Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Queens Machine faces challenges

It could be a new test for the Queens Democratic Party, viewed as the strongest and most cohesive of all the boroughs. The party still wields considerable power, but has a spotty endorsement record - especially when it comes to citywide races.

Ballot race getting crowded with term-limited City Council members

"They are not omnipotent but they are still potent," said Doug Muzzio, a political science professor at Baruch College. "They have the troops and the wherewithal to make life miserable for a challenger."

The Queens party was key in selecting the past three Council speakers. Even though the last two - Gifford Miller and Christine Quinn - were from Manhattan, the party scored by getting key committee appointments for the Queens delegation.

And Muzzio said the party may be more interested in the most local races of all - the district leaders and judges.

"The key element is the selection of judges," Muzzio said. "That is the last great bastion of political patronage."


Illustration of the King Tweeder from the NY Observer

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Funny, no matter how Diverse! and Vibrant! the boro is, its the Irish, Irish, Irish in control.

Anonymous said...

The "selection" of machine judges is, indeed, key to the control that the Democratic dictatorship of Queens exerts over its constituency!

And the majority of our sleepy-time Queens residents continue to let this disenfranchising process continue unchallanged.

Without these ignorant voters
aiding and abetting, this would no longer be possible.

Welcome to what would have been William Marcy ("boss") Tweed's favorite borough !

Anonymous said...

Welcome to what would have been William Marcy ("boss") Tweed's favorite borough !
----------

Tweed's Tammany Tiger fire engine was an embarrassment to NYC and was sold to ...... yup, Astoria when he was in prison.

You can go to the NYFM and see it!

The politicians of Queens, even then, had no pride.

Anonymous said...

Judical elections should be non-partisian - just like special elections.

Anonymous said...

Look, with a third of the boro self indulgent seniors tottering to their centers with free Queens weeklies all piled up, and another third immigrants who are not really engaged in the political discourse of the boro (outside of their little easily tweeded clique) and a trickle of yuppie hipster green types, that like the gays turning their back on Ober, favor politicians ice cream money, the prospect of Queens challenging the machine is at best remote.

And don't forget all that 'affordable housing' crap. Make sure that no community really changes.

Anonymous said...

Member Items is the mothers milk of the City's machines. Those who can oppose them are afraid of losing their funding for non profit or development deal.

The media is a worse non caring at best clueless.

Anonymous said...

Parkside who Crowley paid 65,000 for her mailings was the king of Member Items under Parkside. Why?

Anonymous said...

JOE CROWLEY: THE BOSS TWEED MINUS THE TALENT OR INTELLIGENCE.
THIS GUY COULD EASILY GO DOWN IF CHALLENGED.

Anonymous said...

Crowley is by far the worst Congressman in the US. Did anyone ever hear him give a speech? He's a stuttering fool!

Anonymous said...

The congressman with the highest high school drop out rate in the entire county is Crowley. He seem like a HS drop out himself