Winners & Losers
This week’s biggest Winners & Losers
Who’s up and who’s down this week?
Christmas has come especially early for many in the state this year as it seems that everyone is getting a raise. Taxi drivers are getting a wage increase for the first time in ten years. Deliveristas are on track to get a guaranteed $24/hr. Even state lawmakers will get to keep their sizable pay bump after the state Court of Appeals ruled an unelected commission had the authority to approve it. And let’s not forget about the state’s own budget director, who is getting a big payday by taking his skills to Puerto Rico’s fiscal control board. Dolla dolla bills for all.
Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan -
GOALLLLLLL! It’s yet another win for Persian Gulf states in the soccer industry as Mayor Eric Adams recently announced that a deal has been reached to build a new soccer stadium for MLS team New York City FC. It's a big win for the team’s majority owner United Arab Emirates Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who has been looking to find the team a permanent home 3 years before they even played their first game. The influence of the Gulf states in the soccer world grows evermoreso, just as the 2022 FIFA World Cup is set to kick off in Qatar this week.
Iwen Chu -
It took a few days, but Iwen Chu has officially declared victory in an unexpectedly tight race for state Senate, becoming the first Asian American woman in the state’s upper chamber. Chu, a former chief of staff to Assembly Member Peter Abbate, will represent a new Asian-majority district in South Brooklyn including parts of Bensonhurst, Bay Ridge and Sunset Park. She beat out Vito LaBella, who fortunately has a second home on Cape Cod where he can rest and recuperate after a tough loss in “fucking Brooklyn.”
Chuck Schumer & Hakeem Jeffries -
While everyone’s pointing the finger at who’s to blame for some New York Democratic losses, there’s A LOT to celebrate in the Big Apple. The Senate will remain under Democratic control and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is ecstatic (and possibly a little relieved) to keep his title. It’s also a big moment for another New York Democrat: Hakeem Jeffries. With House Speaker Nancy Pelosi not seeking reelection as House Speaker, Jeffries is next in line for the throne. Congressional Democrats will now be completely led by New Yorkers.
Anthony J. Annucci -
Come Nov. 24, over 750 New York women who have accused prison guards of sexual abuse will file civil suits against the state under the recently passed Adult Surivors Act, which gives people a one-time opportunity to sue regardless of when they say the crime occurred. The state corrections department, which is currently led by Acting Commissioner Anthony Annucci, has a long history of sexual assault occuring in prisons. This legislation promises to be a reckoning on any abuse that’s taken place behind bars.
John Catsimatidis -
“And I'm sitting on a bench in Coney Island / Wondering where did my ferry go?” The billionaire developer was a Coney Island ferry’s biggest booster, spending oodles lobbying the city to bring a new commuting option for residents of his buildings. Now that dream has been broken up by the waves… or maybe stuck on a sandbar. Turns out docking a boat on either side of America’s playground is harder than securing Taylor Swift tickets. And just as expensive.
Donald Trump -
Former President Donald Trump’s campaign announcement this week made a pretty soft impression in New York – including on the wood of one of his most reliable media champions, the New York Post. The New York tabloid, which has grown more critical of the former president, relegated Trump’s new campaign for the White House to the measly bottom inch of its Wednesday cover, reading, “Florida man makes announcement.”