Forget what you hear on television; those idiots never get the story right (well, not completely right).

Governor Blagojevich has appointed Roland Burris to fill the empty Senate seat. He has the absolute right to do so. Harry Reid says he won't seat Burris, but he doesn't have that right.

In the late 1960s, Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. was prevented by the House from taking his seat, because he was under suspicion of having committed crimes. He sued, and the Supreme Court ruled in Powell v. McCormack that the House overstepped its authority.

It appears that the Supreme Court ruled explicity that someone duly elected to Congress must be seated. In this case, Burris isn't elected, but is duly appointed under Amendment XVII and Illinois state law, so he must be seated.

But...

The Constitution (Article I, Section 5) states that either House of Congress may, "with the Concurrence of two-thirds, expel a Member." So it seems that if Harry Reid can get 2/3 of the Senate to vote to expel Burris, that would end Burris's tenure.

But (there's always more) ...  read more »

Normally I don’t do these Christmas parties that politicians and political organizations throw. You see, inevitably someone will ask me to dance, and then the “Mr. Bojangles” in me comes out. Then next thing you know, my “island blood” starts flowing and I am fighting with the deejay to play some calypso, reggae or soca. Sometimes the wannabee comedian in me takes over: then I am holding court in some corner, much to the chagrin of my host or hostess. I really don’t need to add anything further to my “bad-boy” political reputation at Christmas time; I’ve got enough detractors as it is already. That’s why the political Santa Claus usually drives his sleigh right past my house every year. I hardly ever get political presents (like high-profile big-money jobs; although I am over-qualified and overdue for one of them). I am often the “Rodney Dangerfield” of Brooklyn’s politics: “no respect”/lol.

So, in general, I am very selective of the political Christmas parties I attend. Sometimes I show up with a bodyguard or two: with or without invitation. Other times I arrive early, and of course my escorts promptly arrive a few minutes later: to throw me out. One time I called in a RSVP and they told me the party started at nine; when I got there at ten, the cleaner-woman said it ended at seven. Another time, the attendant doing the valet parking, took one look at my van and immediately called the junk yard. Another one threw away my keys; he said I shouldn’t be driving that rat-trap. It’s not easy being me sometimes. It’s not!

This year however, I decided to come out of my crease (so to speak). Let Gatemouth -the pseudo cricket aficionado- figure what I meant there/lol. Given that I am intent on running for the city council next year, I thought that I should show my pretty face more often now. So if you people start seeing me show up at events in the New Year, don’t be alarmed; my plastic surgeon promised that my face improves with time: it’s the healing process stupid. Don’t be scared folks.

Lori Knipel -the Dems female district leader of the 44th AD- throws the best Christmas Party in Brooklyn. And this is an understatement; no other party comes close. She does it annually with the Lefkowitz family, at a classy senior residence manor overlooking Sheepshead Bay. The fishes are caught only moments before they are fried. It’s real “fancy-schmansy”. All the female waitresses do lap dances for the men in attendance. But seriously folks: it is reputed to be the best Christmas party in all of Brooklyn’s politics. It’s by invitation only, and she invites me every year. Lori must like bad-boys who are black and sometimes irascible; or she must think I am someone I am not.  read more »

Ed: Huh. Don't quite know what to say.

I watched the raindrops as they fell
slapping away at your grainy streets
where the pebbles from the quarry
smelled
like gun-powder over heat
when mixed with tropical dust and more
and rain and sun
and yards of lore
whether shirt-tailed
bare-backed
or bare-feet
I watched the refraction from the moonlit floors
of those two elegantly-junctioned
memory-filled streets;
where good friends did meet
in wide-eyed awe
and hugged
as they tried to greet each other
and did more
for the years lost
and the high costs
of happiness once fresh and sweet
now gone offshore.
Was some breathtaking feat my friend
for two eager eyes to see
as they watched with delight
the silver specks gleaming
and tiny golden nuggets streaming
as they headed out to sea
and the twinkling flakes shimmering
on being caught by surprise
every time they sparkled
during nighttime drizzles
and when caught up in the headlights
of intermittently passing cars
and on the misty eyelids
of recollections
still neatly compiled
still pleasantly tabulated.
And I saw a sardonyx I never knew
and an aquamarine too
whenever the rains fell
late into the edges of evening
and whenever the boundaries
of day and night were flooded.
And when the nights stood still
and were calm
and peaceful
and silent
like an innocent baby at sleep
I snuggled
while I struggled
with the strange newness of this tropical heat
but I didn’t mind;
not at all.  read more »

It is easy to feel horrifed at the images of Israeli planes hitting Gaza. But the context behind the attacks is that Gaza has been attacking Israeli civillians almost constantly since Israel withdrew from Gaza.

(House in Sderot hit by Qassem rocket, image from Bokertov.com)

(Injured woman in Sderot, image from BBC news)

I supported the withdrawal from Gaza. The dismatling of the illegal settlements in Gaza was a controversial move in Israel, but a necessary move. The withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza was also controversial, but necessary. Likud, the far right wing nut jobs of Israel, predicted that Israeli withdrawal from Gaza would result in increased attacks on Israel from Gaza.  read more »

I could try to kid you. "Go to an important art exhibit at the Morgan Library" I could say. But don't. Go to the Morgan right away because there is a wonderful, quirky, exhibit of paintings and drawings by (father & son) Jean & Laurent de Brunhoff.

Who you ask? They are the writers, artists, the visionaries of the Barbar books. Now a thousand politically conscious militants have probably told you (as they have me) that Babar books are imperialistic, ethnocentric, and just plain reactionary in a dozen ways. And well they may be but the Babar Books were, for me and for my children, an essential rite of passage which I continue to treasure. I ask you: French, cursive writing and elephants in clothing. Who could ask for anything more.

For Adam Gopnick's New Yorker review click here  read more »

Latinos for Norman Siegel Party on the eve of Three Kings Day
Monday, January 5th
6:30 to 9:30 PM

at Camaradas el Barrio Bar & Restaurant
2241 First Avenue at 115th Street

Norm Siegel is running for Public Advocate. Well known for his work on behalf of 9/11 widows and firefighters, Norman Siegel is also fighting the Bloomberg term limits coup. But his advocacy for the people of NYC goes back decades to his years with the ACLU’s Southern Justice & Voting Law Project and later as the Executive Director of the New York Civil Liberties Union. You can read more about his decades of service to NYC here.

Latinos y Latinas por Norman Siegel is holding their kick-off event for Norman on Jan 5th. This is the first of a series events geared to the Latino community to raise awareness and support for Norman’s campaign for Public Advocate.

Public Transportation:
By public transportation, you can take the No. 6 subway to 116 Street, or any local bus traveling on the East Side of Manhattan (116 Street is a Limited Stop).  read more »

I recently took my son to the Brooklyn Children's Museum. Although I have been to many far better Children's museums (like the Exploratorium in San Francisco and the Children's Museum in Balboa Park in San Diego), I will say my son LOVED it. He loved it so much he had a massive temper tantrum when we had to leave. Which isn't really typical of his behavior anymore, so he REALLY wanted to stay there.

I think he said he wanted to stay there for a HUNDRED hours!  read more »

In 2008 there was a massive shift in the electoral map and a rejection of failed Republican ideology. But it seems New York "Democrats" didn't get the memo. New York Democrats seem to be wetting themselves over the man who was the biggest individual donor to Tom DeLay's right wing extremist PAC: Michael Bloomberg.

Bloomberg may not be an insane right winger like Bush, but he WAS a major donor to the Bush Republicans and advocates a very similar "privatization" scheme that favors donors and sacrifices actual effective government. Closing down firehouses while showering developers with money, outsourcing pre-K enrollment to an inept company, creating a crisis for many parents, illegally imprisoning Democrats protesting the Republican Convention...the list of Bloomberg BS goes on. And for some reason we are seeing Democrats glom their lips on Bloomberg's posterior, almost fighting eachother to get in the wettest kiss.  read more »

Bronx Rally to Repeal Vacancy Decontrol and
Save Rent-Regulated Housing

Monday, December 29, 6-7:30 PM
Holy Family Church, Inc. at 2158 Watson Ave & Castle Hill Ave, Bronx NY
6 train to Castle Hill Ave. station

Join Housing Here and Now in mobilizing a crucial end of the year rally to repeal vacancy decontrol and save rent regulated housing! ACORN, Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition, Community Voices Heard, New York City AIDS Housing Network and others are mobilizing to fill the room with tenants demanding the preservation of rent regulated housing.

We are inviting key State Senators from the Bronx, including Ruben Diaz, Sr. and State Senator-Elect Pedro Espada. Their votes are crucial for the repeal of vacancy decontrol. Bronx State Senators have many rent-regulated tenants in their district, and it's and important time for them to show their support to communities that elected them. We will ask them to commit to voting YES for the repeal of vacancy decontrol. To make sure they say yes, we need your help!  read more »

Two Assembly races in Brooklyn had some interesting results, according to the NYS Board of Elections results.

Steven Cymbrowitz, a Democrat, got almost as many votes on the Republican line as on the Democratic line (he also got a few hundred votes on the WFP line -- the totals are: 11,015-10,320-538).

Dov Hikind, ostensibly a Democrat, actually got A MAJORITY of his votes (55.6%) on the Republican line (10,521 vs. 8,397).

In both cases, registered Democrats outnumber registered Republicans by slightly more than 3-1. It appears that the "base" for these guys doesn't lie with their official party affiliation.

It seems to me that in a body that is more than 2-1 Democratic, in a state governed by a Democrat, the party can afford to push harder, especially in "safe" districts, for Democrats who don't appeal so much to Republicans.

As the solstice neared, I and some friends gathered to remember those who died in 2008. As we age, more of our friends, co-workers and heroes bite the dust. Two died too recently for us to light candles for them:

Julius Fast, Writer, 89. Julie Fast, who died a few days ago at 89, was a wonderful writer. He could have been caught among three storms: he was the younger brother of Howard Fast, leftist novelist, and he wrote a pop psychology book – Body Language – which became a runaway best seller, and he wrote so quickly, fluidly and gracefully that pot-boilers bubbled-out from him as easily as his greatest work.

He, nonetheless, escaped, wrote great murder mysteries which won prizes. His masterpiece, in my view, is a semi-autobiographical, coming of age novel which he published late in his career “What Should We Do About Davey?.” The New York Times obit is here . "Davey", I am sad to say, is not in the Public Library circulating collection – but used copies are available. His classic science-fiction novel is the League of Grey-Eyed Women. His trail-blazing, first-ever-Edgar-winning murder mystery Watchful At Night is not available at all. Perhaps, post death, we’ll be able to re-evaluate Julie. In my view, he was a giant.

James Bevel A charismatic, brilliant, erratic civil rights leader  read more »

It has been just over a year since I learned about the site Free Rice. I got addicted, then forgot about it. Now I am reminded of it again and getting readdicted.

Free Rice is fun and feeds the poor around the world. You play educational games and for every answer you get right, rice is donated to feed the hungry. Last night my wife and I had a nerdy good time with world capitals, chemical symbols and famous paintings, and in the process donated some 16,000 grains of rice to feed the hungry. Given that sometimes I get addicted to this kind of nerdy game anyway, it''s nice to be able to feed some people as well.

Do you know the capitals of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan? How about the difference between a Fanz Hals and a Bruegel? Learn math, science, Spanish, French, famous paintings, etc. while helping to feed the hungry. What could be better?  read more »

If true, Mr. Monserrate is doing the State Senate proud, even before taking office (Many updates, Monserrate's spin story and more post-jump):

Queens state Senator-elect Hiram Monserrate was in police custody this morning and will be charged with assaulting a woman believed to be his girlfriend, police sources said.

Monserrate, a member of the City Council who serves on its Public Safety Committee, struck the woman, Karla Giraldo, 30, near her left eye with either a bottle or broken glass, sources said.

The alleged assault occurred Thursday at her Jackson Heights home. Monserrate took Giraldo to Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New Hyde Park, where she received five stitches and was released.

The circumstances surrounding the alleged assault were not immediately clear, sources said. Monserrate is at the 105th Precinct and will be charged with felony assault, sources said.

From Newsday's Police beat guy Rocco Parascandola From the NY Times City Room post, the victim didn't want Senator-elect Monserrate arrested but that domestic assault arrests are mandatory in such circumstances.  read more »

Can you stand going to the Met Museum during the holidays? I happen to love the tree and creche they put on display each year. The figures are rich in kitsch, which (if that's not your thing) could be a pain. But let me tell you about another reasons to press the flesh at the Met.

Art & Love In Renaissance Italy is an interesting, complex and very smart exhibit at the Met until February 16, 2009. I saw it under what was, for me, ideal conditions: an unmobbed pre-view with curators' introducing many of the objects and paintings. The show has not received the raves I think it deserves. See the NY Times review here as an example The NY Times has also posted a slide show of a few of the 160 items in the exhibit. You can also check out these YouTubes of exhibit items. But trust me -- seeing them up front and personal is better.  read more »

George W. Bush is announcing his plan to bail out the auto industry, and it appears that the UAW will win.

Under the plan, the UAW will be required, by the end of 2009, to reset work rules and wages to be "competitive" with costs to foreign-owned auto companies manufacturing in the U.S. That doesn't mean total costs, just work rules and wages -- pension and legacy healthcare costs don't count. Also, it doesn't mean dollar-for-dollar parity, just "competitivenss." In addition, this agreement could be renegotiated with the Obama administration.

Other provisions: Loans will be made from the TARP. GM & Chrysler must develop viability plans by March 31, or repay the loans. In developing these plans, everyone involved in the auto industry (not just the UAW) must come to the table. The loans will take precedence over other debts.

Apparently, Bush's statement yesterday that he doesn't want to dump a crisis on the next administration isn't totally bunk. Yes, he's leaving with 150,000 troops bogged down in Iraq, and tens of thousands in Afghanistan, and there's that pesky recession thingamajig, but at least the auto crisis is being dealt with.  read more »

This is a do-not-miss event.

Word is that David Galarza is throwing his hat in the ring for the 38th City Council District against Sara Gonzalez, one of the Bloomberg 29 who voted to overturn the term limits New York voters twice approved.

Sara Gonzalez is one of Bloomberg's 29 Trained Surrender Monkeys on the City Council who jump when Bloomberg tells them to. She also is caught up in the City Council scandal where millions of dollars of our tax money has been "misdirected" into fake non-profits. Gonzalez has refused to account for some $269,000 of our tax money. Generally I expect that kind of behavior from a Republican!  read more »

(Note: Reprinted from my website.)

As speculation continues over whether, and how, the Bush administration will choose to tap the TARP for $14 billion to bail out two enormous, domestic-owned automobile manufacturers, little discussion is given to whether there is a better way. While people debate the wisdom of keeping alive companies that have made many terrible business decisions in the past, nobody is debating whether to switch from automobiles to some other form of transportation. We should.

Our blindness to transportation systems other than automobiles is nothing new, and is the result of decades of propaganda, as well as monopolist and other crooked business practices, in the auto industry and related businesses.  read more »

Came across this on Daily Kos, haven't heard anything else about it:

New School Campus Occupation

Students at the New School in New York City are currently occupying the central campus building and demanding the resignation of university President Bob Kerrey. The occupation comes as the faculty of the university have voted no-confidence in the President. The students have established the New School in Exile in their occupied space. www.newschoolinexile.com

Here are, apparently, their demands:

The removal of Bob Kerrey as president of our university

• The removal of James Murtha as executive vice president of our university

• Students, faculty, and staff elect the president, EVP, and Provost.

• Students are part of the interim committee to hire a provost.

• The removal of Robert B. Millard as treasurer of the board of trustees.

• Intelligible transparency and disclosure of the university budget and investments.

• The creation of a committee on socially responsible investments.  read more »

Upcoming event regarding the rights of disabled Americans:

Change is Coming Neighborhood Meeting for Obama-Biden - Envisioning Accessibility in our Community

RSVP: Sign-up for 'Yetta Kurland 2009 & the 504 Democratic Club - Envisioning Accessibility'

Ability is something that can and does effect all of us; whether we are currently disabled, whether we have loved ones with disabilities, or whether we will or have faced disability at some point in our lives. How do we work to create inclusion of people with disabilities in the political and social fabric of society and what can we do to envision an accessible community?  read more »

As fire coverage remains inadequate in NYC, Bloomberg keeps wanting to close firehouses. Does he WANT NYC to burn?

Norm Siegel is leading the fight to keep firehouses open:

STATEMENT OF NORMAN SIEGEL - December 13, 2008, at rally sponsored by the South Beach Civic Association

I am here today to say NO to the Mayor's plan to close firehouses. Although our City is facing a legitimate budget problem, we cannot and must not solve the projected budget deficit by creating a potential hazard to the public safety of any New Yorker. The closing of firehouses creates a potential danger to residents of New York City.

If it takes a fire engine a few more minutes or seconds to get to a fire or to reach a heart attack victim, those few minutes or seconds could be a matter of life or death. We cannot and must not put any New Yorker's life at risk because of necessary budget cuts.  read more »

I should have posted this last earlier but I've been lazier than I like. At the New York Public Theater on Lafayette Street there's a politically important, funny, brilliant questioning one man show which we all should see.

Performance artist Danny Hoch has "Taking Over" a 90-minute one may show about gentrification (set in Williamsburgh) shows off Hoch's brilliant writing and acting. The show poses troubling questions without any canned sloganeering solutions. As a result, it's moving and thought provoking. When I was there, a panel of politicians, planners and (gasp!) community organizers (Including Assembly Member Joseph Lentol and Pratt Center Director and City Council Candidate Brad Lander.

Tickets at $60 are priced, out of my range, but --- I have a trick. The Public has $20 rush tickets which they give out at the box office one hour before curtain time. When I went, people who lined up at 5PM were the very first to get great cheaper seats.  read more »

More eligible voters cast ballots in this past November’s election than in the last 40 years. Turnout, as it turns out, among those eligible to vote was high. According to a report in Monday’s Washington post 61.6% of eligible voters cast ballots.

Final figures from nearly every state and the District of Columbia showed that more than 131 million people voted. A little more than 122 million voted in the 2004 presidential election.
This year's total amounts to 61.6 percent of eligible voters, the highest turnout rate since 1968, when Republican Richard M. Nixon defeated Democrat Hubert H. Humphrey, said Michael P. McDonald, a political science professor at [George Mason University].

You can review McDonald’s work here

My limited subtraction skills suggest that 38.4% of eligible voters didn’t. Since, as Woody Allen has explained, 90% of life is just showing up, the views of the non-voters went unrecorded. However, had they intended to vote “none of the above” we’d be commander-in-chiefless. Did the non voters intend to oppose both candidates? I asked Professor McDonald who he thought they were.  read more »

This week Obama named one of his best cabinet picks yet: Dr. Steven Chu, director of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, former chair of Stanford University's physics department, and Nobel Prize-winning (for research in laser cooling and trapping of atoms) physicist, was named Obama's Energy Secretary. Chu also has been an early and strong supporter of alternative fuels and renewable energy research. THIS is the kind of leadership this country needs!

It should be noted that this is the FIRST Energy Secretary who is genuinely an expert on energy.

Dr. Chu's impressive biography can be found here.

Here's a video of Steve Chu at the Davos Annual Meeting, 2007, talking about Climate Change:  read more »

On The Albany Project, a blogger hight "Exile on Ericsson St." wonders if the fight to stop the auto bailout -- or at least to force the UAW to make enormous concessions -- may be just a skirmish in the larger battle over the "Employee Free Choice Act."

The Employee Free Choice Act would make it a lot easier to unionize, so many business owners oppose it. There are problems with the bill as it is, since it could swing the pendulum too far. Right now, management has an opportunity to strongarm people prior to a vote; if this bill took effect, management wouldn't have that opportunity, but union organizers would. We need something that moves the pendulum without going too far, but given a choice between the current system and the Employee Free Choice Act I'd make the change.  read more »