NYPress.com - New York's essential guide to culture, arts, politics, news and more » Ed Towns

Campaign Roundup: Wall Street Fears Charles Barron Congressional Win

City & State — Wed, 13 Jun 2012 14:32:29 +0000

Charles Barron, photo courtesy of Wiki Commons.

Brooklyn

POLITICO looked at Ed Towns’ unexpected endorsement of Charles Barron.

Wall Street and the city’s political class are fearful of a Barron win.

Hakeem Jeffries and Barron debate foreign policy.

Queens

Rory Lancman is pounding the issue of protecting social security.

Bronx/Manhattan

Charlie Rangel skipped a debate in the Bronx, which Adriano Espaillat criticized.

Espaillat himself denied that he is ignoring African-Americans by skipping a forum.

At a debate both attended, they debated the virtues of longevity.

U.S. Senate

Rudy Giuliani appeared in a radio ad for Bob Turner.

This Week’s Political Winners & Losers: Cuomo’s PAC Gets Casino Money

City & State — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 18:13:26 +0000

It was a dramatic week. From explosive news reports on Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s Super PAC-ish Committee to Save New York and its relationship to the gambling lobby, to Sen. Majority Leader Dean Skelos’s disquisition on weed, to JCOPE commissioner Ravi Batra being carried out of an ethics commission meeting on a gurney, we were almost “windswept” by the amount of news in New York. But we’re also counting down to Congressional primaries and even state Senate races, where endorsements are being handed out and money is being raked in. When all these powers combine, we get some winners and their counterparts, the losers.

Winners

Tony Avella – Woody Allen famously said 80 percent of success is just showing up. Who knows if Avella’s perfect attendance record in the Senate has anything to do with the fact that he chalked up the Independence Party’s endorsement this week and seems to be cruising to a surprisingly easy reelection, but it certainly didn’t hurt. By taking seriously the fact that he works on the taxpayers’ dime, Avella deserves a gold star and inspires the question: why can’t his colleagues do the same?

Brad Hoylman — Is it possible that a West Side state Senate seat could be open — and the field will be pretty much clear? It’s not quite certain yet, but Sen. Tom Duane quickly said he was likely to back Brad Hoylman if he runs, and no other definite contenders have yet emerged. It also doesn’t hurt that Duane announced his decision only two days before petitioning began — making mounting any sort of insurgent campaign difficult.

Charles Barron - Even if you buy that Barron’s endorsement on Monday by the longtime incumbent, Ed Towns, was neutralized by Hakeem Jeffries’ starring role in Governor Cuomo’s pro-pot decriminalization press conference, there was still ample reason to conclude that the councilman’s campaign keeps building momentum just when it matters most. After leaving little doubt as to who got the better of their NY1 debate, Barron continued to bruise Jeffries the next day by landing The Amsterdam News’ support. Could this be the start of a Nehru jacket craze in Congress?

Barry Caro — New York Congressional candidate Richard Becker has an uphill battle in a four-way Democratic primary this month, but he’s got a great asset in his dogged press secretary Barry Caro, who sniffed out an incendiary Facebook post written by Jay Townsend, the press man for Rep. Nan Hayworth, in which Townsend recommended hurling acid at female Democratic senators. Caro flagged the post and pushed it until it went viral, ultimately forcing Hayworth to let Townsend go. It’s the kind of moment that catches national attention and could ultimately focus more eyes and dollars on the race, a plus for whichever Democrat ends up staring down Hayworth this fall.

To read the full list of this week’s political winners and losers, and to vote for the best and worst, visit City & State by clicking here.

Campaign Roundup: April 18, 2012

Chris Bragg — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 15:02:09 +0000

Mayoral candidate, and current Manhattan Borough President, Scott Stringer.

2013 Mayoral Race

Three of the NYC mayoral candidates spoke at an educational panel.

U.S. Senate

Wendy Long has a very high burn rate so far.

Staten Island

Mark Murphy is staffing up.

Opponent Michael Grimm is having his petitions challenged for the Independence Party line.

Brooklyn

The retiring Ed Towns won’t use his petitions to try and anoint a successor.

State Senate

Senate Democrats are broke seven months before the battle to retake the chamber.

Roy McDonald picked up the endorsement of a Republican committee.

Elsewhere

Gatemouth looks at the implications of various fringe congressional candidates.

Assembly Democrats are making a final push to move state legislative primaries to June.

Rep. Louise Slaugher says her broken leg is just fine.

But the Buffalo News says Slaughter’s injury and age (82) could be real problems against Maggie Brooks.

To read more from City & State click here.

Campaign Roundup: April 17, 2012

City & State — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 15:26:53 +0000

NYPD Police Commissioner Ray Kelly. Photo courtesy of Wiki Commons.

2013 Mayoral Race

Following a report that NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly is open to running for New York City mayor, Republican leaders will make a full-court press to convince Kelly to do so at a meeting on Staten Island early next month.

Kelly did not deny that he was interested.

Scott Stringer wants to bring back the suburban commuter tax.

State Senate

Senate Democrats have reaped $85,000 in campaign contributions from the state teachers union since they skipped last month’s vote to cut pension benefits for new teachers and other public employees.

A political rival filed an ethnics complaint against Tom Libous.

The redistricting lawsuit may be decided on Wednesday.

Brooklyn

Hakeem Jeffries would like the retiring Ed Towns’ endorsement.

Towns insists he would have emerged victorious.

Charles Barron is largely self-funding his campaign.

U.S. Senate

Marty Golden endorsed Bob Turner’s campaign.

Elsewhere

A lot of money is going into the Maggie Brooks/Louise Slaughter race.

Things are heating up in the primary to take on Rep. Nan Hayworth.

To read more from City & State visit www.cityandstateny.com.

City & State: Heard Around Town, April 6, 2012

Jon Lentz — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 14:43:07 +0000

* In mid-March, the Federal Election Commission found that Brooklyn Congressman Ed Towns’s campaign had taken in an additional $14,500 in campaign contributions than what is legally allowed, according to a letter sent from the FEC to the campaign and obtained by City & State. Towns’ campaign took $5,000 donations from four different individuals, and $3,000 from another, when the legal limit per donor is only $2,500, according to the letter. The campaign also took $6,000 from the American Postal Workers Union’s political committee, for which the donation limit was $2,500. And Towns took $550 from corporations that the FEC termed “possible prohibited entities.” The FEC ordered Towns’ campaign to respond to the letter by April 19 or else refund the money. Reached for comment, Charles Lewis, who is listed on press releases as Towns’ campaign contact, told us: “I’m just kind of shying away from the campaign, and focusing on my government responsibilities.” He referred the questions to Towns’ campaign manager, who did not return a phone call. Through last December, Towns had $162,000 in campaign cash on hand.

To read more visit cityandstateny.com by clicking here.