By Ross Barkan 12/19/12 4:17pm

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andrea stewart cousins fb

Fred Dicker Tries to Box Stewart-Cousins With Colleague’s ‘Plantation Politics’ Remark

Newly-elected State Senate Minority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins sidestepped radio host Fred Dicker’s repeated attempts to get her to say whether or not she agreed with State Senator Bill Perkins’ demand that Governor Andrew Cuomo stand up against “the plantation politics of backroom deals.”

Mr. Perkins, a Harlem Democrat, blasted the statement out yesterday, alluding to the power sharing agreement between the breakaway Independent Democratic Conference and Senate Republicans. Democrats were locked out the majority yet again when the IDC agreed to govern with Republican State Sen. Dean Skelos, angering Democrats who believed the Democratic governor of New York should have done more to return them to the majority and were upset by the fact the new Senate majority has just one minority member. Read More

By Hunter Walker 12/03/12 3:19pm

Uptown

Robert Jackson

Robert Jackson Flexes Harlem Machine Muscle for BP Campaign

Councilman Robert Jackson is rolling out his high-profile allies in the Harlem political establishment to help him celebrate his birthday and raise money for his bid to be Manhattan borough president later this month. Former Mayor David Dinkins sent out an email this afternoon announcing a fundraiser and birthday celebration for Mr. Jackson that he will be attending along with Congressman Charlie Rangel, State Senator Bill Perkins and Councilwoman Inez Dickens on December 17.

“Robert Jackson is an effective and energetic fighter who understands the challenges we face in this borough and has proven that he can get the job done,” Mr. Dinkins wrote. “He has been a strong, hard-working, progressive leader in the City Council, and I have great confidence that he will continue to advocate for measures that promise to improve the lives of all the people of the Borough of Manhattan.” Read More

By David Freedlander 2/14/12 3:41pm

Statements

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Joe Lhota Sorry For Calling Bill Perkins A Do-Nothing Legislator

In a story in today’s New York Times, new MTA chief Joe Lhota and Harlem State Senator Bill Perkins seemed to have a very different understanding of their relationship.

Both have a history of trying to tackle the city’s rat problem, and “In November 2000, Mr. Perkins, then a city councilman, held a so-called rat summit at Columbia University that Mr. Lhota spoke at. Mr. Perkins said that back then they spoke frequently about issues of rat removal, and he credits Mr. Lhota with helping make the rat conference happen.” Read More

By David Freedlander 7/06/11 5:54pm

dsk

Perkins Piles on Cy Vance in Wake of DSK Fiasco

Harlem State Senator Bill Perkins is out with an open letter slamming Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance for leaving the alleged rape victim in the Dominique Strauss-Kahn case “totally abandoned.”

In the letter, Perkins urges Vance to continue to pursue the charges against DSK despite recent reports undermining her credibility. Read More

By Azi Paybarah 6/16/11 3:10pm

Real Estate

Assembly Democrats Hit Senate Democrats as ‘Foolish’ and ‘Grandstanding’

Some Democratic infighting is deepening, with Assemblyman Keith Wright, Danny O’Donnell, Robert Rodriguez and Guillermo Linares accusing State Senators who voted against rent regulation extensions of voting “politically rather than practically.”

The Assembly members called it “totally irresponsible to leave these tenants without protection for even one minute.” They also said it was “absolutely ridiculous that these Senators chose not to extend the current law in order to make a political statement.” Read More