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Azi Paybarah

By Azi Paybarah 8/30/11 5:09pm

Council Member Jumaane Williams During the Press Conference (Photo Credit: William Alatriste)

Councilman with Tourette’s is a Spokesman for Reform

On a recent Thursday afternoon, Councilman Jumaane Williams was sitting half a foot away from the small round table in his office, lamenting that he can’t do as much as he’d like with the job he currently has.

“A lot of us are trying to do the best we can the way the rules are set up,” said Mr. Williams. As he spoke, his body jerked, tossing his arms a few inches in either direction, and bouncing his long tightly-wound dreadlocks. “The rules are problematic, so, let’s go and change the whole structure. The structure is bad.” Read More

By Azi Paybarah 8/30/11 3:01pm

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer doesn't think NYC voters want 'Bloomberg 4.' (photo credit: azi paybarah / observer)

‘Not About Bloomberg 4…Wipe the Slate Clean’: Stringer Says NYC Wants Something New in 2013

When the New York Times wrote this weekend about Mayor Bloomberg’s likely endorsement of City Council Speaker Christine Quinn in the 2013 mayor’s race, only one likely candidate for the office spoke about it, publicly: Scott Stringer, the Manhattan Borough President.

Stringer, who like Quinn, is a progressive Democrat from Manhattan’s West Side, told the Times, “Bloomberg 3 has run its course.”

He was referring to the number of terms Bloomberg has had. But after his press conference this morning across the street from City Hall, I asked Stringer to elaborate what he meant by his remark. What exactly had run “its course”?

“I think the race for mayor is not going to be about Bloomberg 4,” said Stringer. ” It’s going to be about a vision for New York City in a post-Bloomberg era, which I think is good for New York. That’s why I think the focus shouldn’t be on Bloomberg 1, 2 and 3 going into 4, but rather, let’s wipe the slate clean and figure out what we do next.”

By Azi Paybarah 8/30/11 1:34pm

investigations

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer wants Verizon to return $800,000 he said may have been obtained illegally. (photo credit: azi paybarah / observer)

‘They Just Haven’t Sent the Check’: Stringer Urges Verizon to Pay NYC

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer sent a letter to Verizon urging them to repay New York City $800,000 in response to findings from a city investigator who said the major telecom company benefited from the illegal activity of one of their subordinates.

In his August 30th letter to Jim Gerace, president of of the New York Region for Verizon, Stringer said $800,000 was the “minimum” amount the company should repay, based on a report from Richard Condon, the special commissioner of investigations for New York City public schools. Read More

By Azi Paybarah 8/25/11 4:24pm

suggested reading

Mayor Bloomberg Visits Department of Environmental Protection Crew Cleaning Storm Sewers in Preparation for Hurricane Irene August 25, 2011 (Photo Credit: Edward Reed)

Roundup: New Yorkers Brace for Hurricane Irene and George Pataki

2012: “[H]e’s simply not relevant anymore, and really hasn’t been for a while.” [Steve Kornacki / Salon]

2012: Pataki not endorsing Perry Saturday. [Andrew Rafferty / NBC]

2012: Pataki’s leaked website “embarrassing.” [Glittarazzi]

2012: “The population of reporters who never say mean things about people is smaller than a George Pataki 2012 house party.” [David Weigel / Slate]

NY-9: Weprin robos off Turner’s refusal to back Zadroga bill for Ground Zero volunteers. [Celeste Katz / Daily News]

NY-9: Turner said same-sex marriage “should not be an issue in this campaign.” [Anna Gustafson / Queens Chronicle]

NY-9: NARAL for Weprin. [Rick Karlin / Times Union]

NY-9: Turner keeps calling Weprin a “career politician.” [Courtney Gross/ NY1]

NY-9: Weprin and Turner tried saying something nice about each other. [Howard Koplowitz / Queens Campaigner]

NY-9: “[O]ne can only imagine how former Congressman Weiner will cast his vote. I suspect he will vote for Weprin.” [Henry Stern / Huffington Post]

Teacher Evaluations: Teacher reports can be released, court rules. [NY1]

Teacher Evaluations: UFT vows an appeal. [Sharon Otterman / New York Times]

Mortgage Probe: Americans for Financial Reform make the case for Schneiderman’s resistance. [Jimmy Vielkind / Times Union]

Mortage Probe: Buffett will dump $5 billion into Bank of America. [Ben Protess and Susanne Craig / Deal Book]

Fund-Raising: Rep. Ackerman mocks a Republican for alligator-hunting. [Celeste Katz / Daily News]

Executive Pay: Cuomo task force seeks info from Medicaid and social service providers first. [Michael Johnson / Capital Tonight]

Executive Pay: The move could yield “unprecedented analysis that could shine a light on executives who take home an outsize share of their organization’s revenue.” [Russ Buettner / New York Times]

By Azi Paybarah 8/25/11 2:33pm

Lunch Dates

(via hebeehive.molloyhs.org)

How Much Would You Pay to Dine With Ray Kelly?

News from Archbishop Molloy, whose alumni includes Governor Cuomo, Brooklyn D.A. Charles Hynes, me, and a rather accessible NYPD Commissioner:

[A] lunch auction is expected to be offered at the 26th Annual Stanner Golf Classic on May 7th, 2012. Mark your calendar now, because you may be the next Stanner to have lunch with Police Commissioner Ray Kelly! Pictured left to right: Keith DeMatteis ’79, Eric Zielinski ’90, Ray Kelly’ 59, Robert Volk ’70, and William Farrell ’72

By Azi Paybarah 8/25/11 2:30pm

2012

New York Post State Editor Remembers Pataki: ‘Lifestyle Donald Trump Would Envy’

New York Post State Editor Fred Dicker retweets his December 2006 takedown of Governor George Pataki, just in time for his expected entrance into the 2012 presidential race.

And it’s Dicker at his finest:

While his many liberal political allies and plentiful media apologists delighted in portraying the betrayal as clever pragmatism in an increasingly Democratic state, Pataki’s abandonment of his supposed core beliefs wasn’t that at all.

Those who know Pataki best (and I’ve talked with many of them day-in, day-out during his three terms) say that it was actually a calculated effort by a selfish cynic to hold on to power at all costs – in order to use it for personal gain, social advancement and the enjoyment of millions of dollars worth of state-funded aides, servants, security services and a state fleet of aircraft, all providing a lifestyle even Donald Trump would envy.

By Azi Paybarah 8/25/11 1:54pm

kevinparker-huffpo

Democrat Parker Praises Gov. Christie, Defends Religious Freedom From ‘An Assault’

Brooklyn State Senator Kevin Parker — the quotable lawmaker who was convicted earlier this year of “misdemeanor criminal mischief” for his encounter with a New York Post photographer — writes today about religious freedom, and the “assault” on it.

Parker’s article — where he urges Republican presidential candidates to follow New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s approach to diversity — can be viewed here.

By Azi Paybarah 8/25/11 12:22pm

Screen shot of National Review's website.

You Can Find a Michael Bloomberg Ad Almost Anywhere

Why not have a web ad inside a story criticizing you? An ad for Michael Bloomberg appears after a few paragraphs of this National Review article, complaining about the mayor’s desire to see more red-light cameras.

The mayor’s 2009 re-election campaign used a technique that placed their ads on web sites based on the location of the user, not the website they were visiting. That enabled them to make sure Bloomberg ads were seen by voters in NYC, and not the wide array of people who pop on and off any number of websites that may reference New York City politics or the mayor.

Which sort of gives the mayor a ubiquitous feeling for those of us residing in his city.

By Azi Paybarah 8/25/11 12:00pm

NY-9

Crowd-Sourcing the NY-9 Deabte

The hosts of next week’s  debate for the NY-9 race are crowd-sourcing for suggested questions to ask Democrat David Weprin and Republican Bob Turner.

#AskWeprin and #AskTurner are the hashtags I’m hoping people will use. #NY9debate is good too.

As Colby Hamilton noted, Weprin has been somewhat vague on policy specifics, namely, Hamilton argues, because he probably won’t be in a position to do much. And Turner’s policies — protecting entitlement programs while somehow shrinking the deficit — aren’t really based in anything actionable.

Each have obvious vulnerabilities that could make for an interesting debate. Read More

By Azi Paybarah 8/25/11 9:52am

2012

Want to buy GeorgePataki.net ?

How Much is GeorgePataki.net Worth?

$449, apparently.

Buying different versions of a candidate’s website is, for many, a necessary step before officially entering a race. It’s also, one of the first things a rival candidate does to give their opponents fits, which happened to Jane Corwin, who earlier this year became the first Republican to lose in NY-26 in nearly four decades.

(Other factors contributed to her loss, too, like an erratic operative and vocalizing support of Paul Ryan’s budget.)

Corwin, incidentally, was using the same technology company — NetBoots — that Pataki is currently using.

The question now is, who wants to buy GeorgePataki.net more, Giuliani or Romney?