News : POLITICO New York Playbook: Tish James tests the waters

Thursday, September 30, 2021

POLITICO New York Playbook: Tish James tests the waters

Sep 30, 2021

By Erin Durkin, Anna Gronewold and Deanna Garcia

Here's the latest tally on Democrats running for governor in 2022: Kathy Hochul — in. Jumaane Williams — in, at least for an exploratory committee before he makes a final decision. Tish James — not going that far, but dropping not very subtle hints in a speech to the Association for a Better New York.

"Eric Adams was here last and he is the Democratic nominee. And here I am, Letitia James, and so, who knows," the attorney general quipped as she began her remarks. "Don't read anything into that."

Believe it or not, people read something into it. In part because the rest of the address sounded a bit like a stump speech, laying out a broad vision for reforms to state government and sounding themes like revamping ethics oversight, de-politicizing policymaking, and bringing upstate and downstate together.

James also delivered her most thorough defense to date of her investigation into former Gov. Andrew Cuomo — a probe Cuomo continued to attack even as he chose to resign after it found sexual harassment claims against him from 11 women were credible. "Until now, I've chosen to take the high road, I've chosen not to respond in detail," James said. "But that changes today." She detailed how her investigation compared to the investigation Cuomo conducted against then-Gov. Eliot Spitzer when he was attorney general, noting she received a legal referral for the matter and used outside investigators. (Cuomo, from beyond the political grave, demanded that James answer a series of additional questions about her report.)

Another could-be candidate, Mayor Bill de Blasio, was asked how he'll decide whether to jump in and — given the diversity of the field — whether New York needs another white male governor. "I want to serve. I'm going to figure out the right way to serve," he said. "We need people who are committed to real change, and we need people of all backgrounds to be involved in government."

IT'S THURSDAY. Got tips, suggestions or thoughts? Let us know ... By email: EDurkin@politico.com and agronewold@politico.com, or on Twitter: @erinmdurkin and @annagronewold

WHERE'S KATHY? Holding a Covid-19 briefing in Manhattan.

WHERE'S BILL? Attending the Brooklyn County Breakfast and holding a media availability.

HAPPENING TODAY - DON'T MISS THIS PLAYBOOK INTERVIEW WITH REP. GOTTHEIMER AS THE HOUSE PREPARES TO VOTE : President Biden's domestic agenda is on the line, with a $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill slated for a House vote on Thursday. However, moderate and progressive Democrats remain at odds over a larger, multitrillion-dollar spending package — with the left even threatening to tank Thursday's vote. Join Playbook co-author Rachael Bade for a virtual conversation featuring Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.), the leader of the centrists urging his colleagues to take the win Thursday and continue working on the second package in the coming days. REGISTER HERE.

WHAT CITY HALL'S READING

"Some NYC Workers Battling 'Long COVID' Find Chances for Accommodations Remote," by The City's Samantha Maldonado: "The doctor's prediction was right. If her patient, a city employee, had to return to in-person work, the doctor cautioned, the symptoms plaguing her since she first contracted COVID-19 in March 2020 would only worsen. Among them: pain, headaches, dizziness, extreme fatigue and memory issues. She would wind up stuck in bed, unable to get up at all. The 40-year-old patient, who spoke to THE CITY on condition of anonymity, has worked a desk job at a city agency for nearly a decade. In spite of her prolonged symptoms, she managed to plow through during much of the pandemic, thanks to remote work. But Mayor Bill de Blasio's order for in-office work threatened that — initially, with one day a week in person starting in May, eventually expanding to all five days in September. Meanwhile, city employee requests to [work] remotely are exploding."

"Congestion Pricing Is Coming to New York. Everyone Has an Opinion," by The New York Times' Michael Gold: "More than two years after New York State lawmakers approved a congestion pricing plan that would toll drivers entering the busiest parts of Manhattan — the first such program in the country — New Yorkers and those who travel alongside them are getting a chance to voice their opinions. Public hearings, which started last week, kick off an extensive review process that federal officials are requiring the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to complete before the agency can begin charging vehicles that enter Manhattan between 60th Street and the Battery."

"MTA mask crackdown yields only 16 summonses in five days," by New York Daily News' Clayton Guse: "The MTA's crackdown on maskless straphangers over the past five days has resulted in a mere 16 tickets to riders who declined to cover their faces and only two people booted from mass transit, data released Wednesday shows. Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokesman Michael Cortez said 658 riders put on masks after they were confronted by officers. MTA cops distributed 2,702 masks during the first week of the blitz. Transit officials announced an enforcement blitz this past Thursday, vowing that Metropolitan Transportation Authority police would now take a tougher approach to people who flouted mask requirements. Any rider who declined to cover their face when asked would be subject to a $50 fine, officials said."

Black Studies curriculum begins to take shape for New York City public schools, by POLITICO's Madina Touré: Black education groups — along with elected officials, nonprofits and academic experts — are working with the city's Department of Education to develop a citywide K-12 Black Studies curriculum in the city's public school system... The Education Equity Action Plan initiative would develop an interdisciplinary curriculum — first as a pilot program — that explores the early African civilizations, the trajectory of the Black experience in America and the accomplishments and contributions of the African diaspora, program leaders told POLITICO.

"Parents, teachers demand answers after NYC school trashes 'progressive' student mural," by New York Post's Jesse O'Neill: "Brooklyn community members railed against administrators at a Park Slope elementary school during a virtual town hall meeting Wednesday evening, demanding to know why a student mural championing progressive causes was torn down without explanation. Hundreds of students, parents and teachers at PS 295 attended the Zoom meeting after the artwork — featuring phrases like 'Black Trans Lives Matter,' 'Equity,' 'Safety' and 'Pride' — was removed from the arts and culture school building this summer. 'I feel attacked,' said a fifth grader who spent 14 weeks working on the mural after school with an artist from local art collective Groundswell."

"Homeless Shelter Operator Quits Bid to Dump Trump at Bronx Golf Course," by the City's Claudia Irizarry Aponte and Katie Honan: "A leading homeless shelter operator has pulled out from a deal to take over a Bronx public golf course after the Trump Organization exits the links at Mayor Bill de Blasio's demand. 'CORE Services Group, Inc. has decided to withdraw from consideration,' an attorney for the Brooklyn-based nonprofit wrote in an email to executives with the city Department of Parks and Recreation and the golf course operator Bobby Jones Links on Wednesday. THE CITY exposed CORE's unlikely involvement Monday, after public records revealed Parks' proposed 13-year deal to put a company registered by CORE CEO Jack A. Brown in charge of the deluxe Jack Nicklaus-designed 18-hole course near the Whitestone Bridge."

WHAT ALBANY'S READING

Bassett to return to New York to lead Hochul's health department, by POLITICO's Dan Goldberg: Former New York City health commissioner Mary Bassett will return from Harvard to lead the state Department of Health, Gov. Kathy Hochul [announced] Wednesday. Bassett, who served as the city's top doctor from 2014 until 2018, will replace embattled Commissioner Howard Zucker on Dec. 1, the Hochul administration confirmed to POLITICO ahead of the announcement. She will be the first Black health commissioner to be appointed in New York and will take over a beleaguered health department where dozens of top staffers have resigned over the past year amid scandal and pandemic-related burnout.

— "Being Jewish, I don't really know what it feels like to be a kid on Christmas morning — but I think it must be kind of like this," Assembly Health Committee Chair Richard Gottfried of Manhattan said in an interview with City & State's Zach Williams: "'She is somebody with the strongest progressive public health values.' His counterpart in the state Senate, Gustavo Rivera of the Bronx, sent City & State a GIF of a slam dunk when asked his thoughts on her appointment."

"Kathy Hochul Aims to Raise $25 Million as Likely Rivals Eye Challenges," by The New York Times' Nicholas Fandos and Katie Glueck: "Assembled inside were nearly two dozen of New York's best-connected real estate developers, businessmen and lobbyists — the kind of deep-pocketed donors whose support has been crucial to winning statewide campaigns. There was John Catsimatidis, the Republican grocery store and oil refining magnate; Scott Rechler, whose company owns iconic New York skyscrapers; Alfonse M. D'Amato, a former Republican senator turned lobbyist; and Dennis Mehiel, a cardboard baron who played host for the evening. Mr. Catsimatidis described the fund-raising dinner, where Ms. Hochul raised some $200,000, as a 'high-end business get-together to discuss not losing any more people from New York.' But for the new governor and the attendees paying between $10,000 and $25,000 to dine on chicken and salmon with her, the evening also represented something else: the beginning of a delicate courtship that could have huge consequences in next year's race for governor."

"New York's vaccine mandate doesn't apply to all medical workers," by Times Union's Brendan J. Lyons: "Thousands of nurses and other medical personnel who work in state agencies that care for inmates or disabled and mentally ill individuals will not be mandated to receive coronavirus vaccinations or face the loss of their jobs — which was a policy that went into effect earlier this week for medical professionals in hospitals and other health care settings. The stricter mandate imposed on Monday applies to workers in hospitals, including state-run facilities that fall under the authority of the state Department of Health or the state university system. It also extends to state-run optometry and dental schools, nursing homes and veterans facilities. But a second mandate that's scheduled to take effect Oct. 12 will give all other state employees, including thousands of nurses and physicians in executive-controlled agencies such as the Office of Mental Health and Office for People With Developmental Disabilities, the ability to be tested weekly for COVID-19 in lieu of being vaccinated. The Oct. 12 mandate also will apply to medical personnel who work in patient-care settings in state prisons."

" New York Gov. Hochul Using God Unfairly in Vaccine Fight, Lawyer Claims," by NBC New York: "New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has encouraged religious-minded people to get a COVID-19 vaccine by saying it is God's will that they get inoculated. A lawyer argued before a federal appeals court Wednesday that her comments about God could be encouraging hospitals and nursing homes to ignore court orders that — for now — are supposed to prevent them from punishing workers who won't take the vaccine because of religious objections. Health care institutions across New York this week began suspending workers who failed to meet a state deadline to get a COVID-19 shot."

"MTA Ends Cuomo's Transformation Plans, Without Admin Cuts Recommended," by WNYC's Stephen Nessen: "The MTA has announced the end of a two-year cost-cutting, job-shedding 'transformation' ordered by former Governor Andrew Cuomo. Cuomo once called the MTA a 'governmental Frankenstein' and ordered the MTA to consolidate. In the end, of the 2,000 administrative positions that were supposed to be cut, just 270 were eliminated. 'Everyone agrees that moment of disruption outta be put behind us,' said Janno Lieber is the current interim Chairman. The MTA did lose workers, just not the ones Cuomo had in mind."

#UpstateAmerica: A bear was caught on camera in Colonie.

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AROUND NEW YORK

— De Blasio made an appeal to Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving to get vaccinated. The city's vaccine mandate would bar him from playing at home games if he doesn't show proof of a shot.

— Bishop of Brooklyn Nicholas DiMarzio stepped down from his post weeks after being cleared of sexual abuse allegations.

— Ex-NYPD chief Philip Banks, who stepped down amid a corruption investigation, is advising Democratic mayoral nominee Eric Adams.

— Success Academy charter schools will require all high school students to be vaccinated or get weekly Covid-19 tests.

— The city will convert its contact tracing operation into a permanent Public Health Corps.

— A former Education Department official was charged with using his position as food czar to enrich himself by awarding a contract to a company he co-owned.

— Some state lawmakers want to set up a $4 billion nursing home victims compensation fund.

— New York Coalition for Open Government wants Hochul to replace the executive director of the state's Committee on Open Government and push for structural changes.

— The Broadway musical "Aladdin" canceled its Wednesday night performance due to breakthrough Covid cases, one day after returning to the stage.

— State lawmakers are asking Hochul to use her power to release additional detainees from Rikers Island.

SOCIAL DATA BY DANIEL LIPPMAN

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: WSJ's Steve Russolillo … POLITICO Europe's David Herszenhorn … JJ Mitchell ... Adie Mitchell … Hildy Kuryk of Artemis Strategies … Edelman's Emily Lippard … Craig Minassian of the Clinton Foundation and Minassian Media … Courtney Sanders Felts of the U.S. Chamber … AP's Curt Anderson … Nathan Thornburgh of Roads and Kingdoms … Hunt Allcott … Charlotte Ross … Hillary Dolinsky

MEDIAWATCH — NY1's Errol Louis will join New York magazine as a columnist, writing a weekly column for the magazine and Intelligencer. … Per POLITICO Playbook: Katty Kay, a prominent journalist who had left the BBC to join Ozy Media, said on Twitter that she had resigned from the company in light of the recent NYT report questioning its business practices. More from NYT's Katie Robertson

MAKING MOVES — Justin Pascone has joined the public affairs and lobbying firm Yoswein New York as a senior account executive. He was formerly director of policy for the New York Building Congress. … Nick Mizaur has been named VP for global public policy and external affairs at BlackRock in New York. Mizaur will manage policy and reputational issues across the firm and sit on the BlackRock Investment Institute Geopolitical Risk and Global Public Policy Steering committees. Nick joins Dalia Blass' expanding team from the office of BlackRock CEO Larry Fink. Previously, he worked at Steve Cohen's Point72 and was a special adviser to Secretary Penny Pritzker at the Department of Commerce.

REAL ESTATE

"Queens leaders enter fight to ground Cuomo's LaGuardia AirTrain," by New York Post's Carl Campanile: "Two prominent Queens politicians have joined the fight to urge Gov. Kathy Hochul to ground disgraced predecessor Andrew Cuomo's controversial $2.1 billion LaGuardia Airport AirTrain project, The Post has learned. State Sen. Leroy Comrie, who chairs the committee that has oversight of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, is opposing the project. The Port Authority runs the metro area airports. Meanwhile, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards is calling for a delay in the project he has supported, citing more pressing needs to help the county's residents recover from the coronavirus pandemic."

"NYC homeless rights advocate faces eviction after voucher payment vanishes," by amNewYork's Dean Moses: "Homeless rights advocate Shams DaBaron, who's been on the front lines bringing awareness to the homelessness crisis in New York City, says he is facing potential eviction himself after his rental assistance voucher payments were mysteriously halted — and he believes he is not the only victim. Known publicly as 'Da homeless hero,' DaBaron almost half of his life sleeping on the street, but has dedicated his years to fighting for the rights of those still unhoused."

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