Winners & Losers 8/4/16

Donald Trump’s candidacy may ultimately help his fellow Republicans who are running for Congress, but his latest remarks seem to have hurt his – and their – cause. Some incumbents are still embracing him, while others are attacking him and still others want to avoid him entirely. The GOP's standard-bearer could defy expectations and capitalize on the controversies – but we’ll leave the predictions about his chances to the national pundits as we bring you the latest Winners & Losers.

WINNERS

John Bonacic & Gary Pretlow – Daily fantasy sports fans were outraged when Attorney General Eric Schneiderman charged DraftKings and FanDuel with violating New York gambling laws and the state temporarily banned gambling on the daily fantasy sport websites. But Assemblyman Gary Pretlow and state Sen. John Bonacic worked until the closing hours of the legislative session to pass a bill legalizing DFS, and this week the governor signed the legislation – giving the all clear. Play on!

Chris Crane – Things are heating up at New York’s upstate nuclear power plants as Exelon’s R.E. Ginna and Nine Mile Point plants are about to benefit from a $500 million dollar subsidy from taxpayers to keep that uranium glowing. Exelon President and CEO Crane found himself in the right place at the right time, providing energy cleaner than coal or gas and – unlike Indian Point – far from a major population center.

Carmen Fariña – These kids seem to have done their homework. New figures show New York City students caught up with the rest of the state on English tests, a victory for the schools chancellor. Whether it’s driven by changes to the test, gains at charter schools, underperforming students opting out or simply better teaching, the news allowed Farina to tout the “incredible improvement.” Whatever the case, the Senate GOP is bound to find a way to spin this by next year’s mayoral control debate.

James O’Neill – No wonder he referenced his Irish roots when introduced as the next NYPD commissioner: You could call it lucky that O’Neill will be the first chief of department to be promoted to the top cop post in more than four decades. Reform-minded politicians have  also embraced him more than the outgoing Commissioner Bill Bratton. And because O’Neill’s promotion was announced at the same time as Bratton’s resignation, his ascension reduced from pressures to pick a black or Latino commissioner, which could have worked against him.

Joseph Ponte – After getting pummeled in article after article about the city’s floundering Rikers Island reforms, Ponte touted statistics showing a substantial drop in the number of times corrections officers used force on inmates and it resulted in serious injuries. His department’s work was applauded by Bryanne Hamill, a member of the Board of Correction monitoring city jails. The Legal Aid Society, however, suggested the data was “cherry-picked.”

LOSERS

Joseph Coffey – A lot of New York politicos make jokes about Albany being a cesspool … but maybe they should change that to a sinkhole for corruption. The city is sinking to a new low with the latest disaster – this one swallowing an SUV – after another sinkhole appeared in May. Coffey, the water commissioner, and other city officials are working to fix the problem, but it may take time seeing as how they don’t have Homer Simpson to plug the hole.

Matthew Pappalardo – There’s a lot of money in helping homeowners rebuild after damage from storms like Sandy – and even more money if you leave your morals at the door. An indictment from Attorney General Eric Schneiderman accuses the Long Island’s Hi-Rise Engineering and Pappalardo, an ex-director, of faking documents chronicling storm damage, among other forms of business fraud. Now the legal cloud is growing, as Schneiderman says he’s uncovered evidence of similar crimes in other states.

Gil Quiniones – In state politics, when an audit of your agency is a hot topic it almost never is a good thing. Such is the case with a new report from state Comptroller Tom DiNapoli’s office regarding a low-cost power program administered by Quiniones’ New York Power Authority. NYPA overreported the number of jobs retained or created by a whopping 30,000 and was extremely lax in reporting requirements for beneficiaries of the program.

Jose Rivera – Aren’t Democrats supposed to be about big government? The Bronx assemblyman didn’t sponsor a single bill last session – a feat unmatched by his fellow 211 state legislators. And that fact allows him to stand alone as the least active lawmaker. His lone bill last year was of critical public importance – extending free admission days at the Bronx Zoo – so let’s hope he does more of that and less time behind the camera.

Howard Zemsky – This week the state’s economic development czar was grilled during a legislative hearing on a number of state programs that have come under scrutiny recently, most notably the governor’s Start-Up NY tax incentive program, which has turned a $50 million investment into just 408 jobs. Zemsky seemed peeved at the tenor of the questioning at several points, and wth criticism coming from every angle, the Buffalo developer may be wondering why he ever took the job.