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Extras
Jun 22nd - 5:21 pm
Gen. Stanley McChrysal has reportedly submitted his resignation in the wake of some very ill-advised comments he made in an extensive Rolling Stone interview.
Writer Michael Hastings got more time than he expected with McChrystal thanks to the Iceland volcano eruption.
Hillary Clinton is pretty much the only person in politics McChrysal likes.
Maggie Haberman finds the Mayor Bloomberg connection.
The budget battle forced the Senate Democrats to postpone a Washington, D.C. fundraiser tomorrow.
Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand and Chuck Schumer are holding steady in today’s Q poll.
Assemblyman Greg Ball calls for a crackdown on the “black market economy” of illegal immigration in a new campaign Web ad.
Adam Lisberg thinks Bloomberg should have called Chicago Mayor Richard Daley for advice before he gave $25K to then-Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
HuffPo picks up the story of AG Andrew Cuomo’s youthful pot smoking.
Former state Sen. Marc Coppola is shunning minor party lines as he mounts a comeback bid for his old seat.
Harold Ford will be at DL21C on June 29.
Disgraced lobbyist jack Abramoff has a new job: Pizza man. (H/T Ben Smith).
Jon Voight is very unhappy with President Obama.
NT2 doesn’t like Rick Lazio’s “Kiss” Web video, saying it’s “too clever, too cute.”
NYC high school grads will hear from a number of celebrity speakers this summer.
Housing Works is suing the city and state over proposed cuts in AIDS services.
Here’s NYAGV’s second flyer hitting Sen. Marty Golden for being conveniently absent during the Senate vote on microstamping.
What Part Of June 28th Don’t You Understand?
Jun 22nd - 4:46 pm
Here’s Gov. David Paterson after the second leaders meeting earlier today, expressing frustration with legislative leaders who keep insisting they are close to a budget deal and insisting he’s really not kidding about that all-or-nothing June 28th deadline.
“I am not inside their brains; I don’t know what they take seriously and what they don’t,” Paterson said. “I think there’s a lot of fantasy around here about what’s going to happen. But I tell you what, when we get to next Monday, we’ll see who’s telling the truth then.
“…I said June 28 and the next thing I heard was: Why June 28th? Why not tomorrow? Why June 28th and not a half hour from now? We’ll be done in five or six days.”
“…But let me just say that budget is going to get passed on Monday. I heard people talking about being here July 4th. If they’d like to be here July 4th they can come by the mansion. We have a nice fireworks demonstration every year; they can come and watch it.”
“But there will be no discussion of budget on July 4th because it will have already been addressed on June 28th.”
A One-Man Crusade Against 3rd Parties
Jun 22nd - 3:51 pm
A reader forwarded me a link to a fascinating Buffalo News story that I missed in Here and Now this morning on former state Sen. Marc Coppola’s refusal to accept minor party lines in his bid to return to Albany and pledge to end so-called “fusion” voting in New York.
“Minor parties and their leaders have a disproportionate amount of influence in New York State politics and our government,” Coppola said in a press release.
“It has proven to be a pay-to-play system and a breeding ground for corruption. New York is one of only several states in the country that allows the tail to wag the dog and the voters and residents of this state deserve better.”
In his release, Coppola also notes that “several minor party leaders are now under investigation for alleged illegal activities.”
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Silver: Deadline? What Deadline?
Jun 22nd - 2:59 pm
Well, leaders meeting No. 2 didn’t go so well.
Gov. David Paterson said he thinks the Democratic legislative leaders are being overly optimistic about how close they are to a budget deal (Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver put them at a “three” on the 1-to-10 doneness scale, with 1 being darn near over), and reiterated his June 28-or-else threat.
That didn’t sit well with Silver, who told NY1′s Erin Billups:
“First of all there is no deadline. The deadline was April 1st. Obviously we didn’t make that deadline. It’s the only deadline I know.”
But Silver also said in no uncertain terms that he doesn’t intend to have to pass yet another round of extender bills (the 13th, for those of you keeping count) come Monday.
The sticking point appear to be (surprise, surprise) education aid, which Paterson wants to cut by $1.3 billion and the Assembly Democrats want to restore – at least to some degree.
Another issue: Property tax relief. Paterson has floated a 3 percent cap on localities that would leave school disitricts alone, but the leaders aren’t thrilled about that idea, either.
Medical Marijuana Not Likely To Be In Final Budget
Jun 22nd - 2:52 pm
It doesn’t appear the legalization of medical marijuana will be a reality this legislative session, according to a Senate Democratic spokesman.
Back in March, the Senate included the measure in its proposed spending plan. However, with about 30 percent of the budget left to be passed (the rest has already been approved via extender bills), it does not look it will be included in the final days of negotiations.
Cannabis advocates were once again in the Capitol today hoping to convince lawmakers to get the measure passed in the budget or on its own as a stand-alone bill.
They have an ally in Sen. Eric Adams, a Brooklyn Democrat who is sponsoring the bill in his house and insists he hasn’t yet given up hope.
“We’re still pushing. We’re going to make it happen,” said Adams.
Lieber To Steel(?): Get Ready To ‘Work Your Butt Off’
Jun 22nd - 2:30 pm
Here’s Robert Lieber, NYC’s soon-to-be-former deputy mayor for Economic Development, talking to CUNY-TV’s “Citywide” host Ken Fisher about what his replacement should expect on the job.
Mayor Bloomberg is expected to soon announce that Lieber’s replacement is Robert Steel, a former Wall Street banker who served as under secretary for domestic finance in the US Treasury Department during the financial crisis in 2007 and 2008.
(A Bloomberg spokesman refused to confirm Steel’s appointment, which has been speculated for some time now. Partnership for NYC President Kathryn Wylde called Steel “a terrific choice”).
Lieber, the replacement for Bloomberg’s first economic development czar, Dan Doctoroff, announced last month that he would return to the private sector at the end of June.
He told Fisher whoever replaces him in the administration should be ready to work his “butt off” and hire good people. Lieber also said it’s “brutal how hard it is to get stuff done” in the public sector.
DiNapoli: Payroll Processed
Jun 22nd - 1:57 pm
State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli just released the following statement on the status of the paychecks for some 153,000 public employees who appeared likely to get paid late this week due to the Senate’s belated passage of the budget extender bills yesterday.
“The state’s payroll was processed yesterday after the Legislature passed the latest budget extender bill. As a precaution, we are urging state workers to verify that their local bank has transferred their direct deposits into their bank accounts before making their usual expenditures.”
“Checks are being distributed. Any employee who has a question or concern should contact their agency’s payroll office.”
“The budget delay in Albany needs to stop. This piecemeal budget making is causing havoc in too many corners of the state. And it is wrong that state workers are being constantly used as a bargaining chip to simply get another extender bill passed.”
“It would be outrageous if we have the same problem next week. Now is the time to adopt a complete budget.”
Bloomberg Can’t Recall Who Asked Him To Give Blago Cash
Jun 22nd - 1:35 pm
Mayor Bloomberg insisted earlier today that he has no recollection of who asked him to contribute $25,000 to now-disgraced ex-Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich – one of the largest political donations he received for his successful 2006 re-election bid.
“I don’t really remember, but I made lots of campaign donations at that time,” Bloomberg said during his Q&A with reporters, including NY1′s Bobby Cuza. “His was less than to some of the others.”
“He was pro-choice, he was helping us on the mayor’s coalition against guns, he was helping us in trying to get Canadian drugs – pharmaceuticals – cheaper for people here. And there was never any scandal about him in those days, and so I supported him.”
At the time the mayor sent his check, Bradley Tusk, who had worked for Bloomberg and then went to serve as a top deputy governor to Blagojevich, was still working in Illinois.
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If At First You Don’t Succeed…
Jun 22nd - 1:14 pm
The legislative leaders – Democrats AND Republicans, minus Senate Democratic Conference Leader, due to a scheduling snafu – and Gov. David Paterson met at noon today for a quickie closed-door confab and came away with…no deal.
Sadly, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver’s prediction that there would be a final agreement by yesterday or today is looking less and less likely. Scuttlebutt around the Capitol is that negotiations could drag on into July.
(That would be the second Glorious Fourth I spend working in Albany – last year we were all held hostage by the Senate coup).
Capital Tonight’s Kaitlyn Ross staked out the meeting, but she didn’t have to wait long. Assembly Minority Leader Brian Kolb summed it up thusly: “We said hello, and then we said goodbye.” However, there was one bright spot, since, as Newsday’s James T. Madore noted, the leaders managed to pronounce Kolb’s name right.
Silver said on a scale of one to 10 – with one being close to Planet Deal and 10 being, well, maybe Mars? – the leaders and Paterson are at “about three, maybe two.”
The fivesome – with Sampson this time – is now settled into leaders meeting No. 2. Perhaps this one will be more fruitful.
Spitzer Still Investing In Green
Jun 22nd - 12:35 pm
…that would be Mark Green, the former public advocate and unsuccessful AG contender the former governor was widely speculated to prefer over the eventual primary and general election winner, Andrew Cuomo, in 2006.
The Village Voice’s Wayne Barrett, who has been on something of a roll lately, was on hand at Green’s Manhattan apartment last night for the kick-off of the ex-Democratic lawmaker’s new radio show, “Both Sides Now,” which features Mary Matalin and Arianna Huffington and is set to launch on 50 stations this weekend.
According to Barrett, Eliot Spitzer (who is turning into a media maven himself these days) was at the event, too, but departed before Green made his formal remarks, during which he acknowledged Spitzer as an investor in the show.
Green and Spitzer have a long history of being financially supportive of one another.
In September 2007, Spitzer and his father, Bernard, and mother, Anne, all contributed $16,000 apiece to Green to help him retire his campaign debt. The contributions exceeded the $10,000 individual limit Spitzer had imposed on his own fundraising.
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