New York Politics & News
News coverage and commentary of New York state politics, progressive policies, and governance battles in the Empire State.
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opinion
What the New York Daily News Got Wrong About God, Reality
The New York Daily News’ cover in the aftermath of the tragic San Bernardino, Calif., shootings is being heralded as provocative and challenging. “God Isn’t Fixing This,” blares the cover, which features tweets from Republicans urging prayer after the shooting and then launches into a lecture: “As the latest batch of innocent Americans are left… -
opinion
New York Attorney General Tries to Criminalize Scientific Dissent on Climate Change
Everyone reading this should do the attorney general of New York, Eric T. Schneiderman, a big favor: buy a copy of the U.S. Constitution, highlight the First Amendment in the Bill of Rights with a bright yellow or orange Sharpie, and mail him a copy. Schneiderman obviously needs a remedial lesson in the fact that… -
news
In New York, Restaurant Industry Fights Minimum Wage Hike, Argues NY Governor Guilty of ‘Executive Overreach’
The National Restaurant Association is fighting New York’s anticipated $15-per-hour minimum wage hike in the restaurant industry’s latest wage battle. The association filed a petition last week pressing the New York Industrial Board of Appeals to scrap the anticipated increase for fast food workers in the state. The group argued that the New York Department… -
news
New York Gov. Cuomo Rejects New Evidence, Continues to Forbid Fracking
For officials in the economically depressed region of New York state known as the Southern Tier, two recent hydraulic fracturing studies gave them the slightest glimmer of hope that the administration of Gov. Andrew Cuomo would reverse the state’s ban on hydraulic fracturing. But in a brief email to Watchdog.org, the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation shut the door on… -
news
New York Times Declines to Publish Congressman’s Criticism of Iran Deal ‘Jew Tracker’
The New York Times declined to publish Republican Rep. Peter Roskam’s letter to the editor condemning its heavily criticized graphic that tracked members of Congress opposed to the Iran nuclear agreement, initially singling out Jewish lawmakers with a bold yellow highlight. Roskam said he was “disappointed” the Times chose not to publish his letter, which… -
opinion
New York City’s Latest Attempt to Control Uber
Earlier this year, when New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio tried to cap the growth of Uber and other ridesharing companies, he was forced to back down. The public, it seems, likes the convenient and reliable services these companies offer. And it did not help the mayor’s cause that he had no evidence to… -
news
Thousands Take to New York Streets to Protest Iran Deal
Thousands of protesters poured into Manhattan Tuesday evening to demand, outside Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand’s New York office, that Congress vote against the Iran nuclear agreement. “Change your vote!” chants reverberated through the crowd after former Sen. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., said he was “shocked” and “disappointed” that Gillibrand decided to back the accord last month. “Since the… -
news
What the New York Times Didn’t Tell You About the Planned Parenthood Video Analysis
The company commissioned by Planned Parenthood to analyze a series of undercover videos played a key role in 2012 to undermine Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign. Planned Parenthood hired Washington, D.C.-based Fusion GPS to examine videos released by the Center for Medical Progress over the past two months that have raised questions about the sale of fetal body parts. Fusion GPS’s… -
opinion
What the New York Times Got Wrong About the Planned Parenthood Videos
According to the folks at the New York Times, this whole Planned Parenthood story is not a story. And if anybody needs to be investigated, says the Times, it’s certainly not the country’s largest abortion provider, which we’ve now learned is possibly also in the business of selling aborted babies’ livers, hearts and other body… -
news
The New York Times Leaves Ted Cruz’s Book Off Bestseller List
The New York Times has refused to include a book written by Sen. Ted Cruz on its bestseller list. Cruz, R-Texas, who is a 2016 presidential candidate, published his book, “A Time for Truth,” on June 30. On Thursday, Politico reported that the book “sold 11,854 copies in its first week:” That’s more than 18… -
opinion
New York Times Ignores Children of Gay Parents Who Want a Mom and Dad
The New York Times ran an article this weekend profiling and quoting many children of gay and lesbian parents under the headline “What Could Gay Marriage Mean for the Kids?” Noticeably absent were any children who, while loving their two moms or two dads, yearned for both a mom and dad. In my new book,… -
news
Here’s Why Some New York Towns Want to Secede to Pennsylvania
Some residents of New York’s Southern Tier have proposed seceding to Pennsylvania. Residents of the area say they're unable to capitalize on the gas-rich Marcellus Shale due to Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s fracking ban. "The Southern Tier is desolate," Conklin town supervisor Jim Finch told WBNG. "We have no jobs and no income. The richest… -
news
New York City Proposal Would Outlaw Overnight Parking for Out-of-State Cars
Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free. But parking your tires, your Ford or your Honda with a Massachusetts license plate on the streets of New York City overnight certainly won’t be free. At least that’s the idea behind a proposal to ban overnight parking for out-of-state cars in… -
news
New York City Just Banned Yet Another Common Product
Enjoy your takeout while you can, New York. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and his administration announced on Thursday that the city will ban polystyrene foam, effective July 1. Polystyrene foam is used in products such as packing peanuts and containers for takeout food and drink. Reuters reports that the ban fulfills a… -
opinion
How New York City Could Be Affected By the NYPD’s Slowdown in Arrests
The front-line officers of the New York Police Department appear to be engaged in a work slowdown following the recent executions of officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu. In part, the slowdown appears to be a response to an accumulation of anti-police statements and activities by Mayor Bill de Blasio, including controversial comments and an… -
news
Fracking Supporters in New York Aren’t Giving Up, Despite State Ban
Andrew Cuomo has banned hydraulic fracturing in New York, but that doesn’t mean the battle is over. On Monday night, a big crowd in Binghamton braved sub-freezing temperatures to attend a pro-natural gas rally at a local Holiday Inn blasting the governor. “He made a purely political decision,” said Dan Fitzsimmons, executive director of the… -
news
The Reaction to New York’s Fracking Ban
Hydraulic fracturing is now a no-no in New York state. And that has 64-year-old Marchie Diffendorf, a lifelong resident of the rural town of Kirkwood, N.Y., most unhappy. “It’s angered and upset me,” Diffendorf said. “I think it was purely political.” New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced last week that the Empire State has banned… -
news
How New York Football Greats Salute Fallen NYPD Officers
Less than 24 hours after two New York City police officers were shot and killed in broad daylight Saturday, New York Jets player Nick Mangold and New York Giants head coach Tom Coughlin publicly honored the slain officers. Mangold, a center for the Jets, sported a black NYPD baseball cap yesterday while walking into Metlife… -
news
Disbelief as New York Times Publishes Details on Where Newlywed Ferguson Officer Lives
Angering fellow journalists and the public alike, The New York Times published details on the residence of Darren Wilson, the Ferguson, Mo., police officer whom a grand jury declined to indict for the shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown. The newspaper posted an article Monday on Wilson’s marriage to a fellow Ferguson police officer, Barbara… -
opinion
This Blind Cuban Dissident Tells the New York Times What They Have Wrong on Cuba
On the day when millions of Americans were exercising their sovereign right to elect their leaders, a blind Cuban dissident who’s never been able to cast a vote in his life was in Washington with a simple message for The New York Times. “If you end the embargo now like The New York Times wants,…