11 minute read
FIRST READ
New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced some shocking statistics on crime last week, but the numbers were challenged by advocates as “misinformation.”
ADAMS WON’T BACK DOWN ON BAIL
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New York City Mayor Eric Adams wants Albany lawmakers to further roll back bail reform, and he’s not backing down even as he gets the cold shoulder from fellow Democrats. After state officials made it clear they would not hold a special session to address his concerns, Adams turned to the data in an attempt to change some minds. He presented statistics meant to bolster his claim that the 2019 bail law has contributed to increased crime in the city. But Adams got pushback on those claims for lacking context. Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie weighed in, effectively calling Adams out for saying he sent Heastie the data that illustrated his concerns when Heastie’s office did not receive the data.
– Rep. Mondaire Jones, on thinking about running against progressive Rep. Jamaal Bowman or Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chair Sean Patrick Maloney, via Axios
DRIBBLING CIRCLES AROUND HIM
For all his swagger and style, it appears as if New York City Mayor Eric Adams doesn’t have skills in the paint. He was effectively dunked on by Gov. Kathy Hochul – a known baller – at a joint event last week, with the mayor failing to make a shot in two tries and the governor sunk it on her first attempt. If Hochul isn’t available for an on-court clinic with Adams, maybe Kyrie Irving can teach him some moves?
– actor Alec Baldwin, on the cultures of the UWS and the UES in the 12th Congressional District, via New York magazine Gov. Kathy Hochul also threw cold water on the mayor’s argument, saying that the recent changes to the bail law gave judges much more discretion in setting bail and that many simply were not utilizing it.
NYC SCHOOL BUDGET TOSSED BY JUDGE
School funding in New York City took a significant step closer to being restored when a Manhattan Supreme Court judge sided with parents on Friday in a lawsuit challenging the school budget. Partly due to decreased enrollment, the New York City Council initially passed a school budget that was reduced by about $215 million from the previous fiscal year. Parents and teachers successfully sued, arguing that the City Council didn’t have the authority to do so without approval from the Panel for Educational Policy. Adams’ administration said it would appeal the ruling.
MIGRANTS ARRIVE IN NEW YORK CITY AFTER BEING BUSED FROM TEXAS
The number of people seeking refuge in New York City homeless shelters continued to rise, and the political standoff between Adams and Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has escalated. After Adams an-
nounced that he believed the cause of the increase was migrants being sent from border states, the Texas governor had denied sending people anywhere but to Washington, D.C., and invited the New York City mayor to visit the southern border. When he was rebuffed, Abbott sent some 50 migrants by bus from Texas to New York City. “His continued use of human beings as political pawns is disgusting, and an embarrassing stain on the state of Texas,” Adams’ spokesperson told the New York Post.
MONKEYPOX IS OFFICIALLY AN EMERGENCY
Officials with New York City, the state and the federal government all declared states of emergency on the rapidly spreading monkeypox virus last week. On July 29, Hochul signed an executive order designating the virus as a state disaster emergency, saying that doing so will allow more health care professionals to administer vaccines. On Aug. 1, Adams followed that up with a state of emergency declaration in New York City, partly in an attempt to get the federal government to fast-track the approval of vaccines. President Joe Biden’s administration didn’t immediately do that, but it declared monkeypox a national health emergency on Aug. 4, opening up more funding and resources to fight the virus, which causes painful lesions on the skin and spreads through close, usually sexual, contact. New York was once again the center of an outbreak: It had about 1,750 of the country’s 7,100 cases as of Aug. 4, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The rapidly spreading monkeypox virus triggered states of emergency in New York City and New York state, while the federal government fast-tracked more vaccine doses.
Fight over Hochul’s NYPA nominee
Gov. Kathy Hochul’s pick to lead New York’s public power operations has drawn the ire of climate activists and progressive lawmakers for his opposition to legislation that would expand the New York Power Authority’s green energy production. Past political contributions by nominee Justin Driscoll to the Republican Party and its candidates have led to more criticisms by activists trying to keep him from becoming the permanent head of NYPA.
Driscoll has served as the interim CEO of NYPA since October, when the previous head, Gil Quiniones, left for a job in the private sector. Hochul nominated him for the permanent role in July, pending state Senate confirmation. It would cap off a nearly decadelong tenure for Driscoll at NYPA. “At a time when New York is leading the fight against climate change and rapidly transitioning to clean energy, NYPA needs strong visionary leadership at the highest level,” Hochul said in a statement announcing her recommendation.
Despite the vote of confidence from Hochul, a Democrat, Driscoll’s past political contributions revealed someone who was more closely aligned with Republicans in the state. According to campaign disclosures, Driscoll gave Rob Astorino nearly $2,000 between 2009 and 2012, when Astorino was Westchester County executive. Driscoll also gave $500 to the Assembly Republican Campaign Committee in 2010. And in 2009, he donated $1,000 to then-New Jersey gubernatorial candidate Chris Christie. Each contribution came from Driscoll’s current address in Harrison, New York.
Driscoll has given to some Democrats from that address, with one of his last recorded contributions coming in 2013 to Bill de Blasio. But donations to Republican candidates and causes far outweighed those to Democrats.
Driscoll has attracted opponents who have said they would not vote to confirm him after the testimony he gave to the Assembly stating his opposition to the Build Public Renewables Act, which would expand NYPA’s ability to generate green energy and is considered a major climate priority by advocates. “The NY State Senate voted to pass the (Build Public Renewables Act) this session because we know how crucial it is for climate action in New York,” Salazar tweeted. “We cannot then turn around and vote to confirm a NYPA CEO who isn’t up to the task, which is why I wouldn’t be able to support Justin Driscoll’s nomination.” – Rebecca C. Lewis
THE WEEK AHEAD
TUESDAY 8/9
Reps. Jerry Nadler and Carolyn Maloney, and attorney Suraj Patel, face off in a 12th Congressional District debate co-hosted by City & State on PIX11 at 8 p.m. at Hunter College. TUESDAY 8/9
The New York City Council Committee on General Welfare holds a 10 a.m. oversight hearing on long-standing homeless shelter intake issues and the recent increase in asylumseekers. THURSDAY 8/11
Congressional candidates running in the Aug. 23 primaries have to submit their latest fundraising numbers to the Federal Election Commission. INSIDE DOPE
Early voting for the primaries starts on Saturday, Aug. 13, and runs through Aug. 21. Nearly 87,000 people voted early in the June primary in New York City alone.
NEW KIDSIN TOWN
By Jeff Coltin
These candidates didn’t live in the districts they’re running to represent – and some still don’t.
Many congressional candidates asking for your vote in 2022 can’t even vote for themselves – because they don’t live in the district where they’re running. Members of Congress are only required to live in the state, not the district, so there have always been those who don’t reside where they run. But this year’s redistricting brouhaha has led to a few carpetbaggers – and more than a dozen candidates running far away from the address they provided the Board of Elections.
RENTED A MOVING VAN OUTSIDE THE LINES
MONDAIRE JONES 10TH DISTRICT Instead of running against a fellow Democratic incumbent in his old Westchester County home, Jones relocated four districts down to Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, in early June. ALESSANDRA BIAGGI 17TH DISTRICT After years in Pelham, Biaggi bought a house in North Castle, in Westchester County – moving in late July to the district to run, just like her opponent Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney did 10 years before. MATT CASTELLI 21ST DISTRICT One of the Democrats hoping to take down Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik lived in Saratoga Springs, but relocated north to Glens Falls this year. NYDIA VELÁZQUEZ 7TH DISTRICT La Luchadora used to live across the street from her district, in Red Hook. After redistricting, she lives a few neighborhoods away – but her challenger Paperboy Prince is outside the district too. HAKEEM JEFFRIES 8TH DISTRICT Nobody was more outspoken in criticizing the redistricting process – maybe because his Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, home ended up a block and a half outside his district.
CARLINA RIVERA 10TH DISTRICT The New York City Council member talks about spending her whole life in the lower Manhattan district – but last year, she moved to Kips Bay, about eight blocks north of the boundary. ELISE STEFANIK 21ST DISTRICT The Republican rabble-rouser saw her Schuylerville home drawn into the Capital Region district – but has decided to stick with her own North Country seat instead. CARL PALADINO & NICK LANGWORTHY 23RD DISTRICT Neither of the GOP foes live in the sprawling Southern Tier district – but neither does the Democrat running, Max Della Pia.
A Q&A with 12th Congressional District candidate
SURAJ PATEL
You were the only candidate on a recent debate stage who said you would support a reelection bid from President Joe Biden and accused your opponents of ageism because of it. Do you see any irony in that statement considering you’re running against two longtime incumbents while accusing them of ageism? Never in my entire (campaign) – and you can go through every transcript on Earth – have I ever uttered anything about Maloney and Nadler’s age. The fundamental difference between Carolyn Maloney and Jerry Nadler and Joe Biden is that Joe Biden has been effective. The president’s been effective. He uniquely was able to defeat Donald Trump, and it is his prerogative as a leader of our party to decide whether and when he chooses to run for reelection. Carolyn Maloney and Jerry Nadler attempted to gerrymander their own districts and use their power to further their power, to further their time in office. And so my argument against them is sheer effectiveness and lack of a plan for the future. President Biden has plans. Carolyn Maloney and Jerry Nadler don’t even have plan pages on their website.
This is now your third campaign, and you have a new opponent in Nadler. How have your past campaigns prepared you for this one and do you think it’s tougher because you’re up against two long-term incumbents instead of one? My first two campaigns prepared me from the standpoint one, learning a lot of lessons, learning some humility and then also applying some of those lessons to running a campaign more effectively and efficiently. You’ll note that there are people out there, like Ro Khanna, for example, who ran a third time after coming super close and won quite overwhelmingly the third time. You are raising name recognition Never in my entire (campaign) – and you can go through every transcript on Earth – have I ever uttered anything about Maloney and Nadler’s age.
when you run these races. But fundamentally, our polling shows exactly why we’re going to win this race, which is that with Maloney and Nadler, the base of voters who prefer somebody with experience in seniority is split between two people versus the people who want new leadership – there’s only one game in town.
How have you made inroads in the new parts of the district on the West Side, and even the East Side of Manhattan, since you performed better in the Queens portion of the old district? Currently, in this NY-12 as composed, we still got 20,000 to 23,000 votes two years ago, which is not nothing at all. Which is to say that as we did in Queens and Brooklyn from a margin standpoint, the bulk of our 38,000 votes came from Manhattan just by nature of the density of that part of the district. So we’re starting from not zero at all on the East Side, in any way. And now on the West Side, we have been introducing ourselves with fervor to voters. I think reporters look at this a lot from the standpoint or lens of two chairs and seniority and incumbency and whatever. Voters don’t. People will get this as a new district because it is a brand-new district. fundamentally, it’s a new district. – Rebecca C. Lewis
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