Salon.com > New York City

Report: Anthony Weiner could announce mayoral run next week

Wed, 15 May 2013 13:34:00 +0000

The New York Daily News is reporting that Anthony Weiner is getting ready to jump into the New York City mayoral race, according to two anonymous sources, and even reportedly has a campaign manager.

From the Daily News:

The former congressman is preparing to jump into the race, possibly as soon as next week, the Daily News has learned. At least two people close to Weiner have been contacting political operatives to gauge if they would go to battle for him.

Politico reported on Wednesday that Weiner has picked a former DCCC adviser to run his campaign:

Danny Kedem, who worked on Mark Murphy’s congressional run in New York’s 11th District last year, has been brought on as Weiner’s campaign manager for a race he is likely to announce next week, according to multiple sources. Kedem’s resume includes a handful of other congressional runs and mayoral races, as well as field organizing work on Hillary Clinton’s presidential run.

Outrage over bike racks in NYC bike sharing program

Tue, 14 May 2013 18:12:00 +0000

With New York City's bike-sharing program set to launch in two weeks, many city residents once in favor of the eco-friendly commuter initiative have turned against it, calling the presence of the rental bike racks on their blocks a "blight," as the New York Times reports:

“None of us are against bikes — most of us have bikes that we stow in our building,” said Lynn Ellsworth, 54, from TriBeCa. “But why they put these giant racks in these little streets is crazy to me...”

Some neighborhood grievances have been predictable: complaints of lost parking and reckless riding, often from those who opposed cycling’s expansion in the city long before bike share. Resident groups that have promised legal action against the city over station locations in Manhattan — including groups from an apartment building at 99 Bank Street in the West Village and from a luxury condominium on East 55th Street — are seen as unlikely to affect the program’s introduction.

A representative from the city's Transportation Department told the Times that a majority of the 200 bike stations have been received without incident, and called concern over sanitation, transit access and other concerns largely unfounded.

Authorities from the Sanitation Department and Fire Department have not flagged the bike stalls for violations.

Christine Quinn opens up about struggle with bulimia

Tue, 14 May 2013 12:49:00 +0000

In an interview in the New York Times on Tuesday, New York City Council speaker and Democratic mayoral candidate Christine Quinn opened up about her long struggle with bulimia and alcoholism, and her eventual path to recovery.

Quinn told the Times that she wanted to share her story because: “I just want people to know you can get through stuff. I hope people can see that in what my life has been and where it is going.”

After learning her mother had cancer while Quinn was in the eighth grade, she said she began binging and purging as a coping mechanism, to "expel" the things that were fueling her depression: grief over her mother's illness, anxiety about body image and the volatility of growing up in a family plagued by alcoholism.

It wasn't until 1992, after more than a decade of struggling with bulimia and excessive drinking, that Quinn sought help, she told the Times:

Thirteen miles with my teenager

Fri, 10 May 2013 19:33:00 +0000

I live on a tiny island. A mere 13.4 miles from end to end – shorter than Nantucket – and so narrow in points you can walk from its western shore to its eastern edge in minutes. You'd think in a place so small that it'd be impossible not to know every nook and cranny of it. But Manhattan is a wildly provincial place. To look at most maps of it, you'd think it disappeared somewhere around 125th Street, though it goes on for another 100 blocks. To watch movies or read New York Times stories about trendy restaurants or interesting locals, you'd get a picture of place that exists only from the Upper West Side to Wall Street. But for the past seven years, my vantage point from the northernmost tip of the borough has served as a daily reminder that this city is more complicated than that. It's far more than meets the eye. It's a work in progress. It's beautiful and mysterious and frequently exasperating. It is, in fact, in many ways very much like my 13-year-old daughter. And so recently, one bright spring day, she and I decided to go exploring together in the place we call home.

Spire installed at One World Trade Center

Fri, 10 May 2013 15:50:00 +0000

NEW YORK (AP) — A tall, heavy spire was fully installed atop One World Trade Center on Friday, bringing the New York City structure to its symbolic height of 1,776 feet.

Loud applause and cries of joy erupted from construction workers assembled below as the huge, silver spire was gently lowered and secured into place.

"It's a pretty awesome feeling," Juan Estevez said from a temporary platform on the roof of the tower where he and other workers watched the milestone.

"It's a culmination of a tremendous amount of team work ... rebuilding the New York City skyline once again," said Estevez, a project manager for Tishman Construction.

He said the workers around him were "utterly overjoyed."

Installation of the 408-foot, 758-ton spire was completed after pieces of it had been transported to the roof of the building last week. It will serve as a world-class broadcast antenna and also as a beacon to ward off aircraft.

The building is at the northwest corner of the site where the twin World Trade Center towers were destroyed in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The 72-story 4 World Trade Center is under construction at the southeast corner of the site.

New York City Council considers letting non-citizens vote

Thu, 09 May 2013 13:18:00 +0000

The New York City Council will hold a hearing on Thursday to again consider allowing non-citizen residents to vote in municipal elections, a measure that appears to have a veto-proof majority in the Council, after a similar measure failed to pass in 2004.

The proposal would extend voting rights to "not a United States citizen, but is lawfully present in the United States" and "has been a resident of New York City, as defined herein, for six months or longer by the date of such election." This would include local elections, including for mayor, the comptroller, the public advocate, members of the city council, and the borough presidents.

The New York Daily News reports:

Secrets of the NYPD

Wed, 08 May 2013 16:17:00 +0000

The New York Police Department has come under fire for the potentially unconstitutional execution of its stop-and-frisk policy, and surveillance of Muslims. But if you think that the taxpayer-funded agency should be accountable to the public and forthcoming about what it's doing, the story gets worse: It regularly flouts transparency laws, in an effort to make the records of how it perform its duties and the crimes it responds to next to impossible for the average citizen to obtain.

The NYPD’s roughly 34,500 officers serve a population of 8.2 million people, but multiple interviews with reporters who cover the police department, as well as organizations dedicated to transparency, reveal a police department stunning in its disregard for the information requests of citizens, advocacy groups and news organizations.

The city's Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, who is running for mayor, recently released a report asserting that a third of all Freedom of Information records requests to the police department were ignored. The numbers are no surprise to journalists who cover the department, such as Leonard Levitt, a veteran cops reporter who now writes at NYPD Confidential.

Pic of the day: World Trade Center reborn

Thu, 02 May 2013 21:29:00 +0000

The New York City skyline has just gotten a little taller and a lot more patriotic. On Thursday Iron workers raised the final section of One World Trade Center's spire, which features an oversized American flag hanging from its base. Standing 104 stories and a symbolic 1776 feet, the building is the tallest in the Western Hemisphere.

Anthony Weiner is raking it in as a corporate consultant

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 13:13:00 +0000

Since resigning from office, Anthony Weiner has found a lucrative career as a corporate consultant to more than a dozen companies, including a medical records provider called CureMD, and an international law firm, Covington & Burling.

From the New York Times:

He and his wife, Huma Abedin, a longtime aide to Hillary Rodham Clinton, disclosed last week that they had a combined income of $496,000 in 2012, most of it from Mr. Weiner’s work. The money provided a lifestyle-changing infusion for the couple, who moved from a modest home in Forest Hills, Queens, to a large apartment on Park Avenue South in Manhattan.

Mr. Weiner’s rapid rise from disgraced lawmaker to in-demand strategic consultant demonstrates the enduring power of Washington’s revolving door.

“I am a good capitalist," he told the Times.

New York lawmakers propose raising smoking age

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 12:23:00 +0000

NEW YORK (AP) — Following New York City's lead, state lawmakers have taken up the cause to raise the minimum age for cigarette purchases from 18 to 21 statewide.

State Sen. Diane Savino and Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal announced the legislation at a news conference Sunday in New York City. The bill was introduced on Friday.

If passed, New York would become the first state to raise the minimum age to buy cigarettes to 21. Four states and some communities have increased the age to 19, and at least two towns have agreed to raise it to 21.

Savino says "anything we can do to stop young people from starting is a step in the right direction."

A hearing on the city's proposal to raise the minimum age to 21 is scheduled for May 2.

Michael Bublé sings with a cappella group in NYC subway

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 19:49:00 +0000

Three-time Grammy Award winning Canadian singer-songwriter Michael Bublé made an appearance at New York City's W. 67th Street subway stop today for an "impromptu" a capella performance of "Who's Lovin' You," off his new album "To Be Loved." Surrounded by the singers of Naturally 7, Bublé surprised commuters, Bublé said, "That is when you know you've made it." He added, "Singing in the New York subway...is the most authentic, organic way to make music."

Weiner “can’t say” whether there are more pictures out there

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 20:53:00 +0000

Former Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., who resigned after accidentally tweeting a lewd photo of himself, says that he "can't say" if there are more pictures out there, or more women willing to come forward.

“If reporters want to go try to find more, I can’t say that they’re not going to be able to find another picture, or find another person who may want to come out on their own, but I’m not going to contribute to that. The basics of the story are not gonna change,” Weiner said, speaking to RNN-TV’s Dominic Carter.

Weiner has recently been making the media rounds, possibly in the hopes of running for mayor of New York City this year. A recent poll put him in second place behind Christine Quinn in the primary, though trailing 26-15 percent, with 50 percent of Democrats saying they would not vote for him.

Watch:

Must-see morning clip: Visiting the 9/11 museum

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 13:26:00 +0000

"60 Minutes'" Lesley Stahl went underground, 7 stories below ground zero at the tip of Manhattan, to give audiences a detailed look at the 9/11 museum, which is still being constructed.

"I think any American that walks into this space is going to feel the emotion," she told 60 Minutes Overtime. "It's church-like. I felt the same feelings you feel in a cathedral," she said.

On what you will experience inside:

"First of all, you're going to be thrust back. You're going to hear voices of people talking about what they were doing at that moment because all of us remember what we were doing at that moment. And then you're going to see all the faces--3,000 faces--and it's overwhelming to see the array of people."

Thousands run in NYC, elsewhere to support Boston

Sun, 21 Apr 2013 17:15:00 +0000

NEW YORK (AP) — Thousands of runners in New York and across the world are showing their solidarity with the victims of the Boston Marathon bombings.

More than 6,000 runners finished Sunday's Run for the Parks, a four-mile run in Central Park that was planned before Monday's attacks.

Organizers sold "I Run for Boston" T-shirts with proceeds going to the One Fund Boston, the official fund for bombing victims.

Other "Run for Boston" events have taken place worldwide, with many runners wearing blue and yellow, the official Boston Marathon colors.

More than 500 runners gathered Saturday in St. Louis for a Unity Run. In San Francisco, about 400 people ran Friday along the Embarcadero. A run christened "Boston Strong San Diego" is planned for Monday.

Poll: Weiner in second behind Quinn in mayoral race

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 13:21:00 +0000

If he decided to run for Mayor of New York City, Anthony Weiner would be in second place behind Christine Quinn in the Democratic primary, according to a new NBC New York/Marist poll.

The poll puts Quinn in the lead among Democratic voters with 26 percent, followed by Weiner at 15 percent. NBC New York points out that Weiner would need 40 percent to avoid a runoff against Quinn. Additionally, 50 percent of Democrats surveyed still said they would not vote for Weiner.

And, as Nate Silver points out:

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According to the poll, John Liu trails Weiner at 12 percent, with Bill de Blasio and Bill Thompson each getting 11 percent. 22 percent of those surveyed are still undecided.

Weiner continues his post-scandal media tour

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 13:24:00 +0000

In his first TV interview since his scandal broke, Anthony Weiner continued to cautiously edge toward a possible mayoral run, telling NY1's Errol Louis: "I want to be part of the ideas primary. That's for sure. That primary I want to do very well in."

"If I run for mayor and if I become the mayor, I want people looking at me and saying, 'You know what, you are in charge, you did this. You are accountable,'" Weiner said.

Louis also had to push Weiner to answer questions about the lewd photos he tweeted out, asking him how many people received the messages. From NY1's transcript of the exchange:

New York City bribery scandal gets twistier

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 19:30:00 +0000

Queens City Councilman Daniel Halloran, arrested just last week over an alleged plot to rig the New York City mayoral race, also reportedly had an affair with his 21-year-old staffer, according to the New York Post.

From the Post:

Dan Halloran, 41 — who is charged in a bribe scheme to get state Sen. [Malcolm] Smith into the mayoral race — repeatedly hooked up with Meaghan Mapes, then 21, in her Queens home between 2010 and 2011, sources said.

She served as his deputy chief of staff during that same period, earning $30,000.

The relationship was the final straw for Halloran’s wife, Cynthia, and the two were locked in divorce proceedings by early 2011.

Wall Street Dem covers up her past and runs again

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 11:45:00 +0000

Pity the poor Wall Street Democrat. Well, you don't need to pity them that much, because they're rich, but the Wall Street Democrats are in a bit of a tough place right now, what with leftish ideas once again resurgent in the Democratic Party and everyone in America still hating everyone involved in high finance, with very good reason.

So what are you to do if, say, you spent years working as a hedge fund attorney, and all your friends and colleagues are in the finance industry, but you really, really want to get elected to something in a liberal city as a Democrat? If you're Reshma Saujani, you just pretend you never had anything to do with Wall Street and hope no one digs too deep.

Saujani is running for New York City public advocate. New York's public advocate, one of only three city-wide elected offices, is sort of like the city's "ombudsman." The advocate's job is essentially to annoy the mayor as much as possible, and then run for that office. The advocate is expected, to put it broadly, to look out for "the little guy," against the city's bureaucracy and police department and so on. The job, thus far, has always gone to liberal, populist figures; Democrats have held the post since it was created in 1994, even as the city repeatedly elected Republican mayors.

Would Weiner even be a good mayor?

Wed, 10 Apr 2013 21:11:00 +0000

Long before Anthony Weiner was an unfortunately named joke, he was a national TV presence, high-profile member of Congress and a leading candidate for mayor of New York City. For national progressive activists frustrated with their incrementalist in the White House, and fearing an ascendant and unhinged right, Weiner’s bombastic liberalism was a salve and a rallying point -- and he relished the role of movement leader.

But now that the former congressman is hinting at a comeback, with an emotional tell-all interview in the New York Times Magazine and open talk that he's eyeing a run for mayor of New York City, can he recapture that glory on the left? And critically, was he even a good congressman to begin with? Good enough to run the nation's largest city?

Even among his Democratic compatriots, Weiner was always a bit of a divisive figure: a great communicator and powerful leader, but one who didn’t play well with others. “He operated as a lone ranger, giving a voice to the progressive movement, but not operating as a partner with a larger set of House members or progressives on the outside,” one senior strategist for an outside progressive group said, contrasting him with Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who works closely with partners to advance her agenda.

Anthony Weiner is mulling a run for mayor

Wed, 10 Apr 2013 14:12:00 +0000

The New York Times Magazine has a big profile out Wednesday of former Rep. Anthony Weiner and his wife, Hillary Clinton's deputy chief of staff Huma Abedin, in which Weiner says he is considering a political comeback, possibly as soon as this year for New York City's mayoral race.

Weiner, who resigned from the House in 2011 after he accidentally tweeted a lewd picture of himself and then lied to the press about it, told the Times that he has spent $100,000 in polling and research for a possible run in 2013. “I don’t have this burning, overriding desire to go out and run for office,” he said. “It’s not the single animating force in my life as it was for quite some time. But I do recognize, to some degree, it’s now or maybe never for me, in terms of running for something."

“Also, I want to ask people to give me a second chance," he continued. "I do want to have that conversation with people whom I let down and with people who put their faith in me and who wanted to support me. I think to some degree I do want to say to them, ‘Give me another chance.’”