I found this buried in an email Rock Hackshaw sent around. This score card is from the Human Rights Project. The score card (in PDF form) can be found here.

The scorecard is VERY detailed and I can't do it justice in a short post. They cover homeless issues, race issues, gender issues including LGBT issues, poverty, etc.

Among the WORST rated council members is Chirstine Quinn. She gets a miserable 12% rating. Keep in mind this is the person who wants to be Tsarina...er, I mean MAYOR of NYC. She gets zero ratings for workers' rights, criminal/juvenile justice, disabled rights and voting rights and a very low score for housing rights. Is THIS what we want for mayor? Someone who is bad for workers, justice, disabled people, housing and voting rights?

In fairness, I want to look into the past records of former city council members who are competing with Quinn for mayor. Both Bill de Blasio and John Liu moved on from the City Council in 2009, both having refused to participate in Bloomberg's Third Term Power Grab the way Lap Dog Quinn did. So de Blasio and Liu BOTH are already better than Quinn on that issue alone to me. But let's compare Quinn, de Blasio and Liu in the 2008 and 2009 score card: (ranking system presented a bit differently each year it seems)

Christine Quinn: a mediocre 45% average score in 2008 and got a "C" for 2009.

John Liu: an 61% score in 2008 (8th highest scoring council member so on the top ten list) and a 2009 rating of "A" (4th highest scoring council member, so also on the top ten list).

So Quinn is clearly the WRONG candidate for Human Rights. John Liu does BEST with Bill de Blasio coming in second. Note that Borough Presidents would not be rated on these score cards so I can't compare them.

The top scoring City Council members in 2011 are:

Melissa Mark-Viverito. Manhattan Council District # 8 – Democrat (Score: 90%)

Helen D. Foster. Bronx Council District # 16 – Democrat (Score: 88%)

Letitia James. Brooklyn Council District # 35 – Democrat (Score: 88%)

Jumaane D. Williams. Brooklyn Council District # 45 – Democrat (Score: 86%)

Charles Barron. Brooklyn Council District # 42 – Democrat (Score: 80%)

Brad Lander. Brooklyn Council District # 39 – Democrat (Score: 74%)

Gale Brewer. Manhattan Council District # 6 – Democrat (Score: 73%)

G. Oliver Koppell. Manhattan Council District #11- Democrat (Score 65%)

Jimmy Van Bramer. Queens Council District #26- Democrat (Score 65%)

I want to note that included on this list are council members I have agreed with and ones that I have disagreed with in the past. I will say that I am happy that Tish James is among the top, and congrats to Brad Lander, who I have had many a run in with, for making the top.

Let me emphasize a few things. First, one of the best parts of the score card is its analysis of the City Council process itself. It shows that basically a bill has little shot of even having a hearing let alone being voted on if it doesn't have either the support of the mayor or the speaker. This emphasizes something I have said MANY times: NYC has one of the weakest City Councils I have seen, almost 100% dominated by the mayor and his lap dog speaker, Quinn (hat tip to the attendees of my Eating Liberally group last night who used "Bloomberg's lap dog" to discuss Quinn). NYC is possibly the least democratic of cities. Now I have only seen it under Republicans like Giuliani and Bloomberg, so a don't know if it was different under a Democratic administration, but I somehow doubt it. Certainly it is clear Quinn, a Democrat, would be just as dictatorial as Tsar Bloomberg.

Second I want to emphasize that this scorecard doesn't cover ALL important issues, so I would not use this as my only way to judge a council member, but it does cover some extremely important issues, particularly ones taken up by Occupy Wall Street, so politicians who got a low score should look to their record a bit.  read more »

As I implied in my last “Vines” column: relative to the five boroughs of New York City, Brooklyn is usually where the political action's at. And sure enough, when the Daily News came with their expose on the many NYC council members (almost 20 -the last time I looked) whose ethics can be put to challenge, Brooklyn had more than just a few of their electeds represented on the “Council of Shame” list. This story broke last Sunday (3-20-2011); and that was fine; but I still have a big problem with the Daily News. And coming to think about it: likewise the New York Times, Newsday, the Post, and many other newspapers (local, regional and national) plying their trade in this state. I will get to that in a lil bit: so hang on like Sloopy.  read more »

Next week Tuesday (Election Day) there will be a special election held for the 28th council-manic district in Queens. The need for which came about after Council-member Tom White died recently. Originally there were fourteen candidates registered with the NYC Campaign Finance Board (CFB); namely (in alphabetical order and with latest CFB financial-filing numbers): Victor Babb -$15,500; *Albert Baldeo -$54,994; *Charles Bilal -$5,298; *Martha Butler -$0; Leroy Gadsden -$0; *Allan Jennings -$15,417; Vishnu Mahadeo -$0; Joseph Marthune -$0; Elaine Nunes -$0; Lyn Nunes -$0; *Nicole Paultre-Bell -$12,033; Hattie Powell -$0; *Harpreet Toor -$18,895; and *Ruben Wills-$25,800. The seven with an asterisk (*) in front their names, have survived the petition and court-challenge phases and are now on the ballot. Only one (Willis) has received matching funds so far. Do note that former council-member Jennings has withdrawn from the matching funds program of CFB.  read more »

Okay; so last week my employment with the city council (Darlene Mealy/41st Council district) came to an end. And no, Ms. Mealy had very little to do with that. In fact, I suspect that I could have stayed on as part time communications director, once I followed the blogging rules of the council. I chose not to work under the blogging rules set by the council’s lawyers: that’s all. It was my choice and mine alone. They have a right to set their rules and I have a right to reject them. Many disagreed with me and that’s their prerogative. I couldn’t function with handcuffs on, it’s just not me; and I have to be true to myself.  read more »

Last week, I handed in my resignation to Ms. Darlene Mealy (NYC council member of the 41st District). I assume that most of you are aware that I have been working with her since December -as the part time Communications Director. Hopefully, my last day in this role will be on the 26th of March (as per my resignation letter). .

The main reasons I have chosen to go this route are what necessitate this column. I want to make it clear that this is my choice -and mine only. I was not forced to walk the plant, nor given any subtle shoves out the door. I have given her enough notice (4 weeks) so that she can hire someone to replace me without her small staff being strained, stressed and/or stretched.

As far as I read it, I can stay on with the councilwoman, once I accept the rules and regulations around public blogging that she handed to me from the City Council’s Office of the General Counsel. I have chosen not to do that, despite many friends and relatives telling me to stay on. They all think that I can offer so much more than I have so far.

These are the rules:  read more »