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 »

Did some extensive petitioning today with Jo Anne Simon and John Liu in Park Slope. I was carrying CBID petitions with Jo Anne Simon, John Liu and Norman Siegel. People were pretty responsive, far more so than past petitioning seasons. John Liu even noticed that a lot of young people seemed very interested and eager to talk to him. I suspect the enthusiasm of the Obama election has really made some difference and people, especially young people, are more engaged than ever politically. I hope it lasts. I suspect it will dissipate pretty rapidly, but I hope not.  read more »