Alright, the next round: read the document proposed by the Senate Democrats to pass emergency bills here (.pdf) The full taxt is here:

WHEREAS the Democratic and Republican Conferences are unable to agree as to who is the validly elected President Pro Tempore of the New York State Senate; and

WHEREAS in order to move forward with legislation critical to the people of this state, the Democratic Conference and the Republican Conference (which, combined with Senator Espada, identifies themselves as the “Reform Coalition”) are willing to put aside temporarily the dispute over the election of the President Pro Tempore, and to suspend the Rules of the Senate for the purpose of considering legislation critical to the public and municipalities of the State;

WE HEREBY PROPOSE the following bipartisan operating agreement to allow the New York State Senate to function for a regular session on June 30th, 2009, that will allow critical legislation to come before the Senate for a vote:

 read more »

The Post gleefully headlines Bernie Madoff To Rot in Jail; the Times is slightly more placid, as is their wont.

The sentence was handed down at the end of a ninety-minute hearing. None of the coverage I've seen indicates whether Madoff will appeal his sentence.

[Update]: Ruth Madoff breaks her silence. Her statement, after the break.  read more »

I just came from a wonderful talk by Nobel Prize winner Marty Chalfie at the conference I am attending at UCLA (the International C. elegans meeting...more commonly called "the worm meeting"). Hearing a talk from a recent Nobel Prize winner is always wonderful, because they usually still have a sense of wonder at not just their own accomplishments but the fact that their accomplishments are part of a flow of science that depends on past efforts and has meaning in the context of future accomplishments by hundreds of other scientists. I have to say hearing from people who have gotten their Nobel Prizes a long time ago is often less inspiring because they have come to terms with greatness and take it for granted. New Nobel Prize winners have not and so their perspective is generally most inspiring.  read more »

From Crazy Days and Nights: NY Post Blind Items:

WHICH former elected official has been cheating on her husband? This wife and mother was spotted going into a Midtown hotel with the head of a group pushing school reform, who's also married. Said our source, "Not the first time and not the last time"

My guess after the jump only because it would be hilariously ironic that she was replaced by Vito Fossella.  read more »

This can't be real. The Jacksonville Observer, of Florida:

South Florida political blog Politics1.com is reporting that New York billionaire Tom Golisano “is now contemplating a Democratic run for Florida’s open US Senate seat. Golisano, who owns homes in both New York and Florida, recently switched his residency to the Sunshine State.”

Florida Democrats: be warned. Stay away.

Spent most of 7th Heaven wandering around with Jacob and meeting politicians. Ran into Josh Skaller, Bob Zuckerman, John Heyer (all friendly and friendly with eachother despite being opponents for the same City Council seat...hear that Brad Lander? People can be in opposition without being snippy), Ken Diamondstone, Jo Anne Simon (both running for City Council) and Norman Siegel (running for Public Advocate). I heard John Liu (Comptroller) came by and was met with considerable enthusiasm. I saw David Yassky (local weasel), but I honestly avoided him. Probably to his relief.

I did not see a lot of people I expected to see. Where was Bill de Blasio? All his campaign did was post signs on lamp posts--illegally, I might add. When John Liu was in the neighborhood last weekend he put up signs but took them down when he left. Bill de Blasio simply left his signs up, contrary to the law and, in my book, showing disrespect for the neighborhood. And where was Steve Levin? I guess he has given up on Park Slope? Given how much Park Slope dislikes Levin's boss, Vito Lopez, perhaps that is wise.

But I met one person I didn't know about. Eugene Myrick is running for Brooklyn Borough President against Angry Clown and homophobe supporter Marty Markowitz (see also here for the Angry Clown story). Here is Eugene Myrick's video:

 read more »

The Daily News:

Speaking on [the Reverend Al] Sharpton's radio show, Monserrate commented, "You know, I'm never gonna compare myself to anyone in the biblical context."

"I remember Jesus himself, when he saw that in the temple there were merchants setting up shop, [he] began to turn over a few tables along the way ... to get the people's business done right," Monserrate said.

It's not known whether or not Jesus ever slashed his girlfriend in the face with a broken glass, however.

And here's our buddy Pedro, the other traitor. Pedro has apparently taken to speaking of himself in the third person, as befits a man of his influence and centrality.

King Pedro describing his ideal solution of the chaos he caused:

We'll have a situation in which the Democrats would have their majority leader, the republicans would have their majority leader, Pedro Espada will be president pro tem, and we'll have a fair and equal allocation of resources.

Congratulations, Democrats. Well done.

The 504 Democrats are a NYC-wide Democratic club focused on disabled rights. I came across a partial list of their 2009 endorsements (the full list is not up on their site at this point). These endorsements are for three city council candidates I have been supporting for some time now. The 504 Democrats have endorsed:

Council District 25 (Queens): Daniel Dromm (Daniel Dromm has also received the endorsements of Stonewall Democrats, the United Federation of Teachers, and ChangeNYC, among others)

Council District 3 (Manhattan): Yetta Kurland (Yetta Kurland has also gotten the endorsements of Downtown Independent Democrats, ChangeNYC, and the New York Blade, among others)

Council District 33: (Brooklyn): Jo Anne Simon (Jo Anne Simon has also gotten the endorsements of the Central Brooklyn Independent Democrats, ChangeNYC, and Lambda Independent Democrats, among others)

I find it interesting that, at least on these three races, Change NYC, 504 Democrats, and I all agree.

Here is the mission statement of 504 Demorats:

The 504 Democratic Club is a New York City-based coalition of Democrats working towards inclusion of people with disabilities in the political and social fabric of society. Club members hail from all five boroughs, reaching across every conceivable line to include a richly diverse group of people with disabilities, public officials, friends and family who support the concepts set forth in Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

This comes from Public Advocate candidate Norm Siegel's campaign:

Norman Siegel Opposes Budget Cuts in the Office of the Public Advocate.

On the heels of today's troubling news that the Public Advocate’s office was cut by 40% in the 2009-2010 NYC Budget while treating other offices differently, civil rights attorney Norman Siegel, who is running for the office this year, issued this statement:

"The Public Advocate's office is the one institution we have that is designed to keep the mayor, the City Council and all the other officials making up our City's government honest. It is the one bridge between the people and the political establishment, where the grievances of all New Yorkers can be addressed."

He went on to say, "it is interesting to me that at this point in time, when the news regularly reports on abuses and waste in government, the office of Public Advocate is being effectively stripped of its functions, thereby reducing the mechanism for New Yorkers to fight for their rights and for more effective government."  read more »

I wrote about this earlier but wanted to add more background information and add a short statement made by City Council candidate Jo Anne Simon, who is well known for being one of the few district leaders who stands up to Vito Lopez.

Assemblyman Vito Lopez, political ally of WFP and city council candidates like Steve Levin and Maritza Davilla, is under attack from child advocates for watering down a bill to protect children abused by sex offenders sheltering in religious institutions. Here's video from a local TV station (sorry, includes an ad at the beginning...thanks to a reader for passing it on to me).  read more »

To go with his bullshit attitude about how everything revolves around him, Pedro just bought a new set of clothes. Remember, he and his buddies made sure to pay themselves, so he has the cash.

The Politicker

They're allied with him in the quest to wrest control of the State Senate leadership, but there are some lingering misgivings among Republicans in the chamber about the partnership with State Senator Pedro Espada Jr.

"Several of them are in ‘Oh my God, what have we done' mode," said one Republican who is close to many of the senators. "Pedro is obviously enjoying this immensely. The image of Dean standing mute while Pedro pontificates is a little much. And the general stoppage ... some are saying we never should have done it, some are saying, they should have said bring three or four or don't come."

Capitol Confidential outlines Pedro's increasing sense of grandiosity:

“I’ve laid out what I think would be a situation in which the Democrats would have their majority leader, Republicans would have their majority leader, Pedro Espada would be president pro tem, and we would have a fair and equal allocation of resources that would accomplish true bipartisanship,” he said.

This is a significant deviation from the GOP’s proposed bipartisan operating agreement, which they offered to Democrats for consideration this week.

Daily Politics on Pedro's race-baiting:

Pedro Espada Jr., who accused his fellow Democrats of racism and trying to deprive the Latino community of its highest-ranking elected official (that would be him, of course, assuming you share his opinion the June 8 coup vote was legal), will be beating that drum in Albany tomorrow when he addresses the New York Chapter of The League of United Latino American Citizens.

What a douchebag, eh?  read more »

No, seriously. There is a Google text ad on Daily Kos proclaiming just that.

The ad links to this site, Justice for Joe Bruno.

There's a statement, which reads in part:

For over three years, I have been the target of a “Get Joe Bruno Campaign.” Whether by former Governor Spitzer or a political U.S. Attorney’s Office and an overzealous FBI, I have had every relationship of my life poked, probed and scrutinized. Even my family was dragged into this and made to endure questions about their actions and motives.

So, after being hounded for three years, I am being indicted on a prosecutorial sleight of hand because, after years of effort, they cannot find one example of criminal activity or illegal intent.

No, Senator, you're being indicted because you're a crook.  read more »

The forces of darkness - that is, the republicans - are refusing to join in the country's admiration of the events in Iran. The fear amongst the opposition seems to be that the President might get some credit for his calm approach to the events; or maybe, that the inspiring pictures from Tehran and elsewhere put the lie to that Bushian Axis of Evil tripe.

Please tell me that couldn't have been made by Barack Obama's campaign or his supporters. It's so obviously the same visual and tonal language that it's almost startling. Consider this:

We're in a whole new era of people power. Make the best of it.

Welcome to our new daily feature about the freak show in Albany, starring one Pedro Espada - or, as we call him, Mr. I-have-two-votes.

CBS2:

When Espada was first asked by CBS 2 HD whether he actually lives in the district he represents, he laughed. But now it's no laughing matter.

CBS 2 HD acquired documentation filed on June 24, 2009, by Espada and his wife Connie to post bail for their nephew, Carlos Mocete, who was arrested in Bridgeport, Conn. Twice, on two separate pages, Espada listed his residence as 115 Beechwood Drive in Mamaroneck, not the Bronx coop where he claims he lives to fulfill state residence requirements that he actually live in the district he's serving.

Daily Politics on the DSCC robocalls Script:

Our State Senator, Marty Golden, voted to elect Pedro Espada, an indicted Democrat from the Bronx to lead the Senate and to be next in line for governor!? What was Golden thinking?

Call Marty Golden at 718- xxx-xxxx and tell him we've had enough corruption in Albany. We need him to stop the nonsense, get rid of Pedro Espada and get back to work.

The Politicker:

Democrats are once again trying to have State Senator Pedro Espada Jr. restrained from performing the office of president pro tempore, which he claims to occupy as part of the ongoing leadership struggle in that chamber.

I'm told by Democratic staffers that the suit will be filed this afternoon, but am not sure which court.

Liz Benjamin detects possible discord between Skelos and Pedro:

Asked about the robocalls and e-mails by Democrats pushing the GOP to dump Espada, Skelos said only: “I’m looking to get a result.”

That's a big switch, and one does not bode well for Espada. Up to this point, Skelos has been going out of his way to acknowledge his coalition government "partner."

Oops, never mind. Times Union:

IJL: “Senator [Skelos], there’s no scenario in which you would consider a plan that did not include Sen. Espada?”

Skelos: “I’m going to stand beside him because that was the vote of the Senate.”

Daily New has the dirt on the new investigations into Pedro. Definitely worth a read, folks.  read more »

Senator Gillibrand is on Daily Kos with a diary about her support of Dan Choi, the West Point graduate and Arabic translator who recently got drummed out of the service for, gasp, being gay.

I'm not even going to quote, but read the whole thing here: Stand With Lt. Dan Choi, It's Time To Repeal DADT.

Oh, and Senator Gillibrand, you just earned my vote.

Assemblyman Vito Lopez, political ally of WFP and city council candidates like Steve Levin and Maritza Davilla, is under attack for his watering down a bill to protect children abused by sex offenders sheltering in religious institutions. Here's video from a local TV station (sorry, includes an ad at the beginning...thanks to a reader for passing it on to me).

Wonder how Working Families Party, Steve Levin and  read more »

Recently I covered my friend, City Council candidate Josh Skaller's, endorsement by Howard Dean and Democracy for America (DFA). DFA has now endorsed another friend of mine, this time running for City Council in Queens. From Jim Dean and Democracy for America:

If you are an active DFA member in New York, you probably know about Steve Behar.

He's a founder of our local DFA group, Democracy for New York City, and has served as the President of Democrats for New Politics since 2004. He has continuously worked to push the progressive movement forward and now he's running for New York City Council, District 19.  read more »

Not too long ago a shady group put out an expensive, glossy and HIGHLY misleading propoganda piece about the EPA's plan to clean up the Gowanus Canal using the Superfund. This glossy piece basically was put out by developers to further their own agenda for the Gowanus. Just as a reminder of what we are talking about, here is a picture of what the canal gets like (picture taken by my wife as we walked past the canal last summer):

City Council candidate Josh Skaller, who was one of the first to endorse Obama's EPA plan to Superfund the Gowanus, is co-hosting a forum on the issue to try and clear up some of the misinformation that developers have been putting out on the issue.

This comes from the Josh Skaller campaign.

"End the Propaganda": Neighborhood Groups Join Josh Skaller in Fight Against Gowanus Misinformation Campaign  read more »

This is actually very funny, or would be, until you realize he's serious. NY Post, Dicker and Scott:

Renegade Democratic Sen. Pedro Espada claimed yesterday he and his Republican allies are forging an explosive new plan to give him an unprecedented two votes to break the newly emerged deadlock in the state Senate.

"We're going to maintain that, as the president pro tempore of the Senate, I am also the acting lieutenant governor, and the lieutenant governor can vote when there's a tie."

I did a brief Google search for the idea. What Espada is proposing has no precedent that I can find over the last four hundred years of Anglo-American parliamentary procedure. Not here, not in the UK, not in the Dominions.

Not anywhere, ever.

Back when David Yassky ran for Congress, he was seen as primarily a supporter of Bruce Ratner, though with more reservations than Ratner supporter Yvette Clarke. My wife took particular notice of how he would always begin any discussing on development in general and Atlantic Yards in particular with the assumption that developers would get their way and that it was up to government to get as much as they could out of developers in return. This was a defeatist view but was a consistent message from David Yassky.  read more »

This is from awhile back, but never got around to posting it here. With the Sotomayor hearings coming up, this is worth keeping in mind.

I have known Jo Anne Simon for several years and she is currently one of the district leaders for my area. I have also endorsed her for City Council. Locally Jo Anne Simon is best known for being one of only a handful of district leaders to stand up to local corruption. Nationally, she is known for he role as an advocate for disabled rights. I recently learned that in this capacity she has first hand knowledge of what it is like to argue before Judge Sotomayor, and I think her comments are worth knowing as Sotomayor is scrutinized for her Supreme Court nomination.

This is from Jo Anne Simon's campaign website:  read more »

A friend emails over an invite to a fundraiser for Mark Green, the once and maybe future Public Advocate, in support of his current run for office.

Thursday, June 18 from 6-7:30 pm

Tickets can be purchased at: www.MarkGreen.net/events/June18

And let me take this opportunity to point out that, if we post these things, we don't imply any endorsement, and that we generally prefer it when campaigns just buy an ad.

An Invitation To a Comedy/Music Fundraiser in Honor of

Norman Siegel Candidate for NYC Public Advocate

Hosted by Randy Credico & Artie T

Thursday, June 18, 2009
at The Yippie Museum
9 Bleecker Street
New York, NY 10012
Begins 8:00pm

Special Guests:
Professor Irwin Corey
A. Whitney Brown
Richard Cored
Gary Goodrow
Barry Weintraub
and more….

Refreshments will be served

Tickets- $20.00 Suggested
or $10 if you can’t afford $20….

Please show your support for Norman and his campaign for Public Advocate!

Go to www.Normansiegel.com to pay on-line or rsvp at RSVP@normanssiegel.com

These are the people that George Bush and Dick Cheney wanted to nuke. Behold the axis of evil. Images from Faramarz on Flickr.

There's more.  read more »