Did de Blasio's endorsement, and lingering anger over LICH closure, cost Peter Sikora the election ?

Press won't even mention voter anger over closure of Long Island College Hospital as factor in rejection of de Blasio endorsement, Sikora loss

De Blasio Used LICH as a Political Prop, Angry Ex-Supporters Say via @Dnainfo http://t.co/W0h1A25A2k — Doug Biviano (@dougbiviano) September 6, 2014 Overlooked in the aftermath of yesterday’s Democratic Party primary elections across New York state is the loss of candidate Peter Sikora in the 52nd Assembly District in Brooklyn. Mr. Sikora, who benefitted from the endorsements of Mayor Bill de Blasio, the Working Families Party, and the New York State Nurses Association, lost the election to Jo Anne Simon. In trying to justify Mr. Sikora’s loss, the media has proposed all number of excuses, ranging from the fact that Mayor de Blasio’s endorsement didn’t amount to much, because he made so many, diluting any impact that they might have ordinarily had, to the fact that the machine candidate, Ms. Simon, had more institutional support. Unacknowledged is the lingering and growing voter anger over the closure of Long Island College Hospital. In the 52nd Assembly District in Brooklyn, which encompasses the catchment area formerly served by LICH, the voter anger against Mayor de Blasio’s betrayal of his central campaign promise to stop anymore hospital closings rubbed off on Mr. Sikora, even though he had the NYSNA endorsement, meaning that Brooklyn voters were able to see through the mayor’s politically-expedient machinations, as well as Mr. Sikora’s.

RELATED In Hotly Contested Races, the de Blasio Endorsement Only Goes So Far (The New York Observer) Peter Sikora running away from failed LICH promises, de Blasio exploitation cover-up (NYC : News & Analysis)

La rentrée 2014 : Election and Omnibus Update

Reforms come about by taking action

Remember the hospital closing crisis was manufactured by the Gov. Pataki's Berger Commission and by Gov. Cuomo's Medicaid Redesign Team AS NEW YORKERS PREPARE FOR THE ANNUAL REENTRY, it's that time of the year when everything happens all at once : the summer ends, a new school year begins, the high season of the arts is upon us, and the primary elections are only one week away. The last year has been remarkable for civic engagement and activism. We made many gains, like voting Christine Quinn out of office. We still face many challenges, like holding the de Blasio administration accountable to fully overhauling the New York Police Department and implementing other reforms. Voters are building upon this by vowing to hold Gov. Andrew Cuomo accountable in the Democratic Party primary election on Tuesday, Sept. 9. Ever since news broke of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's admitted interference with the Moreland Commission's anti-corruption investigations, the Cuomo administration has been in a downward spiral. Voters are angry that each year, politicians promise us a "change election," but no change ever comes. Gov. Cuomo campaigned for office in 2010, promising to end corruption up in Albany. By many press accounts, it took less than four years for Gov. Cuomo to embody the culture of corruption up in Albany. Back in 2010, the Cuomo campaign told St. Vincent's activists, "We'll see you after the election." What happened ? Not only did the governor fail to take action to save community hospitals in New York City, but he appointed mean old man Stephen Berger of the 1990's Berger Commission to keep closing full-service hospitals across New York City. Gov. Cuomo turned out to be another weasel of a politician, who had no intention of serving the common good. Instead, he was intent on an austerity agenda that would dismantle hospital infrastructure and enact Medicaid cuts that would negatively impact entire communities across New York City. This reoccurring pattern of political and community betrayal was what finally led voters to vote former Speaker Quinn out of office after 15 years of failure. That long period of time exasperated voters. It finally woke voters up to the opportunity cost of reelecting unprincipled incumbents, who gamed the system for their own benefit, not the communities'. Voters no longer have patience for wasting time on failed leadership. This impatience explains why activists began to protest mayor-elect Bill de Blasio last December, after he announced his regressive appointment of William Bratton as NYPD commissioner. In the time since, all New Yorkers have come to see how Mayor de Blasio was never fully committed about ending police brutality or overhauling other controversial police policies, like the Broken Windows approach to policing that essentially criminalises the poor and minorities. Minorities in New York get arrested trying to use public transportation. That stark example of discrimination that once ran rampant in the racist South now takes place right here in New York City. If the mayor was committed to a complete overhaul of the NYPD, then he would have each of appointed a culturally competent police commissioner, ended Broken Windows policing, and updated and strengthened civilian police oversight, disciplinary proceedings, and other forms of police accountability. The true test of reforms is very simple : Does the status quo come to a complete end once reforms are implemented ? Other issues awaiting the mayor that will determine if he is going to truly roll-out an aggressively progressive reform agenda, or if he is just going to keep recommending neoliberal policies that are approved by big business lobbyists. Only a civically-engaged electorate can hold elected officials' feet to the fire. As promised in a previous newsletter, here is an omnibus update : Governor's Race. Please remember that Gov. Cuomo exacerbated the hospital closing crisis in New York City by appointing Stephen Berger to close more hospitals on top of the large number of hospitals that closed following Mr. Berger's first commission report on hospital closures. Last Sept. 9, Mr. Berger was still advocating for more hospital closures. How fitting that exactly one year after that article was published, voters get to cast votes to reject these healthcare cuts that The New York Times reported went too far. Equally important, activists continue to call for reforms to end campaign and political corruption, but the media that made the Moreland Commission scandal an issue has since retired the issue, proving once again that, like with former Speaker Quinn, it is up to citizens journalists and activists to keep pressing for an end to corruption. Many bloggers are writing about the Moreland Commission (like the Perdido Street School blog and the Atlantic Yards Report blog), and it is up to voters to stay the course on an issue like this, especially when the media gets distracted or is subverted. Indeed, the bombshell report published by The New York Times about the Cuomo administration's reported obstruction of the Moreland Commission failed to mention the corrupt role of the Partnership for New York City in Albany politics. Likewise, The New York Times never reported Brad Hoylman's employment at the Partnership for New York City when he was overseeing Rudin's luxury condo conversion application at the same time when Bill Rudin was a director at the Partnership for New York City. When the media won't tell the whole story, it is up to us to keep each other informed. Keep seeking out new bloggers and alternative news Web sites. Take an average of multiple sources of information as a way to read between the lines. The Cuomo campaign is under so much stress from angry voters that Gov. Cuomo is reportedly considering dumping his running mate, former Rep. Kathy Hochul, in favor of embracing the reform candidate, Tim Wu. This is kind of what is looks like when the system turns on itself under the scaled-up participation of reform-minded voters. Whatever you do, I hope that on Tuesday, Sept. 9, you will please call your friends and families and make sure that everybody goes to the polls and votes Gov. Cuomo out of office. Christine Quinn. After almost 85% of Democratic Party primary voters voted former Speaker Quinn out of office last September, Ms. Quinn has been desperate to worm her way back into the business of politics. Baring an indictment by federal prosecutors or a negotiated plea deal calling for Gov. Cuomo to resign, Ms. Quinn's latest scheme is to shill for Gov. Cuomo in apparent exchange for a commissionership appointment in his next administration. As you may recall, last year Ms. Quinn exploited identity politics as an election year gimmick. Now, Ms. Quinn is using women's issues against another female candidate, Zephyr Teachout, to benefit a man, Gov. Cuomo, who sided with Republicans to jam the state legislature, one consequence of which was the stalled Women's Equality Act. This is a classic example of Ms. Quinn's corrupt approach to government : putting the most politically-expedient, self-serving politics ahead of long-over due reforms. It's no wonder that Ms. Teachout called out Ms. Quinn. "Christine Quinn is the one who stood in the way of paid sick days for New York City women," Ms. Teachout said, adding, "There are several ways Christine Quinn has stood in the way of core Democratic values. She was Mayor Bloomberg’s staunchest ally. She represents the corporate wing of the Democratic Party." Some political bloggers are privately worried that if the electorate is not careful, Ms. Quinn will attempt a political comeback similar to that of Richard Nixon after he lost the presidency in 1960 and the California governorship in 1962. GMHC. Many LGBTQ and AIDS activists have scored a major victory by pressuring Gay Men's Health Crisis to get rid of an entire slate of bad management. After an activist-driven campaign to force GMHC to reform itself, CEO Marjorie Hill, Chairman of the Board Mickey Rolfe, Director Manny Rivera, and former communications director Dirk McCall have separated from GMHC. Some activists have reservations about a new director, Roberta Kaplan, and the agency's new CEO, Kelsey Louie. However, if GMHC is to ever renew itself, then it certainly has a better chance now, under new leadership, than before. Time, and your continued oversight, will tell. LGBT Sell-Outs. Keep checking the LGBT Sell-Outs blog, as an updated poster will be revealed soon.

RELATED Married to a sleazy political consultant, Errol Louis uses NY1 to protect all political consultants (NYC : News & Analysis) Pledge 2 Protect latest advocacy organization to hire The Advance Group, masking donors behind a law firm (NYC : News & Analysis) Tone deaf to calls for NYPD reform, de Blasio stands by Bratton and Broken Windows policing (NYC : News & Analysis) USAO mum on new revelation about Cuomo's e-mail deleting policy (NYC : News & Analysis)

NYPD. Following the homicide of Eric Garner in Staten Island from an illegal choke hold by police, activists organised a rally outside City Hall calling for Commissioner Bratton's resignation, an end to the discriminatory Broken Windows approach to policing, and for a federal investigation into corruption at NYPD. Partly as a result of political cover provided by "veal pen" groups like VOCAL-New York and the Communities United for Police Reform umbrella group, the mayor has turned a deaf ear to grassroots activists calling for a complete overhaul of the NYPD. As with many political, social, and legal issues facing society, all one has to do is follow the money to identify what is blocking reforms. When one pulls back the curtain on the flow of money to some of the "veal pen" groups, one will see how in this year's city budget, over $7 million was allocated to some police reform groups, money which the de Blasio administration essentially used to strong-arm community groups to down-play police reform. This, and George Soros' financial connections to each of Communities United for Police Reform and to Mayor de Blasio, help to explain why a 1% policing policy, like Broken Windows, could be so vehemently defended by Mayor de Blasio, a blatant contradiction to the lip service he likes to give to his self-anointed progressive sensibilities. Again, reforms will only come about when the citizenry stays engaged, regardless of the empty rhetoric from politicians. Talk is not reform ; rather, reform can only take the shape of tangible changes that put an end to the status quo, in this case, of relentless incidence of police killings, police brutality, police discrimination against citizens -- all with no police accountability. Follow the money. The corrupt roles of big money donations and lobbyists continue to undermine elections in New York. In the 2009 municipal election cycle, the Working Families Party used an affiliate, Data and Field Services, Inc., to allegedly game the city's campaign finance laws. Those activities are now the subject of an investigation by an independent prosecutor. In the 2013 municipal election cycle, we saw how Working Families supporter The Advance Group and possibly other lobbyists coordinated their management of official campaigns with the activities of Super PAC's, a violation of the city's campaign finance regulations. And in this year's state election cycle, the Working Families Party is at it again : political operatives with connections to the Working Families Party were behind the use of Mayor de Blasio's 501(c)(4) nonprofit political arm, the Campaign for One New York, to send campaign-like literature spinning positives about the closure of Long Island College Hospital in the 52nd Assembly District in Brooklyn. That dark-money LICH mailer has propped up WFP-endorsed candidate Peter Sikora, because it takes some of the heat off the hospital closing. The value of that mailer, if indeed partly coordinated to benefit Mr. Sikora, may violate campaign finance regulations if not properly declared. Given the subversive activities of the Working Families Party during each of these election cycles, it is clear that their intention is to win political elections, not to save hospitals from closing. As if we all need to remember, 13 full-service New York City hospitals have closed or downsized since 2006. The true test of reform would have been the saving of LICH under Mayor de Blasio's watch. He failed ; LICH is closed. Now, voters in Brooklyn must decide for whom to vote in the Sept. 9 Democratic Primary in the 52nd Assembly District : Jo Anne Simon, who endorsed the disgraced Charles Hynes for Brooklyn District Attorney in last year's election, or Doug Biviano, who is the anti-lobbyist candidate calling for reforms to government. Whilst the de Blasio administration relies more and more on the same lobbyists behind the dark-money LICH mailer, such as BerlinRosen, government reform activists wonder if the media's initial reporting about the mayor's nonprofit political arm will go the same way of reporting about the Moreland Commission : by becoming history. Under conditions where those in elected office lack media scrutiny, it becomes essential that voters turn to bloggers and alternative news Web sites for information in order to cast informed ballots. Department of Justice. Besides voting, how else can average citizens participate in efforts to bring about unfinished reforms ? The first step is to test the system to determine how broken it is. This is what I have done with the U.S. Department of Justice. Under President Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder, the Department of Justice has been politicised to enable and extend the Bush era's use of warrentless wiretapping, to crackdown on whistleblowers and activists, and to harass enterprising reporters in an effort to abridge freedoms of speech and of the press. Against this backdrop, I filed a Freedom of Information Act request to obtain records from the Department of Justice pertaining to the government's vindictive prosecution of Lt. Daniel Choi, who led the heroic effort to end the military's discriminatory "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. The Department of Justice has promised to answer an appeal of its initial constructive denial of the FOIA request. The second step to reform is to see what happens when the system realises that it being tested. Juxtaposed with how the DOJ answers the FOIA request, I await how the U.S. Attorney's Office will act upon an updated statement I filed to support the complaint against the corrupt lobbying firm, The Advance Group. Either the DOJ makes good on each of the FOIA request and on investigating how politicians and lobbyists have made swiss cheese of campaign finance laws, the DOJ makes good on one but not on the other, or the DOJ makes good on neither. Either way, we will soon find out how much integrity the DOJ has when it comes to upholding the government's own principles of justice. Also outstanding are the U.S. Attorney's Office's own investigation into the unfinished work and the possible obstruction of the now-defunct Moreland Commission. Political bloggers speculate whether federal prosecutor Preet Bharara will hand down indictments in his Moreland investigation before this year's general election. On a larger scale, some activists believe that Attorney General Holder is expected to step down from his post. We will find out shortly in what shape he leaves the DOJ. NYC IBS Support. A new support and advocacy group for people living with Irritable Bowel Syndrome is forming in New York City. The group is searching for a doctor to be a medical information sponsor for the group. If you are a gastroenterologist and are interested in being the group's information sponsor, or if you live with IBS and would like to join, please send an e-mail to : newyorkcityibs (at) gmail (dot) com.

Married to a sleazy political consultant, Errol Louis uses NY1 to protect all political consultants

Errol Louis had a titty attack last night after Brooklyn 52nd Assembly District candidate Doug Biviano exposed BerlinRosen as corrupt

Luckily, there is no rotunda in the NY1 studio, so Errol Louis stopped short of threatening to throw Doug Biviano over the railing woah @errollouis just threatened to throw Assembly candidate @dougbiviano off @InsideCityHall if he tried to read a prepared statement. — Andrew J. Hawkins (@andyjayhawk) August 25, 2014 NEW YORK CITY VOTERS were treated to a rare display last night on NY1's Inside City Hall. Reminiscent of a scene from The Wizard of Oz, Brooklyn 52nd Assembly District candidate Doug Biviano pulled back the curtain on the corrupting roles of lobbyists and big money in our broken election system. The counterfeit wizard, who was pushing the buttons and flipping the switches, turned out to be none other than Inside City Hall host, Errol Louis ! First of all, Mr. Biviano had to overcome a biased objection from Mr. Louis to earn a spot on the Brooklyn 52nd Assembly District debate. Having done that, it was plainly apparent to anyone viewing last night's Inside City Hall that Mr. Louis was out to put Mr. Biviano's head on a stick. Mr. Louis opened the debate by grilling Mr. Biviano about no activity filings with the state campaign finance regulatory authority, the Board of Elections. Mr. Biviano explained that he had about $1,000 in expenses in his outsider campaign, and that he began his campaign during the petitioning process, which had to be obvious to Mr. Louis. Mr. Biviano then began to explain why it was important to him to be on Inside City Hall : to expose the corruption that is at the root cause of voters' loss of power in their own government. At this point, Mr. Biviano appeared to be reading from prepared remarks, and Mr. Louis threw a hissy fit right out in the news studio. It was only about 90 seconds into the debate segment when Mr. Louis screeched to Mr. Biviano : "I'll turn off the mic, and I'll send you home." Mr. Louis, who reads from a teleprompter on his news program, objected to Mr. Biviano reading from prepared remarks. How ridiculous is that ?! As the host of the most-watched local politics roundtable program, Mr. Louis is supposed to be an impartial host. It is unknown why Mr. Louis was set out to intimidate Mr. Biviano. Some political bloggers speculated last night that the climate of hostility created by Mr. Louis was intended to silence Mr. Biviano's criticisms of the duplicitous role of campaign consultants, who double as lobbyists. Mr. Louis' wife, Juanita Scarlett, is a political consultant for Park Strategies, LLC, the lobbying and consulting firm of former Republican Senator Alfonse D'Amato. Prior to that, Ms. Scarlett was a pro-gentrification hack for the Empire State Development Corporation, who pushed the community-crushing Atlantic Yards project like a drug dealer pushes crack. Shamelessly, Mr. Louis regularly books Mr. D'Amato as a political commentator in a reoccurring segment on Inside City Hall called, "The Consultants' Corner," where corrupt political consultants get to spiel talking points for their paid political clients disguised as news. Mr. Biviano is a political outsider, running for office, some say, to expose the corrupt network of lobbyists who double as campaign consultants. This double-dipping wrecks havoc on communities, and Mr. Biviano points to what happened at Long Island College Hospital as a prime example. LICH, as the hospital is known, was the centerpiece of a public relations stunt by one of Mr. Biviano's opponents in the primary race for the 52nd Assembly District seat, Peter Sikora. Mr. Sikora masterminded the public arrest of then-Public Advocate Bill de Blasio last year in the lead up to the mayoral election. Mr. Sikora was also reportedly arrested in another demonstration to save LICH. Those publicity stunts, which Mr. Biviano claims were staged with the help of the lobbying firm BerlinRosen, were intended to fabricate an illusion that Mr. de Blasio and Mr. Sikora were fighting for the community, when, in reality, the arrests were just election-year machinations to score points with important voting blocks. Less than a year after the spate of civil disobedience arrests, all of these politicians did nothing as LICH closed under Mayor de Blasio's watch, triggering a wave of anger in Brooklyn. Yes, this was a win for transparency. Voters now better informed. @dougbiviano @andyjayhawk @errollouis @InsideCityHall @SalAlbaneseNYC — Louis Flores (@maslowsneeds) August 26, 2014 On Inside City Hall last night, after Mr. Louis prevented Mr. Biviano from reading his remarks about the corrupt role of BerlinRosen to exploit LICH as vehicle to win votes from communities across New York City impacted by a wave of hospital closings, the issue could not be ignored. The other candidate in the race, Jo Anne Simon, raised the issue of undeclared expenditures by outside groups that are being made in support of Mr. Sikora's campaign. Mr. Biviano later was able to raise the issue of a controversial mailer orchestrated by each of BerlinRosen, who are doubling as Mr. Sikora's campaign consultants, and Mayor de Blasio's nonprofit astroturf political arm, the duplicitous Campaign for One New York, to soften the blow of the LICH closing. These stealth activities, plus the controversial role of the scandal-plagued Working Families Party, are deceiving voters into wrongly supporting Mr. Sikora. @SalAlbaneseNYC And Journalists - what happen to Biviano 1st amendment right to free speech? -host threaten to cut the mike and shut debate — True News (@unitedNYblogs) August 26, 2014 Near the end of the debate on Inside City Hall, Mr. Biviano again raised the issue of the corrupt role of BerlinRosen in the campaign and in Brooklyn politics, but by that time, Mr. Louis had had enough, and he began speaking over Mr. Biviano. Mr. Louis then cued a commercial break, announcing the end of the debate. Ironically, the debate was followed by Mr. Louis' usual gathering of corrupt political lobbyists in the segment known as, "The Consultants' Corner." @andyjayhawk @errollouis @InsideCityHall @SalAlbaneseNYC @maslowsneeds After taping, Erroll shouted this is why I didn't want to invite you — Doug Biviano (@dougbiviano) August 26, 2014 Advocates for government reform commented on Twitter last night that unless voters see the true double-dealing connection between each of unethical lobbyists and exploitable campaign finance loopholes as the root cause of government dysfunction, elected officials and their political operatives, Mr. Louis and his wife included, will always keep defending the corrupt status quo. A partisan, pro-Simon post on last night's debate was published on the McBrooklyn blog. With the Democratic primary election set to take place on Tuesday, September 9, the next debate in the Brooklyn 52nd Assembly District race will take place Wednesday evening at 7:30 p.m. at Duryea Presbyterian Church.

RELATED NY1 Online : Democratic Candidates in Brooklyn Assembly District Debate on NY1 (Inside City Hall) Working Families Party has yet to disclose spending on campaign for Brooklyn state Assembly seat (The New York Daily News) Peter Sikora credited with coming up with election year stunt to get arrested to save LICH (The Brooklyn Daily Eagle) Alarm raised about ‘dark money’ in de Blasio’s LICH - Fortis letter (The Brooklyn Daily Eagle) Bill de Blasio Used LICH as a Political Prop, Angry Ex-Supporters Say (DNAinfo) de Blasio-allied group defends LICH luxury condo conversion deal to brownstone Brooklyn (Capital New York) Using political entities, operatives close to mayor exploit campaign finance regulations through ''pattern'' of activities (NYC : News & Analysis)

Peter Sikora running away from failed LICH promises, de Blasio exploitation cover-up

Peter Sikora, Bill de Blasio, and lobbying firm BerlinRosen each using LICH for political expediency

BerlinRosen is the corrupt lobbying firm working behind the scenes for each of Sikora, de Blasio, and the Campaign for One New York astroturf group Candidate Peter Sikora, who is running for the New York State Assembly seat of retiring Assemblywoman Joan Millman, is hiding from voters angry over the controversial closure of Long Island College Hospital -- contrary to a lot of lip service by politicians, including Mayor Bill de Blasio and Mr. Sikora himself. One of Mr. Sikora's opponents in the Democratic Party's primary for the Assembly seat, Doug Biviano, posted a press release on his campaign Web site, drawing attention to the candidates "not holding debates." Mr. Biviano charges that Mr. Sikora's campaign consultants, BerlinRosen, have been acting behind-the-scenes to do damage control for Mayor de Blasio and Mr. Sikora over the luxury condo conversion plan for LICH. The firm BerlinRosen works as Mayor de Blasio's media spokesmen, and BerlinRosen also manages the mayor's nonprofit political arm, the Campaign for One New York, which mailed a deceptive flyer meant to invoke the stature of the Carroll Garden Association with misleading information, trying to sell Brooklyn residents on the benefits of the luxury condo conversion of LICH. "Those institutions who claim to serve and protect our community are allowing the lobbyist and consultant spin doctors working on my opponents' campaigns to keep the community uninformed enough to believe the lies in their special interests funded campaign flyers. Shame on them," Mr. Biviano said in the press release. Earlier this year, Councilman Stephen Levin credited Mr. Sikora with coming up with the publicity stunt to get arrested in front of cameras to try to keep LICH open. “At the time, the candidate who was third in the polls, candidate Bill de Blasio, said, ‘That’s a really good idea,’ ” Councilmember Stephen Levin told The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Contrary to the lip service by Mayor de Blasio and Mr. Sikora, LICH closed without either Mayor de Blasio or Mr. Sikora being held publicly accountable for having exploited LICH for their own selfish interests. As the date of the Democratic Party primary nears, the voters in the state's 52nd Assembly District, which includes some of the Brooklyn neighborhoods formerly served by LICH, will have to confront the harsh truth : why is Mr. Sikora running away from campaign debates with his opponents ? What is it about each of Mr. Sikora's record on LICH and the controversial role of BerlinRosen that he is trying to hide ?

RELATED Peter Sikora credited with coming up with election year stunt to get arrested to save LICH (The Brooklyn Daily Eagle) Alarm raised about ‘dark money’ in de Blasio’s LICH - Fortis letter (The Brooklyn Daily Eagle) de Blasio-allied group defends LICH luxury condo conversion deal to brownstone Brooklyn (Capital New York) Using political entities, operatives close to mayor exploit campaign finance regulations through ''pattern'' of activities (NYC : News & Analysis)