By David Freedlander 4/10/12 10:17pm

Congress

"Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark" On Broadway Safety Issues Press Conference

Hear Me Rory: Can Lancman Vanquish Ossified Queens Machine And Get To DC?

Rory Lancman insists he isn’t desperate to get out of Albany.

“It is not a miserable place,” he said last week over an afternoon glass of sauvignon blanc at the bar in the Fitzpatrick Hotel on Lexington Avenue. By New York State Legislature standards, where careers are measured in geologic time, Mr. Lancman is barely amphibious, having won his seat in the State Assembly only in 2006.

“But it is a place where at some point one’s desire for greater responsibility is stymied by a rigid seniority system and a culture that doesn’t really support that kind of institutional ambition.”

“I don’t want out,” he added. “I want up.” Read More

By Colin Campbell 4/10/12 3:58pm

Weighing In

Joe Crowley (Photo: Facebook)

Joe Crowley: ‘Mr. Lancman Is Misinformed’

Congressman Joe Crowley, the head of the Queens County Democratic Party and a supporter of Assemblywoman Grace Meng’s congressional campaign, has only one thing to stay about Assemblyman Rory Lancman’s charges of a plot to split the Jewish vote in Ms. Meng’s favor: Mr. Lancman is misinformed.

So went the conversation following a Jackson Heights press conference earlier this afternoon on expanding visa access for tourists.

“He’s misinformed,” Mr. Crowley said bluntly when The Politicker first brought up Mr. Lancman’s argument. A long pause followed as both reporters questioning him waited for additional commentary. Read More

By Colin Campbell 3/22/12 6:22pm

Liz Crowley announces for Congress

Liz Crowley Announces for Queens Congressional Seat [Video]

Councilwoman Liz Crowley formally announced her campaign for Congress this afternoon standing beneath the Unisphere in Flushing Meadows – Corona Park.

“As a daughter from Queens, from a very young age I felt the calling for public service,” she declared with her supporters standing behind her.

Her campaign message relied heavily on broad Democratic themes: Read More

By David Freedlander 3/20/12 3:17pm

NY-6

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Analysis of NY-6 Reveals Path to Victory for Lancman, Crowley

Yesterday we wrote about how City Councilwoman Liz Crowley’s entrance into the Congressional race to replace Gary Ackerman seemed, on its face, a little absurd.

Ms. Crowley’s cousin is Congressman Joe Crowley, the head of the Queens County Democratic Party, who threw their support behind Assemblywoman Grace Meng. And Ms. Meng would be New York City’s first Asian-American member of Congress, representing a district that has a slight plurality of Asian residents.

But a Democratic source emailed us today to suggest that Ms. Crowley or the third person in the race, Assemblyman Rory Lancman, may have a better chance that it first appears. Read More

By Colin Campbell 3/19/12 10:45am

grace enters the race

Grace Meng accepts the nomination.

Queens Democrats Endorse Grace Meng for Congress

District Leaders and elected officials crowded into the Queens County Democrats’ headquarters this morning to unanimously endorse Assemblywoman Grace Meng for the Congressional District Gary Ackerman spontaneously declined to run for last week. If Ms. Meng wins, she’ll be the first Asian-American Member of Congress from New York.

Congressman Joe Crowley, who heads the Queens County Democratic Party, paid constant homage to the new district’s demographic makeup when explaining his party’s decision to back Ms. Meng. The new court-drawn map makes the 6th district plurality-Asian, but Mr. Crowley also argued for her ability to win throughout the eastern Queens seat.

“It is a very diverse district and I think Grace Meng has the ability to transcend her base of support, which is largely based in the Asian-American community,” he told reporters after the meeting. Read More

By Hunter Walker 3/19/12 10:38am

Family Affair

Elizabeth Crowley (Photo: Facebook)

Joe Crowley Says ‘I Love My Cousin Very Much,’ But He’s Not Backing Her Congressional Campaign

Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley is planning to run for a seat in the House of Representatives. Ms. Crowley, who informed The Politicker of her plans at the McManus Democratic Association’s annual St. Patrick’s Day breakfast Saturday, joins an already crowded field that emerged once veteran Congressman Gary Ackerman abruptly announced his decision not to run for the seat. Congressman Joe Crowley, chairman of the Queens Democratic Party, is Ms. Crowley’s cousin, but he’s backing one of her rivals in the race, Assemblywoman Grace Meng.

“I love my cousin very much. I hope she realizes this is in the best interests of the district,” Mr. Crowley told The Politicker at a meeting where he announced the Queens Democrats’ support for Ms. Read More

By Colin Campbell 3/15/12 10:38pm

replacing gary

US-Israeli citizen accused of spying in

Grace Meng, Tony Avella Indicate Interest in Ackerman Seat

Only hours after Congressman Gary Ackerman indicated he was no longer seeking reelection, possible new candidates have already started showing interest in the Queens district he was previously running in.

In a statement sent out tonight, Assemblywoman Grace Meng, who is the only Asian-American elected official in Albany, made sure to note the new district where Mr. Ackerman was campaigning is plurality Asian and indirectly suggested she would be inclined to run if she received the Democratic establishment’s backing.

“This new congressional district is heavily Asian, and I will be sitting down with our Queens Democratic Organization Chairman, Congressman Joseph Crowley, our community leaders and activists to discuss how the coming months may shape out,” she said, while praising Mr. Ackerman. Read More

By David Freedlander 2/27/12 5:02pm

Retail Wars

irishyoga

Crowley Calls On Urban Outfitters To Cease With The Stereotypes O’ The Irish

Today, Congressman Joe Crowley along with fellow local members of the House of Representatives Carolyn Maloney, Eliot Engel and Peter King and five other lawmakers called on the CEO of Urban Outfitters to cease selling clothing items which they say negatively stereotype Irish and Irish-Americans.

“By selling and promoting these items, Urban Outfitters is only fueling stereotypes that many Irish-Americans, as well as the people of Ireland, work so hard to dispel,” said Mr. Crowley in a statement.

Among the offensive items include a hat which refers to “Irish Yoga” as someone vomiting, a beverage container with the words “Leprechaun (expletive)”, and a T-shirt with the slogan “Irish I Were Drunk.” Read More

By Hunter Walker 2/27/12 3:47pm

House of Representatives

Jerry Nadler appearing in the "It Gets Better" video. (Photo: YouTube)

New York City’s Congressional Delegation Assure LGBT Youth ‘It Gets Better’ [Video]

Several members of New York City’s Congressional delegation released an “It Gets Better” video today in an effort to stop Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender youth from committing suicide. Congressmen Jerry Nadler, Joe Crowley, Ed Towns, Eliot Engel and Jose Serrano and Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney all appeared in the video.

All of the members Read More