Jess Bruder

[Apologies: Observer.com went down, again, this afternoon. I'm told this has something to do with Wisconsin, though I'm inclined to connect it to the lamented departure of The Politicker's only tech-savvy contributor, Jess Bruder.]

Along with the prospect of a State Senate race in Harlem and of a contest to replace Paterson as Minority Leader, the question isn't so much why Eliot picked Paterson as why Paterson gave up the propsect of being Senate Majority Leader -- the second-most-powerful pol in the State -- for the prospect of becoming Lieutenant Governor, not the second, or third, or fourth, or fifteenth, most powerful person in the state.

One line of speculation: Paterson's eyes are on a future statewide run. For the other kind of Senate.

Also, Paterson's father, Basil, is a partner at Meyer, Suozzi, English, and Klein. And yes, the Suozzi is Joseph, father of Tom.  read more »

But that shouldn't be cause for workplace tension. After all, as a reader reminds me, Basil has already endorsed for Lieutenant Governor. He's backing Leecia Eve.

Matt Schuerman and I argue that the transit strike is less about dollars and cents and more about the character of the two men at its center, Roger Toussaint and Peter Kalikow.

Jess Bruder profiles sack-racing champion Joe Crowley.  read more »

And Jason Horowitz finds turmoil at the city ballet.

I look into how long it's been since Hillary set foot in the Granite State (long time!), why, and whether it matters.

Jess Bruder profiles a dignified John Faso.

Eve Kessler finds out what Conservative Party officials are thinking about the GOP's choices, and prints some unfriendly words for Pirro and Weld.

And don't miss Sara Vilkomerson's er, irrverent, round-up of holiday parties, including the media's and the Mayor's. Sample, from the Daily News entry:  read more »

"You aren't allowed a date because, apparently, we are too cheap," said one reporter. "So all the grotty old men get drunk and hit on the young girls because their wives are home in Jersey." Fun!

Our Jess Bruder reports from the Bronx that Bill Clinton was quite late! And that the event was disorganized and chaotic. Shock. More to come on whether this was in a charming Bill Clinton chaos way or an irritating Bill Clinton chaos way, or both.  read more »

Freddy, pushing back hard on yesterday's attacks, has a release out pointing to rising crime on the island of Staten. The numbers do show a clear rise in crime, but the most striking figure is the 80% increase in the murder rate since 2003.

Striking until you realize that the sky-high murder number is...9, which a reader from a rougher part of town noted under the heading "hilarious."  read more »

Still, it's a clean shot, and a rare breath of actual content.

And expect more: Ferrer communications director Jen Bluestein, our Jess Bruder reports, turned up at the release of Freddy's latest ad this afternoon with a slingshot in her back pocket.

Lots to read in today's Observer.

I make the point that Mike could lose this one; I also get an early look at that Kerry documentary that's causing all the fuss.

Jason Horowitz dives into the recriminations surrounding Eve Rachel Markewich's race for Surrogate, a.k.a, he writes, the "worst campaign in living memory."

Jess Bruder talks to Jon Corzine.  read more »

Matt Schuerman dissects the Freedom Center controversy, noting that the center isn't holding.

Less directly relevant to politics, two must-reads: Alexandra Jacobs's unexpected first-person tale of that Jet Blue flight that landed amid flames, and Tom Scocca's bowing to the inevitable and profiling Nick Denton.

The Observer's Jess Bruder, finally back from farthest South Brooklyn, reports:

At the Caraville diner on Avenue M in Brooklyn, some seniors were finishing their midday nosh when Anthony trotted in at two o'clock. "What's cookin'?" he asked loudly.

A grey-haired Democrat named Sandy Litman, who wore a shirt with a picture of Tinkerbell and the slogan "Little Miss Attitude," smiled as she sidled up to the candidate. "Have you voted yet?" he demanded. Ms. Litman hadn't. "I'm going to vote for you!" she enthused.

"Don't forget: it's Weiner," said Anthony. Behind him, sign-bearers held "Weiner for Mayor" posters. Anthony wore a matching sticker over the breast pocket of his blue, rumpled shirt. Ms. Litman raised her eyebrows. "I know, it's Weiner," she replied.

In the rear corner of the restaurant, a pair of women stopped picking at their coleslaw and promised to support Anthony. "If this comes down to two votes, I'll buy lunch tomorrow," he exclaimed. Like most people in the diner, they hadn't voted yet, either.

Towards the end of the campaign stop, he was accosted by some hecklers. The first was angry about rising rent, and she didn't want to hear about Anthony's proposed tax cut. "I'm selfish. I don't care about the younger generation," she said, and made a reference to her "golden years." "I care about me!" Anthony told her to cheer up.

Then came a guy on the street. He was angry that Anthony had supported a smoking ban exception for the city's owner-operated bars, a point made moot after the ban became state law.

"I'm not going to vote for you," the man said combatively. Television cameras rolled. Finally, he walked away.

Under his breath, Anthony let some sarcasm slip. "I'm glad you got that off your chest," he said.

Anthony's final stop this afternoon was Edward R. Murrow High School, a few blocks away in the 76th election district, where Weiner plied poll workers with boxes of kosher cookies.  read more »

As of 3 p.m., they said, just 22 people had showed up to vote.

(This from The Politicker's Jess Bruder, back from Burning Man. Really.)

Tonight's mayoral debate, the last before the Democratic primary on Tuesday, looked less like girding for battle and more like, well, a group hug.

The ultimate softball question -- does Ferrer truly want to be mayor? -- led to a touchy-feely interlude that had all the candidates touting Freddy's passion in a cheerful chorus, like a round of rhetorical Kumbaya.

With characteristic coolness, Freddy replied (yet again) that he has enough fire in his belly "to melt concrete." (What is concrete doing in his belly? Don't ask me -- I'm still digesting fruit from the ABC Green Room's generous spread.)

Of course, the candidates offered plenty of fodder for tomorrow's truth squads to tweeze over. Virginia claimed credit for making the 2nd Ave. subway a campaign issue. Giff assumed responsibility for a whole smorgasbord of Bloomberg combat in the City Council. Freddy touted the contentious 50%-plus high school drop-out figure yet again. And Anthony reiterated his proposal to cut waste by 5%.

The biggest irony of all, however, may have come in Anthony's promise not to "bring library books to a knife fight." Tonight, it seems, the Dems were all packing pillows. But with a possible run-off in the making, this could be one short-lived slumber. Please wake me on Tuesday.  read more »

And a postcript on the theme of killer kindness:

After the debate, I asked Virginia, "Is 'nice' a pejorative?" A staffer laughed; Virginia smiled broadly, didn't seem to quite follow, and scanned the room. But help was not forthcoming. Big pause. Finally, she answered merrily: "I guess so!"

(No links yet for today's paper, so go buy a paper copy!)

But in the paper, I debut an occasional collaboration with the Pace University Poll, and a poll that finds Mike Bloomberg more popular than the Democrats among likely Democratic Primary voters, with a 62% favorable rating to Freddy's 59%.

Another tidbit: Democratic voters tell Pace that the worst possible candidate in a Democratic primary would be a devoutly religious Asian-American lesbian.

And Jess Bruder examines how long Chuck, Mike, and Eliot will stand by their friends in the Independence Party. Eliot says he'll bail if Fulani is proven to be a party leader; but Mike writes another government check to her non-profit.

Eve Kessler writes about Jeanine Pirro as only one who knows Westchester can, and unearths some rather damaging anecdotes we'd never heard before.

Matt Schuerman wonders who the hell will work in the Freedom Tower.  read more »

Tom Scocca examines the Plame leak case, though we're still not sure if it was Karl Rove.

And Woodward's Deep Throat book is reviewed.

Thank you, Democrats, for hazing our new colleague so we don't have to. Jess Bruder reports of her trip to the "mayoral forum" in the Bronx last night:

"Want to join the noble fellowship of NYC political reporters? First, you have to get hazed.

"'Where are you going? Oh, that. It's been cancelled,' the guard said. I'd just finished sherpa-ing my laptop, recorder, and enough paper and ink to pen a Great American Novel across the Bronx campus of Fordham University. I knew that Freddy and Fields had already bailed on the forum, but I hoped that Anthony and the Giff would give me ample fodder to write, well, something.

"'It was on again and off again a few times,' said the guard, adding that he'd already turned away a bunch of similarly disappointed - and slightly more punctual - reporters.  read more »

"So there I was, a week into my new gig at the Observer, already feeling disillusioned and cynical, which is to say, quite reporter-ly. Standing alone on the sidewalk and waiting for the M22, I learned two lessons. One: the mayoral race is really more of a long walk, and, Two: always call ahead.

"My name is Jessica Bruder, and somebody owes me a Metrocard."