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Sheldon Silver
Go see Paul Newell's movie
Political junkies should head to The Tank tonight to catch Excuse me, Mr. Speaker, Justin Sullivan's documentary on the insurgent campaign Paul Newell ran against Speaker Sheldon Silver. Paul delivered Shelly his first primary in 22 years, and was the first insurgent candidate to be endorsed by all three major City Dailies in a Democratic primary.
Paul's email sums it up neatly.
Excuse Me, Mr. Speaker is a funny, engaging look at our campaign. City Hall Newspaper said the filmmaker "succeeds in telling a good story, but he also presents an inside look at what it is like to wage a political battle with one of Albany's most powerful men." I gave Mr. Sullivan's crew almost full access last year, and he caught highlights, lowlights and lots of humor.
This Wednesday at 8:00 PM Screening Liberally will host a showing of the film at The Tank in Hell's Kitchen. The film will be followed by an open panel discussion featuring myself and other progressive insurgent candidates in New York City.
Here are the details:
Excuse Me, Mr. Speaker
Wednesday, July 8th, 8:00 PM.
The Tank at the 45th Street Theatre (Note: The website says 7:30pm, but the showing has been moved to 8:00pm)
354 W. 45th Street between 8th and 9th Avenues.
Suggested Donation: $8
Seating is limited, so I recommend you arrive early.
[Update]: Roatti beat me to it.
Silver says no, Dems begin to fight
Via CapCon, a statement from Speaker Silver on the Senate coup:
In November, New Yorkers elected a Democratic Senate with the hope that they would join us in the Assembly in finally moving forward with a long-stalled progressive agenda for New York.
Together with Democratic leaders around the state, I am working to ensure that Democrats retain control of the New York State Senate so that we can continue to move forward with that agenda.
Elsewhere, the newly empowered "coalition government" is getting busy. Rules Reform? Really?
Espada, via Liz,
"While I would like to be jubilant, it's difficult to be jubliant," Espada insisted. "This is a sobering moment born out of the need to have a coalition government - a need to really give the citizens of New York that we all work for, that we all service that we all care for, the kind of coalition government that will be focused on reform, that will be focused on delivering to them government they can be proud of.
"At the end of the day, what you witnessed today may be characterized as a power grab, as a coup. Please understand, this is a new beginning in New York State, a new beginning of bipartisan government. A new beginning of real reform."
No. You're a crook, Senator Espada. This cannot stand. This is not what the people voted for.
Democracy Downtown Fundraiser for Paul Newell
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 Three Men In A Room Minus Two Equals 212 to 1 - (3-2 = 212>1)Having offered the Governor a cool glass of lemonade (i.e., “Rules Reformâ€) to slake his thirst for something – anything – other than “Travelgate,†“Spitzergate,†“Planegate†or whatever other clever “gate†the media can concoct in our post–Watergate era, it was pointed out that there might be something missing – i.e., “sweetenerâ€. Well, sweetener in the sense of – “What’s in it for Joe Bruno and Sheldon Silver?†What interest do they have in disarming? How does it serve them? And, how does weakening themselves and purportedly strengthening the governor help them? How does it play out? Basically – what’s their motivation? To begin – both Senator Bruno and Speaker Silver admit that the Legislature needs to do something to restore the public’s confidence in institution. It is one of the reasons they passed rules changes in 2005 and 2007. After the ’07 changes Joe Bruno stated that, “these reforms are the first step, not the last, in our overall government reform effort.†Not to beat a dead horse, but read the City Bar’s report - http://www.nycbar.org/pdf/report/Committee_on_State_Affairs.pdf . read more » 
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