsealed on Tuesday, charge nine companies and 44 people with defrauding a broad array of customers of oil they believed had been delivered.
True News Wags the NYP On the On the Only Man Reforming Albany BHARARA
"Sorry..there’s only one truly effective weapon against Albany
New teeth for New York’s ethics watchmouse (NYP Ed) Good-government groups hail it as a major step forward, but the reforms offered in a 307-page report on the state’s ethics “watchdog” amount to little more than lipstick on a pig. They’re fine — as far as they go. But they don’t come close to addressing the core reason the Joint Commission on Public Ethics has become a joke. Simply put, JCOPE has no real independence. Its members are appointed by the very people it’s supposed to investigate — Gov. Cuomo and the Legislature. Even the folks on the “reform” panel were chosen by those very same people — including a governor who doesn’t hesitate to insert his heavy hand on investigative bodies like the late Moreland Commission. Consider: JCOPE’s first executive director, Ellen Biben, had been Cuomo’s inspector general and earlier a special deputy when he was attorney general. Replacing her was Letizia Tagliafierro, another ex-Cuomo aide — who on the eve of her own exit last summer hired three former Cuomo staffers to top posts without the commissioners’ OK. One of the three now wants to be the next executive director. The reform ideas aim to fix some of JCOPE’s inherent weaknesses — like the fact that a minority of members can block investigations of a political ally, and its secretive, closed-door mentality. But they’re only recommendations — and some can’t go through unless the Legislature agrees. Good luck there. Sorry: As things stand these days, there’s only one truly effective weapon against Albany ’s culture of corruption — and his name is Preet Bharara.* Cox: Bharara ‘Right On Target’ (YNN)
True News Last Week
Why Are Good Govt Groups Ignoring That It Is A Prosecutor That Is Reforming Albany?
For example, most pols get to keep their state pensions even if they’re convicted. Fixing that requires amending the state Constitution — and the Assembly somehow keeps failing to fulfill its promise to get that ball rolling. Some insist that most lawmakers are clean. If so, they’re awfully blind to the shenanigans of the “few bad apples.” In fact, any truly honest politician has an obvious way to help clean up Albany : Just volunteer to wear a wire for Preet.* Jury selection is underway in Sheldon Silver's corruptiontrial (YNN) * The high-profile corruption scandals of Skelos and Silver have put unlikely state legislative races in play this year.* NY’s Corruption Report Card: “D-“ (YNN) * According to a new report from the Center for Public Integrity, New York ’s state government is “beset” by corruption and earns a “D-” when it comes to its public integrity index and ranked in a tie for 30th place, State of Politicsreports:
Daily News Lovett Who Gets His News From Albany Insiders Writes About Their Dream of Defeating Bharara In the Silver and Skelos Trials
DailyNews’ Lovett writes: * Sheldon Silver’s schemes encouraged greed and corruption, lawyers say (NYP)The referral-fee system that let ex-Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver pocket $3 million despite not doing any actual work is a powerful catalyst for greed and corruption, according to lawyers familiar with the practice. “In my opinion, that rule clearly encouraged an abuse of power, because Sheldon Silver was in a position where he was able to benefit monetarily without lifting a finger, by using taxpayers’ money to fill other people’s pockets,” said personal-injury lawyer Rosemarie Arnold. While
GOP Which Lost Their Way On LI Spins de Blasio as Their Punching Bag Target
Catsimatidis goes easy on de Blasio as he debuts new press strategy(NYP) A de Blasio spokeswoman conceded the questions were grapefruit league. “The Cats Man is not known for asking tough questions, and there are plenty of other elected officials who have been thrown softballs on his show,” said de Blasio spokeswoman Karen Hinton, who said the program was taped Wednesday.
IDC GOP Senate Coalition and Skelos Flanagan
Mayor Shuts Down City Hospital IG After Bad Reports of Management
In This City of Corruption Controlling the Investigator and Prosecutors Important to Protect the Ruling Class
NYP Attacks Cats for de Blasio Softballs. Is Cats Getting Close to Buying the Daily News?
Catsimatidis goes easy on de Blasio as he debuts new press strategy (NYP) New York ?” “Are you afraid when the phone rings at 3 o’clock in the morning?” and “What can we do to improve our schools?”
More Fake Campaign Finance Reform Ideas From the Council
95% of the Money From People or Companies Who Do Business With the City Come to the Candidates Through PACs and the Lobbyists Who Run Their Campaigns
Nail Biting or How To Buy Your Way Out of Reforming the Nail Business
Backed by Nail Salon Owners, New York Legislator Now Helps Lead Fight Against Reforms (NYT) Assemblyman Ron Kim, who was instrumental in creating a law to protect workers, has since received tens of thousands of dollars in political donations from salon owners and industry groups.* Assemblyman Ron Kim helped craft a bill protecting nail salon workers from labor abuses and potentially dangerous chemicals, but now – after receiving tens of thousands of dollars in political contributions from salon owners – opposes it. * Assemblyman Ron Kim, who helped craft a bill protecting nail salon workers, has now become a vocal critic of the law, which many see as connected to generous campaign donations from nail salon owners, The New YorkTimes reports:
The Pols Have Created A Gentrification Market Where Scam Predators Target Minorities to Flip Their Homes
Real Estate Shell CompaniesScheme to Defraud Owners Out of Their Homes (NYT) Relying on the secrecy of limited liability companies, white-collar thieves are targeting pockets of New York City for fraudulent deed transfers, leaving the victims groping for redress. In Bedford-Stuyvesant and other pockets of the city, white-collar criminals are employing a variety of schemes to snatch properties from their owners. Often, they use the secrecy afforded to shell companies to rent out vacated properties until they are caught or sell them to third parties. Victims are left groping for redress, unable to identify their predators or even, in some cases, to prove a crime has been committed. Attention lately has focused on the growing use of shell companies to buy prized real estate in Manhattan and other glittering destinations for global wealth. But the stealthy practice of deed theft illustrates another way that limited liability company law used to create such entities has been twisted and stretched to conceal the ownership of real estate. This is particularly true in Brooklyn neighborhoods where profits in the hundreds of thousands of dollars from quick turnaround sales have become common.In other cases, signatures are simply forged on deeds. The thieves, meanwhile, hide behind inscrutable mazes of limited liability companies, rented post office boxes and fake addresses. Coming amid waves of gentrification, the reports of deed theft have helped feed the unease felt in neighborhoods where longtime residents — blacks and Hispanics, the poor and middle class — are increasingly being priced out.* Real estate shell companies are defrauding New York City residents out of their homes, and a growing number of fraudulent deed transfers are often difficult to crack due to the secrecy of limited liability companies, The NewYork Times reports:
How Blacks the Poor and the Middle Class are Being Push Out of Brooklyn Because of Albany's Tax Breaks for Luxury Developers
Airbnb Bad Neighbors, Warehouses Apartments -- Rising Rents and IncreasingGentrification:
Airbnb Bad Neighbors, Warehouses Apartments -- Rising Rents and IncreasingGentrification:
Cuomo Should Appoint A New Seabury Commission to Investigate the 1NY Slush Fund Shadow Govt
The Spin de Blasio Laguardia "In 1934, “thegreatest mayor we ever had, Fiorello LaGuardia,” created the New York City Housing Authority, de Blasio said. LaGuardia “believed that something bold and ambitious and transcendent had to happen to protect the interests of working New Yorkers,” said the mayor, and his administration is, “humbly, humbly presenting Next Generation NYCHA in that same spirit.”
The Real de Blasio Walker Increasing corruption within his administration, forced Walker to testify before the investigative committee of Judge Samuel Seabury, the Seabury Commission (also known as the Hofstadter Committee). Walker caused his own downfall by accepting large sums of money from businessmen looking for municipal contracts. Facing pressure from Governor Roosevelt, Walker eluded questions about his personal bank accounts, stating instead that the money he received were “beneficences” and not bribes. He delayed any personal appearances until after Roosevelt’s nomination for President of the U.S. was secured. It was at that time that the embattled mayor could fight no longer. Months from his national election, Roosevelt decided that he must remove Walker from office. Walker agreed and resigned on September 1, 1932, and went on a grand tour of Europe with Betty Compton, his Ziegfeld girl. * Cuomo screws w/ de Blasio because he can't screw w/ Bharara-
Mayor Says Berlin Rosen Does Not Lobby - Why Do Their Real Estate Clients Pay Them? Good Looks?
The mayor also defended the work of his political nonprofit, the Campaign for One New York. The group, which boosts his administration’s agenda, has accepted donations as large as $500,000 from individuals, corporations and unions that have business matters before the city. Critics say the nonprofit serves as a slush fund and is at odds with de Blasio’s condemnation of the US Supreme Court decision on Citizens United in 2010, which effectively opened the floodgates to unlimited corporate contributions into politics.
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Even Weak JCOPE Says consultants who take actions related to lobbying efforts must register as lobbyists
The state Joint Commission on Public Ethics said consultants who take actions related to lobbying efforts must register as lobbyists, even if they do not directly ask officials to take action on bills,the Times Union reports * Legislative Gazette: Senator Avella worried about lobbyistsin consultants' clothing * Just don't call these consultants lobbyists | Crain's New York ... They move government without having to disclose their activities. Call them clever, call them stealthy.consultants' clothing." * Cuomo has pushed the legislature to enact a series of ethics reforms in response to scandals and public pressure, but public integrity in New York is worse today than it was three years ago, according to a new 50-state analysis. * Silver, Skelos &secrets and why JCOPE is a joke (NYDN) The Joint Commission on Public Ethics sprung in 2011 from seed planted by Gov. Cuomo, who saw a chance to strengthen New York ’s pathetically weak oversight of elected officials after authorities had busted a string of legislators. But the beast of a law that emerged from his negotiations with Skelos and Silver made investigations of wayward legislators all but impossible. By statute, the half-Republican, half-Democratic JCOPE operates in near-total secrecy. Indeed, it is a crime for its 14 members to reveal anything about proceedings. Commission meetings, vote tallies and even the names of those under investigation are shielded from public view. Ugliest of all: a measly two commissioners can kill a probe before it’s begun, even if the other 12 members give the green light. How very convenient for the Assembly speaker and Senate majority leader who each appointed three commission members. Cuomo, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan must kill the partisan veto and open JCOPE proceedings except where public disclosure would hamper an investigation. They need to understand that transparency breeds accountability and accountability breeds honesty. The blackout produces absurd results that undermine trust. In September, for example, JCOPE ended a 20-month study of a complaint filed by Donald Trump against Attorney General Eric Schneiderman — without any explanation. Did JCOPE conclude that Trump was full of bull? Or did it find that, although the accusations were true, Schneiderman violated no ethics rules?* The secrecy and partisan nature of the state’s Joint Committee on Public Ethics has rendered it a joke, but the state Legislature’s new leaders should make changes to ensure greater accountability, the DailyNews writes: * The reforms offered in a report on JCOPE don’t come close to addressing the issues of independence that have made it a joke, and the only real weapon against corruption in Albany now is Bharara, the Post writes: * New teeth for New York’s ethics watchmouse (NYP) * New York 'santi-currption laws ranked 30th in the nation. Three men in a room budgeting?Dead last. (by @Mahoneyw)
The Times Union writes the same JJOKE editorial over and over and over again http://bit.ly/nvxQUf Gagan v Grandeau to lead JJOKE
A Record of Berlin Rosen Lobbying For Developers
The NYT Wrote in 2014 Berlin Rosen Negotiated A Deal With the the Developer of the Domino Sugar Site
Berlin Rosen’s current and recent clients include Two Trees Management (3/3/2014, NYT) "Negotiations between Mr. de Blasio’s team and two trees' Walentas’s firm took place over a few days. The two men share a mutual adviser: Jonathan Rosen, one of the mayor’s top political hands and the chief executive of a public affairs firm, Berlin Rosen that counts Mr. Walentas’s company as a client."
Berlin Rosen Works for Blackstone Which Bought Stuy Town
Berlin Rosen Works for Blackstone Which Bought Stuy Town
Berlin Rosen Was Pay to Work for Brookfield Properties and which has bought Stuyvesant Town / Peter Copper Village. *
The Guardian
Berlin Rosen Work for the Brooklyn Library System That Sold the Brooklyn Heights Library to A Developer Against Community Opposition
Sold! Brooklyn Heights library to developer for $52 ...
Berlin Rosen is Work for Bruce Ratner's Atlantic Yards
In NYC Power 100, Ratner one notch ahead of City's Housing director; p.r. firm BerlinRosen continues rise; Lewis, James slip (AYO)developers Forest City
Freedom of the Press
Thomas Jefferson Vs de Blasio: I Do Not Get Paid to Answer Media Questions
Bill de Blasio Says He Gets Paid to Be Mayor, Not AnswerMedia Questions (NYO)
A Constitutional Crisis At City Hall
Mayor de Blasio, Amid Criticism, Tries to Keep Press Under Control (NYT) City Hall reporters object to restrictions on what questions can be asked. * Bill de Blasio acknowledges engaging in new media strategy (NYDN) Bill de Blasio acknowledges engaging in new media strategy (NYDN) But de Blasio, whose approval ratings are at record lows, insisted he would make more of an effort to talk directly to the public, without the help of the Fourth Estate. That will involve meeting with community and church leaders, town hall meetings with the public, and appearances on radio shows where he takes calls from listeners, he said. The new strategy has been in place for several weeks — and has led to some testy confrontations with reporters who are used to more access. On Wednesday, his press secretary Karen Hinton had a beef with CBS political reporter Marcia Kramer — caught on cameras and broadcast on the station’s newscast — over de Blasio’s refusal to take questions at a public event. Ironically, he announced his new limited press availability in a freewheeling news conference Friday afternoon in the City Hall Blue Room, where he took over two dozen questions over close to an hour and a half. “We’re going to change the paradigm ... because we think there are better ways to communicate, and better ways to be connected to the people,” he said. * De Blasio, Down in Polls, Alters Media Strategy (WSJ) * De Blasio Indicates He'll Be More Open to the Public, Not So Much to the Media (NY1)
A Constitutional Crisis At City Hall
THE MAYOR WHO WANTS TO TELL REPORTERS WHAT QUESTIONS HE’LL PERMIT THEM TO ASK By Gabe Pressman
Mayor DeBlasio has tangled with a reporter, Marcia Kramer, over whether she had a right to ask him a question. The Mayor who promised to run a “transparent” administration has done the opposite. He insists on setting the agenda for his press conferences. He gives us the topic and then assesses each question. If it’s something he doesn’t want to discuss, he admonishes the reporter to stay “on topic.” I’ve been covering press conferences at City Hall for 60 years---and never has a Mayor had the temerity to enforce an agenda on journalists. This Mayor who proclaims he is a “progressive” is anything but. The word “retrogressive” might be a better fit. He needs a lesson in the history of freedom of the press in NY John Peter Zenger went to jail for criticizing the English governor of New York . That happened 300 years ago and, if it were not for Zenger, the principle of freedom of the press might never have been embedded in our constitution. Zenger, a half-literate German-born printer, was a true progressive.
Joel Siegel @joelmsiegel Uh, previousmayors (pre Bloomy) didn't take questions "two or three times aweek." They took them daily #factcheck
NYC Journalism: From Throw the Bums Out to Bharara's Stenographers
Friends, moneyand progressive politics (NYDN) Where the prosecution stitches together a criminal conspiracy, Silver claims he engaged in unrelated and lawful acts like giving state grants for cancer research to a doctor, who then referred lucrative mesothelioma patients to a law firm that then paid Silver cash for each one. His lawyer protested that the feds have “twisted” into a crime “the fact that friends might do favors for friends.” Echoing “The Godfather: Part II,” he declared: “This is the system
Nobody Asked Me But . . .
1. What Daily News Reporter Siegel should have wrote after "Said de Blasio’s press secretary: The group “does not engage in politics” but “exists solely to advance the administration’s agenda.” Was that Bill Hyers who works for the One NY PAC slush fund is still being paid by the mayor 2013 campaign committee.
2. Siegel Wrote: :Then there’s de Blasio ally Melissa Mark-Viverito, who accepted free help from the politically wired Advance Group when she ran for City Council speaker. Boss Scott Levenson ( later fined for his role in the shady Trojan and carriage horse politics of 2013) “volunteered” their services, explaining when The News exposed that arrangement that they were “just helping” a friend as “a long-standing progressive firm.” Siegel did not write the the city's conflict of interests board was still sitting on their investigation of Advance Illegally Helping Mark-Viverito to win the speakership. Siegel should have also said it was a joke for advance to be fined $15,000 for Funneling money into dozens of campaigns by a secret company created by the UFT to cover-up Advance's Involvement
3. Errol Louis or his headline writer wrote: "New Yorkers, step up and run: As the Sheldon Silver and Dean Skelos trials demonstrate, we've got big problems and small politicians" Louis ran for office long before the lobbyists consultants and their PACs Hijacked NY's Election and he knew how hard it was to beat the machine way back when.
de Blasio Has No Plan to Keep Crime Down in NYCHA BuildingJust Reacts to the Headlines
The NY Obsever Calls One NY A Campaign PAC Yet The CFB Ignores the Coordination With de Blasio 2017 Campaign
De Blasio LamentsCitizens United While His Campaign Nonprofit Benefits From It (NYO) Following increasing criticism over his use of a shadowy nonprofit, the Campaign for One New York, to promote his progressive agenda, Mayor Bill de Blasio wished today for Citizens United to be struck down–but implied he was fine with continuing to reap the rewards of the Supreme Court decision. Mr. de Blasio’s Campaign for One New York is a 501 c(4) nonprofit that does not have to conform to the strict limitations on donations and spending imposed by the New York City Campaign Finance Board. Mr. de Blasio voluntarily discloses the five and six-figure donations made to the group several times a year.
Crooked Brooklyn Judge, DA and Author
Crooked Brooklyn Author Michael F. Vecchione: Under Fire, Brooklyn Deputy ProsecutorWill Retire (NYT) * Brooklyn DA Michael Vecchione; congenital liar, ethicalleper-con *
Crooked Brooklyn DA Hynes: The rise and fall of Joe Hynes - Leonard Levitt | am New York * Ex-Brooklyn Prosecutor Charles J. Hynes Accused of Misuse of Funds (NYT) A New York City Department of Investigation inquiry has implicatedCharles J. Hynes, the former Brooklyn district attorney, in the improper use of money seized from drug dealers and other criminal defendants to pay a political consultant more than $200,000 for his work on Mr. Hynes’s unsuccessful re-election campaign last year. * Ex-Brooklyn DA Charles Hynes may have used drug money seized from drugdealers, crooks to fund reelection bid: investigation (NYDN) A report by the city’s Department of Investigations says the former district attorney paid a political consultant more than $200,000 — possibly seized from drug dealers and other felons — and allowed staffers to work on his campaign on the job. Hynes' reputation had already been sullied by a spate of wrongful murder convictions and accusations of unlawful prosecution tactics when he was in office. * Man released from prison after wrongful conviction - AOL
The Criminal Investigation and the Dem Pick of of DA in Nassau County Good Indicator That State Senate In Play
All five open seats in the state Legislature were filled by members of the previous occupants’ political party, setting up a fight to win the governing majority in next year’s senate elections, The New York Times reports:
Other Election Results
Democrat Michael McMahon won the Staten Island district attorney’s race, replacing Republican Dan Donovan, who is now in Congress.* Politico New York breaks down election results by region in a cycle that left the political landscape largely unchanged, particularly in the state Legislature where members elected to vacated seats were from the same party as their predecessors: * While Fred Akshar’s victory over Democrat Barbara Fiala in a state Senate race is being hailed by Republicans as a sign of things to come next year, Democrats believe the victory was a pyrrhic one, State of Politics writes: * Two good showings by Democratic candidates on Long Island in this week’s elections, with corruption playing a big role in both races, has Democrats hopeful as they try and gain a Senate majority next year, the DailyNews writes: Low Vote Newsday decried low turnout this past Election Day, calling Long Island voters a “sorry lot.”* Queens Democratic state Sen. Mike Gianaris said the mainline Democratic conference will be competitive next year in elections on Long Island, where Republicans control all nine seats in Suffolk and Nassau counties, State of Politics reports:
By Blaming the PBA for the 1% Proposal de Blasio Damaging Any Relationship He Has With Cops
Labor Victory at a Price (WSJ) Mayor Bill de Blasio’s apparent victory this week in labor negotiations with New York City ’s biggest police union could reignite tensions with a group he has worked hard to placate in recent months. *
'SHE WAS TRULY AN AMAZING HUMAN BEING': NYPD Lt. Marci Simms, 51, dies from 9/11-related illness, family says (NYDN)New York writes:
De Blasio Governing by Dick Morris Triangulation - All Sides 1984 Doublespeak
He would not let himself be bullied by the top government official in New York . And, thanks to a brilliant lawyer and a courageous jury, he was acquitted of wrongdoing. Any question is fair game for every mayor. Indeed that principle has suited presidents and governors as well. For a reporter to be guided by any other code would be unprofessional and a betrayal of his obligation to the people. John Peter Zenger - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia * The Trial of John Peter Zenger [ushistory.org] * The trial of John Peter Zenger * A day after one of his aides got into a heated argument with a TV reporter over his refusal to take questions on homelessness, de Blasio insisted his administration had an open door policy with both the press and the public. * After one of his aides argued with a TV reporter over hisrefusal to take questions on homelessness, de Blasio insisted his administration had an open-door policy with both the press and the public and promised more town hall meetings:
If New Yorkers Can Not Get Mad As Hell At Silver for Pay to Play Cancer Research Then Something is Wrong With Our Culture
Taub admitted he lied to federal investigators when they came around at 6 a.m. one morning to ask him whether he had steered asbestos victims to Silver’s law firm, enriching Silver to the tune of more than $3 million. *Sheldon Silver corruption trial loses a juror (NYP) The Sheldon Silver corruption trial has already lost its first juror. The juror begged off the lengthy trial so she could return to her job helping the homeless, court records...* Doctor at Sheldon Silver Trial Tells of ElaborateArrangement, Years in Making * The corruption trial of former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver has already claimed its first victim: Juror No. 4. (She had a work conflict).* Defense Strategy in Sheldon Silver Trial Highlights Transactional Nature of Albany Politics (NY1)
From the Good Doctor Taub to Litwin's Glenwood to Killing Moreland
From the Good Doctor Taub to Litwin's Glenwood to Killing Moreland
The Best is Yet to Come
Opening Soon: Skelos and Son No-Show Jobs, Inc
Dean Skelos, son, made thousands for ‘no-show jobs’: feds (NYP) Disgraced former state Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos used his political muscle to score “his own no-show job” and rake in nearly $200,000 per year, before pulling a similar move on his son’s behalf and getting arrested for it, prosecutors said in new court papers. Skelos got the job at the Ruskin Moscou Faltischek law firm starting in 1994 — and according to the new filing, he was paid a bundle to do nothing. “[The firm] pays the senator approximately $170,000 per year but . . . there is no indication the senator performs any legal services,” new court papers state. Skelos, 67, and his son Adam, 32, go to trial beginning Nov. 16 on charges that Dean peddled his influence in exchange for cash and no-show * Disgraced former state Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos used his political muscle to score “his own no-show job” and rake in nearly $200,000 per year, before pulling a similar move on his son’s behalf and getting arrested for it, prosecutors said in new court papers. More here. In 2013, as Skelos was pushing Cuomo to authorize natural gas fracking, the senator’s son, Adam, was angling to get payments from a wastewater treatment company seeking a piece of the hydrofracking windfall, the documents claim. * New court filings suggest former state Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos used his influence to score “his own no-show job” and rake in nearly $200,000 per year at the Ruskin Moscou Faltischek law firm starting in 1994, the Post writes * In 2013, as then-Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos was pushing Cuomo to authorize natural gas fracking, Skelos' son was angling to get payments from a wastewater treatment company seeking a piece of the fracking windfall, Newsday reports: * The federal judge in the upcoming corruption trial of state Sen. Dean Skelos and his son, Adam, said she expects to admit evidence that the two strategized about using questions about the finances of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s girlfriend to weaken him in budget talks, Newsday reports: * Federal prosecutors say there was no such thing as a “wall” between former Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos and clients at Ruskin, Moscou Faltischek, the Long Island law firm that employed him, despite claims to the contrary. * The federal judge in the upcoming corruption trial of Skelos and his son, Adam, said she expects to admit evidence that the two strategized about using questions about the finances of Cuomo’s girlfriend to weaken him in budget talks.
NYCHA Crime Up and the Mayor Cuts and Paste News Policy
NYCHA moves to permanently exclude criminal tenants (NYDN) * BLAZ BAN: Mayor de Blasio wants to make it easier to evict criminals who terrorize residents from NYCHA housing (NYDN) * EXCLUSIVE: Mayor de Blasio wants to make it easier to evict and exclude criminals – who terrorize residents – from NYCHA apartments (NYDN) As crime spiked across the authority’s 328 developments and wreaked havoc in surrounding neighborhoods, the city dropped the ball on doing something about the perps next door — and the mayor is now vowing to fix the problem. Mayor de Blasio’s spokeswoman Karen Hinton told The News Saturday the mayor has ordered a total overhaul of the entire referral process to make it faster and easier for NYCHA to evict or exclude residents who are committing crimes on authority properties. The number of eviction cases commenced by NYCHA against criminal tenants dropped 40% from 1,581 in 2011 to 942 last year — and it’s on pace to stay the same this year. The number of actual evictions dropped from 172 in 2009 to 45 last year. As of mid-October this year there have only been 20. Meanwhile, crime — including shootings, murders, assaults and robbery — jumped 31% at NYCHA projects from 2009 through 2013, far outpacing a 3% rise citywide. It dropped off slightly in 2014, but climbed 11% in the last month. NYCHA can also permanently exclude non-tenants of record who live in NYCHA apartments. Exclusions rose this year to 415 from 344 last year, but are still way down from 619 in 2010.
HatTrick for the Feds This Weekend Mr. Malcolm Smith Goes to Jail
Disgraced former Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith surrendered to prison today in rural Pennsylvania after a failed bid to stay out of jail pending appeal of his corruption conviction. Disgraced official Malcolm Smith begins 7-year prison term (NYP) * Disgraced Queens politician Malcolm Smith, who was convicted of bribing political leaders to back a GOP mayoral bid, went to prison in rural Pennsylvania after a failed bid to stay out of jail pending an appeal, the Daily News reports:
Blasio Slush fund One NY PACs Full of Fat Cat Money, Like the PACs That Run the Lawmakers Campaigns In Albany
Both Parties in the State Senate and Assembly Have Campaign Committee Stuffed With Fat Cat Money That Runs Campaigns
The fat cats rule at de Blasio’s City Hall (NYP Ed) Since Mayor de Blasio took office, their firms have raked in $2.3 million — much of it via the mayor’s Campaign for One New York slush fund. That fund, in turn, gets cash from deep-pocketed donors (unions and businesses) looking for favors from the city. The favors, as The Post has reported, run from mayoral speeches to special access for special folk to multimillion-dollar deals. BerlinRosen, the PR/lobbying firm that oversees the fund, is virtually a wing of City Hall. Meanwhile, actual top city officials can’t get face time with the mayor. Last year, de Blasio steered $42 million to school-bus firms. Donors with ties to the firms had given nearly $40,000 to his slush fund. Nice return on investment. OK: No one’s accused Hizzoner of breaking any laws (so far). But this isn’t all that different from what ex-Assembly Speaker Shelly Silver and ex-Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos are on trial for this month. lus, de Blasio rose to power blasting the “consultant class” and donors who hide behind “political committees that masquerade as tax-exempt nonprofits.” He also vowed “transparency.” Ha! Never mind how his shadow government mocks the concept; the mayor won’t do a real town-hall meeting, fights Freedom of Information requests and won’t even answer press questions he dislikes. Thursday, Gabe Pressman said on Facebook he’s never seen anything like it in 60 years of covering City Hall. Shadowy consultants; special favors; secretive dealings: That’s “progressive” government.
When Will Reporters Ask Albany Lawmakers if They Agree With Silver's Defense That Corruption Is Normal Way to Do Business?
Kramer Asks de Blasio Flack to Ask Questions, But She Does Not Ask Albany Lawmakers About the Silver Trial?
Besides the Press There is An Avoidance of the Public an Activists From Getting Involved In the Corruption Discussion
Where is the Outrage Of What Berlin Rosen or Sheldon Silver Has Done to Out Democracy?
Very Little Chatter on the Internet About the Trial
CrainsNY on the Advance Groups Double Dipping
Will the NYC DAs Donate Their Pay Increase to Bharara for Doing Their Job?
Five of New York City’s district attorneys seek 32% pay raise in hopes of having $250G annual salaries (NYDN) *
Five of New York City’s district attorneys seek 32% pay raise in hopes of having $250G annual salaries (NYDN) *
How True News Got the Mayor
True News Wags the NYT On de Blasio's OneNY PAC Slush Fund Lobbyists Run City Hall
These consultants helped guide Mr. de Blasio’s campaign for mayor in 2013, and they have remained at his side as a kind of privately funded brain trust, offering strategic advice and helping to shape the message that comes from City Hall. Their involvement also poses conflict-of-interest concerns; some of their firms have clients that do business with the city. For their place in the mayor’s orbit, these consultants have been well compensated: In the first year and a half of his term, their firms have collected nearly $2.3 million in payments. Most of the money has come from a nonprofit organization, the Campaign for One New York, that was created by political professionals from his mayoral campaign as a vehicle to push his initiatives, and whose donors have included real estate developers and unions.
NYT: Perception to de Blasio is In the Pocket of Real Estate is Very Real
NYT: Perception to de Blasio is In the Pocket of Real Estate is Very Real
Development, de Blasio-Style (NYT) To what extent is it fair to lay blame for this disruption at the feet of Bill de Blasio? Much of what is happening in TriBeCa specifically is the consequence of Bloomberg-era deals and policies. But the perception that the current mayor too easily capitulates to real estate interests, that he cares little about the hazards of extreme density and lacks any vision for urban planning, is very real. This line of thinking certainly didn’t lose credibility after a report in The New York Times last week indicating that the mayor’s Campaign for One New York, which has given money to private consultants who advise Mr. de Blasio, received over $1 million from the real estate industry.
One New York PAC is A Campaign PAC To Re-Elect the Mayor
It is Illegal to Coordinate Campaign Funds and PACs Where Are the Prosecutors
It is Illegal to Coordinate Campaign Funds and PACs Where Are the Prosecutors
de Blasio's Campaign Team
$3.9 million Campaign for One New York
Mr. Del Cecato — who is credited with developing the attention-grabbing television advertisement during the 2013 mayoral race that featured Mr. de Blasio’s son, Dante — has regularly met with the mayor in planning meetings that also include other consultants and high-ranking City Hall officials, as well as in smaller gatherings. He declined to comment on his relationship with the mayor. Mr. Del Cecato is one of several major playersfrom the 2013 campaign who have remained in Mr. de Blasio’s orbit. Others include Mr. Rosen and Nick Baldick, a top campaign adviser who is managing partner at another firm, Hilltop Public Solutions.
BerlinRosen $488,413
Hilltop Public Solutions $228,965
NYT Wrote Today:
"During that 18-month period, Mr. Baldick’s firm, Hilltop Public Solutions, where Mr. Hyers is now a partner, was paid about $230,000, along with about $100,000 paid by the 2013 campaign. Hilltop, a political consulting and public affairs firm, said it did not lobby city government, but it has clients that are keenly interested in decisions made at City Hall. Its clients include Airbnb and Fortis Property Group, which is redeveloping the former Long Island College Hospital complex in Brooklyn ."
True Wrote Months Ago
de Blasio Campaign Manager Bill Hires' Hilltop Helps Run the OneNY PAC
1. Hires: de Blasio Campaign Manager Who Uses Candidate Fake Arrest to Protest A Closing Hospital As A Prop
2. Once the Hospital is Closed Hires Who Works for the Mayor Slush Fund PAC One NY Uses It to Tell the Community That the Band Aid ER the Developer Agreed to Build is As Good As the Closed Hospital
3. Hires: Sell A Large Development to Replace te Closed to A Community Who Opposes It
4. Is de Blasio Using His 2013 Campaign Account to Pay Hires to Supplement His Pay the Director of His One NY PAC?
NY Times Wrote Today:
True News Wrote Last May About How Berlin Rosen Conspired to Blame the Gov for the Increase of Homeless, Even NYT Got Caught In the Lie
Even the Council Blames Cuomo for Their Own NYCHA Oversight Failure Pols fight Cuomo's move to take money from NYCHA 'worst roof' fixes (NYDN)
NY1's Louis Concerned That Lobbyist Have Manipulated and Comprised Journalism
On Inside City Hall host Errol Louis in a discussion of the stations report on Berlin Rosen admitted that he was surprised at the reach of Berlin Rosen. He expressed concern that advocates that use the media might not be independent. He said he was shocked to lean that the Coalition for the Homeless which was blaming Cuomo for the increase the city's homeless hired Berlin Rosen as its consultant. Louis on NY1: "Last week when I interviewed the coalition for the homeless, I did not know they were a Berlin Rosen client. The report (the coalitions issued) goes out of their way to blame everyone but the mayor for the record high homelessness in the city. They talked (blamed) the governor and (blamed) at length the last past mayor. When I realized they were a client, I realized this is a problem not just for transparency and private sector clients not being registered lobbyist . . . this works both ways. Maybe we got advocates who are not independent advocates."
Berlin Rosen Black Box Blame Cuomo Homeless Operation as Ratner Creates More Homeless by Gentrification
Patrick Markee of the Coalition for the Homeless Who Hired Berlin Rosen, Who Bashed Cuomo Praised de Blasio is Married to Ratner's Daughter
When NY1's Louis interviewed Patrick Markee, head of the Coalition for the Homeless he did no know that Berlin Rosen worked for them. Unregulated Berlin Rosen Will Lead to Foreign Control of New York's Government - A Silent Coup d'etat * The Atlantic Yards CBA promised a path to union apprenticeships. Instead, BUILD's coveted program provoked a bitter lawsuit.(AYR)
Through the middle of this year, 77 percent of the group’s spending went to several consulting firms that also worked for Mr. de Blasio’s 2013 campaign. The mayor’s reliance on private consultants seems to run contrary to the image he has cultivated. As mayor, he has criticized the role that the “consultant class” played in politics; in his previous elective office, as the city’s public advocate, he assailed the influence of political donors hiding behind “political committees that masquerade as tax-exempt nonprofits.” Yet a review by The New York Times of hundreds of pages of the mayor’s daily schedules, as well as email correspondence and other records, shows the central role that private consultants have played in his administration. The correspondence highlights how some consultants have almost unfiltered access to City Hall, with the dialogue conveying a casual atmosphere.
Speaker Sheldon Silver, His Law Firm $$$
de Blasio's One New York PAC Has Created A Privatization of the Tammany Hall Machine
de Blasio's One New York PAC Has Created A Privatization of the Tammany Hall Machine
NY1 Berlin Rosen and the Wiseguys Lobbyists
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True News Wrote Months Ago
The communications strategy for the Campaign for One New York’s work to promote the mayor’s agenda has been overseen by BerlinRosen, a public affairs consulting firm known for its political work. It represents numerous clients that do business with the city, including real estate developers and nonprofit organizations. The firm had a central role in Mr. de Blasio’s successful bid for City Hall, and one of its principals, Jonathan Rosen, is a close friend and adviser.
From the NYT
From the NYT
"It is not unusual for elected officials to seek the counsel of outside advisers or friends as they formulate policy or navigate turbulent political waters. But Mr. de Blasio has given new dimension to that practice, meeting with some consultants more often than some senior members of his administration."
de Blasio PAC & Campaign Funded by Real Estate and Run By Lobbyists Campaign Consultants
On the Eve of the Silver Skelos Real Estate Corruption Trial
Why is CFB, DAs, AG Not Questing de Blasio Real Estate Slush PAC Runing his Political Operation?
During the first half of 2015, real estate developers and firms gave more than any other industry to de Blasio’s nonprofit advocacy group, the Campaign for One New York, The Wall Street Journal reports: Mayor Bill de Blasio and his closest advisers have financed much of his political activity with money from the powerful real estate community, including developers whose projects need city approval. In the first half of 2015, real-estate developers and firms gave about $800,000 to the Campaign for One New York, a nonprofit advocacy group run by de Blasio allies—an amount more than any other industry has contributed and much more than they gave in 2014, according to disclosure reports.
Over the same months, the Campaign for One New York spent about $700,000 on political consultants, national travel and research as the mayor worked to bolster his progressive agenda—and profile. The Campaign for One New York also has benefited from progressive groups and unions, such as 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, which gave $250,000 this year. Asked about developers’ support for Campaign for One New York during the 421-a fight, Dan Levitan, a spokesman for the group, said: “During this reporting period, more than a million renters saw the first rent freeze in New York City history, and Mayor de Blasio negotiated major reforms to the 421a program that will end giveaways to developers and require them to build more affordable housing for New Yorkers.”
Albany On Trail
Does de Blasio Still Think Silver is A Man of Integrity Like He Said Last January?
If Albany has any honest politicians left, they should be wearing wires (NYP) No wonder public faith in government is in the toilet. In a June poll, 55 percent of New York voters wanted all office-holders voted out. The trials will spotlight what US Attorney Preet Bharara calls Albany ’s “show-me-the-money” culture. But he notes that “even a series of tough and successful prosecutions . . . has not been enough to thwart others from following in their felonious footsteps.” New Yorkers, he warns, can’t “prosecute our way to cleaner government.” Well, legislators aren’t doing much to clean house.* Albany Needs a Senator Serpico (2012, Morgan Pehme) If there are so many decent, upright members of the Legislature—as representatives of both houses insist—why is it not that one of them has the guts to step forward and breach the wall of silence that shields their unsavory colleagues from accountability and denies their victims—all of us—justice? It has often been remarked, “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” Right now, anyone who claims to be a reformer in Albany is just blowing smoke. Unless these supposedly virtuous men and women step up and take bold and brave action to root out the epidemic in their midst, they must be held as responsible for its ills as anyone. Officer Serpico risked his career and life—evidenced by the bullet he still has lodged in his face four decades later—because of his deep and abiding morality, an innate conviction that what is right transcends what is expedient. Is there no one in the Legislature who will put the interests of the people before his or her own? Out of the 212 members of the Senate and the Assembly, is there not a single hero? Thanks to his valor, the name Serpico has become synonymous with honest cop. Who in Albany has the backbone to earn the title of honest politician?
True News Tuesday Mets Manager Takes Blame for Losing Series When Was the Last Time A Pol Took the Blame for Homelessness Bad Schools?
True News Tuesday Mets Manager Takes Blame for Losing Series When Was the Last Time A Pol Took the Blame for Homelessness Bad Schools?
True News Wags Daily News On Where de Blasio's Buck Stops
Wednesday Update: The buck stops withBill de Blasio: What the mayor should learn from rough new poll numbers(NYDN Ed) In May, he complained to Rolling Stone that “a lot of people outside New York City understand what happened in (his) first year of New York City better than people in New York City .” In September, he stopped blaming New Yorkers directly, and started blaming the media for confusing New Yorkers about the state of the city. “I don’t curse the darkness here,” he told the Daily News Editorial Board. “I don’t say, ‘Oh, why doesn’t the public see through it?’ I’m actually sympathetic — that if you hear the same message over and over again, it affects your judgment.” “I think there is a gap between reality and perception,” he said. “And I have to constantly take responsibility. If I got all this product and I’m not making it clear enough to people, of course that’s on me.” And now cotton candy, plus mayoral determination to get better at “explaining to people how (his progressive) vision is affecting their lives.” Politicians seek good PR, but poor messaging hardly explains why the public has soured on de Blasio’s handling of crime (32% approval), police-community relations (34% approval), schools (35% approval), and poverty and homelessness (28% approval) The Daily News writes that de Blasio’s low poll numbers are not “evaporating” and that almost halfway through his first term, they show discontent is lasting
De Blasio’s insistence on “on-topic” versus “off-topic” questions is a break from his predecessors, and the mayor should remember the press is not his enemy, Josh Robin writes in the Daily News:
Also good to remember: NYT and WSJ reporters get far more 1 on 1 interviews with this mayor than other news outlets
Another Win for Developers Over Libraries Who Run NY Govt
City approves deal to sell library and replace it with high-rise (NYP) The City Planning Commission unanimously approved a deal Monday to sell a Brooklyn Heights Brooklyn Heights
The Feds Case Against Silver: Kickbacks From Real Estate for 421-a and A Cancer Doctor
Albany's Culture of Corruption Silver Trail Explained By Convicted Former Senator Malcolm Smith
With former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver’s corruption trial starting today, followed by the start of former Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos’ trial on Nov. 16, the entire culture of Albany will be in the spotlight. Court papers in the two cases suggest that testimony in Federal District Court will expose in granular detail what watchdog groups say is a seamy world where big money and politics have long intersected with government. From the NYT: "Court papers in the two cases suggest that testimony in Federal District Court will expose in granular detail what watchdog groups say is a seamy world where big money and politics have long intersected with government. There are accounts of kickbacks disguised as legitimate income; no-show jobs for a lawmaker’s son; and the use of state money to influence a doctor to refer clients to a favored law firm that, in turn, paid millions of dollars to a lawmaker. The two trials — Mr. Silver’s case is to begin on Monday with jury selection, and the case against Mr. Skelos, who is going on trial with his son, Adam, is scheduled to start on Nov. 16 — could run as long as six weeks each, so they will probably overlap for about a month. Never before have two lawmakers of their stature gone on trial at the same time in New York . The trials come after roughly 18 months of intensive investigations by a large team of federal prosecutors in Manhattan , their investigators and agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. They zeroed in on not only Mr. Silver, a Democrat, and Mr. Skelos, a Republican, but also on up to a dozen other lawmakers from both parties. Some of those inquiries are still underway." * Q. and A.: The Trial of Sheldon Silver (NYT) Key questions in the corruption case against Mr. Silver, once one of the most powerful men in New York .
Will the Media Protect the Shadow Govt Permanent Bosses and Their Soldiers Lobbyists Consultants
Only the Daily News Did A Story Today About the Silver Trial Starting Monday
To Keep the Money Flowing and Corruption Culture Albany Pols Ignore Their Beloved Leaders Trials
On Eve of Silver Trial Only Newsday Is Only Paper Took Bharara Advice to Investigate Corruption
Newsday Report Thrown Out of Public Building Asking for Public Records About
True News Wags the Daily News to Show Outrage Against Silver, But Paper Still Not Investigating and Connect More Corruption Dots
Sheldon Silver'scrimes against New York (NYDN Ed) Federal prosecutors appear poised to give New Yorkers a civics lesson in how their state government has really been working. Silver rigged financial disclosure rules so as to hide the sources of his income, thus facilitating a hidden flow of money while brazenly claiming that he was living up to the letter of the law. He controlled internal Assembly ethics investigations, and perverted outside probes by maintaining secret sway over supposed watchdogs. And he perfected one-person rule of the Assembly so that he could decide which bills passed and on what terms
Insiders are Are Saying It is A Miracle
That Developers Who Paid the Bribe, Lobbyists Who Arranged the Deal and Law Firms That Made Money Where Not Charged
“As the U.S. attorney has clearly outlined, Weitz & Luxenberg had no knowledge of the alleged scheme described by prosecutors,” a spokeswoman for the firm said. Both Litwin Glenwood's Charles Dorego and Glenwood's Lobbyist and Silver Pal Brian Meara were not charged with a crime in exchange for become a federal rat.* Last Week • As Assemblyman Silver and Skelos head to trial, lawmakers, lobbyists, aides and others involved in state politics are bracing For A Proctology Exam of Albany’s culture and Corruption
For Some Reason the NYT Does Not Give the Name of the Govt Witnesses Litwin Glenwood's Charles Dorego and Glenwood's Lobbyist and Silver Pal Brian Meara
True News Wags the Daily News on Bronx DA Candidate Not Filing Proper Financial Report
Below the law as Bronx pols Rob Johnson and Darcel Clarke break the rules(NYDN Ed) Give a politician the power to win office without a competitive election and you give that politician the ability to violate rules and regulations with impunity. Cases in point: departing Bronx District Attorney Rob Johnson and his soon-to-be successor, ex-Appellate Division Justice Darcel Clark . Completing 27 years as DA, Johnson filed the paperwork to run for an eighth term and repeatedly gave the false impression that he intended to go for it. Instead, he was rigging the game for the Bronx Democratic organization. When the time was right, Johnson dropped the party’s nomination and switched to a pre-arranged spot on a ballot for certain election as a Supreme Court justice. The move gave the machine the authority to designate Johnson’s successor without the discipline of a primary election. The bosses chose Clark , although, darn it, she says she just can’t remember which one called with the offer of her dream job, DA. She and Johnson now stroll toward Tuesday’s election unopposed. Without competition, both have gotten ethically cavalier. Johnson became a judicial candidate on Sept. 24. Court rules then gave him 20 days to file a financial disclosure statement and to take judicial campaign training, which includes instruction on disclosure obligations. Although he completed the training, Johnson has blown off his financial disclosure Before he has even taken office, Johnson is a ready made case for discipline by the state Commission on Judicial Conduct. Clark , too, has failed to disclose her personal finances, in violation of Section 12-110 of the Administrative Code, which gives a district attorney candidate 15 days to file after entering a race. She is almost three weeks late and is subject to a fine of not less than $250 and not more than $10,000. Before she has even taken office, Clark is a ready made case for the Conflicts of Interest Board.
The DA Clark Campaign Has Just Filed A Financial Report But Only $208.77 in Expenses and No Red Horse
True News Has Learned: Red Horse Working for Bronx DA Candidate Darcel Clark and A Queens DA Candidate and Has Worked for the Brooklyn and New York DAs
Red Horse Lobbyist Consultants Who Got Away With Scamming the CFB in 2013 Caught In Petition Fraud in 2015 for A SI DA Candidate
Candidate for StatenIsland DA says opponent collected fraud campaign signatures (WPIX) Joan Illuzzi is running as a Republican for Staten Island District Attorney. Mike McMahon is running as a Democrat and Independent for the same office. Both submitted approximately 4,000 signed petitions to have their names listed on the ballot, but Illuzzi’s campaign has questioned the accuracy of several of the signatures submitted by McMahon’s camp.
The Following Were Red Horse Clients and Supported By A UFT PAC That Redhorse Also Worked for
The CFB Fined the Advance Group for Working for Two Council Candidate and the NYCLASS PAC. The CFB Has Ignored Advances, Red Horse and Berlin Rosen Working for Both candidates and the UFT PAC United for the Future Which Funded the Candidates the Consultants Worked For
The UFT paid $252,233 to campaign consultant Red Horse Strategies to Help Run There PAC United for the Future Which Funded The Following City Council Candidates
Councilman James Vacca
Councilwoman Annabel Palma
Councilman Daneek Miller
Councilman Richard Donovan
Councilman Antonio Reynoso
Councilman Richard Torres
Councilman Richard Torres
A Tale of Two CFBs: Albanese vs Campaign PAC NYCLASS, UFT's United for the Future
The political organization that raises money for Mayor Bill de Blasio's issue-advocacy campaigns has hired longtime political operative Nathan Smith as its director, several sources told Capital. Smith, a founding partner of Red Horse Strategies, will oversee Campaign for One New York, which raised $1.76 million in private funds for the mayor's universal pre-kindergarten program last year. Smith has close ties to the de Blasio administration, having worked with the mayor's intergovernmental affairs director, Emma Wolfe, in winning a Democratic majority in the State Senate in 2008. (PoliticoNY)
Red Horse Works for de Blasio One New York PAC Slush Fund
Lobbyist Consultants in the City Council Campaign
Red Horse is Also Working in A Council Campaign in Queens Barry Grodenchik
Queens Democratic Party, Frank Bolz, collected $528 for petitioning expenses
Connective Strategies, a consulting firm run by Tyquana Henderson Ali Najmi
major chunk of Ms. Lynch’s cash has ended up in the pockets of BerlinRosen, a powerful consulting firm known best for helping Mayor Bill de Blasio win his 2013 mayoral race. For campaign mail and staff, Ms. Lynch has paid BerlinRosen about $52,000 Other Red Horse Clients Brooklyn Boro Presidents: Eric Adams, Ruben Diaz Jr., Melinda Katz, Jessica S Lappin, Julie Menin, Daniel L Squadron, Letitia James, Reshma M Saujani, Comptroller Scott Stringer, NYSDSC, Cuomo
Lobbyists Not Pols Attend de Blasio's Fund Raiser
The Lobbyist's Shadow Government
NY1 Berlin Rosen and the Wiseguys Lobbyists
Foreign Ownership of NYC Real Estate and the Lobbyists Who Work for Them
NY1 Berlin Rosen and the Wiseguys Lobbyists
Foreign Ownership of NYC Real Estate and the Lobbyists Who Work for Them
Homeless Deputy Mayor Ignored Quits Because Of A National Agenda Pursued That Also Failed
Deputy Mayor Barrios-Paoli quit the de Blasio administration because she was tired of being ignored by the mayor about the growing homelessness problem
Fed-up deputy mayor quits after being ‘ignored’ by de Blasio (NYP) The city’s top official on health and homelessness quit because she was tired of being ignored by a mayor more interested in boosting his national profile than attending to the city’s day-to-day concerns, sources said. Deputy Mayor Lilliam Barrios-Paoli worked for five mayors and oversaw seven city agencies under Mayor de Blasio — but she couldn’t get meetings with him, sources said. As the exploding homeless problem began capturing headlines over the summer, Barrios-Paoli said, “I told you so. If you’re not going to listen to anything I say, I’m out,” according to the source. The source added, “The mayor is so focused on national issues, he has not taken time to focus on local issues.” Bronx Assemblywoman Carmen Arroyo lambasted Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña for being disrespectful and unresponsive. “I cannot work with you,” the lawmaker fumed during an
After His 6 Months Journey to Become Progressive Voice He Winds Up With Bubkis
de Blasio Flip-Flops and Endorse Clinton Before His Iowa Town Hall
'The right experience to get the job done': De Blasio finally endorses Hillary Clinton for president(NYDN)
Voters say 48-42 percent that the mayor does not deserve re-election. There are signs of strength for Mr. de Blasio in the poll, particularly as he prepares to seek re-election. His approval rating is 61-30 percent among Democratic voters and primaries in New York are restricted to registered Democrats. Republicans, who are far outnumbered, disapprove of Mr. de Blasio 81-14 percent. In Quinnipiac’s poll of the primary field, Mr. de Blasio gets 41 percent, with 13 percent for Comptroller Scott Stringer, 7 percent for Congressman Hakeem Jeffries of Brooklyn and 4 percent for Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, who has all but ruled out herself for a 2017 bid. Two other rumored candidates, Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. and Public Advocate Letitia James, were left off the poll. In a general election match-up, de Blasio gets 48 percent against former NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly, a rumored 2013 candidate for mayor who never ran and has not indicated he would run again, and Michel Faulkner, a reverend and former NFL player. Mr. Kelly and Mr. Faulkner got 28 percent and 6 percent respectively, with 13 percent undecided.* .@QuinnipiacPoll: More than two years before he seeks re-election, @BilldeBlasio leads his potential opponents * Two years ahead of the next mayoral election, de Blasio leads all would-be challengers, though a third of democrats are still undecided, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll
Because the Campaign for One New York is a nonprofit and isn’t a re-election account tied directly to the mayor, donors aren’t required to follow the city’s campaign-finance laws that limit donations to candidates. Many developers and others in the industry said they were skeptical of Mr. de Blasio at first but have grown increasingly satisfied with his positions, including his work on behalf of 421-a. In 2015, the group’s focus shifted to Mr. de Blasio’s national agenda. Among the expenditures: more than $150,000 to AKPD Media, where Mr. de Blasio’s political consultant John Del Cecato is crafting his national agenda and about $140,000 to Mr. de Blasio’s polling and research firm. About $100,000 went to Hilltop Public Solutions, where de Blasio campaign manager Bill Hyers works. The group also spent more than $60,000 with Berlin Rosen, a firm run by de Blasio ally Jonathan Rosen that also represents real-estate companies. The group has paid for the mayor’s travel to San Francisco , hotel rooms in Milwaukee and travel to Iowa and Washington , D.C. Iowa forum, said it would create another account to collect contributions. The Campaign for One New York can accept donations through limited-liability corporations, which shroud identities. One of the biggest givers, Two Trees Development, gave $100,000 through a limited liability company. Two Trees is developing the Domino Sugar refinery in Brooklyn and other sites. At least some entities contributed to the Campaign for One New York as they also paid representatives to lobby City Hall, a practice that is legal but also has been criticized by Mr. Horner and others. Toll Brothers spent $32,000 to lobby City Hall, but also gave $25,000 to the Campaign for One New York. In a statement, a spokesman said the firm gave because it supported affordable housing. Property Markets Group, which spent more than $80,000 to lobby City Hall in 2015, gave $5,000 to the Campaign for One New York. One of the firm’s lobbyists, James Capalino, also gave $10,000. He didn’t return a request for comment. Madd Equities, which spent $37,500 in lobbying city council members, gave the Campaign for One New York $10,000. The firm didn’t return a request for comment. Longtime real-estate developer Steven Nislick, who wants to ban horse carriages in New York and has funded the group NYCLASS, gave Mr. de Blasio $50,000. He declined to comment.* When 65% of NYC voters oppose carriage ban, only route for Nyclass is to buy Mayor's support with $50,000via @WSJ
Albany Business As Usual Cuomo? Meets Apocalypse Now
Corruption Looms Over G.O.P. in Nassau County District Attorney Race (NYT) Democrats in the Long Island county have tried to link Kate Murray, the Republican candidate, to criminal cases dogging her party
Mangano, Walker will refuse to answer feds' questionsabout ties to Singh, sources say (Newsday)
Mangano, Walker will refuse to answer feds' questionsabout ties to Singh, sources say (Newsday)
Albany Plan Would Expand Conflict-of-Interest Policies (NYT) A proposal made this week by the Joint Commission on Public Ethics would extend the current rules for state employees to also include elected officials.
Bharara Puts the Pay to Play Culture of Corruption Government On Trial
Preet Bharara focuses on political favors in New Yorkstate government probe (csmonitor.com) With a widening probe of New York state government, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara appears to be taking aim at the nebulous relationship between money and politics itself — a long and murky association in Albany and in capitals across the nation. U.S.
A former high-ranking Suffolk County Board of Elections employee’s time-sheet and personnel records have been subpoenaed by the FBI, county sources said.
Buffalo Billions investigation
Updated Buffalo Billion diversity numbers Investigative Post
Bharara blasted for Libous prosecution: * Howard Zemsky, a Buffalo businessman who runs the state’s Empire State Development Corp., maintained the Cuomo administration’s no-comment policy after repeated questions surrounding a federal probe of the Buffalo Billion program, the Buffalo News reports: * Howard Zemsky, the leader of New York’s economic development agency, maintained the Cuomo administration’s no-comment policy with regards to questions surrounding a probe by federal prosecutors of the Buffalo Buffalo – the biggest economic development effort he has undertaken in his five years as governor – a project that isn’t without risk, and not the first time he has bet on a high-risk company as part of an economic development push. * Right From the Reporter: Buffalo Billion
SolarCity's Buffalo Billion Fed Investigation Target Stocks Crash Mayday!
SolarCity: Mayday! Mayday! (Investigative Post) For starters, the company disclosed it posted a net loss of $234 million in the third quarter. That’s the biggest quarterly loss in the history of the company and brings the year-to-date losses to a staggering $537 million. That puts SolarCity on track to lose more than $700 million for 2015, compared with net losses of $375 million in 2014, $152 million in 2013 and $92 million in 2012.
See a pattern there? SolarCity stock prices also took a nasty tumble Thursday, prompting Business Insider to declare “SolarCity is getting nuked.” The bad news on earnings drove the company’s stock down to $31.15 in after-hours trading. A day earlier, the stock closed at $38.34. That’s down from a peak of $84.96 in February 2014. The stock price is continuing to drop today.* More bad news for SolarCity – and the governor’s investment in the company’s Western New York project.
Nobody Asked Me But
The mayor said it was “downright crazy” to ask whether he would be endorsing Cuomo’s re-election campaign in 2018 because there were several election cycles before 2018, but said that he was a “loyal Democrat,” the Post reports:
Better Question to the Mayor: Are You Happy and Proud of Your 2014 Endorsement of Cuomo?
Newsday Only Paper Covering that Mangano Will Not Talk to the Feds About Sekos and de Blasio Contributor
Mangano, Walker will refuse to answer feds' questionsabout ties to Singh, sources say (Newsday)*Nassau County , on Long Island . * The NYT endorsed Madeline Singas, the Democratic Nassau County DA candidate, has been serving in an acting capacity in the job since the former occupant, Kathleen Rice, resigned in January to become a member of Congress. * Newsday: “Singas doesn’t have Murray ’s high name recognition. Instead, she brings 24 years of respected experience in law enforcement. The evidence points to only one verdict: Singas is by far the better choice.” * On the advice of their respective attorneys, Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano and his chief deputy, Rob Walker, both plan to refuse to answer questions from federal prosecutors about their relationships with indicted Long Island restaurateur Harendra Singh, according to several sources. * Democrats have sought to tie Republican Nassau County district attorney candidate Kate Murray to embattled state Sen. Dean Skelos, and strategists are watching to see what corruption may mean as an electoral concern, the Times reports:
Bharara is unpacking 421a as the taxpayer-funded golden road of corruption to Albany Behold, the ShellySilver trial
The stunning arrest capped a secret grand-jury probe that began in June 2013, court papers said, and marked the latest in a string of public-corruption cases spearheaded by crusading Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara. Asked how the case stacked up against the many other public-corruption cases he’s brought, Bharara summed it up. “Any time you have an allegation — especially when it’s proven — against a public official, that is disturbing. And when you have an allegation against someone who is a public official — not just in a random file capacity, but a leader of an entire body who is known in the politics of Albany to be one of the ‘three men in a room’ — that is especially disturbing,” Bharara said.* Skelos’ attorney cited a @PolHudson post to try to discredit Preet Bharara. It didn’t work * Bharara blasted for Libous prosecution: (LoHud)
@unitedNYblogs Preet is doing more than ThomasJefferson. He demands that people in power be honest fiduciaries or go to jail. And he warns!
@unitedNYblogs -Society had a choice: register lobbyists and have them self-report, or let them brown bag democracy into private property.
Millions Poured In Campaigns by Real Estate, Unions Run By Consultant Lobbyists has Weakend Voters Control Over Pols
The Progressive Caucus, a group of 19 liberal council members, will endorse a new congestion pricing plan tomorrow, sources say. They will be joined by “Gridlock” Sam Schwartz, the former city traffic commissioner who is the architect of the initiative, known as the Move NY Fair Plan. Mr. Schwartz is a listed speaker on a press release sent from the office of Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez, a Manhattan Democrat and chairman of the Transportation Committee. A press conference to announce the decision will be held at City Hall.East River bridges and lessen the cost to cross other bridges, theDaily News writes: * New York City Council Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer of Queens is supporting the congestion pricing plan that would toll free East River bridges and raise money to cut down on traffic and repair the subway system, the Daily News reports:
How the Middle Class are Being Pushed Out of New York City - Corruption Tax
Real Estate Developers, Tax Breakes and Politics, 421-a
Klein and Ferreras Do Their Lobbyist Consultants MirRam Bidding to Mess Up Herbalife
MirRam, whose co-founder along with Miranda is Roberto Ramirez, a former assemblyman and ex-Bronx Democratic Party chairman, is especially politically powerful in Latino communities in upper Manhattan and the Bronx. The firm also enjoys a close relationship with Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie of the Bronx , and the firm’s client list has grown during Heastie’s tenure. Herbalife also has retained consultants with close ties to local politicians. ne of them is the lobbying firm the Parkside Group, which is close with the Queens Democratic organization and the mainline Senate Democrats from which Klein’s conference broke away in 2011. It also has employed the strategic consultant SKDKnickerbocker, whose employees generally to not register as lobbyists. The New York Post reported in 2014 that Attorney General Eric Schneiderman was probing Herbalife. SKDK maintained at the time that Schneiderman’s ex-wife Jennifer Cunningham, a managing director at SKDK and Schneiderman campaign advisor, was not on the account.* Eric Schneiderman's conflicts of interest with Herbalife ... * NY attorney general probes Herbalife: sources | New York Post * The Latino Victory Fund “super PAC,” which is committed to supporting Latino candidates and increasing voter turnout, named New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito as one of its three co-chairs, the Times writes:
New MTA Budget Cuts Backs 2nd Avenue Subway Bring in El Chapo
Ticket Fix Cover-Up, Clean-Up Before Tammany DA Takes Power In the Bronx
First Team de Blasio Games the Election System, Now They are Looking Forward to See the City's Newspapers Die
As the trials, both being prosecuted by the office of Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara, have approached, state lawmakers have watched with fascination and fear as the names of potential witnesses, transcripts of recordings, and reams of emails and other documents have trickled out in court filings. In the trial of Mr. Skelos, a Republican, Mr. Bharara’s office has indicated that it may introduce as many as 172 transcripts of wiretapped conversations. In the trial of Mr. Silver, a Democrat, the government may show to the jury as many as 1,500 exhibits. In Mr. Silver’s case alone, the list of potential witnesses and names that may surface during proceedings includes some of the most familiar in state politics: Gov. Andrew Cuomo,Mr. Silver’s longtime aide Judy Rapfogel, his former counsel Jim Yates, lobbyist Brian Meara, New York state Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman, and Dean Fuleihan, a former Silver aide who is now Mayor Bill de Blasio’s budget director.
Pols Blue Wall of Silence Enabled By the Media
Albany and City Hall Corruption
Albany's Vouchers Corruption and Work Load
Albany and City Hall Corruption
Albany's Vouchers Corruption and Work Load
The Media Has Not Only Protected Lawmakers From Corruption But Has Ignored the Fact That Real Estate and Unions Fund NY Election System
That list also covers a variety of prominent faces with political ties, including real-estate executives Larry Silverstein, Gary Barnett and Charles Dorego; and Columbia mesothelioma researcher Dr. Robert Taub.
Real Estate and the UFT are the Two Main Controller's of the State's Election System
NYT's 485 Word Story of the CFB Fine Latest Move By Paper to Empower Consultant Lobbyist
Powell When He Was Writing News Broke the News That the Advance Group Was Being Investigated Advance Group President Scott Levenson is no longer listed as the NYCLASS political director on the firm's website. In Campaign, Cash Flowed Circuitously - NYTimes.com Advance under investigation * In Campaign, Cash Flowed Circuitously (Powell, NYT)
True News: Following Covered Up in CFB And AG Fines and How It Effects Campaigns and Governing
1. The UFT PAC Paid Advance Through the Fake Illegal Group Strategic Consultants Inc. $370,000 and More Than $4 Million in City Campaigns
The Daily News and Good Government Groups In 2013 Blamed the UFT for the Strategic Payment Cover Up
UFT under fire for apparently trying to hide identity of consulting firm(2013 NYDN)The city’s powerful teachers union is under fire from good-government groups for apparently trying to hide the identity of a consulting firm it was using to boost union-backed candidates. "The listing of the phony firm, 'Strategic Consultants, Inc.,' in campaign filings, obscured that Advance Group was being paid both to promote candidates for the United Federation of Teachers' independent political action committee, and working as the main campaign consultant for several of those same candidates."
A Tale of Two CFBs: Albanese vs Campaign PAC NYCLASS, UFT's United for the Future
Who Watchers the Watchman, Lobbyists, Grand Jury, AG - DAsConflict of Interests With NYPD and Elected Officials
Who Watchers the Watchman, Lobbyists, Grand Jury, AG - DAsConflict of Interests With NYPD and Elected Officials
2. Red Horse Like Advance Worked for the UFT PAC United for the Future
James Vacca, Helen Rosenthal, Annabel Palm, Daneek Miller, Antonio Reynoso, Ritchie Torres
Red Horse In Addition to Working for 2 DAs and Two DA Candidates, Works in Dozens of Other Races
3. In the 3rd Council District Advance's Candidate Krukland Received NYCLASS Mailing and Her Opponent Also Got PAC Mailings From UF PAC Also Controlled by Advance
The Lobbyists Consultants Work With Each Other Sometimes Against Their Own Candidates Interests
The Advance group was paid by democratic candidate Yetta Krukland $28,000 and the IE NYCLASS that Advance paid for $30,000 in mailings to promote Yetta Krukland. The UFT PAC which Advance Was Working for United for the Future funded Krukland Opponent Corey Johnson. Krukland fired Advance during the campaign. Advance Also Worked for Ydanis A Rodriguez who was funded by the United for the Future PAC Which Advance Worked for
4. The Advance Group PAC NYCLASS Funded Council Speaker Mark-Viverito and Worked In Her Campaign to Become Speaker
Red Horse In Addition to Working for 2 DAs and Two DA Candidates, Works in Dozens of Other Races
3. In the 3rd Council District Advance's Candidate Krukland Received NYCLASS Mailing and Her Opponent Also Got PAC Mailings From UF PAC Also Controlled by Advance
The Lobbyists Consultants Work With Each Other Sometimes Against Their Own Candidates Interests
The Advance group was paid by democratic candidate Yetta Krukland $28,000 and the IE NYCLASS that Advance paid for $30,000 in mailings to promote Yetta Krukland. The UFT PAC which Advance Was Working for United for the Future funded Krukland Opponent Corey Johnson. Krukland fired Advance during the campaign. Advance Also Worked for Ydanis A Rodriguez who was funded by the United for the Future PAC Which Advance Worked for
4. The Advance Group PAC NYCLASS Funded Council Speaker Mark-Viverito and Worked In Her Campaign to Become Speaker
The Advance Group also has faced a city Conflicts of Interest Board probe into free help it provided New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito. The status of that probe is unclear.
Campaign Finance Board Votes on Penalty for The AdvanceGroup, Inc. - The New York City Campaign Finance Board today determined that The Advance Group, Inc., committed violations and assessed penalties totaling $15,000 for those violations. The Board determined that The Advance Group, acting as agent for an independent spender and two of its campaign clients, cooperated in expenditures reported to be independent. This substantial penalty sends a clear message that the Campaign Finance Board will vigorously enforce coordination between outside groups and candidates that violates the law. These violations strike at the very heart of our campaign finance program. When a consultant’s actions make it impossible for their clients to comply with the law, the Board will hold the consultant accountable. The facts in this matter are clear. The Advance Group arranged mailers for one client, NYCLASS, which promoted the election of two of their campaign clients. CFB staff notified The Advance Group that such expenditures would be violations, yet the expenditures went forward. In addition, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is announcing today a $10,800 penalty against the Advance Group. Combined, our two agencies are penalizing The Advance Group $25,800. I want to thank Attorney General Schneiderman and his staff for their assistance on this matter
Advance's Yedin Who Was Push Out as Manager of McMahon DA Campagn Was Involved With the Speaker Race After Advance Said it Was No Longer Involved With Mark-Viverito
Staten Island DA Race Fallout McMahon campaign manager resigns amid consulting firmfines (SI Advance) * McMahon Campaign Manager Resigns Over Political Consulting Group Fine(NY1) * McMahon campaign manager resigns amid consulting firm fines SILive.com Politicker Reported That Advance Was A Crucial Player In the Seddio Deal After the Advance Group Left the Speakers Race
CFB Ignores That Fact That Their Fine On Mark-Viverito Came From An Illegal Account
Melissa Mark-Viverito fined over consulting payments connected to re-election (NYP) Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito was whacked by the city’s Campaign Finance Board Thursday after her 2013 campaign committee failed to show $3,000 in consulting payments were connected to her re-election efforts. The board fined her campaign $750 for a payment made to consultant Brendan Kelly on Nov. 16, 2013 — nearly two weeks after the general election that put Mark-Viverito back into her East Harlem/Bronx council seat. At the time, Kelly was a lead strategist on Mark-Viverito’s bid to become council speaker — a race she won in 2014 with Mayor de Blasio’s backing. Illegal to Use the 2013 Campaign Account to Pay for the Speaker Race Under city election rules, Ms. Mark-Viverito was not allowed to spend money from her 2013 campaign account for the speaker race. She was also not allowed to spend money from a "transition committee" meant to pay only for inauguration activities. And she was likewise not allowed to yet set up a new 2017 campaign committee with the city Campaign Finance Board. Instead, on Nov. 5, she set up a 2017 campaign committee for an as-to-be-determined city office, according to the state Board of Elections, and then spent on the speaker race. Mark-Viverito spent big on speaker race (CrainsNY) Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito got a boost in her speaker campaign by spending nearly $80,000 in recent months.
5. The UFT is A Client of Berlin Rosen and Worked for the Following Candidates Funded By the UFT PAC United for the Future
Corey Johnson, Mark Levine, Ydanis A Rodriguez, Austin I Shafran, Rory Lancman, Elizabeth S Crowley,
Richards Donovan, Stephen T Levin, Kirsten J Foy
Head of Dept Financial Services Resigns Moreland Redux All About Controlling the Benjamin's?
Anthony Albanese, the acting head of New York’s Department of Financial Services, will step down before the end of the year, giving Cuomo a run at reshaping a regulator that has levied billions of dollars of penalties against international banks and at times raised hackles in foreign capitals. * Albanese’s departure reportedly comes amid tensions between the agency and Cuomo over independence. * N.Y. Bank Regulators Exit After Clash With Governor Cuomo’s Office (WSJ) * New York State’s Financial Regulator Says He Is Leaving (NYT) Anthony J. Albanese, superintendent of the State Department of Financial Services, disputed reports he was resigning over tensions with the governor’s office.*As Anthony Albanese, the state Department of Financial Services’ top regulator, announced his resignation, he denied a report of a feud with the Cuomo administration over the agency’s independence, but sources said a Cuomo aide had asked to review DFS’ outgoing requests, The New York Timesreports:
NYPD Arrests Down 15%
Some NYPD sources agreed with the FBI director’s claims that cops are less aggressive because they fear increased scrutiny, as NYPD statistics show arrests have dropped 15 percent so far this year
NYPD arrests down 15percent amid ‘attack’ on cops (NYP) While the White House has taken issue with FBI Director James Comey claiming cops are being less aggressive due to increased scrutiny, new NYPD data show that the nation’s top lawman wasn’t just shooting from the hip. Arrests in the Big Apple have plummeted 15 percent so far this year, from 333,673 in 2014 to 283,548, according to year-to-date statistics through Sunday. Over the past 28 days, the number has dropped even lower, with police making 26,569 arrests compared to 31,421 in 2014, for a 15.4 percent decline, records show. And in the past week, there were 6,610 arrests as opposed to 7,506 during the same period last year, a nearly 12 percent decrease. “We’re like potted plants, watching instead of responding — no one wants to lose their pension,’’ an NYPD source said. Background Canceled Cuomo cancels plan to ‘scalp’ $5,500 Mets tickets (NYP)*
Fundraiser with Cuomo's Mets World Series tickets canceled (NYP)*
Cuomo Scalping for His Funding Raising, Is the Increased Ticket $$ An Inkind Donation By Mets?
Cuomo Sells $5,500World Series Tickets in Citi Field Campaign Fundraiser (DNAINFO) Another said that it might seem “a bit unseemly” to capitalize on the Mets, but the governor’s campaign people have not violated any regulations in doing so. His 2018 fund reportedly contains more than $12 million already. Cuomo’s World Series scalping scam is outrageous and hypocritical (NYP) Now, scalping is perfectly legal in New York ; a whole secondary market exists for that purpose. But Cuomo’s charging a major markup: The average Series ticket at Citifield is going for about $1,600 on StubHub. Worse is the unseemly air of insider access here. It’s far easier for a high-ranking official (or his flunkies) to score seats than it is for the average Joe. Did Cuomo forget the anger when Gov. David Paterson scored Yankees tickets? And to then milk the prized passes for campaign cash . . . It’s particularly tacky when Attorney General Andrew Cuomo was so tough on scalpers. Back in 2010, he went after folks who sat in line for free Shakespeare In The Park tickets, then resold them on Craigslist. Under Cuomo’s prodding, the site agreed to ban such ads. And that was to stop some low-level types from earning a few extra bucks.* Cuomo flew to the Mets game in Kansas City yesterday aboard the team owners’ private jet. He had three seats on an aircraft owned by the Wilpons, and his staff said he paid for them out of campaign funds. Accompanying him were two aides: Melissa DeRosa and Joe Percoco. (The Mets lost). * The NY Post slammed Cuomo for “scalping” tickets to the Mets’ World Series home games and using them as political fundraising tools. (He’s not alone, Rep. Grace Meng, a Queens Democratic, is doing something similar).* Cuomo Cancels Fund-Raisers at Mets’ World Series Games (NYT) Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo had come under fire for asking $5,500 a ticket for games between the Mets and the Kansas City Royals at Citi Field.
With all due respect to good gov't groups, Gov Cuomo pulled plug on Mets tickets because he was Ripped all day on @WFAN660.
NY Still Sends More Money to Washington Than It Get Back
State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli released a report showing that for every dollar New York sends to Washington, it’s getting back about 91 cents in federal spending. That’s below the national average of $1.22 in spending going back the states. * New York 's budget to determine whether it was paying out more in federal taxes than it received in spending. 1976
How Pols Deliver the News by Bypassing the Media
Twitter, Facebook and Newspapers
How Felder Puts His News In ‘Focus’ (YNN) DC Leader Jeff Klein apparently isn’t the only member of the Senate with journalistic flair. The Gotham Gazette reported last month that the Bronx Democrat, who has had a contentious relationship with the local press, decided to step up his public relations game by publishing a “newspaper” of his own. The Riverdale Record, billed as the “official publication of Senator Jeff Klein and Our Community,” features all the news the senator sees fit to print and is paid for by his political campaign committee, Klein for New York . It turns out the Riverdale Record has some competition in the former of “The Felder Focus” – a 15-page, full-color publication sent to constituents of Sen. Simcha Felder, a Brooklyn Democrat. Unlike Klein’s paper, The Felder Focus looks like a cross between a magazine and a tabloid (in terms of size, not content), and is heavy on the photos. The lead “story” of the Fall 2015 issue is about Felder’s “heartfelt speech” on the Senate floor in favor of a bill that helps the parents of special needs children seeking to obtain tuition reimbursement from New York City for sending their kids to a non-public school.
Other stories include a blurb on Felder calling on Manhattan Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler to reconsider his support for the Iran nuclear deal, (he hasn’t), the “sweeping” success of a Felder-sponsored community clean-up and some helpful safety tips from the senator , (“If you see something, say something”). And my favorite: “Want Free Ice Cream? Wear a Helmet” – a story about Felder’s partnering with stroke and brain injury advocates in response to reports that Brooklyn’s 66th Police Precinct is the second most dangerous for cyclist in all five boroughs. (Kids wearing bike helmets were given coupons for free ice cream or ices at participating neighborhood stores). Not exactly hard-hitting news, but it’s not meant to be, according to the senator. During a brief telephone interview, Felder said his publication is meant to be a beefed up newsletter that goes out to constituents once or twice a year.
Breaking Sharpton Not Going to Funeral Al Sharpton writes letter to father of #RandolphHolder & says he will not attend tomorrow's funeral. Says his invitation has become sideshow * Rev. Al Sharpton will not speak at Officer Randolph Holder's funeral tomorrow. Cites "union leaders" as reason in letter to Holder's dad *Sharpton backs out of cop’s funeral, blames police backlash (NYP)
Mary Muhammad, who was engaged the slain NYPD Officer Randolph Holder, said he did not like the Rev. Al Sharpton and was stunned he would speak at his funeral, and sources said Holder’s father only invited the reverend to attend the funeral, not to speak at it* I'M NOT A 'SIDESHOW': Al Sharpton refuses to give eulogy at officer's funeral, saying he will not allow union to divert attention from mourners (NYDN)
Slain cop’s fiancée: Sharpton eulogy would be an insult (NYP) Slain NYPD Officer Randolph Holder’s fiancée was stunned to hear that the Rev. Al Sharpton was asked to speak at his funeral — because the policeman detested the anti-cop preacher, she told The Post on Monday. “He didn’t like [Sharpton]. He wasn’t a fan. So I don’t know why [Sharpton] is speaking,’’ Mary Muhammad said. Sharpton claims that he met with Holder’s father and that the dad asked him to speak at Wednesday’s service.
At Officer Randolph Holder’s Funeral, Mayor Says New York Lost a ‘Remarkable Man’ (NYT) For the fourth time in less than a year, rank-and-file New York City officers in their dress blue uniforms mourned the killing of yet another colleague.* CBS2 Exclusive: Mother Of Slain NYPD Detective Brian MooreSpeaks Out, Calls For Change * Cop-bashing Tarantino has family in the force (NYP)* Cemetery in Guyana Is Prepared for Fallen Officer Randolph Holder, a Native Son (NYP) Officer Holder will be buried on Saturday in Le Repentir Cemetery in Guyana , where he played as a child. * NYPD Officers Arrive in Guyana for Burial of Officer Randolph Holder (NY1) * Quentin Tarantino’s NYPD cousin nearly died in lineof duty (NYP)
To de Blasio Hospitals Are Nothing But A Campaign Prop
Brooklyn’s Cobble Hill neighborhood isn’t giving good reviews to a developer’s proposals for the Long Island College Hospital
v
De Blasio’s Stand on LICH Site Disheartens Brooklyn ’s Cobble Hill Neighborhood (WSJ) Developer’s plans don’t include full-service hospital, something mayor once vowed he would fight for. In 2013, when Bill de Blasio was the city’s public advocate and campaigning for mayor, he was arrested at a demonstration over the possible closure of Long Island College Hospital in Brooklyn . “This is about fighting for our hospitals,” Mr. de Blasio said as he was led away in disposable plastic handcuffs. Now, as a developer brings forward two proposals to rebuild and expand the LICH site, Mr. de Blasio’s administration has been publicly and privately supportive of one of the plans, which would include new affordable apartments. Both proposals include tall towers in the low-rise Cobble Hill neighborhood, but neither include a full-service hospital. Rebecca Katz, a former aide in the de Blasio administration, is now working with the developer, Fortis Property Group LLC, to persuade a skeptical community to support one of the plans. At the 2014 news conference, Mr. de Blasio and others celebrated the decision that forced the State University of New York, which then owned the site, to put out a new request for proposals. LICH had reported annual operating losses for 17 consecutive years, according to a state audit. “This is a transcendent moment for health care in New York City ,” said Mr. de Blasio, who took partial credit for keeping the “wolf from the door.” The hospital is now closed. Many in the community, however, aren’t happy. Theirs is a historic community of low-rise brownstones and townhouses. And while some blamed SUNY and the state for not doing more to save the hospital, they all remember Mr. de Blasio’s 2013 protest. “It was an exercise to help him get elected as mayor,” said Roy Sloane, a longtime former president of the Cobble Hill Association. “I don’t think he did anything to save LICH.” Franklin Stone, a longtime resident who also has served as association president, said many in the community supported affordable housing but felt that a large tower and a new school would clog an already packed neighborhood—and still leave residents needing more health care options.
de Blasio Campaign Manager Bill Hires' Hilltop Now Works for Deverloper on the Hospital Site
1. Hires: de Blasio Campaign Manager Who Uses Candidate Fake Arrest to Protest A Closing Hospital As A Prop
2. Once the Hospital is Closed Hires Who Works for the Mayor Slush Fund PAC One NY Uses It to Tell the Community That the Band Aid ER the Developer Agreed to Build is As Good As the Closed Hospital
3. Hires: Sell A Large Development to Replace te Closed to A Community Who Opposes It*
Airbnb Accuses NYC Lawmakers Of "An Attack On TheMiddle Class": At a contentious City Council hearing earlier… * Airbnb is not happy with the NYC Council, which today will hear legislation that would further penalize hosts for renting out their homes illegally. In advance of the hearing, the apartment-rental platform delivered a letter to Council members signed by Airbnb hosts imploring them to back off. * Airbnb agrees to discuss sharing data with officials to crack down on illegal operators (NYDN) * City Council Members Clash with Airbnb Officials at Hearing (NY1) * Councilman threatens $100K fines onAirbnb’s ‘illegal hotels’ (NYP)
4. Is de Blasio Using His 2013 Campaign Account to Pay Hires to Supplement His Pay the Director of His One NY PAC?
de Blasio One NY PAC Slush Fund, Berlin Rosen, Bill Hyers, Red Horse
NYT Break From Flacking for de Blasio - Learns to Count Homeless
But Still No Cause Given
.The Homeless Have Become the Victims of the Shadow Govt Lobbyists Pushing 421-a and Airbnb
Despite Vow, Mayor de Blasio Struggles to Stop Surge in Homelessness (NYT) By one key measure after another, homelessness in New York City has worsened over the last two years. The number of people entering city shelters has increased under Mayor Bill de Blasio, and when they enter the system, people are staying longer, striking markers of a crisis that has forced its way to the top of the mayor’s agenda. Many people across New York believe the city is experiencing an epidemic of street homelessness. Mayor Bill de Blasio, the embattled liberal steward of a city in which people have a legal right to shelter, has disputed this. And in another troubling sign, the number of families re-entering shelters within a year of leaving is increasing as well. “An ever-growing homeless population is unacceptable to the future of New York City ,” he said. “It will not happen under our watch.” But it has happened.
More on the Homeless
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The NYT Should Have "New York" Forcibly Remove From Its Name
City Room, a Blog With a Broad Mandate, Is Retiring (NYT) The result was City Room. It debuted on June 14, 2007, “a news blog of live reporting, features and reader conversations about New York City .” Now, eight years, 20,000 posts, 425,000 reader comments and perhaps 100 million clicks later, City Room has an announcement to make: This is our last post. The reasons are mostly boring journalism-business stuff. In 2007, blogs were the wave of the future. At its blogmaniacal peak, The Times had about 80 of them.
But Times blogs run on a different publishing platform from the rest of the Times website, and eventually we realized they were creating a lot of extra work. Now The Times has only about 20 active blogs.*
The Daily News writes that straight accountings of deBlasio’s real estate dabblings are needed after he did not mention the city was forgiving a loan and authorizing an air rights sale at Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village: * Editorial: Fulldisclosure, please (NYDN Ed) As a huge landlord reached a deal buy Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village, de Blasio trumpeted success in keeping almost half of the complexes affordable to the middle class. The mayor said that the city reached advantageous terms with the Blackstone Group. But what did Blackstone really get in the deal? New York “will fund a loan of up to $144 million,” de Blasio’s press release stated — without mentioning that he was actually forgiving the entire sum, plus $77 million, for a total $221 million. It turns out he added artificial sweetener: the mayor will help Blackstone get the okay to sell development rights that experts say are potentially worth $100 million to $350 million. New Yorkers need straight accountings of the costs of de Blasio real estate dabblings. Here that extends to the possible air rights bonanza. At least, the terms should have said that the bulk of any such sums would come back to taxpayers. * The Post writes that de Blasio should keep his “grubbypaws” off the city’s pension fund after the mayor suggested he may like to invest it in various subsidized housing program as part of his affordable housing program: *The recent sale of Stuy Town-Peter Cooper Village highlights the differences between the massive Manhattan complex and Parkchester, its similarly-designed Bronx counterpart with much lower rents, Crain’s reports:
Tish Going More Education Drifting
More on Common Core,Testing Debate
Will the Council Airbnb Fines Hold?
Bad Timing for Airbnb Will the Shadow Govt Lobbyist Save It? Will the Council Revert to Puppet Form?
Two shot at luxe Airbnb rental party: cops (NYP) Two people were shot early Sunday when gunfire erupted during an out-of-control party in a posh Queens house that was being rented out through Airbnb, cops said.* As Council considers new penalties, Airbnb goes on offensive (PoliticoNY) * Airbnb representatives plan to protest on the steps of New York City Hall ahead of tomorrow’s City Council hearing over a bill that could further penalize New Yorkers who rent out their homes, Politico New York writes:
Will de Blasio Campaign Manager Hires Who is A Lobbyists for Airbnb, Stop the Council Fines?
How Airbnb "Hotelization" Is Killing NYC Middle Class, Gentrification Racial Push Out of Brooklyn Neighborhoods and Raising Rents
The Unsavory Side of Airbnb (American Prospect) How the popular matching company facilitates landlord conversion of entire rental buildings to de facto hotels. In touristy cities with housing shortages and hot real-estate markets—New York , San Francisco , Los Angeles , and many more—Airbnb plays a less savory role. Not only does Airbnb facilitate illegal conversions of entire buildings from tenant apartments to de facto hotels, it has also become part of the landlord lobby that resists enforcement of local laws prohibiting such abuses. To be sure, places like San Francisco would suffer the effects of conversions even without Airbnb, but the evidence shows that Airbnb supercharges the process. * Airbnb fights 'Freddy Krueger of bills' that would hit N.Y. homeowners who rent out their pads with up to $50G in fines (NYDN) * Airbnb is blasting a New York City Council bill that would hit homeowners who use home-sharing sites with fines as high as $50,000, saying it’s a “bad policy” that could bankrupt New Yorkers, the Daily News writes: * Airbnb has come out swinging against a bill that would hit homeowners who rent out their pads on home-sharing sites with fines as high as $50,000, saying it’s “bad policy” that could bankrupt New Yorkers looking to make a quick buck.
In a story similar to San Francisco’s, many of Airbnb’s 25,000 or so “hosts” are not in fact “regular people” looking to rent out a spare room in their home; they are professional operators who took on multiple leases in desirable locations, resulting in what The New York Times called the “professionalization” of short-term rental hosting. “We call it the ‘hotelization’ of San Francisco
Dead Cop Game Change In Hypocritical, CYA No Morality, No Shame NYC Politics
Bad Cases Make Bad Law
De Blasio faces rare skepticism from left on bail-reform plan (NYP) Mayor de Blasio’s bail-reform proposal — requiring judges to consider whether a defendant is a danger to society and not just a flight risk — could face its biggest hurdle from left-leaning state lawmakers who are usually his staunchest supporters in the Legislature. Liberal Assembly Democrats called de Blasio’s plan a “knee-jerk” response to the murder of Police Officer Randolph Holder and said the plan needed further study. “Terrible cases usually make bad law,” said Codes Committee Chairman Joe Lentol (D-Williamsburg). “You shouldn’t act as a result of a terrible case — it isn’t going to fit in every other case.” Lentol said most judges already weigh an offender’s threat to public safety when they set bail and that a law would be redundant.
de Blasio and Mark-Viverito Give Orwellian DoubleSpeak Answers to Bail 180 - No Investigation and Council Hearings
Bill toughensup on bail (NYDN Ed) A somber Mayor de Blasio on Friday called for overhauling New York’s bail and sentencing laws so the forces that set free the drug dealer accused of murdering Officer Randolph Holder can never again conspire to threaten public safety Far less helpfully, the mayor muddied churning waters by insisting on additional action to keep low-level defendants out of jail before trial. Although the concept was irrelevant to the public safety challenges exposed by Howard’s case, de Blasio declared the bail system “broken both in the way that we treat hardened criminals and how we treat first-time low-level offenders.” Consider it a call-and-response to the caucus that seeks to essentially eliminate bail for minor crimes, led by Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, who stood by de Blasio’s side Friday. While Howard’s gang and their rivals terrorized her East Harlem district while he was out on bail, she had busied the Council with a proposed bail fund for defendants who had been deemed by judges unlikely to show up for trials. You would never know that two in three prosecuted defendants are released on their own recognizance, with neither bail nor jail. Only when a judge deems a defendant a flight risk because of prior conduct does the law come down pre-trial. * New York safe. But that partnership can’t succeed if the only time officers feel their efforts are supported and their contributions valued is when one of us has made the ultimate sacrifice. If the partnership doesn’t succeed, there will be more grief. More New Yorkers and police officers will lose their lives. We simply can’t go on like that. It’s time for officials to take meaningful actions to show they support the police officers on the street.* The New YorkTimes writes that it was a wise move by Mayor Bill de Blasio to call for state action giving judges the power to factor in danger to the public, and not just flight risk, when setting bail: Before Murder of Officer Holder De Blasio unveils no-bail plan for low-level crimes — even felonies (July, 8 2015, NYP) Starting next year, the $17.8 million program would let about 3,400 defendants charged with low-level, nonviolent offenses — including some felonies — be placed under “supervised release” instead of getting locked up. Police sources predicted it would lead to more crime, given the history of low-level offenders eventually escalating to violent felonies, including murder.* City Needs Bail Reform, de Blasio Says After Kalief Browder ... (June 8, 2015, NYO)
More Pay to Play Development By Cuomo
Builder linked to top Cuomo donors got tax deals, fundsover higher-rated rivals (TU) Despite higher-rated rival plans, builder with ties to top Cuomo donors often got tax deals, funds. Birchez Associates, an affordable housing builder, donated more than $250,000 to Gov. Andrew Cuomo and often got tax deals and state funds ahead of higher-rated rival plans. The state of New York has been a generous friend to Birchez Associates, an Aaron-controlled firm that builds affordable housing. A development now being built in the rural village of Schoharie, for example, was promised millions of dollars in funds and tax credits from the state Division of Housing and Community Renewal after its then-commissioner, Darryl Towns, bypassed competing projects that had higher recommendations from his staff. It was one of several instances in recent years where Aaron's projects leapfrogged the competition despite subpar initial scores. Birchez Associates received millions in state support for the five projects (comprising 360 units) it completed between 2004 and the beginning of 2011, when Cuomo took office. Though three other Birchez projects have been proposed, only the Schoharie development is currently under construction. Almost half of Aaron's support for Cuomo comes from his company Rivergate Development LLC, which has given Cuomo $122,800 since 2010, including a gift of $25,000 in July. Rivergate gave an additional $50,000 to the "housekeeping" account of the Cuomo-controlled state Democratic Committee in February 2013.
The Only Winners of the Education War Between Cuomo Vs de Blasio are the Lobbyist$
Cuomo Wants to Tap Into Ride-Share and Taxi $$$ What War With de Blasio
How Lobbyists Make Millions From Ride-Share Companies
Cuomo says state, not cities, should dictate Uber policies (NYP) *'You can't do Uber city by city': Cuomo says N.Y. should regulate ride-share biz (NYDN)
Ride-Share Companies Assemble Politically Connected Teams (YNN) As such, both companies already have in place high-profile lobbying shops, according to the most recent data. Lobbying filings show Lyft has retained Berlin Rosen, a consulting firm with ties to Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration and has done campaign work for a host of elected officials, including Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito. Lyft has also turned to David Yassky LLC, run by the former taxi commissioner under Mayor Michael Bloomberg. On the state level, Lyft this year retained Albany Strategic Advisors, the firm that includes CEO Allison Lee, a prominent 
After They Become Federal Rats Lobbyist Meara and Glenwood Bagman Fear Giving $ to Silver Oh My
Silver Skelos were dealt setbacks as federal judges ruled against several legal challenges
A judge has refused to throw out charges or evidence in the corruption case brought against former Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos and his son, Adam. The duo had wanted a hearing into their allegation that the government “leaked grand jury information” to the media in violation of secrecy rules — a claim federal authorities denied. * Another judge rejected a request by lawyers for former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver to exclude evidence from his federal corruption trial that he argued was irrelevant and prejudicial. * According to pretrial conference proceedings, federal prosecutors handling the trial of former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver may present more than 1,500 exhibits to the jury once the trial starts next week, The Wall Street Journal reports: * Veteran constitutional activist Robert Schulz was back in court Friday appealing a ruling by a lower court that Silver was within his rights to pay victims of sexual harrassment $103,000 in “hush” money, the Times Union writes: * Sheldon Silver'slawyers want Dr. Taub to show documents (NYDN)
Feds Have Discovered that Political Corruption in NY Made Up of Interconnected Families Like the Mobs Organized Crime Commission
Stringer Goes After the Pension Investment Companies
When Comptroller Liu When After Them He Was Interrupted by A Federal Investigation That Put His Treasure In Jail
Controller Scott Stringer will propose to reform the waycity pension funds choose investment companies (NYDN) New York City Controller Scott Stringer will propose next week a sweeping change in how the city’s $160 billion pension system — the fourth largest in the nation — chooses the private companies that invest its money. Stringer’s plan, according to several people briefed on it, will call for consolidating separate investment committees of the police, fire, teachers and other municipal union pension funds into a single combined umbrella group. That group would meet only four times a year, thus doing away with the current system, where the five major pension funds each hold their own separate monthly meetings to select investment managers. The trustees of each fund, however, would still vote separately on whether to park their money with a particular firm. Stringer declined to comment on his proposal until he releases it in the next few days.
How the Investigators Protect the Shadow Govt
After the AG and CFB Takes A Dive At Going After the Advance Group and other Lobbyists JCOPE Gives Them Amnesty
Tuesday Update
Although there is a need for confidentiality on investigations, the nondisclosure language in JCOPE’s statute is so broad that commissioners and spokespeople have acted as if any information about the commission amounts to a state secret, the Times Union writes:
The state Joint Commission on Public Ethics is offering lobbyists six months of amnesty starting Jan. 1 to “encourage lobbyists and clients of lobbyists” to file with the watchdog group, Gannett Albany writes:
JCOPE to lobbyists: Tell us about yourselves, please (LOHud) The much-maligned state agency said Tuesday it would offer six months of amnesty starting Jan. 1 to “encourage lobbyists and clients of lobbyists” to file with the watchdog group. A series this year by Gannett’s Albany Bureau called “Power in Money” has detailed the intersection of money and public policy in New York government, including on education. Last month, an installment in the series showed that the public-relations firms have raked in more than $3 million since 2010 from political campaigns and then worked on efforts to promote key issues before the Legislature through coordinated lobbying efforts. And the firms don’t have to register as lobbyists — even as lobbying spending soared 56 percent over the past decade. JCOPE’s request may include those groups who straddle the line between lobbying and public relations. JCOPE has been criticized for lax oversight of state government amid a series of corruption scandals in recent years since the agency was established by Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the Legislature in 2011. The corruption cases have been brought against legislative leaders, as well as other lawmakers, mainly by U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara.
Power in Money: When is lobbying in NY not lobbying? (LoHud) SKDKnickerbocker - The firms that provide the services to lawmakers and their causes said they are providing key strategic help. BerlinRosen, for example, was the top consultant that helped New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio get elected in 2013. It also has helped environmental groups in their anti-hydraulic fracturing campaign in Albany , aided some firms looking to win medical-marijuana licenses and collected $300,000 in campaign funds from candidates since 2010, a review of state records showed. In 2014, the firm received $10,000 from the campaign for former Sen. Ted O’Brien, D-Irondequoit, Monroe County York campaign funded by New York City business interests to aid Republican state Senate candidates, including upstate and in the Hudson Valley
How NYC Luxury Housing Hides Dirty Money
Lawsuit Says ManhattanReal Estate Was Used to Launder Money (WSJ) Two Kazakh men allegedly conspired with a developer to hide at least $40 million in New York property, a lawsuit says. A banker and a former politician from Kazakhstan tried to launder tens of millions of dollars of stolen money through New York real-estate holdings, a civil lawsuit alleges. The men allegedly conspired with New York developer Joseph Chetrit to hide at least $40 million by investing in a former Manhattan hotel and the Cabrini Medical Center , according to a complaint filed on Oct. 12 by Kazakhstan ’s largest city, Almaty, and one of the nation’s biggest lenders, BTA Bank. The Kazakh men, ex-BTA chairman Mukhtar Ablyazov and former Almaty mayor Viktor Khrapunov, are separately under investigation for criminal fraud in Kazakhstan , the complaint says. Mr. Ablyazov is alleged to have stolen billions of dollars from BTA and Mr. Khrapunov is alleged to have stolen about $300 million from Almaty, according to the complaint, filed in federal court in Manhattan . The Kazakh men parked “corrupt assets” in New York City real estate to avoid the scrutiny of escalating international investigations, the complaint alleges. Mr. Chetrit, also a defendant in the lawsuit, was aware of the criminal investigations of the Kazakhs when he agreed to use their money for his projects, according to the complaint. The suit seeks damages of up to $18 billion and was filed by law firm Boies, Schiller & Flexner LLP. Mr. Ablyazov, who is being held by authorities in France , couldn’t be reached for comment. Previously, he has said he is innocent of any criminal wrongdoing and all accusations against him are ungrounded and politically motivated.
Berlin Rosen Is Not Only Ducking Lobbyists Disclosures . . . Also Failed to Register With the Foreign Agent Act
Two years ago True News broke the story that Berlin Rosen was not a registered lobbyist. CrainsNY's Bragg follow sometime later and last week NY1 reported the same information. Playing fast and lose with the city and state lobbying regulations is not the only thing Berlin Rosen failed to registered for. Berlin Rosen worked the ground breaking event for a government subsided building with Atlantic Yards developer Ratner and a Chinese government funded company called Greenland Group. According to the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) enacted in 1938, a persons acting as agents of foreign principals in a political or quasi-political capacity to make periodic public disclosure of their relationship with the foreign principal, as well as activities, receipts and disbursements in support of those activities. The purpose is to facilitate "evaluation by the government and the American people of the statements and activities of such persons." At the least Berlin Rosen activities with the Chinese government company is fueling gentrification pushing the poor and middle class out of the projects surrounding communities.
Campaign Lobbyists Control A Secret Shadow Government
Mayor Uses Media to Solve A Vet Homeless Problems That He Has Been Unable to Fix
Mayor Uses Media to Solve A Vet Homeless Problems That He Has Been Unable to Fix
Mayor de Blasio launches $400G ad campaign urginglandlords to house homeless veterans (NYDN) De Blasio pledged to end veteran homelessness by the end of the year in his State of the City address in February, but the Daily News reported last month he looks unlikely to meet the goal – there were still around 1,000 homeless veterans, a number that hadn’t budged since February. Now, the number is around 880. A large majority of those people have vouchers from the feds or city to pay rent, but haven’t found an apartment yet. The max rent is around $1,200 for one person, and many landlords want more. * The de Blasio administration is launching a $400,000 advertising campaign to urge landlords to house homeless veterans who have vouchers to pay their rent
The 2017 Ferry de Blasio Campaign
Shadow Govt Campaign Consultan Lobbyists Arzt Questions In DA Hynes Investigation in Shady-Spending
Witnesses subpoenaed in Charles Hynes’ shady-spending case (NYP) The criminal probe of former Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes — over allegations he used crime-fighting cash to pay a political consultant — is heating up, with authorities subpoenaing multiple witnesses in the past few weeks, sources told The Post. Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn interviewed two more people under subpoena last week, in addition to questioning multiple DA staffers and campaign workers in the past month, according to sources. Almost a dozen investigators from the Brooklyn US Attorney’s Office, the state Attorney General’s Office, and both the city and state comptroller’s offices asked the ex-staffers whether Hynes’ neighborhood community relations offices were being used as de facto campaign outposts in the 2013 race, a source said.
Is A 2014 Lawsuit of Hynes Wrongful Conviction Driving the Feds Investigation?
Hynes’ ex-spokesman testifies advisor held weekly meetings (2014, NYP) Arzt was deposed as part of a $150 million lawsuit by a man wrongfully convicted by Hynes’ office, Jabbar Collins, who was locked up for 15 years before he was exonerated.
Dirty Advance Group Also Worked for Hynes Were They Called In By the Feds?
Advance was payed $600,000 by the Hynes Campaign
“The bottom line is, did anyone who worked on the campaign get paid with city funds or state funds or forfeiture funds? That’s really the issue,” a source familiar with the probe said. Investigators are also looking at whether the community relations workers were on the DA’s Office payroll or whether they were consultants paid from another source. Former Hynes staffers interviewed in the past month include campaign spokesman George Arzt, DA spokesman Jerry Schmetterer and campaign manager Dennis Quirk, who is also head of the court officers union, sources said. Arzt didn’t respond to an e-mail seeking comment. Quirk and Schmetterer declined to comment. The Post was the first to report in June 2014 that a Department of Investigation report accused Hynes of wrongly using $1 million in forfeiture funds seized from crooks to pay political p r consultant Morty Matz in his losing 2013 campaign against current DA Ken Thompson.
Hynes Spokesman Says He Was Paid for Officials DA Work, Arzt Says He Was At Campaign Meetings
Arzt Who Talk to Feds Works As A Campaign Consultant So He Can Rake In the $$$ As A Lobbyists
How Killing the Moreland Help Arzt's Real Estate Client Excell
Cuomo said he has no problem with the anti-corruption Moreland Commission he convened sending subpoenas to real estate companies that have contributed to his campaign, including Extell Development, the Times Union writes: * Evan Davis, a lawyer who served as counsel to former Gov. Mario Cuomo, is spearheading the launch of a survey that will review the effectiveness and potential improvements for the state Joint Commission on Public Ethics, theTimes Union writes: * George Arzt's clients is Extell, and Extell is the sponsor of the exclusive, luxury condo called One57 that is the target of an investigation for possible corruption. Extell has funneled approximately $75,000 in campaign contributions to Christine Quinn. According to this report, generated moments ago from the New York City Campaign Finance Board Web site, Mr. Arzt has contributed $90,500 in political donations to municipal candidates.2013-08-23 George Arzt Campaign Donations - Master List - Quick Search - New York City Campaign Finance Boa... * NYC : News & Analysis: George Arzt : The $90,500 ...Arzt contributed to political candidates. Tax break to Midtown luxury condo tower will cost NYC $65.6M in property taxes (NYDN) The city isn't getting much bang for its buck by awarding a huge tax break to a luxury condo tower in Midtown, the Independent Budget Office found. A tax break for One57 will cost the city $65.6 million in property taxes over 10 years, money that could have paid for 367 affordable apartments. Instead, under the deal with One57's developer, Extell Group, only 66 affordable units were built. That means taxpayers subsidized apartments at a rate of nearly $1 million per unit when affordable units on average cost $179,000 apiece. Hundreds protest tax breaks to New York City real estate developers in shadow of skyscraper for mega rich (NYDN) * Upper West Side condo has separate entrances for rich and poor(NYP) This is rich! The poor will use a separate door under plans for a new Upper West Side luxury tower — where affordable housing will be segregated from ritzy waterfront condos despite being in the. * Extell Lobbyist Money is Also Flying At the Hudson Yards * Sheldon Silver aided Gov. Cuomo in sneaking through tax breaks for luxury developer(NYDN) Two developers who stood to benefit from the tax breaks gave Cuomo big donations days before his bill-signing. Several sources involved in the process identified Silver as the creator of the lucrative tax relief. One 57th St. building in Manhattan was projected to save $35 million over 10 years. Between 2007 and 2011, as the median family income in the city dropped by 6.8%, the median monthly rent went up by 8.6%. Thirty-one percent of New Yorkers spent more than half their income on rent, as those not lifted up by New York ’s booming, knowledge-intensive fields felt the squeeze.
Lobbyists Arzt Spokesmen for Lobbyists Schlein in A Corruption Matter
NYP's Dicker Cuomo Still Helping GOP Senate Stay In Control
Cuomo’s lack of support may lead to Senate candidate’s downfall (NYP) Democratic state Senate candidate Barbara Fiala’s campaign will be crushed by her Republican opponent because Gov. Andrew Cuomo reneged on his pledge to go all out to help and wants to maintain a GOP-controlled state Senate, the Post’s Fred Dicker writes:
Real Estate $$$ Funding Wright's Campaign for Congress
The congressional campaign of Assembly housing chair Keith Wright has been heavily funded by real estate interests regulated by his committee, with more than 43 percent of donations coming from the industry, Politico New York reports:
Acting in Defiance of Their Members Sent to Jail for Stealing Pork the Practice Continues
New York’s new pork reeks as badly as the old (NYP Ed) For all the years of scandal to rock Albany , one truth remains absolute: Never expect a legislative leader to apologize for pork. Carl Heastie may have become speaker after a corruption scandal felled Shelly Silver, but he’s singing the virtues of bacon. That includes the $1.1 billion in Albany’s latest version of now-banned earmarks, the State and Municipal Facilities Program, whose first list of outlays was only recently unveiled — three years into the SAM program. “If you want to call putting security cameras in a housing development that has a lot of crime pork, so be it,” Heastie said last week. “Give me another ham sandwich.” Added state Senate GOP boss John Flanagan: “If this is pork, I can live with that,” calling it all “investments.” It still reeks. The old earmark system — which then-Attorney General Andrew Cuomo called Albany ’s “silent conspiracy” — also largely went to worthy community projects. But the new pork, like the old, gets doled out on the basis of politics — the party that controls each chamber gets nearly all the dough. (In the Senate, the GOP sent a healthy slice to its partners in the Independent Democratic Conference.) And as E.J. McMahon of the Empire Center (whose Freedom of Information request uncovered the spending list) notes, the SAM cash was borrowed by the state, which now wants to raise its debt load still further to pay for its share of the MTA capital budget.
Says McMahon: “It’s really indefensible to borrow $1.1 billion for capital pork-barrel projects.” Call it “investments”; doesn’t matter. However much lipstick Gov. Cuomo and the Legislature smear on this pig, it still oinks.
After True New Wags the NYP On How de Blasio Accused the Paper of Fear-Mongering the Tabloid is Still Half Asleep
NYP Today: “The media has put a lot of attention on this issue”
True News Friday: "On July 14th de Blasio Charges Homeless Crisis is A Case of Media Fear-Mongering
De Blasio knew about homeless crisis even as he was denying it (NYP Ed) If you faulted Mayor de Blasio last summer for being ignorant of the spike in homelessness in the city, you gave him too much credit. Turns out Hizzoner was well aware of the crisis — even as he denied it. In fact, he’d been holding weekly emergency meetings on the issue all along, news reports this week said. Even while pooh-poohing the problem and denouncing “hype” from The Post, which ran stories and photos that documented the growing chaos. “The media has put a lot of attention on this issue,” he said back then. He asked if the focus was “proportionate to what’s happening,” insisting that “reality is a little different” than the news reports. It wasn’t — as he later admitted: In 2014, city homelessness set a record, at nearly 60,000. In August, 311 homeless complaints reportedly had spiked 60 percent under de Blasio. And The Post published hard evidence, including a front-page photo of one vagrant urinating right in the middle of the street.
On July 14th A Month After Secret Meetings on the Homeless Crisis de Blasio Said The Post Is Making Up the Increase Homeless Stories
Friday Update
ON THE RISE: Study predicts that spending on NYC's homeless, including 271 shelters, to reach close to $1B in 2015 (NYDN)
De Blasio thinks homeless crisis is a case of ‘fear-mongering’ (NYP) Mayor de Blasio on Monday ripped The Post’s coverage of the homelessness crisis — and touted an estimated drop in the vagrant population based on a single-day census conducted in sub-freezing temperatures. * The Agnew de Blame the Press "Fear-Mongering" Edition
Former NYC Council Speaker Chris Quinn, Christine Quinn, who unsuccessfully battled Bill de Blasio in the 2013 mayor’s race, is about two weeks away from taking over as head of a homeless service provider – a job that will put her in the trenches on an issue that has frustrated the de Blasio administration.* Report: City's Spending on Homelessness Has Risen Dramatically (NY1)
Secret Meetings on Homeless
De Blasio HeldWeekly Meetings on Homeless While Publicly Denying Problem (DNAINFO) Mayor Bill de Blasio held a "Weekly Homeless Meeting" for months this summer with top city officials even as he publicly denied the city was experiencing a problem with homelessness, DNAinfo New York has learned. The mayor brushed that off saying he had inherited the homeless surge from his predecessor, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and blamed media coverage for overplaying the issue. "I think the media has put a lot of attention on this issue lately, more than previously," de Blasio said then. But de Blasio had been meeting with city officials about the homeless issue as far back as June 5, according to Corporation Counsel Zachary Carter's schedule, a copy which DNAinfo obtained through a Freedom of Information Law request. The FOIL request covered the period through the end of July.
NY1's Louis Concerned That Lobbyist Have Manipulated and Comprised Journalism
Patrick Markee of the Coalition for the Homeless Who Hired Berlin Rosen, Who Bashed Cuomo Praised de Blasio is Married to Ratner's Daughter When NY1's Louis interviewed Patrick Markee, head of the Coalition for the Homeless he did no know that Berlin Rosen worked for them. Unregulated Berlin Rosen Will Lead to Foreign Control of New York's Government - A Silent Coup d'eta On Inside City Hall host Errol Louis in a discussion of the stations report on Berlin Rosen admitted that he was surprised at the reach of Berlin Rosen. He expressed concern that advocates that use the media might not be independent. He said he was shocked to lean that the Coalition for the Homeless which was blaming Cuomo for the increase the city's homeless hired Berlin Rosen as its consultant. Louis on NY1: "Last week when I interviewed the coalition for the homeless, I did not know they were a Berlin Rosen client. The report (the coalitions issued) goes out of their way to blame everyone but the mayor for the record high homelessness in the city. They talked (blamed) the governor and (blamed) at length the last past mayor. When I realized they were a client, I realized this is a problem not just for transparency and private sector clients not being registered lobbyist . . . this works both ways. Maybe we got advocates who are not independent advocates."
de Blasio Who Attack Bloomberg Polices and Embarrassed Him At the Swearing In Now Needs His Help?
De Blasio Adopts a Warmer Tone Toward Bloomberg (NYT) Mayor Bill de Blasio has come to see his rift with Michael R. Bloomberg, his predecessor, as an unnecessary political liability and has recently hailed the former mayor as a champion for New York City .* De Blasio has recently changed his tune in relation to his predecessor former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, hailing the man he once worked to differentiate himself from during his campaign, the Times writes:
De Blasio, a Democrat, and former NYC Mayor Mike Bloomberg, a Republican-turned-independent, will hold a joint news conference Oct. 21 in the Bronx to plant the millionth tree of the Million Trees NYC program that Bloomberg launched in 2007 to improve the quality of life on the city’s streets.
2013 Flashback Did the speeches at the inauguration of Mayor Bill deBlasio show disrespect to Bloomberg, ignoring his accomplishments, or were they voicing the frustrations and aspirations of millions of New Yorkers who have rarely been heard? *
Public Advocate Tries To Slow Bloomberg's "Boro Taxi" Plan ... 2010 Bill de Blasio: Citizens United Avenger | Mother Jones * BARRETT: BILL DEBLASIO, PUBLIC ADVOCATE OR TEACHERS UNIONPATSY? (UPDATED) (Wayne Barrett, Village Voice) *Public Advocate blasts mayor over teacher evaluation ...(NYDN) * De Blasio Defends NYPD's Muslim Surveillance - WSJ Blogs * De Blasio backs suit vs. taxi plan - NY Daily News
De Blasio aide blames Bloomberg for growing number ofhomeless New Yorkers (NYDN)
The Media Does Not Hold de Blasio Responsible for CSA Failures Like They Did Bloomberg
De Blasio and the city’s Administration for Children’s Services stand silent on the three deaths of infants in the last three months at the hands of their mothers and should swiftly account for, and end, the deadly “epidemic,” the Daily News writes:
de Blasio Was Not Silent About Child Abuse Before He Became Mayor “That says we are missing an opportunity to intervene asearly as possible,” the public advocate, Bill de Blasio, said in an interview. (2012, NYT) * PUBLIC ADVOCATE BILL DE BLASIO CRITICIZES THE CITY FORCRITICIZING HIS REPORT ON CHILD DEATHS (2012, Village Voice) * There was a City Council hearing on the ACS in September 2007, announced by then-Councilman Bill de Blasio, the chairman of the General Welfare Committee, which has jurisdiction over the ACS. De Blasio cited the death of 21-month-old Hailey Gonzalez after she was allegedly beaten by her mother's boyfriend and the death of a 2-month-old after the child was allegedly shaken by his mother in a homeless shelter. The Councilman said that ACS has made some progress but noted that children were still being lost. * Following Reports of Abuse at PS 87, De Blasio Calls onChancellor to Explain Lack of Discipline for Prior Incident * De Blasio: Six Years After Nixzmary, Children Still Lostin Preventable Deaths (Brooklyn Eagle) * De Blasio's Past as ACS Watchdog in Spotlight After MylsDobson's Death (DNAINFO)
de Blasio Ran to His Mini Me Rodriquez to Protect Him in His First Town Hall Meeting
Rodrique Still Fighting to Ban Horse Carriages
Ydanis Rodriguez, the chair of New York City CouncilTransportation Committee, will propose a bailout to rescue medallion owners, who have witnessed the value of their investment plummet as Uber and other ride apps disrupt the traditional taxi business.* First Look: Inside Super Secret Taxi Bailout Meeting
Rodriquez Attacks de Blasio Foe Uber
Twitter Spat Breaks Out Between Councilman YdanisRodriguez and Uber (NYO) Councilman Rodriguez, who is also Chair of the Transportation Committee for the City Council, was also holding a press conference extolling the recently proposed “Uber cap” legislation at City Hall earlier today. When he claimed in a tweet that Uber drivers are not covered by insurance if they get into an accident, ride sharing app’s New York City general manager Josh Mohrer hit back on Twitter, referring to two of Mr. Rodriguez’s most scathing Tweets as “a lie.”
de Blasio Nominates Rodrique to MTA Board
Mayor de Blasio nominated City Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez, the council transportation committee chair to be his representative on the MTA Board.
Faking A Town Hall Meeting With the Mayor Being Protected By His Mini Me CM Ydanis Rodriguez
De Blasio accused of stacking town-hall meeting with ‘handpicked’ allies (NYP) Critics of Mayor de Blasio accused him of stacking a town-hall-style meeting in Washington Heights
According to Strasburg, the choice invited softball questions because the city’s Rent Guidelines Board approved a zero percent increase on rent for rent-regulated apartments on one-year leases. There are about 53,000 rent-regulated units in Washington Heights
Similarly, the Post writes that de Blasio’s town hall was pure propaganda because attendees were invited by allies while the mayor operated under the pretense that he was open to taking questions from average New Yorkers: * De Blasio holds first townhall meeting of mayoralty in Manhattan, talks rent and affordable housing (NYDN) About 250 people attended the nearly two-hour meeting in Washington Heights New York housing market closed its third quarter this year with a 9.1 percent increase in sales compared to the 2014 third quarter.
On May 22nd True News Introduced the Mayoral Bubble While de Blasio Used the Cops to Keep Protesters Away From A Boardwalk News Conference
When one woman asked about the city's failure to repair some abandoned buildings, Rodriguez— who appeared to know many of the questioners and addressed them by first name —told de Blasio "She's talking about a mess that you inherited." Joseph Strasburg, president of the landlord group Rent Stabilization Association, accused the mayor of using the town hall as a "re-election rally." Former mayors used town halls more frequently. Rudy Giuliani had a town hall once a month, Ed Koch did about over a dozen a year, and Bloomberg occasionally held the meetings, which are characterized by members of the public asking the mayor whatever they feel is important.* De Blasio's first town hall meeting drew mostly friendlyfeedback in Washington Heights: (DNAINFO)
de Blasio Consumer Affairs Commissioner Husband Forced Tenants Out AG Fines Quietly Again
Judicial Corruption Resigning - That is All?
Brooklyn Judge Resigning Amid Questions About Payments to Her Clerk (NYT) Justice Yvonne Lewis had been accused of improperly approving payments to her clerk, Kimberly L. Detherage, for her work as a court-appointed lawyer, a potential conflict of interest. * Brooklyn judge Yvonne Lewis, who has nearly 30 years on the bench, resigned after being accused of improperly approving payments to her clerk for the clerk’s work as a court-appointed lawyer, the Times reports *
Progressive Mayor Has A Minority Woman Contract Problem
'UNACCEPTABLY LOW' Controller Scott Stringer hits NYC poor low grade for hiring minority, women-owned companies (NYDN) * Rikers Island
Developers Walk As NYC Housing Officials Heads to Jail
Ex-housing official gets three years in prison for taking $2.5M in bribes (NYP) A crooked former city housing official who hoped to avoid the clink by testifying against three pals who were eventually acquitted at trial was slapped with a three-year prison term Wednesday in Brooklyn federal court. Former Assistant Commissioner of Housing Preservation and Development Wendell Walters eagerly cooperated with the feds in trying to nail three developers charged with showering him with bribes. But the accused men — Stevenson Dunn, Lee Hymowitz and Michael Freeman — beat their raps, and now Walters will be the only one doing time.
Team Hillary Cuomo Pols Dumps Our Campaign Manager Mayor In An Iowa Cornfield
Possible challenger blasts de Blasio’s out-of-town travels (NYP) The Congressman was tweaking Mayor de Blasio for planning a presidential forum in Iowa – while still not endorsing the woman who hired him to be her campaign manager in her New York Senate race 15 years ago. "It's not clear to me, however, that a town hall meeting in the corn fields of Iowa has anything to do with the quality of life of everyday New Yorkers," said Jeffries. * “He’s entitled to his own timetable, but it’s not clear to me that a town hall meeting in the cornfields of Iowa has anything to do with quality of life for people in New York City,” Jeffries said. “Many of my constituents are unclear as to why the mayor has made the decision to spend a significant amount of time out of state . * Cuomo attacks Sanders on Clinton’s behalf (PoliticoNY)* Gov. Andrew Cuomo boosted the presidential campaign of Hillary Clinton by criticizing her rival Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders’s gun control record, State of Politicsreports: * While NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio remains conspicuously uncommitted in the presidential race, New York ’s other top Democrats – including US Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and NYC Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito – are already putting in work on behalf of Hillary Clinton. * Cuomo, who has endorsed Clinton , attacked the gun control position taken by candidate Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders during the Democratic presidential debate
Boxing the Mayor In
Brooklyn Rep. Hakeem Jeffries announced his support for Clinton , and wondered by NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio, who ran her 2000 campaign for the US Senate, isn’t doing the same. The congressman also said he’s not considering a 2017 run for mayor “at this point in time.”
In the Name of Diversity de Blasio Accomplished What the British and Tories Could Not Do Throw George Washington Thrown Out of New York
Is This Any Way to Honor the Nations First Capital
The de Blasios have dumped portraits of George Washington and others from Gracie Mansion
Broker: Homeless Hurting Real Estate . . . Not Doing to Well for the Homeless Either
Cuomo's Pay to Play Crowd
State workers were allowed and in some cases encouraged to attend a speech Gov. Andrew Cuomo delivered last week on climate change, leaving their jobs in the middle of the day and being paid their full salaries,the Post writes: * The NY Post reports state workers were allowed – if not outright required – to attend Cuomo’s climate change announcement with VP Al Gore last week on the taxpayers’ time.* BREAKING: State workers attended EVERY State of the State speech EVER on taxpayers dime!!! * The Post writes the governor should be ashamed of having state employees leave their jobs and attend his speech while on the payroll, which amounts to shelling out taxpayer money to feed his vanity:
Gentrification Another Factor Killing Public Housing
de Blasio What Gentrification: Never saw his report that found gentrification doesn’t benefit NYCHA tenants
De Blasio hasn’t read a $250,000 study his administration paid for that found NYCHA tenants don’t reap the benefits of gentrification, but made clear he’s still dedicated to his plan to put up expensive market-rate apartments on NYCHA land, the Daily News reports: * Nevertheless, on Monday — after the Daily News uncovered the report, “The Effects of Neighborhood Change on NYCHA Residents” — he made clear he’s full steam ahead with the plan to put up expensive market-rate apartments on NYCHA land. “I haven’t seen the report, but I can say for sure we believe that the right kind of development on NYCHA sites will create more affordable housing for neighborhood residents,” de Blasio said.* NYCHA residents see little benefit from gentrification in their neighborhoods, report shows (NYDN) The city hired five NYCHA residents to work as urban “interpreters” who gathered information for a $250,000 report that reached a conclusion most New Yorkers already accept as true: gentrification doesn't help the poor.* .@BilldeBlasio promotes #EastNewYork rezoning plan to skeptical locals
NYC Real Estate Barrons' Found Their Puppet A Progressive Mayor to Gentrify East New York
Member Items Reelection Funds
Leaders of the state Legislature defended a new earmarking program, brushing off charges that it's “pork” and unfairly distributed to favor the politically powerful, Politico New York reports: * Legislative leaders defended a new earmarking program, brushing off charges that it’s “pork” and unfairly distributed to favor the politically powerful. “If you want to call putting security cameras in a housing development that has a lot of crime pork, so be it; give me another ham sandwich,” Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie said.
de Blasio Admits Market Forces Causing Homelessness . . . True News Has Been Saying So For Years
de Blasio: "The market dynamics are forcing people out faster than all of our tools can compensate.”
Bill’s de Blasio'shomelessness crisis (NYDN ED) Bill de Blasio came into office with a single-minded solution for homelessness: shut down dirty, dangerous shelters and use the savings to secure permanent housing. After The New York Times documented the harsh life of a young girl in a fetid city-run shelter, the then-mayor elect said: “We cannot let children of this city like Dasani down.” Now America ’s champion of progressivism is reckoning with breaking that vow. Meeting with the Daily News Editorial Board on Thursday, de Blasio made the extraordinary admission that he cannot keep up with the tide of people seeking housing assistance: “What we’re having a hell of a time with is. * New York City is planning to add more housing for homeless adults and children fleeing domestic violence, the latest effort by de Blasio’s administration to deal with a homelessness problem that has persisted as housing costs in the city have continued to soar. One Exception the Hotel Unions NYC Mayor de Blasio defended his administration’s four-month-old law curtailing hotel conversions into residential space amid a legal battle with the powerful Real Estate Board of New York. “We obviously think the bill was appropriate,” the mayor said. * Only 3,000 of De Blasio's 20,000 Affordable Housing UnitsAre Permanent via @Dnainfo * Just months after Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration argued that hiring union workers would undermine the mayor’s affordable housing plan, Comptroller Scott Stringer and Public Advocate Letitia James announced a plan to partner with organized labor, the Observer writes: * Politico New York hasmapped the more than 3,000 affordable housing units being built in 2015 as part of New York City ’s voluntary Inclusionary Housing Program: * Four Reasons You Can’t Stop the Brooklyn Juggernaut - Commercial Real Estate * In a clash with their landlord, these apartment tenantsstarted making covert recordings. (NYT) Residents of rent-stabilized units in an East Village Manhattan ’s Pier 40 by authorizing a five-building housing development, the Daily News reports * Unions Slam de Blasio-Backed Affordable Housing WithStolen Wage Report (NYO) * Nearly half of the affordable apartment tenants in a new survey say they're spending more than 30 percent of their income on rent, a level considered “rent-burdened,” and 14 percent say more than 50 percent of their income goes to rent, the Daily News writes: * Survey shows some NYC affordable housing tenants still pay high rent
Opposition in the Mayor Own Circle to Rezoning East New York, Fears of Gentrification Anti-poverty activists allied with de Blasio are sharply criticizing his plan to rezone East New York , a low-income neighborhood at the heart of his affordable-housing initiative,the Journal reports:
When Willl NYPIRG Do A Study On Lobbyists Mr. Horner?
"Money follows power," said Blair Horner, of the New York Public Interest Research Group.
Village Voice Sold to Investor Who Vows to Invest in Paper
Village Voice is sold to Peter Barbey, the owner of a Pennsylvania newspaper.(NYT) The Village Voice, the storied alternative weekly newspaper that helped usher in a new era of journalism after its creation 60 years ago, but that has been struggling to find its way in an era of declining circulations and ad revenues, was sold on Monday to a scion of one of America’s wealthiest families with a long history in newspaper publishing. Peter D. Barbey, through his investment company Black Walnut Holdings L.L.C., bought the paper from Voice Media Group, which owns a string of weeklies around the country. The paper, he said, was once an essential “voice of the arts and cultural community in New York .” While he will not take over full control of the paper until February, Mr. Barbey said he would focus first on bolstering its arts coverage — mainly by attracting top writers. "I am flat-out serious about getting The Voice to be a major Manhattan publication,” he said.* Meet Peter Barbey, the latest owner to take on the @villagevoice: (PoliticoNY)* The Village Voice, the storied alternative weekly newspaper that helped usher in a new era of journalism after its creation 60 years ago, but that has been struggling to find its way in an era of declining circulations and ad revenues, was sold to a scion of one of America’s wealthiest families with a long history in newspaper publishing.
Ticket Pandering for Votes
Hasidic drivers get less tickets so they vote for de Blasio (NYP) Cops doled out fewer tickets to bad drivers in Williamsburg ’s Hasidic neighborhoods because the de Blasio administration covets their votes and needs to keep them happy, a source said. “They pander and he gives them a lot of what they want,” a former mayoral liaison said. “De Blasio is known to have tight ties to the Hasidic community.” Moving violations in the 90th Precinct, which includes an enclave of 70,000 ultra-religious Orthodox Jews, plummeted 32 percent since de Blasio took office, NYPD records show. Cops handed out 7,077 moving-violation tickets in the first nine months of the year and 8,242 in the same period last year. But in 2013, under Mayor Bloomberg, the area was blitzed with 10,365 summonses in the first nine months, records show. Religious leaders “get in with the Police Department and do their thing,” the former official said. “I’ll tell you one thing, they didn’t all take driver’s ed and change their driving habits.”
Pols Take Credit for Leandra's Law and Do Nothing to See If It is Working
Letting Leandra downas city fails to get drunks to install ignition locks (NYDN Ed) Relentless pressure by her father Lenny (and heat from the Daily News) resulted in Leandra’s Law, which requires convicted drunken drivers to install so-called ignition interlock devices on their vehicles. They must prove sobriety by blowing into the devices before their cars will start. Now, an audit by state Controller Tom DiNapoli has found that the courts turned 2,166 Leandra’s Law convictions over to the city Department of Probation for enforcement from the statute’s enactment in 2010 to the end of 2014. The department required only 111 drivers to install the devices, just over 5% of the convicted drunks. Queens DA Richard Brown processes four times as many Leandra’s Law cases as does Probation and takes them from across the city on behalf of the city’s four other DAs. Handling drivers from the same population and geography as Probation, the Queens compliance rate approaches that of the rest of the state, 22% of the 8,427 cases handled since 2010. Last year, for example, Probation took 459 cases and installed interlocks in just eight cars, a rate of less than 2%. The Queens DA supervised 1,983 cases, installing 373 devices, a rate of almost 19%.
The Governors Top Court
Judged worthy in weighing the seven contenders to be thenew state chief judge (NYDN Ed)
DiFiore, Garcia And Prudenti Round Out Judicial Recommendations (YNN)New York ’s next chief judge. If appointed, she said she would be “privileged to serve as Chief Judge and would fulfill the duties of that office to the best of my ability.”* Seven Candidates Nominated for New York’s Next Chief Judge (NYT) The choices to succeed Jonathan Lippman include the Westchester County district attorney and a former federal prosecutor in Manhattan .* The slate of candidates to fill the seat of retiring Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman, recommended by a state panel that has often put up people friendly with the current governor, is surprisingly short on political considerations, the DailyNews writes: * The court currently lacks an expert in commercial litigation, and the committee nominatedthree highly respected Manhattan litigators who could fill that need: Carey R. Dunne, Rowan D. Wilson and Stephen P. Younger. There are also two Republicans on the list – former US Attorney Michael Garcia and Gail Prudenti, an experienced jurist who retired as the chief administrative judge in July.
DiFiore, Garcia And Prudenti Round Out Judicial Recommendations (YNN)
The governor in coming weeks must nominate two new members to the Court of Appeals, including for its highest position, chief judge. And by the time he fills an additional scheduled vacancy of an associate judge next year, Cuomo will have appointed every member of the court. So far, he has named only Democrats.*
In a rebuke of Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman’s recent “overhaul” of the state bail system, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Edward McLaughlin has labelled the plan an “insult” to the judiciary. * In a stunning rebuke of state Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman’s recent “overhaul” of the state bail system, a Manhattan Supreme Court justice in a letter to fellow judges labelled the plan an “insult” to the judiciary, the Post reports: * Judge says bail reform plan is an ‘insult’ to the judiciary (NYP) * The New York City Bar Association’s task force on the state constitutional convention includes two former top aides to Gov. Andrew Cuomo and a former advisor to two Assembly speakers, State of Politics reports: Bail As part of his efforts to reform New York City’s bail system, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced an experimental initiative that could replace the cash-based method with new strategies such as reminders to get people to show up for court, the Daily News reports: * Editorial: Let the judges judge bail (NYDN Ed)* With Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Edward McLaughlin blasting plans to overhaul the state’s bail system, de Blasio should take note of the Justice's expert opinion and also recognize that bail reviews are already available, the Post writes: * The US Justice Department has granted early release to 167 inmates from Upstate New York as part of a new effort aimed at cutting harsh drug sentences and reducing prison overcrowding, according to federal officials.* The Daily News writes some bail reforms are “nuts” and highlights the case of a schizophrenic who allegedly admitted to pouring boiling oil on a child, wasn’t held at Rikers and then allegedly threatened someone with a knife: *The state Commission on Judicial Nomination today will recommend seven potential candidates to be the next chief judge of New York . The powerful post will be vacant Jan. 1 because Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman has hit the retirement age of 70.
How Local TV News Make Millions Rehabilitating Candidates, Lobbying on Issues While Dumbing Down the Public
Spending on advertising has fueled the increase in TV lobbying costs. Well-funded special interests funnel millions to lobbyists for public campaigns to sway lawmakers on hot-button issues (TU) Local News which is mainly weather, traffic, cooking and dog segments is making millions in lobbyists spending. Union and business interest like the pro fracking interest are also spending millions on ads to local stations. All this money is coming in as local news dumbs down. Local TV stations stand to profit from boom in super-PAC spending (The Hill)*CSNY’s budget blitz: $3.9 million (updated)(TU) *Save NY airing tax cap ad(TU) *Budget opponents up their ads and mailers(TU) *Bloomberg Blames Negative Ads For Poor Showing In Education ...(Politico) *Save NY now airs on school money(TU) *NYC's Bloomberg Pays for TV Ads Backing Cuomo's Pension * Bloomberg Defends His Administration With TV Ad - NY1.com * Local TV News For $ale: How Special Interests Control News Content and Public Opinion
Escape From NYC
Why Is Leaving New York the LatestTrend? Between 2000 and 2010, the Tax Foundation found that 3.4 million residents moved out of New York, Forbes listed the state in their feature “The States People are Fleeing in 2014,” and New York was the third highest “moving out” or “outbound” state inUnited Van Lines’ 2013 Migration Study. So, what’s the deal? TheSunshine State has no income tax and no estate tax — both of which New York charges. In fact, each year from 1977 to 2011, New York ranked No. 1 for the highest tax burden (except for 1984 where it came in second). The fact is, it’s expensive to live in New York and the additional tax burden over other states is becoming less appealing. When people renounce their New York citizenship, they take their tax dollars with them. The Tax Foundation estimates that New York lost more than $45.6 million in tax revenue over the last 10 years. Going along with that, the Tax Foundation listed New York as No. 49 on its 2015 State Business Tax Climate Index. Last year, it came in dead last. If the mass exodus intensifies, perhaps enough changes will be made to New York ’s overall tax code to make living and retiring there more affordable. In the meantime, New York residency will continue to decline. *
Why Is Leaving New York the LatestTrend? Between 2000 and 2010, the Tax Foundation found that 3.4 million residents moved out of New York, Forbes listed the state in their feature “The States People are Fleeing in 2014,” and New York was the third highest “moving out” or “outbound” state inUnited Van Lines’ 2013 Migration Study. So, what’s the deal? The
Perkins Runs for Rangel Seat
Team de Blasio Connected to NYU OK Expansion . . . Now Want Payback for the Elected Officials $$
De Blasio’s NYU appointments may ‘influence’ expansion approval (NYP) An ivory tower has been erected at City Hall — with Mayor de Blasio appointing so many NYU-connected officials to top-tier jobs that advocates fear the university’s controversial development projects will be rubber-stamped. Last week, de Blasio named professor Vicki Been head of the city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development, the agency charged with housing the city’s neediest residents. Been and her hubby, Richard Revesz, who was dean of NYU’s law school for 11 years, owe the university $6.4 million for sweetheart mortgages on their West Village town house and Connecticut vacation home. De Blasio’s first deputy mayor is former NYU Langone Medical Center
The Progressive de Blaiso Eds Art
Shortly after NYC Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez called on his colleagues to pass a resolution supportive of congestion pricing, Mayor Bill de Blasio said that while he’s open to the idea, Albany – which must sign off on the idea – is not. * Council transportation chair aims to make cars more expendable (PoliticoNY) * De Blasio: Albany has ‘no appetite’ for congestion pricing (PoliticoNY)* De Blasio said a proposal to put tolls on the East River crossings into Manhattan would be dead on arrival with state lawmakers in Albany, so shttp://goo.gl/4TWuuolutions to transit problems should focus on other alternatives
Sexual Harassment in Albany Continues
Male assembly staffer getting paid amid sexual harassment suit (NYP) A male Assembly staffer who accused his female boss of sexual harassment stopped showing up for work more than three months ago but continues to collect his full salary, The Post has learned. Insiders said Assembly leaders are stumped about what to do with Elias Farah, 29, who filed the charges against freshman Assemblywoman Angela Wozniak, a Republican who represents a district outside Buffalo .
What is the Best Part of Dividing Times Square Into 3 Parts?
This abandoned factory gave rise to the Times Square desnudas (NYP) “We used to go to parties in the Domino Sugar Factory, and they’d have body-painted girls handing out drinks and taking pictures with people,” said Olivieri, who does the painting for several desnudas and keeps watch as they work. “It was exciting. So we were like, ‘We could try this [in
Lobbyists Consultant Murder, Inc Run NY Govt and Campaigns Just As Much As Murder, Inc Ran NY in the 40's
The NYP and CFB Look At Gray Areas of Election Law While Covering-Up Illegal Coordination Between Lobbying Consultant, PACS and Candidates
The worst part of the city campaign-finance system is what’s legal (NYP Ed) News of a probe into Mayor de Blasio’s 2013 campaign finances might offer some great comic relief — if it didn’t also raise troubling questions about the city’s rules. As The Post’s Yoav Gonen reported this week, the Campaign Finance Board began looking into possible Team de Blasio no-nos in 2013, after a magazine reported that the 1199 SEIU union “coordinated with the [then-candidate’s] campaign.” Under the city’s rules, candidates must cover the costs of any “coordinated” activities or list them as donations, which are subject to strict limits. It seems the board focused on whether de Blasio’s folks complied. Thing is, the rules themselves are laughable — as is the entire system. For one thing, if de Blasio did break the rules, then he had an edge in the mayoral race.
NY1 Wiseguys' BloodSucker Shadow Government?
NY's Political and Media Class Welcomes Lobbyists and Rejects Trump
NY1 Berlin Rosen and the Wiseguys LobbyistsBrain-Washing: TV Ads, Emails
How Local TV News Make Millions Rehabilitating Candidates and Cleaning Up Policies Harmful to the Public
NY Post
NYC Daily News
Campaign 2013 Media Failure And Broken Political Promises
Problems for de Blasio Beyond Uber, Will He Mess Up So Bad He Won't Run Again?
Charter School Groups That Back Bloomberg’s Education Agenda Enjoy Success in Albany (NYT)
A group that is devoted to continuing the education agenda of former Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg has become one of the most powerful forces in Albany by pouring millions into lobbying and adroitly exploiting rivalries in state politics.
Groups That BackBloomberg’s Education Agenda Enjoy Success in Albany, via @nytimes Good take on DEB's missteps
MTA Cuomo, MTA pressure de Blasio to increase transit funding to $3.2B (NYDN) *Cuomo Wants MoreMoney From the City to Fund MTA Capital Plan (DNAINFO) * Cuomo’s Plan to Close M.T.A. Funding Gap Revives Familiar Debate (NYT)The governor’s update on a five-year capital plan for the state-run transportation agency raised once again questions about the proper scope of New York City’s role in its own transit destiny.* The battle between New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and Gov. Andrew Cuomo has opened up two new fronts: MTA funding and Uber.* The Times writes that the city has been paying too littleto support the MTA system’s capital needs, but that the city and state must sit down and sort out the agency’s budget without their respective executives feuding: * MTA Chief: NYC must pay fare share for MTAupgrades * Who Will Fund the M.T.A.? (NYT Ed) The state and the city should seize this moment to find more lasting ways to sustain and upgrade the system. * MTA Chairman Tom Prendergast writes in Newsday that it is only fair for New York City to contribute more to the public transit system, noting that the state took on a larger role amid the 1970s fiscal crisis:
Clinton De Blasio raves about presidential hopeful, but it’s not Hillary (NYP)
NYCHA : Officials commit nearly $80M to upgrade 15NYCHA developments — but records show others may need them more (NYDN) * Angry Residents Swarm Housing AuthorityChairwoman at Harlem Event (NYO)
NYCHA : Officials commit nearly $80M to upgrade 15NYCHA developments — but records show others may need them more (NYDN) * Angry Residents Swarm Housing AuthorityChairwoman at Harlem Event (NYO)
The Post writes that de Blasio’s disagreements withMark-Viverito, Gov. Andrew Cuomo and state Senate Majority Leader John Flanaganshow that he must learn to play nice with others if he wants more success:
Taxi Vs Uber Now on Uber’s behalf, Bloomberg veterans continue taxi fight (NYDN) * Q-Poll: Voters Back Uber, Walmart(YNN) * most think pols trying to limit @uber’s size be of "donations from theyellow cab industry”
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Two Arms: Its Time for News Yorkers To Take Back the City From the Real Estate Barron and Their Hired Gun Lobbyists Who Control the Election Process and Run A Shadow Government
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