Winners & Losers
This week’s biggest Winners & Losers
Who’s up and who’s down this week?
It’s time to get the bread and milk because they said snow. After 700 days of little to no snow accumulation in New York City, the Big Apple finally saw an inch of snow within a 24-hour-period. While city dwellers happily accepted the meager dusting, Buffalonians instead received a snowstorm large enough to postpone a Bills playoff game. But that didn’t stop the Bills Mafia from getting out to shovel the field as soon as the snow stopped falling, nor trudging through snow-covered stands in order to find their seats in time for kickoff. Oh, what a difference a few hundred miles makes in the great Empire State.
Yusef Salaam -
It is something of a full circle moment for new New York City Council Member Yusef Salaam. Over 30 years after New York City police officers coerced him into confessing to a crime he did not commit - a confession he retracted - Salaam will now oversee the NYPD as the new chair of the Public Safety Committee. Salaam’s portfolio also includes seats on the powerful Finance Committee, the aging and civil service panels and both land use subcommittees.
Micah Lasher -
Gov. Kathy Hochul’s former director of policy finally admitted this week what everyone already knew – he’s running for the Assembly. Lasher’s campaign launch was accompanied by endorsements from a who’s-who of prominent Upper West Side officials – including Rep. Jerry Nadler, state Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine and future mayoral candidate Scott Stringer. It’s still a fairly crowded primary, but Lasher is now the clear frontrunner.
Kathy Hochul -
Hochul reported raising $6.3 million over the last six months of 2023 for her upcoming reelection campaign. The governor also reportedly raised $2.5 million for the New York Democratic Committee as she joins other top electeds in the state in undoing the damage of 2022. Hochul has been a strong fundraiser for some time but now, in a year that many within the party view as crucial, her prowess is paying off when it counts most.
Tiffany Cabán, Chi Ossé and Kalman Yeger -
In a fraught game of City Council committee musical chairs this week, the song came to a screeching halt for Tiffany Cabán, Chi Ossé and Kalman Yeger. Those three will no longer chair the committees that they did last session, and unlike some of the other members who lost their old committees, they won’t get to chair any new committees. (Council Member Shahana Hanif, who was also removed as immigration chair, will at least get to chair a new task force fighting hate.) Speaker Adrienne Adams has denied allegations that stripping some members of their chair positions for the new session is retribution for actions they’ve taken, like Cabán, Ossé and Hanif being among those who voted against the budget last year.
Eddie Rodriguez -
Eddie Rodriguez, head of the labor union that represents New York City’s public sector clerical workers, was given the boot by an oversight panel for improperly using member dues. For what? Taking a black car service to and from work more than 100 times over the last couple of years. Must have cost a pretty penny cause in addition to being expelled, he’s been ordered to repay members more than $30,000. It sure makes a good argument for using public transit.
Kris Kolluri -
A recent federal audit found that the Gateway Tunnel project is two years behind schedule, not getting completed until 2040. The effort to build more rail access to New York City under the Hudson has faced countless obstacles – including political sabotage from the Trump administration and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, but it finally broke ground in November. The New York Post reported that Gateway insists they’re still on track, but Gateway Development Commission CEO Kris Kolluri has to start hiring contractors and staff pretty quick!