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Protesting Levy (Updatedx2)
May 4th - 9:51 am
Latino and African-American NYC Council members are planing to protest Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy when the gubernatorial hopeful shows up at The Woolworth Tower Kitchen in Manhattan Thursday morning for an “On/Off the Record” breakfast hosted by City Hall newspaper.
I spotted word of the gathering on Facebook under the headline: “New York ≠ Arizona: Protest Steve Levy!”
“We cannot tolerate racial profiling or hatred in our government,” the organizers wrote.Countless times, Steve Levy has offended the Hispanic community with his racially charged comments and anti-immigrant policies.”
“We must show him that New York is not the same as Arizona, and although we respect free speech, we cannot condone prejudiced or provocative behavior.”
UPDATE: Several readers have forwarded me an e-mail sent out by City Hall late this morning that abruptly announced the postponment of the Levy breakfast. No reason was given, nor was a new date for the event provided.
UPDATE2: A City Hall source says the decision to postpone the Levy breakfast was made yesterday and was not connected to the planned protests. The event has indeed been rescheduled for June 17, which will be after the state GOP convention at which Levy may or may not get onto the ballot.
Ulrich: Queens GOP Not United For Levy
Apr 29th - 1:20 pm
NYC Councilman Eric Ulrich, a Queens Republican and state committee member from the borough, assured me earlier today that the party is NOT unified behind Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy – no matter what Chairman Phil Ragusa and Levy’s campaign might say.
“I would guarantee, and I’m very careful with my words in terms of guarantees, I’m almost certain there’s no way Levy has the majority of the weighed vote,” Ulrich said during a brief telephone interview this morning.
“…I think he’s lucky if he gets 40 percent of the county,” the councilman continued. “The fact that the chair rammed through an endorsement process does not translate into 100 percent of Queens behind him.”
“Republicans in my district want a Republican to run on the Republican line. With all due respect to Mr. Levy and his supposed record of fiscal conservatism, he needs to run in the party he belongs to.”
Ulrich, if you haven’t already guessed, is a Rick Lazio supporter.
More >
Parkside Hires
Apr 13th - 8:44 am
The Parkside Group, a Democratic political consulting firm that is poised to play a big role in the battle for control of the state Senate this fall, is beefing up its staff.
The firm sent out a press release yesterday announcing the arrival of Daniel Katz as general counsel and Austin Finan as a political associate.
Katz, who most recently served as political and legislative director for New Yorkers for Lawsuit Reform, has also worked for AG Andrew Cuomo and Assemblyman Jeff Dinowitz. He’s replacing Damon Stewart, who departed Parkside to become vice president for State Government Affairs with DirecTV, which the firm reps.
Finan most recently managed Jerry Iannece’s unsuccessful NYC Council bid last fall. (Iannece lost the Democratic primary for the Queens seat to Kevin Kim, who lost the general election to Republican Councilman Dan Halloran).
Vallone Jr. Takes A Pass On AG Race
Apr 12th - 8:28 am
The Democratic AG primary came thisclose to becoming even more crowded as NYC Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. confirmed he had been taking a serious look in recent weeks at throwing his hat into the ring.
In a brief telephone interview yesterday, the Queens lawmaker said he was urged to get into the already-crowded race by numerous advisors (including his father, former Council Speaker Peter Vallone Sr., who won the 1998 Democratic gubernatorial primary).
He ultimately decided to take a pass, citing a desire to spend time with his daughters.
“They’re 14 and 16 and still want to spend time with me,” Vallone Jr. explained. “As a divorced dad, I want to spend all my time with them right now. I wouldn’t be able to do that if I was running statewide.”
Vallone Jr. has been eyeing a run for higher office for some time now. He is widely known to have his eye on either the Queens district attorney’s office and also considered a run for Queens borough president.
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