Gloria Steinem via Wiki Commons.

2013 Mayoral Race

Gloria Steinem is pressuring Christine Quinn on the paid sick leave bill.

Bill de Blasio took in heavy donations from the taxi industry, which he has supported.

And Quinn took in quite a bit from a developer that was exempted from the living wage bill.

Manhattan

Voting machines in the Espaillat/Rangel primary didn’t count hundreds of votes.

The WFP is backing Adriano Espaillat’s Senate bid – after first backing Rangel over Espaillat in their congressional race.

Brooklyn

An anti-Vito Lopez faction of the Satmar community held a victory party for Nydia Velazquez.

Andrew Goundardes has $155K on hand for his challenge to Marty Golden.

Staten Island

Michael Grimm was cleared of charges by the House Office of Congressional Ethics.

State Senate

Mark Grisanti is already spending big on his re-election bid.

Elsewhere

The NYC Board of Elections will change its flawed vote-counting procedure.

To read more from City & State click here.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Photo courtesy of Wiki Commons.

State Senate

Gov. Andrew Cuomo says he’ll back both Democrats and Republicans on a case-by-case basis.

Manhattan

Rep. Charlie Rangel re-affirmed his support for Guillermo Linares’ Senate bid.

Julie Menin has already maxed out on fundraising for the Manhattan BP race.

Brooklyn

Simcha Felder is in talks with a top GOP operative about managing Felder’s campaign – perhaps indicating the Senate GOP is behind his candidacy.

Opponent David Storobin continued to hit golf balls during a Jewish prayer at a recent charity outing.

Andrew Gounardes’ Senate campaign keeps hammering away on the Marty Golden/Feminine Presence story.

Elsewhere

Sean Patrick Maloney announced his campaign team against Nan Hayworth.

Cuomo’s next big push will be for campaign finance reform.

The New York City Board of Elections is chafing at criticism, but nonetheless is seeking improvements.

Mayor Bloomberg mocked the Board of Elections (again.)

To read more from City & State click here.

Adriano Espaillat is reportedly preparing to conceded to Charlie Rangel and will run instead for state Senate re-election.

Certification of Rangel’s win will likely come on Tuesday.

Brooklyn

Marty Golden was called a “sexist pig” on CNN for wanting to hold his now-cancelled feminine etiquette event.

Brooklyn DA Charles Hynes has a primary opponent.

MoveOn.org really, really regrets going after Charles Barron during his congressional primary.

2013 Mayoral Race

The various candidates are using social media, but are wary of repeating Rep. Anthony Weiner’s Twitter incident.

U.S. Senate

Kirsten Gillibrand told reporters that her values are fundamentally different from those of Wendy Long.

To read more from City & State click here.

Anthony Weiner. Photo courtesy of Wiki Commons.

WINNERS

Adriano Espaillat –  Early last week it looked as though the race was over, but a series of BOE mishaps and a savvy court case later, and Espaillat is still in the game.  There may not be a redo election, as Espaillat hopes, but the outcome of the primary is currently in doubt, and his name is staying in the headlines. Even if he has to head back to the State Senate, he’s the man who brought Rangel to within an inch of the end of his Congressional career. With his name going national, Espaillat might have a much easier time winning the seat should he ever try again, especially if the venerable Rangel should choose to retire.

Bill Magnarelli and Catharine Young – Assemblyman Magnarelli and State Sen. Young made waves this week in Albany for something quite unusual – being the two lawmakers in each house who succeeded in passing the most legislation this year, per numbers guru Bill Mahoney’s NYPIRG report. Neither one of them is prone to splashy displays otherwise, so this is basically a coup for modesty and hard work. Nice.

Michael Bloomberg – Sometimes the mayor snaps at reporters. Sometimes he sounds completely out of touch. Sometimes, when he thinks people aren’t listening, he lets loose a swear word. Sometimes he pauses in the middle of his annual remarks on the Hot Dog Eating Contest Weigh-in ceremony to wonder who wrote his ridiculous pun-laced speech and asks, “Who wrote this s#*t?” The mayor, not fond of bull, was using his cut-the-crap attitude in an appropriate way to express the will of the people, who can no more tolerate that many puns in one sentence than the world’s fanciest billionaires. Let’s all just admit it – the mayor is pretty funny, and that can be a pretty great thing.

Anthony Weiner – Late last week, scandal-plagued former Congressman Weiner made his first foray into the public arena since resigning his office, when he went on Brian Lehrer’s show to talk about the Supreme Court’s decision on the Affordable Care Act. You may not have noticed that, which is why Weiner wins. He’s made his reentry into political life by talking on a subject of such massive importance that there was no way he could overshadow the actual news. He was heavily involved in the healthcare law, and this way, whichever outlet he decides to speak to next will no longer be able to claim he’s speaking “for the first time” since his departure from office. Brilliant.

Bald Eagle - The bald eagles of Narrowsburg, New York faced danger if town officials permitted a fireworks display near the national bird and formerly endangered species’s habitat. Thank the lucky stars (and stripes) the US Fish and Wildlife Service threatened the town with heavy fines if they went ahead with their potentially bird-immolating light show. The town moved the fireworks, the eagles were safe, the residents were cheered and patriotism was well-displayed. Compromise. God Bless America.

LOSERS

Marty Golden- What do women want? Maybe not a workshop about “posture, deportment, and the feminine presence.” Golden’s Bay Ridge Senate district isn’t exactly the hippest, but his well-meaning jobs seminar for ladies took us all the way back to a pre-Betty Friedan era whose social mores we can’t even appreciate ironically. Golden got an earful about it from every progressive and zeitgeist-y blogger there is, even drawing scorn from the Daily Show, which is kind of hard to come back from (ask Fran Narcington). The senator might need his own seminar — on how to help people find jobs without offending them.

NYC Board of Elections – The Board’s handling of the Rangel-Espaillat recount was a new low, even for the notoriously dysfunctional body, but, really, for years now each successive election has just been another disastrous opportunity for the Board to demonstrate its deep-seeded culture of cronyism and incompetence. If you think the Board’s ability to run a low-turnout primary in June was bad, just wait until November when all of the state races will be on the ballot along with the vote for President.

Nan Hayworth – After Sean Patrick Maloney’s commanding win in the Democratic primary, it became even clearer that Hayworth needs every last vote she can get to fend off her well-funded challenger. That’s why the Westchester County Supreme Court’s decision this week to bounce Hayworth from the Independence line for not having enough valid signatures was a blow to her reelection campaign. Hayworth could still be reinstated on appeal, but if she isn’t, the math gets a lot more difficult for her to win. Riding the Tea Party wave in 2010, Hayworth still only squeaked by the incumbent John Hall with fewer than 11,000 more votes—5,444 of which came from the Independence line. Now that her district has been drawn even more blue following redistricting, those Independence votes have more of a chance than ever of being the margin of victory—or defeat.  

Chris Collins – Just when it seemed like everything was back on track for Collins—whose resounding victory over David Bellavia in the Republican primary made him one of our winners last week—the former country executive committed an unforced error that quickly attracted national attention and ridicule. Collins has previously suffered from foot-in-mouth disease: note his comparing Shelly Silver to both “Hitler” and the “anti-Christ” and telling a female acquaintance that she could get a seat at the State of the State address in exchange for a “lap dance.” This time, he announced that “people now don’t die from cancer, breast cancer and some of the other things.” Regardless of whether this remark was taken out of context, as Collins claims, it makes him look out-of-touch and insensitive.

Seth Pinsky – The chief of the city’s Economic Development Corporation is now the head of an organization that has had to admit to illegal lobbying on behalf of the mayor’s economic development agenda at Willets Point, a charge that comes with no civil or criminal penalties, just ignominy. The charge is a black mark on what is supposed to be the mayor’s great economic development agenda, a far-reaching plan in all five boroughs meant to secure his legacy after 12 years in office, not undermine the law.

To vote for this week’s ultimate political winner and loser visit City & State by clicking here.

Marty Golden

UPDATE:

Is the event canceled? That’s what the Daily News’ Ken Lovett tweets.

And now it’s confirmed by the Daily Intel.

However, the “bum rush” event’s founder Jon Reznick says on Facebook that the anti-Golden event is still going forward.

ORIGINAL PIECE:

Following up on our article this morning about an event being held by State Sen. Marty Golden — during which young Brooklyn women seeking jobs will be taught the “feminine presence”  — a Facebook group has formedto “bum rush” the event.

So if the event at Bay Ridge Manor still goes off on July 24, it promises to be mighty interesting. Currently, the Facebook group has 21 members, and its creators are promising “Go Go Dancers, your Burlesque acts, your corsets, and of course, everything LGBTQ…”

From Facebook:

Senator Marty Golden, being stuck in the 1950s is offering protocol training for women in the workplace. Before we noticed, his website said this event would offer to teach how to “Sit, Stand and Walk Like a Model” and how to “Walk up and down a stair elegantly.”
Let’s show Marty what the feminine presence really is. Bring out your Go Go Dancers, your Burlesque acts, your corsets, and of course, everything LGBTQ, and bum rush this FREE event, hog his press, and

WE WILL TEACH SENATOR MARTY GOLDEN HOW TO WALK LIKE A MAN BY SUPPORTING FAIR PAY FOR WOMEN IN NEW YORK

Many of the people attending appear to be local Democrats who are supportive of Golden’s Senate opponent, Andrew Gounardes. His campaign already put out a statement blasting Golden earlier today.

To read more from City & State click here.

10. Capital Tonight ‏@CapitalTonight
Today’s time warp, courtesy of Sen. Marty Golden.

9. Senator Liz Krueger ‏@LizKrueger
NY’s women need #fairpay, not posture lessons. Still can’t believe this really happened!

8. Andrew Gounardes ‏@agounardes
Marty Golden doesn’t get it. He’d rather teach women to walk like models than pass the Fair Pay Act

7. NARAL Pro-Choice NY ‏@ProChoiceNY
We may make 77 cents to every $1, but don’t worry ladies – @SenMartyGolden will help fix your posture.

6. Rita Meade ‏@ScrewyDecimal
This is my neighborhood. This is my (current) state senator. THIS is why we have to vote, ladies. Get him outta here.

5. katie honan ‏@katie_honan
sen. marty golden to announce new “MRS Degree Scholarship” for constituents who decide to attend college to find a husband.

4. Travis Tubbs ‏@TravisTubbs
Why no equal pay, ladies? You’re not lady-like enough. No worries. There’s a class for that! *facepalm*

3. Henry Stewart ‏@henrycstewart
Hey ladies, Marty Golden wants to teach you how to walk up and down stairs ELEGANTLY, b/c that’s how you get a job!

2. Indecision ‏@indecision
Ladies, having trouble finding a job? One State Senator’s office is here to help and it’s not sexist at all!

1. Colin Campbell ‏@BKcolin
@morninggloria aaaaaaaand canceled!

To read more from City & State click here.

Photo by Hippohere, courtesy of Flickr Commons.

Have we stumbled into an episode of Mad Men?

Later this month, Republican State Sen. Marty Golden’s office is holding a career-development event for women in his southern Brooklyn district teaching them “Posture, Deportment and the Feminine Presence.”

That’s according to a taxpayer-funded mailing being sent out in Golden’s district, which an offended reader passed along. The taxpayer-funded event – presented by a “certified protocol consultant” – is part of a series teaching women in Brooklyn “what’s new in the 21^st century as it relates to business etiquette and social protocol.” More details are also available on Golden’s Senate website, including the fact that women in attendance will be taught to, “Sit, stand and walk like a model,” how to, “Walk up and down a stair elegantly” and “Differences in American and Continental rules governing handshakes and introductions.”

The event is being held in Bay Ridge Manor, the catering hall formerly owned by Golden, which is now owned by Golden’s brother and run by his wife.

A spokesman for Golden said the goal of the event was simply to help young women land jobs.

“In these economic times, when so many people are out of work, and graduating with advanced degrees to set themselves apart in the workplace, events such as these are also important,” said the spokesman, John Quaglione. ” Senator Golden hosts a multitude of events annually, and this is our first event of this kind, and we hope it to be successful and benefit those who attend.”

To read the full article at City & State click here.

Charter School supporters are gearing up.

Brooklyn

David Storobin’s district office will be the same one that was used by Carl Kruger.

Charles Barron’s affinity for Nehru jackets could be a problem in Congress.

Tenants PAC is going after Marty Golden.

The Amsterdam News is backing Charles Barron.

Queens

A breakdown of the key neighborhoods in the NY-06 race.

A rare policy disagreement has emerged in the race.

U.S. Senate

Wendy Long’s campaign is using Fred Dicker’s words to fundraise.

Elsewhere

Ex-Assemblyman David Koon, who is running for his old seat, apologized for comments slamming his constituents following a 2010 loss.

There was a bit of a Twitter fight in the Democratic primary to take on Nan Hayworth.

To read more from City & State click here.