Andrew Cuomo
New York (still) loves Nancy Pelosi
“The only crack in the support for Nancy is in her critics’ asses.” That was the response I got from a member of the New York congressional delegation when asked if House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi was in peligro. “Nancy always warned us that this district is as red as they come,” referring to the June 20 special election for Georgia’s 6th Congressional District in which seasoned Republican Karen Handel defeated novice Democrat Jon Ossoff. Another New York Democratic bochinchero opined that Pelosi’s critics went overboard: “This has solidified support for Nancy.”
While in Washington, D.C., on Thursday and Friday, I got the sense that the support for Pelosi from neoyorquino reps is solid. However, U.S. Rep. Kathleen Rice, who represents New York’s 4th District, is taking some hits for her criticism of Pelosi. Several congressional bochincheros told B&B, “(Rice) has not made a lot of friends here.” Another incensed member of the New York delegation told me, “Gerson, ask (Rice) how much money she's raised to get Democrats elected.”
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Insider bochincheros in D.C. also tell us that U.S. Rep. Joe Crowley, the fourth-highest ranking member of the House minority, hasn't been as vocal as he should be in defending Pelosi. I asked the interlocutor if Crowley is blatantly not supporting her: “No. It's just that Crowley wants to be liked by all so he's just nice to everyone.” Sounds to me like he's hedging his bets. You know, keeping his options open, por si acaso Pelosi’s booted. The thinking in the swamp is that Pelosi’s last hurrah will be winning back the Democratic majority in the House, and she'll retire after that. Yeah, sure …
Mayoral control mess on Cuomo?
Several Democratic Albany bochincheros who are not fans of New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio tell us that this unresolved mayoral control mess is because of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s political games to get even with the mayor. OK. “The extender that expired this month should have just been made for five or seven years,” one bochinchero said. The políticos are buzzing and the consensus among most is that New York City's never going to go back to a decentralized, school board system. OK, pero, what if that happens? Bochincheros point to analysis that shows it would be too expensive to dismantle the current system. One said, “That would cost tens of millions of dollars and come back to haunt Cuomo on the budget side.” One state senator told B&B that Republicans aren’t worried: “If the charter school number isn't increased in New York City, this isn't going to hurt the mayor in his re-election bid.” The reasoning here is that it's Cuomo who will have a tougher re-election fight in 2018 than de Blasio will have this year. Which should be taken as, “It's all going to be worked out,” said the optimistic bochinchero.
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More Puerto Rican Day Parade bochinche
Oscar López Rivera may have left Fifth Avenue, but the fallout over his designation as a “hero” at the National Puerto Rican Day Parade continues. Two well-informed bochincheros tell us separately that Goya Foods won't even think of sponsoring the parade as long as the current leadership on the board of directors remains. I asked if that means they want the parade’s board chairwoman, Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez, out? “They don't want to deal with the people that mishandled this so badly. Who they get rid of or resigns is their business,” one bochinchero said. A third bochinchero told B&B that some of the sponsors saw that the public turnout for the parade was noticeably lower this year: “That gives them a way to stay out of next year's parade.” I was told by three members of the parade board that there will be news soon. Cortés-Vázquez has said she's stepping down. Ha! Don't hold your nose until that happens.
NEXT STORY: Winners & Losers 6/23/17