Greenfield Lashes Out at Weiner , Lhota and de Blasio; Lhota Responds

Councilman David Greenfield piled on Anthony Weiner tonight, on his weekly Thursday night radio show, suggesting he's only doing the Republicans a favor by joining the Democratic primary and splitting the vote. Public advocate Bill de Blasio also got his share of the blame for not firing his staffer who tweeted racial and anti-semitic comments, letting him to resign out of his own will.

Weiner's Jewish Brothers Embrace Ambitions, Divided On Timing

While pundits are divided among themselves whether Weiner's bombshell announcement that he's seeking to jump into the mayoral race hurts frontrunner Christine Quinn or Bill de Blasio, there's definitely one group that is not yet locked on any of the candidates. Weiner entry could shake up allegiances among New York City’s Jews, Josh Nathan-Kazis writes in The Forward.

Salgado In Pitch To Orthodox Jewish Voters: Religious Values Under Sustained Attack By NYC Gov't

Long shot Conservative Democratic mayoral candidate, Erick Salgado, addressed Tuesday night the Rabbinical Alliance of America, a national rabbinic organization based in New York, in an effort to reach out to Orthodox Jewish voters from a standpoint of religion, faith and common values.

"We are living in a time when the values of people of faith are under sustained attack," Mr. Salgado started off. "whenever there is a person who believes, who wants to preserve his culture, his customs and his values, that person seems to be strange. And many of the elected officials don't respect the different communities.. that's the reality " he said.

Catsimatidis: It Takes A Fusion Ticket For A Republican To Win The Mayoral Race

"It's all about winning. It all about making sure one of us wins. You need the money, and you the need the ability to appeal," Business mogul John Catsimatidis modified his message in his closing argument at the 92Y mayoral debate sponsored by the New York Observer.

"A pure Republican can't win, It's impossible" Catsimatidis elaborated following the debate, in a brief conversation with NYC Elects. "When Romney lost in NYC 80-19, a pure Republican can't win." he added.

Mayoral Panel Discussed Who Should, Would, Could Be The Next Mayor Of NYC

At a panel discussing the mayoral race, the uncertainty in the volatile race seemed to be the only issue that had a broad understanding between the panelists at the table. The insightful discussion called “Who Should Be the Next Mayor of New York” was moderated by Fred Siegel, St. Francis College’s Scholar in Residence, at St. Francis College in Brooklyn. Panelists included Harry Siegel (The Daily Beast), as well as John Avlon (CNN), Michael Powell (New York Times), Maggie Haberman (Politico), and Michael Meyers (New York Civil Rights Coalition).

NYT: Mayoral Contributions Dramatically Down Since 2001

Rock Star, Defiant Representitve or a Cult Leader? Liu Shakes Up Mayoral Campaign

John Liu officially entered the crowded field of mayoral candidates with a 15 hour kick off tour Sunday, tailed by family members, supporters and tired NYC reporters.

Some viewed the chaotic scene and over flowed crowd of supports at the steps of City Hall as a treatment of a rock star:

Bill Thompson Assures Wary Jewish Community He can Win And Deliver

In the event of so many campaign announcements and Borough tours, Mayoral candidate Bill Thompson met Sunday evening with a dozen of Jewish community leaders and politicos at the Avenue Plaza Hotel in Borough Park. "You are looking at the next mayor of New York, without any doubt," said Rabbi Freilich.

Mr. Thompson, who remembers that Borough Park handed over victory to Mayor Bloomberg in 2009, faced a tougher crowd than expected, with questions about vouchers, transportation, public safety, taxes and  unions covering the entire Q&A. While Thompson seemed to be on the defensive (after all this is a district that has voted for Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani in the highest numbers) he also deferred concerns of a future Democratic administration after 20 years of Republican/Independent control of City Hall.

Tidbits From The Trail: Quinn Kicks Off "Walk and Schmooze" Tour

Interview: BP Hopeful Eric Adams Discredits Anti-Semitic Accusations

In a blog comment and a follow up email conversation, Gatemouth argued that there is no public statement that show Eric Adams apologize for offending the Jewish community and supporting the nation of Islam.

"In order for me to apologize for something, I would have to have said something anti the Jewish community or antisemitic," Mr. Adams told me in a brief conversation. Gatemouth, Mr. Adams claims took Farrakhan and Khalid's language and made it seem as if he were supportive of what they were saying.

Republican Mayoral Candidates Debate Winning Formula in D-Dominated City

What happens when a Republican, a Democrat, an Independent and a Liberal enter a room together? It's a Republican mayoral debate. At least that was the impression of the first GOP mayoral debate hosted by Crains New York business in Manhattan Wednesday morning.

Three of the five candidates participating at the candidate forum are former Democrats who are seeking the Republican nomination; the other describes himself as a 'Clinton Democrat' or rather a 'Republicat' in short. Joe Lhota was the only pure Republican in the room; thus that was heart of the discussion - whether a pure Republican can win a mayoral contest in NYC.

Republican Mayoral Candidates Introduce Themselves to BK Conservative Party

Three of the potential Republican mayoral candidates met a welcoming crowd at the first Brooklyn Young Conservative Club' Presidents Day dinner Thursday night. Joe Lhota, George McDonald and Adolfo Carrion, who came with an Independence party slot in pocket addressed the crowd in acknowledging the significance of the Conservative party's growing base in Southern Brooklyn.

Former MTA chief and the favorite candidate in the Republican party, Joe Lhota introduced his candidacy by quipping: "I am Joe Lhota, and I am running for Mayor of NYC."

Channeling Jimmy McMillan's gubernatorial run in 2010 theme, Lhota reminded the crowd of the rent is too damn high slogan, saying "I will be the candidate who will say over and over: "The government is too damn expensive."

 

"The job is too complicated for on the job training," Lhota said while touting his experience in the private and public sector as the best equipped for the job and challenges "on day one."

"We are going to have an interesting race," Lhota said while pointing out the presence of Adolfo Carrion, presenting him as a third party candidate. "I think it is going to be very interesting to see how one can win this race," he added. Lhota's  confidence lays in the belief, as he expressed later on in a private conversation that Carrion's candidacy will do more harm to the potential Democratic nominee.

Adolfo Carrion, who spoke right after him, briefly introduced himself as the one that could bring New Yorkers together. Adding that he's looking forward "to a robust discussion of the future of our city."

George McDonald also addressed the crowd by touting his experience in providing help for the homeless, "not by going to Bain Capital, but to main capital."

McDonald was approached by the Observer's Colin Campbell who asked him whether he is also Jewish,  seen that every Republican candidate has somehow found some Jewish connection to their personal life. Shockingly, McDonald revealed that his wife is Jewish. 

Quinn Passes on Brooklyn's Populated Neighborhoods When Writing City Discretionary Checks

People call Bloomberg - The king, but the lady's acts when she has her hand on the cash, hardly gets noticed. While the City Council's discretionary funding ($50M), dispersed by Council Speaker Quinn, are supposedly distributed based on each area's need, Gothamist's interactive map suggests that some areas are surprisingly needier than others, yet receive far less.

Based on the data made public by the city, Quinn's constituents in Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen received the most funding out of any neighborhood in the city, Gothamist finds. While the majority of zip codes in the city received $10-100 per capita, Quinn's zip codes received $396-696 in the past four years—more than 10 times what most of the city got. 

'Angry' Sal Albanese Wants To Redistribute Toll Prices Between V-Z and BK-MH Bridges

Here is what happens when a Mayoral hopeful is severely angry about toll hikes on Staten Island's V-Z bridge since he he is the one forced to pay it out from his own pocket on a daily basis. Democratic mayoral candidate Sal Albanese, in an attempt to appeal to Staten Island potential voters, tells SIlive he personally understands Staten Islanders' anger over the recent toll hike on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. 

Video: Erick Salgado Touts Pro-Israel Creds and Conservative Values in Russian Radio Interview

Democratic mayoral candidate, Rev. Erick Salgado, who is hoping to assemble a coalition of minority groups and multiracial communities together in support of his candidacy for Mayor, uploaded  a recording of an interview he conducted Feb. 7th with 'Russian media Mogul'  -as describes in a NY Times profile - Gregory Davidzon.

The interview, that was conducted in English and translated in Russian back and forth was about the issues concerning Russian voters, which like other issue concerning voters is: Israel. Given the fact that NYC serves as the home for a majority of Jews outside the Jewish Homeland. "As a Latin evangelical, we have been pro-Israel a hundred percent," he said. Adding that his church is very heavily supportive of Israel.

Israeli Orthodox Magazine 'Bakhila' Profiles Bill Thompson with Header- "A Shabbos Goy"

Bakhila cover of Thompson profile

"I tell people, look at the current Mayor, that is a Jew, and look at the other hand at Bill - One is Jewish, and one is Black. But in reality, the Jew is not so Jewish, and the black guy is not so black," said one of the Jewish activists, who's supporting Bill Thompson's bid for Mayor of NYC, to the Israeli Orthodox magazine 'Bakhila' in Hebrew.

In an extensive profile of former city comptroller and mayoral candidate Bill Thompson, Bakhila magazine describes Thompson's ties to the Jewish community in Brooklyn and his support for Israel, with the header: 'A Shabbos Goy' (a non-Jew who performs certain types of work for a Jew on the Sabbath).

de Blasio Says He's a 'All People' Progressive Candidate

"You are the most leftist candidate... sorry .. most progressive candidate in this race," radio host, Michael Fragin, described Mayoral candidate Bill de blasio, in a debut 'Meet The Mayoral Candidates' interview on the Spin Class / Jewish Political radio station.

After 2 decades of Republican control, 24 years after the last Democratic mayoral candidate was elected as mayor, De Blasio expressed confidence that a Democrat will become mayor of NYC come January 2014. "2013 is going to be a Democratic year," he said twice.

Catsimatidos, Lhota Say It's Not Carrion's Time, Not For Free!

A few months ago, it looked like the savior of the Republican party in NYC will be non other than a Obama Democrat. Carrion, who changed his party registration to unaffiliated, was seen as a gig for the Republicans to maintain NYC's control. Yet, in order to run on the Republican line he sought to seek the approval of 3 out of 5 County chairmen to grant him a Wilson-Pakula. 

Now that Joe Lhota and John Catsimatidis, who both have the name recognition to fit the frame, have jumped into the ring, they both claim there’s no need for the GOP to look outside the ranks. 

Meet Joe Lhota: He's Jewish; A Proteinist, And a Early Bird

New Yorkers just mourned the loss of the most prominent Jewish mayor. They are also departing, at the end of the year, from a 3 term Jewish mayor. Are New Yorkers ready for another Jewish Mayor?

No, he doesn't eat gefilte fish. But apparently Joe Lhota is Jewish (according to the Jewish law).

"My father’s side is from the Bohemian part, 120 km south of Prague. My mother’s father was Italian. Her mother, Jewish," Lhota told Cindy Adams in a special 'page six' profile for the NY Post. "Like New York, I’m a little of everything, which means alienating everybody else. My great-grandfather came over first," he added.

Republican County Committee Chairmen Now Believe a Primary is Good for the Party

Looks like the five Boroughs Republican Chairmen have given up on the hope of coming together to support a single candidate, in favor of a Republican primary. "It is what it is. They are all qualified," said Brooklyn GOP Chairman Craig Eaton. "That's good for the Party," he added.

Celeste Katz published a raw video of the city's five Republican county committee chairmen speaking after Monday night's meeting with five of the candidates seeking the Republican nomination for mayor.