Winners & Losers
This week’s biggest Winners & Losers
Who’s up and who’s down this week?
Officially, Gov. Kathy Hochul traveled to Italy and Ireland this week to attend climate summits and build connections with international leaders. But we’d be shocked if she didn’t squeeze in a little damage control diplomacy after a newly installed livestream video portal connecting Dublin and New York City was quickly disgraced with unsavory behavior by New Yorkers and Dubliners alike, along with some (very predictable) flashing. Let’s hope Hochul and Irish officials can hatch a plan to rein in some of the more unseemly behavior at the innocently intentioned art installation. Or, you know, suggest organizers take the L and shut the thing down.
Marc Molinaro & Mike Lawler -
Reps. Marc Molinaro and Mike Lawler must love Prince, because the Republican freshmen are making purple rain. A new Lugar Center report ranks Molinaro as the second most bipartisan member of Congress and Lawler as fourth. The pair – top Democratic targets – are joined in the top five by other swing district lawmakers. The most bipartisan New York Democrat is Rep. Pat Ryan, who ranks 74th. The least bipartisan New Yorker is Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who ranks second to last, beating out only Ohio Republican Rep. Jim Jordan.
Luna the dog -
Thanks to New York City Council Member Chi Ossé, a dog named Luna is now an official “outstanding citizen,” and was presented with a City Council citation this week. What was Luna’s contribution to our great city? Killing rats. Luna has notched more than 200 kills, including 60 this year, according to Ossé’s office. It may be brutal, but compared to poison or drowning or gassing, Luna seems like a relatively humane rat elimination method.
Douglass Alligood & Jin Young Song -
In the aftermath of a mass shooting at a Tops Supermarket in Buffalo two years ago, the community wanted to ensure that the victims would be memorialized. The 5/14 Memorial Commission received 20 submissions and selected a design from architects Douglass Alligood and Jin Young Song. A site for the memorial has not yet been chosen, but the work of Alligood and Song will surely reflect the feelings of Buffalo residents whose lives changed that day.
Kevin Parker -
State Sen. Kevin Parker reportedly lost his cool this week, allegedly shoving and pushing lobbyist Michael Carey during an Energy and Telecommunications Committee meeting after Carey passionately asked him to support legislation. Carey decided to press charges. It’s the latest legal issue for Parker, who also faces a sexual assault lawsuit filed under the Adult Survivors Act. But it didn’t need to be this way. Carey told Politico New York that that he only pressed charges because Parker refused to apologize.
Rudy Giuliani -
It just keeps getting worse for Rudy Giuliani. Not only did the judge overseeing his bankruptcy case refuse to lift the legal barrier preventing the former New York City mayor from appealing the $148 million judgment, but now he’s out of a job. Giuliani was suspended – and will likely end up being fired – from John Catsimatidis’ WABC radio show for repeatedly breaking his promise to not spread stolen election claims on air. Hey, at least he still has Youtube?
Melinda Katz -
Though many of the issues pre-date her time in office, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz is now left holding the bag for improperly cataloged evidence. The issue first came to her office’s attention in 2022, per the Daily News. A subsequent review revealed that evidence impacting at least 150 cases – some as old as 20 years – was never properly vouchered. It’s still unclear whether the problem has directly affected any active or old cases, and if so, how many and to what extent.