Accidental 10th Congressional District: AOC’s Progressive Clones Useless for NYC Residents in a GOP Controlled Congress

By: Gary Tilzer

Kevin McCarthy, the probable next Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, calls progressive activists like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC), “All Hat No Cattle,” full of big talk but lacking action, power and always acting pretentious. Speaker McCarthy will probably never talk to AOC or the other progressive Democrat members of the NYC Congressional delegation; he does not need them to govern. Those who think AOC and the rest of NY’s progressive congressional members are needed to keep the nation on the right track, just don’t understand how weak the city’s delegation in Congress has become. In the 40s, NY had 45 Congressional members. We now have almost half, 26. When the Republicans take over next year, only Staten Island Congresswoman Nicol Malliotakis will have the power to bring back funds and programs to the city.

AOC will be free to walk with her hands behind her back pretending to be handcuffed, during an Abortion Supreme Court protest, 24/7.  Nobody in the AOC district that needs an abortion will be denied one at a NY hospital. The voters who live in AOC’s district are poor and need jobs, health care, less crime, and better schools for their children. When AOC helped block the building of Amazon Headquarters in Long Island City, she helped block over 5 Billion in salaries and billions more for the construction of the corporate headquarters. In a city now suffering from double the nation’s unemployment rate, this was a historic blow to its economy, caused by the triple hit of COVID, crime, and the middle class exiting the city.

Unfortunately, the 10th Congressional District (CD) is expected to elect another progressive activist like AOC who believes standing for ideological issues is more important than serving their district. Non-crazy New Yorkers who would prefer to see their city avoid its plunge into madness are trapped by an election system that does not pay any attention to their needs and only runs candidates who they trust less than a used car salesman

 

The Accidental 10th CD Race Still Only Helps the Winning Candidate and Their Contributors

The creation of a new non-incumbent 10th Congressional District (CD) connecting progressive, Asian, and Latino neighborhoods of Northern Brooklyn and Manhattan up to 14th Street was a once-in-a-generation accident. Incumbent Congressional members in NY expect to be given district lines favorable to their reelection.  Earlier this year the Democratic supermajority in Albany did its job by drawing lines that made congressional democratic incumbents’ re-elections easier. The accident was caused by the state judge’s finding the lines drawn by Democrats in Albany went too far in violating the changes to the state constitution in 2014 that stated redistricting could not be drawn to cut out the opposing Party. The judges felt that dumping Park Slope into the Staten Island Congressional District, and similar changes to three upstate districts to prevent the election of Republicans was in violation of the state’s constitution.  Some feel that the State’s Chief Judge Janet DiFiore was forced to step down by the Albany gang and insiders in the court system the same party appoints, because she was the deciding vote on the Court of Appeals, to declare all the redistricting lines unconstitutional.

NYC’s election system and media are not equipped to handle a non-incumbent wide-open congressional election, especially one with a double-digit number of candidates running. Newspapers and TV news are incapable of informing the voters about how the candidates running will govern beyond the spins their consultants write. and under what conditions in the U.S. House, they will operate under. Young reporters covering the campaigns don’t understand politics. They use consultant campaign poll-driven spin press releases for news stories. They take credit for investigative stories that they are handed from consultants (opposition research) attacking candidates running against their client. Candidates are often handed scripts about an issue they do not understand before they go in front of an interest group, and sometimes they get caught talking out of both sides of their mouths:

Brooklyn Politics Twitter @BklynPolitics: Will candidates stop giving interviews to Hamodia newspaper? Dan Goldman is in hot water for comments made in a Hamodia interview about Abortion. Carlina Rivera is in hot water for comments made in a Hamodia interview about anti-gay exemptions.

Right after her Hamodia interview, Manhattan Councilwoman Carlina Rivera’s congressional campaign clarified that she vehemently opposes giving private businesses a pass on discriminating against LGBTQ people — after comments she recently made suggested she’s open to the idea. Dan Goldman put out a statement after the newspaper interview that stated, “As Goldman subsequently clarified later in the interview, the decision to have an abortion is a health care decision that needs to be made between a woman and her doctor. Period,” he said. “I unequivocally support a woman’s right to choose. There is no room for government involvement at any point in time, for any reason.”  Both Rivera and Goldman were blasted by their opponents for these mistakes, some seem to be generated by consultant bots.

NY’s Broken Election System Favors the Campaign That Pulls Out the Voters the Best (GOTV)

No runoff in congressional races means a small fraction (2%) of the voters (less than 15,000 in a low turnout) will pick the next congress member to represent the 800.000 people who live in the 10^th CD.  The broken election system favors insiders like developers who are backing two of the three leading candidates, pay-to-play lobbyists who double as campaign consultants, and the city’s political class.  With few debates, and a small turnout expected in the second summer primary, the election in the 10^th CD favors the candidates whose council or assembly district resides inside the congressional district.  Both front runners Councilwoman Carlina Rivera and Assemblywoman Yuh-Line Niou’s districts overlap the 10^th CD.  Both Manhattan elected officials also have a large number of voters in Brooklyn that share their Asian or Latino backgrounds. When Slingshot Strategies Alyssa Cass says that her client Rivera has the best ground game, she really means that they are going to pull out every Latino voter that she can and the voters in the councilwoman district inside the 10^th CD.

 

The Take the Money and Don’t Run Candidate: de Blasio

De Blasio polling at a mere 5%, pulled out of the congressional race with $450,000 left to spend. He left with some polls that showed up to 40% of the district’s voters are still undecided. Eight years of the failed mayor has allowed New Yorkers in the 10th CD to get a true measure of the man, despite puff pieces written in the media during his short congressional run. The money left should help the former mayor who still owes his lawyers and the city hundreds of thousands of dollars. He raised money from developer Extell, Gary Barnett, and Hal Fetner. De Blasio was not the most left-wing candidate in the race. Some of the leading candidates which the media has done a poor job of informing the public about, beyond their campaign talking points, make de Blasio seem like a sensible centrist.

 

The BDS Boycott Israel Candidate: Yuh-Line Niou

Assemblywoman Yuh-Line Niou is at the head of the pack — if you care to believe a poll by the Working Families Party (WFP), which has endorsed her. Niou is a hard-left legislator who voted in favor to eliminate almost all bail and strongly supports defunding the NYPD. When cops rode the subway after the funeral of murdered fellow officer Jason Rivera, Niou absurdly called it a “frightening show of intimidation.”  Last week, Niou, in exchange for a nod from the inaptly-named group “The Jewish Vote” — which exclusively endorses supporters of the anti-Semitic “boycott, divestment, and sanctions” (BDS) campaign against Israel — announced that she, too, favors the program and its goal to wipe Israel from the map BDS.  Assemblyman Brian Cunningham, who represents a Brooklyn district that includes the Orthodox neighborhood of Crown Heights, endorsed her campaign in May but withdrew it late Monday. “I will not support a candidate that fails to recognize our democratic ally’s right to exist.” Niou just received the endorsement of the Sunset Park left-Wing DSA Assemblywoman Marcela Mitaynes, who knows how to pull out the progressive vote. If the Asian media supports Niou and she pulls her Chinatown district she can win.

 

Linda Sarsour and the Jewish Vote are Working to Elect BDS Supporter Niou in a Congressional District That Includes Boro Park

The Jewish Vote endorsed Yuh-Line Niou for congress in the 10th CD. The Jewish Vote is the electoral arm of Jews for Racial & Economic Justice Action (JFREJ). Ellman-Golan is the chief strategist behind both organizations. Linda Sarsour is a controversial Palestinian-American activist who promotes intersectional left-wing activism to address a wide array of left-wing issues. In 2017, Sarsour gained national prominence as a co-chair of the national Women’s March protest against the inauguration of President Donald Trump. Sarsour is an outspoken anti-Israel advocate and has promoted numerous anti-Israel policies. The left-leaning Anti-Defamation League has criticized Sarsour for apparent anti-Semitism.

A spokesperson for the Jewish Vote said “We’ll explore lessons from using primaries in heavily Jewish districts to elect strong progressives, we were a key partner in Jamaal Bowman’s win over Eliot Engel.  The Jewish Vote and (JFREJ) all have PACs to elect progressives in targeted Jewish districts. The low turnout in the city’s Jewish neighborhoods, once the highest voter areas of the city, is playing into the hands of left-wing operators of the Jewish Vote and other radical organizations. Only 4,500 registered voters turned out in an important primary election in June, in Boro Park, less than 10% of the district’s voters.

StopAntisemitism Twitter @StopAntisemites In May, the “Jewish Vote” – teamed up with the Working Families Party. JFREJ’s Director of Strategic Communications orchestrated the collaboration. Ellman-Golan is pictured here w/ Linda Sarsour; the 2 worked together. Sarsour, a rabid antisemite, refers to Sophie as her “little sister” JusticeDemWatch Twitter @JusticeDemWatch: Niou is close friends with AOC and Linda Sarsour and is backed by the Working Families Party and the Sunrise Movement. Ilhan Omar Twitter @IlhanMN Today, groups like @theJewishvote, @JREJ, in my district are reminding us that the Jewish community has always been on the frontlines of social change, even amidst threats to their safety.

What Direction Will the Growing Asian Vote Take in the 10^th CD?

Will the 10^th CD vote for the extreme left-wing candidate Yuh-Line Niou, the moderate Yan Xiong or another candidate in the 10^th CD.  Conservative Curtis Sliwa received 46% of the vote against Eric Adams in Sunset Park, a neighborhood known as Brooklyn’s Chinatown; 70% of residents categorized themselves as Asian in the 2020 census. From Sunset Park in Brooklyn to Elmhurst and Flushing in Queens, Asian voters’ frustrations over Democratic stances on schools and crime helped mobilize votes for Republican Curtis Sliwa for mayor and conservative Council candidates. Will the Asian Voters Come Out in Force for a common-sense moderate candidate, Shaking Up Politics? How the Asian media covers the race in the 10^th CD will be decisive. Stay tuned.

The Gentrification Developers Candidate: Carlina Rivera

Councilwoman Carlina Rivera was thanked by de Blasio’s Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development Vicki Been for helping pass the Mandatory inclusionary Housing Act (MIH) as part of the Soho rezoning. The MIH has made billions for developers and helped push tens of thousands of poor and minority residents out of gentrifying neighborhoods, including the Lower East Side and Sunset Park located in the new 10th CD.  More importantly, government-funded housing programs, like Mandatory Inclusionary Housing (MIH) tax breaks, 421a, and nonprofit funding have fast-tracked gentrification in the city. Developers who are members of the Partnership do not understand that more gentrification development will result in more DSA & WFP-backed left-wing elected officials blocking bail reform in Albany to get elected. Councilmember Carlina Rivera is a leading candidate in most of the polls for the 10th CD seat. Rivera was a dues-paying member of the DSA, which touted her 2017 Council election as a victory for the revolution

Councilwoman Rivera voted to defund the police in 2019 and was a member of the Democratic Socialist of America (DSA) does not send up any red flags to  Boro Park political consultant Ezra Friedlander who worked for years for Congressman Nadler who supported Obama’s Iran deal: Ezra Friedlander Twitter @EzraFriedlander I had the pleasure of hosting @CarlinaRivera in my home and I’m proud to endorse her candidacy in NY 10! What I find most impressive about Carlina is her ability to listen, empathize and willingness to address our communal concerns as a member of Congress!

Donors to Carlina Rivera’s campaign include developers like Dan Tishman, Donald Capoccia, Kirk Goodrich, and lobbyists like Ed Wallace, Constantinople and Vallone, Luis Miranda, and Ruben Diaz Jr. Rivera, Brooklyn developer Jed Walentas, whose family is known for redeveloping Dumbo, gave the maximum allowable amounts toward both Rivera’s campaigns for the primary and general elections. 25 years ago, the late Assemblyman Joe Ferris fought against the Walentas’ family for shutting down factories in Dumbo where thousands of Latinos used to work, to build luxury housing.

Rivera Was Against Cutting Down Eastside Park’s 1,000 Trees Before She Ignored (For) It

Before the Eastside park’s trees were cut down the community plan to stop Sandy-type flooding went through years of public workshops, town hall meetings, and open houses attended by more than 1,000 members of the neighborhood. Their plan used proven ecological Dutch flood fighting techniques and even won federal funding in a competition sponsored by Secretary of Urban Development Shaun Donovan.

The community plan included: A grassy, reinforced hill, or berm, on the western edge of the park abutting the east river shoreline and the F.D.R. Drive. The community’s plan would use the park as a barrier, holding back floodwaters from the East River and protecting the surrounding public housing developments, while keeping all of its existing park’s oak trees. Its estimated price tag was $760 million.

“Rivera at first spoke out about de Blasio’s East Side Coastal Resiliency (ESCR) plan to cut down over 1,000 trees on the East Side. But shortly after she jumped on the de Blasio bandwagon and pushed his plan even though it would obliterate 1,000 trees and is contrary to everything, we know about trees absorbing pollution and absorbing rainwater” Kristen Theodos, Co-Founder TakebackNYC. 

EmilyJohnsonCatalyst Twitter @EmilyJCatalyst: Lol. When I registered for the Environmental Forum for this congressional election, candidate @CarlinaRivera  was on the list. Notably missing now. Did she decide an ENVIRONMENTAL Forum was a little too since she’s responsible for killing 1000 trees in an environmental justice neighborhood?

 

The Trump Impeachment $ Levi Strauss Candidate: Dan Goldman

Dan Goldman, was the chief House investigator during former President Donald Trump’s first impeachment proceeding, hosted a fundraiser for Bragg at his multimillion-dollar Tribeca home in April of last year.  So far Dan Goldman has not been attacked for contributing and supporting Alvin Bragg for District Attorney in 2021, because most of his opponents are very liberal looking for the progressive vote. Goldman’s only serious negative was his interview with a Boro Park newspaper in which he said he, “would not object to” a fetal heartbeat law before being reminded by an aide he’s supposed to claim to be pro-choice.”

The Out of Towner Candidate: Mondaire Jones

Congressman Mondaire Jones brought in $525,000 in the last three months and leads the field with $2.8 million on hand – more money than all of his opponents have combined. Jones is the one sitting Congress member in the field, though he is running in an entirely different district after moving from Westchester County to Brooklyn, in pursuit of the open seat.

The Spoiler Candidate: Jo Anne Simon 

Assemblywoman Jo Anne Simon who played the spoiler in the Borough President race seems to be doing it again, despite the fact that most of her district is also inside the 10^th CD. Simon, who worked with Boss Seddio’s Democratic machine to pick judges, is a hard sell in a New Kings Progressive Brooklyn.  She finds herself in the middle of the pack without much money, even the Assemblyman that shares Park Slope with her endorsed Dan Goldman against her.

The 70s is Back Candidate: Elizabeth Holtzman

It is hard to understand the NY Times writing an article about 80-year-old former Congresswoman Liz Holtzman who left congress over 50 years ago after a failed senatorial race, when they have not focused on any other candidate in the race. Holtzman’s biggest supporter Gloria Steinem, says NY10 hopeful Dan Goldman ‘dismissed’ Liz Holtzman’s role in ousting Nixon. The Times headlined that she went after Nixon and Nazis still living in America. Holtzman served four terms in Congress ending in 1981 – before opponents like Rivera, Niou, and Jones were even born. She came within a percentage point of being New York’s first female senator in 1980, and badly lost a Senate primary in 1992. A year later, Holtzman was ousted after a single term as comptroller amid a banking-related scandal that undercut her ethical record. A state appeals court has upheld an investigative panel’s findings that the former New York City Comptroller had violated conflict-of-interest laws in securing a campaign loan from a bank trying to win city business.

 

The NY Post Call for A Common-Sense Candidate

The NY Post wrote “We shouted loudly that Jose Alba was a hero, not a murderer, and Alvin Bragg heard us. Let’s keep up the pressure. And at the same time, let’s reject candidates for chaos like Niou, Rivera, and Goldman, and take a good look instead at Maud Maron and Brian Robinson, qualified aspirants for the same office who have a sane perspective on issues like crime, education, and quality of street life that matter to ordinary people. The future of the city depends on normal people speaking up.”

There is still time for the Post, the Partnership, real estate, and NYC’s political class to stand up to elect a leader who will help rebuild the city. In 1977 the Post stood up for Ed Koch against the party machine and political insiders. Koch’s election as mayor began the long turnabout of the economically bankrupt city. New Yorkers in the 10th CD should elect a candidate with the New Deal Democratic values that can work with the Republican leaders that will control the U.S. House of Representatives.

 

Common-Sense 10th CD Candidate: Brian Robinson

Robinson’s main concern in Washington will be to improve the quality of life of every voter living in the 10th CD.”

Robinson’s plan to lower federal taxes for small businesses will easily attract Republican lawmakers’ support. This will be particularly helpful to our struggling small businesses in NYC that have suffered through Covid shutdowns. I will also work to get the federal government more involved in prosecuting street and subway crime that is needed to bring back the city’s economy and stop the exodus of the NYC middle class.

Update: Brian Robinson’s campaign was given help by the Court of Appeal when it redrew the gerrymandered Congressional line. The court also created an open primary, where any voter not registered as a Democrat who lives in the 10thCD, can re-register as a Democrat up until the primary day August 23rd, and vote in the primary.