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Your afternoon must-read briefing informing the daily conversation among knowledgeable New Yorkers | | | | |  | | By Joseph Spector | | 
New York Governor Kathy Hochul waves to supporters during the New York State Democratic Convention in New York, Thursday, Feb. 17, 2022. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig) | Seth Wenig/AP Photo |
The gloves will come off tonight as the three contenders for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination square off after having spent millions of dollars on TV ads in recent months.
The first debate among Gov. Kathy Hochul, Long Island Rep. Tom Suozzi and New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams will surely focus heavily on the front-running governor as the two underdogs look to cut into Hochul's sizable lead in the polls ahead of the June 28 primary. It starts at 7 p.m. on all CBS affiliates across New York and will be live-streamed on CBS News New York. Here’s what to watch for: Running to Hochul’s left and right: Williams has been here before — he ran against Hochul in 2018 in a primary for lieutenant governor. He lost, but will again try to push progressive policies that he will argue Hochul isn’t addressing. Then there is Suozzi, who is making his second run for governor. He has aggressively gone after Hochul on crime, taxes and her ties to the scandal-scarred Cuomo administration in an effort to appeal to critical suburban voters. Hochul and her record: Suozzi has drifted into calling Hochul the “interim” governor because she’s yet to be elected — akin to when David Paterson was labeled the “accidental” governor when he replaced Eliot Spitzer in 2008. But Hochul will look to show she’s a strong leader, having moved the state past former governor Andrew Cuomo’s troubles and putting together a record of her own, including tax breaks for the middle class; stronger abortion rights and new gun control laws, to name a few. Addressing crime: Polls show that crime, particularly in New York City, is a top issue for voters. So Hochul will surely tout the new gun-control laws and reforms to the bail laws, while Suozzi will criticize her for not doing more. Ties to Cuomo: Hochul and Cuomo were not close and she was not part of his inner circle. But she was his running mate for two terms and so Williams and Suozzi will surely try to pound that issue with viewers as Cuomo’s standing remains in the tank with voters. How she distances herself from him will be a key challenge. Looking to the future: In the end, politics is always a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately business. So yes, the past will be debated, but viewers will surely want to know what each of the three candidates would do over the next four years to address New York’s high cost of living, population decline, the upstate economy and bringing back workers to Manhattan as Covid-19 wanes. So grab dinner, and let’s see how the candidates articulate their vision for New York. And then prepare for the second debate, which will be June 16. IT’S TUESDAY: We're here every afternoon to update the goings-on in New York's City Hall and provide the latest on this year’s primary races for state and congressional seats. |  | From the Capitol | |
HOTELS TO HOMES: Hochul signed a bill in Manhattan this morning that allows for underutilized hotel space to be more quickly converted into permanent housing. Hochul, who was joined by New York City Mayor Eric Adams and bill sponsor Sen. Brian Kavanagh (D-Manhattan), called it part of “creatively” dealing with a “post-pandemic world.” “And with hotels hit so hard by the pandemic, many of them never reopened, an opportunity has arisen to use vacant hotels in a way that'll lift people up and give them yes, the dignity of a homes,” she said. — Anna Gronewold
TOW TROUBLE: Attorney General Tish James today filed a lawsuit against Bobby’s Towing and its operator, Robert Scores, in Poughkeepsie. After multiple complaints James’ office opened an investigation and found that for years Scores “engaged in rude behavior, illegally towed cars, overcharged for towing fees, falsified tow tickets, and made racist and derogatory comments to vehicle owners. He actively patrolled streets looking for cars to tow even if private property owners did not call for a car to be towed.” That violated New York’s business laws and Poughkeepsie’s Towing Ordinance, says James. The office is seeking to prevent Scores from operating a tow truck business unless he obtains a $100,000 bond; restitution for all known and unknown consumers; an end to all deceptive and predatory business practices; disgorgement of illegal profits obtained; and penalties. — Anna Gronewold
| | FROM CITY HALL | |
“DIFFICULT GRADERS:" Adams defended his sinking poll numbers today, arguing that New Yorkers are “difficult graders” and it will take time for them to appreciate the policy changes he’s implementing around gun safety. “Mommy always told me to try and get an A, but she never told me I failed with a C. I think New Yorkers are looking, they’re saying, ‘we’re going to give Eric a shot,’” Adams said following an unrelated press conference. “We believe he’s fair — 64 percent of New Yorkers stated fair or better.”
The relatively new mayor was referring to a public opinion poll released this morning from Spectrum News NY1 and Siena College that found 29 percent of the 1,000 city residents surveyed in English and Spanish believe he has done a “good” or “excellent” job, compared to 35 percent who rated his performance as “fair” and 29 percent who deemed it “poor.” By comparison, he received a 43 percent approval rating in a Quinnipiac University poll last month. The survey, conducted May 22 through June 1, indicated that 56 percent of New Yorkers believe the city is headed in the wrong direction, compared to 32 percent who say it’s on the right track. And seven in 10 of those polled reported feeling less safe now than when Covid-19 began two years ago — a stat that threatens to undermine Adams’ central campaign promise to reverse crime. But Adams appeared undaunted. Residents, he said, are “seeing the results of how we’re turning it around” and noted that shootings have dropped since he took office. “The feeling of being safe and the actualization of being safe is not an instant feeling,” he added. His words mark a departure from prior comments he has made about the rise in gun violence, such as in a recent PIX News interview, when he said that despite removing 2,600 illegal guns from city streets as of May 19, more continued to flow in. “A young child brought two 9 millimeter guns to school the other day in their book bags,” he said. “These guns are endless on our street[s]. I’ve never witnessed anything like this before in my professional career.” Yet the NYPD released statistics on Friday showing citywide shootings were down 31 percent from May 2021 to last month. The poll revealed some good news on the policy front for Adams, a former NYPD captain who has tangled with left-leaning Democrats over police reform. More New Yorkers want increased police department funding — 52 percent — than the 17 percent who favor less money for the agency. And 85 percent back Adams in sending more cops into city subways. Meanwhile, Adams plans to continue his calls for increased federal gun control when he testifies Wednesday before a Congressional hearing in Washington, D.C. — Sally Goldenberg and Danielle Muoio Dunn PROGRESSIVE CAUCUS HIRES DIRECTOR: The New York City Council’s Progressive Caucus has hired Emily Mayer as its director. Mayer co-founded IfNotNow , a Jewish organization that characterizes Israel as occupying Palestine. The group has called for a number of changes to American policy — including conditions that Israeli aid not be used for military intervention in Gaza or the West Bank. “This is such an important moment for the caucus and for the city, full of potential for meaningful change that can help ease the hardship so many New Yorkers are experiencing,” she said in a statement. The caucus announced the hire last week. — Joe Anuta | | ON THE BEATS | |
HEALTH CARE: Ten organizations will receive a total of $4.5 million through a federal Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment block grant to establish substance use and prevention coalitions, Hochul announced today. Three of them — D-Fi Drug Irondequoit, Inc., Tompkins Cortland Community College and Northpointe Council — will provide targeted services for the LGBTQ community. Each recipient will be awarded $150,000 annually for three years, for a total of $450,000. Additional funding — up to $1.8 million — is available for other coalitions in the New York City region. — Shannon Young
ENERGY: A bill that passed the Legislature in the final days of session will require all spent nuclear fuel rods at the now-closed Indian Point Energy Center in Westchester County will be taxed as real property. The measure, sponsored by Sen. Pete Harckham, a Hudson Valley Democrat, and Assembly member Sandy Galef (D-Westchester), will provide tax revenue to local communities after the nuclear plant was shuttered last year. The bill builds on one passed in 2020 that included taxing other nuclear equipment stored at the site; this one adds spent fuel rods that are kept there from around the state and nation. — Joseph Spector | | The Campaign Trail | |
AOC FOR BIAGGI: State Sen. Alessandra Biaggi picked up the endorsement of friend and ally Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez today as Biaggi hopes to join AOC in Congress next year.
Biaggi is challenging Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, who heads the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, in a primary on Aug. 23. Ocasio-Cortez and Biaggi have had an alliance since Biaggi beat former state senator Jeff Klein in a 2018 primary. “We can count on her to stand with our movement on critical issues such as abortion rights, championing the Green New Deal and Medicare for All, and fighting to raise the minimum wage. We have an incredible opportunity to continue building progressive power by electing Alessandra,” Ocasio-Cortez said in a statement. | | AROUND NEW YORK | |
— Republicans have picked Monroe Town Councilmember Dorey Houle to face state Sen. James Skoufis (D-Cornwall) in November.
— Police are investigating the firebombing of an anti-abortion center in Amherst. — New York officials fear that an imminent U.S. Supreme Court decision will lead to more gun violence. — A protester in Albany City Court released hundreds of cockroaches in the building. — A member of the Proud Boys from Rochester has been charged with seditious conspiracy related to his role in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
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