deB Bus Owners Bribes Continues for 3 More Years
End de Blasio's giveaway to bus companies (NYP) Last month, the de Blasio administration extended a city
program that has been eroding savings gained through a competitive-bidding
process and undermining the integrity of the city’s contracting system. The
program was bad policy from the outset, but it was intended to last only one
year. It’s now been extended for a third year. The City Council should defund
it in the upcoming budget negotiations. The
de Blasio team conceived of the School Bus Grant Program as a one-year
workaround to overcome its objections to competitively bid contracts awarded to
school-bus transportation companies by the Bloomberg administration. Mayor de
Blasio criticized his predecessor for driving too hard a bargain on behalf of
taxpayers and, rather than wait to negotiate a new set of contracts, he chose
to give the companies grants to increase employee wages and benefits. The Bloomberg folks started a process in 2012
to re-bid school-bus transportation contracts that were costing the city more
than $1 billion annually. The contracts had historically included employee
protections for seniority and pay, but a 2011 legal decision ruled those
protections illegal. Re-bidding the contracts without those provisions injected
new competition into the process and saved the city more than $400 million. The grants effectively invalidated a
competitive-bidding process that awards contracts to the lowest responsible
bidder. They also increased city costs without any additional benefit to
taxpayers. In addition, the program set a troublesome precedent for other
vendors that provide services to the city and might seek similar enhancements
to their already agreed-upon contracts. After
a failed attempt to pass state legislation reinstating employee protections,
the de Blasio regime has now extended the program for a third year at a projected cost of more than $30 million.
This reinforces the status of this supplemental funding as a permanent
entitlement, not a temporary bridge to new, more cost-effective, bus contracts.
Update on the Brooklyn DA Race
Update on the Brooklyn DA Race
NAACP leader stumps for formerprosecutor in race for Brooklyn district attorney (NYDN) * Working FamiliesParty endorses 'progressive choice' Eric Gonzalez for Brooklyn districtattorney (NYDN) * The owner of two Brooklyn construction companies was
charged with manslaughter for ignoring complaints about a poorly maintained
retaining wall that collapsed at a work site in 2015, killing an
18-year-old laborer and injuring two others, The New York Times reports.
City Even Killing Affordable Housing in the Bronx Breaking Yankee Stadium Affordable Housing Deal by Schlein Who is Still A Bronx Shadow Boss
NYC;s Economic Problems and the
Poor
The Danny Farrell Era is Coming to A Close
The longtime head of the powerful Assembly Ways and Means
Committee, Herman “Denny” Farrell, will not seek re-election in 2018, and it’s
unclear whether the 85 year old will step down before his term is up, Ken Lovett writes in the Daily
News.
Newsday to End NY's Voter Suppression Vote for A Constitutional Constitutional Convention in Nov. Dem Senate Leader Stewart-Cousins Against Convention
If state lawmakers refuse to make it easier to
cast ballots and to run for office in New York, the re-energized public can get
it done on its own – by voting in November for a constitutional convention, Newsday writes. * Democratic lawmaker warns
against convention to change N.Y. constitution (NYDN) State Senate Democratic
Minority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins is the latest state leader opposing a
push for a convention to make changes to the state constitution. “While the intent of one may be good, the
reality is much different,” Stewart-Cousins told the Daily News Monday. “In
this dangerous era of Trump there is a concern that powerful corporate
interests will try, and possibly succeed, in making fundamental changes to our
State Constitution that are antithetical to our New York values.” The Yonkers Democrat is the latest
legislative leader to oppose the measure. Only Assembly GOP Minority Leader
Brian Kolb backs a constitutional convention.
Every 20 years, including this year, New Yorkers are asked to vote in a
public referendum whether to hold a constitutional convention. The head of the state AFL-CIO, fearing
potential anti-worker changes could be adopted, has said he is “adamantly”
against a constitutional convention while a number of government reform groups
support the idea as the best way to get needed ethics and other changes
enacted. Gov. Cuomo recently told the
Daily News Editorial Board that he supports the idea in concept but fears it
would be controlled by special interests groups. Democratic activist and Effective New York
founder Bill Samuels, who is funding an effort in support of a convention,
recently called on Cuomo to take a position on the issue “without any
equivocation.”
Will Anyone Explaine Why Everyone Around Mayor Sleaze Faces Charges But the Prosecutors Give Him A Pass?
When Will the Media Look At Why the Political System Will Re-Elect A Mayor Who Has Sold the City for Power?
A mayor sliding across the sleaze (NYDN) In just a few days, a guy who kicked big
bucks to de Blasio’s operation in the hopes of winning favors from his
administration will take the stand as the government’s star witness in its case
against another guy. That guy is on
trial for the Ponzi scheme he allegedly ran, when he wasn’t also kicking big
bucks to the de Blasio’s operation in the hopes of getting government favors. Yet de Blasio looks like a solid bet to win
reelection since prosecutors let him off the hook with a public scolding in
March for his various sundry schemes. Now
that he’s not facing charges and his most potent potential rivals have ceded
the field, the mayor seems undisturbed by the sleaze dripping everywhere in de
Blasio’s New York.Like his donor turned federal witness, Jona Rechnitz, paying
a hooker to entertain top cops as he joined them on a private flight to Vegas
and Super Bowl party there. Hand-delivering $60,000 in a $820 Ferragamo bag to
another sucker caught up in that Ponzi scheme, the powerful and now-disgraced
corrections union boss who declared “it’s about time Norman Seabrook got paid”
as he took that relative pittance in exchange for dumping $20 million of his
members’ money into a failing hedge fund.
The head of that jails system, Joe Ponte, violating clear rules by using
his city car for frequent trips to Maine — the sort of thing civil servants get
fired for doing and a conflict of interest so severe that even the Department
of Investigation led by de Blasio’s 2013 campaign treasurer called him out
after the mayor tried to blame the “systemic” abuse on mistaken “guidance” from
an unnamed official. The city okaying a luxury building to go up on the site of
what had been a nursing home for AIDS patients. The city’s best-paid lobbyist —
also a longtime confidant of and big donor to de Blasio — represented that
group for a while, though he says he wasn’t involved in the deal. And also says he wasn’t involved in the
ceremony on the steps of City Hall last month where the mayor honored Dwight
Gooden 31 years after his World Series win with the Mets, an event the city
paid for even though it was, the New York Times reported, “conceived as a scene
for a television series in development” produced by one of the same lobbyist’s
clients. Last May,
de Blasio promised to deliver a list of all the money his operations collected
from people whose requests his administration then rejected. Months later, he
backtracked, echoing Trump’s audit alibi for hiding his taxes by saying that
list would have to wait until the various probes of his operation were done. This April, after the probes were over and
he’d wriggled off of the legal hook, de Blasio said there would be no list at
all but just an Op-Ed “this month” detailing a few “examples.” After that, it’ll be time for Mike
Bloomberg’s advice to critics after he won reelection in 2005 and was
presumably term-limited out: “They can boo me at parades.”
Judges Cannot Double Dip on Pension Pols Can
Court bars judges from taking both salaries and pensions (NYP)
Charles Barron Where de Blasio Wants to Put Black People
Shelters and jails, de Blasio’s new homes for us! (Amsterdam News)
DEB Opposes Bill Limiting Noise Near Schools Sides With Developer Who Hired His Lawyer Who is the Lobbyist for the Developer
The Pay to Play Conflict of
Interests of de Blasio'sCriminal Law Firm in the Federal and State
Investigation That Also Lobby's Himfor Developers
Record Year for Lobbyists Even Before the the Manhattan DA and Fed Let de Blasio Lobbyists Off of Criminal Charges 4 Days After Bharara Was Fired
It’s A Good Time To Be A Lobbyist In NYC (Village Voice) Total
compensation hit $95.4 million last year, up from $86 million in 2015
and far beyond the $62 million lobbyists took home in 2013, the last year
Michael Bloomberg was in office. The winners so far have been those most
closely tied to Mayor Bill de Blasio: James Capalino, an old friend linked to the Rivington House scandal, and Kramer Levin Naftalis
& Frankel, the law and lobbying firm which represented de Blasio during
federal investigations into his fundraising tactics. (He was eventually cleared of all charges.) Further down the list, but never too far, is
Constantinople & Vallone, the government relations consulting firm
co-founded by Peter Vallone Sr., the former Speaker of the City Council. The
firm took in a little over $3 million in 2016, representing
a wide range of clients including TD Bank, Walgreens, T-Mobile, and real estate
developers like Alma Realty, who were initially tied to a proposed affordable housing
development on the Queens waterfront. Now
one of their own is making the relatively rare move of trying to join the
legislative body they lobby. Keith Powers, who until recently served as vice president
at Constantinople & Vallone, is a top contender for an open City Council
seat on the East Side of Manhattan. Powers, a Democratic district leader and
longtime activist, worked for State Senator Liz Krueger, a prominent
progressive in the area, and former assemblyman Jonathan Bing before joining
Constantinople & Vallone in 2011.
Record Year for Lobbyists Even Before the the Manhattan DA and Fed Let de Blasio Lobbyists Off of Criminal Charges 4 Days After Bharara Was Fired
Senate GOP Wants to Link Mayoral Control Extension of Mayoral Control of City Schools to Expansion of the Number of Charters Schools
Education Update
de Blasio Fake News Inflated Grad Rates
Rivington Deed, CONY, Closed LICH Hospital Lobbyists "Investigation Over" Welcome Back Capalino @City Hall With 86 Mets
@nahmias Remember last month, when @NYCMayor said he'd write an op-ed about his donors, to be published
"this month?" It's May now. No op-ed!
Another Real Estate Scandal for Capalino
De Blasio lobbyist tied to another real estate scandal (NYP) A lobbyist tied to the de Blasio administration’s Rivington House scandal helped a Soho developer win approval for a condo tower that will be 100 feet taller than zoning allows, a lawsuit charges. James Capalino, a longtime supporter of Mayor de Blasio, was paid more than $100,000 to conduct “a lobbying campaign out of the public eye” for developer Murat Agirnasli, according to the suit by a rival developer. Agirnasli’s SoHo Broome Condos LLC wants to put a 25-story building with 54 luxury apartments and ground-level commercial space on the site of the former Our Lady of Vilnius Church at 568 Broome St. The project would sit next to — and block the Hudson River views of — a 27-story, rental-apartment building under construction by developer Lou Madigan at 111 Varick St. Madigan filed the Manhattan Supreme Court suit on behalf of 111 Varick St., alleging that the city Department of Buildings illegally let Agirnasli use a crescent of Port Authority-owned “green space” across from the church site to declare Broome a “wide street” under zoning law. The move allegedly allowed Agirnasli to raise his project’s height from 185 feet to 287 feet. Capalino spokesman James Yolles said, “Not only did the DOB issue a lawful determination, but it subsequently concurred with that initial approval in a review.” Madigan’s suit seeks DOB records that it says will reveal that the “illegal” allowance was “granted at the behest of a well-connected lobbyist.” Capalino’s lobbying firm has been the city’s top earner every year since de Blasio took office. The firm donated $10,000 to de Blasio’s nonprofit, the Campaign for One New York, and Capalino raised nearly $45,000 for de Blasio’s re-election bid before the mayor last year announced he was no longer meeting with the lobbyist, citing “ongoing investigations” into pay-to-play schemes.
De Blasio lobbyist tied to another real estate scandal (NYP) A lobbyist tied to the de Blasio administration’s Rivington House scandal helped a Soho developer win approval for a condo tower that will be 100 feet taller than zoning allows, a lawsuit charges. James Capalino, a longtime supporter of Mayor de Blasio, was paid more than $100,000 to conduct “a lobbying campaign out of the public eye” for developer Murat Agirnasli, according to the suit by a rival developer. Agirnasli’s SoHo Broome Condos LLC wants to put a 25-story building with 54 luxury apartments and ground-level commercial space on the site of the former Our Lady of Vilnius Church at 568 Broome St. The project would sit next to — and block the Hudson River views of — a 27-story, rental-apartment building under construction by developer Lou Madigan at 111 Varick St. Madigan filed the Manhattan Supreme Court suit on behalf of 111 Varick St., alleging that the city Department of Buildings illegally let Agirnasli use a crescent of Port Authority-owned “green space” across from the church site to declare Broome a “wide street” under zoning law. The move allegedly allowed Agirnasli to raise his project’s height from 185 feet to 287 feet. Capalino spokesman James Yolles said, “Not only did the DOB issue a lawful determination, but it subsequently concurred with that initial approval in a review.” Madigan’s suit seeks DOB records that it says will reveal that the “illegal” allowance was “granted at the behest of a well-connected lobbyist.” Capalino’s lobbying firm has been the city’s top earner every year since de Blasio took office. The firm donated $10,000 to de Blasio’s nonprofit, the Campaign for One New York, and Capalino raised nearly $45,000 for de Blasio’s re-election bid before the mayor last year announced he was no longer meeting with the lobbyist, citing “ongoing investigations” into pay-to-play schemes.
Bronx DA Goes After A Cop That Ticketed Councilwoman for Using A Cell Phone While Driving
Bronx DA retaliating against cop for writing ticket
to council pol: suit (NYP) A city cop says the Bronx DA is
retaliating against her for going public about a ticket-fixing scandal. NYPD Officer Michele Hernandez sued the city
last year, claiming that police brass forced her to rip up a ticket she gave
Bronx Councilwoman Vanessa Gibson for yapping on her cellphone while driving. Hernandez has now amended her $35 million
lawsuit to also accuse Bronx DA Darcel Clark and three staffers of misusing
their authority to harass and intimidate her as a favor to Gibson — who chairs
the council’s Public Safety Committee, which “has jurisdiction and budget
control over the Bronx DA,” the suit notes. The DA’s harassment of Hernandez
kicked off in March, when Darcel’s office contacted her union to inform them
that she was under investigation, according to the lawsuit. Hernandez said the DA failed to reach out to
her. DA staffers then demanded that
Hernandez appear for questioning, according to the lawsuit. Again, they went
behind her lawyer’s back, although this time they reached out to her directly
through the NYPD, the lawsuit charges. On
April 25, Hernandez submitted to “testy” questioning about the ticket incident
in their offices — but only out of fear she would otherwise be suspended from
her job or be arrested, according to the lawsuit. “This so-called investigation is in
retaliation for police Officer Hernandez expressing her First Amendment right
to expose public corruption involving these parties,” her lawyer, Eric Sanders,
told The Post. The Bronx DA’s Office
declined to comment. Hernandez’s initial
Manhattan federal lawsuit claimed that after she stopped Gibson in March 2014,
the councilwoman called Kevin Catalina, then-deputy inspector of the 44th
Precinct, to intervene. Catalina
“begged” Hernandez to leave Gibson alone because the councilwoman “meets with
the mayor and the police commissioner monthly in her role with the Public
Safety Committee,” the lawsuit said. After
agreeing to “void” Gibson’s ticket, Hernandez was subjected to unfair
assignments and discipline for her initial “passive” refusal, her lawsuit
claimed.
The Cover Up of NYPD's Gun License Division Scandal
Head of scandal-plagued NYPD division quietly retires (NYP) The former head of the NYPD’s scandal-plagued gun license division has quietly put in his retirement papers — taking a lucrative blue parachute out of the beleaguered department. Deputy Inspector..* Top cops who retired amid probe want vacation, overtimepay (NYP)
52 City Hospitals Flagged for High Patient-Infection Rates
Head of scandal-plagued NYPD division quietly retires (NYP) The former head of the NYPD’s scandal-plagued gun license division has quietly put in his retirement papers — taking a lucrative blue parachute out of the beleaguered department. Deputy Inspector..* Top cops who retired amid probe want vacation, overtimepay (NYP)
52 City Hospitals Flagged for High Patient-Infection Rates
City hospitals are making people extremely sick
(NYP) New York hospitals are making people sick at an alarming rate. The state Health Department “flagged” 52
hospitals for patient-infection rates that greatly exceeded the state average —
and 15 of them are in New York City, The Post has learned. And here’s a scary —
and counterintuitive — fact: “The longer a person stays in the hospital, the
higher the total risk of acquiring an infection,” the department says in a
report on hospital-acquired infections based on 2015 figures. Bacterial infections can be deadly because of
a growing resistance to drugs, said former Lt. Gov. Betsy McCaughey, who is
part of the Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths, an educational campaign.
Corrupt Silver's 2003 Landlord Loophole Law Still Screw Tenants With Rent Hikes and Tenants Out Push Gentrification
We are Shocked: de Blasio Bows to Developers Landlords Again
De Blasio expresses 'regret' over co-op proposal (NYP) Co-op owners opposed to a city plan that would impose burdensome rules on their buildings are claiming a measure of victory after meeting with Mayor de Blasio. The HDFC Coalition said on its Facebook page that de Blasio was willing to “pause” a proposal that would lead to “a ‘one-size-fits-all’ regulatory agreement” for certain co-ops. A month after a Post report revealed the secret city plan, the group met with the mayor and administration official who “expressed regret” about how the proposal was initially done, according to an HDFC Coalition leader. As The Post reported in February, the de Blasio administration wants co-op buildings in the Housing Development Fund Corp. program to agree to new rules that would force them to hire city-chosen monitors and set limits on sales prices. Buildings that don’t agree would lose their tax breaks, and co-ops that do would get a better break.
The Mayor Asked for Donations to Fix Flint Water Supply But Will Not Comment on Lead Levels in the City Schools?
Cover-Up Lead in Schools Water Discovered A Year Ago One School Higher Then Flint
Lead Tests on New York City Schools’ Water May HaveMasked Scope of Risk (NYT Aug 2016)
According to an analysis of data from the New York City Department of Education, about one out of every 20 water taps in elementary schools has tested positive for elevated lead levels, the Post reports. * New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio refused to comment on a recent report that showed roughly one in 20 water taps in city elementary schools had elevated levels of lead, the New York Post writes.FLINT Brooklyn school reports higher lead levels in water than Flint (NYP) * Students at P.S. 289 George V. Brower School in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, drank from a water fountain that was more contaminated than sources in Flint, Michigan, and contained 1,000 times the amount of lead permitted by federal safety regulations, the New York Post reports. * City pre-K programs also have high lead count in drinking water (NYP) * DOE claims schools have never had a case of leadpoisoning (NYP) But two experts said that state regulations require lead testing only for 1- and 2-year-olds, and that school-age children go largely unchecked. “To hang your hat on that false logical narrative not only creates a false sense of security — it’s beyond irresponsible,” said Marc Edwards, a civil engineering professor at Virginia Tech. Known for helping uncover the lead-contamination crisis in Flint, Mich., Edwards said it’s impossible for officials to gauge the situation without actually testing exposed kids.* New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene data shows about 7 percent of the city’s inspected universal, full-day pre-K programs operated by private groups have high lead levels in their water, the New York Post reports.
DEB Protects His Puppet Correction Commissioner Against DOI Report He Used His City Car Illegally for Out of State Trips
De Blasio’s obscene defense of Joe Ponte’s abuses (NYP Ed) Now Mayor de Blasio’s own former campaign treasurer is calling out City Hall’s low ethical standards. Yes, Mark Peters now heads the city Department of Investigation, so he’s only doing his job. Still, it should’ve stung Friday when he slammed the mayor for his dismissive reaction to a blistering DOI report on the city Correction Department. Peters’ agency found “systemic” misuse of city vehicles by Correction Commissioner Joseph Ponte and 20 other top officials, in clear violation of city rules, costing taxpayers thousands of dollars. Ponte used the car to visit his family in Maine — so often that he was out of state for 90 days last year, including 35 workdays. (That’s seven full weeks.) Other officials used vehicles for shopping trips and casino jaunts. But de Blasio said he couldn’t care less. First his spokesman put out a statement saying the mayor preferred to focus on reforms Ponte has enacted, “not the number of times the commissioner visited his family on weekends.” Then de Blasio himself claimed Ponte was guilty only of having been given bad advice about city rules. Wrong, said Peters: “Our investigation conclusively demonstrated” that Ponte and the others received no such advice. In fact, said the DOI chief, a senior staffer had previously been fined for such behavior. Added Peters: “There can be no defense of this behavior, and City Hall harms government integrity by even trying.” Wow! The mayor apparently doesn’t care that Ponte & Co. claimed they were entitled to use their vehicles because they’re on 24-hour call — yet admitted that none of them ever responded to a single emergency while roaming around in their city cars. Ponte alone was away for 27 inmate-on-inmate stabbings, three slashings of correction officers and an escaped prisoner — not to mention his ongoing overhaul of the department. If the mayor is this blasé about his commissioner being hundreds of miles away for a quarter of the year — on the taxpayers’ dime, to boot — then New York has a serious problem. We’re glad to see at least one person at City Hall is willing to call him out on it.*
DOI Peters Turns Against Mayor EXIT SOON?
More on Escape From NYC
DEB Protects His Puppet Correction Commissioner Against DOI Report He Used His City Car Illegally for Out of State Trips
De Blasio lets embattled DOC head keep job when
others weren't so lucky
(NYP) * During Rikers Upheaval, the ‘Prettiest Village in
Maine’ Beckoned (NYT) * New York City Department of Correction Commissioner Joseph
Ponte will pay the city back for thousands of dollars in out-of-state gas
purchases and tolls he incurred while making several trips to his home state of
Maine in 2016, Politico New York writes.
A get-out-of-here card for jail boss Joseph Ponte (NYDN ED) Two years ago, alarmed at violence spiraling out of control on Rikers Island, this Editorial Board called on Mayor de Blasio to fire Correction Commissioner Joe Ponte, writing: “De Blasio is not in command on Rikers because Ponte is not in command on the scene.” Who knew how literally true those words would prove to be? One kept taking personal trips even after suffering a $1,500 fine from the city Conflicts of Interest Board — issued because city rules incontrovertibly and justifiably forbid personal trips in city vehicles, as every employee is informed when they pick up their car keys. Ponte and crew thought they’d found a loophole, claiming that a phone call here and email there while on the road while supposedly on “24-hour call” meant they were working all along. A mayor’s job is to lead his administration. Yet de Blasio Friday rushed to Ponte’s defense, whatevering: “He was advised, he followed that guidance, that guidance was wrong.” Nonsense, says DOI Commissioner Mark Peters, who rightly retorts that “City Hall harms government integrity by even trying” to defend such indefensible conduct. To rephrase our previous take: “Ponte is in command because de Blasio is not.”
Jeff Thamkittikasem, one of New York City’s top jail
officials, was busted for misusing a city car, an offense that was shrugged off
by the mayor, and has contributed thousands of dollars to de Blasio’s mayoral campaigns, the Daily News reports.
A get-out-of-here card for jail boss Joseph Ponte (NYDN ED) Two years ago, alarmed at violence spiraling out of control on Rikers Island, this Editorial Board called on Mayor de Blasio to fire Correction Commissioner Joe Ponte, writing: “De Blasio is not in command on Rikers because Ponte is not in command on the scene.” Who knew how literally true those words would prove to be? One kept taking personal trips even after suffering a $1,500 fine from the city Conflicts of Interest Board — issued because city rules incontrovertibly and justifiably forbid personal trips in city vehicles, as every employee is informed when they pick up their car keys. Ponte and crew thought they’d found a loophole, claiming that a phone call here and email there while on the road while supposedly on “24-hour call” meant they were working all along. A mayor’s job is to lead his administration. Yet de Blasio Friday rushed to Ponte’s defense, whatevering: “He was advised, he followed that guidance, that guidance was wrong.” Nonsense, says DOI Commissioner Mark Peters, who rightly retorts that “City Hall harms government integrity by even trying” to defend such indefensible conduct. To rephrase our previous take: “Ponte is in command because de Blasio is not.”
De Blasio’s obscene defense of Joe Ponte’s abuses (NYP Ed) Now Mayor de Blasio’s own former campaign treasurer is calling out City Hall’s low ethical standards. Yes, Mark Peters now heads the city Department of Investigation, so he’s only doing his job. Still, it should’ve stung Friday when he slammed the mayor for his dismissive reaction to a blistering DOI report on the city Correction Department. Peters’ agency found “systemic” misuse of city vehicles by Correction Commissioner Joseph Ponte and 20 other top officials, in clear violation of city rules, costing taxpayers thousands of dollars. Ponte used the car to visit his family in Maine — so often that he was out of state for 90 days last year, including 35 workdays. (That’s seven full weeks.) Other officials used vehicles for shopping trips and casino jaunts. But de Blasio said he couldn’t care less. First his spokesman put out a statement saying the mayor preferred to focus on reforms Ponte has enacted, “not the number of times the commissioner visited his family on weekends.” Then de Blasio himself claimed Ponte was guilty only of having been given bad advice about city rules. Wrong, said Peters: “Our investigation conclusively demonstrated” that Ponte and the others received no such advice. In fact, said the DOI chief, a senior staffer had previously been fined for such behavior. Added Peters: “There can be no defense of this behavior, and City Hall harms government integrity by even trying.” Wow! The mayor apparently doesn’t care that Ponte & Co. claimed they were entitled to use their vehicles because they’re on 24-hour call — yet admitted that none of them ever responded to a single emergency while roaming around in their city cars. Ponte alone was away for 27 inmate-on-inmate stabbings, three slashings of correction officers and an escaped prisoner — not to mention his ongoing overhaul of the department. If the mayor is this blasé about his commissioner being hundreds of miles away for a quarter of the year — on the taxpayers’ dime, to boot — then New York has a serious problem. We’re glad to see at least one person at City Hall is willing to call him out on it.*
DOI Peters Turns Against Mayor EXIT SOON?
De Blasio's biggest critic once worked on his campaign (NYP) When Mayor de Blasio appointed him as the government’s top investigator in 2014, there was good reason to think DOI Commissioner Mark Peters would end up as the mayor’s stooge. After all, Peters had served as de Blasio’s campaign treasurer. If anybody was going to expose the administration’s shortcomings, it sure wouldn’t be someone who helped put de Blasio into City Hall, argued the critics. But over the past year, Peters has demonstrated that he’s his own man — producing scathing reports on life-and-death failings at the child-welfare agency and at the Housing Authority. He’s also one of the few officials in the government willing to chastise City Hall, which he did Friday in extraordinary fashion after uncovering misconduct by the city’s jails chief. When de Blasio took to the radio to defend his jails commissioner with flimsy excuses, Peters served up a blunt and unprecedented rebuke. “There can be no defense of this behavior, and City Hall harms government integrity by even trying,” said Peters. Mic drop, law-and-order style. Peters, who previously ran for Brooklyn district attorney and who is likely to run for office again, would argue his objectivity was never in question. But his reports — and his public statements — developed a sharper edge after de Blasio sided with former Police Commissioner Bill Bratton over a controversial June 2016 DOI report. That report concluded that a decrease in quality-of-life summonses sparked no increase in felony crime between 2010 and 2015. Bratton took the findings as an affront to his beloved policing tactic known as “broken windows” and ripped DOI’s report as “basically useless.” Stuck in the middle, de Blasio sided with his police chief. “The core findings, we don’t see merit in,” the mayor said. The next month, DOI hammered City Hall for allowing a property it controlled to be flipped for a $72 million private profit. Peters even knocked the mayor’s lawyers for obstructing the investigation. Far from being a stooge, Peters has become the strongest independent voices in the administration.
Will Schumer Stop the Escape From NY Trump Tax? Will the NYC Pensions Blow Up?
Trump'stax plan could have rich New Yorkers fleeing for Florida (NYP) “The taxpayers who really take it on the chin will be those in the same high-income brackets that are now subject to New York’s millionaire tax: single filers with incomes starting at $1 million and married-joint filers earning at least $2 million,” said the report, written by E.J. McMahon, the center’s research director. McMahon said for a top bracket, multimillion-dollar earner, the net tax difference between New York City and Florida is now 7.7 percent of income. If deductions for state and local taxes were eliminated, Gotham’s gilded would pay 12.7 percent more than Floridians. “That’s likely to induce many more affected New Yorkers to reconsider their residency status,” he said.* Defuse this city pension bomb (NYDN Ed) E.J. McMohan NYC Pension Ticking Time Bomb
Will Schumer Stop the Escape From NY Trump Tax? Will the NYC Pensions Blow Up?
* Angry New Yorkers rally outside Gov. Cuomo’s office todemand better MTA service (NYDN)
de Blasio's Campaign Budget Balloons Without Additional Revnues or Fiscial Responsibility
Nobody Connects the Mayor and His Loan Sharking Campaign Donor Rechnitz Corruption After The Bharara Firing Media Cover-Up
Shady donor brags he’s ‘got the mayor on lockdown’ after calling in ‘favor’ (NYP) Mayor de Blasio gave a retired NYPD official a plum post in his administration after getting a call from a shady businessman who told Hizzoner the appointment would be a personal favor, The Post has learned. During a conversation with de Blasio, Jona Rechnitz noted that he hadn’t asked for much since forking over huge contributions to de Blasio’s mayoral campaign, personal charity and Democratic allies, sources said Rechnitz, a crooked real-estate developer who’s now a key cooperating witness in the NYPD corruption scandal, later bragged to his associates that “I’ve got the mayor on lockdown,” sources said. Ex-Chief of Department Joseph Esposito scored the gig atop the Office of Emergency Management — which pays $220,000 a year — despite having testified in federal court in support of the NYPD’s “stop and frisk” policy, which de Blasio ran against and rolled back upon taking office. Rechnitz called de Blasio directly, using his cellphone while inside the 1 Police Plaza office of then-Chief of Department Philip Banks III, sources said. Rechnitz put the phone on speaker so Banks, then-Deputy Chief Michael Harrington and Rechnitz crony Jeremy Reichberg could listen in, sources said. Rechnitz donated $50,000 to the de Blasio’s since-suspended Campaign for One New York charity — which is under state and federal investigation — and he and his wife also gave de Blasio the maximum total of $9,900 for his 2013 mayoral campaign. In addition, Rechnitz kicked in the maximum $102,300 toward a failed effort, spearheaded by the mayor, to help Democrats win control of the state Senate in 2014. Reichberg donated the maximum $4,950 to de Blasio’s campaign and bundled another $41,650 in political contributions for him. Reichberg is charged with providing some of those payoffs, and with helping arrange for a hooker to accompany him, Rechnitz, and two cops on an infamous 2013 trip to Las Vegas for Super Bowl XLVII. Rechnitz has pleaded guilty to his role in those schemes and another involving the since-ousted head of the correction-officers union, and is cooperating with the feds in a bid for leniency. Rechnitz donated $50,000 to the de Blasio’s since-suspended Campaign for One New York charity — which is under state and federal investigation — and he and his wife also gave de Blasio the maximum total of $9,900 for his 2013 mayoral campaign. In addition, Rechnitz kicked in the maximum $102,300 toward a failed effort, spearheaded by the mayor, to help Democrats win control of the state Senate in 2014. Reichberg donated the maximum $4,950 to de Blasio’s campaign and bundled another $41,650 in political contributions for him. Reichberg is charged with providing some of those payoffs, and with helping arrange for a hooker to accompany him, Rechnitz, and two cops on an infamous 2013 trip to Las Vegas for Super Bowl XLVII. Rechnitz has pleaded guilty to his role in those schemes and another involving the since-ousted head of the correction-officers union, and is cooperating with the feds in a bid for leniency.* * As New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s re-election campaign approaches, a mapping tool shows the campaign has shifted toward receiving smaller contributions from many parts of the city, in contrast to the way he raised money last year, the Times reports.
Update NYPD Gun Scandal That the Media Downplays Where is the Knapp Commission Type Investigation?
Back to Before the 70s of NYC Fiscal Meltdown When Promised and Spending Like A Drunken Sailor Ruled Same Guy Who Used Closed LICH Hospital As A 2013 Campaign Prop
de Blasio's 3-K Funding Fantasy
As the Number of Affordable Housing Apts Decreases the Number of Homeless Students Increases
The number of New York City public school students living in homeless shelters has increased in each of the last five years, reaching nearly 33,000 in the 2015-16 school year, the city’s Independent Budget Office calculated, The New York Times reports.
How Minorities Mom and Pop Stores Being Hurt by Gentrification Being Cover-Up By the Media
Gentrified areas of the city are seeing a dip inminority-owned businesses, report says * New York City neighborhoods that experienced the highest rates of gentrification in the city since 2000 showed an increase in new businesses and job growth, but an inequitable distribution of the accompanying benefits, according to an analysis by Comptroller Scott Stringer, Gotham Gazette writes. * New York City and state leaders have long indulged an injustice against working-class neighborhoods to the benefit of wealthier ones, baked into the city’s property tax code, but a class-action lawsuit filed Tuesday could be a galvanizing force for change, the Daily New writes. * Manhattan business leaders and elected officials lambasted de Blasio for not including funding in his proposed budget to support City Council legislation seeking to exempt about 3,300 small businesses from the commercial rent tax, Politico New York writes.
Most of the Council, Including Those Running For Speaker Opting Out of the Public Campaign Funding Program Although They Still
Claim to Be Champions of the System
The NYP Does Not Understand That Councilmembers Running For Speaker Will Be Taking Money From the Same Special Interests That Funded the Mayor's Race and PACs Including Campaign for One NY The
hypocrisy of the city council campaign-financeprogram (NYP) It looks like several City Council members will be opting out of the city’s public campaign-finance program for this year’s elections — although they still claim to champion the system. The excuse for having taxpayers fund campaigns is that it supposedly reduces the influence of special interests and “pay to play” fund-raising. Yet the councilors who are opting out insist that doesn’t mean they’ve sold out. What’s going on? Well, among the dubious reforms the council rammed through last year was one that lets incumbents spend campaign funds on “office-holder expenditures.” As Gotham Gazette reports, several members have used the new loophole to spend like drunken sailors. Councilman David Greenfield (D-B’klyn) has already raised and spent over $300,000 to air his weekly radio program — which is more than he’d be able to spend in total if he were in the public-finance system. Special interests? Pay to play? Greenfield heads the Land Use Committee, and much of his cash has come from developers. Also over the public-system spending limit is Julissa Ferreras-Copeland (D-Queens), one of the contenders to be the next speaker. (As head of the Finance Committee, she too has had great “luck” in raising private funds.) Meanwhile, At least eight other council members spent more than the public-system limit of $49,000 last year. Some, like Brad Lander (D-B’klyn) say they’re staying within the system’s overall spending limits; others, like Corey Johnson (D-Manhattan and another would-be speaker) aren’t so sure. Members seem willing to stay within the limits if they face no real opponent for re-election — in other words, if it’s a no-risk proposition. How moral of them. Candidates have until June 12 to join the program. Yet, of about 40 incumbents likely to run this year, only Councilmen Stephen Levin and Robert Cornegy Jr. have opted in (Public Financing). And at least a quarter of the 40 are looking to opt out of the system because it doesn’t serve their selfish interests — that is, because they get an advantage from dropping out. Taxpayer funding of campaigns is supposed to level the playing field between incumbents and machine pols on the one hand and challengers and outsiders on the other. The evidence is growing that it does the reverse.
The UFT Machine Spent Millions and Broke the Law to Elect Most of the CouncilCrainsNY on the Advance Groups Double DippingThe UFT Coup d'é·tat Of NYC Election System and Democracy
When None Profit Boss Became Dept Mayor City Funding of His Group Skyrocketed
Deputy Mayor Richard Buery’s March 2014 arrival at City Hall coincided with a big cash windfall for the Children’s Aid Society, where he served the previous five years as president and CEO
City boosted nonprofit’s funding when former chief became deputy mayor (NYP) A powerhouse nonprofit saw its city grant funding skyrocket once one of its former chiefs joined the de Blasio administration, The Post has learned. Deputy Mayor Richard Buery’s March 2014 arrival at City Hall coincided with a big cash windfall for the Children’s Aid Society, where he served the previous five years as president and CEO. According to the group’s financial filings, its city grants jumped from $7.6 million in Fiscal 2013, the last one over which former Mayor Michael Bloomberg had complete control, to $11 million in Fiscal 2015, the last year for which records have been made public. The DOE’s contribution in grants nearly tripled over the two years, from $658,587 to $1.77 million. And grant money from the Department of Youth & Community Development spiked from $5.61 million to $8.49 million.
Before Becoming Mayor de Blasio A Critic of FOIL Delays As Mayor Becoming An Expert at FOIL Delays
Before becoming mayor, de Blasio was a critic of delayed Freedom of Information requests, but he’s now reportedly insisted on putting those requests to agencies deemed politically sensitive through an additional, time-consuming City Hall review, the Daily News writes.
City boosted nonprofit’s funding when former chief became deputy mayor (NYP) A powerhouse nonprofit saw its city grant funding skyrocket once one of its former chiefs joined the de Blasio administration, The Post has learned. Deputy Mayor Richard Buery’s March 2014 arrival at City Hall coincided with a big cash windfall for the Children’s Aid Society, where he served the previous five years as president and CEO. According to the group’s financial filings, its city grants jumped from $7.6 million in Fiscal 2013, the last one over which former Mayor Michael Bloomberg had complete control, to $11 million in Fiscal 2015, the last year for which records have been made public. The DOE’s contribution in grants nearly tripled over the two years, from $658,587 to $1.77 million. And grant money from the Department of Youth & Community Development spiked from $5.61 million to $8.49 million.
Before Becoming Mayor de Blasio A Critic of FOIL Delays As Mayor Becoming An Expert at FOIL Delays
If Your Corruption is to Help Developers Manhattan DA Vance Lets You Go DEBLASIO or Slaps the Wrist Developer Bribers DEPT OF BUILDINGS
All of the Candidates Running for Brooklyn DA Either Worked for or Supported Disgraced Hynes, Now Blast Him and Praise Thomson Who Beat the Former DA
More on the Brooklyn DAs
Many NYC's African-American Homeowners Pay More Taxes Than Homeowners in Upscale Neighborhoods Like Park Slope Like de Blasio
A City With No Jane Jacobs is A City Controlled by Developers NYC 2017
Learning FromJane Jacobs, Who Saw Today’s City Yesterday (NYT) Jacobs had a term, “monstrous hybrids,” for the unhealthy partnerships that can arise between governments and big businesses.
Suck Power Outof Neighborhoods . . . Where is This Generations Jane Jacobs
Many NYC's African-American Homeowners Pay More Taxes Than Homeowners in Upscale Neighborhoods Like Park Slope Like de Blasio
NYC property taxes favor rich and white homeowners,lawsuit claims (NYDN) This year Mayor de Blasio will pay $3,581 in property taxes on each of two row houses he owns in ultra-gentrified Park Slope. The city says his properties are worth about $1.6 million apiece. Some 14 miles away, in middle-class Laurelton, Queens, Arthur Russell, 66, who retired from computer sales, will pay a property tax bill that, at $4,569, is about 28% higher than the mayor’s — even though the city says his single-family home is worth 75% less than de Blasio’s properties, at $396,000. If Russell were taxed like the mayor, his bill would fall by roughly $3,500 a year. “That money could be vacation money,” said Russell, who is African-American. “It’s a substantial amount. My frustration is that it’s blatant abuse. People, if you take a look at this thing, you see disparity.” Across the five boroughs, the city Department of Finance is subjecting tens of thousands of homeowners to similarly unequal billing — with the winners located primarily in upscale neighborhoods like Williamsburg, Brooklyn Heights and Greenwich Village and the losers located overwhelmingly in working- and middle-class neighborhoods like South Jamaica, East New York and Brownsville. Often, the brunt falls most heavily on black or Hispanic property owners.
A City With No Jane Jacobs is A City Controlled by Developers NYC 2017
Sampson's Businessman Also Headed to Jail
Shady businessman linked to Sampson sentenced to 2 years behind bars (NYP) A shady Queen businessman was sentenced Friday to two years behind bars for running a mortgage-fraud scam, after cooperating with authorities and rolling over on former state Sen. John Sampson. Edul Ahmad, ex-associate of Sampson and Queens Congressman Gregory Meeks, had been under the impression that he’d be getting by with a slap on the wrist, seeing how he wore a wire during a sit-down with the senator at a Queens restaurant in 2012. Brooklyn federal Judge Dora Irizarry apparently felt Ahmad’s role in the scam was one that should not go ignored and instead chose to teach him a lesson. She said that simply the fact that he cooperated “to me that doesn’t show remorse. “What it shows is someone who is ready to do what he needs to do. Laws be damned, rules be damned.” During a meeting in 2006, Ahmad wrote Sampson — a powerful Brooklyn Democrat at the time — a check for $188,500 to help him deal with ongoing legal problems. The politician paid him back with political favors, and Ahmad was later arrested for mortgage fraud.
Is the Judge Trying to Get Ahmad to Talk About Why He Gave A Secret $40,000 Loan to Meeks?
Is the Judge Trying to Get Ahmad to Talk About Why He Gave A Secret $40,000 Loan to Meeks?
Times Editorial deB Press Problem: True News Can You Imagin What A Press Made Up of NEWFIELD, BARRETT, BRESLIN, HAMILL, KEMPTON, COOPER, SCHIFF Would do to This Jerky Corrupt Lying Mayor
The New York Times writes that de Blasio shows his inner President Donald Trump when he shuts down reporters for doing their jobs, and so far, de Blasio looks like he’ll be remembered for his petulant whining.
Bill de Blasio’s Press Problem? Don’t Ask (NYT) Mayors of New York tend to be remembered for the way they wrangle with City Hall reporters, a signature battle stance that says a lot about the personality of His Honor and his relationship with the press. For Rudy Giuliani, it was the righteous snarl. For Michael Bloomberg, the smirky insult. For Mayor Bill de Blasio, it’s looking like, the petulant whine. It’s been evident for months that the mayor hates it when he thinks reporters at public events aren’t asking the right questions, or are being too hostile or skeptical, or are getting the facts wrong, or are trying to stray off topic when he wants to stay on, on, on. As J. David Goodman and William Neuman reported in The Times on Tuesday, Mr. de Blasio has taken message-controlling to unusual lengths. Taking beatings from beat reporters has been in the mayoral job description forever, but this mayor has apparently decided that face-to-face interaction with reporters is overrated. At one appearance after another, he took no questions, even at benign events like a ferry ride on the East River to announce some new ferry routes. It seems the press was included simply so it could exult with him in the magnificence of the achievement. When the press refuses, you get episodes like this one, on March 23, when reporters kept asking questions unrelated to the topic of the day. He resisted; they persisted; he walked out. As a snippet of transcript shows, if you take the Q. out of Q. and A., what remains is absurdist theater: O.K., Mara. You’re smart — I’m here to talk about this. Mara, I’m here to talk about this. If you want to ask question about this — I’m here to talk about this. If you want to talk about this, great, if not, we’ll take questions another way, another time. Does anyone want to ask about the mansion tax? Same thing. Guys, you can ask all you want. Here’s what we are here to talk about. Last call, anyone want to talk about mansion tax? About mansion tax. I’m going to do this again one more time. This is how we set things up, guys. You don’t want to be a part of it, you don’t have to come. We’re here to talk about something that would reach 25,000 seniors. Everything else you want to talk about you’ll get answers to through our press office. If someone has a question on this, ask about this; if you don’t, that’s cool. Do you have a question on this? O.K. — That is great, guys. I’m done, thank you. He insists he is as accessible as any mayor ever, if not more so. He does free-form Q. and A. once a week. He does radio and toWhen shutting down reporters for doing their jobs, Mr. de Blasio — who so fiercely poses as an anti-Trump — displays his inner Donald.wn halls. He says that between email and phone calls with his staff, reporters do get answers. They just don’t necessarily get them any time or any place they ask. As for reporters being stifled at staged events: “You don’t want to be a part of it, you don’t have to come.” That is a bad, bad thing to say. Especially now. This is the age of President Trump, defamer of the news media, suppressor of facts, denier of reality.
Lots of Lies, Changing Excuses On Why the Promised List From de Blasio's Donors Never Appeared
True News Wags the Post
Again the NYP Ed Follows the Us On the Fake List of Donors Who Got No Favors From the Pay to Play Mayor
De Blasio’s bails on promised ‘lots of evidence’ he didn’t sell favors (NYP) So Mayor de Blasio won’t be producing that list after all — the one of the “stunning number” of fat-cat donors he claims got rejected on their pleas for favors from City Hall. Indeed, he now says he never said he’d produce it. We’re not surprised: No one else who’s looked into this could find them, either. But plenty of big-buck contributors did get exactly what they were looking for. A year ago, the mayor promised to produce “a whole lot of evidence” in short order to prove he runs a “clean and appropriate” government — said evidence to include that “stunning number” of disappointed givers. He later vowed to “give you that list when all this is cleared” — i.e., when the ongoing criminal investigations ended. Well, Acting US Attorney Joon Kim and Manhattan DA Cy Vance announced that de Blasio & Co. will face no criminal charges, but the “whole lot of evidence” isn’t coming. De Blasio says he’ll honor his word by penning an op-ed with a few “examples for you that illustrate the point.” For the record, Kim also declared that the investigation had uncovered “several circumstances in which Mayor de Blasio and others acting in his behalf solicited donations from individuals who sought official favors from City Hall, after which the mayor made or directed inquiries to relevant city agencies on behalf of those donors.” Still, as Politico reported two years ago, more than two-thirds of the donors to his now-defunct Campaign For One New York were doing city business or seeking city action at the time they donated. A few didn’t get what they wanted? Maybe. But some — like the donors who wanted horse-drawn carriages banned — lost out despite the mayor’s best efforts. We wonder if de Blasio will have the chutzpah to cite that as an “example.”
The Monserrate the Mess Buries the Lead "City Hall’s plan to sell 23 Acres Near Citi Field to Developers for $1"
Cuomo Made $783,000 From Selling 3,200 Books How Do I Get A Contract With Harper Collins
Fredric U. Dicker @fud31 Republican McLaughlin wonders where ''Republican" Flanagan is hiding re Cuomo book deal & hiring of "lobbyist's daughter as secretary":
The timing of Mr. de Blasio’s apparent retrenchment coincides with what had been expected to be a period of greater openness after the mayor and his aides were cleared of any criminal wrongdoing by state and federal prosecutors last month. The mayor’s relationship with reporters soured during the investigations into his fund-raising practices, which came to light last spring, including moments of lashing out against some outlets, notably The New York Post.
It is a model that is largely untested in New York, among the last American cities with a robust coterie of news organizations covering local government, and one that struck many observers as a break in decades of political norms. To others, including those close to Mr. de Blasio, it is in keeping with the administration’s attempt to respond to a shifting media landscape in a city where, despite having several daily newspapers, television stations and a 24-hour local news network, residents increasingly find their information online and through social media.
Lawmakers No Name Change for Failed Start-Up New York
The state Legislature won’t let Gov. Andrew Cuomo change the name of his Start-Up NY economic development program to the Excelsior Business Program, which comes after critics have lambasted the initiative as a failure, the Post reports. MORE ON THE ALBANY SWAMP Melissa DeRosa was appointed secretary to Cuomo, which revived questions about her family ties to firms with business before the state because her father and brother are lobbyists and her husband is an executive at Uber, The New York Times reports.
Cuomo Grows the Lobbyist Albany Swamp Bolton St Johns King Where Have You Gone Sheldon Silver?
Cuomosignals again that the swamp won (NYP Ed) DeRosa is by all accounts eminently qualified for the job, the most powerful insider post. (She’ll replace Bill Mulrow, who’s returning to his Wall Street firm and will chair the governor’s re-election campaign.) Her father, Giorgio DeRosa, a senior partner at Bolton-St. John, one of the state’s powerhouse lobbying firms. Her brother, Joseph, also a BSJ lobbyist. And her husband, Matthew Wing, a top executive at Uber and himself a former Cuomo flack. That could mean a lot of recusing: With offices in Albany, Buffalo and the city, Bolton-St. Johns represents more than 100 clients, from corporations and tech firms to nonprofits and labor unions. The promotion follows Cuomo’s surrender on winning any ethics reform this year, as well as his Nostalgic comments about the days when Sheldon Silver ran the Assembly (those being the days before Silver’s conviction on multiple corruption charges). Meanwhile, Cuomo’s longtime pal, confidant and former executive deputy secretary, Joe Percoco, goes on trial in October, accused of accepting $315,000 in bribes to rig state contracts. Another Cuomo family friend, lobbyist Todd Howe, has already turned state’s evidence in the ongoing investigation. Andrew Cuomo won election in 2010 promising to change how Albany does business. How distant those days seem. *
NYP Where is the Pay to Play Bribes to Business YES We Know They Don't Work Cuomo Grows the Lobbyist Albany Swamp Bolton St Johns King Where Have You Gone Sheldon Silver?
Cuomo Increase in State Budget 2% Assembly 5.6%
Assemblycalls bluff on Cuomo's state budget increase claim (NYP) Cuomo is boasting that he increased the state budget by only 2 percent — but the Assembly says its analysis shows “total state spending” went up 5.6 percent over last year. “The truth is on our state budget, our state budget year-to-year went up 2 percent. It has gone up 2 percent for the past seven years,” Cuomo crowed during an event in Hauppauge, LI, on Wednesday. “Two percent is the lowest increase in spending in the history of the state of New York.” He claims “state operating funds” spending is $98.1 billion, up from $96.2 billion. But analysts for the Democratic-run Assembly came up with a higher increase. “Total state spending” — including special revenue funds and capital projects — is projected at $111.2 billion, an increase of $5.9 billion, or 5.6 percent over last year, the Assembly report said.* Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he increased the state budget by only 2 percent, which he called the lowest increase in spending in state history, but the Assembly said its analysis shows total state spending grew 5.6 percent over the last year, the New York Post reports.
Groundhog Day NYCHA Repair Problem Unsolved
NYCHA tenant lives in ‘deplorable conditions’ with nosink or bath as agency stalls on repairs (NYDN) A forsaken Harlem man and his 14-year-old son are living in a hell NYCHA has inflicted on them. Water has been a constant issue at the tiny family’s King Towers apartment — flowing behind the walls, blowing out the bathroom light and causing plaster to flake and collapse throughout the apartment. As a result, the kitchen cabinet leaned precariously off the wall. Electric wall sockets in every room except one ceased to function. The father — a 46-year-old maintenance man who spoke to the Daily News on the condition of anonymity because his teenage son was embarrassed by the squalor — has had to shave in the living room for years because the lights in his bathroom don’t work. Finally, in December, a New York City Housing Authority crew arrived at his apartment and replastered and rewired everything. The crew removed his entire kitchen — the cabinets, the sink and the countertop, and promised to replace it all in two weeks. Last week, the tenant stood in a kitchen with no cabinets or countertop. The NYCHA crew that four months earlier had promised to fix his apartment woes has yet to return, work orders and other documents The News reviewed show. The tenant was given a temporary laundry slop sink, but he can’t use it for dishes because it collects runoff from his washing machine. He cleans his dishes in his bathtub — which he can’t use for bathing because NYCHA removed the shower enclosure.
AG Follows NY Times, Mayor to Move To Attack Trump While Moving Away From NY to Raise $ and Power
State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has hired Bernie Sanders’ digital consulting team, Revolution Messaging, as he increases his progressive profile with lawsuits and attacks on President Donald Trump
AG Eric Schneiderman hires Bernie Sanders’ consulting firm to boost progressive profile (NYDN) The state attorney general has hired Bernie Sanders’ digital-consulting team at a time he’s upping his progressive profile with lawsuits and attacks on President Trump’s agenda. AG Eric Schneiderman, who is expected to seek a third term in 2018 and has also been mentioned as a potential gubernatorial candidate, turned to Revolution Messaging to help raise funds and build on his campaign's social media presence, a source close to him said. “It certainly drew our attention,” the source said of the firm’s work with Sanders’ bid for the Democratic presidential nomination. Revolution Messaging bills itself on its website as “a full-service agency fighting for progressive causes.” The D.C.-based firm has been sending out fund-raising requests for Schneiderman and other emails touting actions he’s taken, including against the Trump administration. Mayor de Blasio in September hired Revolution Messaging for his reelection campaign this year. And Schneiderman’s former chief of staff, Micah Lasher, paid the firm $35,000 during a failed state Senate run last year. Two recent polls show Schneiderman’s ratings climbing to their highest nonelection-year levels, though a large segment of voters still don't know who he is.de Blasio Raises the Rent While Telling Other City Landlords to Freeze Theirs
De Blasio hiked his own rents while calling for others to freeze theirs, new figures show (NYP) The mayor and his wife have increased the monthly rent on one of the units in a two-family house they own to $2,850 last year, from $2,400 in 2009. The increases came in $50 and $75 increments annually, according to a City Hall source who would speak only on background. They raised the other unit's rent by $25 to $1,825 in June of 2015. They charge $4,500 for their primary residence, which they left in 2014 to move into Gracie Mansion. The two row houses, worth a combined $3.7 million according to city assessments, are on 11th Street in Park Slope. The City Hall source would not explain why the mayor raised his own rents while pushing for a rent freeze from the city's Rent Guidelines Board, which has ruled for two years against increases on one-year leases for rent-stabilized apartments. Several years ago, a previous City Hall spokeswoman said the mayor charged his tenants more when he made home improvements.* The Daily News writes that de Blasio refused to let the Rent Guidelines Board give landlords permission to hike rents in stabilized apartments, but as a landlord he embraced a different philosophy and raised the cost of living in apartments he owns.* The Post writes that de Blasio upping what he charges tenants shows he isn’t a fan of the golden rule, and that the next time he waxes moralistic, it’s worth remembering he’s talking about enforcing virtue for others, not himself.
Mayor @BilldeBlasio wants city landlords to freeze rent. He's boosting it for his own tenants. "Apples and oranges," he tells @Ny1
282,344 or 8% of All of New York's Registered Voters Voted for de Blasio in the 2013 Democratic Primary This Year the Turnout Will Be Must Lower
New York's Falling Voter Participation Rate is A Canary in the Coal Mine Warning for Our Failing City and Democracy 2013 Was the Lowest Turnout Since Women Given Right to Vote in 1918 . .200,000 Votes Less Than 2009. Only 282,344 New Yorkers voted in the 2013 primary for de Blasio. That is out of 3,222,468 registered democratic voters 8%, in what everyone knows is the real election in NYC. If you look at the 4,727,307 registered NYC voters then de Blasio became the mayor with just 5% of the voters voting for him. de Blasio Was Elected Public Advocate in 2009 With Just 4.4% of the Democrat Vote or Less than 1.7% of the City's Residences In the 2005 primary runoff Comptroller John Liu received 127,173 or just 4% of the registered Democrats in the city (3,177,740) in the runoff. De Blasio did a little better with 138, 736, he got 4.4% of the city's democratic voters. John Liu was elected with just 2.7% of all the city's registered voters casting their vote for him. New York: Turnout Appears Headed for Record Low * What In A Mandate? worry--50% drop in primary turnout since '89 * NYC voter turnout stinks: report(NYDN * New York Ranked 42 of 50 in Voting Age Turnout 50.7% Mayor O’Dwyer election in 1941, which took place one month before the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor received more than a million more votes than de Blasio * Forty Years of Freefall in New York Voter Turnout (Gotham Gazette) * NewYork election law will disenfranchise thousands: Ivanka and Eric Trump aren'talone; Bernie Sanders' voters will get hurt by an insanely early partyregistration deadline (NYDN)
3 Million Registered Voters Cannot Vote in the Primary Unlike other states, New York allows only registered party members to vote in their respective primaries. So the 5.3 million registered Democrats can vote for Sanders or Hillary Clinton and the 2.6 million Republicans can vote for Donald Trump, John Kasich or Ted Cruz. But nearly 3 million independents and other party members are shut out.* de Blasio Was Elected Public Advocate in 2009 With Just 4.4% of the Democrat Vote or Less than 1.7% of the City's Residences In the 2005 primary runoff Comptroller John Liu received 127,173 or just 4% of the registered Democrats in the city (3,177,740) in the runoff. De Blasio did a little better with 138, 736, he got 4.4% of the city's democratic voters. John Liu was elected with just 2.7% of all the city's registered voters casting their vote for him. New York: Turnout Appears Headed for Record Low * What In A Mandate? worry--50% drop in primary turnout since '89 * de Blasio Was Elected Public Advocate in 2009 With Just 4.4% of the Democrat Vote or Less than 1.7% of the City's Residences In the 2005 primary runoff Comptroller John Liu received 127,173 or just 4% of the registered Democrats in the city (3,177,740) in the runoff. De Blasio did a little better with 138, 736, he got 4.4% of the city's democratic voters. John Liu was elected with just 2.7% of all the city's registered voters casting their vote for him. New York: Turnout Appears Headed for Record Low * What In A Mandate? worry--50% drop in primary turnout since '89
Cuomo Joins Trump Slams the Failing NY Times
Cuomo on NYTimes college tuition editorial: According to them (NYT) , my father &; I wouldn't win governor elections; they're unfair to my admin (Video)
The questions on free college have begun to multiply. We are not the only ones to notice that Mr. Cuomo didn’t seem to think his new scholarship through. How could he have, in the time allotted? This was not the product of extensive hearings or long study; there was no sense that it emerged because public-policy or higher-education experts — never mind students! — had told the governor, let’s examine what is keeping young New Yorkers out of college, and figure out how to get them in and keep them there. So it’s not clear whether this would needlessly harm private colleges and universities by stealing students, as some officials have complained, or place damaging financial strains on the SUNY and CUNY systems, which have been starved of funds for years. It’s not even clear how “outrageously ambitious” the program is. By one legislative estimate, it will reach only about 32,000 students. The program’s strict income limits leave a lot of people out. It is not for part-time students, a huge portion of the community-college population. Students have to earn 30 credits a year to participate. It’s not for poor families, who are expected to use the state’s Tuition Assistance Program or Pell grants or other aid to cover tuition. And even though the cost of room and board and books is what’s keeping many poor students out of college, the Excelsior Scholarship covers none of that. No, this is one program for one slice of the middle class. Democrats in the State Senate for the perennial failure of other goals, the ones he seems less interested in achieving, like Albany’s Holy Grail: meaningful ethics reform and public campaign-financing. It’s too bad many important priorities aren’t as politically tantalizing to him as “free” college. E. J. McMahon of the Empire Center for Public Policy told The Times it seemed to him that Mr. Cuomo had “hastily reverse-engineered” the process to get the headline he wanted, which sounds about right.*
Defendants Have Longer Wait on Rikers Because de Blasio Keeps 8 Judgeship Slots Open
Blame de Blasio for NYC court delays: He won't pickjudges for eight open slots (NYDN) Every day in criminal courts throughout the five boroughs people wait. Defendants. Victims. Witnesses. Prosecutors. Lawyers. They wait for the opportunity to have their day in court — to defend their innocence; to bear witness to the harm done to themselves or others; to make their case on behalf of the people, or to hold the government’s feet to the fire on behalf of the rule of law. In fact, waiting is what everyone in New York City’s criminal courts does most, and mostly it’s waiting for an available judge to oversee a trial. Many of those defendants are spending their time waiting on Rikers Island.
Third of Child Deaths in NYC Attributed to Homicides as ACS and the Homeless System Keeps Failing Kids
Nearly a third of NYC’s child deaths attributed to homicides (NYP) Nearly a third of the children who died of injuries in New York between 2010 and 2014 were murdered, according to a shocking new analysis by the city’s Health Department. Even more appalling is the fact that almost half of the kids two years old or younger were homicide victims. The study released Friday by the city’s Health Department, looks at the deaths of injured youngsters 1 to 12 years old. And things do not appear to have gotten much better. Over the past years, the city has been shocked by more child killings, including the brutal murder of 6-year-old Harlem boy Zymere Perkins, allegedly at the hands of his mother’s boyfriend. Child abuse-related killings accounted for 31 percent of the deaths of kids in the years covered by the study. The Administration for Children’s Services has come under fire for years for failing to properly track suspected child-abuse cases.*
Reporter Tweets She Never Seen Lying Like the WH Preet Tweets Back She Has Not Covered Certain NY Pols
Third of Child Deaths in NYC Attributed to Homicides as ACS and the Homeless System Keeps Failing Kids
In 2013 the NY Times Wrote "Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio rose to power by denouncing the city’s inequality, children like Dasani were being pushed further into the margins, and not just in New York"
Reporter Tweets She Never Seen Lying Like the WH Preet Tweets Back She Has Not Covered Certain NY Pols
Cuomo Builds His Middle Class Record as Opposted to Early Years Fiscal Watchdog
In the past four months, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has seemed intent on expanding his appeal by pursuing initiatives aimed at a larger constituency of vital importance to his and his party’s long-term prospects: the middle class, The New York Times reports. *
Cuomo vs de Blasio War Expands to the Airports
Cuomo vs de Blasio War Expands to the Airports
The governor has flooded New York City’s airports with state troopers over the past few months, causing friction with de Blasio and the Port Authority because it’s seen as a move of one-upmanship in Cuomo and de Blasio’s ongoing rivalry, the Daily News reports.
As deB 2013 Contributors Abanden Him Mayor's Fund Rasing Goes Hollywood for Anti-Trump $$
The Pill Pusher Medicaid Rip Off Former Albany Assemblyman Graduate of Albany School of Crime Indicted
Ex-State pol among 13 people busted for Brooklyn pill-mill scheme New York Daily News Former Coney Island assemblyman Alec Brook-Krasny was part of a vast criminal enterprise that doled out opioids like candy and defrauded Medicare and Medicaid out of millions, authorities said. “I’ve never really seen anything like it,” city Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget Brennan said Friday in announcing the takedown.Investigators got wind of the scheme in 2013 after they identified a group of so-called doctor shoppers who were receiving boatloads of prescription drugs from two medical clinics owned by the same doctor. * Former Assemblyman Alec Brook-Krasny resigned to take a higher-paying job as the chief financial officer of a medical lab, but was indicted in connection to three Brooklyn pill mills and accused of pumping $6.3 million in narcotics onto the black market, the Post writes.
The medical practices — Parkville Medical Health in Kensington and LF Medical Services of NY in Clinton Hill — were run by Dr. Lazar Feygin, authorities said. PM Medical in Midwood followed the same criminal blueprint as Feygin’s clinic. In all, the three medical practices pumped more than 6.3 million painkillers onto the black market and received more than $24 million in Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements, authorities said. “The defendants are crooks who stole millions from New York City’s cash-strapped healthcare system,” said city Department of Investigation Commissioner Mark Peters. “They used pain pills instead of revolvers, but they robbed the city all the same.” Roughly 1,300 people died of fatal overdoses last year — more than twice the number of homicides and traffic fatalities combined. Brook-Krasny was charged with using the Sheepshead Bay medical lab that he ran to bolster the scheme. The disgraced lawmaker is accused of arranging to alter test results to allow Feygin’s patients to continue receiving opioid prescriptions.
When in the Assembly Brook-Krasny Crusaded Against Opioid Addiction
Authorities said Brook-Krasny also defrauded Medicare and Medicaid by ordering the unnecessary lab testing of specimens sent from Feygin’s clinics. All but Brook-Krasny were arrested Friday. Brennan said the former assemblyman, who resigned in 2015, is out of the country but authorities are in touch with his lawyer. The 59-year-old Brook-Krasny, of Brooklyn, was hit with four charges including conspiracy and healthcare fraud.*
When in the Assembly Brook-Krasny Crusaded Against Opioid Addiction
Ex-Assemblyman Who Crusaded Against Opioid Addiction Arrested In Connection With Pill Mills, Medicaid Fraud (Gothamist) The irony in this is that, as assemblyman, Brook-Krasny introduced at least two bills meant to address opioid addiction. One, introduced in January 2014, called for the creation of a community drug addition services program, to fund detox facilities and connect addicts with long-term treatment. The bill was stricken from consideration a week after Brook-Krasny introduced it. In May of that year, shortly after Brook-Krasny attended an Assembly "roundtable Opiate and Heroin Epidemic," the assemblyman introduced a bill seeking $500,000 "to raise awareness of the inherent dangers and costs of heroin." The bill was referred to the Committee on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse the same day, and never went anywhere from there.
Alec Brook-Krasny @AlecBrookKrasny Attended the Assembly roundtable on the Opiate and Heroin Epidemic (2014)
CUNY Journalism: Everyone Agrees Local Newspaper Coverage Dying But What About the Walking Dead Local TV News
DiNapoli blames headhunter for hiring corrupt pension manager (NYP) Korn Ferry, the largest headhunting firm in the world, failed to catch that Navnoor Kang was fired from his last job in 2013 as a bond trader at Guggenheim Partners for allegedly accepting bribes and breaking more than 50 ethical and compliance rules, according to the report. How Kang, 37, got his job at the New York State pension in the first place has so far been an unanswered question in the scandal, which has cost pensioners potentially millions in lost gains and fees. Kang was arrested in December 2016 for allegedly steering billions of dollars of business to two traders in exchange for hookers, piles of cocaine, and VIP tickets to a Paul McCartney concert, according to the indictment last year. In 2014, the New York State pension fund, which has about $178.6 billion in assets, needed someone to run a $50 billion bond portfolio, and turned to Korn Ferry to help it fill the position. The pension fund had trouble filling the role because it paid far less than what a trader could make at a private firm, and because the position was located in Albany, the report said. Kang lied to Korn Ferry, saying that he was laid off — an excuse the firm found “plausible,” according to the report. The report says the headhunter almost never receives damaging information during its reference checks. A Korn Ferry spokesperson didn’t return an e-mail seeking comment.
No Follow Up On Queens Machine Control of the Surrogate Court TRUE NEWS HAS LEARNED NEWS MEDIA FOLLOW UP ON COURT WILL BE IN 2044
Council Who Outlawed Campaign for One NY Now is Going to Support de Blasio Legal Defense Bailout? Where is the Penalty for Going Around the Election Law?
State BOE May Still Bring Charges Against de Blasio that DA Vance Covered Up
Even though Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. didn’t bring any charges against de Blasio in his Senate fundraising investigation, the state Board of Elections could still potentially bring a case against him, Gotham Gazette reports.
Taxi Values Dive By 80% After There Owners Spent $400,000 to Help Elect de Blasio in 2013
TAXI, Owners, Lobbyists, Campaign Contributions and the App Uber Revolution
Here Come the City Bike Competition Plies of GPS Started Bikes All Over the Sidewalks
Citi Bike competitors ready to roll into NYC (NYP) At least five rogue companies are muscling in on Citi Bike’s turf with service that eliminates the use of docking stations — and there are no laws on the books to regulate them, The Post has learned. Spin, Noa, BlueGoGo, Mobike, and Ofo each plan to dump thousands of bicycles on the Big Apple streets starting over the next few weeks in some of the busiest neighborhoods, source said. The companies use GPS-equipped bikes with a mechanism that locks the back tire. They can be rented using an app, which then unlocks the two-wheeled rides. The companies charge a dollar or less for 30 minutes and the riders can leave the bike on the sidewalk when they get to their destination. Officials and transit advocates worry bikes will be left haphazardly on sidewalks, streets, and in parks. “New York City must proceed carefully to avoid the pitfalls seen in China, where piles of low-quality bicycles have been discarded in heaps on streets and sidewalks,” said Paul Steely White executive director of Transportation Alternatives. Spin plans to launch above 116th Street in Manhattan — north of Citi Bike’s range — and in Staten Island, said CEO Derrick Ko.*
Here Come the City Bike Competition Plies of GPS Started Bikes All Over the Sidewalks
de Blasio Collects $$$ Out of Town Because New Yorkers Know What He is About
Incredible! NYS budget has significant impact in NYC & DEB is out of town raising $. It sends a powerful message to legislators
The New York Times Turns Its Sights Away From New York City (Daily Beast) Even as New York City subsidizes the ‘Gray Lady’ to the tune of nine figures, she’s giving less of herself to her hometown. The New York Times is playing such a vital role in reporting the news from Washington that it seems ill-timed to point out how much it is cutting coverage devoted to another great city — its hometown. As The Times plans further trims to its New York metro coverage—“less incremental” is the phrase they are using — it is worth noting that there has already been a startling reduction in it over time. A check of coverage for the week starting on the last Sunday of January finds that the paper ran 48 metro stories. This is less than half of the tally for 2009 (102) and less than a third of the 153 stories in the same period in 2001 (a figure that doesn’t include metro stories in the additional Sunday suburban sections published then).
NYC Daily News
The City Should End the Times $100 Million Tax Breaks for Its Manhattan HQ If It Does Not Cover the City
City taxpayers, though, have a reason to resent their paper of record’s retreat from local coverage: The Times is receiving a hefty 29-year package of tax incentives to pay for its 52-story headquarters across from the Port Authority bus terminal on 8th Avenue. Its subsidy could eventually be as much as $106 million. The biggest chunk stems from an $80 million reduction in property taxes to subsidize the cost of buying land, according to city records released under the Freedom of Information Law and reported on here for the first time. The paper is also eligible for an additional $26 million in city tax breaks, and has so far collected about a third of that.
Times Obit on Litwin All About RE Corruption Before His Death Only Time the Times Wrote About Litwin's RE Corruption Was During Silver and Skelos Trials
NYC Daily News
The City Should End the Times $100 Million Tax Breaks for Its Manhattan HQ If It Does Not Cover the City
City taxpayers, though, have a reason to resent their paper of record’s retreat from local coverage: The Times is receiving a hefty 29-year package of tax incentives to pay for its 52-story headquarters across from the Port Authority bus terminal on 8th Avenue. Its subsidy could eventually be as much as $106 million. The biggest chunk stems from an $80 million reduction in property taxes to subsidize the cost of buying land, according to city records released under the Freedom of Information Law and reported on here for the first time. The paper is also eligible for an additional $26 million in city tax breaks, and has so far collected about a third of that.
Times Obit on Litwin All About RE Corruption Before His Death Only Time the Times Wrote About Litwin's RE Corruption Was During Silver and Skelos Trials
Nicole Gelinas @nicolegelinas It's a little sad when your obituary is literally a 1,000-word examination of NYC and State real-estate corruption Leonard Litwin, New York Real EstateMogul, Dies at 102 (NYT)
Deputy Mayor Follow the Rules That I Do Not My Kid Gets Into A Good School While Your Kids Go to Failing Schools
'Be sensitive': De Blasio defends deputy mayor's schoolfavors (NYP)
New York City Department of Education officials pulled one string after another to help Deputy Mayor Richard Buery’s son get a coveted spot in Park Slope’s best middle school, despite moving into the district right before the start of the school year, the Post reports.
Every Few Years A Story Is Written About How Queens Boss Crowley Make Millions Off the Surrogate Court
Jack Newfield On the Queens Surrogate Court In 1998 Newfield reported that Frank Bolz III, chairman of the Queens Democratic Party's law committee, is the single biggest recipient of assignments from Queens Surrogate Nahman - collecting $178,050 for 47 paid guardianship appointments since 1992. Bolz is the law partner of Queens Assemblyman Joseph Crowley's father and brother. Gerard Sweeney, Manton's former law partner and campaign treasurer, is the current counsel to the public administrator - appointed by Nahman. Sweeney's law partner, Michael Reich, is executive secretary of the Queens Democ-ratic organization and has received 27 real-estate receiverships from nine differ-ent Queens judges. In 2000 Newfield wrote "The law firm of Queens Democratic Party leader Tom Manton has received more than $400,000 in court patronage since 1997. One partner -- Frank Bolz -- heads the party's law committee. Another, Gerard Sweeney, is counsel to the public adminis-trator. A third, Mike Reich, is executive secretary of the Queens party organiza-tion. They should apply antitrust laws to Manton's Monopoly." The rule is that a lawyer can get only one assignment of more than $5,000 during any 12-month period. Records show that lawyers like Batra, Bolz and Harvey Green-berg get a lot of assignments for $4,800 each.
Surrogate's Court And Why It Should Go (True News, 2005) A Court, Not Votes, Sustains A Political Machine in Queens (NYT, 2011)
The NY Post Is Backed Into A Position to Prove Judgehips Are For Sale in Brooklyn
No Connection to Feds Letting de Blasio Go?
No Connection to Feds Letting de Blasio Go?
Escape From NY Continues Could the Undemocratic Corrupt Govt of NY Be the Cause?
People are fleeing New York at an alarming rate (NYP) More people are leaving the New York region than any other major metropolitan area in the country. More than 1 million people moved out of the New York area to another part of the country since 2010, a rate of 4.4 percent — the highest negative net migration rate among the nation’s large population centers, US Census records show.
Only Jimmy Breslin Could Cover the 2017 Mayor's Race "Can't Anyone Here Play This Game" "The Gang That Could Not Shoot Straight"
Sal Albanese @SalAlbaneseNYC Ex of outright skullduggery by political consultants: Retained & paid by @michelfaulkner & then pens a column minimizing his candidacy
More On the Fed Cover-Up of Pay to Play As Rechnitz Says He Was Working With Reichberg to Buy Pols, Cops and Seabrook
“I also understood that my friend, who had introduced me to many of the individuals, was requesting and receiving certain benefits from the officers and political officials in exchange for the personal and financial benefits that I was providing,” Rechnitz said of Reichberg. Rechnitz is the key witness in the Manhattan federal prosecutors’ case against the cops and against Seabrook. Rechnitz was also a government witness in the now-defunct probe into City Hall fundraising. The real-estate investor told the feds that he donated money to de Blasio’s non-profit Campaign for One New York through fundraiser Ross Offinger in hopes of winning city-issued building permits, sources told The Post. It’s unclear whether he received any permits as a result of his contributions, but Acting Manhattan US Attorney Joon Kim recently said he will not prosecute De Blasio or his aides due to the “difficulty in proving criminal intent in corruption schemes where there is no evidence of personal profit.” “With respect to political contributions, I expected my conversations with the fundraiser that I would receive favorable municipal treatment,” Rechnitz said in his guilty plea.
Astorino Being Investigated in the Ongoing Rechnitz Probe
Feds continue probing public official’s pal for corruption (NYP) Manhattan federal prosecutors continue to investigate a public official with ties to real-estate-investor-turned-government-snitch Jona Rechnitz, unsealed court documents show. In unsealing documents tied to Rechnitz’s guilty plea last June, certain materials were redacted because they “relate to an ongoing investigation,” according to a letter from Acting Manhattan US Attorney Joon Kim. The ongoing probe involves an unnamed elected official, according to the papers — who sources say is Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino. Astorino was subpoenaed last year over his office’s dealings with Rechnitz and businessman Jeremy Reichberg. As The Post reported at the time, Rechnitz donated $25,000 to Astorino’s re-election campaign in 2013. A few days earlier, his pal Reichberg — who had no known previous ties to Westchester County — had been named a volunteer county police chaplain.
Rechnitz the Rat, Seabrook
Dirty Cops Look To Get Off Like de Blasio
Dirty Cops Look To Get Off Like de Blasio
The NYPD officers accused of providing favors in exchange for bribes are gearing up for a massive motion to dismiss their case — citing the same U.S. Supreme Court ruling that helped save New York City Mayor de Blasio from prosecution, the Post reports.
Mayor de Blasio Is Set to Ease Rules on Circumcision Ritual (NYT, 2/24/2015) * De Blasio to act 'soon' on circumcision ritual(PoliticoNY) Health department officials believe the practice can spread herpes simplex virus-1, which is common in adults but can be especially dangerous for infants. The communities that practice metzitzah b'peh have fiercely resisted city attempts, going back before the de Blasio administration, to regulate it. The city's health department currently requires parents to sign a consent form acknowledging that the health department recommends against performing the practice, a Bloomberg-era policy that was challenged in court. Attorneys representing the Orthodox sects said the city's health department was overestimating the dangers, and that there is insufficient evidence to prove metzitzah b'peh is dangerous enough to warrant a public health intervention. Mayor de Blasio Is Set to Ease Rules on Circumcision Ritual* NYC knew about dangerous Jewish circumcision ritual foryears but didn't warn parents until after baby's death (NYDN) City health officials had known about the dangers of a controversial circumcision ritual since 1999 but did practically nothing to publicly warn unsuspecting Jewish parents until a baby died six years later, records show. The first case of a baby becoming sick due to the ultra-Orthodox practice of a mohel sucking the blood from an infant’s newly circumcised penis — a ritual known as metzizah b’peh — surfaced after a concerned physician voluntarily reached out to the city Health Department during the Giuliani administration. At the time, there was no requirement for doctors to report all cases of neonatal herpes. But more cases continued to pop up — six in total — and concerned doctors voluntarily contacted the Health Department for guidance. It wasn’t until after one baby died in 2005 that city health officials decided to issue a public alert and begin to notify Jewish parents about the risks. Health officials say they reached out to community leaders and recommended against the practice. But nothing was ever publicly disclosed, records show. Health alerts were not started until sometime after 9/11, according to Health Department spokesman Chris Miller. “You’re talking about two decades and two administrations ago — the fax machine was still a dominant communication device,” Miller said. But at the same time, the Health Department suddenly stopped issuing a citywide health alert each time a new bris-induced herpes case was reported. Asked why they stopped, a high-ranking Health Department staffer explained last week there was so much attention given to the issue that officials felt doctors were already aware of the disease. Moving forward, those alerts will once again be issued, the official said.
NYC Dept of Health Board of Directors
Mary T. Bassett, MD, MPH Commissioner of the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and Chair of the Board of Health.
Pamela S. Brier, MPH Former President and CEO of Maimonides Medical Center and a current member of the Board of Health.
Sixto R. Caro, MD Member of the Board of Health and operates a private practice.
Joel A. Forman, M.D. Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Preventive Medicine at Mount Sinan School of Medicine and serves on the Board of Health.
Susan Klitzman, DrPH, MPH, CPH Senior Associate Dean for Administration and Professor of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences at CUNY School of Public Health in addition to her membership on the Board of Health.
Deepthiman K. Gowda, MD, MPH Director of Foundations of Clinical Medicine, Director of Clinical Practice, Program in Narrative Medicine and an associate professor of medicine at CUMC Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in addition to his membership on the Board of Health.
Lynne D. Richardson, MD, FACEP Professor & Vice Chair of Emergency Medicine and Professor of Population Health Science & Policy at The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
Gail B. Nayowith, MSW Principal of the 1digit LLC, the project management and consulting practice in addition to being a member on the Board of Health.
Ramanathan Raju, MD Former President of the NYC Health and Hospitals Corporation as well a member on the Board of Health.
Rosa M. Gil, DSW President and CEO of Communilife, Inc. in addition to serving on the Board of Health.
Karen B. Redlener, MS Executive Director Children's Health Fund & Community Pediatric Programs of Montefiore Health System as well as a member of the Board of Health.
How de Blasio Get Out of the Circumcision Mess
Stop pandering and protect the newborn, Mr. Mayor (NYP Ed) * City evaluating Hasidic community's cooperation in herpes cases (NYP) * De Blasio’s bad deal endangers infants (NYP Ed) * New York City has been largely unsuccessful in gaining full cooperation from the Hasidic community in rooting out mohels involved in neonatal herpes cases, but de Blasio says he still needs to evaluate whether a deal with the community is “working effectively or not,” the Post writes. * As ultra-Orthodox Hasidic Jewish community leaders fail to cooperate with the de Blasio administration to evaluate a controversial circumcision practice linked to several cases of neonatal herpes, the city must step in and protect these newborns, the Post writes.
NY1 lays Off the Light News Reporters Keeps the Lobbyists and Political Reporters
* So far NY1's revamp focuses on stuff New Yorkers justdon't care about (NYDN) * Amid Layoffs, NY1's Co-Founder Laments An Abandonment OfThe News Station's Purpose (Brooklyn Patch) Richard Aurelio said the news channel was never meant to be a money-making machine.
de Blasio Uses NY1 and WNYC to Create Safe Space WeeklyInterviews Fishy Attempt to Spin His Scandals
A Dialogue? de Blasio and His Puppet Council Speaker Pick the Members of the Conflict of Interests Board
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio plans to have a “dialogue” with the city’s Conflicts of Interest Board after the board issued an opinion that would restrict how the mayor raises money for his legal defense fund, Politico New York writes.
Ethics Board Fixes Speakers Election
Capalino and His Shadow Govt Secret Agents Lobbyist are NYC's New Gangster Class
City& State - New York City’s top 10 lobbyists: #1 Capolino earns 247% morethan the #3 lobbying firm Pitta Bishop.
4 Years After He Was Indicted 2 Years After He Was Found Guilty Senator Sampson Going to Jail in April
It is Not Only Lack of $ That is Killing Public Housing Incopetence
Housing Authority slacking on evicting tenants who commitserious crimes on NYCHA grounds: report (NYDN) *
de Blasio and Media Increase Anger on the Homeless for Housing Polices That Has Killed Low Income Housing in the City
Homeless man’s nonstop drunken singing is driving people crazy (NYP) Residents of an Upper East Side high-rise are being driven out of their minds — and apartments — by a homeless man who drunkenly sings at the top of his lungs all day and night. The caterwauling crank has been plaguing the Saratoga condo tower at East 75th Street and First Avenue, where he sits on the edge of a cement planter and screams out freestyle lyrics of a decidedly personal nature. “You don’t want me, you don’t want me . . . Will you love me? Who will love me?” he is heard yelling out in a sing-song voice in a nighttime video recorded by a resident. In one recent performance witnessed by The Post, the trashy troubadour got even more intimate, if not downright gross, belting out in broad daylight, “I have a tiny d- -k!” in between slugs from a 22-ounce can of Coors stashed in a brown paper bag. The NYPD identified the crooner as Damond Hood, 41, and said he had been busted 15 times since 1999, most recently in February for trespassing inside a nearby 7-Eleven store. He was also hauled off to the hospital for acting out on March 1 and March 8, cops said.
Even the Crown Heights Gentrifies are Against the Shelters
Brooklyn residents ‘furious’ with de Blasio’s homeless initiative (NYP) The gentrifiers are revolting. We’re told Crown Heights residents are furious that Bill de Blaiso’s revived “Fair Share” initiative on homeless accommodation is treating some neighborhoods more fairly than others — namely, his own. Hizzoner recently said 90 new shelters will be spread evenly across the five boroughs. But the Crown Heights insurgents say three shelters are being built in their hood — but zero are going up in neighboring Park Slope, where de Blasio lived before Gracie Mansion. “I think he’s absolutely concerned about his property value, and he knows how mobilized Park Slope is as a community,” said Jennifer Catto, one of the residents suing to stop shelters being built. Catto’s argument is that shelters are being shoved into poorer neighborhoods, where residents are expected to put up less of a fight. De Blasio spokesperson Jaclyn Rothenberg said, “We are committed to opening facilities in every community across the five boroughs, including neighborhoods like Park Slope.” Of the five shelters announced this year, none are in Park Slope.
Manhattan's Posh Homeless Hotels
These are the 30 posh hotels where NYC places its homeless (NYP) The city has used 30 Manhattan hotels to house the homeless, including the iconic New Yorker, the upscale Excelsior and the tourist-friendly The Manhattan at Times Square. The city’s use of Manhattan hotels shot up 58 percent in the last year as bookings expanded from the outer boroughs to prime tourist destinations in Midtown and Soho. And the homeless lodging has reached beyond fleabag flophouses to boutique hotels and brand names sought by visitors who don’t necessarily want to mingle with the down-and-out. “We rode the elevator up to our room with homeless people who were barefoot,” one guest at the Art Deco New Yorker hotel griped on the site Trip Advisor in August. A total of 1,453 Manhattan hotel rooms were listed on the city’s “Shelter Scorecard” for February. The citywide average per room is $222 per day, including social services. The average cost per day at a shelter is $150. The city spent $72.9 million on hotel housing in the year ending Oct. 31, 2016, a report by Comptroller Scott Stringer says.
NYCHA Meltdown
Corruption, Billions in Pork for Upstate and No Jobs Growth As TV Tax Payer Ads Tell Us How Great Upstate Jobs Growth is Going
Mayoral Update
The New ACS Fix: A New Plan to Fix Last Failed New Plan, More Consultants, More Money and Press Releases
ACS hires outside firms for independent review (NYP) New Administration for Children'sServices boss expects more resources for fixing the troubled agency (NYDN)
More On Child Abuse ACS
Corruption, Billions in Pork for Upstate and No Jobs Growth As TV Tax Payer Ads Tell Us How Great Upstate Jobs Growth is Going
Money for nothing: Cuomo’s $25 billion upstate-jobs failure (NYP)* Job growth across upstate New York remains sluggish despite billions in economic development subsidies, The Investigative Post reports in the first part of a “State of Subsidies” series with partners including ProPublica and The Times Union. * New York has sunk a lot of taxpayer money – $25 billion by Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s estimate – into recharging upstate’s moribund economy, but the return has been anemic job growth that is a quarter of the national average, Investigative Post’s Jim Heaney writes in The Buffalo News. *
Mayoral Update
Republican New York City mayoral candidate Paul Masseywas once busted for DWI (NYDN) *
IDC Senators Targeted
Marisol Has Sold Her Soul' Anti-IDC Activists Chant AtProtest Outside Marisol Alcantara's Office (Gothamist) 110 demonstrators marched in front of and across the street from state Senator Marisol Alcantara's office Friday afternoon, the latest in a series of demonstrations targeting Democrats who are aligned with the Independent Democratic Conference. * State senator candidate is exec at company that owns problem properties(NYP) * Bronx Assemblyman Mark Gjonaj, who is running for New York City Council, went to bat for the owners of a restaurant facing community backlash after a vicious bar brawl, and received campaign donations from the owners 10 days later, the New York Post writes.
NYCLASS Clueless Stooges In Lobbyists de Blasio PACs Corrupting the 2013 Election That Will Go Unpunished After the Bharara Dumping
De Blasio gets bombarded by animal rights activists (NYP) Animal-rights activists turned on Mayor de Blasio with a vengeance Sunday — publicly heckling him for failing to fulfill his 2013 campaign pledge to ban horse-drawn carriages from the city’s streets. The protest by NYCLASS outside a Greek Independence Day event in Midtown came little more than a week after federal and state officials said they wouldn’t prosecute de Blasio over pay-to-play suspicions involving hefty political donations from the activists and others. It also came as a fellow attendee, potential mayoral challenger John Catsimatidis, blasted the closing of the corruption probes. “It’s not what I think. It’s what the people think. The people think that not everything was right,” billionaire Gristedes owner Catsimatidis said. “You know I’ve put a lot of energy out to get this done,” de Blasio said as protesters blocked his path to the Greek Independence Day parade. “I did not have the kind of support I was hoping for in the Council,” he said. NYCLASS board members Wendy Neu and Steve Nislick donated at least $134,900 to de Blasio’s campaign and his since-shuttered nonprofit, the Campaign for One New York. Proposed legislation to restrict carriage horses to Central Park died in February 2016 when the council cancelled a vote on the bill. A council spokeswoman said there were no plans to revive it. Catsimatidis, who lost the 2013 Republican primary race for mayor to Joe Lhota, said he would decide in the next few weeks whether to run for mayor again.
Media Cover-Up of NYCLASS, Other Citizens United PACs, Mayor One NY PAC
How the Advance Group Conspired to Steal the 2009 and 2013 Election
Who Watchers the Watchman, Lobbyists, Grand Jury, AG - DAs Conflict of Interests With NYPD and Elected Officials
The Lobbyist's Shadow Government
The Privatization of the Tammany Hall Machine
How the Advance Group Conspired to Steal the 2009 and 2013 Election
Who Watchers the Watchman, Lobbyists, Grand Jury, AG - DAs Conflict of Interests With NYPD and Elected Officials
The Lobbyist's Shadow Government
The Privatization of the Tammany Hall Machine
After Bharara de Blasio Blames the Workers for the Rat Bags who Pay to Play With Him And the Press for Not Following His Script
The AG After Bharara
Schneiderman: Corruption Is A ‘Cancer In StateGovernment’ (YNN) Schneiderman’s office is prosecuting Sen. Robert Ortt, who is charged with three felony fraud counts stemming from his wife receiving a no-show job. The man who held his post before him, ex-Sen. George Maziarz, faces five counts of filing a false instrument as well. Ortt angrily rebutted the charges on Thursday after his arraignment, calling the case a “political” witch hunt against him by Schneiderman. Schneiderman, however, noted he has prosecuted Democrats in the past, including ex-Sen. Shirley Huntley and political operative Steve Pigeon. “This is an investigation that has been ongoing that started with a referral from the Board of Elections,” he said. “The notion this is a political effort is completely at odds with the facts.” Schneiderman also dismissed any questions over whether he would have to step up his office’s anti-corruption work with the departure of Preet Bharara as U.S. attorney. Schneiderman’s office worked with Bharara on several cases, including a sweeping bribery and bid-rigging cases that drew in charges for a former top aide to Gov. Andrew Cuomo and upstate developers, as well as the ex-president of SUNY Nano. “We’ve been proceeding with these cases all along. We’re going to do that and we will work with whoever is in place,” Schneiderman said. “Certainly, I had a good working relationship with Preet and wish him well, but the work of the office goes on. The work of investigating corruption goes on.”
de Blasio: "I Decide What is the News" Blames Reporters for His Walk Out of Press Conference NYC Owellian Nightmare Soviet Union Dreaming Mayor
Bubble Mayor No Town Hall de Blasio Spins and the NYC PressDefining Journalism Down de Blasio Transparency, FOILS and Controlling the Press
NY Post
Judge Lobis Rules de Blasio Must Release His Shadow Lobbyists Agent of City Emails is Also the Judge Blocking the Mayor's Criminal Lawyer Lobbyist From Building A Nursing Home
de Blasio Said His Lawyers Told Him That He Does Not Have to Make His Secret Agents Email Public
His lawyers made him do it: The mayor’s lame secrecy plea (NYP Ed) Score a big win for The Post — but an even bigger victory for New Yorkers’ right to find out what their mayor doesn’t want them to know. Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Joan Lobis ruled in favor of The Post and NY1, whose reporters have been trying for two years to obtain e-mails between Mayor de Blasio and political fixer Jonathan Rosen. The judge flatly rejected de Blasio’s insistence that his communications with Rosen can be hidden from public disclosure under the Freedom of Information Law — and ordered him to turn them all over. Rosen is practically a shadow mayor: He’s represented de Blasio’s campaigns as well as his self-promoting nonprofit. Yet the consultant also represents outside private interests that do business with the city. Score a big win for The Post — but an even bigger victory for New Yorkers’ right to find out what their mayor doesn’t want them to know. Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Joan Lobis ruled in favor of The Post and NY1, whose reporters have been trying for two years to obtain e-mails between Mayor de Blasio and political fixer Jonathan Rosen. The judge flatly rejected de Blasio’s insistence that his communications with Rosen can be hidden from public disclosure under the Freedom of Information Law — and ordered him to turn them all over. Rosen is practically a shadow mayor: He’s represented de Blasio’s campaigns as well as his self-promoting nonprofit. Yet the consultant also represents outside private interests that do business with the city. A similar line helped him evade criminal charges in the recent investigations. But Lobis ruled that it’s nonsense: The e-mails can’t be withheld merely because de Blasio “desired that the discussions be secret.” Especially for a mayor who ran by blasting everyone else in City Hall for “blocking information that belongs to the public.” The courts have a duty to handle de Blasio’s appeal with maximum speed, lest he continue to frustrate the sunshine laws. New Yorkers have a right to know before they cast their votes.
Sex Bathhouse King Donor to Queens Pols
Indicted bathhouse owners gave $206K to Queens Democrats (NYP) The owners of a steamy Queens bathhouse indicted on tax-fraud charges last week showered $206,400 on borough Democrats over the past decade, according to campaign filings. Spa Castle CEO Steven Chon and several members of his family gave $31,300 to Queens Democratic Party Chairman Joe Crowley; $35,200 to Rep. Grace Meng; and $12,350 to Queens Borough President Melinda Katz since 2006, according to federal, state, and city campaign filings. Crowley welcomed Chon as his guest to see South Korea’s then-President Park Geun-hye address Congress in 2013. The invite came six weeks after Chon and four relatives pooled $12,700 for Crowley’s campaign coffers, records show. A rep for Crowley did not return messages. Chon, 57, and his siblings, Victor Chon, Daniel Chon, and Stephanie Chon, were indicted on 11 felony charges Wednesday for allegedly failing to pay $621,000 in sales taxes, $207,000 in withholding taxes, $610,000 in corporate taxes, and $131,000 in MTA-surcharge taxes. All four pleaded not guilty. The College Point complex had quietly become an underwater warren for X-rated activities, The Post reported last March. One staffer said “there is a big problem with customers having sex in the pools, and the management doesn’t know how to handle it.” The city temporarily closed the spa for two months last year after a 6-year-old girl nearly drowned in one of its pools.
de Blasio's Nixon Rose Mary Woods Video 10 Minute Gap in His Press Conference Official Posted Tape Silenced Reporter Barron Question That Exposed Fake News Conference
City Hall's Press Conference 19 Minute Video Trimmed to 9 Minutes
Mayor de Blasio refuses to answer off-topic questions from reporters in disastrous press conference, storms off (NYDN) When the mayor’s official YouTube account originally posted video of the press conference, it was 19 minutes and 36 seconds long — and at the end, it included a close-up shot zooming in on the anti-de Blasio sign in the window of the skyscraper. Within a couple hours of the press conference, the video was neatly trimmed to just over nine minutes, with the shot of the skyscraper sign cut out. * Mayor de Blasio Redacts Video Record to Remove Off-Message Statements (City Council Watch) At question time I asked the obvious question: “How many incidents have there been so far of ICE agents trying to enter schools, with or without warrants.” Mayor de Blasio answered, “None, so far.” Hmm. Then I had another question for Chancellor Fariña. Later I went on YouTube to review the video of the press conference. But when the video came to my question there was an odd skip: the first question was cut from the video, and picked up again about 15 seconds later with my question for Fariña. Someone with authority in Mayor de Blasio’s communications department decided that his answer to my question was off-message, and edited the tape to erase the part where the mayor admits that his new policy directive addresses a problem that does not exist. Basically it was all for show. A few hours later they wrote back with a link to the unedited video. They removed the original, edited version, and did not answer my other questions. I can send you the email if you want to see it. Here is the unedited video, which picks up where I first asked my question. Now it seems that in addition to limiting the types of questions the mayor will even hear, he and his staff will change the public record if his answers come out wrong.
Now de Blasio Says His Lawyers OKed Agents of the City That Why He Will Appeal Remember the DA Vance Said He Was Dropping the Charges Against de Blasio Because He Said the Mayor's Lawyers Said He Can Go Around the Election Law
Since the Mayor Disagrees With Vance That He Violated the Intent and Spirit of the Law the DA Must Release the de Blasio Interview
Laura NahmiasVerified account @nahmias But mayor doesn't explain the ways in which he disagrees. D.A. said, essentially, de Blasio and team sought to circumvent donation limits. .@BilldeBlasio says he disagrees with D.A. Vance's letter's statement that the team's fundraising violated intent and spirit of the law.
Now de Blasio Says His Lawyers OKed Agents of the City That Why He Will Appeal Remember the DA Vance Said He Was Dropping the Charges Against de Blasio Because He Said the Mayor's Lawyers Said He Can Go Around the Election Law
Mayor Breaks Silence on 'Agents of the City' Ruling During Weekly Radio Show (NY1) In an interview on WNYC radio Friday morning, he did discuss his plans to appeal the decision. And he said he is doing so because he said his lawyers assured his outside advisors that they could provide direct advice to the mayor on a number of issues and have it remain confidential.
Since the Mayor Disagrees With Vance That He Violated the Intent and Spirit of the Law the DA Must Release the de Blasio Interview
NYT: After He Escapes the Corruption Charges de Blasio Tells the Press To Drop Dead
The Mayor Will Now Take Your Questions. Wait,Where’d He Go? (NYT) Mayor Bill de Blasio walked out on his own news conference on Thursday without answering any questions, irked that reporters were not asking what he wanted them to ask. In an extraordinary test of wills with the City Hall press corps, Mr. de Blasio refused to respond to questions that might ordinarily be considered well within the bounds of what the mayor of New York City would be expected to address. He was asked about the murder of a black man who police said was stabbed to death in Manhattan by a white man who had come to the city to harm black people, and the arrest in Israel of a man accused of making a string of telephone threats against Jewish community centers and other sites in the United States. The mayor had called reporters to a chilly block of East 56th Street to make a pitch about his proposal for a so-called mansion tax on the sale of apartments or houses of more than $2 million, to pay for rent relief for older New Yorkers. The plan would need approval by the state legislature and is seen as having little hope of success in a State Senate that has generally responded hostilely to both new taxes and the mayor’s initiatives. Against the backdrop of a luxury high-rise (with a handwritten sign in one window reading, “De Blasio doesn’t care about the working middle class”), the mayor spoke about the tax over the din of construction, passing trucks and a heckler who shouted, “Everyone hates you, de Blasio!” Then he said he would take questions on the tax proposal. But the first question was about the arrest a day earlier of a man who, the police say, came to New York from Baltimore to kill black people. He is charged with murdering a black man, Timothy Caughman, in an attack on Monday. Mr. de Blasio released a statement lamenting the death but has not spoken publicly about it. “O.K., Mara, you’re smart,” he said to the reporter, Mara Gay of The Wall Street Journal, who asked the question. “I’m here to talk about this,” he said, waving a flyer about the tax proposal. “I’m here to talk about this. If you want to talk about this, I’m here to talk about this. If you want to talk about this, great. If not, we’ll take questions another way another time. Does anyone want to ask about the mansion tax?” Another reporter, Grace Rauh of NY1, asked about a judge’s decision earlier in the day, ordering City Hall to turn over emails between officials and a mayoral adviser — a ruling the city said it would appeal. “Guys, you can ask all you want,” Mr. de Blasio said. “Here’s what we’re here to talk about.” He held up the flyer again. “Last call. Anyone want to talk about the mansion tax?” The showdown came amid existing tensions with reporters who regularly cover the mayor. Mr. de Blasio frequently holds events to promote his initiatives or policies, in which he insists that reporters ask questions only about the topic he has chosen to discuss. He typically holds only one news conference a week in which he will take questions on any topic. The restrictions have been a frequent source of friction with the press. “This is how we set things up, guys: You don’t want to be a part of it, you don’t have to come,” the mayor said on Thursday. “If someone has a question about this, ask it about this. If you don’t, that’s cool.” He turned to a New York Times reporter, who asked about the arrest in Israel on Thursday related to anti-Semitic threats in the United States. A recent wave of threats against Jewish institutions in this country included several in New York City, although authorities in Israel did not say whether the man they arrested was involved in the New York incidents. Two weeks earlier, Mr. de Blasio decried the incidents during a visit to a Jewish center on Staten Island that had recently received a bomb threat.But on Thursday Mr. de Blasio cut off the question. “O.K., that’s great guys,” he said. “I’m done. Thank you.” He strode away and got into a waiting SUV.
NYP: de Blasio Dodges Questions Ducks Press
NYP: de Blasio Dodges Questions Ducks Press
De Blasio dodges questions, then bails on press conference (NYP) An irate Mayor de Blasio abruptly cut short a Midtown press conference on Thursday because reporters wouldn’t ask questions about the longshot mansion tax he’s pushing in Albany. As he’s done throughout his administration, Hizzoner refused to respond to questions he considers “off topic” — even on Wednesday’s shocking killing of a black man by a white supremacist in midtown. “I’m here to talk about this. If you want to talk about this, great,” Hizzoner huffed, speaking of his proposed tax on property sales of $2 million or more. When the next reporter asked about a judge ordering the administration to publicly disclose emails between the mayor and an outside consultant — in response to a lawsuit filed by The Post and NY1 — the mayor lectured reporters on the rules he’s conjured up governing press conferences. “This is how we set things up guys. If you don’t want to be a part of it, you don’t have to come,” said de Blasio, who was speaking in front of the super luxury hi-rise at 432 Park Ave. When the third question had to do with an Israeli-American teen who was detained in Israel for allegedly calling in bomb threats to Jewish centers, the mayor threw up his arms. “That’s great guys,” he said sarcastically. “I’m done.” As the mayor walked away, a reporter shouted after him, “Mr. Mayor, what are you afraid of when we ask you questions?” The mayor didn’t respond, ending a press conference that had been bumpy from the beginning.
Daily News Reports Today How the Prosecutors and the Media are Covering Up and Cleaning Up de Blasio Pay to Play Shadow Govt City Hall Federal Investigation de Blasio Donor Secretly Pleads Guilty
Jona Rechnitz, a Brooklyn real estate investor and major de Blasio donor, has secretly pleaded guilty to making campaign donations to public officials in exchange for an official action
The U.S. Attorney's statement on the de Blasio probe made clear that the mayor "and others acting on his behalf solicited donations from individuals who sought official favors from the City." The strongly worded statement by Acting U.S. Attorney Joon Kim stated that de Blasio then "made or directed inquiries to relevant City agencies on behalf of those donors."
The documents reveal that Rechnitz admitted that he and others "known and unknown provided financial and personal benefits and political contributions to public officials including law enforcement officials in exchange for official action as requested by Rechnitz and others." Back on June 6, Rechnitz pleaded guilty in a sealed courtroom and was then released on $500,000 bail. He then began helping prosecutors and the FBI try and make a case that de Blasio used his official powers to raise funds for his campaign and a nonprofit he created, the Campaign for One New York, that could accept checks of unlimited amounts. Rechnitz specifically admitted that he conspired to "deprive the public of its intangible right to honest services of law enforcement and other public officials." He pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy, also admitting his role in the bribery of Norman Seabrook, president of the Corrections Officers' Benevolent Association.\Seabrook is facing multiple corruption charges for taking bribes to steer $20 million in union pension funds to a tainted hedge fund. Rechnitz, prosecutors say, delivered $60,000 in cash to the union boss inside an $800 Ferragamo bag.
Prosecutors Had Pay to Play Evidence That de Blasio Did Officials Acts After Rechnitz Raised $200,000 for Him Including CONY
Prosecutors Had Pay to Play Evidence That de Blasio Did Officials Acts After Rechnitz Raised $200,000 for Him Including CONY
Mayor de Blasio donor raised nearly $200G for political favors, prosecutors say (NYDN) A major donor to Mayor de Blasio told prosecutors he had “many” discussions with a fund-raiser about obtaining “official acts” as a result of his political donations, the Daily News has learned. Letters reviewed by the Daily News describe the role of donor Jona Rechnitz, the government’s star witness in the investigation of de Blasio’s fund-raising tactics. In a July 20 letter detailing Rechnitz’s cooperation, prosecutors wrote that they were “actively investigating a fund-raiser for an elected official in connection with promises of official acts made to donors to that elected official.” Prosecutors noted that the unnamed fund-raiser “had many dealings and interactions with (Rechnitz), including discussions regarding official actions that the fund-raiser would attempt to make happen as a result of (Rechnitz’s) donations.” The letters obscured the names of the fund-raiser and the elected official, but during the investigation, the mayor’s office confirmed that the Manhattan U.S. Attorney had subpoenaed de Blasio’s key fund-raiser, Ross Offinger. In his statement last week revealing the decision not to charge de Blasio, acting Manhattan U.S. Attorney Joon Kim specifically stated that de Blasio and his representatives solicited donations from entities seeking favors from City Hall, and that de Blasio and his minions in turn intervened on those donors’ behalf. During his plea in a sealed courtroom on June 6, Rechnitz, 33, said, “With respect to political contributions, I expected for my conversations with the fundraiser that I would receive favorable municipal treatment.” On Thursday, The News revealed that in June, Rechnitz had secretly pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to deprive the public of its right to honest services. He admitted he provided contributions to public officials in exchange for official action.
More Hidden Pork in the State's Budget Corruption Investigations Have Had No Effect
The Post writes that if you were betting, sadly, the smart money would be on New York officials showing they’ve learned nothing from recent corruption convictions and will not compromise on proposals to make state spending more transparent.
Will any scandal put an end to NY pols' shadowy-spending ways? (NYP) Kudos to Citizens Union for pointing out that Gov. Cuomo’s budget plan includes $13.8 billion in shadowy spending — nearly a tenth of the total $152.3 billion plan. The watchdog group’s “Spending in the Shadows” report flags outlays that face little or no public scrutiny — including for some programs that resemble the Buffalo Billion projects that now have several Cuomo ex-associates facing federal corruption charges, and/or the funds key to the corruption that earned ex-Assembly Speaker Shelly Silver his long federal prison sentence. The budget includes $9.5 billion in “economic development” funds, which face minimal oversight and are notorious for abuse. On top of that, Citizens Union identified some $4.3 billion in shadowy spending spread out across 60 different “discretionary” programs. That’s up by $2 billion over the gov’s original budget last year, but about equal to the amount in the final, enacted plan — meaning the Assembly and Senate upped the “pork pot” that much in the 2016 negotiations. How much will it grow this year? Yes, both chambers of the Legislature have ideas for greater transparency in (Cuomo-controlled) economic-development spending. The gov, meanwhile, has proposals for more sunlight on the lawmakers’ pork. Or will New York’s top officials prove they’ve learned nothing from the corruption convictions of Silver and ex-Senate boss Dean Skelos and the indictment of Cuomo’s former right-hand man, Joe Percoco? Sadly, the smart money’s on option No. 2.AG Indicts Albany Senate Pols Could Lead to GOP IDC Coalition Running the Senate
Republican N.Y. pol indicted for election law violation,compromising GOP hold on state Senate (NYDN) A Republican state Senator from western New York was indicted Wednesday for violating state election law, jeopardizing the GOP’s hold on the Senate. Sen. Robert Ortt’s office confirmed that an Albany grand jury had indicted the Niagara County Republican on a felony charge of offering a false instrument for filing. He is to be arraigned in Albany City Court Thursday morning. Ortt, in a statement, called the charge “baseless” and vowed to fight it. "We look forward to telling voters the truth about (Attorney General) Eric Schneiderman and exposing him for the power hungry, political opportunist he is and I will fight this ridiculous charge,” Ortt said in a statement. Ortt’s indictment came hours after he voluntarily appeared before the grand jury empaneled by Schneiderman to investigate the finances of the Niagara County GOP and former Sen. George Maziarz, who was also indicted. The Buffalo News first reported the indictments. A spokesman for Schneiderman declined to comment A source close to Ortt said the indictment involves the disclosure of money that his wife earned while working for two vendors that were contracted by the Niagara GOP. Ortt’s indictment imperils the GOP’s tenuous hold on the Senate. Republicans hold only 31 of the Senate’s 63 seats but maintain control through an alliance with Brooklyn Democratic Sen. Simcha Felder. The eight-member Independent Democratic Conference has also allied itself with the GOP.
Eric Garner Case Revived by Trumps' DOJ
Eric Garner Case Revived by Trumps' DOJ
Employee Accused of Records Leak in Eric Garner Case Resigns (NYT) In announcing the forced resignation, a city agency confirmed that leaked disciplinary records of the officer who placed Mr. Garner in a fatal chokehold, were authentic. * Sources said federal prosecutors have revived the grand jury probe into the death of Eric Garner, who was placed in a chokehold by an NYPD officer before he died, and a police witness questioned in front of the panel believes an indictment is looming, the New York Post reports.
NYC Health Care Hospital System (HHC) Is In Crisis Before the Buffalo Bribe
LA LA LAND WAKE UP MEDIA AND DUMB POLS
Increasing Debt and Washington Cuts Will Create A Crisis
Health care overhaul would squeeze city hospitals: IBO (NYP)
Dr. Trump’s poison pill attacks Medicaid in New York (NYDN) The price of passing the very bad health-care bill cooked up by President Trump and House Speaker Paul Ryan, which will kick 24 million Americans off the insurance rolls, just got devastatingly awful for New York, courtesy of a dirty $2.3 billion payoff to every Empire State county outside the five boroughs. With that brutal blow, Trump confirms his turncoat status by forcing his own city — which is paying millions in security costs to guard Trump Tower — to potentially swallow billions in new costs atop billions in cuts already in the offing. Desperate for votes, Trump and Ryan are buying off upstate Reps. Chris Collins and John Faso and, they hope, other on-the-fence New York Republicans by absolving every county outside the five boroughs of the local share of their Medicaid bills — while leaving New York City holding the bag for its local $5.4 billion share a year.
The Buffalo Bribe Will NYC Billions and Close Hospitals
Collins and Faso want the state to pick up counties’ tab. That would mean Gotham, pop. 8.4 million, which already ponies up nearly half of all state taxes, would pay twice: once for its own Medicaid, once for Chemung, Oswego, Cattaraugus, Nassau, Westchester and the rest, pop. 11 million. Gov. Cuomo sanely says no way; he won’t let the state budget take that huge hit. If counties don’t pay, their hospitals will have to slash care. *
Cuomo 2020 Chess Movies and Don't Forget the Buffalo Billion Trial
The Buffalo Bribe Will NYC Billions and Close Hospitals
Cuomo 2020 Chess Movies and Don't Forget the Buffalo Billion Trial
We've previously noted here that Cuomo goes out of his way to avoid directly attacking Donald Trump. Cuomo says he's running for re-election, and the last thing he wants is a president actively involved in helping party-mates in his home state. (In a normal world, this wouldn't even be in question ... but welcome to New York, 2017!) As Collins and Rep. John Faso made their move, Republican State Committee chairman Ed Cox spent Monday in meetings at White House. He's close to Reince Priebus, and is hoping to upend whatever Cuomo-Trump ceasefire might exist. That will play out over months. But while it does, Collins' attack is a reminder that the opposition party isn't as weak everywhere as it is in New York. * Andrew Cuomo’s every move is now about his 2020 hopes (NYP) * Why Robert Moses Keeps Rising From an Unquiet Grave (NYT) In moving to replace a highway, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo invoked the legacy of the master builder of New York.* Cuomo Blasts Amendment to Federal Health Care Bill That Keeps City on Hook to Fund Medicaid (NY1)
Another ACS Death?
ACS made seven visits to home where 1-year-old was found dead (NYP) A 1-year-old girl — whose parents had been investigated seven times for neglect and child abuse — was unresponsive Monday in her Staten Island home and later died at the...
New Bronx Judge Soft On EMT Killer Witch Bronx Pol or Political Bosses Got Judge Kirschner Elected?
Judge who set accused EMT killer free ignored skipped court appearance (NYP) The judge who freed a mentally unbalanced career criminal less than a month before he allegedly murdered an FDNY EMT ignored the fact that he had previously failed to show up in court as ordered, an official transcript revealed Monday. A prosecutor also told Bronx Criminal Court Judge David Kirschner that Jose Gonzalez had a pending assault case at the time he was busted for an unprovoked, Feb. 25 attack on an NYPD cop who was investigating a robbery, the records show “The defendant stands before this court with four misdemeanor convictions, one failure to appear,” Bronx Assistant District Attorney Hayden Briklin said in court on Feb. 26, according to the transcript. “By this arrest alone, the defendant has proven he cannot follow court orders and say out of trouble and not get re-arrested.” Briklin asked Kirschner to set bail at $5,000, but Kirschner instead released Gonzalez, 25, without bail pending his scheduled appearance the next day in connection with his 2016 arrest for allegedly punching a worker at the homeless shelter where he lived. On Thursday, Gonzalez — who had been arrested a total 31 times and sent to a psych ward six times — was accused of fatally mowing down EMT Yadira Arroyo after stealing her ambulance in The Bronx * The judges & others who left alleged EMT killer walking free (NYP) Just what does it take to get a ticking-time-bomb thug off the streets? That searing question is prompted by news that the man charged with the murder of an EMT last week had no business walking free — yet officials failed to rein him in. At just 25, José Gonzalez already had 31 arrests, including violent incidents, before his fatal run-in with EMT Yadira Arroyo. Reports also say he was a Bloods gang member. Yet a Mayor de Blasio-tapped rookie judge, David Kirschner, still gave him a free pass — just three weeks before the fatal encounter. The judge refused to grant a prosecutor’s bid for $5,000 bail on charges of resisting arrest and kicking out a police-van window. This, when Gonzalez still faced charges in an earlier assault case. You would think with 31 arrests the judge would have taken this a little more seriously,” an NYPD source said. Gonzalez got a break in the earlier case, too: Bronx Judge Laurence Busching denied a prosecution request for bail of $2,000 after Gonzalez was charged in an attack on a worker at his homeless shelter. The judges weren’t the only ones who let down New Yorkers. Police had sent Gonzalez for psychiatric care at least six times. He reportedly had a reputation for outbursts when off his medication. And he was staying in a “supportive shelter.” Somebody at some point should’ve made sure he was confined, getting proper care or at least forced to take his meds. We don’t understand why [Gonzalez] kept getting released,” says Arroyo’s uncle, Edwin Rosado. “He should never have been let out of jail — especially if they’re saying he’s freaking nuts.” The NYPD is doing its job — including dealing with emotionally disturbed persons. But cops seem to be the only part of city government that’s looking out for public safety. And the result is tragic: a slain EMT hero — and five young boys now without a mom.* Freed From Custody, and Accused of Killing E.M.T. Three Weeks Later (NYT)
Lots Pots of Member Item $$$ in the Albany Budget
Citizens Union, a good government group, issued a report that found opaque pork barrel spending in the proposed state executive budget has increased by $2 billion this year to $4.3 billion, the Times Union reports.
Bharara to NYU Law School
Investigative News After Bharara LOL
You can live in de Blasio’s apartment for $1,825 a month (NYP)
No Longer Facing Jail de Blasio Skips Town to Cheer Red Socks and Celebrate His Friends Ability to Take Out Bharara
After Bharara Deverlopers and Their Manchurian Fake Progressive Mayor Will Do Great Harm to New Yorkers
What May Be Next for Bharara
Former U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara’s next career options appear to include taking a faculty position at a prominent law school or a job at a prestigious Manhattan law firm, though he’s been approached about seeking public office, The Wall Street Journal reports.
de Blasio Axed Over Probe Message to Others to Keep Quiet
De Blasio official axed over probe says it was to warn others to keep quiet (NYP) The only city official fired in the just-concluded federal and state probes into de Blasio
who was fired on Feb. 24, said that top City Hall aides turned to him into a pariah after he was grilled by probers last spring. Staffers with the city Department of Investigation and city comptroller quizzed Morales last March and April about two real-estate transactions that allegedly benefited developers and lobbyists who gave donations to the mayor’s campaign and the mayor’s nonprofit, the Campaign for One New York. Morales also received a federal subpoena in May. One of Morales’ projects was the controversial removal of a deed restriction for the Rivington House nursing home on the Lower East Side. The removal forced the for-profit nursing-home provider — who had bought the Rivington building for $28 million from its former nonprofit operator — to flip it because he could no longer afford to run it as a nursing home. He eventually sold it for $116 million.
This 2016 Story By Gotham Gazette Trying to Disqualify DA Vances From Investigating Because of His Ties to de Blasio Is Worth Another Read in Light of the Manhattan DA's Dropping On the de Blasio Investigation Strangely Time to Bharara's Firing
Gotham a None Profit Secretly Funded Most Always Supports or Runs Interference for Those Going After the Mayor
Vance Has Ties to Several in De Blasio Probe (Gotham Gazette) Perhaps the most notable and concerning connection to some is that Vance has also employed two of the political strategy groups subpoenaed in the investigation spurred by the state Board of Elections enforcement counsel, Risa Sugarman, who found problems with the unsuccessful 2014 efforts by de Blasio and his allies to win key swing Senate seats. Specifically, Sugarman pointed to ways in which de Blasio’s allies attempted to evade state campaign donation limits.
Meanwhile, state Board of Elections records show Vance’s connection to two firms included in the BOE referral to law enforcement. Filings show Vance’s campaign paid Mark Guma Communications $1,327,351 from 2009 to 2013 for television and radio advertising, political mailers, and consulting. Mark Guma Communications was subpoenaed by Sugarman in her investigation into what she described as de Blasio’s team’s efforts to intentionally evade campaign finance laws by funnelling donor cash into county committees, which have larger contribution limits, and out to candidate campaigns, which have much lower limits. A subpoena does not indicate charges or guilt. Vance’s campaign also did business with Red Horse Strategies, which was also subpoenaed in Sugarman’s investigation, to the amount of $25,000 in 2009. Both firms assisted Democratic Senate candidates in the 2014 election cycle.
What Does the Director of the Advancement of Public Integrity at Columbia University Jennifer Rogers Think Now?
To some, these connections simply show the close-knit nature of New York politics, but to others they present reason for Vance to recuse himself in the de Blasio-related investigation. “Cy Vance seems to be a very straightforward guy,” said Jennifer Rodgers, former assistant U.S. Attorney and current executive director of the Center For The Advancement of Public Integrity (CAPI) at Columbia University. “In the case of any personal involvement I believe he’d be the first to recuse himself. In the absence any personal involvement the fact that New York City politics turns out to be this weird incestuous pool with everyone working with the same consultants says nothing of the independence of Cy Vance.” John Kaehny, executive director of Reinvent Albany, said he believes the connections are a good reason for Vance to disassociate himself from the case. “Given the sweeping breadth of the investigation into areas touching DA Vance's own political activity - at least two of his own political consultants were subpoenaed - Vance should welcome a complete takeover of the investigation by Preet Bharara,” Kaehny told Gotham Gazette.
What Will NYS Board Of Elections Chief Enforcement Counsel Sugarman in Light of DA Vance Dumping the de Blasio Case?
“Documents were obtained via subpoena from five political consultants involved in these campaigns: Berlin Rosen, LTD., Mark Guma Communications, The Parkside Group LLC, AKPD Message and Media LLC, and Red Horse Strategies LLC. We sought information about work these consultants performed in connection with campaigns for the state senate races of Justin Wagner, Terry Gipson and Cecilia Tkaczyk. Thousands of documents were produced. Review of the documents revealed evidence of campaigns that were coordinated at every level and down to minute details.”
Cuomo Says Move On From deB Probe Dumb People Care About Housing
Is the Gov Saying de Blasio Pay to Play With Developers Has Nothing to Do With Lack of Affordable Housing?
Cuomos ays it's time to move on from de Blasio probe (NYP) “I think what’s good is we can actually talk about issues that matter to people now,” he told reporters at the start of the St. Patrick’s Day Parade. “In this city, we have to be talking about homelessness — which is at an all-time high — housing, etc., civil rights abuses that are going on at Rikers Island.” City Hall officials didn’t respond to a request for comment about the governor’s apparent dig, and de Blasio refused to take questions from the media during the parade — other than from NBC. More On deB Mayor de Blasio wants to move on after fund-raising probe New York Daily News
Cuomo Says Move On From deB Probe Dumb People Care About Housing
Is the Gov Saying de Blasio Pay to Play With Developers Has Nothing to Do With Lack of Affordable Housing?
Cuomos ays it's time to move on from de Blasio probe (NYP) “I think what’s good is we can actually talk about issues that matter to people now,” he told reporters at the start of the St. Patrick’s Day Parade. “In this city, we have to be talking about homelessness — which is at an all-time high — housing, etc., civil rights abuses that are going on at Rikers Island.” City Hall officials didn’t respond to a request for comment about the governor’s apparent dig, and de Blasio refused to take questions from the media during the parade — other than from NBC. More On deB Mayor de Blasio wants to move on after fund-raising probe New York Daily News
de Blasio Blasts Big Pharma for Overdose Crisis Took $50,000 from OxyContin Maker Purdue Pharma
de Blasio Mask is Silent Not Amused of Preet Dump is All Show He and His Lawyer Lobbyist Celebrate
Cuomo Not Following Bharara Firing
After two days of silence, Gov. Andrew Cuomo claimed he “didn’t follow the situation” involving the firing of U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara, who indicted his onetime closest aide, Joe Percoco, and investigated his administration, the New York Post reports.
As the Legal Bills Increase for de Blasio Aides the Press Ignores What They Are Being Investigated For
Cuomo de Blasio Silent About Bharara Firing . . . So are the Entire Political Class of NYC Progressives and Albany Criminals Who Will Steal More
VIDEO: PREET-A-PALOOZA DEPARTURE FROM US ATTY'S OFFICE...
De Blasio and Cuomo have nothing to say about Bharara'sfiring (NYP) The silence was deafening from New York’s two leading politicians over the firing of their mutual nemesis — corruption-busting former Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara. Gov. Cuomo tweeted seven times about a Wednesday wind storm in Rochester, three times about a bomb threat against an upstate synagogue and twice about the blizzard forecast to sweep the state. Cuomo also announced his creation of a task force “to look at the detrimental impact of plastic bags on our natural resources.” Mayor de Blasio, meanwhile, used his official Twitter account to issue a reminder about the start of Daylight Savings Time, blast the Republican plan to replace ObamaCare and wish a “Happy 14th Birthday” to the 311 government-answer system created by former Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
Cuomo takes key step toward launching presidential campaign (NYP) * Sources said Gov. Andrew Cuomo has hired two Florida fundraisers, including a former Hillary Clinton money man, which is a sign that he’s building a national network to launch a presidential bid, the Post reports.
Corporate Media Owned by the Permanent Govt Wins . . . Clueless Kid Reporters Wins . . . The People Lose Their Govt
Fiscal Conservative Cuomo Gone Today Spend Spend As Feds Cut Back Housing $$$ A Plan for 2020 or
Another Campaign Slush Fund Brooklyn Billion Buffalo Billion for 2018? Or Both
Plan Will Increase Gentrification in Central Brooklyn
Cuomo’s $1.4 Billion Plan Targets Brooklyn in Fight Against Poor Health and Poverty (NYT) The proposed plan, called Vital Brooklyn, would bring “health and wellness” resources into communities like East New York, Brownsville, Bedford-Stuyvesant and Crown Heights.*
Plan Will Increase Gentrification in Central Brooklyn
Cuomo’s $1.4 Billion Plan Targets Brooklyn in Fight Against Poor Health and Poverty (NYT) The proposed plan, called Vital Brooklyn, would bring “health and wellness” resources into communities like East New York, Brownsville, Bedford-Stuyvesant and Crown Heights.*
If Councilmember Rose Did Not Get Away With Data and Fields Campaign Corruption Would Have Tried to Use A Non Profit as A Campaign Tool?
Staten Island nonprofit donated to campaign of city polwho steered $1 million into the group (NYDN) For years, Central Family Life Center ran modest senior and youth programs out of a blue-gray cement block building on Staten Island subsidized by modest amounts of taxpayer dollars. Then in fiscal year 2014 they hit the government-funded jackpot: a $500,000-a-year contract sponsored by City Councilwoman Debi Rose to run an anti-gun violence program. By last year, they’d taken in $1 million for this project. The Democratic pol, records obtained by the Daily News show, appears to have gotten something in return. In the last two years, Central Family board members and staff have written dozens of checks for her campaigns, while the group’s leadership has promoted two fund-raisers for her, including one held at a board member’s place of business. The group’s promotion of Rose’s fund-raisers raises issues about whether the taxpayer money she steered into the group wound up helping her campaign. Council rules state that these funds “may only be allocated for a public purpose and may not support political activities (including but not limited to lobbying, campaigns or endorsements) and/or private interests."
Campaign finance records show that since 2009, the group’s executive director, Demetrius Carolina, six of 12 board members and at least three staffers have written Rose 33 checks that total $2,835. Carolina and board member Shawn Stradford have also promoted two recent campaign fund-raisers to raise thousands more for her. An Oct. 27 political fund-raiser for Rose was plugged on Central Family’s Facebook page and on an electronic invite site created by Stradford. The event — listed as “I’m with Debi! Re-election Fundraiser for Councilwoman Rose” — was held at Stradford’s funeral home on Castleton Ave. in Staten Island. Unlike typical city programs, projects funded by council discretionary funds don’t require competitive bidding or anyother protocol aimed at protecting the taxpayer’s investment. Instead, council members simply pick recipients and designate them to receive funds. In 2014, Rose picked Central Family for the first of two $500,000 grants to run the anti-run violence program on Staten Island.
Major de Blasio 2013-2015 Donors to His Campaign and CONY PAC Stingy Afraid of the Feds This Time Around
Why Does the Post Arron Short Take Quotes form Berlin Rosen Dan Levitan Who Lobbying Firm is At the Heart of the Federal Pay to Play Federal Corruption Story
“We are proud to be powered by low-dollar contributions from regular New Yorkers,” said De Blasio campaign spokesman Dan Levitan.
De Blasio’s Pay to Play Permanent Campaign
The Campaign for One NY PAC was Created by de Blasio to Allow His Campaign Contributors to Go Around the Election Law and Fund His Permanent Campaign
Steve Nislick and Wendy Neu — the two anti-horse-carriage lobbyists prohibited from donating large amounts to de Blasio’s mayoral campaign because of their efforts to enact a ban — each gave $50,000 to the group in 2015. That donation came three days after a meeting on horse carriages. The two have given a total of $125,000 to the group since its inception. Other noteworthy donations included a whopping $350,000 from the American Federation of Teachers — the umbrella union for the city’s teachers — and $100,000 from Two Trees Management, a real estate developer that does business with the city.
Even the NY Times Agrees: Mayor de Blasio’s Hired Guns: Private Consultants Help Shape City Hall (NYT, 2015)
Berlin Rosen Was Paid $488,413 by the Campaign for One NY
Bill Hyers; Hill Top Was Paid $228,965 by the Campaign for One NY
John Del Cecato’s AKPD Was Paid $1.1 Million by the Campaign for One NY
Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Election campaign pollster Was Paid $325,127 by the Campaign for One NY
- The mayor appoints 50% of the Campaign Finance Board
- The Council Speaker appoints 50% of the Campaign Finance Board
- Team de Blasio elected Mark- Viverito Speaker
- The mayor appoints 50% of the Conflict of Interests Board
- The Council Speaker appoints 50% of the Conflict of Interests Board
- The Goo Goos and the Media Asked the CFB to Investigate the 1NY PAC
- The Goo Goos and the Media Asked the Conflict Bs to Investigate the 1NY PAC
- NYCLASS PAC By Attacking Quinn Help Elected the Mayor
- The Advance Group Ran the NYCLASS PAC
- The Advance Group Worked Illegally to Elect the Council Speaker
- The CFB Gave A Small Fine to Advance Even Ordered Speaker to pay them
- The Conflict Bd Gave Small Fine to Advance Even Ordered Speaker to pay them
- The CFB Covered Up the NYCLASS Scandal
- The Conflict Bd Covered Up the NYCLASS Scandal
- Berlin Rosen Works for 1NY PAC and as A Campaign Consultant to de Blasio
- Hilltop Works for 1NY PAC and as A Campaign Consultant to de Blasio
- Hilltop Works for 1NY PAC and as A Campaign Consultant to de Blasio
- Red Horse Works for the One NY PAC and 4 out of 5 of the city’s Das
- Red Horse Work for Over 40 Council Members as a consultant or UF PAC
- NYCLASS PAC By Attacking Quinn Help Elected the Mayor
Leading the Way in NYC's Lobbyists $urge is the Mayor's Lawyer and Rivington's Deed Change Lobbyists Capalino
de Blasio Tells City Flacks to Stop Using City Resources to Promoting Him
De Blasio tells staff to stop promoting him when using city resources (NYP) Four months after staunchly defending a taxpayer-funded video that tapped Broadway stars to trumpet his accomplishments, Mayor de Blasio has ordered staff through Election Day to stop promoting him whenever using City Hall resources to communicate with New Yorkers. Dan Gross, the mayor’s deputy communications director, sent an email out to other mayoral staff this week, saying that de Blasio’s “name and likeness” should no longer appear on any “ordinary” communications, such as ads, flyers and public service announcements initiated out of City Hall. He said staffers should instead use “the generic NYC bubble and ‘Office of the Mayor.'” The email, which was first obtained and posted by the Village Voice, notes that the new policy actually went into effect January 1 and runs through November 9 when de Blasio is up for re-election. In December, de Blasio came under fire after recruiting “Aladdin” star James Monroeand Jenna Ushkowitz from the hit TV show “Glee” to sing about his accomplishments in a 3 1/2-minute video. Critics accused the video of being nothing more an early campaign ad – an accusation Hizzoner denied. The stringent, new policy comes at a time when federal and state prosecutors are investigating de Blasio’s past campaign funding practices.
Cuomo Leave Corruption With Me to the Prosecutors While Demanding the Albany Lawmakers Pass New Ethics Laws
Cuomo's ridiculous 'leave it to the prosecutors' plan forpreventing corruption(NYP Ed) Cuomo bristled this week when a reporter asked about adding independent oversight for state economic-development programs: “You do have independent oversight, right? That’s called 62 district attorneys, an attorney general, US attorneys in the Southern District, Northern District, etc.,” he said. Really, governor? By implication, that means anything’s OK unless it’s criminal — and that the public is adequately protected by prosecutors going in after the fact, even if billions have illicitly gone out the door. Of course, prosecutors have indicted nine people for corruption surrounding the Buffalo Billion projects — including Cuomo’s longtime closest aide, Joe Percocco. But maybe, if proper controls were in place, all that alleged bid-rigging wouldn’t have happened in the first place. Cuomo has his own ideas for more oversight — by officials he appoints. But he has no appetite for restoring the powers taken from state Comptroller Tom DiNapoli in 2011 to eye the contracts in question. The gov is also rebuffing efforts by the Assembly to require financial disclosures by the decision-makers of his Regional Economic Development Council — which doles out $750 million a year in grants, tax breaks and other incentives. To be fair, state lawmakers are also resisting Cuomo’s push for new ethics rules to govern their work. We’d suggest that all sides ought to agree to greater transparency and independent oversight. It’s long past time to root out Albany’s culture of influence-peddling and corruption. If the governor and Legislature insist on leaving the job to prosecutors, there’s an excellent chance they’ll wind up regretting it.
De Blasio heads out of town on campaign fundraising circuit (NYP) Mayor de Blasio will rack up frequent-flier miles this weekend by holding three out-of-town fund-raisers — including an A-list Beverly Hills affair being thrown by hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons and legendary TV producer Norman Lear. De Blasio has already cited small donations from ordinary New Yorkers, which qualify for public matching funds, as a key part of his campaign for re-election this fall. Now he’s hitting the road to line up big-buck donors a week after meeting with federal prosecutors investigating his past campaign-finance practices. De Blasio heads to Chicago Friday to address the nonprofit City Club of Chicago. He then travels to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to deliver the keynote address at the Broward Democratic Party’s annual fund-raising dinner.
Campaign Manager de Blasio Who Set Up A System to Go Around the Election Law Knows Nothing About Favors to Get Votes and Campaign $$$
Voters Fed Up With de Blasio's Federal Investigation
Voters fed up with de Blasio's handling of investigations (NYP) Fifty-two percent aren’t happy with how de Blasio is dealing with public corruption, while 28 percent approve of his methods and the rest are undecided, according to a Quinnipiac poll with an error margin of about 3 percent.
ON NY1 LAST FRIDAY DE BLASIO CONFESSED HE RUNS A SHADOW GOVT AND THE MEDIA MISSED THE LEAD Progressive de Blasio Admits He Does Favors For His Friends Who Contribute to His Campaign and PACs Or Community Leaders Who Deliver Votes
The Buildings Department shut down the Bais Ruchel school in December 2014 for illegal classrooms and inadequate fire escapes. Six days later, the order was rescinded after a personal inspection by the Brooklyn building commissioner. In the interim, Moishe Indig, who’d hosted a campaign fund-raiser for de Blasio, had contacted the mayor about the problem. City Hall denies any intervention, but lo and behold, de Blasio’s friend got his favor.
The Lobbyist's Shadow Government
de Blasio Triangulates Trump and Dow 2100 . .
Wins Higher Poll Numbers by Attacking Trump and Increase the City Budget With Trump 3000 Point Wall Street Increase
de Blasio Triangulates Trump and Dow 2100 . .
Wins Higher Poll Numbers by Attacking Trump and Increase the City Budget With Trump 3000 Point Wall Street Increase
de Blasio Poll Number Up Because Most New Yorkers Don't Care About Corruption OR Read the Papers That is Why We Have the Pols Arrests All the Time
De Blasio climbs in polls despite corruption probe (NYP) Despite federal and state probes into his campaign fund-raising, Mayor de Blasio has scored his best marks with voters in a year, a poll released Tuesday said. Forty-seven percent favor de Blasio’s re-election this November, while 44 percent want him booted out of office, according to a Quinnipiac University survey with a margin of error of about 4 percentage points. The results end a year-long trend of voters rejecting the mayor’s re-election bid, including a Jan. 18 poll in which his candidacy was opposed, 48 percent to 42 percent. In the new poll, de Blasio also earned his best job-approval rating in 13 months: 50 percent to 42 percent.*
At the Same Time the Feds Are Grilling Him de Blasio Praises NYC's Progressives Election Laws Raising $ by Email Mayor Is Under Federal Investigation of Creating A Pay to Play PAC Campaign for One NY to Go Around the Progressive Election Law
How Dumb Does deB Think New Yorker's Are?
“I want to talk to you about New York City’s progressive campaign finance laws, and then I am going to ask you to do something important to support and take advantage of them,” de Blasio said in the e-mail. “In New York City, every single resident who contributes between $1 and $175 to a campaign has their contribution matched SIX to ONE. What that means is that a $10 contribution turns into $70, $20 turns into $140, and so on. “This is important because it allows people to run for office without being a millionaire or asking millionaires for money. It opens the doors of politics to people without connections to the city’s rich and powerful, and levels the playing field for working people who want to run for office .
The feds have been probing the mayor over whether he and his advisers exchanged favors to donors for contributions to his 2013 campaign and his now-shuttered nonprofit, the Campaign for One New York. Hizzoner raised $4.3 million — mostly from unions, real estate firms and other companies that do business with the city — for CONY, which promoted his political pet projects.Donors to the mayor’s re-election campaign and other citywide campaigns are limited to giving $4,950 per election cycle — and only $400 if they do business with the city.
de Blasio Admits Play Doing Favors for Contributors and Political Supporters The Pay Was the Campaign for One NY
De Blasio admits he pulls strings at city agencies for friends (NYP) Bill de Blasio admitted Monday he has a long history of doing favors for community members who need help with city business — but claims it’s OK because he “never pressures” his department heads. During his first interview since being grilled Friday by federal prosecutors reviewing his campaign fundraising, de Blasio tried to paint a rosy picture of the more than four-hour meeting by telling NY1 it went “fine.” However, he declined to discuss specifics about the session. Hizzoner also would neither confirm nor deny various media reports over the weekend that he helped Brooklyn Rabbi Moishe Indig, who raised money for him, in getting the Buildings Department in 2014 to lift a partial vacate order at a Hasidic school. “I am not going to go into the tick-tock of it all,” said de Blasio. However, de Blasio did not deny picking up the phone in the past to try to remove bureaucratic red tape on behalf of certain individuals — dating back to his years holding public office before he became mayor. “I will tell you, when I was a City Council member, public advocate and again as mayor, I believe it is perfectly appropriate to put an issue on the agency’s plate, and the agency has to make the decision they see as right,” de Blasio said. De Blasio defended taking off much of Wednesday and Thursday to prepare for the meeting, claiming the city still operated fine because he can “walk and chew gum” at the same time. He said he believes “that all the topics” prosecutors raised “were covered” and that the session went well. “I was happy to go in and recount the facts,” he said. “It was fine.”
Send True News Your Questions To Catch A Lying Mayor Who Think We Are All Dumb
Why Did DNAINFO Axe At Least 5 Reporters In An Election Year? Real News Journalism Dying in NYC Shades of the NYT Michael Powell
DNAinfo axes at least five NYC editors and reporters (NYP) DNAinfo, the hyperlocal news website founded by billionaire John “Joe” Ricketts, is laying off at least five people in its New York City office. The layoffs were said to include managing editor Mike Ventura as well as reporters Murray Weiss, James Fanelli, Adam Nichols and Jeff Mays. Weiss and Fanelli had formerly written for The Post. Ricketts, a Donald Trump supporter in the general election, is the founder and former CEO of TD Ameritrade, which he left in 2011 to concentrate full-time on entrepreneurship and philanthropy. The Ricketts family also owns the Chicago Cubs baseball team.
de Blasio Admits Play Doing Favors for Contributors and Political Supporters The Pay Was the Campaign for One NY
Send True News Your Questions To Catch A Lying Mayor Who Think We Are All Dumb
Mayor de Blasio says talk with U.S. attorney went 'fine'in first comments since questioning (NYDN) Mayor de Blasio said he told federal investigators "everything I know" about probes into his fundraising during a questioning session Friday and believes the meeting went "fine." "We've done everything legally. We've held ourselves to high ethical standards. And I was very comfortable going over everything I knew." Probers have zeroed in on de Blasio's relationship with several donors, including Broadway Stages owner Gina Argento - whose husband told the Daily News she gave after de Blasio asked her to because she feared having her film permits quashed if she refused. De Blasio dismissed his claims as "Conspiratorial" Argento's husband John Ciafone told The News de Blasio's associates never made a threat, but didn't have to because she knew how much sway his administration had over the fate of her business, which relies on the city issued filming permits. De Blasio said those comments are "news to me" and "doesn't make sense from everything I've known of" Argento. "
Will the Mayor Release All The Special Agent Emails to Prove Their In No Press CONY Contributors Conspiracy
The problem with a lot of the coverage is it conflates everything and suggests that there's something wrong with asking someone to support your campaign when you're running for office. I just don't think that's right. That's not what our law says," he said. In another case, investigators are looking into whether de Blasio intervened to get a vacate order lifted on a Brooklyn school building to aid Rabbi Moishe Indig, who raised money for him. "I don't intervene and tell agencies how to do their business," de Blasio said Monday. But when pressed directly on whether reports of his involvement of the issue were accurate, he would not say, declining to get into a "tick tock" of events.
Why Did DNAINFO Axe At Least 5 Reporters In An Election Year? Real News Journalism Dying in NYC Shades of the NYT Michael Powell
WTF The Times Story Right After de Blasio Gets Grilled By the Feds is the Mayor Might As Well Be Unopposed At the Times is Selling Its Brand We are Truth Teller On the Academy Awards Has the Paper Have No Shame?
NYT Buries the Lead on the Leak Info From de Blasio's Lawyers to Them
And the lifting of the deed restrictions is apparently no longer among the matters federal prosecutors are pursuing as they wind down their investigation, people with knowledge of the matter have said. But, those people said, prosecutors are continuing to focus on the lease negotiations for the restaurant, the Water’s Edge in Long Island City, which was owned by Harendra Singh, a longtime supporter of Mr. de Blasio’s. The restaurant is on city land, and the negotiations in 2014 and 2015 were handled by the administrative services department on behalf of the city. Mr. de Blasio, who has steadfastly denied wrongdoing, said on NY1 on Monday night that it was “perfectly fair” for him to “put forward concerns from community members, whether they’re civic leaders, faith leaders, business leaders. But agencies have to make the decision they think is best.” In one example, the mayor was asked about reports that he had intervened to get favorable city action for Moshe Indig, a businessman and leader in the Satmar Hasidic community in Williamsburg. “I don’t intervene and tell agencies how to do their business,” the mayor said. “Agencies come to their own conclusion when they look at a community concern like the concern of a house of worship.”
The NYT Should Be Asking Why Don't We Have Leaders Anymore in NYC?
State BOE Recomends de Blasio Upstate Senate CONY Money Laundry Operation for Criminal Prosecturon
Remember That Berlin Rosen of Campaign for One NY Started in the AG's Shop
The state Board of Elections, at the urging of Chief Enforcement Officer Risa Sugarman, made five formal criminal referrals in 2016 to local district attorneys or the state Attorney General’s office
N.Y. Board ofElections recommended five cases for criminal prosecution in 2016 (NYDN) Members of Mayor de Blasio’s fund-raising operation are not the only ones facing potential criminal charges recommended by the state Board of Elections. The board, at the urging of Chief Enforcement Officer Risa Sugarman, made five formal criminal referrals in 2016 to local district attorneys or the state Attorney General’s office, the Daily News has learned. The News first reported last year that a referral involving de Blasio and his fund-raising operation related to their unsuccessful attempt to help state Senate Democrats capture the chamber majority. The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office has been presenting evidence to a grand jury. Sugarman said the five referrals in 2016 were “a more wide-ranging group of violations” than in 2015, which she previously revealed had covered failure to file required campaign financial disclosure statements to wrongful personal use of campaign funds. Her office in 2016 also received approval from the Board of Elections to issue nine subpoenas. In addition to the criminal referrals, Sugarman said her office settled eight civil cases for a total of $46,709 in fines. That included $1,000 from disgraced former New York City mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner, who missed a single required campaign disclosure filing, a record $27,400 from the Independent Democratic Conference for failing to file timely disclosure reports, and $14,000 from the Nassau County Legislature’s presiding officer, Norma Gonsalves, whose campaign was found to have violated disclosure laws eight times between 2013 and 2015.
de Blasio Scapegoating the Rivington Deed Change Scandal After Firing Morales and Ignoring Others That Knew
A scapegoat for the Rivington Street scandal (NYP) It sure looks like Ricardo Morales is being set up as City Hall’s scapegoat for the notorious Rivington Street flip. Yes, as deputy commissioner at the Citywide Department of Administrative Services, Morales OK’d the lifting of deed restrictions on the Lower East Side nursing home — letting the developer turn the site into luxury housing for a $72 million profit. But he wasn’t remotely the highest-ranking official involved. City Hall insists it’s sheer coincidence that Morales was fired by Mayor de Blasio on Friday just hours after his own long grilling by federal prosecutors. But Morales’ lawyer suspects otherwise, with good reason. After all, it’s been seven months since city Comptroller Scott Stringer issued a damning report that put the lie to de Blasio’s insistence that the fiasco was an innocent mistake. Stringer found the process, dating back to the start of de Blasio’s term, involved “dozens of Administration officials, including three Deputy Mayors, the Directors of the Mayor’s Offices of Intergovernmental Affairs and Contract Services, three City Commissioners and numerous members of their staffs.” That is: Morales was hardly going rogue. Many of these officials knew the powerful union 1199SEIU was pushing for the OK, yet none is said to have told the mayor, or First Deputy Mayor Tony Shorris, what was going on, despite vocal community opposition, until the deal was done. US Attorney Preet Bharara is probing whether this involved more than massive incompetence. Either way, one relatively lowly deputy commissioner shouldn’t be the only one losing his job.
After Meeting With the Feds de Blasio Fires Official At Center of Deed-Lifting Probe Is Morales Talking to the Feds?
Laura NahmiasVerified account @nahmias De Blasio won't confirm or deny whether or not Morales's firing was related to either Water's Edge or Rivington scandals.
Queens Crapper@QueensCrapper Interesting timing - Rivington house figure fired right after Preet meet
de Blasio Distracts By Meaningless Special Agents City Hall Aides Lobbbyists Redacted Email Dump on the Day He Meets the Feds
Has Any of the NY Media Sent A Report After de Blasio Escape to Atlanta After Being Grilled for 4 Hours By the Feds?
Team Bharara On the de Blasio Hunt
With Less Than 200 Words the Times Source is Clearly Team de Blasio or His Lawyers They Say Nothing About How It Went On Is That A Sign?
Investigators Question Mayor de Blasio in Federal Fund-Raising Inquiry (NYT) The interview, at the Midtown Manhattan offices of the mayor’s lawyers, focused on various topics that have come under scrutiny in the nearly yearlong inquiry, people with knowledge of the matter said. The mayor and several staff members arrived for the session in two large black sport utility vehicles around 9 a.m., driving into a garage beneath the building without speaking to waiting reporters. They left the same way. About a half-dozen prosecutors and several F.B.I. agents were present, a person with knowledge of the session said. The mayor was joined by his lawyers, Barry H. Berke and Dani R. James of Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel, and one of their associates.
You Got to Love How WCBS TV's Kramer Chases de Blasio Good TV
De Blasio Meets With Federal Prosecutors, FBI Agents Investigating Campaign Funds (WCBS) As de Blasio was about to end his highly-anticipated session with prosecutors and FBI agents, he had his police detail put up barricades – and then station a phalanx of detectives and officers to keep reporters at bay.
Kramer asked de Blasio: “Mr. Mayor, how did it go? What did you tell the prosecutors?” One officer tried to physically restrain her from following the car as she pointed out that she is allowed to walk on a public street. But that did not stop CBS2 cameramen from capturing the mayor in the back seat of his sport-utility vehicle doing his best to ignore the demands for answers. Despite his reputation for tardiness, de Blasio arrived 20 minutes early Friday for his 9:30 a.m. date with prosecutors and FBI agents investigating whether the mayor or his aides gave donors favorable treatment in exchange for campaign cash, Kramer reported. The mayor never rolled down his window as he arrived for the meeting and the army of detectives and security were on hand to keep reporters at bay from the beginning, Kramer reported. Prosecutors also declined comment. Gerald Lefcourt, one of the city’s top defense attorneys, earlier this month explained to Kramer how important Friday was for the mayor. “This is the biggest moment in his life,” Lefcourt said. “Certainly he has to be very careful because everything is on the line.”
Kramer asked de Blasio: “Mr. Mayor, how did it go? What did you tell the prosecutors?” One officer tried to physically restrain her from following the car as she pointed out that she is allowed to walk on a public street. But that did not stop CBS2 cameramen from capturing the mayor in the back seat of his sport-utility vehicle doing his best to ignore the demands for answers. Despite his reputation for tardiness, de Blasio arrived 20 minutes early Friday for his 9:30 a.m. date with prosecutors and FBI agents investigating whether the mayor or his aides gave donors favorable treatment in exchange for campaign cash, Kramer reported. The mayor never rolled down his window as he arrived for the meeting and the army of detectives and security were on hand to keep reporters at bay from the beginning, Kramer reported. Prosecutors also declined comment. Gerald Lefcourt, one of the city’s top defense attorneys, earlier this month explained to Kramer how important Friday was for the mayor. “This is the biggest moment in his life,” Lefcourt said. “Certainly he has to be very careful because everything is on the line.”
de Blaso Meets With Feds Today on Selling Out His Office With Out Immunity
Update Response following di Blasio's 4hr grilling by US Attorney: “At all times the Mayor & his staff acted appropriately; well within the law."
When de Blasio arrived at Berke’s office Friday morning, he sat in the backseat of a black SUV with his aide Jonathan Viguers, which swiftly pulled into a garage on W. 46th Street. A little while later, Assistant US Attorneys Andrew Goldstein and Tatiana Martins, two of the prosecutors who secured corruption convictions of former state Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and former state Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos, also showed up at Berke’s office. Prosecutor Russell Capone was also said to be involved in the de Blasio probe.
City for Sale Part II 31 Years After Part I
U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara's office to grill Mayor de Blasio overfund-raising probe (NYDN) Prosecutors from U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara’s public corruption unit will sit down Friday with Mayor de Blasio face to face and question him about whether he traded government favors for political donations, sources told the Daily News. The feds are focusing on whether de Blasio or his aides used their official standing in City Hall to help out donors in exchange for contributions made either to his 2013 mayoral campaign or his now-defunct nonprofit, law enforcement sources tell the Daily News. But de Blasio must be truthful at the sit-down, which doesn’t come with any protection of immunity, or he could face criminal charges for fibbing to the feds. The rendezvous is scheduled to take place at the Sixth Ave. offices of Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel, where Hizzoner holed up for several hours both Wednesday and Thursday. The mayor also admitted last month that he was already interviewed by prosecutors from the Manhattan district attorney’s office regarding an unrelated investigation. That probe, looking into fund-raising practices for 2014 state Senate races upstate, is reportedly no longer targeting the mayor, but remains focused on several of his top aides. Yet another investigation encircling City Hall is looking at how a deed restriction was lifted at a Lower East Side nursing home now being turned into luxury housing. Federal and state grand juries began hearing testimony related to probes around the same time. Bharara’s office has been investigating whether the mayor and others at City Hall gave favorable treatment to donors to Campaign for One New York. The feds began zoning in on the mayor last fall after they subpoenaed thousands of emails and documents relating to the progressive-minded nonprofit. The group, which could accept unlimited contributions because of its status, allegedly funneled money from wealthy donors into de Blasio’s campaign coffers — avoiding campaign finance restrictions. Campaign for One New York, with its donations from a mix of developers, unions, lobbyists, and other firms, some with business before the city, was essentially a slush fund for the mayor, critics and ethic watchdogs contend. Donors who had business pending with the administration gave at least $3 million of the $4.3 million de Blasio raised for the nonprofit. The U.S. Attorney’s office declined comment.
Thursday Mayor Preps for Preet in His Lawyers Office All Day for Second Day in A Row
De Blasio spends second day prepping for feds’ questions (NYP) de Blasio on Thursday spent a large chunk of his second straight workday huddling with his lawyer — apparently prepping for a long-anticipated sit-down with federal prosecutors investigating his campaign fund-raising. De Blasio spent more than five hours at the Midtown law office of Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel, arriving with his security detail in a black SUV around 11:30 a.m. and leaving around 4:40 p.m. On Wednesday, de Blasio had no public schedule and spent several hours at the law office. De Blasio — who had already met with Manhattan DA Cyrus Vance Jr.’s office in relation to a state probe, had just two scheduled events for the day, and took no media questions. nd after his not-so-busy workday, de Blasio planned to skip town Friday for two days to attend the Democratic National Committee meeting in Atlanta to campaign for Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison to become DNC chair.
New York city’s ethics panel reinforced existing rules on the use of Twitter and other social media accounts by elected officials, including barring them from using the official accounts of their office for political purposes, the New York Post writes. *
DC37, AFSCME@DistCouncil37 8 minutes ago
NYC defies national trends 23% cut in traffic deaths over 3 years
Bharara Knows If de Blasio Walk No Ethics and Pols Like de Blasio Above the Law
Fair enough, but it’s no guarantee that de Blasio will get the last laugh. Manhattan DA Cyrus Vance Jr. and federal prosecutor Preet Bharara convened grand juries to examine the millions in donations de Blasio and aides solicited from firms and individuals with city business. Several of those donors got favorable government action near the time of their donations, raising the possibility of illegal pay-to-play schemes. Extortion charges are also possible if donors believed their business would be harmed if they refused to contribute to the mayor’s slush funds. If de Blasio is not charged, there will be two main consequences in addition to the election. First, he’ll have no trouble raising money to pay his legal bills. He would still have power over donors’ businesses and contracts, and while some may complain at having their arms twisted, most will pay up. The second impact is that the city should scrap its ethics and campaign finance laws and the state and feds should dismantle their anti-corruption bureaus. After all, if what de Blasio has done is legal, nothing is illegal, so let’s dispense with the hokum that the laws apply to politicians and private citizens equally. If de Blasio walks, pols are above the law.
DOI Slams ACS Again Does Peters Who Was Cut Out of the Pay to Play Investigations Smell Blood in the Waters of de Blasio Land?
.New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio slammed the city Department of Investigation, dismissing its findings about the city’s child welfare agency as “simplistic,” and explained the deaths of two children last fall on failures by individual caseworkers – not systemic problems, the Daily News writes.
Mayor de Blasio insists ACS has no systemic issues inface of damning Department of Investigation reports (NYDN) Mayor de Blasio slammed the Department of Investigation on Tuesday, dismissing its findings about the city’s dysfunctional child welfare agency as “simplistic.” Responding to questions Tuesday, de Blasio blamed the deaths last fall of 6-year-old Zymere Perkins and 3-year-old Jaden Jordan on failures by individual caseworkers — not agency breakdowns. Asked whether he had regrets about the pace of reform following the DOI’s reports, the mayor pooh-poohed the DOI’s findings. “Any oversight agency we look at, in looking at their reports, we look at the things that are accurate and we also look at the things that may not be accurate of the full reality,” de Blasio said. “It’s absolutely simplistic, with all due respect, to act like any other report by any other part of government is false. “I think there’s some temptation in the reporting, to take something that is unusual and exceptional and try and suggest that it’s systemic when I’m not sure it is systemic,” he added. DOI released a report in May exposing systemic failures to properly monitor cases and adequately supervise caseworkers handling investigations of alleged abuse and neglect.
de Blasio Blames Everyone But Himself for ACS Melt Down
de Blasio Blames Everyone But Himself for ACS Melt Down
The adult in the room at Administration for Children's Services(NYDN Ed) Instead, debuting Hansell on Tuesday, de Blasio went to embarrassing rhetorical lengths to reject established evidence that ACS is adrift — and to forward blame to outside forces. While boasting of shrinking the number of kids in foster care, de Blasio pushed back on the notion that ACS hesitates to remove children from harm’s way, citing “cases where ACS decided a child should be removed and a court did not agree.” He speaks of Family Court judges whom he appoints. Who weigh evidence amassed by ACS staff. Who decide whether children are at imminent risk of harm and so must be placed in foster care. De Blasio mused that judges may “have a belief” at odds with ACS’s judgments about what’s best for children’s safety. Sure, that possible — or ACS failed to marshal evidence necessary to meet its burden of proof under law. Brushed off by the mayor, too, were recent probes finding alarming dysfunction within ACS — including a Department of Investigation report last month that nights and weekends were amateur hour for child safety workers, who lacked access to crucial information. DOI rightly deemed that a “systemic failure,” on the heels of an earlier report finding dangerous holes in safety investigations. Again, God knows why, de Blasio bristled at the characterization . The Administration for Children’s Services is set to be run by a competent professional who does not shy from tough realities. Pity the man he ultimately reports to still has a habit of hiding under the desk where the buck stops.
DOI commissioner slams ACS in wake of child's death (NYP) The head of the city Department of Investigation blasted child-welfare officials Sunday for failing to address the bureaucratic bungling that led to a child’s death last year. “We are nowhere near solving this problem, or getting to where we need to be to keep all of the children safe,” DOI Commissioner Mark Peters said on John Catsimatidis’ “Cats Roundtable” on AM 970. Peters last month issued a scathing report that said ACS wasted two days locating suspected abuse victim Jaden Jordan, 3, of Brooklyn — even though the boy’s address was in the agency’s files. By the time caseworkers found the child on Nov. 28, he had been beaten to death. Peters also faulted ACS for not having “fully staffed call centers” at all times. “Initially, when we came to them with some of these concerns, they told us that their review showed there were no real problems with how this case was handled,” Peters fumed. DOI is currently probing the death of Mikey Guzman, 5, who died after being found unconscious in his Queens home Jan. 22. ACS had previously substantiated eight cases of abuse or neglect involving his family, but never removed any of the six kids, sources have told The Post. * The beleaguered New York City Administration for Children’s Services has failed to deliver its annual report by the city’s deadline, an oversight mandate created by de Blasio when he was a city councilman, and also failed to release its quarterly report, the Post writes. * Former ACS head didn’t enforce safety program for caseworkers (NYP) Mayor de Blasio’s child-welfare commissioner turned her back on a safety program that was a key reform adopted in the wake of the infamous 2006 beating death of little Nixzmary Brown, The Post has learned. The Administration for Children’s Services modeled its “ChildStat” program after the NYPD’s widely copied “CompStat” crime-fighting initiative, holding weekly meetings at which abuse cases are randomly reviewed for shortcomings. But ACS Commissioner Gladys Carrión — who abruptly quit amid furor over a series of child deaths tied to her agency — all but stopped attending ChildStat sessions shortly after taking office in 2014, three former city officials said. As a result, ACS caseworkers now rarely show up for the meetings at which their investigations are analyzed, said the sources, who include a recently retired ACS supervisor. Under terms of their contract, caseworkers — who directly investigate allegations of abuse — cannot be forced to attend, but they were “strongly encouraged” during the previous administration of former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, sources said.
AVS Melt Down Following Zymeme Death Caseloads Exploding
Embattled NYC Children's Services agency caseloadssharply rising following Zymere Perkins death (NYDN) Last fall, the city’s child welfare agency came under heavy fire for failing to intervene before 6-year-old Zymere Perkins was beaten to death in a squalid Harlem apartment caseworkers had visited many times. In response, the Administration for Children’s Services insisted that everything was under control, pointing out that caseloads were well below acceptable maximum levels. The day before Zymere died, the average caseload was 9.2 per worker — well below the target of 12 cases ACS had set “based on national best practice standards.”“Best practice” went out the window in December. Following Zymere’s death, ACS began getting an increased number of abuse calls. As a result, by December, workers were juggling the highest caseloads in years — on average, 13.8 cases at any given time. This is happening even as the city hired 600 more caseworkers last year; at the same time, however, more and more caseworkers are leaving, overwhelmed by a very stressful job. The end result is child welfare workers managing more cases each week, increasing the likelihood of missing something or improperly closing a case.
The State of the City is What is Really Happening Not Fake Campaigns Pie in the Sky Promises
Help unwanted: Mayor de Blasio's jobs promise is all packaging (NYDN) Consider the mayoral State of the City address a piece of theater, projecting possibilities for a future New York ever more excellent than the one that rises so tall. So a review is in order for the central scene of Mayor de Blasio’s 2017 effort, a promise to create 100,000 well-paying jobs within the coming 10 years, 40,000 of them before the end of the second term he hopes to win in November:* Bill de Blasio Seeks a Runway to Vogue Voters (NYP) Facing re-election, the mayor discovers the promise of the garment industry to deliver jobs and, maybe, fund-raising support.
NYP Find Council Speaker Candidates At An Anti-Trump Rally and Ask them Candidates How They Will Solve the City's Affordable Housing Crisis
Just four in 10 kids graduate college- or career-ready from the city’s public high schools. Yet Mark-Viverito’s only concern was to force new school curricula that reflect the backgrounds of all students. She had nothing on the homeless crisis or the woes of the Administration for Children’s Services and the Housing Authority. Of course, de Blasio engineered her rise to the speakership, so she doubtless feels obliged to avoid issues that would embarrass him. But the City Council could at least focus on the nuts-and-bolts problems facing each member’s constituents. Something for every council member to consider, when the time comes to choose Mark-Viverito’s successor.
Rat Disease Building Owner Was Know by Pols and City Again Nobody Did A Thing
After the Rat Disease Story Make the Press the Mayor Gets Involved
De Blasio puts city’s ‘worst landlord’ on notice over rat infestation (NYP) de Blasio is vowing to “take over operations” of a rodent-infested Bronx building hit by a deadly outbreak of a rare rat-borne disease. *
The rodent-infested Bronx building affected by a deadly outbreak of a rare rat-borne disease is owned by a notorious slumlord once deemed to be the worst in the city — and has a basement officials say was illegally divided into eight apartments. Ved Parkash, whom Public Advocate Letitia James dubbed the city’s “worst landlord” in 2015, owns the decrepit building where Braulio Balbuena Flores was living in a basement apartment when he contracted leptospirosis last month.Two other people working at a small business on the same block in the Concourse section also caught the bacterial disease, which is linked to rat urine, within the last two months — and one of them later died, according to officials. Officials said the building’s basement had been illegally converted into eight units, which were vacated on Tuesday. Parkash also sent two exterminators to the building to begin addressing the rat problem. “When we came here, we saw substantial evidence of rodent infestation,” said city Health Commissioner Mary Travis Bassett. Last April, 38 tenants filed suit against Parkash, complaining about horrific building conditions. “Rat infestation has been a problem that’s been going on for years,” said Bianca MacPherson, a paralegal at the Urban Justice Center, which is representing the tenants. Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz blasted the landlord and the city, saying there have been 1,500 complaints made at the building since 2010.* Residents in the Grand Concourse area of the Bronx were furious after learning three people living or working on one block had been infected by a rare disease spread by rat urine, saying the city had been slow to respond, the Journal reports. * Cuomo signed a bill effectively killing a 5-cent fee on plastic bags in New York City, disappointing environmentalists as well as city leaders who characterized the move as a classic case of Albany’s overreach, The New York Times reports. *Andrew Cuomo blocks 5-cent ‘bag tax’ (NYP)
De Blasio puts city’s ‘worst landlord’ on notice over rat infestation (NYP) de Blasio is vowing to “take over operations” of a rodent-infested Bronx building hit by a deadly outbreak of a rare rat-borne disease. *
The rodent-infested Bronx building affected by a deadly outbreak of a rare rat-borne disease is owned by a notorious slumlord once deemed to be the worst in the city — and has a basement officials say was illegally divided into eight apartments. Ved Parkash, whom Public Advocate Letitia James dubbed the city’s “worst landlord” in 2015, owns the decrepit building where Braulio Balbuena Flores was living in a basement apartment when he contracted leptospirosis last month.Two other people working at a small business on the same block in the Concourse section also caught the bacterial disease, which is linked to rat urine, within the last two months — and one of them later died, according to officials. Officials said the building’s basement had been illegally converted into eight units, which were vacated on Tuesday. Parkash also sent two exterminators to the building to begin addressing the rat problem. “When we came here, we saw substantial evidence of rodent infestation,” said city Health Commissioner Mary Travis Bassett. Last April, 38 tenants filed suit against Parkash, complaining about horrific building conditions. “Rat infestation has been a problem that’s been going on for years,” said Bianca MacPherson, a paralegal at the Urban Justice Center, which is representing the tenants. Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz blasted the landlord and the city, saying there have been 1,500 complaints made at the building since 2010.* Residents in the Grand Concourse area of the Bronx were furious after learning three people living or working on one block had been infected by a rare disease spread by rat urine, saying the city had been slow to respond, the Journal reports. * Cuomo signed a bill effectively killing a 5-cent fee on plastic bags in New York City, disappointing environmentalists as well as city leaders who characterized the move as a classic case of Albany’s overreach, The New York Times reports. *Andrew Cuomo blocks 5-cent ‘bag tax’ (NYP)
City to Limit Funding Of Non Profit That Rented Slum Building Where Child Died
City to limit relationship with provider that oversaw shelter where toddlers died (NYP) The city is moving to limit its relationship with a homeless services provider that oversaw the shelter were two toddlers died last year when a radiator scalded them with steam. Homeless Services officials said the agency will remove or replace the Bushwick Economic Development Corp as the service provider at 33 cluster sites — which are regular apartment buildings that have some units reserved for the homeless — and then at 11 commercial hotels that are being used as shelters. The firm, known as BEDCO, also manages eight traditional shelter sites that are not being impacted by the city’s actions. City officials said a combination of factors prompted the move — including poor outcomes from the firm’s social services as well as the number of violations at certain sites. A number of building owners have filed lawsuits against BEDCO alleging that the firm stopped paying its bills — including $1.5 million owed to the former owner of a shelter on DeKalb Avenue in Brooklyn. The firm also helped place and support the five homeless families at the building where the Ambrose sisters — 2-year-old Ibanez and 1-year-old Scylee — died after a radiator apparently malfunctioned and scalded them with steam. BEDCO director Frank Boswell didn’t respond to an email and phone call seeking comment.
What About the Other Non Profits Renting to Slum Landlords?
Mayor de Blasio tocut off city's use of nonprofit that has been cited for placing homeless inrun-down housing (NYDN) Eight months ago the city signed a $16 million contract with a nonprofit that had been cited repeatedly for housing the homeless in decrepit apartments and hotels. On Thursday Mayor de Blasio pulled the plug, announcing that in the coming months, the city will phase out its use of Bushwick Economic Development Corp. In Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx, BEDCO houses hundreds of homeless families and single adults in 11 hotels and 33 so-called “cluster sites,” private apartment buildings notorious for scandalous conditions. De Blasio had criticized both programs before he was elected mayor but was forced to expand the use of both as the shelter census rose from 53,000 in January 2014 to 60,000 this week. The city will move the all the homeless individuals now living in these hotels and apartments to either permanent housing or other hotels and cluster sites not run by BEDCO. The nonprofit, which receives tens of millions of taxpayer dollars each year from the city and state, was one of several groups DHS paid to house the homeless. In March 2015, the city Department of Investigation cited several of those groups — including BEDCO — for routinely placing families in squalid apartments with dozens of housing, building and health code violations. At one BEDCO building on E. 174th St. in the Bronx, DOI found a large dead rat that had been lying in the lobby for days. At the time, DOI criticized the city’s habit of repeatedly retaining the groups on an “emergency” basis without actual contracts. That gave the city little leverage to demand the groups remedy horrendous living conditions. BEDCO also placed families in the Bronx building where two infants were scalded to death in December due to a faulty radiator. A tenant at the building told the News she'd reported a busted radiator in her apartment to BEDCO, but no one came to fix it. The BEDCO announcement came three days after the mayor was criticized for saying nothing about the homeless crisis during his rambling 65-minute State of the City address Monday night. The decision to cut off BEDCO is part of a de Blasio promise made last year to eliminate all "cluster sites” by 2018. He’s also vowed to end the use of hotels, but without a specific deadline. The cut-off also represents an abrupt about-face. Just eight months ago, DHS renewed two BEDCO contracts, including a $2.2 million contract that was to continue through June and a $16.8 million contract that was to continue into 2020. The nonprofit currently has 12 contracts with DHS, most of which expire this year. It also manages eight traditional shelters, and the city says it will review those contracts as well within the next 90 days. Last year, Banks said, the city eliminated 10,000 code violations in shelters and “cluster sites,” and will stop using these apartments and hotels as soon as possible.
NEW YORK TIMES DECIMATES CUOMO OVER BAG TAX..
The Times writes that Cuomo looks inconsistent now that he has halted New York City’s plan to impose a 5-cent fee on plastic bags because he’s not known for letting perfect be the enemy of the good and has argued for region-by-region initiatives in the past. * The Times Union writes that New York City could once again lead the way on statewide law – as it did with its indoor smoking ban – if the state would not stand in the way of innovators trying reduce the use of disposable plastic bags. * The Daily News writes that Cuomo joined the gang “infantilizing New York City” when he did not stand up and reject the Legislature’s attempt to kill the city’s imposition of a nickel fee on disposable bags.
Cuomo’s mighty pen must defend the city’s nickel bag fee(NYDN) * The Times writes that the state Legislature is abusing its power by overriding New York City’s plan to impose a nickel surcharge on plastic and paper bags, and Cuomo should stand up for home rule by vetoing the legislation.* The Post writes that Cuomo is reportedly trying to broker a compromise on the plastic bag surcharge, but he has better things to do and should just sign the bill and kill what amounts to a punitive tax.
Cuomo says he’s torn between the environmental andeconomic impact of 5-cent plastic bag fee (NYDN) Sources say @NYGovCuomo has already reached out to State and City legislative leaders in an attempt to broker a compromise on bag fee
Assembly halts city's plastic bag fee. Speaker Heastie: "We have heard from many constituents concerned about the financial burden."
State lawmakers to vote on delaying city’s 5-cent bag fee (NYP) ALBANY — State lawmakers within days plan to vote on a bill that would postpone the city’s 5-cent plastic-bag fee for a year.*
de Blasio's Jobs Plan Will Costs Up to $91,000 A Job and Not Happen Until 2027
De Blasio's 'jobs plan' is a laughable con (NYP Ed) de Blasio must’ve thought he was doing stand-up comedy Monday night at the Apollo — because his vow to create 100,000 jobs was a real knee-slapper. Hizzoner was focusing his State of the City speech on Gotham’s “affordability crisis.” He said “half of the equation” is jobs. Yes, jobs are key. But the idea that de Blasio (of all people) will snap his fingers and — puff! — tens of thousands of jobs will materialize is simply preposterous. Even the mayor admits his 100,000 jobs — many supposedly to pay $50,000 a year and up — won’t fully appear for another 10 years. That is, long after he’s left office. Start with his $136 million plan for a “hub” in Sunset Park for clothing makers and film and TV companies. If all goes well (cross your fingers), de Blasio says it’ll lead (eventually) to . . . all of 1,500 jobs. That’s right: 1,500 jobs — at a cost to taxpayers of $91,000 a job. (And that doesn’t count Gov. Cuomo’s own $420 million a year to supposedly boost film and TV jobs.) Yet the biggest irony is that de Blasio has practically done everything in his power to discourage job growth — like pushing for a $15 minimum wage, paid sick leave and family leave, all of which make it more expensive for employers to hire workers. If Hizzoner truly sought to gin up jobs, he’d move to scrap all the mandates on employers and lower New York taxes, perennially among the highest in the nation. He could also make New Yorkers more attractive to employers and push up wages by seeing that kids get a decent education in the public schools. Right now, two out of three kids who graduate aren’t ready for college or the workplace — yet the mayor brags of gains he’s made in the schools.* De Blasio must’ve thought he was doing stand-up comedy Monday night at the Apollo Theater – because his vow to create 100,000 jobs was a real knee-slapper, as the idea that de Blasio will snap his fingers and jobs will materialize is simply preposterous, the Post writes. * Day after State of City speech, @BilldeBlasio's jobs announcementlight on details (PoliticoNY) * Stringer also bashed the mayor’s 10-year plan to create 100,000 jobs with city subsidies — the main focus of the de Blasio’s State of the City speech this week — arguing that many private-sector jobs are already created almost every year. The comptroller’s analysis showed that the city has added a net 635,000 private-sector jobs since 2009 alone. “I don’t think people truly understood what he was talking about because [there’s] no plan, no timetable for a plan,” said Stringer, a possible mayoral contender this year. “[It’s] just an empty promise, and it’s certainly not enough.”* Stringer, a rumored mayoral candidate, tore into New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s new plans to create jobs and affordable housing, and his decision to withhold specifics to address the city’s homelessness crisis in his State of the City speech, the Observer reports.
Dumb TV News Runs de Blasio Con Job As A Campaign Commerical
Mayor announces new fashion and film complex in Brooklyn, to create jobs with salaries of $53K to $57K (WNBC)
Dumb TV News Runs de Blasio Con Job As A Campaign Commerical
Mayor announces new fashion and film complex in Brooklyn, to create jobs with salaries of $53K to $57K (WNBC)
de Blasio and Mark-Viverito Give Tenants Being Pushed Out By Their Gentrification Producing Housing Policies That Pushing Tenants Out A Right to A Lawyer in Housing Court
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito revealed a $93 million program to guarantee legal counsel to any tenant facing eviction, the Observer writes.
All Incumbents, the Party Machines Even the Unions Like NY's Declining Voter Participation Rates
NY Voter Suppression State Senate Republicans have balked at making voting easier, worried, it seems, that it will bring out more Democratic-voting minorities, but that’s no excuse, as encouraging greater participation in elections is the democratic thing to do, the Times Union writes. *
Voter's Protest: New York's Decreasing Voter Turnout
Who Made 4 Dems to Vote Against Sanctuary Cities CUOMO?
4 Mainstream Senate Democrats Against Sanctuary Cities (Kings County) While the progressive wing of the Democratic Party continues to rail against the Senate’s Independent Democratic Conference for being aligned with “Trump Republicans,” Sen. Kevin Parker (D-Flatbush/Kensington/Midwood/Windsor Terrace/Park Slope), along with three other Democrats from the mainstream Senate Democratic Conference voted for an Anti-Sanctuary Bill, Kings County Politics has learned. It passed the Senate, 36-26, on June 17 of last year as Trump was spewing anti-immigrant rhetoric in the lead-up to the presidential election. Parker and fellow Democratic Senators George Latimer (D-Westchester County), Timothy Kennedy (D-Buffalo) and Todd Kaminsky (D-Long Island) voted for the measure. “I did vote no in committee and I’m the founder of the Democratic Task Force on New Americans,” said Parker, noting the task force strongly supports New York being a Sanctuary State. “Every member of the Independent Democratic Conference voted against the anti-sanctuary city bill that came up at a time when Donald Trump spewed hateful anti-immigrant rhetoric on the campaign trail. It matters how senators vote, and the fact is that four Democrats, including Senator Parker, voted in line with Donald Trump’s anti-immigrant platform,” said Giove. According to the transcript of the session, among the senators that spoke up vehemently on the senate floor against the measure was IDC Member Sen. Jesse Hamilton (D-Central Brooklyn), who has been the target of mainly white progressive Democrats in the past few days for being a member of the IDC.
Who Made 4 Dems to Vote Against Sanctuary Cities CUOMO?
4 Mainstream Senate Democrats Against Sanctuary Cities (Kings County) While the progressive wing of the Democratic Party continues to rail against the Senate’s Independent Democratic Conference for being aligned with “Trump Republicans,” Sen. Kevin Parker (D-Flatbush/Kensington/Midwood/Windsor Terrace/Park Slope), along with three other Democrats from the mainstream Senate Democratic Conference voted for an Anti-Sanctuary Bill, Kings County Politics has learned. It passed the Senate, 36-26, on June 17 of last year as Trump was spewing anti-immigrant rhetoric in the lead-up to the presidential election. Parker and fellow Democratic Senators George Latimer (D-Westchester County), Timothy Kennedy (D-Buffalo) and Todd Kaminsky (D-Long Island) voted for the measure. “I did vote no in committee and I’m the founder of the Democratic Task Force on New Americans,” said Parker, noting the task force strongly supports New York being a Sanctuary State. “Every member of the Independent Democratic Conference voted against the anti-sanctuary city bill that came up at a time when Donald Trump spewed hateful anti-immigrant rhetoric on the campaign trail. It matters how senators vote, and the fact is that four Democrats, including Senator Parker, voted in line with Donald Trump’s anti-immigrant platform,” said Giove. According to the transcript of the session, among the senators that spoke up vehemently on the senate floor against the measure was IDC Member Sen. Jesse Hamilton (D-Central Brooklyn), who has been the target of mainly white progressive Democrats in the past few days for being a member of the IDC.
De Blasio and Stringer Trade Barbs Over Police Body Camera Deal (NYT) * Nearly $390 million of the NYPD’s budget is shrouded in secrecy, with the names of vendors getting paid listed as “not available” on the city’s transparency website, though the payments are vetted by New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer, the Daily News writes.
Will de Blasio Be Forced to Resign by Tanking Poll Numbers if He is Indicted and Take A Ferry or Trolley Out of Town?
De Blasio's criminal defense lawyer, Barry Berke, already had at least one meeting of his own with prosecutors in an attempt to convince them not to press charges, sources told NBC 4. Berke has not returned numerous calls for comment. The planned meeting with federal prosecutors comes after the mayor met with the Manhattan district attorney's office. Prosecutors there are apparently wrapping up a separate criminal investigation into whether anyone at City Hall crossed any lines in helping raise money to try to help Democrats take control of the state Senate. De Blasio said he hasn't been informed that he's the target of an investigation in that case.* Hizzoner instead defended his taxpayer-funded legal bills on Brian Lehrer’s radio show Friday, while remaining silent on the ACS and the Department of Investigation’s damning report on “systemic” problems within the agency.
More on Mayor Walker
The Feds Try to Turn de Blasio Staff Against Him NY Post Leaves Out Lobbyists, Contributors and Developers Many Have Already Become Federal Witnesses Who Will Turn on the Mayor Facing Prision Time?
De Blasio agreed to the interview after Bharara convened a grand jury in December to look into whether he and his team gave favors to donors for their contributions to his 2013 campaign and his nonprofit, Campaign for One New York
de Blasio Already Spoke to the Manhattan DA on Laundry CONY Money to Upstate Democratic Candidates
He answered state prosecutors’ questions on Jan. 25 in a separate probe of whether Team de Blasio broke election law when it funneled money through upstate county committees to help Democrats win the state Senate in 2014.
While de Blasio and the press focus on Putnam $$$ laundering the FBI looks at the Terminator: Citizens United
A cloud of suspicion has hovered over City Hall since April, when The Post reported that the FBI grilled about 20 cops over gifts and trips they allegedly received from de Blasio donors Jona Rechnitz and Jeremy Reichberg in exchange for favors such as providing police escorts.
Rechnitz the Rat, Seabrook Indictment
Sex, strippers and cops on call: How two Orthodox Jewssparked New York's worst scandal in decades(IBTIMES) Jewish community leaders say Jona Rechnitz and Jeremy Reichberg 'embarrassed the whole community'.
Berlin Rosen is the Top Boss of de Blasio's Shadow Govt of Lobbyists
BerlinRosen, a political p.r. firm helmed by top de Blasio confidant Jonathan Rosen, received a subpoena in connection with the investigation last April, but it has denied wrongdoing.
Avi Fink Involved In At Least the LICH Hospital Sale and the Rivington Deed Change to Help Developers and Lobbyists Capalino
Another top mayoral liaison, Avi Fink, met with federal prosecutors regarding the donors and development projects, the source said.
CONY Paid for A Dirty Money Mailing That Help Close A Hospital to Build LuxuryHousing for A Developer That de Blasio Campaign CONY Manager Hilltop Now WorksFor
Closing Hospitals,HHC, LICH
Almost Everyone Knew About The Rivington Nursing Home Deed Change But the Mayor?
The inquiry included the city’s lifting of deed restrictions on a Lower East Side nursing home. The move had allowed the Allure Group, whose executives had met with Fink, to sell the building to developers at a $72 million profit.
Timeline On the Village Nursing Home Investigation
Closing Hospitals,HHC, LICH
The inquiry included the city’s lifting of deed restrictions on a Lower East Side nursing home. The move had allowed the Allure Group, whose executives had met with Fink, to sell the building to developers at a $72 million profit.
Timeline On the Village Nursing Home Investigation
de Blasio Created A Shadow Govt of Lobbyists That the Press Ignored But the Feds Have Not
State prosecutors in November and December met with campaign fund-raiser Ross Offinger, top political aide Emma Wolfe, union political operative Josh Gold, and political consultants Bill Hyers and Hayley Prim of Hilltop Public Solutions to answer questions, according to a second political source.
de Blasio's Wolfe Target of the Feds In Hiding
The BOE Commissioners Fix the Ballot Again
Not Even Ballot Fixing By the BOE in 2010 is Investigated
Head of Board of Elections Fired One Week Before Election (WNYC) Sources at the Board of Elections say Gonzalez was fired over irregularities that initially appeared on the ballot of a special election in Queens for the City Council seat in the 28th district.* Gonzalez Firing, DOI Investigation, Could Ease Awaited Bloomberg BoE Power Play(CHN)
Head of Board of Elections Fired One Week Before Election (WNYC) Sources at the Board of Elections say Gonzalez was fired over irregularities that initially appeared on the ballot of a special election in Queens for the City Council seat in the 28th district.* Gonzalez Firing, DOI Investigation, Could Ease Awaited Bloomberg BoE Power Play(CHN)
de Blasio Refuses to Stop the Corrupt Rivington Nursing Home Deal By Using the False Claims-Act
Big de Blasio donors and Lobbyists Like Campalino seemingly greasing the skids, damn the law and the consequences.
On Monday, state Sen. Daniel Squadron demanded an explanation for why the city has declined to sue the developer de Blasio claims deceived his officials into lifting deed restrictions protecting the Lower East Side nursing home known as Rivington House, allowing its conversion into luxury condominiums . Following a frenzy of lobbying by two donors to de Blasio’s Campaign for One New York, lobbyist Jim Capalino and union 1199SEIU, a city agency scrambled to satisfy the demands of nursing home buyer the Allure Group. Those demands included the deed restrictions’ removal at the bargain price of just $16 million, far lower than area property values would dictate, all on the pretense that a nursing home would remain. Allure then turned around and sold the building to a luxury condo developer for $116 million. Quite the rip-off. Like this editorial page, Squadron remains puzzled over de Blasio’s claim that his lawyers are powerless to file a credible case under the state False Claims Act, which punishes malefactors who bilk New York taxpayers.
DE BLASIO DILEMMA: Both Rivington Nursing Home Deed Change and LICH Hospital converting to luxury apartments...Both Under Fed Investigation . . . Both Involve Lobbyist Capalino
de Blasio Goes Around Bidding to Give More Money to A Bus Contractor Interconnected to the Federal Investigation Senate Political Donor DOI Investigates
City Hall’s putrid multimillion-dollar gift to a political donor (NYP Ed) Why let a few corruption probes stop you from rewarding your donors with taxpayer cash? Prosecutors are looking closely for ties between a private bus company founder’s $100,000 political gift and Mayor de Blasio’s $61 million grant to that firm — yet Hizzoner is set to hand it millions more. On Tuesday, a Department of Small Business Services hearing will consider shelling out fresh tens of millions to school-bus companies like Reliant Transportation — whose founder, Alex Lodde, gave $100,000 to de Blasio’s 2014 push for state Senate Democrats. Reliant has already scored $61 million in such grants over two years. Why? To “encourage” bus companies “to maintain the wages and benefits” of senior employees, says Team de Blasio. Huh? Mayors have a duty to safeguard taxpayer funds and bargain for the lowest price for services — not hand millions to (some) companies to raise their workers’ pay. As the Citizens Budget Commission says, the grants are “supplementary payments” to contractors “above the terms of legally binding” deals, “in exchange for no additional services.” And they make a mockery of the bidding process — setting a “troublesome precedent” for other vendors: Bid low, then beg for a “bonus” to pay your people more. Is it even legal? “The state Constitution prohibits the city from giving money directly to a private corporation” absent a strong “public purpose,” notes City Councilman Dan Garodnick (D-Manhattan), and it’s a “stretch” to say these payments qualify. * City probes bus company’s donation to de Blasio cause (NYP) The Department of Investigation has taken an interest in a city program that has delivered more than $60 million in subsidies to a school-bus company whose CEO made a $100,000 contribution to a political cause championed by Mayor de Blasio. For the first two years of the program, only one firm — Reliant Transportation — had applied for and collected $61.2 million to boost the salaries of its drivers. A third round of funding begins this year. Less than two months after the program first launched, Reliant CEO Alex Lodde donated $100,000 to an upstate Democratic committee as part of de Blasio’s controversial Senate push. The effort ultimately failed. De Blasio had pledged to make up the wages lost by veteran drivers when his predecessor removed seniority requirements in a new round of contracts. Critics say the mayor is exceeding his authority by giving away taxpayers’ money when there’s no contractual reason to do so.
After the Feds Join the Lawsuit for Voter Suppression by the BOE the AG Also Joins
AG Pushing Voting Reforms
Politicians Push to Make Voting Easier in New York | DNAInfo Reports
The AG Wants Former Congressman Vito Fossella Mother Removed As Head of BOE Voter Registration
Schneiderman also wants the court to remove the city’s current head of Voter Registration, Beth Fossella, who has served in the position since 2001. She is the mother of former congressman Vito Fossella, who left office under a cloud in 2009. The AG also wants the court to order the board to create a training program for employees on how to comply with state and federal law. *
The Post Attacks the AG's Election Reforms As Not Addressing Real Problem Political Machine Control of the BOE What About the PACs and Pay to Play Lobbyists Controlling the Elections?
The Post Attacks the AG's Election Reforms As Not Addressing Real Problem Political Machine Control of the BOE What About the PACs and Pay to Play Lobbyists Controlling the Elections?
The Political Machines Run the BOE
None of solutions addressed the problems that left voters plagued with closed and inadequately staffed polling stations, broken machines and flatly incompetent poll workers. Driving all those woes is the fact that most New York boards of elections — particularly in the major cities — are controlled by political bosses who use them as patronage mills. The answer lies in demolishing and rebuilding the Board of Elections structure. But Schneiderman didn’t want to go there — just as we expected. Nor do they address the issue of possible voting fraud — of the kind that city Board of Elections Commissioner Alan Schulkin spoke of in an undercover video, where he also defended voter-ID laws. (For his troubles, Schulkin is losing his job.)
Schneiderman Gives the Easy Solutions
All the hyper-partisan AG offers is the usual liberal wish list on elections: early voting, same-day registration/voting, “no excuse” absentee voting, full voting rights for felons out on parole, making it harder to challenge a voter’s eligibility and so on. Which is why his “report” quickly won praise from the usual bevy of “progressive” and good-government reform groups.
Special Election and the Election Law
Attorney General Schneiderman and His Re-Election
BOE History of Corruption and Incompetence Timeline
BOE History of Corruption and Incompetence Timeline
10 Areas Where DOI Can Investigate the BOE
Justice Dept Joins Lawsuit BOE Violated Federal Law in the Brooklyn Voter Purge
Where is the Criminal Investigation?
Justice Department Says City Board of Elections Violated Federal Law inBrooklyn Voter Purge (WNYC) The United States Department of Justice is taking on the New York City Board of Elections for improperly purging nearly 120,000 Brooklyn voters before the April 2016 presidential primary. In a motion filed in federal court Thursday, the DOJ claims the Board violated the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 when it removed those voters from the rolls. It's the first time federal authorities have taken a position on the purge, which was first reported by WNYC on the eve of the primary vote in April. Numerous elected officials and advocates had requested federal intervention since. The case was originally filed in federal court in Brooklyn last November on behalf of the good government group Common Cause, which advocates for individuals' voting rights, along with two named plaintiffs. Lawyers for the plaintiffs also sought intervention from the Justice Department, citing WNYC's reporting.
The suit challenges the Board’s removal of voters from the registration rolls in violation of the 1993 National Voter Registration Act. The law prohibits removing voters from the rolls unless the person has failed to vote in two successive federal elections and has failed to respond to a notice from the Board indicating that their registration will be cancelled. The government said that some voters had in fact voted in prior elections, and in other cases the notice itself was improperly handled. WNYC reported that the board mysteriously purged 120,000 Brooklyn voters from the rolls prior to the hotly contested primary between Hillary Clinton and challenger Bernie Sanders last April. The board then said it would reinstate those voters in time for last summer's congressional primaries and the fall general election for president. WNYC also reported that the purge disproportionately affected Latino voters in Brooklyn's 7th Congressional district. Elected officials and advocates cited the station's reporting in their complaints to the federal government and the court. They also argued that more voters may have been improperly purged on other dates, and that the problem persists. The court case describes the situation of two foreign service workers, Benjamin Buscher and Sean Hennessey, the two named plaintiffs, who keep a permanent residence in Brooklyn while they work overseas for the State Department. In October of 2016, both men applied for absentee ballots to vote in the general election, according to the complaint. When those absentee ballots did not arrive, they contacted the Kings County Board of Elections Office and were told that their registrations were no longer valid and that they had missed the deadline to update their registration. The plaintiffs contacted the nonprofit Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under the Law, which learned that the Board had removed the plaintiffs more than two years before. The case was brought on behalf of the plaintiffs by the Lawyers Committee along with LatinoJustice PRLDEF and the law firm Dechert LLP. Five additional named plaintiffs have been added to the lawsuit. The city Board of Elections had no comment, and the city Law Department, which is defending the board, says the matter is under review. In a letter to the judge, the Justice Department said it is in talks with the board about an appropriate remedy and will have an answer by February 6.*
Justice Dept Joins Lawsuit BOE Violated Federal Law in the Brooklyn Voter Purge
Where is the Criminal Investigation?
de Blasio's Alternative Facts On Union Apprenticeships Program
Channeling Trump, de Blasio has 'alternative facts' too (Crains) Mayor denies expressing skepticism about a union-friendly mandate, but his own transcript proves he did But the Crain's report was accurate. Just two weeks prior, the mayor had addressed the apprenticeship mandate at a press conference, saying, "I don’t think requirement works, practically speaking," as his office's own transcript and video show. When asked why he did not think such a requirement would work, de Blasio then cited the high volume of nonunion work in the city.
Cuomo Cut Off From Gleenwood by Silver and Skelos Corruption Has Found New Pots of RE Campaign LLC Contributions What Cap?
No doing-biz limits + LLC loophole = $$$ for Cuomo from entities with state business - new big donors
-- FISHER BROTHERS ($130,000): While Cuomo had previously picked up $281,000 from executives at the real estate firm, he hadn't previously received any donations directly from the company itself. Some of these earlier donations prompted scrutiny as they were made weeks before Cuomo approved a bill of the 421-a tax abatement that included a special carve-out for one of the company's properties. ... The two new donations came three days before Cuomo announced that a 421-a renewal would be in his budget this year. ... SOMERSET PARTNERS &
-- KEITH RUBENSTEIN ($84,500): An LLC tied to real estate investment firm Somerset Partners gave Cuomo $50,000 in November, and founder Rubenstein gave $34,500 last week. While neither had previously given to the governor, Rubenstein hosted a $2,500 a head Bronx fundraiser for him last April." *
The WFP and Berlin Rosen Has Played Fast and Lose With the Election Law, Data and Field Arrests
The Exploding Radiator Non Profit Where 2 Children Died Racked up 185 Violations
Nonprofit that runs deadly ‘exploding radiator’ building racked up 185 violations (NYP) The nonprofit agency that oversaw a Bronx apartment where two baby sisters were scalded to death has racked up a city-high 185 open violations at a separate site it manages for the homeless, according to a scathing report. Investigators for the state Senate Independent Democratic Conference found that 1055 University Ave. in The Bronx had 185 unresolved violations, the most of any of the so-called “cluster sites” that the city leases for homeless families. Units for the homeless in the building are supervised by the Bushwick Economic Development Corp, or BEDCO, the Brooklyn-based nonprofit that also oversees the Hunts Point Avenue apartment in The Bronx where the Ambrose sisters — 2-year-old Ibanez and 1-year-old Scylee — suffered lethal steam burns from a faulty radiator. he violations at the University Avenue apartments include rodent and roach infestations, mold, lead paint in some apartments and no smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, the report found. BEDCO could not be reached for comment.“[Homeless people] get sent to places that are so appalling and so deplorable that, if they could, the rats would put in a request for transfer,” said State Sen. Diane Savino (D-SI). “That is how bad our shelter system has gotten.” The report also found that 38 of the 41 cluster sites used by the city for the homeless had open violations. Six of the 10 worst are based in The Bronx
Cuomo Disguises Corruption: Changes the Name of Corrupt State-Up NY to Excelsior Business Program
What Was the Point of the $50 Million in Ads During the 2014 Election?
Fredric U. Dicker @fud31 "It may be the closest Cuomo ever gets to admitting failure."
With Trump de Blasio Wounded With Expected Federal Indictments See Opportunity to Win Progressive Votes For Reelection
New Yorkers are furious about de Blasio’s anti-Trump rally (NYP) Mayor de Blasio caused traffic mayhem for his own political gains on Thursday night as he headed a massive anti-Trump protest in Columbus Circle. “It’s terrible, I just want to go home,” fumed Mary Aliaj, a 30-year-old Staten Islander who works at the nearby Valery Joseph Salon. “It is worse [than Trump],” she said. “This is disturbing. I don’t think [the mayor] is going to solve anything. They should of done it somewhere that doesn’t stop other people. It’s wasting time and disturbing other people.” Many residents that weren’t involved in the protest — attended by Alec Baldwin, Cher, Mark Ruffalo, Rev. Al Sharpton, Rosie Perez, Shailene Woodley, Robert DeNiro and Natalie Merchant — were outraged by de Blasio and how the traffic-snarling protest seemed to be fueled by his quest for the political spotlight and anger toward the President-elect. A Quinnipiac poll found New Yorkers nearly evenly divided over the issue, with 46 percent against and 45 percent in favor.
Trump to GOP Leader Kick Cuomo and de Blasio Out of Office
NY GOPchair: Trump says boot Bill de Blasio, Andrew Cuomo out in next elections (Real Deal) Donald Trump indirectly provided “an assignment” to New York Republicans on Thursday: kick Bill de Blasio and Andrew Cuomo out of office. Ed Cox, chair of the New York GOP, told an audience of state party members at the Loews Madison Hotel that the president-elect provided the mandate in a phone call. The assignment wasn’t specific: He didn’t mention Paul Massey, the real estate broker who plans to run on the Republican ticket and has already raised $1.6 million for his campaign. After Thursday’s event, Cox told The Real Deal that his organization is yet to choose a candidate to back. He said he’s sure that indictments against de Blasio will eventually materialize, and that the party is waiting to see what happens before launching their full-scale opposition.
Cuomo's Flack Ring of Truth On Bipartisan Rule Cuomo spokesman Richard Azzopardi responded that the governor “has always worked in a bipartisan way, as everyone knows.” “That won’t change,” Azzopardi said. “We hope it doesn’t change for the (state) Senate.”
With Cuomo's Art of the Double Talk and Framing Media Debate Who Needs Fake News
Fredric U. Dicker @fud31 "It’s a damning indictment of Cuomo’s wage-raising agenda..cross purposes with his 'NY Open for Business' campaign."
Cuomo’s minimum-wage hikes are already killing jobs (NYP Ed) As of Dec. 31, the Empire State shares with California the dubious distinction of having the country’s most onerous minimum-wage requirements. Employers now face at least 14 different minimum-wage levels, depending on the size, type and location of a business, as well as the type of employee. (The state restaurant association has compiled all of the wage requirements in a chart at minwageresource.com.) It’s a damning indictment of Gov. Cuomo’s wage-raising agenda, which is working at cross purposes with his “New York Open for Business” campaign. In a 2015 New York Times article about the continued economic difficulties in this part of the state, Cuomo shrugged that “the state can only do so much” and “it’s up to the localities to also come up with a business plan.” They’d love to — if Cuomo would stop shackling them with unmanageable costs.
Rosenthal Taking Over the Fight for Passage of the Child Victims Act in the Assembly From Markey Who Lost Her Reelection Bid
Manhattan assemblywoman to lead fight for passage of Child Victims Act(NYDN) The Assembly has a new lead advocate for the Child Victims Act, which is designed to make it easier for child sex abuse victims to seek legal recourse as adults. Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal (D-Manhattan) will carry the legislation after its longtime sponsor, Margaret Markey (D-Queens), lost her primary in September. Rosenthal, one of several legislators who expressed interest internally of picking up the fight, was selected by Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie. “I really wanted this bill because I think it’s so important in terms of protecting our children who are vulnerable to pedophiles who have not been brought to justice, as well as helping to heal survivors who have been denied justice,” she said. “I will be a strong advocate for this.”
Rosenthal Taking Over the Fight for Passage of the Child Victims Act in the Assembly From Markey Who Lost Her Reelection Bid
Manhattan assemblywoman to lead fight for passage of Child Victims Act(NYDN) The Assembly has a new lead advocate for the Child Victims Act, which is designed to make it easier for child sex abuse victims to seek legal recourse as adults. Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal (D-Manhattan) will carry the legislation after its longtime sponsor, Margaret Markey (D-Queens), lost her primary in September. Rosenthal, one of several legislators who expressed interest internally of picking up the fight, was selected by Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie. “I really wanted this bill because I think it’s so important in terms of protecting our children who are vulnerable to pedophiles who have not been brought to justice, as well as helping to heal survivors who have been denied justice,” she said. “I will be a strong advocate for this.”
The Polls Were Wrong on Election Day, In 2012 Not Even Trump Was Thinking President But In Bubble NY Media Debates Cuomo 2020?
Back to the Old Machines for the Run Off Again
Replacement Commissioner Shows How Elected Officials Control the BOE
BOE Control Another Reason to Ban Elected Officials From Holding Party Positions . . . Where are the Reformers?
Staffer to assemblyman voted to replace elections official (NYP) Manhattan Democratic Party bosses voted Sunday to replace their disgraced city Board of Elections commissioner with another controversial candidate for the job. The district leaders picked Jeanine Johnson, a staffer to Harlem Assemblyman Keith Wright, to fill the spot left open by Alan Schulkin, who’ll leave the job at the end of December. Johnson landed in hot water last year when she made a plea deal over drunken driving charges. Schulkin didn’t get floated for another term after a hidden-camera video surfaced last month depicting him saying that the city’s municipal ID contributed to voter fraud. He said Sunday there were “no hard feelings” over his departure, and Wright praised him for his service. “Alan has been a responsible, hands-on commissioner,” Wright said without irony. The Board of Elections has two commissioners — one Democrat and one Republican — from each borough. Johnson’s selection by borough Dems does not necessarily mean she’ll get the job. City Council Democrats will also have to approve her nomination. Manhattan Democratic Party bosses voted to replace disgraced city Board of Elections Commissioner Alan Schulkin with Jeanine Johnson, a staffer to Assemblyman Keith Wright who last year made a plea deal over drunken driving charges
While New Yorkers Have Stop Voting Helped By Its Repressive Voting Laws, Its Dead keep Voting
The Post after seeing the story last week of an irate Queens woman, Michelle Dimino, who was getting absentee ballot for her dead father, who died in 2012. Still, a city Department of Investigations probe of the 2013 elections found that at least 63 ineligible voters were still in the voter registration books at polling sites. DOI undercover probers were able to “cast a vote” in the names of 61 of the 63 ineligible voters — including 39 dead people, 14 convicted felons, and eight non residents. The BOE declined to discuss its procedures for purging dead voters. City Comptroller Scott Stringer said the examples of dead voters on the rolls “ raise important flags” and “are emblematic of the incompetence of the agency.” He’s currently auditing the BOE.
Shocking BEDCO The None Profit That Uses City Money to House the Homeless in Slum Building Has Tax Problems
Firm managing building where 2 tots died hid years of tax problems (NYP) A firm that manages dozens of city homeless shelters — including the Bronx site where two toddlers were killed by a radiator steam leak in December — has kept years of tax problems hidden from the city even as it continued to collect millions in taxpayer dollars, according to DNAinfo. The outlet reported that Bushwick Economic Development Corp. (BEDCO) was hit with a $532,898 tax lien by the state last month — and that the firm failed to report at least two prior IRS tax liens on city questionnaires. Those omissions can result in the loss of a contract or even criminal charges, according to DNAinfo. BEDCO has collected more than $155 million for providing services to the city’s homeless families since January 2010, according to online records. “We are very concerned with this vendor and are thereby conducting an intensive review of their contract,” said a City Hall spokeswoman.
Crime at Housing Projects Up As Inner City Schools Keep Failing
Crime at housing projects rises despite city-wide drop (NYP) Crime at city housing projects increased 2.4 percent last year, even as the city enjoyed a historically low crime rate overall. Rapes surged by 20 percent, from 153 to 184, city records show. Assaults went up 7 percent, from 2,138 in 2015 to 2,292 in 2016. Burglaries rose 4 percent in the past year, from 401 to 416, while grand larcenies increased by 1 percent, from 1,043 to 1,052. Homicides dropped 8 percent, from 52 in 2015 to 48 in 2016. One out of five shootings in New York last year took place on NYCHA property, records show. There were 190 shootings last year, down 17 percent from 229 shootings in 2015.* The NYPD’s success — and the failure of NYC’s schools (NYP Ed) Which brings us back to New York’s public schools, whose failure has the same disparate impact. That is: This city’s schools fail the underprivileged in the same way that the Chicago PD does, and for a similar reason: Because no one has yet proved to the voters that it doesn’t have to be this way. Which is why charter schools are a threat to the vested interests of the school system: because they’re starting to provide that proof.Charter students in Brownsville and Bed-Stuy now score higher than the city’s average in reading and math — and those charter kids are more than twice as likely as kids in regular schools in the same areas to score at the highest achievement levels. Charters in Harlem and the South Bronx also massively outperform the regular public schools in those ’hoods. All this, when lotteries for entry guarantee that the charters can’t “cream off” the best students: The children start off equal; it’s the schools that make the big difference.
NYT Says High Crime Neighborhoods Outside of Manhattan Just Don't Get the Same Crime Fighting Resources
Crime and Gratitude in New York (NYT Ed) The news is good, but 335 homicides in a city of more than 8.5 million is still a lot of human agony. The Times spent the last year logging every murder in the 40th Precinct in the South Bronx, one of several neighborhoods beset by gangs, drugs and guns, where violence and poverty and mistrust of the police are entrenched. New Yorkers there have not shared in the peace dividend the city as a whole enjoys. The Times series noted that neighborhoods in boroughs outside Manhattan just don’t get the same crime-fighting resources that those in Manhattan do. It found that the 40th Precinct’s detective squad lost about eight investigators between 2001 and 2015. While crime citywide fell by more than a third over that period, the rate in the 40th Precinct remained essentially unchanged. The Police Department’s job is the same across the city; its methods and commitment to crime prevention should also be the same. The challenge for Mr. de Blasio and Commissioner O’Neill is to keep tamping down violence in the hot spots, deploying resources as fairly and effectively as possible.
Mayor's Race Whose In, Who is A Maybe
A Fake Museum Exhibit to Show Good Crime Numbers . . . Why the Soviet-Style Propaganda?
De Blasio’s Soviet-style propaganda machine hits a new low (NYP) de Blasio used one of the city’s gleaming cultural icons for “cheap propaganda” Wednesday — promising an NYPD photo exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum that turned out to be nothing more than a self-promotional stunt, critics griped. In fact, the “exhibit,” contrasting New York’s bad old days with the safer, cleaner Big Apple of today, was quickly dismantled by City Hall staffers after a related discussion on record-low crime statistics and a Q&A with reporters. No member of the public at large ever got to see it. “I urge everyone to really look at it because it reminds us of all of the work that went into changing things,” de Blasio said at the press conference, hailing the display as “powerful” and “wonderful” — even as workers were working feverishly to remove the photos before the museum opened to the general public. Critics derided the move as another example of de Blasio’s Communist-style propaganda. A spokeswoman for the museum said of the display, “It was part of the press conference and taken down at the end.” But earlier, the mayor had cited the exhibit as the reason for holding the press conference at the museum. “I didn’t choose the location,” he told reporters.* The Post writes that New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s need for ego boosts bit him in the butt this week when reporters learned his administration staged a photo exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum and claimed the exhibit was why they held a press conference there. * The Times writes that Cuomo’s last minute veto of a bill that would have had the state assume the cost of legal services for those who can’t afford it means lower-income New Yorkers will continue to wait for equal justice. The perils of Cuomo’s rush to build, build, build (NYP)
“The location was chosen because we had this wonderful exhibit that talked about the history, and we wanted to put this in historical perspective.” The ruse raised eyebrows, particularly coming on the heels of another taxpayer-funded prop — a video of Broadway stars literally singing de Blasio’s praises in a year-end review of City Hall’s 2016 accomplishments. “It’s just bizarre. They made a fake museum exhibit,” said a source. “It’s not even good propaganda — it’s cheap propaganda.”*
The Future Of NYC's Democracy Is Up to Bharara NYC Elections With Falling Voting Participation are Now Controlled (Fixed) by Incumbents, Lobbyists Who Work for Unions, Developers and Party Insiders
The Media Never Looks At the Campaign Power of the UFT The CFB and the DA's Cover-Up How the UFT and Their Lobbyists Break the Election Law
WHO OWNS THE CITY COUNCIL? The UFT's United for the Future and the Developer's PAC Jobs for New York Elected Most of the Council Members
The mayor placed himself in thrall to the United Federation of Teachers almost immediately upon taking office (a $350,000 UFT payment to a key de Blasio not-for-profit apparently remains under federal investigation), and the results show. Teacher-evaluation standards have been gutted, and student-exam scores have been fairly flat over the years — and especially if you correct for the watering down of testing standards. The administration’s hostility to charter schools is manifest, never mind that fully 10 percent of city public-school students — some 106,000 — attend charters, with another 44,000 on waiting lists.
UFT Illegal PAC United for the Future
Who Watches the Watchmen DAs Conflict of Interests With Elected Officials and Lobbyists
de Blasio A Poor Manager But, Do His Policies Really Close the City's Income Inequality Gap?
If Developers Who Contribute to de Blasio and His PACs are Pushing Out Tenants, Raising Rents All Over the City Has Does That Close the Income Gap?
To all this, add the recent scandals in the Administration for Children’s Services; City Hall’s inability to deliver much beyond words when it comes to affordable housing; the abject failure of de Blasio’s pipe-dream promise to reduce “income inequality”; and those enduring low poll numbers — and it would seem that the mayor would be vulnerable at the polls this fall.
de Blasio A Poor Manager But, Do His Policies Really Close the City's Income Inequality Gap?
If Developers Who Contribute to de Blasio and His PACs are Pushing Out Tenants, Raising Rents All Over the City Has Does That Close the Income Gap?
To all this, add the recent scandals in the Administration for Children’s Services; City Hall’s inability to deliver much beyond words when it comes to affordable housing; the abject failure of de Blasio’s pipe-dream promise to reduce “income inequality”; and those enduring low poll numbers — and it would seem that the mayor would be vulnerable at the polls this fall.
de Blasio Defends Tax Pay Adds
Come On Press A Man Under 8 Federal Investigations Will Never Admit to Any Wrong Doing
De Blasio defends glitzy taxpayer-funded video (NYP) Mayor de Blasio staunchly defended a taxpayer-funded video put out by City Hall this week that used Broadway stars to trumpet his administration’s accomplishments – insisting it wasn’t an ad because no one paid for air time. At the same time he was touting new technology to get his administration’s message out, the mayor fell back on an antiquated notion of what constitutes a commercial as his main defense to criticism that the video looked like a re-election commercial. “The notion it was an ad is outrageous and ludicrous,” he said at an unrelated press conference in midtown on New Years Eve safety measures. “Ads have to be broadcast. You have to pay to get time for an ad,” he added. “No one’s doing anything like that. So I think it’s a pretty big misunderstanding of what we did.” Pressed repeatedly about that line, de Blasio insisted it was just a “cursory message about me.” “You guys can ask all day long. I think it was a lighthearted attempt to get information out,” he said. “I just am not reading into it what you’re reading into it.” At one point, Hizzoner was even asked if the job was going to his head — based on the fact the video had Broadway stars singing his praises — to which he responded: “I feel my head is quite fine.” City Hall officials said they have no plans to halt the video communications next year, despite rules against taxpayer funds being used for commercials that feature elected officials during a re-election year.
de Blasio's City Hall Govt Media Expands to the Transportation Dept No Secret As MSM Cuts to the Bone, They Become Mostly A Stenographer Operation
Transportation department to pour money into video team (NYP) The Depart of Transportation is following City Hall’s lead and procuring its own video team for short films to “promote agency initiatives” — a scheme that will cost taxpayers as much as $300,000, documents show. A request for bids posted online seeks a vendor to produce video and audio recordings, photography and film editing and production services for videos that highlight agency projects and city infrastructure over the next three years. “The films and photographs shall have maximum visual impact, strong pacing and be accessible for a variety of audiences,” the bid documents state.
DM Shorris Allure Deceived Us On Nursing Home Deed Change So Why Does the City Refuse to Sue? Where is Corp Council Carter? Blocking Special Agent Emails?
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said the city likely doesn’t have a case to go after the nursing home operator who officials claim conned them into waiving a deed restriction so the Lower East Side property could be sold off for luxury condos, the Daily News reports.
Show us your papers, Bill (NYDN Ed) de Blasio’s No. 2, Tony Shorris, swears his underlings were deceived into handing the keys to a former city public school building turned AIDS home on the Lower East Side, known as Rivington House, to a nursing home operator secretly planning luxury condominiums for the site. As First Deputy Mayor Shorris told the City Council in September, speaking of dealings with the Allure Group: “We believe, and not as a lawyer, but that there was deceptive practices by Allure; that’s part of the reason I think the the city, but I also believe the state, may not have been informed correctly of their intentions.” De Blasio, too, has trotted out the we-were-wronged excuse, complaining as the scandal unfolded: “We have a lot of evidence that they misled us.” Oh really? We’re still waiting for the legal case that proves it — and so is so is state Sen. Daniel Squadron, who last week sent a letter to state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and city Corporation Counsel Zachary Carter urging Action under state and city statutes that allow civil lawsuits against schemers who rip off the government. For victims wronged, Shorris and de Blasio appear awfully reticent to step forward and make their case — saying only, through a Carter spokesman: “We have awaited the conclusion of ongoing investigations to determine whether there is evidence to support a claim of fraud in connection with the Rivington transaction.” And who can blame them. Heaven or hell knows what potentially devastating information about the city’s own actions would surface in the objective glare of court proceedings, about matters so sensitive that Carter’s Law Department took the extraordinary measure of denying the city Department of Investigation access to City Hall’s computer networks to reconstruct why city officials so badly botched Rivington House. Count on Carter to do squat. But Schneiderman has his work cut out for him.
Squadron Whose District Contains the Rivington Nursing Home Says Months After Deed Scandal Hit That the Mayor Should Take Action
1. Squadron is Running for Comptroller if Stringer Runs for Mayor
2. Squadron Has A Friend in Washington That May Know Something In Federal Case is Going to Break
NYC pol demands de Blasio take action against Manhattannursing home owners that tricked city in order to sell to condo developer(NYDN) de Blasio should go after the nursing home operator he claims conned the city into waiving a deed restriction so they could sell the place to a luxury condo developer. So says state Sen. Daniel Squadron (D-Brooklyn) who Wednesday demanded that the city file a False Claims Act suit against Allure Group for misleading the city in the Rivington St. nursing home transaction. Allure Group bought the property for $28 million, paid the $16 million fee to the city, then sold it to a developer for $116 million. That assumed the property would become a for-profit nursing home. Turning it into luxury condos greatly increased its value, a result the de Blasio administration says it did not expect. But a powerful lobbyist steered $50,000 in donations to de Blasio after pressing the city for a deed change that allows one of his clients to turn a building restricted for use as a nursing home into luxury condos. Since October lobbyist James Capalino has collected $40,000 in checks for de Blasio's 2017 reelection bid and personally wrote a $10,000 check in May to Campaign for One New York, the nonprofit de Blasio uses to promote his causes. Capalino represented both the original seller of the nursing home at 45 Rivington St. on the Lower East Side and the developer who will turn it into luxury condos.
DE BLASIO DILEMMA: Both Rivington Nursing Home Deed Change and LICH Hospital
