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Barack Obama
RWDSU Gives Early Endorsement To Obama
Nov 17th - 1:29 pm
President Obama may be under 50 percent with New York voters, but he’s still the favorite of the state’s labor unions, one of which offered him a ringing early endorsement today.
Members of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU, UFCW), which represents 100,000 US and Canadian workers in retail and food processing industries, unanimously endorsed the president’s re-election bid, citing his ongoing efforts on behalf of the middle class.
“President Obama has done more for working people than any President in recent memory,” said Stuart Appelbaum, president of the RWDSU. “When you examine his biggest victories – economic stimulus, healthcare reform, auto industry recovery, financial reform, pay equity reform, middle class tax relief, restoration of collective bargaining rights – it is clear that he has delivered on his central promises of hope and change.”
“His presidency has been transformative under the most difficult of circumstances. He has been a stalwart defender of working men and women during a time of obscene obstructionism in Congress. Yet his record of progressive accomplishments has been woefully unacknowledged. He deserves more credit and gratitude.”
RWDSU’s endorsement comes on the heels of another early nod for Obama, which came from SEIU, one of the nation’s largest labor unions. That endorsement gave a nod to the Occupy Wall Street movement, mentioning the so-called 99 percent.
RWDSU might be the first NY union to publicly back Obama this time around. Back in August, PEF’s executive board rejected an early endorsement recommendation from its statewide political action committee that was reportedly being pushed by the union’s “parent” groups – including SEIU.
Grimm To Obama: Apologize To Bibi
Nov 8th - 3:05 pm
U.S. Rep. Michael Grimm this afternoon called on President Obama to apologize for saying what we all kind of already knew about his frosty relationship with Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
To recap: Obama was caught on a “hot mic” moment with French President Nicholas Sarkozy during which the two leaders shared their private assessments of Netanyahu.
According to reports, Sarkozy said, “I don’t want to see him anymore, he’s a liar.”
Obama replied: “You’ve had enough of him, but I have to deal with him every day!”
The two men were still speaking through a translator when the exchange occurred.
Grimm, R-Staten Island, said the comments were “highly offensive.”
“I find President Obama’s criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu highly offensive and call on him to issue a formal apology on behalf of the American people. Whether the microphones are on or off, the message to our allies in Israel should always remain the same: ‘We stand with you.’
“As an American, I understand the importance of the U.S.-Israel relationship to our own national security as well as to the peace and security of the Middle East. As a member of Congress, I will do all I can to ensure our alliance remains strong.
“President Obama’s comments are disgraceful and inappropriate coming from someone who holds the highest office in the United States. They provide a poor and inaccurate reflection of the American people he was elected to represent, and they must be rescinded.”
Ex-Dem Leader Seeks ‘Progressive’ Primary Challenger For Obama
Oct 31st - 1:40 pm
A reader forwarded this mailer sent last week to about 1,800 New York Democratic leaders and advocates by Bob Ginsberg, a former member of the State Democratic Committee who is searching for a “credible progressive” to challenge President Obama in a primary next fall.
Ginsberg, who represented the Upper West Side for more than 25 years, agrees with commentators who have determined Obama is unpopular due to his “wimpiness,” “unwillingness to fight for anything,” and “addiction to compromise.” Pressuring the president from the left to change his ways hasn’t worked, Ginsberg maintains, which leaves activists such as himself little choice but to look elsewhere for a standard-bearer.
This mailer has some ancient history in it, which demonstrates New York Democrats’ penchant for long-held memories – and grudges. Ginsberg says he has “never forgiven” former Gov. Mario Cuomo, and his son, current Gov. Andrew Cuomo, for backing President Carter over would-be primary challenger, Ted Kennedy. Carter defeated Kennedy for the Democratic nomination and went on to lose the general election to former California Gov. Ronald Reagan, who even carried Democrat-dominated New York.
That same year, Republicans won control of the United States Senate for the first time in 28 years. This election marked the beginning of what is popularly called the “Reagan Revolution.”
Citing the “Weprin disaster” in the NY-9 special election, Ginsberg is worried about a repeat of the GOP sweep in 2012, suggesting many congressional and local districts will be on the line next fall if Obama is at the top of the ticket. (Recent polling has shown Obama under 50 percent here in New York, but also leading his top two rivals – Mitt Romney and Rick Perry – by about 20 percentage points).
I have a call in to Ginsberg, but have not yet managed to reach him. This is a quixotic effort, to be sure, although no less real than the folks who insist on trying to draft Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (who is out-polling Obama against the 2012 GOP challengers). Nevertheless, it’s worth noting how shaky Obama’s support is here in true-blue New York – particularly in the Republic of the Upper West Side.
With Friends Like These… (Updated)
Oct 27th - 3:03 pm
In a rather clever two-birds-with-one-stone move, the conservative Club for Growth just issued a statement that tweaks both Gov. Andrew Cuomo AND President Obama, urging the president to “take a page out of the tax playbook” of his fellow Democratic leader and end his call for increasing taxes on the rich.
“When even Democrats like Andrew Cuomo oppose raising taxes on millionaires, you know your class warfare rhetoric has failed to resonate,” said Club President Chris Chocola.
“Higher taxes like the ones proposed by President Obama will hurt the economy, not help it. We need to move towards a flatter, more pro-growth tax code and we need to encourage investment by cutting taxes on capital gains and dividends. I applaud Andrew Cuomo for recognizing that higher taxes are not the answer.”
Now, to be fair, Cuomo has opposed extending the so-called millionaire’s tax, which is set to expire at the end of December, or even support a “true” millionaire’s tax with a $1 million threshold, arguing that to do so would make New York less competitive with neighboring states.
He has refused to budge on this, despite widespread public support – even among Republicans – for taxing the state’s wealthiest residents at a higher rate. And he has even compared his unwillingness to do the politically popular thing to his father’s staunch opposition to reinstating the death penalty, which contributed to his loss to then-GOP Sen. George Pataki in 1994.
However, after initially waffling on Obama’s proposal to tax the rich, Cuomo endorsed the millionaire’s tax (AKA “the Buffett Rule”) at the federal level and urged Congress to pass it.
UPDATE: Club for Growth spokesman Barney Keller (who, incidentally, was the spokesman for former Rep. Rick Lazio’s unsuccessful campaign against Cuomo last fall), sent the following statement:
“What, exactly, would stop the rich or businesses to flee to different countries if a similar tax is passed on the federal level? Andrew Cuomo’s a smart guy, and he must know that if the wealthy can find their way to Connecticut, then they can find their way to Switzerland as well. A reasonable observer must conclude that Andrew Cuomo either smartly opposes raising taxes on the wealthy or he doesn’t – maybe he needs to clarify his stance.”
The Club for Growth also took the opportunity to revisit a bit of semi-ancient (in the digital age, anyway) history, calling Cuomo a “strong ally” of Obama, and offering as proof reports in 2009 that the White House had tried to clear the 2010 field for the then-AG by getting then-Gov. David Paterson to drop his plan to seek re-election.
That message was delivered to Paterson by former White House political director Patrick Gaspard, who is now at the DNC. Gaspard, a former 1199 political director, still has close ties to Cuomo and the governor reportedly would like to see him back in New York after the 2012 election.
As you’ll recall, Paterson refused to heed the Obama administration’s call for him to step aside for Cuomo, but ended up dropping out of the race less than a week after formally announcing he would run in hopes of keeping the job he inheritied from former Gov. Eliot Spitzer.
Turner Demands Answers On Japan Apology Report
Oct 13th - 12:28 pm
Newly-minted Rep. Bob Turner is keeping up his critique of the Obama administration’s foreign policy, moving from Israel (a major issue in the NY-9 special election, thanks to Ed Koch) to Japan.
The Queens Republican released the following statement in response to a WikiLeaks-released 2009 State Department document that showed Obama wanted to travel to Hiroshima to apologize for America’s use of nuclear weapons on two Japanese cities during WWII, but was rebuffed:
“President Obama needs to address in granular detail whether such an overture was made.”
“If this is true, it shows in our President an alarming lack of historical understanding and an extraordinary disregard for the moral courage of former President, Harry S. Truman, who made one of the most difficult calls in history to save American lives.”
“Those two weapons ended the war and probably saved in excess of 100,000 American lives. If this report is true, President Obama indeed owes an apology, but to the citizens of this nation, especially those who experienced that terrible war. The American public needs detailed answers on this.”
The White House has has there was never any plan for the president to apologize during his trip to Japan, although he did touch on the issue of atomic weapons during a speech he made there.
Obama To Expedite Tappan Zee Bridge Project
Oct 11th - 11:07 am
President Barack Obama granted Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s request to speed up the licensing and permitting process in order to begin building a new Tappan Zee Bridge.
The request, made by the governor on Monday, asked the federal government to expedite certain requirements for the project, which includes an Environmental Impact Statement.
“I want to thank President Obama, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, and the U.S. Department of Transportation, including the Federal Highway Administration, for selecting the Tappan Zee Bridge project and recognizing that moving forward with the project is key to New York’s economic future,” Cuomo said in a statement. “This is a shot in the arm for the project and a major step forward to restoring this key piece of our infrastructure and putting tens of thousands of New Yorkers back to work.”
The governor’s office said that the project can begin as early as next year.
The bridge, which crosses the Hudson River at Westchester and Rockland counties, has started to show signs of aging in the last decade.
Opened in the 1950s, it was never built to withstand the 160,000-odd cars that cross it on weekend days. There are also real fears that a sudden closure of the bridge would bring the state’s economy to a standstill.
A new bridge project could cost as much as $16 billion and where the state and federal government will find the money for it is unclear. Obama continues to push his new jobs bill, which includes billions of dollars for infrastructure repairs.
Siena: Continued Trouble For Obama In NY
Sep 26th - 9:30 am
The latest Siena poll brings more mixed news for President Obama, who continues to see anemic numbers in Democrat-dominated New York, but nevertheless still leads the pack of his would-be GOP challengers.
New Yorkers are evenly divided (47-47) over whether they are prepared to re-elect Obama or the generic “someone else” next fall, but the president enjoys 20-point leads over the Republican frontrunners – Texas Gov. Rick Perry and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.
Obama leads Perry 56-33 percent, little changed from 55-37 percent last month. He leads Romney 56-36 percent, virtually unchanged from 55-37 percent last month.
Obama’s job performance rating is up slightly from an all-time Siena poll low last month, but 61 percent continue to give him negative marks.
And for the second month in a row, his favorability rating is a lackluster 52-45 in a state where his fellow enrolled Democrats outnumber Republicans by about two to one.
Interestingly, New Yorkers are almost evenly divided (47-49) when asked if they agree with the sentiment that Obama was a great candidate, but is now a poor president.
Americans are very worried about a double-dip recession. Asked if they believe Obama will win next year, 45 percent said yes, while 42 percent believe a Republican will be taking the oath of office. Independents believe the GOP will prevail in 2012, which is not a good sign for the president.
Cuomo To Congress: Pass Buffett Rule
Sep 19th - 5:13 pm
Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who several hours ago said he still had to review President Obama’s tax plan before announcing his support, said in a statement late this afternoon that he is urging Congress to pass the plan.
Cuomo adds that though he is against tax increases, especially in New York, the burden of the economic troubles the U.S. faces can’t be put on the middles class entirely.
The statement, however, pointedly ends with Cuomo reaffirming his no-new taxes pledge in New York, which he says would put the state at a competitive disadvantage.
“As the President has rightly realized, the federal government is facing not only a fiscal and debt crisis but needs to take a strong action to create jobs and grow our economy.
I urge Congress to move quickly to pass the President’s plan so we can put New Yorkers and Americans back to work.
While I am against raising taxes in general, if taxes need to be raised to create jobs, balance the budget and lower the deficit then those increases need to be done at the federal level and on the wealthiest Americans, not the middle class.
New York State is one of the highest taxed states in the country. New York cannot have the people and businesses that create jobs and wealth in New York move to Connecticut or New Jersey which have lower taxes.”
Cuomo was opposed to keeping a surcharge on those making $250,000 and higher and against a “true” millionaires tax that was later proposed. Neither wound up in the 2011-12 fiscal year budget.
He did say in the news conference that he and the president face different issues at the state and federal level.
So, is this a clairification from earlier? A reversal? It’s hard to say, frankly.
Cuomo seemed lukewarm to the whole plan earlier today, saying he hadn’t seen the details. This is a much stronger pronouncement and endorsement of the president’s proposal than earlier. And while Cuomo didn’t say he was opposed to Obama’s plan, not immediately backing it was interesting.
Koch: God Put Jews In Swing States
Sep 19th - 12:03 pm
Following last week’s big win by his preferred candidate, Rep. Bob Turner, in the NY-9 race, former Ed Koch spoke of taking his opposition to President Obama’s Israel policy national in advance of the 2012 election – particularly to states with a high concentration of Jewish voters.
Yesterday, the former NYC mayor was interviewed by a national media outlet -National Public Radio’s Guy Raz, to be exact – for a story about the so-called “Koch factor.”
Koch, who stumped in Florida for Obama in 2008 (after his first choice, Hillary Clinton, lost the Democratic presidential primary), said he would not likely go so far as to cross party lines and endorse a Republican against the president next fall.
(It wouldn’t be the first time; in 2004, he backed George W. Bush against John Kerry, and he tacitly supported Ronald Reagan, too, although he likes to say: “I never actually voted for him, but I loved him.”)
He did, however, say he might “stay home” if the Obama administration doesn’t heed his call to change its approach with Israel.
“What the president can do is what Jack Kennedy did in the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962,” Koch told Raz, referring to the letter Kennedy sent to Nikita Khrushchev indicating any attack on a country in the Western Hemisphere by the Soviet Union would be seen an attack on the US. “…That would be the optimum.”
Koch again confirmed the report that an unnamed White House official called him before last Tuesday’s special election in NY-9 to discuss his Israel concerns. The discussion, which the former mayor refused to discuss in detail, did not assuage his concerns.
“Jews are only 2 percent of the American population,” Koch acknowledged (warned?), “but God put them in Florida and Pennsylvania…where their votes are extremely important.”
WH Spox: Obama’s Commitment To Israel ‘Demonstrated, Unshakable’
Sep 15th - 3:55 pm
White House spokesman Jay Carney strongly disagreed with Rep. Eliot Engel’s claim that President Obama’s Israel policy has caused him to lose support among Jewish voters – so much so that the Westchester Democrat wouldn’t be surprised if Obama sees a drop of 10 to 20 points among this key voting bloc in 2012.
This topic has been simmering for a while now, and was kicked up a notch after Rep. Bob Turner’s upset win in NY-9 Tuesday, which ex-NYC Mayor Ed Koch – successfully, it seems – sought to spin as a message from unhappy New York Jews to the Obama administration.
“As recently as last week, or the week before, the prime minister of Israel made an incredibly strong statement about the remarkable commitment, unshakeable commitment, that this president has to Israel’s security and the unprecedented assistance that this president has provided Israel,” Carney said. “…So, this President’s absolute commitment to Israel’s security is I think, demonstrated and unshakeable.”
“The fact is that he is committed to the process of trying to get the two parties to negotiate, get the two parties to go back to direct talks. Because he believes it is in the interests of Israel and in the interests of the Palestinian people to reach peace in a way that ensures Israel’s security and allows them to resolve their issues. That, in the end, will ensure that the jewish state of Israel survives and prospers.”
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