Results tagged “2010”

What's this? Governor Paterson, who has repeatedly said he will run for governor next year, is reportedly going to "reassess" his chances of winning the race, if his approval ratings continue to suck. A Democratic source told the Daily News, "He's in it, he's planning to put the team together, but he's said if his numbers don't improve by the beginning of the year, he would have to reassess his campaign."

       

Those tabloid bottom-feeders at the Daily News are so desperate for page views that they've been reduced to publishing a gratuitous photo spread documenting the release of the 2010 Hooters calender. It's far beneath Gothamist's dignity to link to such lowbrow frat-bait, but we have taken the time to gather some photos from the event—just so you can fully understand the shameless hucksterism that's gripped the Zuckerman organization. We've also got some barely SFW video below, too... for reference.

Though more influential abroad, the Michelin restaurant guide is still kind of a big deal for NYC restaurateurs and chefs, who take great pride in receiving a star ranking from Michelin. (The guide only started reviewing NYC restaurants in 2005.) The new edition hits shelves tomorrow, and contains some noteworthy news for the fine dining world. With Michelin, receiving one star is a sign of achievement, not mediocrity, so Chef Michael White is surely tickled pink to see that his new seafood-centric restaurant Marea debut with a star, his Convivio also receives one star, while his Alto has been upgraded to two stars.

The head of the NY State GOP, Joseph Mondello, is stepping down, raising questions about Rudy Giuliani and a possible Rudy run for governor. The pair had a meeting last week and there has been a recent "Draft Rudy" movement. CityRoom reports, "Mr. Mondello’s decision, and Mr. Giuliani’s involvement in it, comes as the latest evidence that the former mayor is seriously considering a run for governor in 2010. Many party officials believe there is little rationale for Mr. Giuliani to get in the weeds of the state party’s political apparatus unless he is serious about running." Ed Cox, son-in-law of Richard Nixon and friend of John McCain, and Niagara County chair Henry Wojtaszek are vying to be the new state GOP head.

Former mayor Rudy Giuliani finally 'fessed up and told us what we all suspected: He is totally thinking about running for governor next year. On CNN's American Morning, Rudy at first said, "I don't know if I am or if I'm not" running for governor but then said, yes, he was "thinking about it." But Giuliani added, "I don't know if I'm at the point of seriously considering it. It's a little too early." In recent polls, Giuliani does well, winning over Governor David Paterson (but those same polls show him losing to Attorney Andrew Cuomo) and last week he suggested that we call a Constitutional Convention since we're in this State Senate mess—and had some not terrible ideas. Well, if Giuliani brings his 2008 campaign team to the table next year, it should be fun! Especially if people take him to task for his past weirdness (unlike Morning Joe's Mika Brzezinski).

Today, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand continued to bolster her support for 2010, announcing endorsements from Rep. Gregory Meeks as well as the Reverend Al Sharpton. Sharpton's statement begins, "In less than five months, Senator Gillibrand has demonstrated an ability to bring people together, listen to their challenges, and forge solutions to the problems they face. I was impressed that the day after being selected to replace Hillary Clinton in the Senate, she came down to the House of Justice in Harlem to hear the real concerns of the voiceless." PolitickerNY reports, "The endorsements by Sharpton and Meeks are useful to Gillibrand, who has been trying to make inroads with a black community wary of her past conservative position on gun control," and an adviser said that Gillibrand worked for their support, "One of the first people she met with was Sharpton, she's talked to him regularly and reached out to him." So far, Reps. Steve Israel and Carolyn McCarthy have said they will not run against Gilibrand; Rep. Caroline Maloney is reportedly considering a primary challenge.

The Grand Old Party is thinking about trotting out an old horse in 2010: Senator "Big Bad" John Cornyn (R-Texas), who is heading up the Republican's Senate campaign efforts, told reporters that he's lining up a challenger to face Senator Kirsten Gillibrand in 2010: "In New York there's sort of a short list. I've talked to Gov. Pataki about it, but I don't know what he will decide." Well, they did have some sort of talk in February—but do New Yorkers really want to see Pataki again? By the end of Pataki's term, in 2006, only 30% of voters approved of the job he was doing! Cornyn was also honest about needing less super-conservative contenders, "I don't expect candidates in the Northeast to be as conservative as I am because frankly I don't think they can win." But he's hopeful, since Hillary Clinton is no longer the incumbent, "Thank President Obama for giving us an opportunity... I'm just not ready to pop the cork yet."

The Marist Poll has the answer with its latest numbers for Governor Paterson: "it can still go lower, but not by much! Not quite one-fifth of New York registered voters statewide — 19% — report that Governor David Paterson is doing either an excellent or good job in office." And 51% of respondents say they rather have Spitzer in office. Marist's Lee Miringoff said, "The numbers could barely be any weaker for Governor Paterson—although we said that last March when he had a 26% rating" and says voters may think Paterson as the "wrong guy at the wrong place at the wrong time—and he has to find a way to make three wrongs make a right" which might be very difficult. Especially when it come to the 2010 election: Marist's current numbers show Attorney General Cuomo leading Paterson by 50 points and in a Paterson vs. Rudy Giuliani matchup, Giuliani would win 56% to 32%.

Politicker NY reports that those in Governor Paterson's corner "are accusing Attorney General Andrew Cuomo of deliberately undermining the governor in the press." A Paterson 2010 campaign staffer said, "Every time there is good news for the governor, there comes along a less-positive story that seems to have some fingerprints back to Andrew Cuomo." One less-positive story is how watchdogs want an ethics investigation of how Paterson's staff leaked ultimately false information about why Caroline Kennedy dropped out of the Senate bid. Assemblyman Keith Wright pointed out that the head of one of the watchdog groups, Blair Horner of NYPIRG, "used to work for Andrew, and I'm not saying Andrew Cuomo is part and parcel to any sort of grand conspiracy theory, but you have to look at relationships. Some of our good-government groups may not be all that pure." On the other hand, it's widely believed Paterson's handling of the Senate bid was terrible.

Last night, the NY Republican State Committee's dinner featured keynote speaker Newt Gingrich. That's right, the former Speaker of the House wasn't just in town for tea bagging! PolitickerNY reports that Gingrich was hyping up a Republican dream team for 2010: "“I think if we had Mayor Giuliani for governor, and we had Governor Pataki as senator, we would be in a large step towards the tidal wave to make 2010 comparable to 1994. And I think that should be our goal." Gingrich also believes the state GOP will be facing Andrew Cuomo in 2010, "So, you got to design a campaign that beats Cuomo, because the fact is, Democrats aren’t insane. When a member of the Democratic Party becomes too weak to reelect, they tend to cannibalize them before we get to them."

What's a rumor in Page Six without a Daily News source disputing it? Yesterday, the NY Post's gossip column suggested that disgraced former governor Eliot Spitzer was considering running for Attorney General (again) in 2010 since his AG reign was all about going after Wall Street fat cats and wasn't marred by a prostitution scandal. Now the Daily News reports that Spitzer's "comeback will not include a run for office in 2010, according to a source familiar with Spitzer's thinking. The source shot down a published report yesterday that Spitzer is planning to run for attorney general next year, saying there's no chance he'll seek that seat or any other next year." Stay tuned for the next volley from the Page Six!

The NY Post offers some speculation about former governor George Pataki's meeting with Senator John Cornyn. Because Cornyn is heading the GOP's Senate committee, it was plausible, if not a great idea, that Big Bad John might be courting Pataki to run against Senator Kirsten Gillibrand in 2010. The Post reports, "But many believe Pataki's subsequent drift to the left and failure to control spending weakened the state GOP and quashed any hopes he had of turning his 12-year Statehouse reign into a bid for the presidency. Likewise, national Republicans view the prospect of a Pataki run for Senate as remote. A longtime Pataki associate said the Senate talk was likely designed to draw business for his private law practice."

A source tells the AP that national Republicans "have approached" former governor George Pataki "about running for the U.S. Senate in 2010." Apparently Senator ("Big Bad") John Cornyn, who heads the GOP's national senate committee, met with Pataki on Tuesday, apparently discussing Pataki as a challenger to Senator Kirsten Gillibrand in 2010. Pataki did not accept or reject the offer, but after 12 years of Pataki, does NY State want more? We suppose that would put his PAC money to better use.

A new Quinnipiac poll has more bad news for embattled Governor Paterson. Not only has his approval rating fallen seven points to 41%, if Paterson were to run against Attorney General Andrew Cuomo in the 2010 gubernatorial primary, Cuomo would win, 53-25. Politicker NY runs through some other details: "Rudy Giuliani's favorability rating, however, stands at 56 percent. In a hypothetical matchup for governor, Giuliani ties Paterson 43 to 43. Cuomo would win a race against Giuliani 51 to 37, the poll found." Of course, there's still almost 18 months till the primary—anything can happen. But if Cuomo's appearances are anything like this one, he is eyeing his dad's old job.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand was in New York City yesterday, meeting different parts of her new downstate constituency: Business leaders and those who know gun violence first-hand.

Rick Lazio, who waged a battle against Hillary Clinton in 2000 for a Senate seat, is telling fellow Republicans to look on the bright side. According to the Daily News, Lazio referred to the GOP's losses around the state at a Conservative Party benefit, "This gives us an opportunity to rebuild ourselves, to not compromise ourselves... We can look at this and we can be discouraged, or we can look at this and we can say this may be our moment." Since Lazio's name has been mentioned alongside Rudy Giuliani's as a possible gubernatorial candidate in 2010, Newsday notes that Lazio admitted to thinking about 2010; he also said, "This isn't a stump speech... But I think the state is moving in the wrong direction."

Since the first Sex and the City movie took in around $400 million, was there ever any question that a second was was around the corner? Writer and director Michael Patrick King has now confirmed it, and that all four leading ladies will be back on the big screen come summer 2010 (which means it will be impossible to escape Carrie & Co. for the next year). The Village Voice is taking some guesses as to how the sequel will play out ("Big's salary is capped at $500,000!"), but NYMag doesn't think another tragedy is in store after King explained to E!: "In the last movie, I thought (fans) wanted to see an epic and violently tragic love story, and drama, but I don't think you go to that candy store twice." Coming in 2011: the Sex and the City prequel?

Randy Mastro, friend—and former deputy mayor—of Rudy Giuliani, responded to the Observer's question about whether Rudy would run for governor, "If ever New York State needed strong leadership in this fiscal crisis, it's today. And the one thing we know for sure is that Rudy Giuliani is a strong leader who led our city through its fiscal crisis in the early '90s. So New York State could use him now more than ever." The Observer says that other possibilities for the Republican tickets are Rick Lazio and Edward Cox, but Giuliani is "widely acknowledged as the 800-pound G.O.P. gorilla in the room." In recent days, Giuliani has been criticizing Obama and just staying in the media radar. Still, Running Scared writes Rudy & Co. may think the "name Giuliani will be magic for New York State voters who have not yet been directly ruled by him. Of course, as the Gillibrand appointment shows, the smarter money is on someone unassociated with the city."

Move over, Rudy! It's a blast from the past, as Rick Lazio, who ran against Hillary Clinton in 2000 for the Senate seat, is rumored to be considering a go for governor. Assemblyman Philip Boyle tells Newsday, "He is in the exploratory stage. I think he would make a tremendous candidate." Lazio, an executive vice president at JP Morgan Chase, has reportedly had conversations with various GOP types, who believe Governor Paterson could be vulnerable in 2010 if the economy continues to go south, but the former Representative would only tell the NY Times, "It’s an honor to be thought of as an attractive candidate." Naturally, Lazio will have to wait and see what GOP fave Giuliani does—remember, it was only when Giuliani decided not to run against Clinton in 2000 (Giuliani had both prostate cancer and an affair with now wife Judi Nathan at the time) that Lazio entered that race.

Former mayor Rudy Giuliani appeared on Good Day, New York this morning, and immediately Rosanna Scotto asked him if it wasn't a blessing in disguise that he's not president, given how crappy everything seems to be right now. Giuliani hastily said, "You don't look at it that way," and spoke of the honor of serving the country. He also called Obama "very nice guy" and that after an election, everyone "becomes an American again" (as opposed to being partisan) and that he's rooting for him. He demurred on the 2010 question, pointing out that there are lots of things happening before then—like the 2009 mayoral election—and said that starting a campaign now, with the economy so terrible, wasn't a great idea. As for term limits, Giuliani (who only mentioned September 11th once!) said that he supported Mayor Bloomberg and think he's the man for the job.

Besides talk of Rudy Giuliani being wooed to run for Governor of New York in 2010, there are a variety of outcomes from Governor David Paterson's campaign. The Daily News breaks down talk of how Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi (who ran against Eliot Spitzer in the 2006 Democratic primary) as a potential running mate for Paterson, and what that means for Attorney General Andrew Cuomo (who quit the primary in 2002). But one Democratic insider said picking Suozzi isn't a sure thing, "David's people aren't going to make any decisions about what they want to do until they know what they're trying to do. If they run against an upstate businessman, they'll get an upstater. If they run against a woman, they'll get a woman. If they run against Rudy [Giuliani], they'll get someone with money."

Just because Mayor Bloomberg has denied running for governor in 2010 doesn't mean it has to be true! The Sun's Davidson Goldin thinks that for Bloomberg, "Running for governor is likely, and becoming more so."

Even though speculation is running high/wistful on a Michael Bloomberg presidential candidacy (maybe because all the other confirmed candidates are boring - or reporters are bored of covering the other candidates), the Post resurrects a rumor from earlier this year: Bloomberg wanting to run for governor against Spitzer in 2010. Back in May, the Post claimed the Mayor had discussed running for governor on two occasions, but the Mayor said the reports were completely made...