The gerrymander edition: New York legislators cherry-pick voters they think already like them
Briefing: Bloomberg and Martin O'Malley at City Hall. Spencer Tucker via flickr
6:41 pm Jan. 26, 20121
New York's political universe is obsessing over the release of the proposed legislative-district lines the legislature made for itself. It's as partisan and gerrymandered as goo-goos and reform lawmakers warned it would be.
The focus now turns to Governor Andrew Cuomo, and whether he'll veto the lines, as promised, because they were drawn by legislators.
His comments to reporters were not definitive, leaving open the possibility even now of a compromise measure, perhaps after the legislators make a show of improving slightly on the lines Cuomo's spokesman quickly called "unacceptable."
"Cuomo seemed unsure about how to proceed," wrote Thomas Kaplan of the Times.
Former mayor Ed Koch, who has made redistricting one of his major causes, released a statement saying he was confident Cuomo would live up to his promise to veto the lines, calling it a "key test of his leadership."
Some links:
Same-Sex Marriage
Cuomo doesn't criticize Christie for saying same-sex marriage should be decided by N.J. voters, not N.J. lawmakers. [Thomas Kaplan]
Redistricting
"Cuomo seemed unsure about how to proceed." Later, a spokesman released a statement saying "At first glance, these lines are simply unacceptable and would be vetoed by the governor." [Thomas Kaplan]
Why didn't Cuomo lobby the legislature for redistricting reform the same way he did on same-sex marriage? "If you think I should go and try to convince the legislators that it is not in their best interest to draw their own lines, maybe you could convince them of that. I don't possess those skills." [Times Union]
Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence County go from having two assemblymen and two state senators to a total of eight legislators. [Watertown Daily Times]
SD-12
It stretches from 21st Drive in Astoria all the way past Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn and abuts the Belt Parkway. [Latfor.state.ny.us]
State Senator Michael Gianaris, the "main architect of Democratic campaign strategy," is drawn into a district with fellow Democrat Jose Peralta. [Ken Lovett]
Gianaris compares Republicans' redistricting efforts to those of former House Speaker Tom Delay, who wound up in jail. [Nick Reisman]
SD-16
The oddly shaped district in Queens is 51 percent Asian. [latfor.state.ny.us]
Call it "The Long Island Expwy Jigsaw Piece?" [Ilya Maritz]
Or an ink blot. [Brendan McHugh]
SD-19
The home of City Councilman Lew Fidler, the Democrat running for the seat vacated by Carl Kruger, is now inside the district represented by Democratic leader John Sampson. [Latfor.state.ny.us]
"Disgustingly partisan," is how Fidler describes the maps. [Colin Campbell]
SD-20
Incumbent Democrat Eric Adams would have to move to avoid having a primary with fellow Democrat Velmanette Montgomery. [Liz Benjamin]
The district goes from Crown Heights through South Slope and into Sunset Park. [Latfor.state.ny.us]
SD-23
The home of David Storobin, the Republican candidate running for the seat Carl Kruger vacated, is now in the district represented by Democrat Diane Savino. [Latfor.state.ny.us]
SD-29
"So who lives on 5th Avenue between 69th Street and 70th Street?" [Josh Baro]
SD-31
It includes portions of 225th Street and, amazingly, portions of West 26th Street and 9th Avenue. [Latfor.state.ny.us]
SD-40
Incumbent Republican Greg Ball is moving south. [Joseph Spector]
SD-46
It looks like "the evil Reaper spaceship." [David King]
A "fascinating piece of map making." Democratic incumbent Neil Breslin gets more Democratic voters. [Nick Reisman]
SD-60
For a freshman Republican who flirted with switching parties, Republicans drew a one-county district "with far fewer African-Americans." The district in connected "by the narrowest slivers of unpopulated land along Fuhrmann Boulevard." Not crossing county lines means endorsement decisions are kept within the county, without involvement from the state parties. [Tom Precious]
Ray Kelly
Bloomberg has "100 percent confidence" in NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly. [David Seifman]
"Ray’s gotta work at reestablishing the credibility that he has," Bloomberg said. [Tina Moore]
When Kelly sat for an interview for The Third Jihad, he did not know that the film's co-producer, Erik Werth, was once arrested for impersonating a federal agent. [Jeane MacIntosh]
The woman accusing Kelly's son of raping her said she became pregnant from the encounter and aborted the baby. [Larry Celona, Jamie Schram and Dan Mangan]
Media
The cost of Google's free services: $5,000. [Quentin Fottrell]
Quotes
"NYPD flack Paul Browne has a remarkable history of telling straight-up lies." [Justin Elliott]
"Ray Kelly probably visits more mosques than a lot of other ppl who believe in the faith & practice there." [Mayor Michael Bloomberg]
Images
Newt, campaigning behind the yellow tape. [Mark Ovaska]
Bloomberg and the governor of Maryland, Martin O'Malley. [Spencer Tucker]
The new cover. [bizweekdesign]
bloomberg took billions from the people's economy in the housing bubble.
Ray Kelly Receives 2011 Bull Connor Award
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcOqB06uwX0