’Tis the Campaign Season: Play the 2008 Presidential Approval MatrixLooking for something to do until George Bush isn’t president anymore? Our new 2008 Presidential Approval Matrix will help pass the time. Every day, we’ll add fresh items about the candidates on the campaign trail. Did someone make an embarrassing blunder? Did a politician dare to tell the truth? Determine whether the presidential wannabes are likable or loathsome. Decide if their words are spin or substance. It may not be scientific, but it’s more fun than the current administration.
Play the 2008 Presidential Approval Matrix [NYM]
photo op
Rudy Giuliani, Tickler?
We have no idea what Rudy Giuliani was doing to John McCain at last night’s Republican debate, but we suspect he tried to make it illegal here when he was mayor.
the morning line
The Kennedy Conspiracy
• There’s more on the weekend’s big story, the foiled plot to blow up JFK. One angle: The fourth suspect, still at large, could be an Al Qaeda lieutenant with direct ties to bin Laden. [NYP]
• Another: The man who led the Feds to the plot was a twice-convicted drug dealer who successfully infiltrated the terror group after being muscled into serving as a government informant. [WNBC]
• Rudy Giuliani, seeking to diversify his stoicism-in-the-face-of-tragedy bona fides, stopped by to speak at Montoursville High School, which lost sixteen students aboard TWA 800. The campaign hilariously insists he just popped in for no reason. [amNY]
• Gun groups nationwide are casting Bloomberg as their No. 1 enemy, despite his concentration on illegal weapon sales. The NRA (whose site has a breaking-news ticker!) calls the mayor a “billionaire, Boston-grown evangelist for the nanny state.” Boston-grown — now that stings. [NYT]
• And OTB wants to put touch-screen terminals into city bars and accept “BlackBerry bets,” convinced it will find a new demographic there. We eagerly await the spectacle of drunken hipsters ironically losing their shirt on their ponies. [NYDN]
gossipmonger
Nobody Knows in America, Puerto Rico’s in AmericaJohn McCain has RSVP’d for the Puerto Rican Day Parade, but Rudy Giuliani has not. Lorraine Bracco will be a onetime co-host of The View. Baird Jones will celebrate Dr. Kevorkian’s release from prison tonight by exhibiting his paintings at Webster Hall. Kevin Costner ate at Michael’s. John Travolta may be in denial about his son’s autism because of Scientology. Paris Hilton plans to keep a diary when she’s in prison, which she can later sell. Sharon Stone is set to star in mock political ads to be unveiled at the upcoming Venice Biennale. Charlie Palmer’s Kitchen 22, on West 22nd Street, closed.
early and often
National Issues Our Mayor, Who Is Not Running for President, Currently Has a Vocal Stance On
If you’re scoring at home:
• Gun control: Vehemently opposed to illegal guns; pioneered an ingenious way of putting the heat on dealers in other states without overstepping mayoral jurisdiction.
• Education: Introduced fine-tunings to No Child Left Behind in Florida with Jeb Bush.
• Environment: Keynote speaker at the C40 Climate Summit; PlaNYC.
• Health Care: Smoking, trans fats, diabetes registry, subway condoms, you name it.
• And now, immigration: At a Memorial Day parade in Queens yesterday, Bloomberg called the guest-worker program being debated in the Senate “a joke.” He approves the bill’s rejection of mass deportations, but “shame on Congress,” he said, for suggesting two-year U.S. work stints for foreign laborers, something “nobody in their right mind would ever try to do.”
Mayor Assails Bill in Congress on Immigration [NYT]
Mike Bloomberg on the Issues [Bloomberg]
Related: Bloomberg Across America [NYM]
early and often
Sing Along With Hillary
Last week Hillary Clinton launched an exciting! new! interactive! element on her presidential-campaign Website: a “Choose Our Campaign Song” poll on which regular voters like you get to vote for one of eight options for Hillary’s campaign song. “Don’t Stop” isn’t one of the choices, but there are two U2 choices, a golden oldie, some Dixie Chicks, and that Devil Wears Prada song, among others. What messages does each one send? We consider the choices after the jump.
in other news
‘Time’ Magazine, and Al Gore’s Relaxed RearThe new Time Magazine — now out on Fridays! — has a cover hagio-profile of Al Gore. It’s full of good detail on what Gore’s up to these days, just how popular he seems to have become, and whether he’ll maybe maybe maybe run for president. But the key quote has got to be this one:
Al and Tipper Gore’s home, a 1915 antebellum-style mansion in the wealthy Belle Meade section of Nashville, is laid out a bit like Gore himself: a gracious and formal Southern façade; slightly stuffy rooms when you walk in the door; and startlingly modern, relaxed, informal living spaces to the rear.
We think it’s also saying he’s got a fat ass.
The Last Temptation of Al Gore [Time.com]
early and often
She’s a Genie in a Pantsuit: Xtina, Jenna Back HillaryThe race to line up celebrity star power behind the presidential campaigns rages on, and Hillary Clinton has scored a coup, booking pop star Christina Aguilera to play a special fund-raising concert at Capitale next month, the Clinton campaign has confirmed to New York. The backers of the event include Harvey Weinstein; Steve Bing; Aguilera’s manager, Irving Azoff; and Ron Burkle, according to promotional materials from the Clinton campaign, but it’s unclear what Aguilera has planned for the event. (We’re guessing the act will more closely resemble something from her more humble Back to Basics era than something from the pierced, tattooed, and flesh-baring days of her Stripped tour.) And in arguably related news, Hillary yesterday gained the endorsement of porn star Jenna Jameson. “I love Hillary,” Jameson said in an interview. “I think that in some ways she’s pretty conservative for a Democrat, but I would love to have a woman in office. I think that it would be a step in the right direction for our country, and there would be less focus on war and more focus on bettering society.” —Geoffrey Gray
the morning line
Mike, Trumps, Rudy
• No particular surprise here, but it’s still pleasant to report: Despite not actually running, Bloomberg handily topped Giuliani in a Daily News presidential poll. Some 46 percent of New Yorkers pick Mike over Rudy, who gets 29 percent. [NYDN]
• Not fans of Bloomberg: the Virginia Citizens Defense League. It’s planning to hold a gun giveaway — in a government building — to raise money for two dealers sued by Bloomie. [WNBC]
• New York may start collecting DNA from just about all convicts in all crimes: Eliot Spitzer’s proposing mandatory sampling of all prisoners, parolees, registered sex offenders, and future cons. The program’s also supposed to make exonerating the wrongly jailed a snap. [NYT]
• The Post trumpets the “return of the Mafia.” An exclusive story claims that Sicilian mobsters are making a major comeback across the organized-crime landscape, especially with the Gambino brothers out of jail. About 28 Godfather references follow. [NYP]
• And, more Trumps! Donald Jr. and his wife Vanessa had a baby girl over the weekend, Kai “It’s Danish” Madison Trump; the Donald, who may not even be done siring his own progeny, thus becomes a grandfather. That is all. [amNY]
in other news
The Media Primary: Bloomberg ‘08It might still be up in the air between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. Republicans might all be holding their breath for the inevitable explosion of the Rudy bubble and the subsequent inflation of — who? McCain? Romney? — a successor. But one primary has solidified in the last few days: Media moguls are backing Mike Bloomberg for president.
party lines
Bob Kerrey Likes Hillary and Bloomberg, Won’t Talk About ModelsFormer Nebraska senator and ‘92 presidential candidate Bob Kerrey’s perch at the New School seems to have made him a New York partisan: He says he “probably won’t” make any ‘08 endorsements, but he did tout two locals as his candidates of choice. “I like Hillary a lot,” he said at the annual Parsons benefit last week. “I think she’s been a great senator for New York and has a tremendous amount of experience. And I got to say I think Bloomberg’s done a phenomenal job. I’d be very comfortable with Hillary or Bloomberg.” But Bloomberg insists he won’t run. And neither will Kerrey, for that matter. “I have no elective political aspirations for ‘08,” Kerrey said. “But everything I do is political. Aren’t you going to ask me about Parsons? About fashion?” Okay — who’s your favorite designer? “I don’t have one.” Any thoughts on the skinny-model controversy? “Yes, but I’m not going to give you them. Most of my thoughts about the models are not publishable.” Glad we asked. —Amy Odell
the morning line
Never Fear, Corzine’s Here
• Is New Jersey governor Jon Corzine a superhero? He’s back to work today, just a few weeks after breaking a leg, eleven ribs, his collarbone, his sternum, and more in a horrific SUV crash. Three-time acting governor Richard Codey again politely recedes into the background. [WNBC]
• Kirsys Rodriguez, a 12-year-old Bronx girl, is in critical condition after catching a bullet in a post-party “dispute”: She was trying to flee the gunfire that erupted over somebody’s Sidekick. [NYT]
• Roger Clemens is back with the Yankees for the rest of 2007, for the discussion-ending $28 million (the Red Sox put up a paltry $18 million). Since the Yanks’ starting pitchers have been dropping like flies, he’ll start within days. [amNY]
• Joseph Oddo, a Virginia-based writer whose pet cause is to draft independent candidates to run for president, ha set his sights on Bloomberg. The Website, DraftMichael.com, handily serves to raise public awareness of, well, Joseph Oddo. [NYS]
• And it’s not exactly local news, but since Spider-Man has been bugging this city for the last several weeks, the least we can do is report his box office: $148 million for the weekend (a record), $59 million on Friday alone (a record), and $375 million worldwide (a record). Can he go away now? [NYDN]
early and often
Chris Smith on the Debate: Rudy Giuliani, Positively MayoralOne of the sillier conventions of post-debate analysis the Republican presidential candidates met last night at the Reagan President Library in California is the discussion of whether a candidate “looked presidential.” The intent is to determine which politician appeared to have the gravity and intelligence to occupy the Oval Office — and it’s a futile exercise, as standing up to Chris Matthews is hardly an indicator of the ability to handle, say, a nuclear standoff. That said, in the first debate among the GOP contenders, Rudy Giuliani came off looking distinctly mayoral.
early and often
We Do Not Understand What the Hell Mike Gravel Is Talking AboutThe star of last week’s Democratic presidential debate was a fringe contender Mike Gravel, 77, a former Alaska senator, who became a blogosphere sensation for saying that it should be a felony for Dubya & Co. to stay in Iraq. (He also drew laughs when he said the leading candidates scare him because they won’t rule out bombing Iran. “Who are we planning to nuke?” he asked Barack Obama. “I’m not planning to nuke anybody right now, Mike,” responded the Illinois senator.) Gravel — it’s pronounced gra-VELL — is a Columbia alum who drove a New York City cab while a student, and he’s back in town for appearances on The Colbert Report tonight and the Today show tomorrow morning. We spoke to him before he left his Virginia apartment, which doubles as his campaign headquarters — and we hope Colbert’s interview goes better than ours did.
early and often
Obama Set to Score First New York Endorsement
New York is Hillary Clinton’s home turf, but tomorrow Barack Obama will receive his first formal endorsement from a New York elected official, State Senator Bill Perkins, according to a knowledgeable source. Obama has been able to poach several big-money backers from his rival for the Democratic presidential nomination — he’s got several more fund-raisers scheduled in the city this weekend — but Perkins, a longtime Harlem politician, will be the first elected to formally support the Illinois senator. The endorsement is likely to ruffle the feathers of Harlem boss Charlie Rangel, a Hillary supporter, who recently declared, “I don’t know Obama supporters in New York.” It’s not the first time Perkins has gone against the Harlem establishment: He supported Howard Dean in the 2004 primary, when Rangel was supporting General Wesley Clark. “It’s all posturing, all game playing,” said one Harlem political strategist. “He’s trying to make the eye in the sky look at him.” Perkins hasn’t returned a call for comment. —Geoffrey Gray
early and often
Chris Smith on the Debate: A Win for Hillary
The crowded stage at the first Democratic presidential debate, held last night in South Carolina, made for an unwieldy and largely uninformative discussion. But the big field was a good thing for Hillary Clinton. One of the major hurdles for Hillary in this race, an element that’s at the core of her stubbornly high negative ratings in polls, is that many voters believe her to be remote and overly ambitious, a policy scold lacking in empathy. Clinton looked endearingly human last night simply by standing amid the seven men in dark suits; even with the diminutive Dennis Kucinich (literally and figuratively) to her left, the tableau emphasized how small Clinton is, physically, which helps shrink her larger-than-life political image. And being the only gal in a gang of middle-aged guys plays straight to a constituency Clinton needs to support her in big numbers: women.
gossipmonger
Rosie Offends WomenRosie O’Donnell emceed a luncheon for Women in Communications, and she offended audience members with off-color jokes. Cindy Adams liked her act, though. Bill Clinton, Ted Kennedy, Norman Mailer, and Anna Wintour all showed up for the memorial service for JFK aide Arthur Schlesinger Jr. Rudy Giuliani’s success in presidential polls is making Mike Bloomberg want to run for president. Martha Stewart’s billionaire boyfriend, Charles Simonyi, returned from a visit to the International Space Station. An Icelandic billionaire bought an Ian Schrager penthouse in Gramercy Park for $10 million. Hotelier Jason Pomeranc celebrated his birthday with Kate Hudson. Sheryl Crow may be an environmental activist, but a performance rider shows she demands three tractor trailers, four buses, and six cars for a gig. Speaking of Crow, she may have had a falling out with fellow activist Laurie David during their anti-global-warming cross-country tour.
early and often
Hillary and Obama Fight for New York’s Rich Kids
The next behind-the-scenes battle between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama is shaping up between their young and potentially rich campaign pawns: The HillBlazers vs. Generation O. Gen-O is a different kind of concept to match a different kind of politics, the Obama camp says, more about “friendraising” than the charmless money grabs that usually come with cutthroat, celebrity politics. But the Hillary camp insists the Obama kids are just HillBlazers with a different kind of branding.
in other news
RIP Rudy’s Gun-Control Plan, 1980–2006
One of the unpleasant side effects of the Virginia Tech tragedy is that every presidential candidate is scrambling to reiterate his stance on gun control. In Rudy Giuliani’s eyes, per the ex-mayor’s campaign statement, the massacre “does not alter the Second Amendment.” Funny thing, though: As the Politico’s Jonathan Martin notes today, with a YouTube clip to back him up, Old Rudy used to argue for federal firearm regulation. Giuliani’s big idea — one he’s been pushing, in his own words, “since at least 1980” — is to treat gun licenses like driver’s licenses: to institute a written test and a physical test (for marksmanship?) under a federal law, with state-specific tweaks here and there. Leave it to Rudy to sidle up to the my-cold-dead-hands base at the moment when even some gun-loving Virginians are doubting their beliefs in the wake of a senseless bloodbath. Oh, Rudy: They still won’t like you, and now you’ll hate yourself too.
Rudy No Longer Interested in Federal Mandate on Handguns [Politico]
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At Last Minute, Bill Clinton Hits the ACORN Gala
The 25th anniversary gala for ACORN, the national nonprofit that advocates on behalf of low- and moderate-income families, was held at Citigroup Center last night, and the group had a major headliner as their guest: Bill Clinton. It’s no surprise that Clinton would support a social-justice organization like ACORN — indeed, the Clinton Foundation and ACORN work together on several projects — but, as it happens, ACORN officials were pretty surprised that Clinton was actually on hand last night. According to one insider, both Bill and Hillary were invited to the event about a month ago, and both declined to attend. But just a few days ago, the insider says — and, we should note, after a week of great week of publicity in New York for Barack Obama, Hillary’s rival from the Democratic presidential nomination — Bill’s people called ACORN to re-invite him. He was set to join mayoral contenders Adolfo Carrion, Christine Quinn, Anthony Weiner, and Bill Thompson, former Mets slugger Mo Vaughan, and actress Cynthia Nixon (who ultimately didn’t show) at the gala. Hillary, according to her schedule, stayed in Washington. —Geoffrey Gray
the morning line
Starrett-Crossed
• Clipper Equity’s ingenious PR notwithstanding, the would-be Starrett City buyer was thwarted again. On Saturday, the state’s Housing Commissioner rejected the firm’s second bid for the complex, concerned with the group’s poor track record in the area. [TheStreet.com]
• A blaze in a Bronx apartment building injured 53 people by AM New York’s count (the Post has the number at 41), including 14 firefighters. The three-alarm fire began on the first floor and quickly spread up and out through hallways. [amNY, NYP]
• Barack Obama (who evidently can’t just come to a city; he either “swings through” or “invades” it) is back in New York for more fund-raising. He’ll hang at a couple of good addresses before stopping by the Letterman show. Obama’s previous New York City take is estimated at $3 million. [NYDN]
• Bush knew. About Bernie Kerik’s past, that is, when NYC’s then-top cop was nominated to head Homeland Security. Thus, the doomed pick could have been a purely political gesture. Oh, and Alberto Gonzales had a hand in it, too. [NYP]
• And East Hampton becomes a two-newspaper town: The Press, an import from one town over, is taking on the 122-year-old local institution the Star (as New York reported last month). Get ready for war. [NYT]
the morning line
Gee, Man
• Friendly fire from fellow FBI men killed an agent in the middle of an operation in Readington, New Jersey. The Feds were taking down a gang of armed bank robbers, one of whom escaped and remains on the loose. [NYP]
• David Bistricer of Clipper Equity, the thwarted would-be buyer of the Starrett City housing megacomplex, is back. This time, he cobbled together a camera-ready coalition: a lobbyist with Spitzer connections, an architect, and two black ministers. [NYT]
• More awesomeness from Rudy Giuliani’s traveling road show: The presidential candidate began a stump speech in California with a Godfather impersonation, then referred to his wife as “a civilian, to use the old Mafia distinction.” Yeah, he’s a shoo-in. [amNY]
• Geese are driving ducks out of Central Park, so the city is bringing in border collies to drive out the geese. Before we make a “who’s going to drive out the dogs” joke, let’s pause and reflect on the fact that there’s a company called Geese Police Inc. on the city payroll. [NYT]
• And a strong contestant for the dumbest con ever: An unemployed Brooklynite siphoned off $3.6 million from a city account at JPMorgan Chase (by rigging up 604 individual electronic transfers), spent it through Jewelry TV, then tried to pawn the baubles for cash. [NYDN]
the morning line
Jersey Jackals
• The Times reveals that the Garden State has been regularly raiding its own state-worker pension fund, funneling billions into other government projects. Given the size of its public sector, disaster looms; New Jersey, we thought better of you. [NYT]
• Activists in East Harlem faced bulldozers in a dramatic, and failed, showdown over a community garden. The site, on 110th and Fifth, is being cleared for the future Museum for African Art — and, of course, a luxury condo tower. [amNY]
• The Giuliani campaign, God’s gift to tabloids, has turned to Rudy’s international-policy experience: “I’ve probably been in foreign lands more than any other candidate” as a private consultant, he assured New Hampshire and hinted he’ll hit Iraq next. [NYDN]
• The Knitting Factory, the Tribeca music institution, is promising not to go the way of Tonic, Sin-é, CBGB, and many others: Should the rent skyrocket when its lease runs out, the club will try buying the whole building. [MetroNY]
• And midtown’s old-money hangout/tourist trap ‘21’ Club has even longer arms than previously thought: It just stopped the Pittsburgh Pirates from naming a stadium sports bar “Club 21.” Because otherwise the two would be indistinguishable. [NYP]
the morning line
Someone, Think of the Children!
• The state budget is here — virtually on time! — and guess what provision made it in while everyone was busy arguing about hospital cuts? A program that makes 400,000 uninsured children eligible for near-free health care. [NYT]
• Hillary Clinton set a record for pre-primary fund-raising, drumming up $26 million in the first three months of 2007. Her war chest now totals $36 million, with ten left over from the layup Senate campaign. Obama is at $20 million. And Chris Dodd apparently has subway fare. [NYDN]
• Q: When does the Post become touchy-feely about animal welfare? A: When it helps torpedo a Giuliani. Turns out that in the seventies, Judith then-Nathan used to shill for a medical-supply firm that put surgical staples on live dogs during sales demonstrations. Ew. [NYP]
• Today’s USA Today profiles, in heroic prose (“tempers flare as forklifts dart”), the armed federal agents patrolling the Fulton Fish Market for illegal clams. It seems 750 probes into local seafood-smuggling operations were launched in the last year alone. [USAT]
• And a new Arabic middle school will take up the top floor of Park Slope’s P.S. 282, which put the nabe’s parents in a somewhat un–Park Slope–ian nativist tizzy — with some threatening to pull their kids out. Thing is, it’ll be an Arabic language school, not a madrassa. [MetroNY]
early and often
Giuliani Loses a Second Bushie
Rudy Giuliani’s front-running presidential campaign has lost a key staffer with connections to Karl Rove. Margaret Hoover joined Giuliani’s Solutions America PAC in September to help direct fund-raising operations, but her greater value was to shore up the former mayor’s credentials with conservatives and to signal Giuliani’s seriousness about a White House run. Hoover, a great-granddaughter of the 31st president and an intergovernmental-affairs aide to Rove before taking the Giuliani job, brought important national campaign experience to the team, having worked for Bush-Cheney ‘04.
the morning line
Rudy! Rudy! Rudy!
• We were kinda hoping this wouldn’t come out until, say, a week before the primaries, but take it away, Times: Rudy Giuliani was briefed on Bernie Kerik’s unsavory dossier, including the commish’s possible mafia ties, in 2000. Then Rudy made him the city’s top cop. [NYT]
• New Jersey governor Jon Corzine has already picked a side of the Dem roster for 2008: He’s officially endorsing Hillary. (The State Senate president, Richard Codey, is a John Edwards man.) This is not insignificant considering N.J.’s extra-early primary date. [WNBC]
• Long Island police are investigating nightmarish scenarios after severed limbs “with pink toenail polish” washed up in Nassau, Suffolk, and Westchester. There’s also a torso in a Wal-Mart suitcase, and revolting details galore for the curious. [Newsday]
• Since we’re reminiscing about Rudy, how about a big fat Catholic controversy around a work of art? Cosimo Cavallaro is planning an Easter exhibit of an anatomically correct (of course) chocolate (of course) Jesus (of course), and he swears the timing is coincidental (yeah, right). [NYDN]
• And meanwhile a polyester-resin security guard named Artie, installed in the lobby of a Uniondale office tower, causes no controversy whatsoever. Probably because he’s inedible. [NYT]
intel
The Eartha Kitt Primary: Go Obama!
Obama and Bloomberg get a thumbs-up, and Hillary gets a raised eyebrow, from the inimitable Eartha Kitt. The still very spry singer and dancer, who turned 80 in January, plays a fortune-teller in a Kander and Ebb musical, All About Us, coming to the Westport Country Playhouse. At a sneak peek of the show this week, we asked about her ‘08 presidential picks. “I’m for my country, not politicians who go blah blah blah,” purred the eternal Catwoman, who spent a decade shut out of gigs in this country after she denounced the Vietnam War during a 1968 White House visit.
the morning line
Mother of Mercy, Is This the End of San Gennaro?
• Now that’s not very Italian! A subcommittee of Little Italy’s community board voted against approving the annual San Gennaro feast, calling it a noisy nuisance. (The CB’s votes are merely recommendations to the city, though.) Zeppoles will fly! [NYDN]
• Every night can be a night at the museum if you’re the lucky (and rich) person who paid $276,000 for a dinosaur skull, or $4,500 for a mummy’s hand, at yesterday’s I.M. Chait Gallery natural-history auction. [NYT]
• Hillary sets a new early fund-raising record, trotting out five-star attraction Bill and netting an Obama-and-Edwards-are-gagging-worthy $10 mil over four events in one week. [NYDN]
• Not just the real thing, but kosher, too. The just-for-Passover version of Coca-Cola — made with real sugar, not corn syrup, because corn’s among the Passover no-nos — is again available in area supermarkets. [NYP]
• State Senator Jeff Klein wants to rat out (ha!) dirty restaurants by giving eateries an A-through-F health grade they must post at their doors. Can penitent taco chains earn an “E” for effort? [amNY]
the morning line
The British Are Coming!
• Remember Steven Johnson, the freak who terrorized Bar Veloce in 2002, splashing kerosene on patrons? Well, he just got 240 years in prison. Yeah, we don’t know what took five years, either. [NYP]
• Renaming corners, part one: A coalition of local businesses, backed by no less than Virgin Airways, is campaigning to call a slice of the West Village “Little Britain.” The stage-one strategy apparently involves sub–Benny Hill humor. (“What’s one more queen in the Village?”) [MetroNY]
• Renaming corners, part two: Elaine Orbach may yet get the intersection of 53rd and Eighth named after her late husband, Jerry. After striking out with the grumpy Community Board 5, she found fans on Board 4 — which controls the west side of the same avenue. [NYT]
• In a high-tech twist on a classic, a married couple is suing a Park Avenue clinic for allegedly inseminating the wife with the wrong man’s sperm: The father is white, the mother Dominican, the baby black. [NYDN]
• And New York has joined more than twenty states moving their presidential primaries up to February 5. With any luck, Assemblyman Keith Wright’s coinage for the occasion — “Super-Duper Tuesday” — won’t get any kind of traction in the media. Oh, crap, we just did it. [NYT]
in other news
America Loves Rudy More Than Ever; New York, Not So Much
The Gallup Poll people released new numbers on the Republican presidential contenders today, and they only buttress the emerging consensus that Rudy Giuliani, who used to be New York’s tyrannical mayor before he came America’s beloved one, is the nominal front-runner. Forty-eight percent of liberal and moderate Republicans — granted a group that might be about twelve people big these days — said they preferred Giuliani; 26 percent picked the second-place finisher, John McCain. But even among conservative GOPers, the thrice-married moderate came in first, with 38 percent of respondents picking him to McCain’s 20 percent. And here’s the knockout punch: A whopping 80 percent of all Republicans holds a favorable impression of Giuliani. That’s huge — and “until he’s not defined by 9/11,” the Politico’s Jonathan Martin writes, “those fav/unfav numbers probably don’t come down.” But, then, those are national numbers. Contrast them with local poll results reported today by Crain’s New York Business. There, 70 percent of respondents agreed that Rudy lacks the temperament to be president, presumably recalling his performance up through September 10, 2001. Of course, this Crain’s poll, unlike Gallup’s, was online and unscientific. On the other hand, its respondents were people who have actually, you know, been governed by the guy. Ah, memories.
Gallup on Rudy’s Lead [The Politico]
Giuliani Not Fit for the White House: Poll [Crain’s]
early and often
Blazin’ With Hillary
About 40 young moneymakers with neat hair and well-fitting suits arrived at a midtown restaurant last night for the first, unpublicized meeting of the HillBlazers Committee. HillBlazers is the oddly Young Republican–sounding name — we imagine those blazers in navy, accented by repp ties and pleated khakis — the Hillary-for-president folks have given to the wealthy under-45ers who will spend the next two years fund-raising for the campaign. “Interestingly, there were more men than women,” at the meeting, a spy told us. “I would say it was a 60-40 ratio. There were clearly a lot of hedge-funders, people who work in finance. It was very crew cut.”
in other news
Rudy and Donna: The Way They Were
Today’s Times reminds us that Rudy Giuliani, America’s Mayor, used to be and likely still is a “mean-spirited,” cross-dressing, twice-divorced guy who used to call his old gay roommate “mother” as he left for work each day. But that’s not all there is to Rudy. He’s also “strong, and at the same time gentle,” according to a testimonial Ben Smith reports today on the Politico. Who’d that endorsement come from? His then-wife, Donna Hanover, in a 1993 TV commercial that featured the whole Giuliani family. It’s a misty, water-colored campaign ad, about the way the Giulianis were.
RudyTube 1993: Rudy and Donna [Politico]
New York Label May Not Fit All in Giuliani Run [NYT]
the morning line
The Bronx Was Burning
• A brutal fire in the Bronx engulfed a four-story house filled with immigrant families, killing eight children and one adult. Witnesses relate terrible images of children tossed out of the windows in a last-ditch attempt to save them. A basement space heater is cited as the cause. [NYT]
• A Barack Obama fund-raiser scheduled for tomorrow in midtown has caused what the Daily News terms a “ticket-buying frenzy.” The $100 event at Grand Hyatt will be aimed at “younger people” — for the moneyed elders, there’s a $1,000-a-head reception at the same hotel, but earlier. [NYDN]
• Know those ubiquitous, slightly nagging TV ads telling women to vaccinate against the human papillomavirus? Funny thing: None of the city’s STD clinics and immunization centers have the vaccine. [MetroNY]
• And now he’s a lawyer: George Pataki is joining Chadbourne & Parke, a law firm housed in 30 Rock, as a consultant on environmental issues. Wait, wasn’t he supposed to be running for president? [NYP]
in other news
Six Theories on Why the ‘Times’ Finds a $13,000 Stock Loss to Be Front-Page News
The No. 2 story on the front page of today’s Times breaks the news that Barack Obama’s blind (or at least going-blind) trust invested $50,000 in two companies linked to campaign donors, that when he learned of the investments he sold the stock, and that he took a $13,000 loss on the investments. And so we wonder, this is big news because ? After the jump, some hypotheses.
early and often
Hill Wins in Obama Spat, Edwards Aide Says
Barack Obama should have ignored the Hillary Clinton camp’s moral-minded broadsides over David Geffen’s the-Clintons-are-liars comments last week, one of John Edwards’s strategists says. “They made it a five-day story, and it knocked Barack off his pedestal,” the strategist says. “They shouldn’t have answered back. It would have gone away. I think Barack definitely lost that round.” The Edwards people know of what they speak. In January, the strategist recalls, Edwards spoke at Riverside Church, where he said that “silence is betrayal” on the Iraq war. As if on cue, Hillary’s longtime attack dog, Howard Wolfson, said the wording was “clearly aimed” at Hillary, and he lashed out at Edwards, claiming the ex–North Carolina senator was violating a campaign promise he made back in ‘04 to keep races among Democrats “positive.” Edward’s didn’t take the bait. And the issue, unlike this time, disappeared. —Geoffrey Gray
early and often
Hillary’s Barack-Bashing: Too Soon?
Did Hillary Clinton’s longtime PR attack dog, Howard Wolfson, try to take a bite out of Barack Obama’s hide a bit too early? Wolfson demanded earlier this week that Obama take the extreme steps of removing Hollywood mogul David Geffen from his campaign and return his contributions after Geffen dissed the Clintons in an interview. It’s a dis that some strategists think didn’t need to be addressed. “It’s weird they let this happen,” says Basil Smikle Jr., a former senior Hillary aide turned political strategist. “That was a mistake.” How so?
in other news
Candidate Books: Coming Soon to a Shelf, Remainder Bin Near YouToday the Times turns its publishing-world attention from Nascar lit to a different kind of race, the presidential one, and specifically to presidential books. It seems there are distinct types of candidate tomes, and publishing insiders provide a detailed taxonomy of them: There are “introduction,” “manifesto,” and “off-topic” works. (Generously, if inexplicably, the experts put Al Gore’s Earth in the Balance in the third category and not the second.) The article is full of unsurprising facts: Barack Obama’s Audacity of Hope has opened a can of Amazon whup-ass on the reissue of Hillary Clinton’s It Takes a Village; Bush absolutely did not write A Charge to Keep (we sort of recall news in 2000 that he hadn’t read it, either, but maybe we just feel that’s the case because no one else did), and that if book sales were ballots, John McCain would be finishing his second term. Those best-sellers notwithstanding, though, the quoted experts agree that, as one puts it, “most of these books are going to be wastes of trees.” Hey, in the grand scheme of things, bad books are the least bad things paper can do to a presidential election.
Time to Throw Their Books Into the Ring [NYT]
the morning line
Rudy!
• The Post stokes Giuliani’s presidential fire by reporting that the ex-mayor leads Hillary 48 to 43 percent nationwide and ties her in “blue states” (including New York). Don’t ever stop printing those, lest he change his mind! [NYP]
• Four gay couples have already not-quite-married in New Jersey, which on Monday became the third state in our fair country to offer civil unions. (Why just now and not Monday? There’s a 72-hour waiting period.) In Asbury Park, the mayor officiated. [WNBC]
• Here’s a nice little companion item to yesterday’s report that Manhattan workers take home twice the national average in wages: They also, according to a strangely balanced-sounding statistic, pay 47 percent more in taxes. [MetroNY]
• Having solved every problem that has ever plagued the State of New York, the Assembly turns its attention to the inadequate enforcement of the “pooper scooper” law within the city. Apparently, a $50 to $100 fine is not enough of a deterrent to the cash-rich Manhattanites (see previous item). Would a $250 one help? [amNY]
• Dr. Denton Sayer Cox, a onetime prominent physician who treated Andy Warhol, is hospitalized himself after a stranger beat and burned him with an unknown chemical in his Upper East Side triplex. Police allege, and the News relishes, a gay pickup gone awry. [NYDN]
in other news
College Kids Like Obama More Than Hillary, ‘Desperate Housewives’
The big newspapers tell us the currently important dramas in the 2008 presidential race are the “money primary” and the “talent primary.” But what about the college kids–clicking–on–things primary? A story published on The Nation’s Website last week on Barack Obama’s appeal to young people mentioned that the Facebook group “One Million Strong for Obama” boasted 272,000 members. In the five days since the story was published — covering a road-trip-friendly three-day weekend — the group added 17,000 new members. (Any Facebooker can join the group, which is unaffiliated with the campaign and features information on rallies and donations and so forth.) “One Million Strong for Hillary,” meantime, has held steady at around 3,700 members. That’s about as many people as Obama attracted in each of the last five days — or, put another way, about 24,000 Internet-savvy college-age kids less than are “Addicted to Grey’s Anatomy.”
Obama’s Impressive Youthroots [The Nation]
in other news
Rudy Giuliani: The Evolution of a Presidential Candidate
October 2004, Macon, Georgia: “We’ll have to see what it’s like a year or two from now.” [NYM]
November 14, 2006, New York: “It is not a declaration, it is not an announcement — it is none of that.” [NYDN]
February 6, 2007, Hannity & Colmes: “We still have to formally announce it and do a few more things.” [NYT]
February 13, 2007, Tulare, California: “The American farmer is the most innovative in the world. You feed us. You take care of us. Each of us kind of helps the other.” [AP via amNY]
February 14, 2007, Larry King Live: “Yes, I’m running.” [NYT]
the morning line
It’s Giuliani Time
• Rudy and Hillary, together again for the very first time. That’s right — Giuliani all but declared his presidential bid yesterday, filing a “Statement of Candidacy” with the FEC, meaning that the two candidates’ aborted Y2K power grapple for the Senate could finally be revived on a national stage. [NYT]
• Mayor Mike Bloomberg rips into the $330 million hole in city funding created by Governor Eliot Spitzer’s new budget, claiming the cuts will rob NYC of twice that amount — and questioning Spitz’s claim that closing up some tax loopholes will balance out the loss. [NYP]
• Six panhandlers sue the city for illegally arresting them after one of their own, Eddie Wise, scored $100,000 after a similar suit. They are just a few of a possible 7,000 such wrongful haul-ins. [NYDN]
• Having obviously visited the wrong debt-management counselor, a Queens man beats a cop with a bat and steals his gun, aiming to pull off robberies to pay back $16,000. The cop is in critical but stable condition and the arrested thug faces 25 to life, with the debt still unpaid, presumably. [Newsday]
• President Bush is putting $1.3 billion into the federal budget to help complete the Second Avenue subway — not to mention $215 mil to aid in bringing the Long Island Rail Road to Grand Central Terminal. [amNY]
the morning line
So Much for the Hill-Rupe Alliance
• Hillary stumps in Iowa — hey, the caucus is only twelve months away — and the Post is already scandalized. See, Hillary rolled her eyes when asked if she can handle “evil men” — and we all know what that means. [NYP]
• Remember Efrain Gonzalez, the Albany politician who funneled children’s-charity funds into vacation houses and custom cigars? Turns out Gonzalez is, at least, as cruel to his own children as to others’: He has “virtually abandoned” his disabled son, an ex-wife says. [NYDN]
• Charles and Camilla’s itinerary for the weekend New York visit included watching Harlem kids perform Shakespeare, picking up an environmental award from Al Gore, and getting photographed shooting hoops (one of the two princely shots went in). [WABC]
• The new contract between public-school teachers and the city had an interesting side effect: Teachers will now be making more than principals, who aren’t part of the same union. The latter aren’t happy (especially now that Bloomberg wants to give them more authority). [NYT]
• And thousands ran the “Idiotarod” from Greenpoint to Queens on Saturday — a bizarro race wherein costumed participants, tied to shopping carts, throw edibles at each other. The official winner is not yet known, so we’ll just go ahead and call it for Hillary. [
Obama Snags Major Clinton Money ManAdd to Barack Obama’s list of marquee New York donors — and former Clinton supporters — the name of Orin S. Kramer. Kramer is an enviro-friendly financier and author who has been a stalwart in Clinton money-raising quarters for years. He played a key role in the Al Gore and John Kerry presidential campaigns, serving as New York co-chair for both. A domestic-policy staffer in the Carter White House, Kramer is currently the general partner of Boston Provident, L.P. He’s the latest fund-raising coup for the Obama camp, which also picked up support from lefty billionaire George Soros earlier this week. How did Kramer reach the decision to leave team Clinton? “I ran up against my pain threshold,” he said. “I have unalloyed respect for Senator Clinton. She is eminently electable, and some of my closest friends are major players in her universe. But despite being a dinosaur, I’m drawn to a different kind of political experience. Whether large numbers of people will see the world that way, we’ll see.” —Geoffrey Gray
numbers game
Poll: New Yorkers Support Their Overwhelmingly Reelected Senator
Today’s Daily News has blockbuster front-page news: In a poll of New York City residents, more would pick their own senator to be the Democratic presidential nominee than would pick a freshman Illinois senator with far lower name recognition. (Who’d have thunk it?) If there’s any interest to the poll, it’s in the demographic breakdowns.
• New York City voters who would pick Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nominee: 43 percent
• New York City voters who would pick Barack Obama for the Democratic presidential nominee: 24 percent
the morning line
Hillary!
• We’re 48 hours into Hillary’s official campaign for the presidency, and already the Times is wondering who’d fill her Senate seat. Names that have come up: Paterson, Meeks, Velasquez, Lowey — and even Suozzi. A News survey, meantime, finds Hillary beating Obama handily — in New York City. (Of course, we’re pretty sure Gore and Kerry did likewise to Bush here.) [NYT, NYDN]
• Damon Mootoo, the deaf guy from Guyana who disappeared in Queens last week hours after arriving in the United States, was finally found and returned to his relatives. He said he lived in cars and backyards for four days. [NY1]
• Tired of the busy signals when you try calling for that Per Se reservation exactly two months in advance? You’ll be thrilled to learn that a new service charges clients $35 to $45 to nab them rezzies at tough-to-get-into hot spots. [NYP]
• London may be edging out Gotham as the biz capital of the world, due in part to the United States’ lawsuit-heavy culture and tough immigration rules, says a new $500,000 report. [NYDN]
• Waitress, the movie made by New York indie-film actress Adrienne Shelly before she was murdered in her apartment last year, was shown to applause and tears at Sundance. [1010WINS]
it just happened
Hillary’s In
To the great surprise of no one, Hillary Clinton finally announced this morning that she’s running for president in 2008. “I’m in. And I’m in to win,” she said in a statement posted to her new campaign Website, oddly echoing the old Lotto slogan. “All you need is a dollar and a dream,” retorted fellow presidential aspirant George Pataki, continuing his quixotic campaign.
Hillary Says ‘I’m In to Win’$2 2008 Race [NYT]
Hillary for President [Official site]