Winners & Losers 6/10/16

New York City got a new budget this week, but will state lawmakers finish their business next week? We’re betting they pass legislation they can tout in the elections this fall – and if not, they'll have enough to blame each other about. For now, here are this week’s Winners & Losers.

WINNERS

Steve Cassidy & Harry Nespoli – Cassidy finally put out the fire. After months of pushing and protesting, Cassidy’s United Firefighters Association and unions representing correction and sanitation workers reached a deal ensuring newer hires get a larger disability pension if they’re injured on the job. Although the city will put some money towards the firefighters’ benefits, the sanitation workers – represented by Nespoli – and correction personnel will completely fund the pensions through contributions. (If you’re wondering why  the correction workers union wasn't a winner too, check out the bottom of the losers list.)

Hillary Clinton – She may not be a born-and-bred New Yorker, but the former New York senator’s historic clinching of the Democratic nomination should make New Yorkers proud of the first female presidential nominee of a major political party. And how is Clinton celebrating her win? Why, she’s going to be making a trip to her favorite bookstore in Chappaqua.

Melissa Mark-Viverito – It’s been a high-profile week for the speaker of the New York City Council, who took on the role as a top Clinton surrogate in New York. Her appearances on national network shows after she called Donald Trump a racist at a press conference outside of Trump Tower also fueled speculation that Mark-Viverito was angling for a position in a potential Clinton administration. And not to be outdone on the local front, Mark-Viverito and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio shook hands on the earliest city budget deal in 15 years.

Wayne Spence – After a long fight, the president of the Public Employees Federation secured a one-year contract agreement, which included a 2 percent retroactive raise, and it was ultimately ratified by more than 30,000 of its members – with only about 1,000 voting against it. Those are pretty good returns for a man who represents about 54,5000 workers in New York.

Zephyr Teachout  & John Faso – It seems that running for governor is good for your brand. Teachout gained name recognition challenging Cuomo in 2014 and now heads into the NY-19 democratic primary with a 30-point lead in the polls over challenger Will Yandik –  and that was before bagging endorsements from both the state’s U.S. senators. On the Republican side, 2006 GOP gubernatorial nominee Faso holds a 22-point lead in the polls over Andrew Heaney. Now, who will explain this whole running-for-governor thing to outgoing Rep. Chris Gibson?

LOSERS

Anthony Annucci – While Steve Racette was the man in charge of the Clinton Correctional Facility when two murderers escaped last summer, sparking a three-week manhunt, Annucci, the acting superintendent of the state Department of Corrections, is the one left dealing with the fallout from a 150-page Inspector General’s report on the “systemic” lapses that led to the prison break. The report detailed guards reading and napping instead of performing their duties, as well as the manipulation of a civilian employee who supplied the inmates with materials, painting an unflattering picture for the DOC boss to deal with.

Ronald Castorina – Regardless of your views on abortion, you’re not going to win anyone over by describing it as “African-American genocide.” And it doesn’t look any better coming from a white, male lawmaker who represents a district with a small black population. But that’s what freshman Assemblyman Ron Castorina did, riling up Assemblyman Charles Barron and prompting many other Assembly Dems to walk out in protest. Castorina at one point stood up to defend his comments during the contentious debate – only to sit back down without speaking after Assembly Minority Leader Brian Kolb took him aside.

Carmen Fariña –  The New York City school system is the subject of a federal complaint with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights, and the allegations of sexual attacks outlined in the complaint are horrifying. Fariña now has to explain how it is that female students who reported that they were sexually assaulted were punished and then left out in the open for their attackers’ unfettered retaliation.

Joel Landau, Solomon Rubin & Marvin Rubin – As if the probes and press scrutiny weren’t enough, the heads of Allure Group are now hearing from the state’s charity cops. The state Attorney General’s office sent letters to nursing care providers in Harlem and Coney Island saying it objected to the sales of any nonprofit organizations to Landau’s and the Rubins’ firm. The AG cited misrepresentations and broken promises the Allure Group made with regards to maintaining a nursing home on a Lower East Side site now on track to become luxury condos.

Norman Seabrook – He may feel like a million dollars, but the correction officers union chief is $250K poorer and out on bail after being arrested Wednesday. Good, old-fashioned bribery may yet turn the King of the Rikers guards into an inmate under their charge. Preet has taken down bigger names than Seabrook, and this case seems pretty straightforward: I steer millions from the pension fund to your hedge fund, you hand me a Ferragamo bag filled with $60,000. Hedge fund manager Murray Huberfeld was arrested as well, but now all eyes are on where “cooperating witness #1” will lead to next.