While progressive sentiment is strong is the land (most people when asked, for example, favor single-payer universal health insurance, nowhere on the political agenda), progressive institutions are not. Our leaders are blown like dry leaves by the force of concentrated power, even if their personal convictions might lead them elsewhere.

Congress has just enacted a multi-Billion “stimulus” package to put cash into people’s hands and pump money into the economy so as to deter the looming (but technically not-here-yet) recession. The basic stories are reported in the NY Times and Washington Post . The package price is between $152- and $168 Billion; bringing to mind Everett Dirkson's remark: "a billion here, a billion there, pretty soon you're talking about real money". The package passed is better than that bargained for by President Bush and Speaker Pelosi. There are problems with the package.

It throws from the train the weakest and poorest of us: no food stamp increases and no extension for longer term unemployed. The George Bush-Nancy Pelosi vision of compassionate conservatism shuts out the poor. Money for the poor and unemployed would have been the quickest spent and produced the most economic activity for each dollar spent.

Liza's Note:
Please welcome to our humble blogdobe the fierce Ms. Debra Cooper, NYSDems Comittee Chairwoman for the Upper East Side.

She attended yesterday's now infamous "insult to truth" testimony on how she didn't for a minute mislead the public in believing that there was no potential harm in the toxic dust spread about New York City by the collapse of the Twin Towers.

Debra does and amazing job at capturing more than just the soundbites. As she said to me in the email that came with this post, not only did Todd Whitman dance "around her statements about the City government's responsibility for the safety of the first responders, especially in terms of their use of respirators. Unlike her prior statements, today in the hearing she did not make any direct accusations that the City and Guiliani did not do the right thing."

An observation that, as Debra noted later and asked me to share with you, points to Whitman's further coverup in an attempt to help Giuliani's bid for President.

Thanks Deb for covering this for our readers.

The Drum Major Institute's meeting at Baruch College yesterday was important and remarkable as much for who was there as for what was said. Three elected officials who may run for Mayor in 2009 spoke and gave those of us in the audience a side-by-side view of them as policy makers as well as campaigners. While there's a lot of substance to write about the meeting, mayoral electoral politics was on the minds of many. Diane Cardwell's NY Times article also focused on the men who would be Mayor My post on the substance will follow later today.

NYC Comptroller William C. Thompson, Congress Member Anthony Weiner and Bronx Borough President Adolpho Carrion spoke and worked the room which was filled with lobbyists, consultants, non-profit executives and policy-junkies like me. What I saw surprised me.

Judging only by their focus and remarks Monday Comptroller Thompson and Bronx Beep Carrion do not intend to run against Mayor Bloomberg's record. This was a surprise to me, since of late, a firestorm of criticism against the Mayor has been burning over Mr. Bloomberg's education policies and practices. Indeed Mr. Thompson has sometimes been one of those setting the anti-Bloomberg fire alight.

Listening yesterday, however, the only potential candidate who clearly articulated a progressive platform against Mr. Bloomberg's record was Congress Member Weiner. As in his previous run for Mayor, Mr. Weiner was focused, smart and informed. On a panel with Council Member John Liu and Carrion, Weiner wit sparkled. On health care for employees of small business, for example, Weiner proposed that NYC bring the cost down by forming a small-business buyers' cooperative. It's well known that those entities able to deliver big pools of insured people (Big Corporations, NYC) get better insurance for lower prices. It's not the best solution (single payer, universal health insurance, as I see it), but its better than what we have now for small business. Carrion and Lu were skeptical and critical without any thought out reasons. I guess I'm also a fan of Mr. Weiner's Schumer-style sharpness and repartee.

Can you get free from the burdens of work and seder preparation on Monday morning? The Drum Major Institute is sponsoring a most-of-the-day talk-fest on New York City and the Middle-class.

Featured speakers include form Gov. Mario Cuomo, Mayoral-possibles Rep. Anthony Weiner and Comptroller William Thompson, Just-re-elected UFT President Randi Weingarten and NYC Finance Commissioner Martha Stark and Bronx Beep Adolfo Carrion Jr. You can read more about it here.

I personally had to move heaven and earth to clear the morning and will have to seder-prep all weekend, but I'm going.

Monday April 2, 2007 8:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.
Baruch College Conference Center, Newman Vertical Campus
55 Lexington Avenue at 24th Street, 14th Floor

Try calling, emailing DMI to RSVP.
See you there.

The Daily News reports that Anthony Weiner has filed preliminary papers for a possible mayoral run in 2009.

"I haven't made any firm decisions but what we're doing today is laying the foundation, so that if I decide to run for mayor, I'll win," Weiner, 42, told the Daily News...

Asked yesterday how serious he is about running again for mayor, Weiner replied, "Many of the same things that I talked about when I ran for mayor in 2005 continue to keep me up at night."

Other potential Democratic rivals include City Controller William Thompson, City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrión and Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz. Councilman Tony Avella (D-Queens), a self-described "long shot," is the only officially announced candidate for mayor in 2009. Mayor Bloomberg must step down on Dec. 31, 2009, because of term limits.

Of course, our very own Liza has said that she'd get in the race in the event of a Betsy Gotbaum candidacy, with the express intent of heaping ridcule on that poor, befuddled creature.

This is why we love Anthony Weiner.

Through the mist and rain of Sunday afternoon, we went to Riverside Church where, in packed pews, crowded choir-loft, we remembered Martin Luther King Jr. Celebrities to the front (except for Bill Moyers who sat quietly in the middle), TV Camera to the right and left. I personally expected a made-for-TV event -- something like Dr. King's Dream Has Come True. That's not what happened.

Channneling King's anti-war speech of April 4, 1967, Democratic presidential aspirant Jonathan Edwards brought the crowd to its feet time and time again. He began by pointing to his own vote for the Iraq war and said "I was wrong." Repeating Dr. King's point that there comes a time that "silence is betrayal" he called on the crowd to pick up King's blood-stained banner of peace and justice. The crowd, black and white, graying civil rights veterans and their graying children, just loved it. The people I was with were set on fire. It felt less as though we were being asked to support Edwards and more like a call for moral action. Can Edwards run for President from the left in this way? Well, it certainly appears as though he's going to try. Ben Smith has some thoughts about the speech here and a here's a NYT article. Neither convey what seemed to me to be the electrifying force of Edwards remarks. Politiker has posted video of the speech here along with the (I think) flatly wrong claim that it was a Hillary challenge.

So, how did our prominent local Democrats do in terms of helping out our candidates financially? It's a bit of a mixed bag, and federal-level only, but here are some sample donors, as of November 11th, 2006, and only for the 2005-2006 cycle:

David Yassky: $0. Nada. Squat. A big fat zero, both in terms of individual donations and via his campaign committee. Cash on hand, by the way, is $57,150, the total spent amounts to $1,474,524. Loser.

Freddy Ferrer: $0. See above.

Michael Bloomberg: $5,000 to Solutions America PAC, $4,200 to John Sweeney of wife-beating notoriety. Yup, he's definitely a former Democrat.

Bill deBlasio: $250 to Yvette Clarke.

Christine Quinn: $250 to the National Leadership PAC.

Jerrold Nadler: In this cycle, $30,700 to various candidates, including Michael Arcuri, Paul Aronsohn, John Barrow, Melissa Bean, Leonard Boswell, Tammy Duckworth, Diane Farrell, Brad Ellsworth and Barbara Boxer, plus $135,000 to the DCCC and $15,700 to the NYSDC.

If you are close to Park Avenue and 27th Street and want to feel the love, then scoot on over to Park Avenue Country Club. Anthony Weiner is coming over to stoke the crowd.

Yup. We have the whole list. All 29 distristcs. Enjoy.

NY-01
Tim Bishop (DEM), Incumbent
Campaign Website: http://www.bishopforcongress.com

Italo Zanzi (REP), Campaign Website: http://www.zanzi2006.com

NY-02
Steve Israel (DEM, IND, WOR)
Incumbent
Campaign Website: http://www.israelforcongress.com

John Bugler (REP, CON)
Campaign Website: http://bugler.org

NY-03
Peter King (REP IND CON)
Incumbent, Campaign Website: ____

David Mejias (DEM, WOR)
Campaign Website: http://www.daveforamerica.com

NY-04
Carolyn McCarthy (DEM)
Incumbent
Campaign Website: http://www.votemccarthy.com

Martin Blessinger(REP, CON)

NY-05
Gary Ackerman (DEM, IND, WOR
Incumbent - Unopposed

NY-06
Gregory Meeks (DEM)
Incumbent

NY-07
Joe Crowley (DEM. WOR)
Incumbent
Campaign Website: http://www.crowleyforcongress.com

Kevin Brawley (REP)

NY-08
Jerrold Nadler (DEM)
Incumbent
Campaign Website: http://www.jerrynadler.com

Eleanor Friedman (REP)

Dennis Adornato (CON)

NY-09