We have been fascinated (and frankly somewhat horrified) watching the Vladimir Putin-like power grab moves at City Hall and the cheerleading emanating from Brooklyn Borough Hall where Marty Markowitz stands to become Borough President for Life. More analysis on the issue of incumbents repealing terms limits for themselves and doing so without a public vote at another point. Right now, we simply post a new react from Council Member Bill de Blasio. Mr. de Blasio, of course, is the leading candidate for the Brooklyn Borough presidency and has a deep interested in seeing to it that Mr. Markowitz does not get the ability to be Borough President for Life. We believe it may bother him more than the prospect of Mr. Bloomberg being Mayor for Life (at least, right now). Here is the de Blasio statement on Council Speaker Christine Quinn’s decision to back the Mayor’s approach:
“Today’s announcement makes one thing clear to all New Yorkers: the proposal to cut voters out of this process is losing momentum, and the Speaker is trying to shore up any fragile political support for the Mayor’s power grab. As we gear up to this week’s hearings, the outrage among New Yorkers is building, and their elected officials must take the message seriously.
There is plenty of time to hold a referendum on term limits, and the Mayor and the Speaker are blatantly ignoring that option in favor of a fast track legislative approach that cuts out the public. We were elected to protect and represent the voice of the people, not to conceive creative ways to silence them. The New York City Council has worked hard over the years to become an important voice and partner in governing our City. Today, we have taken a real step backwards, as our leader has partnered with the Mayor to silence the voters.”
This is going to be very, very interesting.
1 response so far ↓
1 My2Sense // Oct 13, 2008 at 9:21 pm
Bloombarf is an Elitist, Hypocrite, who has capitalized on the very Ponzi scheme that is imploding the financial security of every poor and working class person in the world.
To him, a financial expert is someone who can “cook the books” to get any desired result.
His record:
-Out of control over-development.
-Displacement & less housing for the poor and middle class while subsidizing more Luxury Condoms.
-Higher taxes for every small home owner and working class person.
-Lower taxes & more tax breaks for Big corporations & Developers.
-More enforcement of minor (Parking and Sanitation, etc) infractions by the majority of the people of this City.
-Ignoring major violation by Big Corporations and Developers.
-Increased tolls, Transportation costs etc.
-Slush funds by the Mayor & City council.
-Increased construction deaths.
-Billions of dollars in negligence suits (for preventable accidents) against the City. Which the mayor has chosen to fight, (at huge taxpayer expense), even though they are legitimate and should be settled, out of court.
EX: Staten Island Ferry, Construction accidents etc.
-Hundreds of millions of tax dollars spent to deny the legitimate (and already funded) claims of 9-11 first responders.
-The continued curbing of our civil liberties to – gather in public, ride our bikes, use public streets and buildings, even our rights to know what we are breathing & more.
-Increased abuse of Eminent Domain and tax dollars to enrich a select few.
EX: Atlantic Yards, Willets Point, Yankee Stadium, Shea Stadium, etc.
He has balanced the books of this City on the backs of every poor and working class person.
We are hemoraging money because of the very Ponzi scheme that. Bloomberg has encouraged. Now we are to believe that we NEED him to get us through a crisis that he and other financial “Book Cookers”, have created.
It’s akin to letting the people who ran Fannie Mae, and Lehman Bros. tell us how to fix the financial crisis.
Tell the Emperor to go back to his closet because he has no cloths.