Reshma Saujani, who lost a contentious Congressional election to Carolyn Maloney in 2010, will be hosting a fundraiser for Barack Obama’s re-election next month.
In an email to her supporters, Ms. Saujani said the event will be “one of the last intimate events with the President in NYC,” and he notes that “long term friends like Deepak Chopra and Russell Simmons” are slated to attend. Read More
Anna Wintour and Scarlett Johansson are hosting a fundraiser tonight for President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign at the clothing retailer Theory.
The event, called “Runway 2 Win” will feature big names from the fashion world including Diane Von Furstenburg, Vera Wang and Tory Burch. President Obama is not slated to attend, but the event is part of a growing engagement on the part of the fashion world in politics.
And the event has, naturally, led the GOP to pounce, releasing a web video that pokes fun at some of the high-priced Obama swag that the fashionistas are producing: Read More
Sen. Chuck Schumer is hosting a fundraiser later this month for Kathy Hochul, the upstate Congresswoman who won a squeaker of a special election last year that, according to the invite, “changed the national electoral landscape and energized the Democratic Party.”
Ms. Hochul, you may recall, won the seat held by Rep. Chris Lee after he resigned when half-naked photos used to attract women on Craigslist surfaced. That seat strongly favored the GOP, but Ms. Hochul made an issue of her Republican opponent’s support of Paul Ryan’s budget and its effects on Medicare.
As Darren Rigger, a fundraiser for Ms. Hochul points out, it is a little unusual to have Sen. Schumer step out for a Congressional candidate like this. His counterpart in the Senate, Kirsten Gillibrand, has been a far more aggressive presence, especially for newer and for female Democratic members of Congress. Read More
City Councilman Robert Jackson posted a dismal fundraising number in the most recent filing period, reporting having raised under $10,000 for a possible borough president run. By comparison, two other likely candidates in the race, Community Board 1 chair Julie Menin hauled in close to half a million dollars, City Councilwoman Jessica Lappin posted nearly $150,000 and Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal has over $100,000 in the bank.
But Mr. Jackson, who represents West Harlem up to Washington Heights, appears to be rectifying the problem.
Next month, Assembly member Denny Farrell will host a low-dollar fundraiser for the councilmember in honor of Mr. Farrell’s 80th birthday party–or, as he calls it, the 40th birthday celebration of his 40th birthday. Read More
Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice brought in over $900,000 in contributions this cycle, with an additional $350,000 in other receipts transferred from a now-closed account, according to filings reported to the Board of Elections today. Her report is especially notable as it represents more than a ten-fold increase in her cash on hand over her committee’s last filing, suggesting that she might possibly have her eyes on a higher office.
“She takes her job and her public service seriously so she’s always going to work hard at building a political network to keep her in a position to continue the important work she’s doing,” a spokesman for Ms. Rice said, hinting that she could have higher ambitions for the future. “While she loves her job, her success at building that network will always give her a lot of options.”
The number represents a huge haul for a down-ballot suburban lawmaker, especially considering that Ms. Rice lost the Attorney General’s race to Eric Schneiderman in 2010. The figure announced today even outpaces Read More
It appears as if the city’s political class is not quite ready to turn their back on John Liu.
The scandal-scarred city comptroller is facing a daily barrage of damaging stories in the tabloids–including today’s Post report that he owes $1,500 in outstanding bills and taxes–but this evening the city’s labor and political leaders are gathering for a big birthday fundraiser for him.
The host committee includes Assembly Speaker Shelly Silver, Brooklyn Democratic Party boss Vito Lopez, Manhattan Democratic Party boss Keith Wright and Senate Minority Leader John Sampson, as well as DC37 head Lillian Roberts, RWDSU head Stuart Appelbaum and TWU head John Samuelsen, to name just a few. Read More
Hakeem Jeffries sent out a fundraising email that left little doubt his intentions to run for Congress, and showed that the Assemblyman has something of a sardonic sense of humor.
Several years ago, as an attorney in a Midtown Manhattan law firm and candidate for the state legislature, I often was asked the question: Why would you want to go to Albany, that swamp of dysfunction? As a candidate for Congress I’m now asked the question: Why would you want to leave Albany, that paragon of democratic virtue . . . and go to Washington, that swamp of dysfunction? (My how things change) Read More
Staten Island Congressman Michael Grimm is gearing up for 2012 with a series of fundraisers at various Broadway shows this weekend, including a $1,500 a head performance of How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying and a similarly priced performance of Anything Goes.
Perhaps he should have gone with something a little less provocatively titled, like say The Book of Mormon.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign has pounced on the fundraisers, tweaking Mr. Grimm for heading to shows that will remind supporters of some of his own failures in business and the hits he has taken from Washington ethics groups. Read More
A couple of readers have passed along the following invitation featuring Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries in a public conversation with Danny Simmons.
A few thing to note here: Firstly, the invite rather baldly proclaims Mr. Jeffries to be a “2012 Candidate for Brooklyn’s 10th Congressional District,” which seems to imply that we can take the Assemblyman out of the “exploring” category. Read More
Much like Herman Cain, Occupy Wall Street won’t let setbacks keep them out of the limelight. About 25 protesters rallied outside Newt Gingrich’s $1000-per person fundraiser at the Union League Club on Park Avenue this morning to protest his lobbying activities and strike back after he told them to Read More
