city hall - august 1, 2007

www.cityhallnews.com

In State of theUnions, Ed Ott(right) looks to thefuture of the CLC andorganized labor(Page 3),

Vol. 2, No. 3 August 2007

SUNY reform getsunderway (Page 22)and Public AdvocateBetsy Gotbaum (left)talks turkey sandwichesat her Power Lunch(Page 32)

BY EDWARD-ISAAC DOVERE

oe Bruno bets the exacta box.That makes for a harder gamble—instead of just

putting his money on one horse, he needs to guesswhich two will come out on top. As long as one

places first and the other second, he wins, and collects abigger payout for the double bet at the window down-stairs.

He has $4 on the fifth race, hinging onhorses 4 and 8. From a distance, the horsesseem to be gliding, tearing around the ovaltrack as the baritone announcer narratestheir progress.

Bruno watches intently. They start downthe stretch. He tenses slightly. One of hispicks is ahead, the other one back in third.

“Come on, baby,” he says. “Come on.”They whip past. Split seconds before they

hit the finish line, he can see that 4 has slipped behind.He shrugs slightly, raises his eyebrows. And then he con-tinues the conversation.

“You go on to the next,” he explains. “You play hard,

Issue Forum: OrganizedLabor/ Unions

Page 4

SIBRO looks to link StatenIsland and Brooklyn

2

Race for New York CityClerk takes shape

Page 21

Pundit Poll: TheCongestion PricingFallout

Page 24

Worries Over Changesto New York’s no-faultdivorce law

Page 26

The August Poll:Which Council MemberWould Make the BestLifeguard?

Page 33

INDEX:

CONTINUED ON PAGE 17

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Former Bloombergstaffers SilviaAlvarez, JordanBarowitz, PatrickBrennan, Joe Chan,Jennifer Falk,Jonathan Greenspunand Marc Rickscheck in from theirnew positions andreflect on their timein the Bloombergadministration.

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Bruno’s inside track on the bigthree: he is riding high, Silveris a disappointment, Spitzershould get out of politics

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CONTINUED ON PAGE 17

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CITY HALL AUGUST 2007 3www.cityhallnews.com

The Ott AgendaCLC executive director says there is toomuch work to do for the labor coalitionto worry much about past problems.

BY ADAM PINCUS

NEW YORK CITY CENTRAL

Labor Council executive direc-tor Ed Ott is looking to labor’s

past achievements as a guide for theinfluential group as it moves forward fol-lowing the resignation of its formerleader.

The CLC, the largestlabor organization in thecity, representing 1.3million union mem-bers, was rocked byfederal racketeer-ing and corruptioncharges filed inOctober againstt h e n - p r e s i d e n tBrian McLaughlin,who was simultane-ously serving as aDemocratic Assemblymember from Queens.McLaughlin is accused of stealing $2.2million from the state, the Council andunions.

The group officially reorganized inJune, reducing the power of the presi-dent and setting up checks in the hierar-chy intended to prevent the abusesallegedly carried out by McLaughlin.

One of the results of the indictmentwas the appointment last fall of Ott, whohad been the public policy director, tothe newly created post of executivedirector. He now manages day-to-dayoperations and staffing, working closelywith new CLC president Gary La

Barbera, a member of the Teamsters whowas tapped for the leadership post inJune.

Ott declined questions related toMcLaughlin or the reorganization. Hesaid those questions about the formerleadership were not relevant to the issuescurrently confronting the CLC.

“There are several ways we are tryingto come to terms with a growing gapbetween the top end of the economy and

the working people’s end of the econo-my,” he said.

The rise in housing and health careexpenses, as well as other fees, such assubway fare increases, chip away at theincome of workers the group represents.

“We are always concerned about howbroader problems can erode gains we

have made at the bargainingtable,” he said.

To bring down, or atthe least to slow, the

rise of housingexpenses in the city,Ott said the CLCwould mimicefforts from morethan 50 years ago,

when unions andcivic organizations

were building afford-able housing for thou-

sands of members in devel-opments like the Electchester

cooperatives in Queens.“Right now, we are trying to figure out

if there is a way to raise some capital tohelp—and I mean help, because we can-not do this by ourselves—on some ofthese developments,” he said. “We arevery concerned, and would like to seemore housing built with government sub-sidies.”

In addition to constructing more hous-ing, the CLC was looking to preserveapartments using proposals similar to theone that failed in Stuyvesant Town. Therethey participated in the effort whichhelped win commitments of $4 billion to

buy the development. A higher bid wasultimately accepted.

To tackle health care, the CLC formeda committee to look at the issues and theproposals as they are developed.

“Nothing erodes income faster thanhealth care,” Ott said, later adding, “Theproblem we have is that there are not anyspecific legislative proposals we canreact to.”

Ott said immigration was a major con-

cern for the CLC as well, and though theorganization will study a controversialpiece of legislation introduced in July by

City Council MemberHiram Monserrate (D-Queens) to provide identifi-cation cards to undocu-mented residents, no finaldetermination on a positionhas been made.

The Council has beengenerally supportive ofMayor MichaelBloomberg’s (Unaff.)PlaNYC, insisting that stay-ing on the outside while the

comprehensive blueprint was beingdrafted would have been foolish.

But the CLC reorganization remains

the main topic on the minds of manylabor observers when thinking about theunion.

Bruce McIver, the director of laborrelations under Mayor Ed Koch (D), saidlabor in the state remains a powerfulpolitical tool when it is focused, butcould not predict the ultimate effects ofthe restructuring.

“Labor could benefit in this town by amore integrated and cooperativeapproach toward issues that affect work-ing people, and a more political approachthan taken in the past,” he said. “But Idon’t know if that will evolve from thischange or not.” C

[email protected]

Direct letters to the editor to

[email protected].

Ed Ott said questions about the former leadership of the CLC were notrelevant to the issues currently confronting the group, such as afford-able housing and immigration.

To bring down, or at the least to slow, therise of housing expenses in the city, Ott said

the CLC would mimic efforts from more than50 years ago, when unions and civic organi-

zations were building affordable housing forthousands of members in developments like

the Electchester cooperatives in Queens.

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4 AUGUST 2007 CITY HALLwww.cityhallnews.com

BY STATE SEN. GEORGE MAZIARZ

TO DATE, ONLY ONE LEGISLATIVE

action has been taken in eitherchamber of State Legislature to

override one of Gov. Eliot Spitzer’svetoes. That action was taken on July 16,when the Senate returned to Albany for aspecial session to address a number ofunresolved issues.

On that day, my Senate colleagues andI unanimously voted to override the gov-ernor’s veto of Senate Bill 3070, legisla-tion I sponsored that would increaseworkers’ compensation benefits for pri-vate hospital workers, emergency med-ical technicians, or paramedics who weredispatched to Ground Zero in the imme-diate aftermath of the September 11,2001, terrorist attacks.

As chairman of the Senate LaborCommittee, I can say that we owe morethan words of thanks and admiration tothe brave men and women who respond-ed to Ground Zero after the 9/11 attacks.Nearly six years after that terribletragedy, we owe it to them to put ourmoney where our mouth is. Whether pub-lic or private workers, these first respon-

ders deserve to have access to the samespecific benefits they all earned in lightof their heroic service. That’s what thisbill is all about, that’s why not a single“nay” vote was cast when the legislationwas originally adopted by the Senate inMay and by the Assembly in June.

The Legislature approved enhancedcompensation benefits years ago to pub-lic sector employees who rushed to thedisaster at the Twin Towers. Now, it istime that parity is extended to a group ofprivate employees who performed no lessimportant or dangerous work than their

public counterparts. The “9/11-Nine”belong to 1199 SEIU, and they deserve thejustice that will allow them to get on withtheir lives. I hope the Assembly willreturn to Albany and join the Senate inthe override so that may happen.

Apart from this specific matter, theworkers’ compensation system has beenin need of wholesale changes fordecades. This year, we were successful inadopting historic reform legislation,which I sponsored in the Senate, whichwill lower the cost of doing business inNew York State and, at the same time,provide increased benefits to injuredworkers. There is no doubt in my mindthat the key to achieving to this legisla-tive victory was the cooperation of thelabor and business communities.

It is my responsibility, as Chairman ofthe Labor Committee, to pay specialattention to the needs of injured workers.Our legislation, now law, accomplishedthat worthy goal. The maximum weeklybenefit for injured workers will beincreased from $400 to $500 in the firstyear, $550 in the second year, $600 in thethird year, and to two-thirds of the aver-age weekly wage in the fourth year. Once

the maximum benefit reaches two-thirdsof the average weekly wage, the maxi-mum benefit will be indexed annually.

And for businesses, it was justannounced that they can expect to seemore than a 20.5 percent drop in theirworkers’ compensation insurance premi-ums, beginning this summer. Across thestate, that will save employers more than$1 billion—money than can be used tostimulate new economic activity in NewYork. That is particularly critical forUpstate New York, especially the area ofWestern New York that I am proud to rep-resent in the Senate.

As the year goes on, I am ready andwilling to return to Albany to make moreprogress for New Yorkers. In the mean-time, the Labor Committee’s hearings onthe Paid Family Leave Act will continue,as will our efforts to look out for theworking men and women of this greatstate. C

George Maziarz is a Republican rep-

resenting parts of Niagra, Orleans and

Monroe counties in the State Senate. He

is the chair of his chamber’s Labor

Committee.

The Biggest Labor Crisis: Caring for Injured Union Workers

BY ASSEMBLY MEMBERSUSAN JOHN

MY FIRST RESPONSIBILITY AS

chair of the Labor Committeeis to working men and women.

I work with colleagues on both sides ofthe aisle to ensure that workers rights,not corporate profits, are protected. I amproud of my record of fighting for yourprotection on the job and the passage oflegislation that enhances your safety atwork.

Unfortunately, many interests work toweaken laws that now protect you atyour job.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statisticsreleased a report which showed that5,734 workers died on the job in 2005.This statistic represented 32 fewerdeaths than in 2004, and was hailed bythe head of the Occupational Safety andHealth Administration as “good news forall workers.” Although the total work-place deaths were down slightly, agreater number of Hispanic, AfricanAmerican, young and agricultural work-ers died on the job than in 2004.

These shocking statistics demonstratea lack of concern for the most vulnerableworkers, including the alarming increase

in on-the-job deaths among people ofcolor. Additionally, this report only coverson-the-job deaths, and does not includethe estimated 50,000 deaths per year fromoccupational diseases and the millions ofworkplace injuries. This increased numberof deaths of Hispanic, African American,young and agricultural workers is due toneglect by the Bush administration.

I sponsored and worked hard to passthe Workplace Safety Act. With help fromour brothers and sisters at CSEA andPEF, we were able to help the public seethat workplace violence is an epidemic.This law requires employers to recognizeand plan for employee protection fromviolence.

With the help of our friends at SEIU1199, the Assembly passed legislationthat will restrict mandatory overtime fornurses in New York. Nurses work in ademanding, stressful environment whereproper decision making is a critical func-tion to the job. Unfortunately, hospitaladministrators use mandatory overtimeto make up for personnel shortages.Mandatory overtime is an unfair laborpractice, placing and additional burdenon nurses, primarily female employees,and erodes health care delivery.

I am also proud to have sponsored the

Pay Equity Act that requires equal pay forequal work and does not allow gender orage to decide the value of your labor. Toprotect the public and employees fromemployers who engage in illegal activi-ties, I sponsored legislation that willexpand protection to the WhistleblowerLaw and encourage honest employees toreport others’ wrongdoing. I will continueto fight for legislation that protectsemployees performing public functionswith the right to organize and do cardchecks. This year, I authored a resolutioncalling on Congress to pass national cardcheck legislation to end the practice ofemployers thwarting employees express-ing their right to organized representa-tion. And with the change of leadership inthe governor’s office, I am sure we will beable to pass my legislation that requiresthe prevailing wage to be paid when pub-lic money is involved in any project.

A recent survey conducted by the AFL-CIO, “Ask a Working Woman,” shows thatan overwhelming majority of women areconcerned with the rising cost of healthcare. I have helped lead the fight tosecure universal health care, and amworking side by side with my majoritycolleagues in the Assembly and GovernorSpitzer, to expand Family Health Plus and

Healthy New York to offer state assistedhealth care coverage. More and moreNew Yorkers are now insured because ofthese programs. Despite this news, thereare still almost 3 million New Yorkerswho don’t have access to affordablehealth care. I will continue my work withmy friends in labor and business to find acomprehensive solution. A healthy work-force means a strong workforce and thatis my goal for all New Yorkers. C

Susan John is a Democrat representing

Monroe County in the Assembly. She is the

chair of her chamber’s Labor Committee.

Health, Safety and Pay Parity All Crucial to the Labor Agenda

ISSUE FORUM: UNIONS/ORGANIZED LABORTo most Americans, Labor Day has become just anotherthree day weekend which happens to be the unofficialend to summer days and white pants. The day, however,has a much deeper and richer history than that, and with

this year’s Labor Day just weeks away, City Hall askedsome of New York’s most important elected leaders onthe issue to share their thoughts on the priorities aheadfor unions and organized labor.

UNIONS and the UNIVERSITYBy Gregory Mantsios

Unions, like public officials, often get a bum rap. Shortcomings and scan-dals get ink and air time – and rightly so, but achievements are rarely fea-tured. How many New Yorkers know, for example, that unions providemillions of dollars in tuition for workers to attend college?

A number of worker education programs – especially designed to meetthe higher education needs of working adult students – have sprouted upwithin The City University of New York over the past 25 years. Two yearsago, CUNY Chancellor Matthew Goldstein and the CUNY Board ofTrustees established the Joseph S. Murphy Institute for Worker Educationand Labor Studies. The Institute, formerly at Queens College and now re-named after a former CUNY Chancellor who was a champion of educa-tion for working people, offers a CUNY-wide, five-borough approach toworker education.

What is particularly unique about this initiative is that it represents a part-nership that includes organized labor, academe, and government.

The eighteen unions that participate in the program provide tuition sup-port for their members, mostly through collectively-bargained benefitagreements, but sometimes right out of their union treasuries. Since theestablishment of the Institute, these unions have expanded their contribu-tions, while others have created new educational benefit funds for theirmembers where previously none existed.

The State Legislature and City Council provide significant supplementalfunding. These funds are used to provide pre-admission services, counsel-ing, test preparation, tutoring, career counseling, and an array of othersupport services to insure academic success.

CUNY– through the Murphy Institute and the School of ProfessionalStudies – offers undergraduate and graduate courses at the Institute’sfacilities in mid-Manhattan and at satellite locations throughout the City.The Murphy Institute also creates new programs in collaboration withCUNY colleges, to serve either cohorts or individual union members.

The result is that thousands of union members earn a college degree andprepare for the changing nature of work in the 21st century. There arespecial programs at the Institute for city and state employees, garmentworkers, school paraprofessionals, operating engineers, librarians, hospitalworkers, and a host of others. As one participant so aptly put it: “I’d be afool not to take advantage of this opportunity to go back to school; Iworked all my life to send my kids to college, now its my turn”.

And it’s not just union members who benefit. The Institute is open toanyone who is interested in pursuing a college degree and its work oftenimpacts on other CUNY units as they adjust their policies and practices toaccommodate the needs of working adults. Colleges working in tandemwith the Murphy Institute, for example, are offering more evening andweekend courses, which helps all workers – union and non-union-- whocan not attend classes during the daytime hours.

There is nothing like this anywhere else in the country: this unique union-university-government partnership should be a model for every munici-pality in the nation.

For more information, contact the Murphy Institute at 212-827-0200 orvisit www.WorkerEd.org

Gregory Mantsios is Director, Murphy Institute for Worker Education andLabor Studies

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BY REP. YVETTE CLARKE

THE DEMOCRATICALLY-LED 110TH

Congress has responded to thenation’s frustration with the

Republican style of business as usual bycommitting to a new direction for America.That commitment includes making oureconomy fairer for all, including the work-ing and middle classes of our society.

As a recipient of many of the benefitsthat Labor fought to provide their mem-bership, I can attest to their importanceto many families—including my own.

There were several pieces of legislationthat were introduced by the 110th Congressthat directly impact Labor. The tone set bythe Democratic leadership, under SpeakerNancy Pelosi and Chairman George Millerof the Education and Labor Committee, isthat working and middle class families arevaluable component of our nation’s eco-nomic stability. The bills listed below pro-vide a snapshot of the issues impactingLabor that bubbled to the top during thefirst half of the legislative year.

Early on in the 110th Congress, one ofthe first pieces of legislation to addressthe labor issues was the Employee FreeChoice Act of 2007. This bill was aimed at

helping working and middle class fami-lies, and making it more difficult foremployers to thwart workers’ efforts toform unions with the purpose of bargain-ing for better wages and benefits. Thebipartisan bill would strengthen penal-ties for employers who violate workers’freedom (harassment, intimidation, andillegal firings) to make their own choicesabout unions. It would allow a neutralparty to determine a first contract if thecompany and employees cannot reach anagreement. The bill will also enable peo-ple to form unions when a majority ofemployees indicate, in writing, they do infact want to unionize. This legislationpassed the House by a vote of 241 to 185.

The Public Safety Employer-EmployeeCooperation Act of 2007 would extend topublic safety officers (firefighters; lawenforcement officers; or emergency med-ical services personnel) the right to bar-gain collectively with their employers. Inaddition to guaranteeing the right of publicsafety officers to form and join a union, thebill’s provisions: (1) guarantee workers theright to bargain collectively over hours,wages and conditions of employment; (2)provide for enforcement of contractsthrough state courts; (3) exclude manage-

ment and supervisory employees (chiefsand assistant chiefs) but retain the right offire lieutenants and captains, as well aspolice sergeants to join a bargaining unit;(4) protect all existing certification, recog-nition, elections, collective bargainingagreements and memoranda of under-standing; and (5) outlaw strikes and pro-vide for dispute resolution mechanisms,such as mediation, fact finding or arbitra-tion to resolve disputes.

It is important to note that most statesalready meet or exceed the basic collec-tive bargaining rights established underthis bill, and would be exempt from its pro-visions, so long as those rights are guaran-teed. States not found to meet the mini-mum standards would have 18 monthsafter the Federal Labor RelationsAuthority (FLRA) determination to adopta new law or amend their existing law. Thebill passed the House with a vote of 314-97.

The Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2007serves to rectify the Supreme Court deci-sion in Ledbetter vs. Goodyear Tire. It clar-ifies that when it comes to discriminatorypay, the protections of Title VII of the CivilRights Act, the Age Discrimination inEmployment Act (ADEA), the Americanswith Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation

Act, extends to every paycheck that resultsfrom discriminatory pay decisions andpractices. The bill also clarifies that anyonealleging discriminatory pay can recover upto two years of back pay regardless ofwhether the back pay accrued outside thestatute of limitations for filing the charge.

On the horizon are the RESPECT (Re-Empowerment of Skilled and ProfessionalEmployees and ConstructionTradeworkers) Act and the Pension BenefitGuaranty Corporation Pilots EquitableTreatment Act. Although neither bill hasreached the House floor, both are anticipat-ed to spearhead robust debates. C

Yvette Clarke is a Democrat repre-

senting parts of Brooklyn in the House.

She is a member of the Education and

Labor Committee.

A Snapshot of the 110th Congress and LaborISSUE FORUM: UNIONS/ORGANIZED LABOR

Margie Brumfield, Rochester Association of Paraprofessionals

NYSUT represents more than 585,000 professionals

in education and health care who are committed to

the principles of unionism and social justice, and

who are leading the way in creating a better

educated, healthier New York.

“I believe safe work andfair wages are civil rights.My union is NYSUT.”

Affiliated with AFT • NEA • AFL-CIO

Richard C. Iannuzzi, President

For advertising information, please contact Jim Katocin

at 212.284.9714 or [email protected]

Issue Forum for September:

EDUCATION

City Hall reaches every elected official in NY City and all of NY State Legislature.Utilize it to enhance and reinforce your

lobbying and advocacy campaigns.

INFLUENCE — EDUCATE — PERSUADEReach New York’s Influential Leaders

Upcoming Issue Forums:

October Health Care &Hospitals

November Banking & Finance

December Construction

The forum will feature columns by:State Senator Stephen Saland— Chair of the Senate Education Committee

Assembly Member Cathy Nolan— Chair of the Assembly Education Committee

City Council Member Charles Barron — Chair of the Council’s Higher Education

Committee

As the new school year

begins City Hall will ask

the experts to discuss

the state of New York’s

classrooms and how to

improve them, consider-

ing funding, curriculum

and other major concerns

for students of all ages across New York City and

State, as well as their parents and teachers.

Issue Date is September 10 • Advertising Deadline is September 6


BY COUNCIL MEMBER JOSEPH ADDABBO

AS NEW YORK CITY’S ECONO-MY continues to grow, withdevelopment cropping up in

every corner of our city and unemploy-ment rates steadily decreasing, it wouldbe an easy mistake to ignore the ongoingconcerns of our city’s workforce. It is, infact, incumbent upon the city’s electedofficials and community leaders to stopnow and think about the future of ourworkforce, and the types of jobs we arecreating.

Our city government has laudablydetermined that a livable wage is both apriority for our workforce and a respon-sibility we have to New York City work-ers. It does not end there. Shouldn’t weplace that same priority on guaranteeingworkers a minimum number of paid sickdays; ensuring that the work place is safeand free of hazards; and making sure thatour workers are continually and appro-priately trained for the jobs of tomor-row?

Millions of New Yorkers cannotafford to take time off from work whenill. In fact, more than half of our work-ers are denied even a single paid sickday. This results in increased acute ill-nesses for workers who are not able torecuperate from minor illnesses. Anunhealthy workforce affects the healthof the public with whom they interact,and also is less productive.

Federal law does not provide paidsick days, but states and cities have thelegal authority to require paid days off.San Francisco is currently the only cityto do so. There is a growing movementin New York to pass legislation whichwould mandate a minimum number ofpaid sick days for every worker. This isclearly an issue whose time has come,and I believe it would be a worthy dis-cussion.

On another point, the last decade hasseen an easing of regulations that allowthe self-certification by developers inall facets of construction work. In thatsame time period, the building tradesunions’ share of construction work hasdecreased drastically. The increase inself-certification and the increase innon-union construction have corre-sponded in the same time period with ageneral perception of an increase inworker injuries. In fact, in 2005, we had88 work-related fatalities in our city. Tome, that number is astounding. Nearly100 years after the Triangle Shirtwaistfactory fire, which launched the workersafety movement in this country, westill have preventable deaths in our city.Is there a direct correlation between a

unionized workforce and the safety ofour workers? The answer is undeniablyyes.

Finally, while job placements in thecity have increased at commendablerates, federal funding for workforcedevelopment and training hasdecreased by almost 40 percent in thelast seven years. Strong workforcedevelopment programs are necessary inorder to make sure that our youth andimmigrant communities are given thetools they need to become qualifiedtrained workers. Over the last decade,labor organizations throughout our cityhave invested in community-basedtraining programs which aggressivelyoutreach to neighborhoods throughoutour city. Language instruction andremedial education classes havebecome standard for many of the train-ing and apprenticeship programs thatthese unions run. Our city’s ability toclose the gap between the prior failuresin our public education system and thejobs of tomorrow is critical in our abili-ty to meet the needs of our economy,job opportunities and qualified workersin the years ahead.

We are witnessing an economicexpansion unlike any this city has seen inrecent times. This invariably creates jobsat a favorable rate, but it is importantthat we remain focused on exactly whatkinds of jobs we are creating. Our work-ers need and deserve a healthy and safework environment, and we have aresponsibility to educate and train ourworkers for the jobs of tomorrow. C

Joseph Addabbo is a Democrat repre-

senting parts of Queens on the City

Council. He is the chair of Council’s

Civil Service and Labor Committee.

On Labor Initiatives, New YorkCity Should Lead the Way

UNIONS/ORGANIZED LABORISSUE FORUM: United Brotherhood Of Carpenters and Joiners

OF AMERICA505 EIGHTH AVENUE

NEW YORK, N.Y. 10018 PHONE: (212) 643-1070

FAX: (212) 643-2974 INSTITUTED AUGUST 12, 1881

ALWAYS DEMAND THE LABEL

John E. Greaney . . . . . . . . . . . . . .President/Business ManagerMartin Devereaux . . . . . . . . . . . . .Vice President & Business Rep.Maurice R. Leary . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Recording Secy. & D.C. Rep.Thomas J. McKeon . . . . . . . . . . . . .Financial Secy. & Business Rep.Ed Mc Williams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Treasurer & D.C. Rep.Joseph Firth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Trustee & Business Rep.Brian Hayes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Trustee & Business Rep.Chris Grogan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .TrusteeMichael K. Harrington . . . . . . . . . .WardenMichael Murphy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Conductor & D.C. Rep.Maurice McGrath . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Business RepresentativeEdward Maudsley . . . . . . . . . . . . .Business RepresentativeVincent Taddeo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Business RepresentativeJohn Daly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Business Representative

United Brotherhood of Carpenters & Joiners of America Compliments of….the officers and members of carpenters local union # 608

Union LaborBuilt Right the First Time

THOMAS J. McKEONFinancial Secretary

JOHN E. GREANEYPresident

and Business ManagerLOCAL UNION

No. 608

Who will be this year's Rising Stars?

Who will make the list again? Who will be newthis year? Your votes will decide.

City Hall is looking for the top 35 under 40elected officials, staffers, lobbyists, consultantsand others in and around government from allover New York.

Nominate your choices, with an explanationand brief description of the person by emailingus at [email protected].

Nominations must be received by September 4th.


BY DAN RIVOLI

TEPHEN HARRISON FOUND THE ABSENCE OF

Brooklyn media at his press conference ironic.Back in July, Harrison and Mark Zink

gathered in Midland Beach, Staten Island,to announce SIBRO, a new civic associationgeared to bring people from Staten Island (SI)and Brooklyn (BRO) together to find commonsolutions to local issues.

“We’re finally getting together to unitepeople,” said Zink, a Staten Island educator.

The boroughs share four politicians—allof whom live in Staten Island—at the city,state and federal level.

Harrison, a Brooklyn resident, was theDemocratic candidate for the congression-al seat which represents Staten Island andparts of southwest Brooklyn in 2006—and, as of August 9, a candidate again for2008.

Harrison recalled that over thecourse of the 2006 race, “the split per-sonality of the district became so obvi-ous.”

Such was the case, Harrison said,with the proposed NASCAR race-track in Staten Island last year.Despite the added congestion onthe Brooklyn side of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge the racetrack wasexpected to cause, Staten Island politi-cians and community groups saw theissue as their own and led the successfulcharge to block construction.

Harrison contends that victory wouldhave come even sooner had theCongressional district’s 200,000Brooklyn residents joined the effort.

“We can add that clout,” Harrisonsaid.

James Oddo, the RepublicanCouncil leader whose district ismostly comprised of Staten Islandbut includes a piece of southwestBrooklyn, agreed that there is aproblem which needs to besolved.

“It’s the Narrows andthe bridge,” he said. “That’swhere the communicationsbreakdown happens. We cross it everyday, but itseems to be the great divide.”

Recalling a kidnapping prevention seminar he heldfor parents and children which had a much largerturnout from Brooklynites than Staten Islanders, he saidhe would welcome the help and involvement fromBrooklyn.

“Sometimes I wish I could take 15 ounces of theBrooklyn side and inject it into the Staten Island popu-lation,” he said. “The level of participation on theBrooklyn side is amazing.”

State Sen. Diane Savino (D-Staten Island/Brooklyn)urged that the help be reciprocated by Staten Islandleaders, who she said are not as involved as they shouldbe in dealing with Brooklyn’s traffic problems.

When the Gowanus Project Stakeholders Group held

a workshop last year on the future of southwestBrooklyn’s Gowanus Expressway, Savino was surprisedthat she was the only Staten Island resident in the room.Much of the traffic comes from Staten Island.

Savino added that there is a perception that the peo-ple in one borough cannot relate to the other.

“I think in the past, people have tried to divide thetwo boroughs with a suburban/urban agenda,” she said.

Seymour Lachman, a Bensonhurst resident who rep-resented the same State Senate district for part of histime in office, agreed.

“There is a lack of communication between the partsof Brooklyn and Staten Island,” he said, arguing that res-idents do not realize “a concern of one community is a

concern of all communities.”Janele Hyer-Spencer (D-Staten Island/Brooklyn) said

she felt this tension politically while campaigning inBay Ridge during her successful Assembly race lastyear.

“They feel like the second-class part of their dis-trict,” she said. “I can identify with that. StatenIsland always felt like a second-class borough.”

When she spent significant time campaigning inBrooklyn, her opponent accused her of having ananti-Staten Island bias. When the votes werecounted, though, she lost in the Staten Island partof the district by 335 votes. Her 1,082 vote-marginin the Brooklyn portion of the district made upthe difference, sending her to Albany.

With SIBRO, Harrison and Zink hope to getpast all these sorts of divisions. In September,they will invite input from anyone in StatenIsland and Southwest Brooklyn about whatissue the group will study first. Zink expectstransportation to be high on the list of priori-ties, as it is a pressing issue for both boroughs.In light of the storm that tore through the citylast week, Harrison wants to help the Brooklynand Staten Island victims.

To remain impartial, the civic association willalways be headed by two people, one from

Staten Island and theother from Brooklyn.Harrison has not

decided to become theBrooklyn president of

the association.Some of the

projects Harrisonwants to see SIBROlook at were left-overs from hisCongressional cam-paign. This includesstudying the contro-

versial two-way bridgetoll, which he support-

ed, unlike the majority ofStaten Island politicians

from both parties.However, he contends that SIBRO

will stay civic-minded and non-partisan, evenas he mounts a rematch against Rep.Vito Fossella (R-StatenIsland/Brooklyn).

Harrison acknowledges that hisinvolvement in SIBRO will look politi-

cal, but he plans to remain involved.“They’ll criticize you if you do nothing. They’ll criti-

cize you if you do something,” he said. “I’d rather dosomething.”

Harrison received 43 percent of the vote last year, theclosest any candidate has come in a race against the 10-year incumbent.

For Fossella’s part, when interviewed, he said he isnot familiar with SIBRO, but offered words of encour-agement when told of its mission.

“Frankly,” he said, “I applaud anyone who wants tostep up and highlight the good things in the communityto make it better.” C

[email protected]

Trying to Narrow the NarrowsHarrison’s and Zink’s SIBRO looks to bridge issues that local electeds say needlessly divide their districts

Rep. Vito Fossella, City Council Member James Oddo, StateSen. Diane Savino and Assembly Member Janele Hyer-Spencerall have to deal with districts which cross boroughs, but com-mon solutions to problems which do not.

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The Caped LegislatorBrian K. Vaughan finds a hero in the real Gotham City with Mayor Mitchell Hundred

BY DAN RIVOLI

IN THE MAYORAL ELECTION OF

2001, Michael Bloomberg’s fortunewas no match for Mitchell Hundred,

the world’s first and only superhero, whostopped the second plane from crashinginto the World Trade Center on Sept. 11.

That is, in the world of Ex Machina,where comic book writer Brian K.Vaughan’s Hundred is not just the inde-pendent, pragmatic and socially liberalmayor of New York City, but also theGreat Machine, imbued with the powerto communicate with and control everytype of machine, from toasters to spaceshuttles.

To deflect any fear of election fraud,Vaughan has Hundred quarantined onElection Day, lest he use hispowers on the city’s votingmachines to do more than justpunch a few hanging chads.

This was necessary, Vaughansaid, not only to establish credi-bility in the minds of the fiction-al New York’s citizens, but in hisactual readers as well.

In all his interviews, Vaughansaid, the topic of the GreatMachine’s potential sway overvoting machines inevitably aris-es.

“Every journalist I talkedwith,” he said, “it’s the firstquestion they ask.”

The debates in the chambersof Mayor Hundred’s City Hallare not about congestion pric-ing, but legalizing gay marriageand funding controversial art atthe Brooklyn Museum.However, like in Bloomberg’sNew York City, there is a smok-ing ban.

The planned 50-issue serieschronicles the life of MitchellHundred through his first may-oral term.

Vaughn got the idea forEx Machina followingthe Sept. 11 attacks,which he and his girl-friend watched fromthe rooftop of theirBrooklyn apartment. Inthe aftermath, Vaughanfelt people were look-ing for heroes in theirpoliticians.

Vaughan chose amayor because he seesthem as “the beat cops of the politicalworld,” and the providers of basic publicservices. Additionally, he liked the ideathat mayors are less likely partisan ideo-logues, and finds relevance in former

New York City Mayor FiorelloLaGuardia’s famous maxim, “There is noDemocratic or Republican way of clean-ing the streets.”

Plus, Hundred’s political independ-ence often enables more colorful story-telling.

“I like that there’s a degree of unpre-dictability,” Vaughan said.

A 31-year-old native of Cleveland,Ohio, Vaughan chose to set his story in anactual place rather than a Gotham City orMetropolis not just because the TradeCenter’s destruction was the spark of theidea, but also because of his love of thecity. He first glimpsed the distinctiveurban landscape in the panels of hisfavorite Marvel comics as a child.Eventually, in 1994, he enrolled in New

York University’s film school.“The story was born out of New York

City,” he said.Ten years later and still living in the

city, he published the first issue of Ex

Machina in 2004. He has since moved toCalifornia to write for ABC’s Lost, butwhile simultaneously finishing the final21 issues, he keeps up-to-date with citynews and politics by reading the majordailies, NY1 and City Hall. He also readsbiographies of past mayors.

Mitchell Hundred is based more onlegendary mayors like the practicalLaGuardia, the handsome John Lindsayand the forceful Rudolph Giuliani—threemayors Vaughan considers the mostinteresting in city history.

“Little bits of their DNA were com-bined in Mitchell,” he said. “Like a vul-ture, I’m just trying to pick at the bonesof history.”

While the comic pays homage to thepast, there are parallels toBloomberg, who recently switchedhis party status to Unaffiliated.

Vaughan said he sensed some-thing in the zeitgeist when he cre-ated Hundred, an Independent.

His first deputy mayor is a for-mer Democratic City CouncilMember from Brooklyn. His chiefof police is introduced at a pressconference as a “lifelongRepublican.”

Hundred sees partisan ideologyand party machines as a barrier toreform.

Despite Vaughan’s frustrationwith the two-party system,Hundred is not a mouthpiece forhis political beliefs.

“I probably wouldn’t have votedfor him,” Vaughan said.

And sometimes he is not sure ofhis own views on topics, even ashe explores their impact on theHundred administration and thefictional New York City, as was thecase when he dived into the debateabout school vouchers.

“There are definitely times Iwrite about something, I’m notsure where I stand,” he said.

The comic’s political content, evenwith its healthy dose of blood, explosionsand nudity, made Ex Machina a toughpitch to Wildstorm Productions, a subdi-

vision of DC Comics.A critical success, the comic won the

2005 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awardfor Best New Series. And it has sold well,too: New Line Cinema is planning a filmbased on the series. Last month, Vaughanturned in the first draft of the script.Neither a production schedule nor arelease date has yet been set.

Already the series has caught the eyeof one actual politician, AssemblyMember Brian Kavanagh (D-Manhattan),who previously worked as an aide in theCity Council and for two mayoral admin-istrations.

Kavanagh was given the book by amutual friend of his and Vaughan’s. Heemailed Vaughan to tell how much heenjoyed the piece, and joked that therecould be a future issue with a cameoappearance of a character loosely basedon him.

“I don’t generally read comic books,”Kavanagh said, “but I’m a sucker for any-thing involving civic affairs, especiallyNew York-related.”

Kavanagh is not the only one. Theseries has a lot for superhero fans, but

much for politiciansand policy wonks, aswell, with factoidsand references topeople like BernardGoetz or the city’syoungest mayor,John Purroy Mitchel,sprinkled throughoutthe panels.

“It’s the balancebetween wanting to

sound authentic and telling a compellingstory,” he said, calling Ex Machina the“brand of science fiction where it’s just oneDNA strand removed from our own.” C

[email protected]

Brian K. Vaughan says his comicwas “a response to 9/11.”

“People blame me for Bush in his flight suit or Arnoldgetting elected governor,” Mitchell Hundred says in thefirst issue of Ex Machina , which takes place in a fictional

universe where he is both the world’s only superheroand New York City’s mayor. “But the truth is… those

things would have happened with or without me.”


Spitzer Commission Studies Local Government Reform, Faces OppositionStan Lundine leads commission untangling system some say is a relic of days past

BY JOHN R.D. CELOCK

ACOMMISSION FORMED BY GOV.Eliot Spitzer (D) to study localgovernment reform in the state

could run into opposition from local offi-cials in its attempt to update a systemwhich has been described as ideal for thehorse and buggy age.

The commission, chaired by for-mer Lt. Gov. Stan Lundine (D), isthe latest in a century-old proces-sion of groups studying local gov-ernment reform in the state.

Spitzer’s office swears this onewill be able to get something done.

Other than New York City, thestate has 61 incorporated cities,from Buffalo, with 292,000 resi-dents, to Sherrill, with 3,147 resi-dents. All the cities are similar ingovernment structure and do not havevillages in their limits. The state’s 811towns encompass rural and suburbanareas, and there are 356 villages, all locat-

ed within one, or in some cases two,towns. More than 10,000 special districtsexist statewide to handle such servicesas fire protection, sewers and soil con-servation, in addition to school districts,which are organized separately.

All of these entities have taxingauthority. Many overlap the same resi-dents.

Lundine said the commission, which isholding several public hearings statewide,is looking at a variety of plans to addressthe abundance of government in the state.

These could include merging villages withtowns, establishing shared services andjoining services with the county.

Lundine noted that whatever the com-mission recommends would take intoaccount the suburban and rural areascovered by the local governments.

“I doubt we can make a sweeping rec-ommendation that all villages be elimi-

nated,” Lundine said. “As a practical mat-ter, that would not be achieved.”

Villages are the only levels of govern-ment which can be formed and dissolvedby the electorate. In recent years, sever-al villages have sought to dissolve, whileseveral new ones have been created onLong Island and in Rockland County.

According to Gerald Benjamin, deanof arts of sciences at SUNY New Paltzand a commission member, in recentyears, villages have been created in orderto rest land use authority with a smallergroup, and not with the larger town.

Long Island officials have been trum-peting the need for villages, arguing thattowns cannot effectively handle govern-ment services. These officials contendthat the burden of providing these serv-ices is too large for towns to handle, sovillages are necessary.

The Town of Hempstead, in NassauCounty, has 22 villages. With over755,000 residents, Hempstead is largerthan every incorporated city except NewYork City.

Still, defenders of villages remainadamant.

“There is no form of government thatis more accessible than village govern-ment,” said Gary Vegliante, mayor ofWest Hampton Dunes in Suffolk County.“There is not one service that is not bet-ter administered by villages.”

Upstate officials, looking at the oppo-site, are empowering the counties. ErieCounty Executive Joel Giambra (R) hasbeen advocating for regionalized govern-ment for more than a decade, dating tohis days as Buffalo comptroller. Giambrahas proposed that the county assume alllocal functions or that it merge with theCity of Buffalo.

Giambra’s plan has met with strongresistance from local officials.

On a statewide level, Giambra is pro-posing that the state offer disincentivesas a way to force local governments tomerge, a plan Lundine and Spitzer’s

office said is a possibility, along withfinancial incentives.

He noted that in the American Southand in Ireland there remain strong coun-ty government models, with no townlevel governments.

Niagara County Legislator KyleAndrews (D) believes that higher propertytaxes have hindered upstate economicdevelopment efforts, as companies seekto relocate to lower taxing areas. He isproposing merging towns and villageswith the county, saying that regional gov-ernment would work easier for ruralareas, like his Lake Ontario-based district.

“Look at the models used in manystates down south. The model that ismost successful is county government,”Andrews said. “So many of our servicesare structured on a county level, I don’tthink going down would be probable.”

To address opposition to consolida-tion from local interests, Andrews pro-posed that the commission aim for a goalof 10 percent consolidation of villages tostart. he suggested using retirementincentives to combine workforces in rderto eliminate union opposition.

Local government reform has supportin the Legislature. Assembly Member SamHoyt (D-Buffalo) and Sen. Elizabeth Little(R-Hamilton/Essex/Franklin/Clinton), thetwo chairs of the local government com-mittees, serve on the commission.

Both have endorsed looking at newways of governance, with Little favoringshared services and Hoyt looking at amore drastic approach of municipalities.

Lloyd Constantine, Spitzer’s point manon local government, said that in additionto the commission, an inter-agency grouphas been meeting weekly to discuss theissues. Currently, the group is reviewingproposals from local government acrossthe state relating to shared services andpossible municipal mergers. He said thatwithin a year, the administration hopes tohave solid plans on the table with severalproposals already implemented.

The current system of overlappinggovernments has a long and storied histo-ry behind it, though.

George Clinton may have been thestate’s first postcolonial governor and thenation’s fourth vice president, but toUlster County residents he was betterknown as the county clerk for 59 years, aperiod that overlapped his years instatewide and national office. Clintonused the money he made from filing feesas County Clerk to finance his state andnational campaigns.

Nonetheless, Constantine said,change is in the air.

“The ultimate goal,” he said, “is toreduce the number of local governmentsand taxing districts.” C

[email protected]


[email protected].

The commission, chaired by former Lt.Gov. Stan Lundine (D), is the latest in acentury-old procession of groups study-

ing local government reform in the state.Spitzer’s office swears this one will be

able to get something done.

The staff at Gray’s Papaya, the famous Upper West Side hot dogmecca, has been known for weighing in on politics, and policy, withits perennial two hot dog and drink “Recession Special” and signslauding former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani’s courtesy campaign. ButMayor Michael Bloomberg is their choice for the presidential elec-tion—and they are willing to put a wager on it: if he wins, theypromise “free hot dogs on inauguration day.”

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Election Forecast 2008: Meal Ticket

and then you go on hard to the next.”

The Saratoga Racetrack is the State Senate majorityleader’s home away from home, a highlight of his dis-trict, a favorite destination for him every chance he

gets over the summer. Two days after Attorney GeneralAndrew Cuomo’s (D) office released its Troopergatereport, Bruno won big at the track. Since then, he said,he is almost even.

Outside the track, Bruno is doing a little better.Gov. Eliot Spitzer (D) has been buffeted by the reper-

cussions and recriminations since the Cuomo reportfound that some aides acted inappropriately, though notillegally, in their efforts to discredit Bruno by havingtroopers document his travel in state aircraft and then

leak the records to reporters.“I keep hearing that it’s Nixon-esque. And that’s sad,

and it’s tragic, but it is,” Bruno said. “In New York State,we’ve never had anything like this in generations, in any-one’s memory.”

The hard-charging sheriff of Wall Street has been strug-gling to recover—the man who compared New York to RipVan Winkle on inauguration day going to the ChautauquaInstitution on August 7, to quote Reinhold Niebuhr.Humility and vigilance, he preached, are the only way tokeep righteousness from turning into self-righteousness.

The next day, Spitzer came to Manhattan for a pressconference on bridge stability and that morning’s sub-way system failures. He discussed engineering, clearingdrainage pipes and bridge safety, keeping himself tight-ly focused away from the scandal and his mea culpa atChautauqua.

The questions stayed on topic. Second from the last,he answered a question about MTA communication withriders, then allowed a follow-up.

“On the topic of communication, are you going torelease the emails of your staff?” asked the reporter.

“The lawyers are dealing with that,” Spitzer saidquickly, quietly. “I’m trying to stick to my day job.”

He called on the next reporter, eager to get past thequestion. He wanted to move on.

Bruno, in a far-ranging discussion between buglecalls at the racetrack that sunny Sunday, August 5, didnot.

The problem, Bruno said, is deep and important, andhas shaken his faith in Spitzer’s capacity to lead the state.He holds up a tightly crossed index and middle finger toshow how well he got along with then-Attorney GeneralSpitzer, but slams Spitzer’s record in that office as well.

“He buried people in the press. That’s his M.O. That’swhat he’s done with me,” Bruno said.

That, Bruno believes, is no way for a politician to act.Spitzer and his aides point to their accomplishmentspassing “an historic agenda” during his seven months inoffice so far, including the increased education funding,

the reforms of the health care system and worker’s com-pensation laws, and the property tax relief targeted atmiddle-income homeowners.

Bruno is unimpressed. To him, Spitzer has failed.“He doesn’t appear to have the temperament to gov-

ern, to negotiate in good faith, to compromise,” Brunosaid. Referring to Spitzer’s now infamous steamroller headded, “most people would be kidding. He meant it.”

Bruno has questioned whether Spitzer belongs in pol-itics, and he has come to a conclusion.

“No,” he said. “I don’t think he does. He probablywould have been great in real estate, where some peoplehandle themselves differently than others. But real estate,you know, you’re a hard driver, you drive a hard bargainfor some people. That’s probably where he belongs.”

Bruno was a champion boxer while stationed in Koreain 1954. Prod him gently about his two broken noses,and he will demonstrate how little cartilage he has

by pressing the spot where his reading glasses sit. Hehas not sparred for several years—and only then, todemonstrate that his 43 external radiation treatmentsfor prostate cancer had not slowed him—but he still


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Bruno thinks allSpitzer’s top aides

should be putunder oath, but

before that, fired.“He wants to bethe chief execu-

tive, and he oughtto deliver a mes-sage. In fact, he

ought to just startover, and every-

one that’s aroundhim should begone,” he said,

arguing thatBaum and Doppare just some of

thepeople who should

lose their jobs.

works a speed bag five days per week. He still weighswithin the light heavyweight 171-176 pound range, andregularly encourages people to punch him in the wall ofmuscle that is his gut.

He says his poor upbringing is extremely central tohow he conceives of himself and his politics.

“I’ve never, ever forgotten where I come from,” hesays, explaining that his views on health, tax and educa-tion legislation are still defined by his past.

He also carries with him the scars of that back-ground.

“We were discriminated against because we were thepoorest people in town, immigrants, called every namein the book. Irish were at one end, we were at the other.And it was kid’s stuff then, but it was very hurtful. InCatholic school, they discriminated. If you were from awealthy family, you got treated differently than from apoor family, and that’s kind of sad.”

Bruno built himself up, eventually making millionswith the sale of his telecommunications business.Throughout, he modeled his mentality on that of hisimmigrant father who held three jobs. Very much enam-ored of his own up-by-the-bootstraps story, Brunoseems to think of and portray himself as a man holdingonto values from an age gone by. He basks in the sunand attention from old friends in his box at the SaratogaRacetrack, kicking back in his green jacket and brighttie with a lemonade, musing about the horses in Augustand the value he puts on a handshake.

“I say it out loud ’cause it’s the truth: I was a very aver-age student. I had a lot of problems getting through highschool, because I was very unhappy and working a lot.”

What he has always had, he believes, is the blessingof “a great intuition, a sixth sense.” He believes he cansize a person up, and almost always be right.

“Nobody’s perfect. You make mistakes, and I’ve mademistakes with some people,” he said. “I made a mistakewith Eliot Spitzer.”

After 12 and a half years as majority leader—32 yearsin office and another decade working in politics beforethat—Bruno still believes people misunderstand him.He insists he is not a villain or an obstructionist. On thecontrary, he says, he does the job out of his own passionfor New Yorkers, and believes that things move slowlymostly because the state is so complicated. If he werenot so committed, he says, he would leave: He madeenough money in business, despite his impoverishedchildhood playing with crates in the rail yard down thestreet from his one-toilet Glen Falls house. He simplywanted less taxes and government regulation, and wona primary and general election arguing that he was thebest man to get the job done.

“Contrary to the press, it has been expensive for meto be in this business,” he insisted. “There are very fewpeople in leadership positions that have a lot less networth than they had 10, 12 years ago.”

He has many critics, including almost every Democratin the state, and nearly all the newspaper editorial boardsand good government groups. Opponents charge that heis a special interest crony out to protect his dwindlingRepublican majority at all costs—a self-serving friend ofbig business and irresponsible tax cuts, a calcified embod-iment of all that has for so long been so wrong in Albany.

Last November, when overwhelming margins putDemocrats in control of every statewide office whileother races added two seats to the ever-growingAssembly majority and picked off a long time StateSenate target in Westchester, the Democrats were glee-ful. Spitzer the Savior was riding into Albany. Day one,if not everything changed, then at least everything mightstart to change. The status quo was going, and theRepublican State Senate majority along with it.

Add to that the FBI investigation of government con-tracts awarded to an associate, and Bruno’s days, manybelieved, were numbered.

Spitzer poached State Sen. Michael Balboni (R) to behis homeland security secretary, then helped push CraigJohnson (D-Nassau) to victory in the subsequent specialelection in February. Though overtures to several otherSenate Republicans ultimately fell flat, Spitzer persisted.

Six months ago, six weeks ago, stories about Brunohad him on the ropes. He absorbed the hits. Like aboxer, he waited to strike.

Now he is in an odd and unlikely place: After years ofbeing tarred and vilified, Bruno is the victim, the sympa-thetic soul. On August 6, his situation was the subject ofa human-interest piece run nationally on the Today show.

Bruno said he never expected this level of attention

to the situation.“I was kind of amazed and surprised,” he said, before

carefully pivoting into criticism. “But on reflection itmakes sense. This is an extremely serious allegation.”

Spitzer has never been known for tolerating his politi-cal enemies, and would probably have gone after theSenate Republicans even had that not been one of

David Paterson’s preconditions for becoming his lieu-tenant governor running mate last year.

Bruno and Spitzer were allies in the selectionprocess for the new comptroller, with Bruno leading hisconference to back a recommendation of the independ-

ent screening panel over Thomas DiNapoli (D). Theyfinished the budget on time and negotiated deals onbudget reform, civil confinement and worker’s compen-sation.

Bruno cheered these deals. After all, as he seesthings, they were simply executing his conference’sagenda, which had for years been blocked by AssemblySpeaker Sheldon Silver (D).

“Shelly Silver folded up,” he said. “When he bragsabout what he got done, what he did was roll Shelly toget done in the Assembly what we prioritized.”

Nonetheless, after more than 12 years serving withSilver, who has been speaker for the entire time he has

been majority leader, Bruno saidhe gave Spitzer “a lot of credit”for succeeding.

The budget done, Albanyleaders began determiningwhich issues would be forcedinto the familiar game of last-minute compromises. Silverwanted pay raises for legisla-tors. Spitzer refused. Bruno—and later, Spitzer—backed NewYork City Mayor MichaelBloomberg’s (Unaff.) congestionpricing proposal. Silver refused.Bruno wanted property tax cutsfor seniors. Spitzer refused.Spitzer wanted campaignfinance reforms. Bruno refused.

Bruno looked back fondly onthe days when he and the speak-er presented a united front fromthe Legislature in negotiatingwith Pataki, and attacked Spitzerfor trying to break that bond.

“What he has done in the pastis try and separate us. He goesand meets with Shelly, he meetswith me, tries to put us togetherafter the fact,” he said. “It’salmost like divide and conquer,which is a tactic that people try touse. Pataki tried to use it.”

Spitzer hosted public leadersmeetings, arguing that they couldsubstitute for the closed-doornegotiations that have come todefine Albany. Bruno attended,but he said he did so only as ameasure of good faith. The meet-ings, he said, were little more than

posturing for the cameras.“What was accomplished at all those leaders

meetings?” Bruno now wonders. “He was in charge, ‘it’smy room, my rules,’ his table, his gavel. You raise yourhand to speak. It’s nonsense.”

Not that he is so eager to meet with Spitzer in private,either. In the heat of their sparring, Bruno announcedthat he would no longer be alone in a room with Spitzer,accusing the governor of consistently misrepresentingtheir conversations.

“He has kind of two sets of rules: one for himself andone for everybody else,” Bruno said. “He has an arro-gance about him that’s very unbecoming. He tells youone thing constantly and then does another. Constantly.And it isn’t just with me.”

As the clock ticked on the legislative session, Spitzerstepped up the rhetoric. He wanted the new donation

restrictions to be a signature achievement, and he clear-ly was not happy to find Bruno standing in the way.

He called Bruno an obstructionist. He called him afunctionary of dysfunction. In at least one conversationwith a state senator, he called Bruno senile.

Bruno fired back, repeatedly deriding Spitzer as arich kid throwing a tantrum, a man with a history of ver-bal abuse and threats of physical violence.

And then came Troopergate.As soon as the attorney general’s office released its

report on Spitzer’s staff, the governor held a press con-ference to announce he was indefinitely suspendingcommunications director Darren Dopp and reassigningWilliam Howard, who had overseen the state police. Afurther reshuffling of staff followed.

That morning, Spitzer called Bruno to apologize.Bruno accepted, but with some skepticism that he hadmade the call just to be able to tell reporters that he did.

“I hope it was sincere. I accepted it, and I accept it assincere,” he said, then paused. “You know what? Sayingsorry is a nice thing to do, but it doesn’t get you goodgovernment, doesn’t get you results.”

When he reflects on his perseverance, Bruno castshimself in stately terms, the reluctant hero calledupon to slay the dragon.

“I’m hearing from members who won’t go public,who are basically saying ‘it’s about time someone stoodup to him.’ And these are Democrats,” he claimed. “It’sabout time someone stood up to this guy who thinkstruly that he is going to crush anyone in his path. That’swhat he believes. Now what kind of mentality is that fora key person in government, that ‘I’ll crush you?’”

State Sen. Liz Krueger (D-Manhattan), an avowedpolitical adversary of Bruno, said the story was lessabout heroics and more about media portrayal.

“I see it more as expectations were so high for thegovernor, with such a strong expectation created byEliot Spitzer that he was the guy who was coming in todo all the right things and to take on the problems andclean up Albany,” she said. “Expectations are so low forwhat the ethical standards of Joe Bruno’s team are thateven being caught doing something that wasn’t illegalmakes them look good.”

That, Krueger believes, explains the reverberationsof Troopergate so far.

“Eliot wears the white outfit. Joe wears the blackoutfit. So when Eliot got a little dirt on his outfit, it’s abigger deal,” she said.

Krueger called the recovery classic Bruno.“His charming and gracious skills can allow him to

appear to have none of these problems, or none of theserious—from my perspective—policy problems thatpeople should be holding him accountable for,” she said.“And those are skills.”

The grey mane, the flashing teeth, the manicuredhandshakes, the arms around the shoulders—Bruno


n his speech at the Chautauqua Institution August 7, Gov. Eliot Spitzer (D) spoke of the need for humility in gov-ernment. This was a lesson, he said, that he and his staff have had to quickly learn as the fallout from thealleged misuse of state troopers continues.

“We have learned an important lesson,” he said. “And in the end, our fight for change will be strongerfor it.”

Many Democrats hope he proves to be right. But, they say, he will only be able to move forward if hechanges his approach to governing. Albany is a collegial place, they say, and he needs to build andrebuild bridges if he hopes to get past the situation and State Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno’s (R-Rensselaer) attempts to keep him entangled.

Assembly Member Richard Brodsky (D-Westchester) said that if nothing else, the scandal’s aftermath hasrevealed the deeply troubled state of Spitzer’s relationship with others in Albany, even within his own party.

“It is now clear that he has not been able to call upon any reservoir of good will with respect to his col-leagues in government,” Brodsky said. “The administration’s use of intense personal criticism has notworked.”

But though Brodsky said he was wary of Spitzer’s attempts to invoke executive privilege,which he called “a legal doctrine that doesn’t much exist in New York law,” he urged restraint asthe minor buzz about impeachment proceedings floats around Albany.

“There’s no reason to proceed to those legal judgments until these investigations are com-pleted,” he said, “and there’s nothing on the public record to proceed to that place.”

If he is to succeed as governor, colleagues and observers agree, Spitzer will have to be sin-cere and steadfast in his efforts to modify his approach.

Former Sen. Alfonse D’Amato (R), who has developed ties to both Bruno and Spitzer and madean effort to reconcile them, said he believed Spitzer has been bruised, but could recover if hemodifies his behavior.

“They’ll be looking at him very closely, they’ll be watching to see does he exhibit the kind ofhumility that he’s talked about, or is he just going to exercise an unrestrained kind of forward-ness,” D’Amato said. “They’ll be looking to see ‘has he changed his manner, or is he using the bul-lying approach?’”

Brooke Masters, author of the Spitzer biography Spoiling for a Fight, said she sees a man whoseems to be making the effort.

“He’s talking in a completely different tone than he was three months ago,” she said. “There’sbeen a marked change in tone, a sort of acceptance that much as he may like his way of doing busi-ness—much as he prefers it—that it’s not going to work.”

Whether he will be able to hold to the change long-term is another question, Masters said.“I’m not sure he can do it. There’s been no proof that he can,” she said. “On the other hand, Eliot

Spitzer is an extremely smart guy, and he knows that if he wants to get done what he wants to getdone, he’s got to change.”

Masters pointed to the example of Thomas Dewey, a former Manhattan district attorney and three-term governor known for intense confrontations at the outset of his first term who eventually reinventedhimself as a collegial presence and compromiser. Spitzer, Masters said, could do the same.

But James Tierney (D), a former attorney general of Maine and the director of Columbia Law School’sNational State Attorneys General Program, said he hoped Spitzer would not go too far.

Tierney pointed out that of the nine current governors who had previously served as state attorneys gen-eral, Spitzer is the only one without any non-prosecutorial public sector experience.

“Eliot’s the über-lawyer,” he said, explaining that rather than being defined by a hard-charging prosecu-torial mentality, he has “more finely-honed skill sets.”

A Spitzer fan, Tierney said that the governor’s ambition and accomplishment are direct resultsof his not being tempered by years of fundraising and serving in local office.

“When you go through that, you know what you get? George Pataki,” he said. “Sits there for 12 years, andnothing changes.” C

—EIRD [email protected]


Spitzer BOX?

in a In the wake of Troopergate, the governortries to recalibrate his hard-charging approach

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Bruno has questioned whether Spitzerbelongs in politics, and he has come to aconclusion.“No,” he said. “I don’t think hedoes. He probably would have been greatin real estate, where some people handlethemselves differently than others. But realestate, you know, you’re a hard driver, youdrive a hard bargain for some people.That’s probably where he belongs.”

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uses them all to distract attention from the careful gameof Albany chess he has mastered over the years. Hespeaks of being disheartened, joins Spitzer in calling forthe high road of reconciliation. But he deftly wrings thesituation for every political point, at every possiblemoment. With one basic demand, Bruno seems to think,he can bring Spitzer to his knees.

“One thing he has to do: testify under oath. ’Causenot many people believe that he didn’t know anythingabout this. This is a serious allegation. This is really seri-ous. And frankly, I’m sorry that we are where we are,”Bruno said. “He’s got to get it behind us. He can’tstonewall, can’t cover it up. It’s too serious.”

Jeffrey Gordon, a Spitzer spokesman, would notaddress the issue of testifying, explaining that “it is notappropriate to comment” while the inquiries of AlbanyDistrict Attorney David Soares (D) and the Ethics com-mission are underway. The State Senate investigationscommittee held a hearing August 9.

Bruno continues to pummel. This is not about him,he insists. He is simply doing the people’s business.

“The governor who allegedly would use the statepolice to spy on a rival in leadership—what will he do toanybody that’s out there?” he asked. “What will he do toget his way?”

Bruno leaves those questions unanswered, as well asthe question about whether he has won. But he willdescribe the experience.

“It certainly wasn’t by any rules, so I guess you wouldcall that a street fight,” he said. “If you box in a ring, youbox with rules.”

Bruno demands consequences. Dopp’s suspensioncounts for something, but not enough, and Spitzer“slapped everybody else on the wrist.”

Some staff has been reshuffled. Others, like Spitzer’stop aide Rich Baum, have remained in their jobs.

Gordon, speaking for the governor, argued that “theattorney general’s report makes clear that no crimeswere committed, but recommended sanctions for twoindividuals. The governor took that advice and tookimmediate action. The sanctions administered areappropriate given the nature of the indiscretions.”

That is not good enough for the majority

leader, who thinks they should all be put under oath, butbefore that, fired.

“He wants to be the chief executive, and he ought todeliver a message. In fact, he ought to just start over,and everyone that’s around him should be gone,” Brunosaid, arguing that Baum and Dopp are just some of thepeople who should lose their jobs.

Until then, Spitzer will not be able to govern.“He has no credibility as the governor,” he said. “Not

with the leaders. I don’t believe he has.”

Bruno came to power in 1995, in a Pataki-backed lead-ership coup against Ralph Marino. Never, Brunoinsists, did he worry about getting knocked from

leadership himself—a consequence, he and supportersclaim, of his straightforward, direct, loyal approach.

“When you give loyalty, you get loyalty,” said formerSen. Alfonse D’Amato (R). “That is the key to his person-al success.”

But Bruno said a coup is even less likely these days.He is 78, long past the age when most of the seniorswhose property tax cuts he demanded retired. He hasno plans to quit.

“As long as I get results, as long as I feel committed,challenged, useful, I want to continue,” he said.

He speaks about being reinvigorated. But, he said, hisprime concern is preserving the power of his conference.

“One thing I know in my life, that nobody’s indispen-sable. It’s critically important that we protect the bal-

ance of the state,” he said. “Whatever happens in my life,in the future, we’ll have a Republican majority in theSenate.”

That in mind, Bruno is taking advantage of a momentwhen many Democrats are avoiding the topic entirely,publicly expressing their confusion and privatelyexpressing their disappointment.

Looking to the other Albany leader—Silver—Brunosaid the speaker should stop waiting for the governor,and start passing bills out of the Legislature for Spitzerto sign or veto. Bruno expressed hope that Silver willchange his mind on this, and on his support for Spitzer.

“He’ll have to eventually,” Bruno said. “The pres-sure’s going to build and build.”

Spitzer’s office, meanwhile, declined response toBruno’s comments on his ability to govern or criticismrelated to the Troopergate situation.

“The governor is more interested in focusing on theneeds of New Yorkers and doing the peoples’ businessthan continuing to focus on matters that have alreadybeen thoroughly investigated by two independent enti-ties,” explained Gordon, Spitzer’s spokesman.

The question now is what legislation Bruno will use

his new leverage to get passed, since nearly every insid-er knows how well he can use advantages to extractconcessions.

“It’s only a good moment if we accomplish the thingsthat the people of the state want us to accomplish,” saidFrank Padavan (R), a Queens state senator who was

Marino’s assistant majority leader and hastangled with Bruno over the years. “SenatorBruno is a very pragmatic man. He realizesthat his leadership on legislation will be thebasis of judgment that the people will make.”

Down in the winner’s circle, Bruno pres-ents the trophy in the featured race,named for the Lemon Drop Kid. Horse

number 6, Loose Leaf, came in first. Past the Point wassecond. Believeinmenow placed third.

Bruno put no money on this race.He chats with the jockey, pets the horse. Walking out

to his car he is stopped repeatedly. He is the localcelebrity, and to some, the local hero. “I like the way youcame through it,” says one man. “Joe—you want to buya slightly-used steamroller?” another jokes. Those whoare close enough get a picture or handshake. Those whocall out to him from a distance get a wave or thumbs-up.

The way Bruno sees things, he is riding high. Heplans to call the State Senate into session forSeptember, and has talked with Silver about bringingthe Assembly back as well.

But when they return, Bruno plans to make surethings will be different than when they left.

“I’m not boycotting the governor. The governorwants to meet publicly next week and talk about what’sgone on with me and with Shelly, the others. Let’s talkabout critical issues in an open forum, not show and tell,that ‘his room, his gavel, his rules,’” he said. “That stuff’snot going to happen to Joe.” C

[email protected]


It’s about time someone stood up to this guy who thinkstruly that he is going to crush anyone in his path. That’s

what he believes. Now what kind of mentality is that for akey person in government, that ‘I’ll crush you?’”“

The light heavyweight champion while stationed in Korea in 1954, Joe Bruno, right, still worksthe speed bag five times per week, and still has an appetite for a fight.


The City Clerk: Political Springboard or Patronage Pasture?Robles’ successor expected to effectively be picked by county leaders

BY JOSEPH MEYERS

THE CITY CLERK IS GONE, AND

no one knows how or when hewill be replaced, or even when

the process will start.But that has not stopped the angling

from beginning.Victor Robles left the job on July 31,

after six years in the position. His unex-pected retirement seems to have left theCouncil unprepared to search for his suc-cessor.

“It caught us all by surprise, becausehe was such a fixture,” said CouncilMember Lewis Fidler (D-Brooklyn),referring to Robles’ departure. “I don’tthink anyone was expecting Victor toleave.”

Robles was elected City Clerk inOctober 2001, just months before termlimits would have ended his 16-year

career as a Brooklyn Council Member.Robles’ duties in this post consisted of

serving as Clerk of the Council and com-missioner of the Office of the City

Clerk—an agency which oversees theMarriage License Bureau, maintains mostofficial city papers and documents, regis-ters lobbyists and files oaths of office forcity officials, among other administrativeresponsibilities.

His annual salary was $174,399 for2007, more than $60,000 higher than cur-rent Council members and well over dou-ble current state legislator salaries.

Clerks are elected by the City Councilto five-year terms. Robles served foralmost six years. He was not officiallyreappointed after his term ended lastyear, though he continued in the job.

Fidler said the Council had expectedto reappoint Robles. Because he leftwithout much warning, the Council hadnot begun looking for replacements.

“Apparently nothing’s in the works atthe moment,” Fidler said. “It’s just not onthe radar yet.”

The source of some confusion amongmany people involved, the appointmentprocess for a new clerk has several steps.In consultation with the Democratic

Caucus, the Council speaker proposes acandidate to the Committee on Rules,Privileges, and Elections. The committeethen holds a public hearing and vote. Ifthe committee recommends that nomi-nee, the entire Council votes on theappointment.

First Deputy City Clerk MichaelMcSweeney will serve as acting city clerkuntil the Council chooses a replacement.

McSweeney may also be among thoseconsidered for nomination.

“I wouldn’t decline the position if Iwas offered it,” said McSweeney, whohas been in his current post since 2004.He was previously the director of legisla-tive and community affairs at LaGuardiaCommunity College.

McSweeney is a Queens resident. Tosome observers, this may undercut hischances of being appointed. As politicalconsultant Joe Mercurio explained, the

position has historically beencontrolled by county leaders.

“It’s an old time patronageposition,” he said. “It’s one ofthose plums they give out thatdoesn’t have a lot of function.”

According to Fidler, someBrooklyn Council members feel thatsince Robles is from Brooklyn, his suc-cessor should be as well.

“I think it’s just a matter of pride,”Fidler said, speaking for some in his del-egation.

One of their own, Bushwick’s ErikMartin Dilan, has been mentioned as apossible candidate.

Dilan said Quinn has not yet spoken tohim about the position. But he did notdismiss the speculation.

“If she were to offer it, I would have toconsider it at that time,” he said.

Assembly Member Vito Lopez, theBrooklyn Democratic leader, did notreturn calls for comment.

But Bronx Democrats are also anglingfor the job, including the county leaderhimself, Assembly member José Rivera.

“I just hope that the members appointthe best qualified person,” Rivera said.

When asked if he thinks he is the best-qualified person, Rivera said, “Yes.”

The post has been the gateway tohigher office in the past: David Dinkinshad the job from 1975-1985. He was elect-ed Manhattan borough president in 1985.Then, in 1989, he was elected mayor.

“The City Clerk job gave me a contin-ued involvement in government and visi-bility, and it seems to have worked, as Ibecame mayor,” Dinkins said.

Dinkins insisted that though he didnot take the job with the intention of run-ning for higher office, he still receivedplenty of public exposure by being in CityHall daily and also officiating at the mar-riages of potential voters.

But Democratic consultant JerrySkurnik downplayed the job’s politicalpotential, saying Dinkins’ career pathwas the exception to the rule.

“It’s more like the last job you have incity politics or government, not a step-ping stone to something higher up,”Skurnik said, “It’s not really high profile.”

[email protected]


[email protected].

City Clerk Victor Robles presidedover his last City Council meetingJuly 25. His unexpected departurehas left the Council trying to fig-ure out a search for a successor.

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Memories of the GOP presidentialfront-runner before he went national

During Rudy Giuliani’s tenure as mayor of New York City,before 9/11, the city government took on an increasinglyauthoritarian and repressive tone. Its ethos was antithetical

to its rich tradition of vigorous and robust expression of controver-sial and unpopular ideas.

It was a time in which yellow cabs were refused a permit for a procession acrossthe 59th Street Bridge to protest changes to rules governing cabbies; child welfareemployees and NYPD members who wished to speak to the press about non-confi-dential matters were required to notify the government and obtain its consent; andHIV/AIDS peer educators in the South Bronx were prevented from promoting safesex by distributing condoms. New York Magazine was refused a permit to adver-tise its magazine on city buses with an ad that satirized the Mayor; the BrooklynMuseum’s funding was withheld because of the exhibit “Sensation”; organizers ofthe Million Youth March were denied permits for their 1998 and 1999 rallies inHarlem; the Latino Officers Association was denied recognition by the NYPD andthe right to march in the Puerto Rican Day Parade in uniform.

In these controversies and others, the federal and state courts stepped in to pro-tect the rights of these New Yorkers.

The case that symbolizes the Giuliani Administration legacy in the area of FirstAmendment rights was the battle to re-open the steps of City Hall. The steps arethe quintessential space for First Amendment activity. Yet the GiulianiAdministration consistently denied or limited New Yorkers’ right to hold press con-ferences on the steps. Again, it took a Federal Court Judge to restore New Yorkers’First Amendment rights.

We should remember who Rudy is and what his record is—especially pre 9/11.We owe it to ourselves and to our country.

—Norman Siegel

Norman Siegel is a civil rights lawyer and was the executive director of the

New York Civil Liberties Union from 1985–2000.

I Remember Rudy When...

When asked if he thinks he is thebest-qualified person to become city clerk,Assembly Member José Rivera said, “Yes.”

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BY JOHN R.D. CELOCK

IN MAY, GOV. ELIOT SPITZER (D)launched a commission to study thestate’s higher education system. But

by already making one major change—not reappointing a controversial SUNYtrustee, Candace deRussy—Spitzer couldhave undercut the commission’s workeven before it started.

The commission could face conflictinternally as it seeks a consensus report.Spitzer has appointed representativesfrom virtually every camp on higher edu-cation policy to the 30-person panel.

The latest in a long line of higher edu-cation study groups, members includeseveral private and public universityheads, labor leaders, students, state legis-lators and others.

Some of these reappointments havethemselves drawn criticism, as somefear the representation of powerfulunion interests and an entrenched SUNYbureaucracy could kill any reform pro-posal.

The commission’s executive director,John Reid, said the body is looking atboth public and private schools, alongwith the role of higher education in eco-nomic development upstate. Reiddeclined to identify any particular com-mission priorities, noting that Spitzeroutlined an array of issues in the Mayexecutive order forming this commis-sion. He said the panel is currently meet-ing in committees, and is beginning totake testimony from several hundredstakeholders in the process.

“We are talking to anyone who wants

to talk us,” Reid said. “We are reachingout in every possible direction.”

The chairs of the Assembly and Senatehigher education committees have out-lined different agendas for the commis-sion, and for the future of SUNY.Assembly Member Deborah Glick (D-Manhattan) has identified public educa-tion funding as her top priority, whileSen. Kenneth LaValle (R-Suffolk) said hewould like to see internal processes with-in SUNY addressed.

Glick said former Gov. GeorgePataki’s (R) cuts to the SUNY budgethave forced schools to raise tuition andfees. She said this is causing lowerincome students to be unable to affordpublic higher education.

“In too many insistences, the schools

feeling constrained in tuition have resort-ed to adding fees, some of which arequite substantial,” she said. “Those feesare not covered by TAP [the TuitionAssistance Program].”

Glick noted that several commissionmembers are from the private sector. Shesees this as a desire from Spitzer to

change the way the system operates. Shehopes it does not change the system’soperation to more of a corporate or pri-vate sector structure, which she said willhurt lower income residents looking togo to college.

LaValle has pointed to the internaloperations of SUNY as his main concern.He said that he believes the SUNY andCUNY systems are working well, but hewants to address several internal operat-ing procedures. While SUNY policy is forstudents to be able to transfer from acommunity college to a four-year collegeand keep all credits, LaValle believesinternal procedures on campuses havemade it tough for all credits to transfer,forcing students to retake classes at thefour-year institution.

“We don’t need to recreate differentgoals for them,” LaValle said, noting thatthe commission should provide Spitzerwith operational and capital financingoptions. “We need to look internally onhow they can be competitive with peerinstitutions nationally.”

SUNY has long been considered a

political hot potato.SUNY’s faculty and staff unions wield

enormous power within the system.Several student groups stand at the readyto protest changes with which they dis-agree. The Pataki years were markedwith the former governor being vilifiedon campuses statewide. DeRussy, whomSpitzer recently declined to reappoint asSUNY trustee, said the commission isdoomed to fail unless Spitzer is willing tostand up to the special interests on thisissue.

“The question is how beholden is he tothe unions,” she said. “He would have toconfront them and take stands they don’tagree with. Does he have that courage,vision and will?”

A conservative higher educationexpert, deRussy’s 12-yeartenure put her at odds with thefaculty unions and studentgroups and frequently withboard colleagues. She was fre-quently the dissenting vote onseveral issues, includingtuition hikes, saying thatreform had not been adequate-ly discussed.

The champion of controver-sial system-wide general edu-cation in the late 1990s,

deRussy urged the commission toaddress performance evaluations of cam-puses, closure of low performing pro-grams, performance evaluations oftenured faculty, cutting of administrativebureaucracy and discussion of a widevariety of political ideas.

She disagreed with the notion thatmore money needs to be given to the sys-tem, arguing for cuts in administration tofree more money to address academicconcerns. In addition, she said that shehopes that her former board colleaguesbegin to show more oversight of systemadministration and campuses.

“This is not rocket science,” deRussysaid, noting she does not see her agendaadvancing with the commission. “What Ihave said is what I have been saying foryears: If this commission was serious,they would take on reforms.” C

[email protected]


[email protected].


SUNY’s board consists some ofthe most politically connectedin the state—the son-in-law of

Richard Nixon, the widow of a pow-erful state senator, a former candi-date for governor.

And then there is Don Boyce, apublic administration graduate stu-dent at SUNY Albany.

Boyce is serving a one-year termas president of the SUNY StudentAssembly, and the student trustee. Inhis role, Boyce—who has the samevoting rights and power as his col-leagues—is charged with bringingstudent interests to the board. As stu-dent trustee, he is automatically amember of the board’s executivecommittee, and he has taken on theroles of co-chairing the student lifecommittee and serving on the aca-

demic standards committee. Boycehas also been named to the gover-nor’s higher education commission.

The only difference betweenBoyce and colleagues like Ed Coxand Randy Daniels is that his term is11 years shorter. That has required avery fast and steep learning curve onbudget, policy and personnel issues,among others.

“It is very hard,” Boyce said. “But, Ihave been involved in the studentassembly since I was student govern-ment president of Orange CommunityCollege in 2003. I have been involvedin the issues for four years.”

The student assembly is the stu-dent government for SUNY’s 64 cam-puses. Each campus sends a delega-tion, either stand-alone assemblydelegates or other student govern-

ment officers, to attend the assem-bly’s conferences each semester. Thedelegates and elected officers advo-cate for SUNY students, along withinformational campaigns on cam-puses. The assembly’s president isautomatically the student boardmember, a post that a student canhold for a maximum of two terms.

Like his predecessors, Boyce isfocusing much of his attention ontuition and financial aid. In addition,he said, he has made curriculumissues a key part of his tenure.

“I recognize my role as represent-ing the best interests of the state uni-versity through the eyes of the stu-dents,” he said. “I am not going to goalong with anything without ques-tioning if it’s right for the students.”

—JRDC

Playing with the Big BoysStudent Trustee Don Boyce has equal footing with other SUNY trustees, but steeper learning curve

Clashing Agendas on SUNY ReformHigher education commission, though just formed, is already called into question

“We don’t need to recreate different goalsfor them,” said Kenneth LaValle, chair of

the State Senate Higher EducationCommittee, of the SUNY colleges. “We need

to look internally on how they can becompetitive with peer institutions nationally.”

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Broadway Danny RossNadler staffer finds the music in politics—and vice versa

BY CHARLOTTE EICHNA

N ONE VISIT, GETTING A SENSE OF

the two Danny Rosses is easy.There is the Danny Ross in slacks,

oxford shirt and a tie, denoting his workas a staffer for Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-Manhattan/Brooklyn). But hidden under-neath is the other Danny Ross, with thetousled hairdo and a pair of thick-framedglasses, which add some indie street cred,as well as a smidgen of studiousness.

Ross speaks deliberately, sometimesslowly drumming his fingertips on thetable as if he is subconsciously workingout piano scales to help him channel theright words.

“My whole life,” he said, “I’ve reallyhad these dual passions: government andmusic.”

At night, as a musician, he often does

work out piano scales during practice—alone, or with his band. But during the day,as scheduler and operations coordinatorfor Nadler’s two district offices in New YorkCity, he deals with things like wranglingnew copiers, coordinating interns and send-ing out a daily round-up of political news.

The Long Island-raised singer, song-writer and pianist likens himself to amore rock-and-roll version of the piano-heavy band Ben Folds Five. His firstalbum, “Introducing Danny Ross!”, wascelebrated with a June 30 record releaseshow and a second gig at the Lower EastSide venue Pianos on July 18.

The only way Ross has managed to

pull off a full-time job, band recruitmentand the execution of a debut album is byapplying the same disciplined schedulingthat dominates his workday to his music.In an interview before his June 30 debut,he said he was not nervous about his firstlive performance since college.

“I’m incredibly well prepared,” hesaid.

Type A?“Yeah,” he says, stretching the word

out.Ross has been interested in music for

years. At 13, he discovered the Beatlesand a piano in his basement and taughthimself to play. He had a band in highschool. But it was not until he got to col-lege, at Cornell, that he began to takemusic seriously.

“Having a great musical mind is onlyhalf the battle,” he says. “The other half ispure workmanship, pure practicing.”

About a year ago he graduated andbegan a job hunt, setting his sights on themusic business.

“Getting a job in the music industry isreally tough, even for very educated peo-ple,” he said. “It’s really about who youknow.”

Then the opportunity with Nadlerarose. This led to an unusual double life,which could conceivably create someconflicts. The lyrics for one song, forexample, refer to getting caught makingout, listening to Dylan “feeling high,” andgetting banned from a Dairy Queen.Could these documented indiscretions of

youth come back to haunt him should heever run for office?

“No,” he said. “My songs are aboutpeace, love and understanding. There’sno real profanity in my music. It’s allabout those positive things. They’re rock-and-roll lyrics.”

Plus, though he will not rule out run-ning for office at some point in thefuture, he is currently more focused on amusic career. Should he decide to stepinto politics later in life, he said, “peoplewould know me as a musician anyway, soI don’t think it would be distracting.”

Sonny Bono, he agreed, might be anapt analogy.

At the office, coworkers are “incredi-bly supportive” of his music. Nadler chiefof staff Amy Rutkin introduces Ross as a“rock star” to everyone who comes in,and when staffers from the D.C. officecall and Ross picks up, they’ll ask, “Is thisthe Danny Ross?”

Three Nadler staffers with friends intow came to the show, according Ross—which is about half of the entireManhattan office.

“It was great,” he said. “Tons of ener-gy, lots of family, friends—a lot of peopleI didn’t know. I couldn’t have asked for abetter way to start my musical career inNew York City.”

Nadler himself could not make it (dueto a conflict, Ross said), but the showwas apparently on the Congressman’smind.

The following Monday morning, “thefirst thing he did was come to my deskand ask me how it went,” Ross said.

Twenty years from now, Ross said hewould like to have many platinum albumsbehind him and be on his way to joiningthe “best of the best” of rock-and-roll.

His political career, he admitted,might not be quite as advanced.

“What’s 20 years from now—I’ll be 43?It might still be a little young,” he said,explaining that some Congressionalhopefuls are often in their 50s or 60s withfull careers behind them.

Planning weeks, let alone years, aheadis hard when you are a musician.

“In the immediate future,” he said, “Iknow I’ll be at Congressman Nadler’soffice every day from 10 to 6.” C

[email protected]

IN THE TRENCHES

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BY JOSEPH MEYERS

MATTHEW SCHNEID, BETTER

known as the prolific author ofmany of State Sen. Jeffrey

Klein’s (D-Bronx) policy reports, is leav-ing to attend Cardozo Law School, wherehe was awarded a full scholarship for the2007 academic year.

He sees the move not as an ending, buta continuation.

“I really love working in government,and working with Senator Klein has beenamazing,” Schneid said. “Clearly the nextstep is going to law school.”

When he graduated college, Schneidinitially took a position as an analyst forSteven Hall & Partners, an executivecompensation consulting firm.

He said the job was “lucrative, but notthe most fulfilling.”

While still working there, Schneidjoined midtown Manhattan’s CommunityBoard 5. Schneid said he discovered his

passion for community service throughhis various responsibilities with theboard.

At 24, Schneid is the youngest mem-ber of Community Board 5. He believesthat he provides a youthful perspective

on a full range of issues, such as noisecomplaints from local bars.

“When people are complaining aboutbars, I’m actually attending bars,”Schneid said.

Working for Klein allowed Schneid topursue his newfound passion by usingthe research skills he had honed in col-lege.

While studying labor relations atCornell, Schneid spent a summer inGeneva as an intern, where he con-tributed research to a recently publishedbook about labor economics. He alsospent a summer doing a research intern-ship with the Local 3 chapter of theInternational Brotherhood of ElectricalWorkers, where he worked on a book

about influential labor leader Harry VanArsdale, Jr.

He said that though each report hewrote for Klein presented different chal-lenges, experience helped him be able toproduce them much more quickly.

“I’ve really been pumping them out,”he said.

His work with Klein has inched himeven closer to pursuing a career in gov-ernment, Schneid said, but he doesn’twant his career path to stop in New York.

“My real dream,” he said, “is to workin the White House.” C

[email protected]


[email protected].

As policy coordinator for StateSen. Jeffrey Klein (left), MatthewSchneid researched and helpedwrite many of Klein’s reports.

Which staffer would you nominatefor an In the Trenches profile?

E-mail [email protected] with your choices for interestingand important staffers who should be in the spotlight.

Klein Loses a Report Writer, Cardozo Gains a StudentMatthew Schneid will leave government work for now, but, he says, not for long


HANK SHEINKOPFDEMOCRATIC POLITICAL CONSULTANT

What are the chancesof congestion pricingactually happening?It could happen, butthere are so many play-ers involved that it hasbecome much morecomplicated thanbefore. I would say thechances are 6 to 4. Asfar as the timing, a lotof this depends on themayor’s ability tolobby.

Who are the winners and losers?I think the mayor is clearly a winner. He snatched vic-tory from the jaws of defeat. I don’t see any losershere. The counter-argument that has been made by,look what they didn’t do. The fact that they got some-thing done is what is most extraordinary to me.

What does the situation mean for Bloomberg’spolitical future?What it tells you is never count out a billionaire that canbring any kind of resources that he wants to the table.

SUSAN DEL PERCIOREPUBLICAN POLITICAL CONSULTANTWhat are the chances of congestion pricing actual-ly happening?

Very good. I would say95 percent. It may notbe the proposal thatwas originally drafted,but I think there willbe some form adoptedby the state legislature.I think it will happenby spring of 2008.

Who are the winnersand losers?New Yorkers are thewinners. MichaelBloomberg is clearly a

winner for getting something that everyone thoughtwas impossible. Richard Brodsky is probably a loser.

What does the situation mean for Bloomberg’spolitical future?Mayor Bloomberg has shown that he is anything but alame duck mayor and that he is willing to take on thetoughest fights. When you are doing good things ingovernment, that’s always good for politics. A lot of theissues that Mayor Bloomberg has taken up do resonatenationally.

ED KOCHFORMER MAYORWhat are the chances of congestion pricing actual-

ly happening?It will happen in someform. Whether it willbe adequate is anotherproblem. The fact thatthey didn’t pass it orig-inally and put if off fora later day makes itseem to me that it willemerge ultimately insome form, but nothow the mayor origi-nally intended it. Iwould say 60-40 nega-tive. I think we can

expect something by the end of the year.

Who are the winners and losers?It depends on how you look at it. I think the mayor,even though he’s lost, is a winner. He stood up for theright thing. I think Shelly [Silver], who basicallystopped it, is a winner, but I think he is just deadwrong. And I’m appreciative that Joe Bruno stood withthe mayor.

What does the situation mean for Bloomberg’spolitical future?It has no bearing on it at all. Whether or not he runsfor president will have no bearing on the outcome.

THOMAS OGNIBENEFORMER CITY COUNCIL REPUBLICAN LEADER

What are thechances of conges-tion pricing actuallyhappening?Michael Bloomberghas a strong bill and hethinks it’s going towork. They have thiscommittee. I think it’sall smoke and mirrors.I think it will die a nat-ural death after it’sinvestigated ad nause-am. I would say 5 to 1against. I think it’s a

dead issue now, but that they will drag it out untileveryone loses interest in it, once the mayor runs forpresident wholeheartedly. That’s why they are sayingMarch 31 [2008], because all of the primaries are overby then. I think it will be dead by end of year.

Who are the winners and losers?I don’t know if there are any winners here, because allyou’re doing is preserving the status quo. If there is a

loser, it will be Mike Bloomberg, because he put a lotof effort in it and put his reputation at stake.

What does the situation mean for Bloomberg’spolitical future?Probably not much. I don’t think it will have an affectotherwise. People in the city seem to like him a lot.

MICKEY CARROLLDIRECTOR OF THE POLLING INSTITUTEAT QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITYWhat are the chances of congestion pricing actual-ly happening?The legislators will not necessarily do what people

think or want. TheBloomberg administra-tion is pushing hardfor this. The odds are amatter of what the leg-islators are up to, andlord only knows. Thepoll is a factor but itisn’t. You have to readthe mood of theLegislature to do that,so it’s almost impossi-ble. You know that atthe moment the moodis hostile. I can’t put a

number on it.

Who are the winners and losers?So far Bloomberg is ahead on points. Losers politically,I don’t think it’s that kind of an issue.

What does the situation mean for Bloomberg’spolitical future?Is this talk just to keep things alive? Who knows? Ithink he wants to keep it alive. It does keep him on thefront pages.

BILL LYNCHDEMOCRATIC POLITICAL CONSULTANT

What are thechances of conges-tion pricing actuallyhappening?The odds are 60-40. Ithink it will happenbefore the end of theyear.

Who are the winnersand losers?I think the winners inthis have been thecommunities involved,those above 86th

Street. I think the loser right now is MayorBloomberg—only if he loses the $500 million from thefederal government.

What does the situation mean for Bloomberg’spolitical future?I don’t think it means anything. I don’t think he has anyreal loss on this issue. C

PUNDIT POLL

After much debate and a missed federal funding deadline, Albany leadersagreed to a deal which gave a provisional green light to Mayor Michael

Bloomberg’s controversial congestion pricing plan. The Legislature approved thedeal at the end of July, requiring a 17-member commission be created to considerspecific proposals. Does this count as victory for Bloomberg? Or is it one forAssembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, who held up approval for months? DidBloomberg and his aides work out a way for congestion pricing to survive, or is theplan simply dying a long, hard death? City Hall asked the experts.

The Future and Fallout of Congestion Pricing

Visit us atwww.cityhallnews.com


Untangling the Campaign Finance DisclosuresCandidate Campaign

donations($)

Expendituresto date($)

Estimate of money expected to be matched($)

# ofdonors

Matching fundsexpected($)

†Approxmate totalmoney on hand($)

†Most recent contributions less expenses + approximate fundsavailable to transfer from other accounts. This figure does notinclude matching funds, which have yet to be calculated.

BY JOSEPH MEYERS

THOUGH THE NEW YORK CITY

Campaign Finance Board releasedupdated campaign finance num-

bers July 16, how these numbers will trans-late into campaign cash by 2009 is unclear.

The campaign finance reform bill thatthe City Council passed this June washailed as a landmark, but no one seemsto know exactly how it will work.

Under the new bill, the city will matchdonations up to $175 at a rate of 6-to-1.Formerly, the city matched all campaigncontributions up to $250 at a rate of 4-to-1.

Whether the bill will apply to cam-paign donations made prior to its passage

is still unknown.“It’s a very long and confusing bill,” said

Mike Casercano, press secretary for CityCouncil Member Simcha Felder (D-Brooklyn),the chair of the Government Operations com-mittee and a main author of the bill.

Casercano said that city lawyers arecurrently combing through the bill toclarify its mistakes and start workingtowards fixing them.

“It’s not uncommon for bills to be writ-ten and then a clean-up bill to comethrough sometime late to address issuessuch as this,” Casercano said.

City Hall calculations found that if thenew matching system were applied to2009 campaign donations that have

already been made, candidates wouldreceive on average 23 percent more inmatching funds, though some wouldreceive as low as a 5-percent increase andsome as high as a 50-percent increase. Nocandidate would receive less money if theplan were applied retroactively.

The New York City Campaign FinanceBoard’s reports also differed significantlyfrom the New York State Board of Elections’reports.

In 2005, the State Legislature passed abill mandating that those who spend orraise more than $1,000 during their cam-paigns file finance reports with the NewYork State Board of Elections in additionto the City Campaign Finance Board.

The board has been swamped witharound 10 times as many reports, accord-ing to Robert Brehm, deputy informationdirector of the state board.

Unlike the New York City CampaignFinance Board, the State Board ofElections simply publishes reports filed bylocal candidates. There are no audits on thestate level, and therefore no way to resolvediscrepancies unless the candidates reportchanges themselves.

Brehm said the State Board ofElections does not verify filings withlocal election boards.

“All we know is what they file with us,”Brehm said. “I don’t know what the incor-rect number or the correct number is.”C

How Much They Really Have for 2009Parsing the July city campaign finance filings, despite vagaries in laws and surpluses

MAYOR Avella, Tony 103,465 17,967 26,450 158,700 434 245,402Weiner, Anthony 2,008,360 127,769 92,500 555,000 876 2,389,743

PUBLIC ADVOCATE Siegel, Norman 26,959 9,526 9,765 58,590 133 75,106COMPTROLLER Brennan, James 245,836 105,158 97,839 587,034 1,059 808,826

Katz, Melinda 1,325,421 288,647 59,544 357,264 824 1,709,877Weprin, David 1,281,919 171,314 65,601 393,606 783 1,992,320

CITY COUNCIL* Behar, Steven Anthony (19)-Avella, Tony 1,815 18 1,380 8,280 36 10,077*Non-incumbents Ceder, David (50)-Oddo, James 13 0 0 0 1 3identified by district Chin, Margaret (01)-Gerson, Alan 13,640 424 11,320 67,920 413 81,136number and current Crowley, Elizabeth (30)-Gallagher, Dennis 24,550 501 4,840 29,040 100 53,089occupant of the seat Dickens, Inez (09)-incumbent 17,150 3,986 7,325 43,950 17,150 55,420

Dobrin, Todd (47)-Recchia, Domenic 20,586 1,813 8,690 52,140 155 70,913Gentile, Vincent (43)-incumbent 31,545 15,766 11,125 66,750 185 93,605Gotlieb, Brian (47)-Recchia, Domenic 15,928 5,866 10,788 64,728 167 74,790Lappin, Jessica (05)-incumbent 11,861 3,632 1,110 6,660 8 18,161Lewis, Frederick (31)-Sanders, Jr., James 690 0 440 2,640 9 3,330Matteo, Steven (50)-Oddo, James 7,145 0 1,145 6,870 14 14,015Moya, Francisco (21)-Monseratte, Hiram 1,650 0 625 3,750 4 5,400Rodriguez, Ydanis (10)-Martinez, Miguel 13,168 300 5,883 35,298 80 48,166Simon, Jo Anne (33)-Yassky, David 16,458 3,877 6,194 37,164 102 64,179Ulrich, Eric (32)-Addabbo, Jr., Joseph 18,515 12,274 12,970 77,820 154 84,061

UNDECLARED Adams, Kenneth* 47,986 14,069 25,505 153,030 260 220,178Carrion, Jr., Adolfo 1,364,876 420,753 58,665 351,990 966 1,340,021Comrie, Leroy 33,200 25,199 5,225 31,350 74 54,596de Blasio, Bill 307,745 99,057 55,110 330,660 495 537,524Dromm, Daniel 150 150 150 900 2 900Felder, Simcha 1,059,761 63,002 42,966 257,796 384 1,361,639Foster, Helen Diane 24,458 850 0 0 0 55,694Garodnick, Daniel 74,160 4,003 7,611 45,666 191 132,919Gioia, Eric 979,780 148,558 132,020 792,120 2,156 1,883,432Gotbaum, Betsy 163,915 88,528 14,900 89,400 138 163,718Hornak, Robert 3,325 1,682 675 4,050 8 5,693Jackson, Robert 1,000 722 525 3,150 3 1,568Koppell, G. Oliver 37,645 31,974 17,820 106,920 209 112,684Letellier, Yonel 1,270 300 1,095 6,570 13 7,540Liu, John 1,607,606 243,004 116,826 700,956 1,304 2,185,522Markowitz, Marty 748,548 286,855 21,625 129,750 186 1,143,548McMahon, Michael 195,911 73,963 60,287 361,722 662 482,777Quinn, Christine 1,383,935 102,637 123,834 743,004 1,264 2,140,076Quiroz, Alfonso 13,538 2,316 2,476 14,856 79 26,078Recchia, Domenic 147,784 17,764 34,303 205,818 327 375,099Rivera, Joel 154,056 82,704 12,370 74,220 250 151,919Sears, Helen 36,185 831 5,924 35,544 71 72,258Simon, Brian 75 0 75 450 1 525Stringer, Scott 772,524 122,311 71,366 428,196 789 1,080,856Thompson, Jr., William 3,169,394 543,380 68,875 413,250 955 4,499,728Vacca, James 93,630 17,909 17,955 107,730 276 199,854Vallone, Jr., Peter 279,795 123,558 19,120 114,720 0 297,226

SOURCE: Campaign FinanceBoard as of 8/3/07


BY JOHN R.D. CELOCK

A bill to bring New York’s divorce lawsin line with those of the other 49 statesremains stalled in the Legislature, aspowerful religious and women’s groupsblock a proposal championed by thestate judiciary.

State judges have been championingno-fault divorce in the state. No-faultdivorce would allow judges to grantdivorce without grounds—such as aban-donment, adultery and cruelty. Theprocess is the same as divorces allowedon the grounds of irreconcilable differ-ences in other states.

State Supreme Court JusticeJacqueline Silverman, who chaired a judi-cial commission studying matrimoniallaw, said the system of finding fault forgranting a divorce in New York hasclogged the courts and has put low-

income individuals at a disadvantage,noting increased court costs. She saidcouples have the option of relocating to aneighboring state to seek a divorce, butmany cannot afford this option.

Currently, couples who agree on adivorce are forced to either wait a yearafter a formal separation agreement isentered with the court or agree upongrounds. While lawyers and judges can-not tell couples to agree to groundswhich are not true, they normally do not

object.“There are very few honest cases of

abandonment,” Silverman said, referringto the most frequent cause cited byagreeing couples. “If they agree togrounds, few judges will put their ownobjections to grounds. They willeven allow adivorce on cruelty.”

A bill to allow no-fault divorce is cur-rently pending in theLegislature, as part of alarger divorce reformpackage. AssemblyMember HeleneWeinstein (D-Queens),the chair of the JudiciaryCommittee, said the pack-age remains in her commit-tee because of on-goingnegotiations with divorce

advocates regarding certain issues.She hopes the package, developedafter a series of committee hearings,would address concerns by no-faultopponents.

She said these issues include econom-ic concerns such as attorney fees forwives who stay at home with children,health insurance and property distribu-tion. Domestic violence advocates objectto no-fault divorce, saying that victimswho need insurance often lose benefits

when they file for divorce from an abu-sive spouse. The National Organizationof Women has said that women who stayat home to raise children are often at aneconomic disadvantage when filing for

divorce, as

they cannot pay attorneys and their hus-bands could try to take property awayfrom them.

Weinstein said that while she hopesthe Assembly will be able to pass a billsoon, she does not see it passing theState Senate in the near future. She saidshe has been told in negotiations withSen. John DeFrancesco (R-Syracuse)

that the objections from the RomanCatholic Church weigh heavily on theSenate decision to decline to take up theissue.

DeFrancesco was unavailable forcomment and a spokesman for theEdward Cardinal Egan, who is leader of

statewide Catholics, did not returnseveral calls for comment.

New York State NOWPresident MarciaPappas said no-faultdivorce has not workedin other states. She addedthat the laws in questiononly address a small per-centage of the population,citing statistics that showthat only five percent ofdivorces cases are not set-tled easily. She also said thatthe poorer spouse is usuallyat a disadvantage in court,citing an Office of CourtAdministration report whichfound a bias against women inNew York State courts.

“We don’t buy the argumentthat everyone else is doing it,why not us,” Pappas said.

California, which has longhad no-fault, has been seeingproblems with these issues,according to the NOW chapter inthat state.

Helen Grieco, executive direc-tor of California NOW, said the

group originally supported the law, buthas seen law misused in highly contestedcases where one spouse uses the law togain a quick divorce and then impactproperty and custody issues. She notedthere has been discussion about trying torepeal her state’s law.

Not all women’s groups in New Yorkare opposed to no-fault divorce. TheWomen’s Bar Association of New York isin favor of the law. The group had beenopposed to the bill, but changed its opin-ion with the adoption of new child-sup-port formulas and equitable distributionof property laws in the Empire State.

“I can’t believe public policy is forcingtwo people to be together who agree notto be together,” said Elaine Avery, imme-diate past-president of the group.

While bills are pending and lobbyingcontinues in Albany on the issue and ChiefJudge Judith Kaye brings it up in her annu-al State of the Judiciary address advocatesdo not foresee no-fault divorces coming toNew York anytime soon Silverman, thechair of the judicial commission on matri-monial law, among them.

“I don’t think there will be no-faultdivorce in my lifetime,” she said.

[email protected]


[email protected].

Advocates on All Sides See Faults in No-Fault Divorce Debate49 states have loosened divorce requirements, but New York unlikely to follow soon

Who will win the 2008 presidential election?Who will lose?Who will drop out by the end of the month?

--------------------LAST MONTH----------CURRENTLY-----DECLARED PRICE ON ODDS ON PRICE ON ODDS ONREPUBLICANS INTRADE LADBROKES INTRADE LADBROKES-----------------------------------------------------------JOHN MCCAIN 15.7 7 TO 1 4.9 12 TO 1RUDOLPH GIULIANI 25.0 7 TO 2 38.0 9 TO 2TOMMY THOMPSON 0.4 N/A 0.3 N/ADUNCAN HUNTER 0.2 66 TO 1 0.3 66 TO 1MITT ROMNEY 23.3 10 TO 1 16.0 10 TO 1SAM BROWNBACK 0.8 33 TO 1 0.5 33 TO 1RON PAUL 3.0 40 TO 1 2.9 50 TO 1MIKE HUCKABEE 2.0 33 TO 1 1.4 33 TO 1JIM GILMORE 0.1 N/A 0.1 N/ATOM TANCREDO 0.4 N/A 0.6 N/A

*** PRESIDENTIAL*** ***ODDS ***

--------------------LAST MONTH----------CURRENTLY-----DECLARED PRICE ON ODDS ON PRICE ON ODDS ONDEMOCRATS INTRADE LADBROKES INTRADE LADBROKES-----------------------------------------------------------HILLARY CLINTON 52.0 5 TO 4 43.6 5 TO 4BARACK OBAMA 27.8 4 TO 1 39.4 4 TO 1JOHN EDWARDS 7.3 7 TO 1 5.3 10 TO 1BILL RICHARDSON 2.6 28 TO 1 1.9 28 TO 1CHRIS DODD 0.3 N/A 0.5 N/AJOSEPH BIDEN 0.6 33 TO 1 0.6 33 TO 1DENNIS KUCINICH 0.1 N/A 0.1 N/AMIKE GRAVEL 0.1 N/A 0.2 N/A

--------------------LAST MONTH----------CURRENTLY-----POTENTIAL PRICE ON ODDS ON PRICE ON ODDS ONENTRIES INTRADE LADBROKES INTRADE LADBROKES-----------------------------------------------------------

ODDS Ends&

“We don’t buy the argumentthat everyone else is doing it,why not us.”—New York State

NOW President Marcia Pappas

6.4 25 to 1

34.4 4 to 1

0.2 N/A

0.1 66 to 1

19.5 10 to 1

0.4 66 to 1

3.4 40 to 1

1.1 50 to 1

0.1 N/A

0.9 N/A

43.6 5 TO 4

39.4 4 TO 1

5.3 10 TO 1

1.9 28 TO 1

0.5 N/A``

0.6 33 TO 1

0.1 N/A

0.2 N/A

54.2 5 to 4

31.7 4 to 1

7.2 10 to 1

3 28 to 1

0.2 N/A

1.3 33 to 1

0.1 N/A

0.1 N/A

5.9 6 TO 1

0.4 50 TO 1

35.5 7 TO 2

3.3 N/A

0.4 18 TO 1

5.7 6 to 1

0.1 N/A

32.1 7 to 2

3.2 N/A

0.3 18 to 1

JOHN MCCAIN

RUDOLPH GIULIANI

TOMMY THOMPSON

DUNCAN HUNTER

MITT ROMNEY

SAM BROWNBACK

RON PAUL

MIKE HUCKABEE

JIM GILMORE

TOM TANCREDO

4.9 2 TO 1

38.0 9 TO 2

0.3 N/A

0.3 66 TO 1

6.0 10 TO 1

0.5 33 TO 1

2.9 50 TO 1

1.4 33 TO 1

0.1 N/A

0.6 N/A

HILLARY CLINTON

BARACK OBAMA

JOHN EDWARDS

BILL RICHARDSON

CHRIS DODD

JOSEPH BIDEN

DENNIS KUCINICH

MIKE GRAVEL

AL GORE

JOHN KERRY

FRED THOMPSON

NEWT GINGRICH

MICHAEL BLOOMBERG**DATA AS OF AUGUST 10, 2007**

“City Hall is to New York political insiders what PeopleMagazine is to entertainment fans, only more substantive”

City Planning Commission Director Amanda Burden

Look who’s reading City Hall...

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The Way to Reach Elected Officials

POLITICS • POLICY • PERSONALITY


When he was in business, Michael Bloomberg was known for having a simple policy: employees whoquit for anything other than family reasons would not be rehired. * “We’re dependent on one anoth-

er—and when someone departs, those of us who stay are hurt,” the mayor wrote in his 1997 book,Bloomberg by Bloomberg. “We needed that person, or he or she wouldn’t have been here to begin with.” * Fewquit Bloomberg LP and few, especially among the senior staff, have quit the Bloomberg mayoral administra-tion, either. * Still, those who did leave—including the seven former senior staffers profiled here—say that

they left on very good terms. More than that, they say they hope the mayor will understand their decision toleave the public sector, and might take another look at their résumés if ever he is staffing another, larger government office, like the one on Washington’sPennsylvania Avenue in which he has been rumored to be interested. * They are hoping that Bloomberg will not stick to the policy he described in his bookabout refusing to consider rehires. * “What choice in the matter do we have? Two people work side by side; one leaves for greener pastures, and the other hun-kers down and does the work of both,” he wrote. “Later the one who left us in the lurch realizes the grass wasn’t greener after all and wants all forgiven.”


Bloomberg

The Downtown Brooklyn Partnershipadvances public and private development in thedowntown Brooklyn area, facilitating around $9billion in private investment. As its president,Chan manages a budget of around $8 million and a staffof 25.

Chan said he learned what he needed for the job fromhis time as an advisor to Deputy Mayor Dan Doctoroff.

“It was the greatest professional development expe-rience I will ever have,” he said. “I don’t think there’sanything that could have prepared me better.”

Under Doctoroff, Chan was in charge of small busi-

ness development in Brooklyn.In both roles, Chan has worked as

an intermediary between public andprivate interests.

Now, though, Chan’s efforts aremuch more focused—instead ofdealing with borough-wide issues, hefocuses on stewarding the economicgrowth of a 40-square block area.

He took Bloomberg’s manage-ment style along with him. Since hewas appointed to his current job,

Chan has tried to recreate there the atmosphere ofintensity and dedication he experienced in theBloomberg administration.

“Being in City Hall for almost five years during thisadministration,” Chan said, “taught me how to operatewith a sense of urgency, taught me how to step up thequality of my work, and exposed me to a level of peo-ple and expertise that I just would not have got any-

where else.”But not everything is the same.“There’s a big lifestyle difference. City Hall is a 12- to

13-hour a day commitment, and you really have to be onand accessible at nights and the weekend. It really is anintense experience,” Chan said.

What do you miss most from your days workingin the administration? The people. Working with somany incredibly motivated and talented people, spend-ing 13 hours a day with incredibly motivated peers is agreat thing.

Would you want to be part of a BloombergWhite House? In which role? I am one of thescores of City Hall staffers that would probably followthe mayor anywhere. I don’t know what position. I real-ly love this city and love this borough, so it’s not any-thing I’ve given any thought to.

—Joseph Meyers

The lights went out. Back-up generators imme-diately kicked in at City Hall allowing business-as-usual to continue.

But the rest of Manhattan was still dark.Jordan Barowitz remembers the afternoon of the 2002

blackout well.“Immediately my phone rang. It was my mother. She

was in Midtown where she told me the lights went out. Iwas the first to know we were in big trouble when thathappened,” he said.

Responding to this sort of crisis was what brought

Barowitz into the Bloomberg admin-istration in the first place. After theWorld Trade Center attacks, the life-long Democrat said he felt his alle-giance to the city trumped party loy-alty.

“I’m a fourth generation NewYorker,” he said. “I couldn’t turndown the offer to help rebuild NewYork, even in the small way that I didafter 9/11.”

Barowitz fondly remembersBloomberg’s ability to make difficult

decisions, including those which dealt with rebuildingLower Manhattan, managing a ballooning budget crisisand the “awesome task” of restoring the city’s confidence.

He got his start at City Hall working as communica-tions director for then-Council Speaker Peter Vallone, Sr.(D-Queens). Barowitz was then the communicationsdirector for Vallone’s 1998 gubernatorial and 2001 may-

oral campaigns. He also worked in the New York officeof Al Gore’s 2000 presidential campaign.

Barowitz said he parlayed his experience in mattersrelated to city development into his current role, work-ing with government agencies for the DurstOrganization, a real estate development companyfocused on eco-friendly construction.

Did Bloomberg give you any parting words ofadvice? He’s given me a lot of advice over the years onstuff, and of those couple of things he used in my pres-ence, one was: “If you can’t sell something raise theprice.” And also, “It’s better to beg for forgiveness thanask for permission.”

Would you want to be part of a BloombergWhite House? In which role? I take the mayor forhis word when he said he wasn’t running for president.I’m very happy in my new digs.

—Elizabeth Kraushar

Patrick Brennan’s résumé lists experience with someof the most influential names in the Democratic Party,from George Soros to 1199 SEIU, the healthcare work-ers union.

Nonetheless, he joined the 2005 reelection campaign

for Bloomberg, then a Republican,as the deputy campaign manager,working directly under KevinSheekey.

His previous political experienceincludes a stint as chief of staff forthen-State Sen. Vincent Gentile (D-Brooklyn), contributing to Sen.John Kerry’s (D-Massachusetts)2004 presidential campaign throughthe Soros group America ComingTogether, and being part of thepolitical team at 1199.

He had no qualms, though, about backing a man withan “R” after his name.

“Bloomberg is not an ideologue,” he said. “Democrats,Republicans and Independents can all work with him.”

Following the 2005 election, Bloomberg hired him asa special assistant to the mayor, and later, as chief of

staff for government affairs, a position which had himdeveloping the mayor’s legislative agenda. He calledsecuring money for city schools his biggest legislativevictory. He was later named the commissioner of thecommunity assistance unit.

“I think you’d be hard pressed,” he said, “to find aplace or a business or a section of the political worldthat being associated with a successful mayor would bea negative.”

What do you miss most from your days workingin the administration?Working with a large numberof very, very talented people. Working with people withone common interest in mind is an exciting place to be.

Did Bloomberg give you any parting words ofadvice? He did. He gave me… It was a private conver-sation and it will stay that way.

—Dan Rivoli

Jordan BarowitzDirector of External Affairs,

the Durst OrganizationPosition in the Bloomberg administration:

Deputy Press Secretary to the Mayor(January 2002 – June 2006)

KIDSTHE g

Patrick BrennanPresident, Strategic Communications

Division of The Parkside GroupPosition in the Bloomberg administration:

Deputy Campaign Manager, Bloomberg 2005(December 2004 – December 2005); SpecialAssistant to the Mayor & Chief of Staff forGovernment Affairs (January 2006 – June2006); Commissioner of the Community

Assistance Unit(June 2006 – June 2007)

Joe ChanPresident, Downtown Brooklyn

PartnershipPosition in the Bloomberg administration:Senior Policy Advisor to Dan Doctoroff

(February 2002 – September 2006)

*


Fresh off a stint as a teacher and various tempjobs, the then-24-year-old Jennifer Falk joined theAdministration of Children’s Services as its deputycommunications director in the early 1990s.

She was the agency’s press secretary when DeputyMayor Ed Skyler, then Bloomberg’s press secretary, askedFalk to join City Hall as the first deputy press secretary.

With five years experience in socialservices, Falk used the opportunity tochange fields. She put in a specialrequest to work with Deputy MayorDan Doctoroff as the chief spokesper-son for Bloomberg’s five-borough eco-nomic development plan.

“One of the most amazing thingsabout the types of jobs you can have ingovernment, especially when it comesto communications, is the skills trans-late from topic to topic.”

After a decade of being a spokesperson for the city, shemade the tough decision to leave City Hall and become theexecutive director of the Union Square Partnership.

Using her skills in communications and business, Falk

meets with politicians, businesses and the community tokeep the redevelopment of Union Square Park’s north end,a $20 million project, on schedule. The plans include anexpanded playground, additional bathrooms, office spaceand a rehabilitated pavilion.

She still maintains close relationships with the commu-nity and continues to serve the public.

Did Bloomberg give you any parting words ofadvice? Yeah. He gave me the same advice he givesmost people: “Don’t screw it up.”

Would you want to be part of a BloombergWhite House? In which role? That’s the one ques-tion that will get me in trouble with my board.

—Dan Rivoli

As the youngest commissioner in the Bloombergadministration, the then-30 year-old JonathanGreenspun got a thrill from trumpeting the mayor’smessage across the five boroughs.

Leading the community assistance unit, Greenspun alsofielded neighborhood complaints about some ofBloomberg’s less popular choices, like when he raisedproperty taxes.

“Listening to the feedback was dif-ficult, but watching the mayor makedecisions that were right in the long-run was a good lesson for me tolearn,” he said.

Before going to City Hall,Greenspun served six years in variouspositions in former Gov. GeorgePataki’s (R) administration. He alsoworked for then-Rep. Rick Lazio (R-Suffolk) during his 2000 Senate cam-paign against Hillary Clinton.

But after 10-and-a-half years in gov-ernment and politics, Greenspun decided the time hadcome to try a new career path.

Now doing communications and government relationsat Mercury Public Affairs, Greenspun guides his clients—

many of them Fortune 500 companies—through often com-plex government regulations, in everything from environ-mental protection to economic development.

He said he continues to call upon the skills he gainedfrom working with city agencies while commissioner.

“You learn about how decisions get made and how to reachconsensus,” he said, “How to talk to the right people.”

What do you miss least from your days work-ing in the administration? I probably miss the leasta call at 2 a.m. telling me there is a water-main break.

Would you want to be part of a BloombergWhite House? In which role? My bags are packedalready like an expectant mother. As far as a position,that’s being too presumptuous. Let’s solve one problemat a time. I would have no hesitation about helping himget to the White House.


When Marc Ricks left his unpaid City Hall job atthe end of the summer of 2003, he had every intentionof going back to the private sector for good.

Ricks had previously spent five years at McKenzieand Company. He took the summer of 2003 to gainexperience in government.

He was not gone long. Four months after he left, Rickswas back at City Hall, as Dan Doctoroff’s senior policy advi-sor. A year after that, he was Doctoroff’s chief of staff.

Ricks oversaw all of the projects and agencies underDoctoroff’s aegis. In addition to hiring new employees andwriting reviews, Ricks said his primary responsibility wasmaintaining a steady information flow—both between

Doctoroff’s staff and betweenDoctoroff and the other deputy may-ors.

“Everybody had an extraordinarysense of impatience best exemplifiedby the countdown clock,” Ricks said.“The mayor was the first person to getthere, and we burned the candle atboth ends.”

After two years, Ricks decided toonce more try getting back to the pri-vate sector. After two years in a veryintense environment, he felt he was no

longer bringing the freshness of perspective he began with.But, he said, the switch to Goldman Sachs did not mean

shorter days, at a company where 120-hour work weeksrarely raise an eyebrow.

“You do the math and it works out to be pretty painful,”he said.

Ricks said he chose Goldman Sachs because it is knownfor a collegial environment of teamwork and camaraderie,

something he had grown accustomed to while workingwith Bloomberg.

As a junior staffer at Goldman Sachs, he works in abullpen environment similar to Bloomberg’s. Seniorstaffers, though, have their own offices—unlikeBloomberg, who sits in the middle of his own bullpen.

This can make Ricks nostalgic for his time in City Hall.“It’s not quite the same as when the most senior person

is sitting in the same cubicle,” he said.

What do you miss least from your days workingin the administration? I don’t miss the press angle,by which I mean everything from a small measure of fearthat something you do and say will end up, to the imme-diacy of the press cycle, opinion pieces masquerading asnews articles, and one third of the facts in article aboutyour project wrong but you can’t do anything about it.

Did Bloomberg give you any parting words ofadvice? He said if I need anything I should call hisfriend [Goldman Sachs CEO] Lloyd Blanfine.

—Joseph Meyers

These days, Silvia Alverez is dealing with a differ-ent kind of bullpen.

Once Bloomberg’s deputy press secretary, Alvereznow oversees promotion of Major League Baseball’s spon-sored charities and ethnic outreach programs.

She spends much of her time putting together mediaplans for charity events hosted by the league and organiza-tions like the Boys and Girls Club of America which the

league supports.Much of her time is spent prepar-

ing for the annual All Star Game,which she called one of the league’sjewel events. Her job is to publicizethe positive effects that the All StarGame has on its host city, particularlythrough all the charity events plannedin conjunction with the game.

More than anything else, Alverezsaid, she misses the fast paced envi-

ronment she formerly worked in.“It’s like a rush,” she said. “When I was at City Hall, if I

was talking to a reporter, it was about a story that was com-ing out tomorrow.”

Alverez said her work for the baseball league is less hec-

tic, partly because sports reporters are less intense thanpolitical reporters.

“I don’t feel so much on the spot with a sports writer asI did with a City Hall writer,” she said.

Another difference: While in City Hall, everyone knewshe was on the Bloomberg team. Working for Major LeagueBaseball, she is not allowed to publicize her allegiances.

“I do have a secret favorite,” she said, “but I can’t tell you.”

Did Bloomberg give you any parting words ofadvice? It was the same one he gave me when I start-ed at City Hall: “Don’t screw it up!”

Would you want to be part of a BloombergWhite House? In which role? I would want to behis liaison to different ethnic communities.

—Joseph Meyers

Marc RicksAssociate, Infrastructure Group of

Goldman SachsPosition in the Bloomberg administration:

Chief of Staff to Dan Doctoroff(December 2005 – May 2007)

Silvia AlverezDirector of Multicultural and CharitableCommunications, Major League Baseball

Position in Bloomberg administration:Deputy Press Secretary

(December 2003 – September 2006)

Jennifer FalkExecutive Director, Union Square

PartnershipPosition in the Bloomberg administration:

First Deputy Press SecretarySpokesperson for Dan Doctoroff (January 2002 – December 2006)

Jonathan GreenspunManaging Director, Mercury Public AffairsPosition in the Bloomberg administration:

Commissioner of the CommunityAssistance Unit

(January 2002 – June 2006)


Why does anyone care aboutViola Plummer? Her commentsand employment status certain-

ly have provided ample grist for blogsand television segments, press confer-ences and newspaper articles, as peoplestruggle to figure out whether and whereto limit speech, who is empowered to firestaff and how much to engage in a pickedfight.

A lot of the credit or blame for this sit-uation, also the concern of a pendinglawsuit, rests with City Council MemberCharles Barron, a deft rabble rouser whohas mastered the art of intensifying bat-tle. Some—perhaps as much—has to dowith Council Speaker Christine Quinn,who seems to have been initially caughtunprepared for the carefully stokedfirestorm, what with her lawyersdemanding Plummer sign a code ofbehavior which seems to violate the spir-it, if not the letter of the FirstAmendment. Some, clearly, goes toPlummer herself, with her shifting ration-ale for what she meant by saying ofQuinn ally and Queens Council MemberLeroy Comrie, “If it takes an assassina-tion of his ass, he will not be boroughpresident in the borough where I live,”and her refusal to admit that she could,perhaps, have chosen a more productiveway to discuss her outrage at Comrieover his role in the Sonny Carson street-naming debate. Barron and Plummerbrushed off the crux of the threat, madeonly a few feet from a chamber which notso long ago witnessed the actual assassi-nation of Council Member James Davis.

Overlooking the political undercur-

rent would be foolish. Barron, a formerBlack Panther, has built his entire politi-cal persona on exactly these sorts offights, and officially announced his can-didacy for Brooklyn borough president inthe midst of the arguments. Quinn, whois looking to build her appeal beyondbeing a liberal, openly gay ManhattanDemocrat as she prepares to run formayor, surely scored points in the mindsof many more conservative voters fortaking on Barron.

All of them are using Plummer—andnone more so than Plummer herself.

They provide such easy and perfect foilsfor each other as they look toward 2009that one could be forgiven for thinkingthat this whole situation had beenhatched by their political consultants.

But however we got here, we are here.Are we to believe that Plummer and

Barron would be so blasé about a threatto one of their political allies? Would theybe so eager to brush past an assassina-tion suggestion directed at Barron him-self? Would they really have joined therallies to reinstate the job of the personwho said it?

Of course not.Nor will Quinn now make every

Council employee sign a conduct code,nor will she continue to enforce theCouncil floor access restrictions she andher staff remembered just in time to kickPlummer out of the July 25 stated meet-ing. The many police officers contractedfor that task did not even pretend tocheck anyone else’s credentials—themost visible, but far from the only,demonstration of the conveniently incon-sistent standards to which Quinn gave lipservice in her response. For that meetingat least, she could have had the policecheck everyone else in the chamber andtoss those who did not have the right cre-dentials.

This matters. By revealing how easilyinterested parties were able to cherry-pick the supposedly universal rules tosuit their own ends, the situation laysbare the need to create a proactive,signed, stricter, enforceable code of con-duct so that everyone knows whatcounts as appropriate behavior and whatcan be done for those who do not prac-tice it. The issue of speech restrictions isa thorny one, and must be treated seri-ously by all those involved, with verycareful review by lawyers. Everyoneshould be clear on the procedures for hir-ing and firing and suspending, and estab-lish clear, enforceable conduct standardsfor all those on the government payroll.

This started with race, but hasrevealed a much deeper problem. Gettingdistracted by what sparked the debatewould be a huge mistake. After all, imag-ining what happens when clear codes ofconduct remain lacking is not hard: theycall it Albany. C

EDITORIAL

Plummer Codes

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“Open Revolt” at CSAan Exaggeration ofthe Negative

According to David Freedlander’s arti-cle about the Council of SchoolSupervisors andAdministrators, therewas an “open revolt”against my leadership by31 members of a unionthat represents approxi-mately 5,000 members.Only eight of the signersof that negative lettershowed up at a meetingdesigned to answer theirconcerns.

To my way of thinking,over 4,500 CSA membersand more than 1,400 Principals were notpart of this “open revolt.” In addition, thecurrent CSA President, Ernest Logan, wasmy longtime associate and Executive VicePresident. Along with Peter McNally and

Randi Herman, two of my cabinet mem-bers, there was no opposition to their elec-tion when I stepped down to devote myselffull time to my new position.

I am extremely proud of my leader-ship of CSA and that the current contract

is a reflection of many ofmy positions including theExecutive Principal con-tract provision. I was hon-ored to serve CSA mem-bership in a variety ofcapacities since 1989, hav-ing been the foundingdirector of the LeadershipInstitute for Educators,CSA’s first extensive pro-fessional developmentprogram and the currentExecutive Leadership

Institute which you laud in the article.

JILL S. LEVY

PRESIDENT, AMERICAN FEDERATION OF

SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS

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BY REP. CAROLYN MALONEY

The collapse of the World TradeCenter towers took nearly 3,000lives in an instant and released a

massive cloud of asbestos, pulverizedconcrete, and other poisons. These tox-ins have sickened thousands and killed atleast eight—but perhaps dozens more—Americans in the years since 9/11.

The gray dust that billowed throughLower Manhattan that day is said to havebeen as caustic as drain cleaner. It settledin the homes of Lower Manhattan resi-dents; in downtown schools, playgroundsand parks; and in the lungs of tens of thou-sands of Americans. These forgotten vic-tims of 9/11 either lived or worked down-town, courageously volunteered for res-cue and recovery operations at GroundZero, or merely happened to be in LowerManhattan on one of the worst mornings

our country has ever known.In all, more than 70,000 Americans

have reported to the World Trade CenterHealth Registry that they were nearGround Zero in the days following 9/11and now have many serious concernsabout their health.

The 9/11 attacks set in motion a gather-ing health crisis. I and my colleagues in theNew York-area delegation, including Sens.Clinton, Schumer and Menendez, andReps. Fossella, Nadler and Shays, havelong maintained that this national emer-gency requires a strong federal response.

Last month, we received word that theBush Administration has finally begunwork on a comprehensive 9/11 healthcare plan. The Administration’s draft plan(a copy of which can be found on mywebsite, http://maloney.house.gov) isreal progress and it deserves support.

Federally-funded treatment and moni-

toring programs are currently in opera-tion through a consortium of six care-providers in New York and New Jersey.The administration’s plan would usethese New York-area 9/11 health careprograms as a model and expand themnationwide, with the goal of providinguniform, high-quality medical care to firstresponders throughout our country.

This is a credible plan—and one thatthe New York-area delegation has beenasking the administration to produce fornearly two years.

However, like many plans in theirdraft stage, this one clearly needs work.To start, the plan must be expanded toinclude Lower Manhattan residents, areaworkers, students at downtown schools,and the tens of thousands of federalemployees who worked at Ground Zerofollowing the attacks.

Simply put, we need to monitor every-

one exposed to Ground Zero toxins andtreat anyone who is sick as a result. Whoyou were on 9/11 shouldn’t matter—if youwere exposed to Trade Center toxins, youshould get the care you need, period.

The stakes could hardly be higher:According to the draft plan, every month,another 500 to 1,000 World Trade Centerresponders sign up for health monitoring atthe six 9/11 health care centers, and a sig-nificant number of those new registrantsneed treatment. All told, more than 6,500responders are currently being treated forphysical illnesses and more than 4,500 havebeen referred for mental health care.

There is a strong precedent for caringfor civilians who respond to an act ofwar: Following the Pearl Harbor attacks,Congress passed legislation to providehealth care and compensation to civil-ians who rescued the injured and helpedsalvage our Pacific Fleet. We should dothe same for those whose health wascompromised by the 9/11 attacks. It’ssimply the right thing to do.

The bottom line is that this draft plan isincomplete and nearly six years late. But itis a good start toward meeting our coun-try’s moral obligation to care for thosewho were injured or made sick by an act ofwar. Six thousand Americans and countinghave 9/11-related illnesses. For their sakeand for the good of our country, there is nobetter time than now for the administra-tion to finally put its plan into action. C

Carolyn Maloney is a Democrat repre-

senting parts of Manhattan and Queens

in the House of Representatives. She co-

authored the James Zadroga 9/11 Health

and Compensation Act, which would

extend medical monitoring and treatment

to everyone whose health was compro-

mised by 9/11 and reopen the federal

Victim Compensation Fund for those sick-

ened or injured as a result of the attacks.

OP-EDBush’s Long-Awaited 9/11 Health CarePlan is a Good Start—But Needs Work

BY CITY COUNCIL MEMBERDAVID WEPRIN

If a congestion pricing plan is imple-mented, thousands of New Yorkerswill be forced to suffer a head-on col-

lision with a tax that could cost them asmuch as $2,000 a year. The damage wouldbe even worse for small businesses thatemploy trucks to ship their products intoManhattan, as the suggested fee for themwould be set at over $5,000 a year.Regardless of what argument you hearout of the Bloomberg admin-istration about the necessityof implementing congestionpricing, it is a tax; and it is atax being levied on thosewho can least afford it dur-ing a time when the city isenjoying a $5 billion surplus.Traffic congestion is a prob-lem that needs to beaddressed, but other alternatives shouldbe studied before we punish commuterswho live in the outer-boroughs.

Now the state has formed a commis-sion to study the impacts of congestion onthe citizens and businesses in our city. Iapplaud this effort as now a careful andconsiderate dialogue can take place toaddress this growing concern. Further, theMTA is now proposing raising fares onNew York’s buses and subways which isfurther convoluting the issue. It is my hopethat this commission will take advantageof this opportunity and consider reason-able alternatives to the administration’scurrent plan. Let me be very clear: Trafficcongestion is a problem that is not goingaway by itself, but there are alternatives to

the imposition of a regressive tax.Commuters, small businesses and

working class families, as well as otherouter-borough neighborhoods who havevery limited access to public transporta-tion and have to rely on their cars to getinto Manhattan, would unfairly sufferfrom a congestion tax. Many neighbor-hoods outside of Manhattan will be devas-tated by a congestion tax because it willleave people with the unenviable choiceof either paying more money to get towork or traveling long distances to reach

the few crowded forms of mass transitthat are available to them. Working classpeople who cannot afford the excessivefee will be bumped off the streets andcrowded onto ill-equipped buses and sub-ways to free up the streets for the privi-leged few who can afford to pay the tax.

What I find equally disingenuous aboutthe proposal is the argument that conges-tion pricing would be good for the envi-ronment. In fact, it does nothing toaddress the prevalence of backgroundpollutants found with greater frequencyin areas such as Long Island City, EastHarlem, Bed Stuy, the South Bronx andJamaica. Residents of these areas, partic-ularly younger children, endure high rates

of asthma, yet would see no relief fromthe proposed congestion pricing plan.

No one can ignore the fact that we dohave a congestion problem but the idea oftaxing the working class as the only meansof reducing traffic is short-sighted. Trafficmitigation alternatives include more vigor-ous enforcement of existing traffic andparking rules, like cracking down on dou-ble and triple parked cars, preventingtrucks from parking in loading zones oncethey have completed their deliveries,reducing non-emergency deliveries during

the day and stopping taxisfrom middle of the streetpick-ups and drop-offs.Improving traffic manage-ment, offering incentives tomotorists and businesses touse mass transit, andimproving the public trans-portation system—especial-ly in the boroughs outside of

Manhattan—will also reduce traffic with-out having to impose another tax.

Initiating a congestion traffic tax now istantamount to putting the cart before thehorse. Improvements to our mass transitsystem and exploring other avenues ofrelief are necessary first steps. The factremains that no one disputes the need toreduce congestion in both Manhattan andthe rest of the city, but there is nothinginnovative about a congestion pricing planbecause it is just another unfair tax withwhich we are all too familiar. C

David Weprin is a Democrat repre-

senting parts of Queens on the City

Council. He is chair of the Council

Finance Committee.

Rep. Carolyn Maloney

welcomessubmissions to

the op-ed page. Apiece should bemaximum 650

words long,accompanied by the name and address

of the author, and submitted via email [email protected]

to be considered.

Congestion Pricing: Still an Accident Waiting to Happen

Let me be very clear: Trafficcongestion is a problem that is

not going away by itself, butthere are alternatives to the

imposition of a regressive tax.


PUBLIC ADVOCATE BETSY GOTBAUM (D)is one of several names often discussed for the2009 mayoral election. One of her biggest cheer-

leaders: husband and labor leader Victor Gotbaum, whotold City Hall in this past February’s “Political PowerCouples” issue that she would be “the best god-damnedmayor the city’s ever had.”

Gotbaum recently sat down at Everest Diner onChatham Square to talk about her mayoral hopes, whythe city needs an ombudsman and the only dog shecould never train.

What follows is an edited transcript.

City Hall: Have you gotten any particularly interest-ing calls lately?Betsy Gotbaum: About five years ago, I got on this kickabout food stamps. And the reason I got on a kick aboutfood stamps is I got a call from one guy—his name isEric Wilson—and Eric was in a homeless shelter withhis children and he had been denied food stamps. Whichis illegal. So that started a whole huge program where,in addition to getting more information out to NewYorkers to know about how you get food stamps, wewere able to persuade the powers that be that theyshould reduce the application to two pages. And then Iwas able to raise about $1 million through privatemoney to give to the United Way to do a food stamp out-reach project—all from one call.

[Gotbaum orders white meat turkey sandwich on

whole wheat toast with extra mustard on the side and

an iced tea.]

CH: How do you respond to people who either don’tknow what the public advocate is, or worse, arefamiliar with the office and want to get rid of it?BG: I totally disagree with people who say they want toget rid of the office. Because I think this is a veryimportant office for one huge reason: the mayor ofNew York City has an enormous amount of power andcontrol. You need checks and balances. For example,when the school bus fiasco occurred, that was wrong.It was just the wrong thing to do. And somebody had tocall them on it.

CH: But a lot of people were calling them on it.BG: Well I think I was the first one.

CH: Since you’re a citywide official, does that makeyour criticism more powerful?BG: Sure, I think it does. It makes it more powerful.When I was Parks Commissioner, one of the things thatwas the most helpful for me was when a Council personor a civic leader would call me and say, “Such-and-sucha park is a mess.” And I’d say, “Wait a minute. My super-visor told me that it’s fine.” They’d say, “No, no, no—it’sa mess, it’s horrible. Come out and see.” And I’d go outand see and they were right. Your supervisors want youto look good, they want to look good, but you can’t be inevery park at all times.

CH: Your husband says you’d be a great mayor. Doyou agree with him?BG: Oh, I agree with him, sure.

CH: Are you interested in running for mayor?BG: Leaving my options open.

CH: You could actually be mayor since Bloomberghas been making moves to possibly run for presi-dent. Which means you could be mayor, briefly.BG: If he were to step down, I would be mayor for 60days. Or if he won, I would be mayor for 60 days. Andthen I’d be mayor for 60 days and of course I’d runthen—if you hand it to me. Of course I’d run then.

CH: Do you have any pets?BG: No. I love dogs. My last dog we got at the pound—the dog from hell. I loved him but I couldn’t train him todo anything. He bit me a couple of times. Eight months,trying to make this dog like me. The only funny storywith this dog—which isn’t that funny, actually—he bitme, and one day I was having a meeting with [Health]Commissioner Frieden. And he had bitten me here[motions to face]. And I came in and he sees bloodand—as you know, he’s a doctor—he says, “What’s that?Are you okay?” I said, “Yes. My feelings are hurt. It’s adog bite.” He says, “Maybe you should go and have thatlooked at.” He was wonderful—he took care of it. Thedog had all his shots and everything. So a few days later,I got a notice from the Department of Health—this hadnothing to do with Tom Frieden—it was a coincidencebecause my husband had been sitting in the park hold-ing the dog on a leash and the dog had bitten somebody.And I got this notice because the dog was registered inmy name: “If your dog bites one more person we’regoing to have to destroy it.” And then we found aCatholic priest who was going to train him, and thepriest couldn’t train him, so the priest found a home [forhim] in Maine.

CH: Do you like to cook?BG: I love to cook.

CH: What are your specialties? Do you like baking...BG: I hate baking. I’m terrible at baking. I’m good at fish,vegetables, salads, chicken. I’m not a good bakerbecause I don’t measure well.

CH: Does your husband ever cook you dinner?BG: Oh, please!

CH: Does he microwave you dinner? Order out din-ner for you?BG: He can’t even use the microwave. He can order din-ner. You sort of give up after a while.

CH: What’s the last movie you saw?BG: “Sicko.” I thought it was terrific. I don’t think every-thing is perfect in Canada, and I certainly know it’s notperfect in England or France, but the exaggeration isvery funny and the stories about what goes on in thiscountry were horrific. It just brought home what I real-ly believe—we really have to do something about thehealthcare system.

CH: What’s the biggest mistake you made in officeso far?BG: Using the car when I shouldn’t have—but I didn’t know,I didn’t do it on purpose. Because it became a big deal andit’s so distracting from me and the office. It was a mistake, Imade a mistake and I was wrong, but it was a huge mistake.And nobody told us. Why don’t they tell us? Give us the pol-icy. We all want to know. I’m not unusual. That’s the one thatI feel was the most—it caused a lot of anxiety in our officeand it caused me a lot of personal anxiety. C

[email protected]

Turkey Sandwiches andIced Tea with Betsy Gotbaum

To read more about which side oftown Betsy Gotbaum prefers, her

thoughts on her grandchildren’s behavior and thecelebrity with whom she shares a work-out sched-ule, visit www.cityhallnews.com.

While perusing the menu at Everest Diner,Betsy Gotbaum discussed the options aheadof her for 2009—and perhaps earlier—in themayor’s race.

The public advocate likes her turkey sand-wiches with extra mustard and her mayorswith checks and balances.

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City Hall: How has the transition fromcovering City Hall to the presidentialrace been?Michael Saul: It’s a whole new world.For the past six years I’ve focused all ofmy professional energy and attention onMayor Bloomberg, his administrationand the major issues facing the city. Inmy new job, I’m now concentrating onthe candidates who aspire to be presi-dent and the major issues facing ournation. In the past, on a busy day, I’dtravel to a few boroughs on the pressvan; these days, I’m flying around thecountry. The southeast Bronx is very dif-ferent from southeast Iowa—trust me.

CH: What has been the toughest part?MS: Getting up to speed on all the newplayers and the new issues. WithBloomberg, I know (almost) everythinghe’s said and done publicly since June2001. With my new beat (and any newbeat), I need to learn quickly the historyof the candidates and their specific policypositions. It takes time to learn the ropes.

CH: How have you managed yournew travel schedule?MS: I love to travel. During my time withBloomberg, I’ve traveled to the DominicanRepublic, Puerto Rico, Athens, Singapore,Israel and a slew of cities around theUnited States. But that was spread outover six years. With the new gig, I’m trav-eling much more frequently. In July alone,I’ve been to Iowa, Detroit, Miami Beachand St. Louis. Sure, air travel can be frus-trating. On my way to Detroit, I was stuckon the runway at La Guardia for threehours, diverted to Louisville and Chicagoand didn’t arrive at my hotel in the MotorCity until close to 1 a.m. But, hey, that’s allpart of the glamour of being on the presi-dential campaign trail, right?

CH: Do you think Mayor Bloombergwill run for president?MS: There is no question MayorBloomberg and his aides are contemplat-ing the possibility of his running for pres-ident. I suspect sometime next year, afterthe Democrats and Republicans choose

a nominee, the mayor will assess thepolitical landscape and make a decision.If he thinks he could win—and that’s abig, big, big if—my guess is he’ll go for it.Mayor Bloomberg’s entire professionallife has been about taking risks. What’sriskier than running for president? And ifhe runs, it will—without question—havean enormous impact on the race.

CH: What have you found thatreporters tend to overlook in the pres-idential race?MS: Well, I’m too new to presidential pol-itics to be offering criticism of themedia’s coverage. But, much like anypolitical contest, whether it’s for theWhite House or Gracie Mansion, mem-bers of the media often devote more inkand airtime to the horse race and incon-sequential political flaps and not enoughink and airtime to important policy issuesand substantive investigative reporting.

CH: Looking back, what story that youhave written is most memorable to you?

MS: I’m proud of a great many stories. Butrather than choose one, I’d say I’m mostproud of consistently and doggedly askingthe mayor the tough questions and doingmy best to do what he says journalistsshould be doing—holding elected officialsand government accountable. C


Political reporters on the record

The Room 9 Veteran in Southeast IowaMichael Saul used to have the proud distinction of having covered Michael Bloomberg longer than

any other reporter—beginning in the 2001 campaign, and continuing for the next six years as City HallBureau Chief for The Daily News. In July, he brought that streak to an end, switching beats to cover thepresidential race. Saul recently checked in with City Hall from the campaign trail to discuss making themove, how his fellow presidential campaign reporters compare with his old colleagues in Room 9 and acertain familiar face he expects to cover as part of his new beat very soon.

Michael Saul, the former City Hallbureau chief for The Daily News, isnow covering the presidential race.

With the heat of summer hang-ing heavy over New York, CityHall asked Council members

which of their colleagues they wouldwant in the big chair—the lifeguardchair, that is, to help watch over them atthe pool or beach.

When asked the question, HiramMonserrate (D-Queens) picked himselfimmediately, explaining, “HiramMonserrate, the guy who’s in the bestshape.”

But though fitness was one of the fac-tors which helped get Monserrate tied forfirst place in the October 2006 poll aboutwhich Council member would make thebest survivor on a desert island, Councilmembers were less willing to pick himfor lifeguard. The only vote forMonserrate was his own.

Leroy Comrie (D-Queens) gave thenod to Erik Martin Dilan, whom Comriecalled “wiry and fast.”

Michael Nelson (D-Brooklyn), though,said that Health Committee Chair JoelRivera was the obvious winner of the fit-ness contest.

“I’ve seen him play basketball, andhe’s in great shape,” Nelson said.

And Thomas White (D-Queens) saidthey were all wrong, as he tried to imag-ine his colleagues dressed for the part of

lifeguard.“I don’t know who can swim,” he said.

“Who can wear a swimsuit? I have tothink of somebody physically fit.Lappin—she seems physically fit.”

James Vacca (D-Bronx), however, saidthat if that were the standard being used,the vote should go to David Yassky (D-Brooklyn).

“I think he’s the skinniest on theCouncil,” Vacca said.

This seemed to explain the poorshowing of one usually popular Councilmember who received just a single vote.

“I wouldn’t want to see Simcha Felderin a bathing suit,” said Peter Vallone, Jr.(D-Queens)

But Felder insisted that the reason forhis loss was more substantive than that:he lacks one very necessary skill thatwould qualify him for the job. Other thanthat, he believed himself perfect for therole.

“If I knew how to swim, I would makethe best lifeguard,” Felder said.

Instead of voting for himself, then,Felder was one of the eight people tovote for Vallone, the winner of thismonth’s poll. (Rivera joined them,though he noted that the choicebetween Vallone and ManhattanDemocrat Robert Jackson was

a “toss-up.”)And taking an entirely different tack,

Vincent Ignizio (R-Staten Island), basedhis choice on simple environmentalexposure.

“I’ll go with the Coney Island guy,”Ignizio said, joining three others in votingfor Domenic Recchia, the Democrat whorepresents the famous waterfront inBrooklyn. “I think he’s got the experi-ence.”

The reason for all the divided opin-ions, at least according to Dilan, was thelack of good options.

Dilan eventually picked Alan Gerson(D-Manhattan). But that was only whenpressed. His first answer was somewhatmore definitive.

“Shit, nobody,” hesaid. “If my life isin their hands, Idon’t trust any ofthem.”

THE AUGUST

POLLWhich City Council MemberWould Make the Best Lifeguard? Peter Vallone, Jr. 8

Letitia James 4Domenic Recchia 4Joel Rivera 4Erik Martin Dilan 3Lewis Fidler 3Jessica Lappin 3James Oddo 3G. Oliver Koppell 2Diana Reyna 2

Council members whoreceived more than one vote

All 51 Council Membersand Public Advocate BetsyGotbaum wereasked, thoughseven did not vote.

City Hall: Do you support every issue you get behind?Richard Lipsky: Generally speaking, yes. In order forme to be effective, I need to have some empathy withthe situation. It just gives me a sense of my own credi-bility and enhances my ability to fight for the issue.

CH: Do people come to you, or do you go to them?RL: On congestion pricing I was approached by theCoalition [Anti-Congestion Pricing Coalition]. But, thereare other times when I will reach out when I see an issuedeveloping, I look to see who is involved in the issue andI will approach them about doing work on their behalf.

CH: What were your thoughts on congestion pricing?RL: It was something that I was instinctively critical ofeven before I was hired. The thing that put my eye ini-tially there was the $21 tax on trucks. I immediately didnot see any way in which this was a traffic congestionreliever. I saw it exclusively as a tax, which is what it is.That gave me pause. The other thing that gave me pauseand got my skeptical hackles up about the mayor’s pro-posal was his newfound affinity for environmentalactivism. I actually had a discussion with one of myenvironmental consultants who remarked, “I guess thenew mayor is trying to undo everything that the oldmayor did in his first five years.”

CH: How did you get involved with the businessesthreatened by Columbia’s proposed expansion andWal-Mart?RL: The similarity in all of these land-use fights is the abil-ity to develop coalitions either in support or opposition—the ability to deconstruct the nature of the developer’sclaims here. You’re never going to be successful just argu-ing the business interests of the folks who are negativelyimpacted. The community needs to be involved.

CH: Why did you get involved with Atlantic Yards?RL: The question usually is, “Why are you for AtlanticYards when you are usually Dr. No in most case?” Theanswer to that is that I really believed strongly and con-tinue to believe strongly in the potential good that theAtlantic Yards project can bring. My initial attractioncame from a long time academic interest of mine, whichwas the role of sports and its impact on politics andcommunity. My dissertation in graduate school was onthe political and social impact of American sports. TheNets coming to Brooklyn can have a positive impact onthe extensive network of youth sports activities in the

borough. There can be linkages between the two ofthem to the benefit of both.

CH: How long do you usually work with an organi-zation or on an issue? Does it become a lifelongrelationship?RL: Sometimes. But sometimes it’s, “Thanks very muchand see you down the road.” Especially with businessinterests, there are people who hire you based on animmediate need and then once that need is either excep-tionally addressed or not, the issue goes away. But withother folks, like the United Food and Commercial Foodand Workers Union who I did work on about all the boxstores and other issues that the union has from a lobby-ing standpoint, that’s been in place for a long time.

CH: How do you charge for your services? RL: It’s usually a standard lobbying contract, which is amonthly retainer.

CH: There’s a lot of overlap between your clients. Doyou have allies that transfer from one cause toanother?RL: The projects tend to be localized, though, in that youmight have a general bodega association, a businesscongress or another small group that might have aninterest. But usually the fight is won or lost at the locallevel initially. If you don’t have the support at the locallevel, even when you are in opposition to something, it’s

very tough to win that battle when it gets to CityHall. The natural energy and momentum on allof these projects is to go forward and to dosomething, so it is more difficult to be in opposi-tion.

CH: Do you have any personal issues thatyou support aside from those you are paid tolobby for?RL: I do really have a personal attachment tosmaller business. Initially coming out of the uni-versity, I came out with the usual mindset of bigbusiness and the capitalist system and stuff likethat…kind of an anti-capitalist perspective.Getting involved in working with supermarketsand beer distributors and a lot of family-runbusinesses gave me a real appreciation for whatgoes into business development and job cre-ation and how creative that is. It really is thesecret to the success of the American politicalsystem. From a personal standpoint, it has prob-ably made me more conservative. I tend to seegovernment in a more negative light—that itsregulations and taxes are variables that detractfrom business growing. I’m not a big fan of thegovernment as a solver of problems. That’scome out of the work I’ve done over the last 25years.

CH: Were you a supporter of MayorBloomberg when he first ran?RL: The mayor had no supporters, at least not tomy understanding. As a lobbyist he certainlywasn’t reaching out to any of us, one way or theother. But, no. Who knew what his politicswere? He didn’t run saying that the first thinghe’d do was prohibit smoking anywhere andeverywhere. He didn’t say that. It was also hardto imagine that he was going to win that race.So, I wasn’t that pressured, let’s put it that way.

CH: So what does that mean for your partyaffiliation?RL: I’m more of a Libertarian, but I’m a regis-tered Democrat. It’s my instinctive opposition toa lot of the mayor’s efforts to control behavior

and guide behavior. People should have the right tomake their own decisions, and are capable of makingtheir own decisions. I think: educate, rather than regu-late.

CH: What’s the one thing that people get wrongabout the life and work of a lobbyist?RL: I don’t see myself as a typical lobbyist, even thoughin many ways I am. The typical view of the lobbyist is theguy or the gal who’s close to certain elected officials andwho uses the intimacy and the relationship and perhapsthe campaign contributions to generate influence. That’snever really been the backbone of my lobbying practice.

CH: So, as the proclaimed defender of the mom-and-pop stores, do you ever shop at any big box stores?RL: I have been in big stores. I have been in a couple ofWal-Marts, primarily to get a gauge on just what is beingoffered and to get a better understanding of them. Forgroceries, I tend to stay with smaller union-run stores.We shop at Target on occasion and we kind of like it. Butthe major box stores, I stay away from: B.J.’s, Costco andWal-Mart, because of a) their labor practices, and b) Ijust don’t like them. Even Home Depot, which I shop inoccasionally, I tend to get lost. I can’t go to the owner orthe manager and say that I need help with something. Ijust like that kind of shopping better. C

Interview conducted by Carla [email protected]


Richard Lipsky, founder of Lipsky & Associates,says his business is run just like the mom-and-pop shops he works to protect. His son,

“The Great Matthew Lipsky” launched the elderLipsky’s various blogs—including www.momand-pop.com—and his wife, Dorothy Lipsky, have been“intimately involved in the business for years.”

Best known for his work keeping Wal-Mart out ofthe city, Lipsky has been involved with some of thecity’s hottest topics, including congestion pricingand Columbia University’s West Harlem expansion.

Lipsky talked with City Hall about his work andwhat he believes sets him apart from other lobby-ists.

Dr. No, PhD:

Richard Lipsky says some of the issues he supports asa lobbyist are natural outgrowths of views he devel-oped while pursuing his PhD in political science atthe CUNY graduate center.

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Woo-ful PressRelease Pun

City Council Member John Liu’s (D-Queens) outreach director, Andy Woo,tried a different tactic to make his pressrelease about public toilets in the Councildistrict stand out from the nearly con-stant stream of releases Liu and his staffpour into inboxes each day.

For the subject line, “New Toilets aFlushing Success,” Woo co-opted theheadline from the July 24 Daily News

article about the installation of the firstpublic toilet, now self-flushing and clean-ing itself on the streets of Queens.

But one potty pun was not apparentlynot enough for Woo, who wanted to callattention to “efforts to install an automat-ic public toilet as has been advocated forby Council Member Loo—I mean Liu.”

No word yet on when Woo will beheadlining at Caroline’s.

Bay State Proposal:Vote for Do-Overs

In a state where 70 percent of candi-dates ran unopposed last year, a new pro-posal in the Massachusetts legislaturewould allow voters to pull the lever for“None of the Above; For a New Election.”

If this option received a plurality ofvotes, a new election will be held twomonths later. The bill’s sponsors said theoption will foster competition.

Banking onGovernment Business

The corner of Broadway and WarrenStreet looked more like a carnival than abank opening.

Across the street from the newlyreopened north end of City Hall Park,Commerce Bank opened for businessAugust 2. Commerce is hoping this newbranch will increase its presence andappeal in the government community inand around Lower Manhattan.

To entice new customers, the bankgave away free hot dogs and pretzels. Inaddition, there was a raffle for a $500cash prize, a stilt walker and a band play-ing Caribbean music.

Former City Council Speaker Peter

Vallone, Sr. (D-Queens), whose consult-ing firm lobbies for Commerce Bank, wasthe centerpiece of the ceremonial cuttingof a ribbon made from a string of mock

$100 and $50 bills.Robert Walsh, commissioner of the

city’s Department of Small BusinessServices, commended the bank on itscontribution to nonprofits and the smallbusiness community. He also compli-mented the spacious, decorated interior.

“They’re great neighbors,” he said.“They connect back to the community.”

The Young and theLeftists

Queens Council Member Eric Gioia,an expected candidate for theDemocratic nomination for public advo-cate in 2009, got national attention for hisfood stamp challenge earlier this year,trying to live on $28 worth of food for aweek. Now he has a national award inrecognition of that and his other work atthe races.

Gioia was presented with the John F.Kennedy Young Democrat Award at thenational convention of Young Democratsheld in Dallas, Texas, in late July. Theaward recognizes ongoing commitmentand achievement within the YoungDemocrats of America and overall. Gioiawas nominated for the award by theQueens chapter of the Young Democrats.

Meanwhile, the Manhattan YoungDemocrats won an award for outstand-ing local chapter, given to the best localchapter in the country. The local groupalso won the outstanding local one-timeevent award.

The chapter wasrecognized for theirefforts in helpingDemocrats win two

tight races in the state, fundraising, andassisting in the campaign of a chaptermember, Assembly Member Micah

Kellner (D-Manhattan). Kellner won theseat in a June 5 special election to suc-ceed Alexander “Pete” Grannis (D).

Six members of the New York YoungDemocrats were elected to the nationalboard of the organization, to serve asnational secretary, labor caucus secre-tary, disabilities issues caucus secretary,caucus secretary and Jewish caucus par-liamentarian.

Nonna Hoping toMake Next ElectionSwanson’s Swansong

A Manhattan attorney is trying towrest control of the most Republicanseat in the Westchester county legisla-ture.

Democrat John Nonna, a partner atLeboeuf, Lamb, Greene and MacRae anda former mayor of Pleasantville, is chal-lenging Conservative incumbentSuzanne Swanson in the centralWestchester district. There are 17 seatsin the county legislature. Swanson’s isone of five in the Republican caucus.

Nonna has made environmentalissues and affordable housing for seniorcitizens and young professionals twokey parts of his campaign. He pointed toprograms such as mass transit, openspace preservation and funding for

affordable housing construction as keyplatform items.

Nonna, chairman of the New YorkDemocratic Lawyers Council, said thecampaign has been progressing well andhe is not worried about the Republicanenrollment advantage, noting that hewon Republican votes in Pleasantvilleelections.

“If you can get out the vote, you canwin,” Nonna said, looking ahead to theNovember election. “In a local officeelection, the key is getting out the base.”

From the Inbox:Bloomberg’sBillionaire Appeal

Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s

(Unaff.) reported flirtation with a WhiteHouse run has enthralled commentatorsand consultants across the country. Butthe rumors that he might drop up to abillion dollars in a self-funded run havecaught the attention of more than justthe professional political class—at leastaccording to this email, reprinted as it

appeared in the City Hall inbox:

Subject:Open letter to Mayor Bloomberg

Dear Mayor Bloomberg,News reports say that you may be run-ning for President in 2008.i would hate for you to spend all thatmoney and NOT winning.i’m a single mother raising a child whohas cerebral palsy.all we ever needed is a home of our own.i work hard but, i don’t make enough topurchase our own home.Could you provide us with the monies topurchase a home for us?the monies will go to a good cause.and with your kindness and generousityyou will be a winner!.thank you, very much

pat and terrence grausdetroit, michigan

—John R.D. Celock,

Edward-Isaac Dovere, Dan Rivoli


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The long saga of the Second Avenue Subway has caught the eye ofAbsolut Vodka’s marketers. In its new campaign to present snap-shots of an ideal world, Absolut placed an open T station on thesoutheast corner of 86th Street and Second Avenue. Trains are notexpected to be running through a station there or anywhere else onSecond Avenue until 2013. But would having trains on the tracksactually make for an Absolut world? An old proposal for the then-abandoned stretch of tunnel dug in the 1970s—where the April 12,2007, ceremonial groundbreaking was held—would have trans-formed the space into a communal wine cellar. The Absolut mar-keters seem to have picked their poison.

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Dedicated. Keeping our skills sharp

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city hall - august 1, 2007

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