This week’s biggest Winners & Losers

Endorsements don’t win elections, but sometimes, they can come in handy. For Max Rose, who is seeking to regain his Staten Island congressional seat, support from New York City Comptroller Brad Lander is certainly welcome news considering his primary opponent. Brittany Ramos DeBarros is running to Rose’s left and has already received the backing of prominent progressive organizations and lawmakers – exactly the kind of candidate one would expect Lander to support. But he, along with progressive Assembly Member Robert Carroll, decided to back the more moderate Rose.

Exemptions to New York City’s residency requirement for government workers are hard to come by, but these three top City Council staffers have found a benevolent boss in Speaker Adrienne Adams. Adams granted these staffers waivers to the rule in order to maintain their respective residences in Nassau County and New Jersey – where at least two of them who have six-figure salaries are likely to get more bang for their buck.

Though she’s probably got the safety net to do it, Jessica Tisch just can’t quit city government. Mayor Eric Adams appointed the former citywide chief information officer to lead the Department of Sanitation this week – a post Tisch was long rumored to be interested in. Whether Tisch will follow in the footsteps of one of her predecessors in using the position as a springboard to a political career remains to be seen. She’s got a lot of early morning roll calls to show up for first. 

The Syracuse police chief  has a lot of explaining to do after a viral video showed his officers forcing a Black 8-year-old boy into a patrol car for being accused of stealing a bag of chips. The sobbing boy was taken to his home and left with his father. Gov. Kathy Hochul called the video “heart-wrenching.” Kenneth Jackson, who filmed the incident, pretty much summed up the question we all had: “Fuck is y’all doing?”

Who’s got time to meet with the feds when you’re New York’s jail chief with an appearance to make at the auto show? That seems to be the case for the Department of Correction commissioner, who, according to the Daily News, skipped a meeting with the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s Office, which is mulling a Rikers Island takeover, and the same day showed up in social media posts showcasing DOC vehicles at the show, including a jail minivan. Hopefully he at least checked the Stow ‘n Go storage under the seats for contraband. 

City & State called attention to the member of congress when he commented on conservative radio that Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law was “very reasonable,” – breaking with his own party. The Democrat and gubernatorial candidate was forced to clarify his stance this week, admitting his comments were “inartful.” In response to a reporter’s question about his apparent support for the law, he said: “I oppose [Florida] Gov. [Ron] DeSantis. I oppose the Don’t Say Gay’ bill, full stop. I oppose them. I fully support LGBT families.” Sounds very reasonable.