RIP GOP

To the Editor:

Unlike the dead who come back to life in George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead, Manhattan Republicans stay dead (“Back from the Dead? GOP Candidates Vie for House Seat,” May 27).

Manhattan Republicans haven’t offered Democrats serious competition for public office on the city, state or federal level in years. Read more

Back from the Dead? GOP Candidates Vie for House Seat

By Dan Rivoli

The GOP used to rule the “Silk Stocking” district, a nickname for the more affluent parts of the Upper East Side. But the primacy of liberal Republicans in this area is getting to be as outdated as top hats and monocles. Since Carolyn Maloney’s 1992 victory over incumbent Rep. Bill Green, Republicans were last seen holding office in 2003, when John Ravitz retired from the State Assembly after losing a special election for a State Senate seat. For the past several years, the party has unsuccessfully run candidates for most local elections. Read more

Four More Years

Mayor Michael Bloomberg celebrates his reelection on Nov. 3. The contest was much closer than pollsters had predicted, with the mayor earning a 5-point victory over Democratic contender William Thompson. Democrats Bill de Blasio (public advocate) and John Liu (comptroller), however, crushed their GOP opponents. And Council members Jessica Lappin and Dan Garodnick cruised to victory for second terms. Photo by Andrew Schwartz

Senate GOP Killed 2nd Ave. Subway Bill

The 30-member State Senate Republican conference, consisting of suburban and rural-based senators, threatened to defeat a bill designed to assist struggling Second Avenue businesses affected by subway construction.

The legislation would give property tax abatements for the next five years to landlords who renegotiate cheaper rents with small businesses hurting from Second Avenue subway construction. Read more

LESSONS IN GOP COUP

While State Sen. Liz Krueger characterized the Republican coup in the State Senate as a “blatant power grab” by two rogue Democrats, Pedro Espada and Hiram Monserrate, she also laid some blame on the rest of her Democratic colleagues.
In a letter to constituents, Krueger wrote that the Democratic Conference was not aggressive enough in pursuing a reform agenda, failing to address issues such as equitable distribution of resources.
“I believe that many of my colleagues adopted a ‘to the victor goes the spoils’ model, and while I repeatedly argued against this, in the end, the conference was not willing to go as far down the reform road as they should have,” she wrote.
Since the coup, one defector, Monserrate, went back to his Democratic conference, causing the 62-member Senate to be deadlocked at 31-31.
Democrats fashioned a power-sharing proposal to end the gridlock, but it was rebuffed by the Republicans.
Under the proposal, the Presiding Officer of the Senate would alternate daily between a member selected by the Democratic Conference, and one by the Republican Conference. The same procedure would apply to the Floor Leader.
Further, a six-member Senate conference-committee, comprising three members of each party, would determine which bills and resolutions reach the floor.
Krueger said she was disappointed that the gridlock would hinder progressive legislation in areas such as public education, environmental policy and same-sex marriage.
Krueger did have an optimistic view of how the Senate should operate in the future.
“I am hopeful that one of the lessons learned from this whole process will be the need to develop fairer and more equitable rules,” she wrote. “Every senator, regardless of party, represents the same number of constituents and should have adequate resources.”

GOP R.I.P.

To the Editor:
Take a trip down memory lane to understand why “When Campaigning is an Exercise in Altruism: In heavily Democratic Manhattan, Republicans are a near-extinct breed” (Oct. 23). Manhattan Republicans haven’t offered Democrats serious competition for public office on any level in years. The citadel of liberal Republicans based in the East Side of Manhattan was totally eliminated years ago. Neighborhoods formerly represented by the late Congressman Bill Green, State Sen. Roy Goodman, Assembly Member John Ravitz and Council Members Charles Millard and Andrew Eristoff are now safely in Democratic Party hands.  Read more