The Independent Democratic Caucus was sh-sh-shaking in its boots. It decided to rejoin the mainline Dems, rather than have to continue to defend itself against accusations of being turncoats and, worse, Republicans! (the beast whose name should never be uttered, except in reference to Honest Abe).
Anyone who's taken the time to get to know the IDC will know they were never Republicans. (Though they were founded by a Class A jerk). They didn't support Trump. And they did not hand the Republicans the majority. That honor belongs to a series of events that started with the coup of 2008, then the Republicans retaking the Senate in the 2010 Republican wave, and in 2012 more bribes, resignations, defections and utter insanity. I had to read this Wikipedia article three times before it all started to make sense. If you want to place the blame at someone's feet, choose either Bronxian Jeff Klein, the dorky head of the IDC, or maybe the very bizarre State Senator from Borough Park, Simcha Felder, whose continued animosity to consensus and decency, even LITERACY, suggests that if anyone deserves to go down in the upcoming NY Senate election, it's Sneaky Sim Felder, for G#D's sake.
So then I go to see Jesse Hamilton III, our much maligned representative, and it's clear he's been annoyed by all the hubbub, going as far as to call the anti-IDC crowd racist for calling him out. A campaign tactic? Maybe. Given Hamilton's years of dedication to the community, and his fairly reasonable explanation of why he compromised with Republicans to get some real benefits for his constituents, I'm torn. Sure he got a few thousand more bucks and ready access to the gavel as perks. But...well, anyway, don't buy the simplistic versions of the story. It's truly a multi-layered yarn that hopefully has now been resolved. Albany is anything but boring...
And in the meantime, take a look at the challenger to Hamilton. A young, savvy, smart man who grew up right here at Maple and Flatbush. Friends call him Zell, and I suspect he'd be happy to have you call him that, provided you give his candidacy the hard look it deserves.
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| Zellnor's the Real Deal, A Savvy Up-and-Comer |
Zell knows his neighborhood. He's comfortable in Flatbush (call it PLG or Lefferts if you like), but he knows the pain people are feeling and espouses common sense solutions. Regain "home rule" for rent laws. Build truly affordable housing. Resist unnecessary development. Provide real opportunities for young people. You know, he's a true and blue progressive Democrat, and these days, that means something.
And while the anti-IDC will come with knuckles bared against Jesse, look for the likes of the machine-oiled Kings County Politics to fight back with petty nonsense like this about Zell, tying him to a guy he worked for 2010-2012 - Fernando Cabrera - and implying that his work there meant he shared Cabrera's more conservative views. I'm sure Zell would have worked for a more progressive guy if he'd gotten the gig. But Zell wasn't Cabrera. Hamilton, on the other hand, IS Hamilton. He's not just working for him. His views, and his choices with the IDC, are all his, for better or worse.
In encourage you to get to know Zell, reach out to his campaign, give him a few bucks, and let the real race begin. Cuz it's all about the primary in this one-party town, where to even drink out of the same water fountain as the Republicans can lose you your job.
7 comments:
Emerging scandal: Hamilton runs his campaign operations out of an apartment intended for low income tenants. OOPS.
http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20180410/POLITICS/180409914/brooklyn-state-sen-jesse-hamilton-runs-campaign-out-of-his
Not only is Jesse Hamilton's camp resorting to calling anti-IDC types in his district racists (as they've personally attacked me, via e-mails (when I unsubscribed from his mailing list - how professional is that?) Now if only I could stop him sending me his endless newsletters via regular mail!) and on social media, through several fraudulent accounts), he and the Democratic machine are resorting to trying to smear Diana Richardson through false stories planted in that bastion of reliable journalism, the New York Post. Luckily, Diana is much loved by many people in the district and we will continue to fight for her. I suspect these are some of the same people who attacked me for supporting Brian Cunningham over Pia Raymond, as their tone and lack of proper spelling and grammar are similar.
And the New Kings Democrats, of which I am a member, recently endorsed Zellnor over Hamilton (who didn't even bother to reply to the NKD's requests to meet with him or fill out a questionnaire about his platform - I guess he knew he wasn't going anywhere with us). I would encourage anyone interested in bringing competent, caring, and HONEST leadership to our district to check out Zellnor's campaign and get involved - we've had several fundraisers and an active phone bank campaign.
Although you mention him only in passing, I'd like to point out that there's nothing "very bizarre" about Sen. Simcha Felder. He is the duly elected representative of a fundamentalist religious cult and as such does everything he can do promote their self-serving, anti-humanist agenda. Expect him to continue trying to advance the values of the 14th century with or without the IDC.
The bizarre thing about Simcha Felder is that he runs as a Democrat. In other orthodox-dominated districts, candidates run as Republicans and they generally win.
It's brilliant actually. The people who know him vote his policies, and the rest of the electorate votes for him because they vote down the party line assuming they're getting a Democrat. Until the Dems deny him the line, he'll be there as long as he wants to be.
Diana Richardson and Jesse Hamilton should both go. We need representatives that are progressive and don't assault children.
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