Cuomo's newfangled push on public financing and old-fashioned offer on pay raises
Briefing: Lee and Cuomo. Azi Paybarah
8:57 am Jun. 25, 2012
The Times reports today on a well-funded group called Protect Our Democracy, which will push, with Andrew Cuomo's approval and with the help of two former Cuomo aides, to bring about public financing of campaigns.
The push for public financing, right down to the way in which it will be coordinating its efforts with Cuomo, will be patterned on the successful campaign to legalize same-sex marriage in New York. Gay marriage, like public financing, was opposed by the Republican majority in the State Senate.
The Post's Fred Dicker, meanwhile, reports on (and facilitates) a less complicated Cuomo initiative, revealing that the governor might be willing to grant legislators the salary hikes they've been looking for in exchange for ending the "per diems" that currently pad their pay. Dicker's item mentions, at the end, that Cuomo has also sought pay raises for his own aides.
Whatever works.
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Events
Andrew Cuomo is in New York City with no public schedule.
11 a.m. Rep. Nydia Velazquez, Comptroller John Liu and Councilwoman Margaret Chin visit the NY Chinatown Senior Center at 70 Mulberry Street in Manhattan.
2 p.m. Velazquez visits the Ridgewood Senior Center at 319 Stanhope Street in Brooklyn.
3 p.m. Velazquez, Liu and others visit stores in Sunset Park, at 55th Street and 8th Avenue in Brooklyn.
5 p.m. Michael Bloomberg greets Gilad Shalit, the Israeli soldier who was a prisoner of Hamas, at City Hall.
Senate
Endorsing Wendy Long, Carl Paladino said: "Washington is a mess, with too many politicians like Senator Gillibrand who like to talk out of both sides of their mouths. Wendy Long says what she means and means what she says." [Carl Paladino]
NY-18
Pataki robocalls against Sean Patrick Maloney: "He doesn’t want you to know that he was a key player in the Spitzer scandal that threw state government into chaos," and "He doesn’t want you to know that he impeded Attorney General Cuomo’s investigation by refusing to turn over documents." [Ken Lovett]
NY-13
Rangel, in a festive hat. [New York Times]
Rangel: "If I was just a spectator next year, I’d be kicking myself." [Carl Campanile]
Clyde Williams, campaigning methodically. [Casey Quinlan]
NY-08
Cuomo doubts Barron will win. [Sally Goldenberg]
NY-06
Meng's GOTV aide Josh Gold: "I honestly think we'll knock on more doors than any congressional campaign in the state." [Andrew Grossman]
City Hall
Everyone eats at Jerry's Cafe. [Alexander Heffner]
The city's budget is still under negotiation and could be settled "at any time." [Tina Moore]
The fight between Bloomberg and Cuomo over the 9/11 museum funding has "no resolution in sight." [David Seifman]
John Liu warns of more bicycle accidents and lawsuits because of the city's bike-share program. [J. David Goodman]
There are major financial and logistical problems with fancy park plans Bloomberg began rolling out a few years ago. [Mary Kay Linge]
"A pregnant drunk and her beau have been camping out in one of Mayor Bloomberg’s legacy parks for years and are even growing vegetables there." [Michael Gartland]
A near-record high number of homeowners are appealing their property tax bills: 52,123, a 4% jump from last year. [Sally Goldenberg]
Public Advocate Bill de Blasio criticized the city's hiring of so many new water meter readers, saying it shows the new meters aren't working as effectively as promised. [Josh Margolin]
The public safety chairman is unhappy that the Dept. of Education is "dragging its feet" on a plan to provide free cell phone storage to students. [Yoav Gonen, Lorena Mongelli and Ikimulisa Livingston]
Georgina Bloomberg: "Women show off their bodies at night; it’s just what we do. We shouldn’t have to change that so we can hail a cab." [Annie Karni]
NYPD
The "anti-snitching culture in the Police Department remains virulent." [Joseph Goldstein]
Albany
"Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, the consummate strategist, ran out of leverage this spring." [Danny Hakim]
Cuomo's strategy: Link legislative pay hikes to cutbacks in legislative per diems and mandate relief. [Fred Dicker]
The "the fact that Albany didn’t disgrace itself yet again hardly justifies self-congratulatory rhetoric." [New York Post]
Anonymous Republicans in the State Senate are sick and tired of Bloomberg's "nasty phone calls" and "do or die" ultimatums. [Ken Lovett]
Cuomo aides will run a marriage-equality-like campaign for publicly financing campaigns. Aide Steve Cohen is on board. Former aide Katherine Grainger is working for Protect Our Democracy, a single-issue 501(c)4 founded by Chris Hughes and Sean Eldridge with $250,000. [Thomas Kaplan]
The guy who did Bill and Hillary Clinton's portrait did Mario Cuomo's, which now hangs in the Hall of Governors. [Thomas Kaplan an Danny Hakim]
Is Cuomo going to act like Pataki when it comes to the Tapanzee Bridge? [Nicole Gelinas]
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