Who’s Supporting Brooklyn-Bound Obama?
Barack Obama is in Brooklyn for a fund-raiser tonight, and we were curious who — in addition to Caroline Giuliani, of course — might be turning out. So we looked to mybarackobama.com, where we discovered all sorts of affinity groups for supporters of the Illinois senator. There’s Burners for Barack (for Burning Man attendees) and Octogenarians for Obama (“We are never too old to back Barack”). There are groups for Final Fantasy fans (they plan to “fight back against the Shinra companies of our world” via Obama) and flight attendants vowing to harness their “unique ability to fly around easily” to spread the word. There are spiritualists and psychic mediums who “emphatically believe” that Barack’s the man for the job and Prince Fans for Obama, who believe he “upholds the ideals” of the singer and that “if Prince wasn’t apathetic towards voting due to his religion, he would vote for Barack Obama.” Ballers for Obama are planning three-on-three basketball tournaments to help raise cash for the campaign, and Canadians like him, even though they can’t vote. And then, of course, there’s NYC 4 Obama. “We have a lot of really serious supporters here as well,” insisted Molly Lombardi, spokesman for that group. —Janelle Nanos
intel
Spitzer Brings in PR-Fight Reinforcements
Embroiled in a dogfight with Joe Bruno over what he knew and when he knew it, Governor Spitzer is ramping up his press offensive in Albany, hoping to turn the tide on a story that hasn’t looked good and won’t seem to end. Late last week, the State Democratic Party hired the PR firm that successfully fought to block the Starrett City sale earlier this year to handle Spitzer’s wartime press against Bruno and his fellow Republicans in the State Senate. Jonathan Rosen, a principal of the firm, BerlinRosen, says he spoke with Spitzer chief of staff Richard Baum several times last week before accepting the gig. Now, though, he’s raring to go. “The Senate investigative hearings are like the legislative equivalent of O.J. Simpson’s hunt for the real killer,” he told us, taking his new talking points out for a spin. “They’re over the top, they’re overplaying their hand badly, and it’s going to backfire.” His new client is sure hoping so. —Geoffrey Gray
in other news
Good-bye, Mr. Turd Blossom
Sometimes, Monday mornings can actually be kind of pleasant.
Karl Rove, Top Strategist, Is Leaving the White House [NYT]
in other news
The Mayoral Campaign Just Got More Fun: Welcome, Lenora FulaniLenora Fulani, the kooky campaigner who helped Bloomberg get elected in 2001 by drumming up 59,000 Independence Party votes for him, will announce the formation of an exploratory committee today for a mayoral run in 2009, reports the Post. Fulani is notable for her two campaigns for president of the United States, in 1988 and 1992, and her reported anti-Semitic comments (she’s never denied claiming that the “Jews sold their souls to acquire Israel” and are “mass murderers of people of color”). She’s also fanatically devoted to her mentor and campaign manager, the controversial Marxist psychotherapist Fred Newman, who will probably be along for the ride. All of which is to say: It’s a very, very good day for the tabloids.
Fulani Eyes Mayor Run [NYP]
intel
Fun With Fundrace: Park Slope for Obama, ‘Burg for Hillary, Batali for John Edwards, and More
We told you yesterday about Fundrace 2008, the fun new feature on the Huffington Post that lets you track people’s political contributions by name or by neighborhood. What we didn’t expect was that the thing would prove terribly addictive. Here’s a sampling of what we found after a full day of playing with it:
• Completely random celeb-name search reveals Mario Batali’s $1,000 contribution to John Edwards (as well as the chef’s home address), Tommy Hilfiger’s $2,300 donation to Barack Obama, and the supposedly apolitical Sandy Weill’s $4,600 gift to Hillary Clinton.
in other news
HuffPost Launches Fundrace, Reveals Campaign SecretsAnd the campaign-financing race just got much more fun. The Huffington Post launched its Fundrace 2008 database today, on which you can look up which presidential candidates are milking your friends and neighbors for money, and exactly how much of it. It also includes the very popular neighborhood feature, where you can see whether that dude who sells dime bags in your entryway is actually a junkie for Joe Biden. After some quick scans, we’re delighted with this year’s results so far. For example, in the opportunely named “Chelsea-Clinton” 10001 Zip Code, John Edwards is a surprise favorite. (Explain that, Jodi Kantor.) And among fancy Upper East Siders with 10021 addresses, Hillary is exactly twice as popular as Rudy — and that’s where he lives. Maybe his neighbors don’t like the cigar smoke?
Fundrace 2008 [HuffPo]
in other news
Hamptons Turning on Hillary?Hillary Clinton, her husband, and her fund-raisers are heading to the fertile grounds of the East End this weekend, where it’s expected her campaign will rake in as much as $1 million in just three days. Saturday’s the big day, with a pancake breakfast at Alan Patricof’s house (for $1,000-plus a head), a Bill-only cocktail luncheon at Dottie Herman’s place ($2,000 a head, or $3,000 per couple), and dinner at Ronald Perelman’s ($4,600 a head). There are also other lesser events at Friday night and Sunday, some with price tags as low as a mere $250. With numbers like that, you’d think everyone out there loves her. But you’d be wrong: Witness this week’s Independent, which bills itself as serving East Hampton, Southampton, Riverhead, Southold, and Shelter Island. The small type reads, “Hillary to Leave Hamptons With Close to a Million, Leaving Local Democrats With Zilch.” Which prompts a question: Were Manhattan moneybags like Alan Patricof and Ronald Perelman previously in the habit of giving to Suffolk County Dems? We’re skeptical.
Related: Hillary Hampton ‘07
Wham, Bam, Thank You, Ma’am [The Independent]
early and often
These Ten People Want to Make Bloomberg PresidentIf it’s Tuesday night at seven, then it’s time for a weekly organizational meeting of the New York City Chapter of the Committee to Draft Michael Bloomberg. And last night, Karin Gallet, the New York chapter’s mastermind and newsletter writer, sipped an Amstel Light as she ran the group’s fourth meeting at the Old Town Bar. A grand total of nine people joined her, and she set a stark goal: to collect 15,000 signatures on a “Draft Mike” petition by Christmas. (Only 1,500 per person!) Cue the jaunty, let’s-get-to-work montage.
intel
Giuliani Backs Hillary — and He MatchesRudy Giuliani is supporting Hillary Clinton — at least in her mini-feud with Barack Obama over whether the two Democratic presidential candidates would meet with the leaders of hostile foreign countries. (Obama said he would; Clinton said she’d be reluctant.) “I’d say don’t count on Fidel Castro being invited to the White House if I’m president,” Giuliani told us at the Super Saturday shopping benefit for the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund over the weekend. “As I understood [Obama’s] statement, he’s either going to invite to Washington or meet somewhere else the head of Cuba, who would be Castro, and the head of Iran, who is Ahmadinejad. That’s quite a crew. I don’t know that I would want to meet with them. Some people you just don’t meet with if they’re going to use that to propagate their own propaganda. I thought Hillary Clinton was on the right side of that.” Giuliani was at the Water Mill event with his wife, Judi, who he said was the shopper in the family. “I shop for limited items: golf clubs, books,” he said. Fashion is his wife’s department. “She tells me if the colors work or the shirt looks nice,” he explained. So do the colors work, Judi? “He doesn’t make any mistakes,” she said, campaigningly. “He’s Rudy Giuliani!” —Jada Yuan
Kelly Ripa, Donna Karan and Mandy Moore were also at Super Saturday. For complete pictures and quotes, read Party Lines.
in other news
Today in Albany: Spitzer’s on Defense, Bruno’s on Offense, and the ‘Post’ Hates Everyone
The latest news from Albany finds the principals in the Spitzer-Bruno-Cuomo battle defining and refining their positions. Last night, the governor finally abandoned what New York’s Steve Fishman called his “silly business-as-usual tactic” and deigned to hand-feed his side of the story to the Daily News. New York’s Hometown Paper reports today that Joe Bruno’s constant requests to use state aircraft were well known in Albany even before Day One; they became “almost a punch line” after Spitzer inauguration, when, the governor says, people would “just roll their eyes.” Still, Spitzer didn’t know his own top aides were scheming to expose Bruno, he told the News — and even if he did, the State Senate doesn’t have subpoena power over the executive branch anyway. You may notice that these three statements clash with each other slightly, but, hey, he’s new at this weaseling-out-of-tight-spots thing. He’ll get better.
intel
Steve Fishman: Spitzer’s Finally Fighting Back, But Is He Eliot Reagan?Governor Spitzer finally abandoned his silly business-as-usual tactic today, giving up the “I’m going to get back to doing the people’s business” that invariably means something is amiss. The Republican-led State Senate had suggested that it might act like a real legislative body, one with oversight responsibilities and subpoena powers, and investigate whether the governor knew that a top aide was tracking Senate leader Joe Bruno’s use of state vehicles. And Spitzer finally broke his silence on the burgeoning scandal to warn the senator that, in effect, the senators shouldn’t punch above their weight. Never one to be outlawyered, the governor has apparently been reading up on the state constitution, and he charged in a statement that New York’s Senate does not have the constitutional authority to investigate the executive branch. In other words, he seemed to say that he won’t cooperate with any investigation and will instead invoke an Empire State version executive privilege. Whether the potential drama of a constitutional showdown will, in fact, entice the Republican Senate remains to be seen.
intel
The Debate Questions CNN Didn’t Want You to See!
Did you catch the big, exciting CNN-YouTube Democratic presidential debate last night, in which candidates got the chance to respond with pre-scripted sound bites to questions asked by real, live Americans who videotaped themselves asking the questions?! Yeah, us either, and if the Times report today was any indication, we didn’t miss much. But what about the YouTubed questions that didn’t make air? Surely some of those must have been entertaining. Well, maybe. After the jump, some highlights, as selected from the several thousand unasked questions available on the ‘Tube by New York’s indefatigable interns.
in other news
Brooklyn, Meet Your New Borough President
Councilman Charles Barron has become the first candidate to officially announce that he wants to be the next Brooklyn borough presidency. With part-time steamboat Marty Markowitz set to sail off in 2009 because of term limits, the position is open, and Barron couldn’t be more different from the tireless cheerleader of the cheesecake-and-bagel Brooklyn. For one thing, he’s a former Black Panther who’ll be, in his own words, “taking care of black folk. Unapologetically.” For another, Barron comes with the distinction of already having seriously pissed off Bloomberg: Earlier in the year, the mayor called Barron’s initiative to rename an avenue after activist Sonny Carson “the worst idea anybody in the City Council has had” — amid some stiff competition, to be sure. Barron’s first endorsements come from Al Sharpton and retired police sergeant Noel Leader, a co-founder of 100 Blacks in Law Enforcement Who Care. Sadly, even Leader’s hundred didn’t quite care enough to attend the announcement en masse: The trio spoke yesterday, in the Daily News’ estimation, to “about 75 supporters.”
Barron Says He’d Back Black Brooklyn [NYDN]
in other news
What Does Shelly Have Up His Sleeve?The Daily News’ Daily Politics blog reports that Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver’s office is calling up members of his Democratic majority as we speak, and asking them to return to Albany tomorrow. Exciting! Also, puzzling. The News deems this “a significant development,” but we know it can’t be to suddenly pass the now-scuttled congestion-pricing idea — unless Mayor Bloomberg just found some pictures of Silver riding in Alan Hevesi’s limo or on Joe Bruno’s horse. So what does Shelly need the Assembly for? Some theories:
1. The Lower East Side is dangerously low on pickles and herring; the LES Preserved Foods Preservation Act is in order.
2. He loves to mess with people’s vacations, just as a test of loyalty.
3. He read the last page of the leaked Harry Potter and has no one to discuss it with.
4. He just brainstormed a law, retroactive to 2001, that would make it illegal for media-company owners to run for mayor.
5. He needs help getting the gigantic bug out of his ass.
Breakthrough? [Daily Politics/NYDN]
in other news
Bloomberg, Spitzer Prompt Conceptual Breakthrough: Could It Be Better Not to Be an Asshole?We have — we have always had — a soft spot in our heart for those who can expertly muster and deploy arrogance, obnoxiousness, self- righteousness, and general assholery. (No, there’s no particular reason we appreciate those traits. Ahem.) This is one of many reasons we have admired both our governor and our mayor. But this week there’s some bad news. First, Steve Fishman’s cover profile in the magazine showed that Eliot Spitzer’s trademark and self-assured aggressive intransigence may not be working for him and may well actually be working against him. Then come reports today that Mike Bloomberg’s trademark and self-assured mellow certitude could have been what did in his congestion- pricing plan.
in other news
Hillary Buys ‘Post’ Endorsement — for a QuarterOnce upon a time, there was little doubt as to the Post’s opinion of Hillary Clinton. But questions arose when the Clintons reached their détente with Rupert Murdoch last year, and now, well, things are clear. This morning, the tabloid learned that Mrs. Clinton is a reader — and, better yet, a nonreader of the Daily News. “Like hundreds of thousands of other discerning New Yorkers,” gushed “Page Six” in reporting the news, “White House front-runner Sen. Hillary Clinton buys The Post.” It’s not just the gleeful promotion of Hillary to the front-runner status that made us smile. And it’s not just the item’s headline (“The Right Choice,” which, placed over a decent photo, pretty much makes a free campaign poster). It’s mostly this: Can you believe they’re finally calling her a New Yorker?
The Right Choice [NYP]
early and often
Joe Bruno’s Spitzer Peace Plan
Eliot Spitzer’s epic feud with Joe Bruno has been lots of fun for headline writers and politics watchers, if perhaps not so good for Albany’s effective functioning. But here’s a funny thing: As Steve Fishman reports in this week’s cover story, their big fight didn’t even have to happen. In the last days of the legislative session, about a month ago, Bruno approached Spitzer with the idea of a non-aggression pact: He’d support the governor’s cherished campaign-finance proposal if the governor would agree not to campaign against Senate Republicans. The plan to reduce the money flowing into state politics is “Spitzer’s obsession,” Bruno told Fishman, but the Republican leader wouldn’t disarm in the face of a wealthy, powerful governor determined to break the GOP’s hold on the Senate. Under Bruno’s deal, Spitzer would get the campaign-finance reform he wanted, Bruno would get protection, and both would be able to move forward on four or five pieces of legislation caught in the crossfire. But Spitzer would agree merely to congratulate the Republicans if they helped push his agenda. “That’s not good enough,” Bruno told him, according to Fishman’s source. And a few days later they were at war.
The Steamroller in the Swamp [NYM]
in other news
‘Daily News’: America Likes Mike (a Little)
The Daily News traveled beyond the Hudson to ask America about Mike Bloomberg, and they come back with some news: The country doesn’t hate him. The mayor’s aw-shucks joke is to pronounce his unelectability as “a short Jewish billionaire from New York.” But the News poll, the paper says today, shows that a quick recitation of his achievements bumps his numbers from 10 percent who’d vote for him to 13 percent. (Oddly, the initiative that seems to most resonate with the heartland is the school cell-phone ban.)
intel
McCain’s Strategist Blames Himself
You know John McCain’s presidential campaign is imploding. Do you know whose fault it is? John Weaver, the longtime West Villager who was McCain’s chief strategist, blames himself. “We had a spending problem, a message problem, a spending problem,” he told New York’s Geoffrey Gray in his first full interview since resigning from the McCain campaign this week. “That’s nobody’s fault but mine.” Gray’s piece runs in next week’s magazine — and on nymag.com today.
Off the Bus [NYM]
in other news
Firefighters Hate Rudy — and Want You to Know It
The International Association of Firefighters has long hated Rudy Giuliani. He didn’t give New York’s Bravest adequate equipment before 9/11, the union has always said, he was insufficiently concerned with their safety during cleanup after 9/11, and he didn’t let them search ground zero long enough for the remains of their brethren. Worst of all, they argue, he’s built a persona — and a thriving presidential campaign — by appropriating firefighters’ heroism as his own. Yesterday the union put out a campaign-style video, attacking Giuliani for his failings. “He was running on his 9/11 leadership, and it was lacking,” FDNY deputy chief Jim Riches says in it. “He was not the hero of 9/11.” And there’s lots more like that.
in the magazine
Summer of Sam Revisited: ‘New York’ on the Dems’ Lousy Mayoral CampaignThe Summer of Sam was also the summer of a hotly contested Democratic mayoral primary. Ed Koch, Mario Cuomo, and Bella Abzug were just a few of the politicians vying for the city crown amid all the chaos, and in a September 1977 issue of New York, Doug Ireland was disgusted with the whole process. “Surely this is the oddest Democratic primary in recent history. Seldom have the voters in our town had such a hopeless welter of nonissues thrown at them in a mayoral campaign,” he wrote. “[I]n a city still reeling from a swelter summer of blackouts, looting, criminally high unemployment, and Son of Sam, most candidates are as afraid of the voters as the voters are of the muggers in the streets.” Take a look at the whole article for a flashback to city politics, seventies style.
Democratic Dogfight: A Hopeless Welter of Nonissues [NYM (pdf)]
Earlier: Summer of Sam Revisited: ‘New York’ on the Search for Sam
20-person poll
Bush Commutes Libby’s Sentence, New Yorkers Shrug
The Times is indignant, Gawker is indignant — hell, we’re even feeling a little indignant — that President Bush commuted convicted perjurer Scooter Libby’s 30-month prison sentence yesterday afternoon. “I respect the jury’s verdict,” Bush said yesterday. He continued: “But I have concluded that the prison sentence given to Mr. Libby is excessive,” which is basically the opposite of respecting the verdict. (He also said back in 2003, when the Plame leak first came to light, that “if there is a leak out of my administration and if the person has violated the law, the person will be taken care of.” Just not too harshly.) But we wondered: Are average New Yorkers indignant, too? A quick 20-person poll later — our interns asked twenty passersby in front of the office on Madison Avenue — it seems they’re not, or at least not as much as we’d hoped. Damn. Questions and tallies after the jump.
early and often
Bloomberg Again Says He’s Not Running, and Starts to Convince UsMayor Bloomberg insisted yet again this morning that we shouldn’t read too much into his decision to leave the Republican party. “I don’t disagree with what either national party stands for, because I don’t think either national party stands for anything,” he declared at a breakfast for civic types. (Zing!) He proceeded to dismiss a specific timetable for withdrawal from Iraq as “nonsensical,” express skepticism about national school testing (“There is a tendency in a democracy to dumb down”), and spit out various scolds (“Get real! Get serious!”). And so it occurred to us that maybe we believe him when he says he’s not running for president: We think he just wants to be national critic. —Alec Appelbaum
early and often
Strange Social-Networking Bedfellows
On MySpace yesterday (don’t ask), we came across this. Running for president is totally humiliating.
Mitt Romney [MySpace]
in other news
Run, Bloomie, Run!
Today’s papers struggle to find an angle on Bloomberg’s possible presidential run — or, that is, to limit themselves to just one angle from a sudden cornucopia. Some of our favorite scenarios the papers consider:
1. It’s Rudy vs. Mike! The two nominal friends (Giuliani half-heartedly endorsed Bloomberg in 2001, Bloomberg officiated at the Giuliani-Nathan nuptials) actually can’t stand each other, but they won’t disparage each other in the press. The worst Giuliani mustered yesterday was “I am disappointed that he left the Republican Party.” So imagine how much pent-up bile will come gushing out of both, especially Rudy, if these two ever face off in a debate. Fun!
early and often
Chris Smith: Bloomberg Is Full of It
Yesterday, in a press release, Mike Bloomberg said his switch of party allegiance from Republican to none-of-the-above was about “bring[ing] my affiliation into alignment with how I have led and will continue to lead our city.” This afternoon, in a press conference — after torturing reporters with a prolonged exaltation of the 311 system — the mayor claimed the switch was because he’d suddenly become aware of nasty partisanship in Washington, and that becoming a free agent allows him to speak his mind.
Please.
it just happened
Mike Bloomberg’s Declaration of IndependenceThis press release just in, and we no longer have any doubt that the dude is running for president:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 19, 2007
No. 205
www.nyc.gov
STATEMENT BY MAYOR BLOOMBERG ON PARTY AFFILIATION
“I have filed papers with the New York City Board of Elections to change my status as a voter and register as unaffiliated with any political party. Although my plans for the future haven’t changed, I believe this brings my affiliation into alignment with how I have led and will continue to lead our City.
early and often
Is McCain Set to Label Hillary ‘Senator Earmark’?
Is John McCain set to initiate an attack on Hillary Clinton? Little more than an hour ago, the McCain campaign put out word that the Republican will shortly hold a press conference in California to talk about “Sen. Clinton’s defense earmarks,” the many millions of dollars in federal funding Hillary has secured for New York military contractors. New York has previously noted the senator’s cozy relationship with some defense contractors, but then, isn’t this what senators do, work to bring money home?
Augustine Asiedu, the Last King of New York?
How do you know New York’s still the capital of the world? Our car-service kingpins are actual kingpins. Augustine Asiedu, the president of a Brooklyn limo company called Fone-A-Car, has been charged with looting the business to finance a million-dollar election campaign in his native Ghana. The kicker? Dude won — and now, under the name Nana Amoakoh, he serves in the country’s parliament. Which, needless to say, complicates extradition. We went looking for an official bio of Mr. Asiedu/Amoakoh, but the Ghanaian government’s Website is down (now, that doesn’t bode well for a country). We’re left to imagine his campaign slogan: “Our guy will be there in five minutes. Vote Amoakoh.”
Owner Is Accused of Looting His Car Service to Seek Office in Africa [NYT]
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How the Other Half Thinks: Advise George Bush!The trouble with polls these days? They’re all biased. Those damn liberals don’t ask whether you think George W. Bush is doing a great job in office but whether you’d like to see him kicked to the curb. That, you should understand, is a rigged question. Thankfully, the Heritage Foundation has stepped in to fix the problem; the right-wing D.C. think tank has sent a survey to “Conservatives and Republicans Only,” the results of which they promise will end up on the desks of some very powerful people in Washington. Through what can only be an act of Daniel Ellsberg–like political bravery, a copy of that survey arrived at the home of a neither conservative nor Republican magazine writer in the very blue state of New York. So what can we learn about the conservative mind from this leak? Well, according to the Heritage folks, most media surveys are “inaccurate … because they don’t ask the right questions.” So what are the correct, unbiased questions?
early and often
’Tis the Campaign Season: Play the 2008 Presidential Approval MatrixLooking for something to do until George Bush isn’t president anymore? Our new 2008 Presidential Approval Matrix will help pass the time. Every day, we’ll add fresh items about the candidates on the campaign trail. Did someone make an embarrassing blunder? Did a politician dare to tell the truth? Determine whether the presidential wannabes are likable or loathsome. Decide if their words are spin or substance. It may not be scientific, but it’s more fun than the current administration.
Play the 2008 Presidential Approval Matrix [NYM]
photo op
Rudy Giuliani, Tickler?
We have no idea what Rudy Giuliani was doing to John McCain at last night’s Republican debate, but we suspect he tried to make it illegal here when he was mayor.
it just happened
Scooter Libby Will Not See the Aspens Turn
Is it gauche that seeing this headline just made us smile a bit? Is it even gaucher that we started wondering (hoping?) which Bushie might next go to jail? Also: Do you think Judy Miller will visit him in prison?
Libby Gets 30 Months in Prison in CIA Leak Case [NYT]
intel
Eric Alterman Is the Aging-Lefty Lindsay LohanIs Eric Alterman spinning out of control? After his arrest last night at the Democratic presidential debate in New Hampshire, where the cops cuffed him in a gymnasium “spin room” at Manchester’s St. Anselm College and hauled him down to the police station for allegedly trespassing at a private party, maybe Alterman’s friends and family should be concerned that he’s becoming the aging-pundit answer to Lindsay Lohan. The lefty commentator has a taste for mayhem, if only, until now, of the verbal variety. Over the past two decades, worried Alterman watchers have felt growing alarm as his pugnacity and all-around contrariness have escalated to potentially aneurysm-inducing levels. Indeed, when this reporter once shared a subway ride with him from the Upper West Side, he announced: “I am so fucking angry about the war in Iraq, I think I’m going to explode.” This reporter’s reply: “That’s fine, Eric, but if you’re going to explode, do you mind waiting till I get off the train?”
the morning line
The Kennedy Conspiracy
• There’s more on the weekend’s big story, the foiled plot to blow up JFK. One angle: The fourth suspect, still at large, could be an Al Qaeda lieutenant with direct ties to bin Laden. [NYP]
• Another: The man who led the Feds to the plot was a twice-convicted drug dealer who successfully infiltrated the terror group after being muscled into serving as a government informant. [WNBC]
• Rudy Giuliani, seeking to diversify his stoicism-in-the-face-of-tragedy bona fides, stopped by to speak at Montoursville High School, which lost sixteen students aboard TWA 800. The campaign hilariously insists he just popped in for no reason. [amNY]
• Gun groups nationwide are casting Bloomberg as their No. 1 enemy, despite his concentration on illegal weapon sales. The NRA (whose site has a breaking-news ticker!) calls the mayor a “billionaire, Boston-grown evangelist for the nanny state.” Boston-grown — now that stings. [NYT]
• And OTB wants to put touch-screen terminals into city bars and accept “BlackBerry bets,” convinced it will find a new demographic there. We eagerly await the spectacle of drunken hipsters ironically losing their shirt on their ponies. [NYDN]
cultural capital
Sharon Stone, Fake Candidate
“Page Six” reported this morning that Sharon Stone and Bernard-Henri Lévy star in a set of mock political ads that will debut next week at the Venice Biennale. The two “appear separately in 60-second spots as ‘Patricia Hill and Patrick Hill,’ each seeking the White House,” the “Six”-ers reported. Indeed. We’ve got stills from the spots, and Monday the magazine will feature an interview with Levy, the rakish French philosopher. Enjoy the pics — there are more after the jump — but sorry, guys, Stone’s all buttoned up.
early and often
National Issues Our Mayor, Who Is Not Running for President, Currently Has a Vocal Stance On
If you’re scoring at home:
• Gun control: Vehemently opposed to illegal guns; pioneered an ingenious way of putting the heat on dealers in other states without overstepping mayoral jurisdiction.
• Education: Introduced fine-tunings to No Child Left Behind in Florida with Jeb Bush.
• Environment: Keynote speaker at the C40 Climate Summit; PlaNYC.
• Health Care: Smoking, trans fats, diabetes registry, subway condoms, you name it.
• And now, immigration: At a Memorial Day parade in Queens yesterday, Bloomberg called the guest-worker program being debated in the Senate “a joke.” He approves the bill’s rejection of mass deportations, but “shame on Congress,” he said, for suggesting two-year U.S. work stints for foreign laborers, something “nobody in their right mind would ever try to do.”
Mayor Assails Bill in Congress on Immigration [NYT]
Mike Bloomberg on the Issues [Bloomberg]
Related: Bloomberg Across America [NYM]
party lines
Are the Navajo the Next Soccer Moms?So much for soccer moms and Nascar dads — Navajo leaders might be a key demographic presidential candidates should target. “A lot of us leave it up to the Navajo nation to make the decision for us,” Native American actor Adam Beach told us last week at the premiere party for HBO’s Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, in which he stars. He’s a Canadian, but he told us Native Americans in the United States tend to vote as a bloc, and they all look to the Navajo for guidance. “The Navajo nation is a very powerful nation when it comes to tradition, when it comes to language, when it comes to maintaining their identity,” he said during the party at the Museum of Natural History on the Upper West Side. “And as a people they’re very well connected with each other. So when they elect, it’s as a whole nation. No other nation is as collectively put together, so we’re very much with their decision.” But Hillary, Obama, and Rudy shouldn’t get worried they’ve missed their chance. In fact, they’ve got plenty of time to lock up this vote, Beach said. “It comes around to the actual week, you know?” —Bennett Marcus
intel
Al Gore’s Assault on the Upper East Side
Al Gore spoke at the 92nd Street Y last night, and crowds thronged the Upper East Side institution’s Lexington Avenue entrance in advance of the talk. There were a handful of Gore 2008 campaigners, a group of enthusiastic — if basically nonsensical — Lyndon LaRouche supporters, (none of whom came from New York and most of whom were dressed in fat suits and leaves), and a great number of enamored New Yorkers. They stood around, confused and bemused by the LaRouchies, waiting for friends to arrive — mostly, alas, in cars — for the lecture. We asked them about their thoughts on Gore, the election, and their carbon footprints.
20-person poll
Just How Bad Are Things in Iraq?
There’s a new Times/CBS poll out today on the Iraq war, and it’s bad news for Mr. Bush. “Americans now view the war in Iraq more negatively than at any time since the war began,” as the Times bluntly put it. Six in ten say the country should have stayed out of Iraq in the first place, the paper reported. Three of four say things are going badly there. And a whopping 63 percent disapprove of Bush’s overall performance as president, with only 30 percent approving. The one bit of good news is that a majority support continuing to finance the war, assuming the Iraqi government meets benchmarks. But it’s a poll of all Americans. What do New Yorkers think? We asked the first twenty people we found on Madison Avenue in front of the office. Oddly, only 45 percent said the country should have stayed out of Iraq (we think maybe we phrased that one wrong). Otherwise, the locals are even more pessimistic than the rest of the country. By a lot. The questions and tallies are after the jump.
intel
Marty’s Purge: It’s About Gowanus, Not Yards, Says a Survivor
Five longtime members of Brooklyn’s Community Board 6 were replaced by Borough President Marty Markowitz, as today’s Times reported, and there was a pattern: All were active opponents of Atlantic Yards. It was a purge, it seemed, and even stranger one conducted by a man usually viewed by the press — us included — as a kind of lovable, pizza-eating panda in a captain’s hat. The five members’ terms were up, and Markowitz certainly has the power to replace them, but it’s typically not done, and the move seems surprisingly Machiavellian for a man best known for his boosterish enthusiasm for cheesecake. So we called CB6 member Jeff Strabone, another Yards critic whose own term isn’t up until next year — and here the plot thickened. Per Strabone, Atlantic Yards was not the real cause of Marty’s house-cleaning. Nope, Markowitz is looking a step ahead.
it just happened
Greening the Yellow Cab: Thumbs-Up
Who says the press doesn’t like good news? Mayor Bloomberg’s announcement today that he’ll force the city’s 13,000 yellow cabs to go hybrid by 2012 is, we’d say, splendid, sterling, superb. Some will argue he should have acted sooner; those people are small-minded. Some will say that this is all part of the grand scheme to raise Bloomberg’s national profile in service of his 2008 presidential run; those people are thinking too hard. This is simply a rare case of a good idea whose time has come. Not that there aren’t some politics at work: City councilman David Yassky, who was frustrated when the administration diluted his green cab proposal back in 2002, kept the issue alive. And by doing ecofriendly things that are under the city’s control, Bloomberg adds some momentum to the push for his 2030 sustainability package, whose biggest transformations require the action of state and federal officials. Next up: Look for a Bloomberg biofuel initiative. The mayor inherited a city where public schools still burned coal. He may leave one that smells like soy. —Chris Smith
Bloomberg Proposes Energy Efficient Taxi Fleet [NYT]
Related: Uncool New York [NYM]
in other news
City Politician’s Epiphany: Poor People Don’t Eat Well
It’s day two of Queens city councilman Eric Gioia’s “I will live a week on $28 in groceries” stunt, and, frankly, we’re beginning to lose the plot a little. Is the purpose of the exercise to highlight the plight of the underclass $28 is the average nationwide food-stamp allotment a Morgan Spurlock–esque endurance contest, or for the out-of-touch politician to Learn a Valuable Lesson? The Daily News followed Gioia on his grocery run to Food Dynasty in Queens; their priceless lead photo depicts the councilman regarding a pack of franks with a mix of puzzlement and mild disgust. “I usually shop at Whole Food or online at FreshDirect,” Gioia blurted out to the paper. “I don’t even look at the cost, I look for the brand I like, and I buy it.”
in other news
The Media Primary: Bloomberg ‘08It might still be up in the air between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. Republicans might all be holding their breath for the inevitable explosion of the Rudy bubble and the subsequent inflation of — who? McCain? Romney? — a successor. But one primary has solidified in the last few days: Media moguls are backing Mike Bloomberg for president.
party lines
Bob Kerrey Likes Hillary and Bloomberg, Won’t Talk About ModelsFormer Nebraska senator and ‘92 presidential candidate Bob Kerrey’s perch at the New School seems to have made him a New York partisan: He says he “probably won’t” make any ‘08 endorsements, but he did tout two locals as his candidates of choice. “I like Hillary a lot,” he said at the annual Parsons benefit last week. “I think she’s been a great senator for New York and has a tremendous amount of experience. And I got to say I think Bloomberg’s done a phenomenal job. I’d be very comfortable with Hillary or Bloomberg.” But Bloomberg insists he won’t run. And neither will Kerrey, for that matter. “I have no elective political aspirations for ‘08,” Kerrey said. “But everything I do is political. Aren’t you going to ask me about Parsons? About fashion?” Okay — who’s your favorite designer? “I don’t have one.” Any thoughts on the skinny-model controversy? “Yes, but I’m not going to give you them. Most of my thoughts about the models are not publishable.” Glad we asked. —Amy Odell
early and often
Strategist Split to Roil City PoliticsOne of New York’s top political-consulting partnerships — they’ve repped Mike Bloomberg, Christine Quinn, and Joe Lieberman, plus unions, other Dems, and developers including Forest City Ratner — is splitting up. Knickerbocker SKD — the highly influential pairing of wunderkind strategists Josh Isay, who made his name managing Chuck Schumer’s 1998 defeat of Al D’Amato, and Micah Lasher, who’s been a strategist for dozens of campaigns, including Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer’s 2005 victory over eight other Democratic contenders for the beep job — now faces an uncertain future as Lasher plans to leave the firm, according to sources. Lasher feels it’s the right time to depart, the sources say, and he also has his eye on Gale Brewer’s Upper West Side City Council seat. (Brewer will have to leave her post in 2009 because of term limits.) Isay will continue running the firm with other strategists; it’s unclear how the split will affect top clients like Council Speaker Quinn, who is likely running for mayor, and Stringer, said to be eying the comptroller position. —Geoffrey Gray
early and often
Chris Smith on the Debate: Rudy Giuliani, Positively MayoralOne of the sillier conventions of post-debate analysis the Republican presidential candidates met last night at the Reagan President Library in California is the discussion of whether a candidate “looked presidential.” The intent is to determine which politician appeared to have the gravity and intelligence to occupy the Oval Office — and it’s a futile exercise, as standing up to Chris Matthews is hardly an indicator of the ability to handle, say, a nuclear standoff. That said, in the first debate among the GOP contenders, Rudy Giuliani came off looking distinctly mayoral.
intel
On the Sudden Seeming Ubiquity of Bill Clinton
Is it our imagination, or has Bill Clinton been a busy little bee lately — or, at least, a busy little potential First Husband? In eight recent days, he schmoozed, posed for pictures, and occasionally gave speeches at four different high-visibility charity events. The last time he’d attended a gossip-column-worthy event in town was in January, for his good friend Terry McAuliffe’s book party. This latest burst started a week ago Monday, when he came to the Food Bank for New York City’s “Can-Do Awards” at Pier 60, wandering in late from a Hillary fund-raiser at Pier 94 with Chelsea, who wore a Hillary campaign button. He introduced U2’s the Edge, who was being honored, and then he fake-admonished Jimmy Fallon, who had just sung a ditty called “Car Wash for Peace,” for withholding a plan that could have broken the Israeli-Palestinian impasse. The room exploded, and the Food Bank’s coffers hit a record high.
early and often
We Do Not Understand What the Hell Mike Gravel Is Talking AboutThe star of last week’s Democratic presidential debate was a fringe contender Mike Gravel, 77, a former Alaska senator, who became a blogosphere sensation for saying that it should be a felony for Dubya & Co. to stay in Iraq. (He also drew laughs when he said the leading candidates scare him because they won’t rule out bombing Iran. “Who are we planning to nuke?” he asked Barack Obama. “I’m not planning to nuke anybody right now, Mike,” responded the Illinois senator.) Gravel — it’s pronounced gra-VELL — is a Columbia alum who drove a New York City cab while a student, and he’s back in town for appearances on The Colbert Report tonight and the Today show tomorrow morning. We spoke to him before he left his Virginia apartment, which doubles as his campaign headquarters — and we hope Colbert’s interview goes better than ours did.