Winners & Losers
This week’s biggest Winners & Losers
Who’s up and who’s down this week?
Rep. Dan Goldman is among those leading the charge to oust Rep. George Santos for his long list of ethical lapses and potential lawbreaking. But Goldman has a crime of his own to answer for. The freshman Congress member repping Brooklyn and the Lower East Side introduced a “House Bagel Caucus” this week to feed the people of the Capitol with the undisputed best bagels in the nation. While we applaud any excuse to indulge in a (insert your unimpeachable bagel order here), an apparent hole in his office’s judgment led to an offering of bagels cut up into tiny pieces. That’s no way to eat a bagel. By Thursday afternoon, Goldman’s aides were scrambling to explain the blunder that left some New Yorkers boiling mad.
Joe Borelli & Bob Holden -
No vaccine? No problem. Mayor Eric Adams repealed the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for public sector employees – welcome news for the roughly 1,780 workers who lost their jobs for refusing to produce proof of vaccination. (Less welcome is the news that they won’t automatically get their old jobs back, though they can reapply.) Still, the co-chairs of the City Council’s Common Sense Caucus applauded the mayor for listening to theirs and workers’ advocacy and (of course) to “common sense.”
Richard Whint -
It pays to be friends with the mayor. Take Tim Pearson, the casino security chief AND senior advisor. Or Lisa White, who went from 911 dispatcher to NYPD deputy commissioner. And now Richard Whint, who got a near $100,000 pay boost when named assistant commissioner at the Department of Buildings. Whint denies he’s got any sort of friendship with Eric Adams, however. And based on the friends the mayor keeps OUTSIDE of government… can you blame him?
Halima Ait Elhoussine -
High schooler Halima Ait Elhoussine had access to the mayor of New York City in the palm of her hand, and she decided to use it during a student protest against racism at her school. Elhoussine shot Eric Adams a quick text asking for his support – and Hizzoner promptly replied. Even though he told Elhoussine not to protest during class, his response was more than enough for a rallying cry to fellow protesters.
George Santos -
It was another scandal-ridden week for embattled Rep. George Santos. As if things aren’t already bad with the multiple investigations, Santos has now been accused of sexual harassment by a prospective House aide and is expected to face an investigation by the House Ethics Committee – not to mention dozens of Santos’ constituents traveled to the Capitol to deliver a petition calling for his resignation (ouch!). But the icing on the cake may be fellow Sen. Mitt Romney, a fellow Republican, telling Santos “you don’t belong here” at his first state of the union … talk about some tough-ish days on the job.
Jay Martin -
Remember the tenant friendly rent laws the state passed in 2019? The landlord lobby does. And they can hold a grudge. But their long awaited ruling from a federal appeals court came down and agreed with the lower court – their argument against rent stabilization is all malarkey. Hope springs eternal: Jay Martin’s Community Housing Improvement Program plans to appeal all the way to the Supreme Court with Big Bad Landlords v. Little Old Ladies.
Gary Jenkins -
After 36 years working his way up through the Department of Social Services from a front-line worker to the commissioner, Gary Jenkins won’t be leaving the department on a high note. His announcement that he will resign in March comes amid a soaring homeless population and a record number of people who died on the streets or in shelters in 2022. Still, heading the sprawling agency is no easy task and Jenkins says he’s proud to have brought more people with lived experiences to the table.