A terrible, not very good start for New York's new governor

What was Kathy thinking holding her first press conference during a scheduled National Emergency Broadcasting test? It wasn't like there were any government issue alerts about it.

But it sure looks like Mario's son's minions are still hanging around to make her look foolish by scheduling this at the absolute wrong time. 

Cuomo's faux Me-a culpa

   

Sunnyside Post

 

 

In his first public appearance since multiple women accused him of sexual harassment, Governor Andrew Cuomo apologized for his behavior, but refused to resign from office as several Queens legislators have called for.

Cuomo issued the apology on Wednesday after two former staffers accused the governor of sexual harassment and a third woman accused him of unwanted touching at a 2019 wedding reception.

“I want New Yorkers to hear from me directly on this… I now understand that I acted in a way that made people feel uncomfortable,” he said during a live press briefing. “It was unintentional and I truly and deeply apologize for it.”

Cuomo said he felt “awful” and “embarrassed” about the allegations as he choked up at times during his address.

“I never touched anyone inappropriately,” he said. “I never knew at the time that I was making anyone feel uncomfortable.”

Several Democratic lawmakers in New York — including multiple in Queens — have demanded that Cuomo resign in light of the sexual harassment allegations. State Sen. Jessica Ramos, Assembly Member Jessica González-Rojas and Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer have all said that he should resign.

Cuomo rebuffed their demands at the press briefing and said that they were politicians “playing politics.”

“I was elected by the people of the state of New York, I’m not going to resign,” he said. “I work for the people of the state of New York.”

 Eat the whole sausage, excelsior.

A suspicious house in Broadway-Flushing

James Farrell/Queens Tribune

From the Queens Tribune:

An incoming Broadway-Flushing house is raising alarm for neighbors, who fear that the eight-bedroom, 10-bathroom structure is not in character with the neighborhood.

Neighbors became concerned that the building’s occupancy had changed after learning that the original plans, which called for a single-family house, had been amended. State Sen. Tony Avella (D-Bayside) and urban planner and City Council candidate Paul Graziano gathered dozens of residents last Thursday for a press conference outside the structure, located at 33-05 157th St., as work was proceeding behind a green construction fence. Avella called on the DOB to release the amended plans, which residents say have been kept from public view.

Janet McCreesh, president of the Broadway-Flushing Homeowners Association, said that she had hired an expediter to get the plans from Queens Borough Hall but was unsuccessful after three attempts. After that, McCreesh turned to Avella’s office, who received them the Tuesday after the press conference.

The DOB told the Queens Tribune that the single-family status of the house did not change in the amended plans. According to the DOB, the amended plans, which were approved by the department as being in compliance with the city’s Zoning Resolution and Construction Codes, show only minor changes, replacing some of the proposed bathtubs with standup showers. The DOB also added that while it wasn’t sure why there could have been delays in the expediter’s attempts to get the plans, all permitted construction plans are publicly available for viewing at its Queens borough office.

(Great photo showing the ridiculous size of the house.)

De Blasio creates fake issue for press conference

From City Council Watch:

Mayor de Blasio held a press conference earlier this week at Tweed Courthouse to announce a major new policy directive. He was joined by Melissa Mark-Viverito, Zachary Carter, Carmen Fariña, Gale Brewer, Vanessa Gibson, Nisha Agarwal, Carlos Menchaca, Helen Rosenthal, and a number of other officials and advocates.

The announcement was that from now on ICE agents will not be allowed in DOE schools unless they have a warrant. Everybody took a turn at the mike to denounce fear and hate. Corporation Counsel Carter and the head of school security for the NYPD ran through all the new protocols and training, the chains of command and lines of authority, the phone trees and channels of communication. Who would authenticate the warrants, who would accompany the agents. What number to call when the children are arrested and where you can go to get help.

At question time I asked the obvious question: “How many incidents have there been so far of ICE agents trying to enter schools, with or without warrants.” Mayor de Blasio answered, “None, so far.” Hmm. Then I had another question for Chancellor Fariña.

Later I went on YouTube to review the video of the press conference. But when the video came to my question there was an odd skip: the first question was cut from the video, and picked up again about 15 seconds later with my question for Fariña.

Someone with authority in Mayor de Blasio’s communications department decided that his answer to my question was off-message, and edited the tape to erase the part where the mayor admits that his new policy directive addresses a problem that does not exist. Basically it was all for show.

I excerpted a clip from the video to preserve the evidence that the mayor’s press office redacted his comments. Here it is:



Greg Gutfield went off on the Dope from Park Slope. (This is a must watch.)



Dopey also leaves news conferences when the questions aren't to his liking.

Mayoral candidate makes some good points

From CBS 2:

“How can de Blasio think it’s okay to go into debt with a law firm that frequently does business with the city?” mayoral candidate Paul Massey said. “No ordinary person can get legal services with no plan to pay for them.”

Massey wants to unseat de Blasio — he has the independent party endorsement and is seeking the Republican Party line as well. He sent letters to Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance and US Attorney Preet Bharara demanding an investigation into the mayor’s dealings, questioning whether the legal defense fund violates criminal law, the city charter, or ethics laws.

“Mayor de Blasio often likes to say that we’re living in a tale of two cities,” Massey said. “He’s right, he believes there’s one set of rules for Bill de Blasio and one set for everybody else.”

Where are the rest of the Queens pols?

A wolf in sheep's clothing?

***MEDIA ADVISORY***
Ali Najmi to Announce Parkland Protection Act

Who:
Ali Najmi, Candidate for New York City Council, 23rd District
Daniel Altschuler, Make the Road Action Fund
Dr. Donovan Finn, SUNY Stony Brook Professor of Environmental Studies
Edwin Westley, Queens Parks Advocate
Park Advocates and Community Leaders

When:
Monday, July 27th, 12:00pm

Where: Cunningham Park, Queens, NY
(Enter at 196th St & Union Turnpike); parking is available at site

What: Ali Najmi will stand with park advocates, community leaders, and local activists to introduce plans for legislation entitled the “Parkland Protection Act,” which will amend the City Charter to prohibit the sale of, or construction on, any inch of parkland without a supermajority approval of the City Council. Najmi and other Queens residents want to prevent any future attempts to give away parkland, like the attempted 2013 plan for a Major League Soccer stadium at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park and the ill-fated “Willets West Mall,” which the New York Supreme Court Appellate Division unanimously deemed illegal last month.
________________________________________

Alrighty...so this fellow, who is a candidate for the 23rd district of the City Council, plans to introduce legislation to protect parkland, however...

Make the Road and Dr. Donovan Finn (of the fictional Queens Fairness Coalition which stopped being active 2 years ago) helped Council Member Julissa Ferreras strike a deal with the USTA to gobble up more Flushing Meadows parkland in return for cold, hard cash. And neither of these organizations signed on to be a plaintiff for the successful lawsuit that stopped development of a shopping mall on FMCP property.

How can this Najmi character be trusted considering the company he keeps?