An Invitation to Mayor Bloomberg

Earlier today Mayor Bloomberg responded to tonight's Rally for NYC Public Schools by announcing a new initiative (the appointment of a new parental engagement staffer, I believe) intended to give parents a say in the process. I don't have any more details because the announcement was made without, um, any public involvement.

Working Families Party Co-Chair Bertha Lewis extended an open invitation to Mayor Bloomberg to start a real dialogue:

"Better late than never. While we applaud the Mayor for realizing - mere hours before a major community meeting on the schools - that something is deeply wrong with the relationship between the Department of Education and parents, it unfortunately is another example of what the system's stakeholders are angry about, which is lack of consultation before new initiatives are announced.

We would encourage the Mayor and the Chancellor to start a real engagement process tonight by coming to St. Vartan's Cathedral at 6:30 and listening to the concerns of parents, teachers, children and others who care deeply about our city's schools."

Will Bloomberg accept? Stay tuned for details.

Technorati tags: Working Families Party | Education

Rally for NYC Public Schools Tonight

It's time for the public's voice to be heard again in our public schools. Tonight at 6:30pm, at St. Vartan's Cathedral on 2nd Ave, parents, teachers and students are rallying to tell Chancellor Klein to stop the proposed school reorganization and listen to the community.

The New York City Department of Education has put out another proposal to reorganize our schools, but they're not consulting the public or accepting public input. That's three major reorganizations in five years, and the public has NEVER been consulted about ANY of these reorganizations, even though each reorganization is chaotic and destabilizing for parents and teachers and for our kids. This from a Chancellor who repeatedly claims to want to bring stability to the system.

Instead, the Department of Education only listens to its consultants. That's taken us to a point where they can't even get our children TO school, much less do the right thing once they are there.

The school bus debacle is a perfect example of what has gone wrong. The Department of Education was warned - repeatedly warned - about potential problems with cutting bus service. They ignored the warnings and did it anyway, and the rollout was a disaster. We need to make sure this stops happening.

But the school bus debacle is also a powerful example of what can happen when parents, teachers and students stand together and demand change.

The Department of Education doesn't like to admit when it's wrong, but there's a growing outcry among parents, teachers and kids that things aren't right with the way our school system is being operated.

This lack of basic respect for parents and kids has sunk relations between parents and the school system to their lowest level in many years.

That's not healthy for our kids, our teachers or our schools.

It's time for the Department of Education to let the public in and start listening to us.

We need to see a real change in the culture of the Department of Education. Parents have been complaining about a lack of voice for years, and those complaints have only grown louder with each passing year and each new reorganization. We need to see parent's concerns reflected in the Department of Education's plans.

Teachers and parents have repeatedly called for reducing class size, for school safety programs, for universal pre-kindergarten, for transforming our middle schools and for building effective pathways to college.

Our kids need stability and quality instruction, not more structural change. But the Chancelor's reorganization plan doesn't include any focus on what actually happens in the classroom. Whatever happened to instruction?

Let's see a real "Marshall Plan" to turn around low-performing middle schools.

Let's see a humane balance between teaching and testing.

Let's put the public back in public education

That's why tonight at 6:30pm at St. Vartan's Cathedral on 2nd Ave, parents, teachers and students are rallying to tell Chancellor Klein to stop the proposed school reorganization and listen to the community.

Working Families Party Co-Chairs Bertha Lewis and Bob Master will kick things off, and we'll hear from students, parents, teachers, United Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten, NYC Comptroller Bill Thompson, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrion, Queens Borough President Helen Marshall, NYC Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum, NYC Central Labor Council Executive Director Ed Ott and more.

Join us tonight at 6:30pm at St. Vartan's Cathedral on 2nd Ave between 34th and 35th Streets (take the 6 train to 33rd St).

Technorati tags: Working Families Party | Education

New York Subway #7 Worldwide

The New York City subway system has been rated #7 in the world by, um, Virgin Vacations.

Highlights: Offers express services that run on separate tracks from local trains. The MTA is currently testing out LED displays in subway stations to let commuters know when the next train is expected to arrive. 24 hour service. Unique and distinct artwork (mosaics) throughout the system.

Check out the full list.

Health Care and Food Safety

There's a health care debate playing out in the "Another Voice" section of the Buffalo News. Today's Another Voice features an op-ed essay from Western New York Working Families steering committee member Eric Walker:

"Our free market health care system works very well for insurance companies and drug companies, which are making record profits. It does not work well for families, who are watching their premiums and co-payments become more outrageous every year.

Forty years ago, we had a different problem in health care. Elderly people had been priced out by insurance companies and couldn't afford insurance on the free market.

Instead of defending the insurance companies, people demanded a real solution. The government created Medicare, which provides health care to millions of seniors far more efficiently than any private insurance company.

Today, millions of New Yorkers work hard but can't afford health insurance. We can get bogged down in ideology or we can demand real solutions.
. . .
We need solutions that work, and when it comes to life-saving medical care, throwing sick people on the tender mercies of the free market hasn't been effective. Medicare showed that government can be incredibly effective in health care, efficiently and economically providing care to people who need it.

While Southwick's ideology demands that government is the problem, the rest of us should not overlook the plain fact that, for millions of Americans, it has been the life-saving solution."

It's worth reading all of Eric's op-ed.

Eric wrote his letter in response to an earlier Another Voices op-ed by Lawrence Southwick Jr that made the claim:

"The free market does a superb job of delivering food at ever lower costs.

Get government out of the way and health services will do so as well."

I'll point out that our government is actually heavily involved in food delivery - both subsidizing food production and insuring food safety - to the benefit of us all. In fact, news that government is "getting out of the way" of delivering food and "conducting half the food safety inspections it did three years ago" is a cause for concern.

Maybe that makes the point best - government getting out of the way means killer spinach, poison peanut butter and dinner served with a side of E. coli. Personally, I prefer more government involvement, thank you very much.

Technorati tags: Working Families Party | Health Care

State Legislature Takes on Affordable Housing

The fight for Starrett City - a proxy in the larger fight over affordable housing - is expanding to a second stage as state legislators propose the "Save Starrett City Law", which would protect nearly 65,000 apartments by closing a loophole that lets building owners benefit from affordable housing programs but then stop providing affordable housing.

The state's Mitchell-Lama affordable housing program exchanges tax-exempt financing for affordable housing. Currently, if a building was built after 1973 and the owners leave Mitchell-Lama or Section 8 they're not subject to rent stabilization laws. The Save Starrett City Law would mean building owners who leave Mitchell-Lama or Section 8 affordable housing programs would still have to follow rent stabilization laws.

Working Families supports the Save Starrett City Law. Here's Executive Director Dan Cantor quoted in a New York Times article:

"Starrett City represents everything that we really think this city should be about . . . It's called the 'Save Starrett City Law,' but it really should be called the 'Save New York City Law.'"

Look for more this week on this issue and ways for you to get involved.

Technorati tags: Working Families Party | Affordable Housing

Limit the Mission

House Democrats are moving forward with their plan to end the war through a "Readiness Strategy" that limits the number of soldiers that can be sent to Iraq by requiring that troops be sent to Iraq with proper equipment and training. Bush regularly sends troops to war without the equipment they need and without training for the mission they're embarking on.

Now Senate Democrats are discussing an alternate strategy to limit the authority granted Bush by the 2002 congressional resolution authorizing the war.

Working Families supports limiting the use of funds to protecting our troops' safety and bringing them home.

With the differing approaches, expect more discussion on what comes next. The positive is these approaches aren't mutally exclusive. How do we pursue all three at once and bring the troops home?

Technorati tags: Working Families Party | Iraq

Are Working Families Welcome in NYC?

The Drum Major Institute and the School of Public Affairs at Baruch College are hosting an April 2 conference to address just that question. The agenda for the American Dream in the Big Apple conference includes presentations of new research, two panel discussions and an open discussion. Conference topics include income inequality and affordable housing. The speakers announced so far include heavy hitters like New York City Comptroller Bill Thompson and Representative Anthony Weiner (both frequently mentioned mayoral candidates), Finance Commissioner Martha Stark (one of the finalists for state comptroller), and UFT President Randi Weingarten, with more to come.

Find out more on the DMI Blog or at 646-660-6851 or dmi@drummajorinstitute.org.

Technorati tags: Working Families Party

Fox News's Laugh Track

This Keith Olbermann (video) spoof of Fox (via Crooks and Liars) is pretty funny.

Next Time, Hunt the Republicans

The GOP kids from NYU went through with their sick little joke. They were substantially outnumbered by protesters carrying the message, "We Are All Immigrants."

It's worth still shining a light on the ugliness. Below are a screenshot of the event promotional page from Facebook (via Gothamist) and a short video (via Gawker) focusing on the response.

'It's a risk, rather than a right, to join a labor union'

There's a great report at TomPaine.com written by Alec Dubro on a panel discussion organized by the Economic Policy Institute and convened in Washington today. Here are some highlights (but go read the whole thing if you can):

The leadoff hitter was probably the nation’s best-known progressive economist, New York Times columnist and Princeton professor Paul Krugman. He made two points that need to be instilled in every reader and TV news viewer, as well as every business reporter:

1. The United States is "pretty good at generating overall growth," but that doesn't translate into broad prosperity.

2. "We did not realize it until we lost unions how crucial they are to our well-being."

. . .
Audience member Ann Hoffman, formerly of the garment workers union, noted that in the 1930s and early 1940s, garment workers earned higher wages than did auto workers, "because they'd had a 30-year head start in unionization."
. . .
Tom Kochan, co-director of the Institute for Work and Employment Research at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, followed up by citing some familiar but essential facts: At least 20 percent of workers who try to organize their fellows wind up fired; that labor law in its current form is a disgrace; that at the moment, "it's a risk, rather than a right, to join a labor union." He also said that the proposed Employee Free Choice Act now in Congress, which would ease unionization, "is just a first step in encouraging productive labor-management cooperation."
. . .
The final speaker was Harley Shaiken, University of California at Berkeley professor of geography specializing in unions, trade and Latin America.
. . .
We've come a long way down from there, said Shaiken, and car makers don't think in terms of societal good any more. He said that Toyota plants in the U.S. were paying slightly above the wages negotiated by the UAW in American plants, but now that the domestic auto makers are escaping from their contracts, Toyota has a new strategy. Despite being an extremely profitable enterprise, Toyota circulated a memo, leaked to Shaiken, saying that since they don't have to contend with a vigorous UAW, they intend to "cut wages dramatically."

Nevertheless, Shaiken said that six of the 10 most efficient auto plants in the U.S are union shops—including the joint GM-Toyota plant in Fremont, California. "Competitiveness," he said, "goes beyond just cost, and cutting wages can cut productivity."

More to come on the Employee Free Choice Act.

WFP interviews LCV

The New York League of Conservation Voters is one of the groups Working Families is working with more as we take action on global warming.

I sat down with (well, emailed) Marcia Bystryn, NYLCV's Executive Director, and asked a few questions:

1. What is the NYLCV working on?

We're gearing up to put out our legislative and executive agendas. They contain a series of environmental priorities that when combined will offer New York State a solid and comprehensive climate change and smart growth action agenda. They range from increasing mandatory reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and stronger energy efficiency standards to smart-led transportation growth.

In New York City, we've already laid out a sustainability agenda to compel the Bloomberg administration to begin to implement its 2030 plan today. There are some obvious action steps the mayor can take in 2007 to get that ball rolling, and we plan to push for action this year. In March, we'll be releasing our 2006 Scorecard for the New York City Council to hold members accountable for their environmental promises. The council has a big role to play in making sure that New York is a national leader on global warming and other issues.

We're also very active at the local level to encourage elected leaders to take action on climate change. In the absence of federal action on global warming, there's been some real innovation happening at the local level across New York. We spearheaded a countywide global warming task force in Westchester, and we intend to lobby other local elected officials to take on similar efforts in their counties, cities, and towns.

2. How will global warming effect New York state?

Because New York sits on the coast, the implications are huge. As sea levels rise, coastal areas will face increased flooding and major beach erosion. Heat waves of increasing intensity and prolonged periods are expected. Hotter summers mean more smog in metropolitan areas, which exacerbates asthma and other diseases. Certain bird species that depend on New York's coasts could be affected, and maple forests and wildlife will be threatened by rising temperatures.

3. What is New York doing now to address global warming?

New York State is part of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), which takes a significant step towards cutting heat-trapping emissions from power plants. But it's not enough, and we need the regulations to enforce it and to expand it to include other sources, not just power plants. California, under the leadership of Gov. Schwarzenneger has been the leader in the pack on this issue, and we expect nothing less from our new executive Gov. Spitzer. It's great that Gov. Spitzer has budgeted dollars to enhance the capacity of the Office of Climate Change at DEC, but we need strong, ambitious fixes through executive orders that begin to mandate emissions reductions from every sector of the economy so that New York can be a national leader on this issue.

4. What opportunities do you see to take action on global warming here in New York?

There are many opportunities, and RGGI provides a great starting point. With a strong and immediate commitment from Gov. Spitzer, we could begin to see real movement around RGGI. There has also been a strong push from environmental groups and editorial boards to encourage Gov. Spitzer to lead New York in the direction that Gov. Schwarzenegger is taking California and to issue executive orders that address global warming. Also, smart growth, which favors pedestrian- and transit-oriented development over sprawl, is shaping up to be a huge priority for the Spitzer administration. This type of smart-led development is also an effective greenhouse gas reduction strategy.

The localities also have a huge role to play. In Babylon in Long Island, for example, the government just passed one of the most forward-thinking green building standards in the nation. We're looking to other localities in Long Island, Westchester, and the Capital District to take on similar climate change and smart growth initiatives.

5. What election work does NYLCV do?

We are an environmental political action committee, and we endorse candidates at every level of state and local government in New York State. We also have an Education Fund that educates the public, candidates, and elected officials on the environmental issues that pertain to their areas.

6. When will you start looking at the 2007 elections?

As a matter of fact, we're looking right now.

7. What elections do you have your eye on?

There's a lot happening at the local level. The Yonkers mayoral race could be a big one, and environmental issues around smart growth and transportation are heating up there. We also have our eye on a few local races on Long Island and in the Capital District. We'll keep you posted.

Stay up to date at the NYLCV blog.

Technorati tags: Working Families Party

NYU College Republicans to America: We Hate You

Kids will be kids, and College Republicans will be College Republicans. But the "illegal immigrant hunt" that the NYU chapter has planned for tomorrow in Washington Square Park goes about three steps beyond the pale (hat tip to Gothamist).

Cheers to the hundreds of students who plan to protest.

Here's what happened at a similar event at the University of Texas in Austin where protesters far outnumbered the moronic "hunters" from the Young Conservatives of Texas:


The organizers of the "hunt" -- the officers of the NYU CRs -- have been good enough to provide their contact information on the Internet in case anyone wants to express their feelings about Thursday's adventure:

Please feel free to contact any of our officers via email:

President, Sarah L. Chambers, slc369@nyu.edu
Vice President, Rakibul Islam, ri350@nyu.edu
Secretary, Cait Kannall, cek262@nyu.edu
Treasurer, Neal Sangani, nps234@stern.nyu.edu
Webmaster, Greg Hammond, gch219@nyu.edu
Social Chair, Richard Rossi, rwr223@nyu.edu
Campaign and Internship Chair, David Laska, del274@nyu.edu

Blair Bringing British Troops Home

Tony Blair is rejecting George Bush's escalation strategy and bringing British troops home. Blair is bringing 1,600 British troops home now - that's around a quarter of the British troops still in Iraq - with 3,000 more to come home by the end of 2007 and the rest to follow in 2008.

Senator Kennedy gets it right:

"No matter how the White House tries to spin it, the British government has decided to split with President Bush and begin to move their troops out of Iraq. This should be a wake up call to the administration.
. . .
Eighteen other countries have already withdrawn or dramatically reduced their troop presence in Iraq. A majority of the American people voted last November for a changed policy in Iraq. A majority of the House and the Senate, a unanimous Baker- Hamilton Commission and numerous generals have rejected the Administration's policy in Iraq. And now our country's strongest ally has rejected it."

But the Bush administration still refuses to face facts.

From Condoleezza Rice:

"The coalition remains intact and, in fact, the British still have thousands of troops deployed in Iraq."

Those British troops are leaving, and they're leaving for a good reason.

And from Dick Cheney:

"I look at it and see it is actually an affirmation that there are parts of Iraq where things are going pretty well."

Give me a break. Or, better yet, bring U.S. troops home now and call it an affirmation that things are going pretty well. But let's not kid ourselves: Iraq is in a civil war, George Bush won't face reality, and our troops are paying the price. Congress needs to force Bush to change course and bring the troops home.

Technorati tags: Working Families Party | Iraq

Just Say No To Starrett City Sale

The fight over affordable housing in New York is coming to a head in Starrett City. Home to 14,000 people, a development group led by David Bistricer has proposed buying Starrett City for $1.3 billion. With a price tag that high, analysts agree that Bistricer intends to make his money back by converting Starrett City to luxury condos.

How will those 14,000 residents get forced out to make way for condos? Bistricer's Flatbush Gardens property in Brooklyn has 8,792 housing violations, including 1,800 violations in the last 18 months. And by opting out of the state's Mitchell-Lama affordable housing program, Bistricer will be able to raise rents - expect an immediate rent hike of $200 a month. As the combination of lower maintenance and higher rent drives people out, the space will be converted to luxury condos.

If we don't do something now, who knows where in the state our kids will be able to afford to live.

Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson has the power to reject the deal, and Senator Chuck Schumer has called on Jackson to do so:

"Experts across the board agree: it will be impossible for someone paying this price not to convert the units into high-price rentals or ritzy condominiums. Without question, a sale at this price will change the character of Starrett forever."

The state of New York holds the mortgage on Starrett City, so if Jackson doesn't do the right thing then Governor Spitzer can step in. From the AP:

New York's new Democratic governor, Eliot Spitzer, who campaigned on the promise that he would protect the working class, is another powerful tenant ally -- with leverage.

State officials hold Starrett's $234 million interest-free mortgage and can approve or reject any new owner.

The same article highlights another option to protect affordable housing:

And development of vacant land on the site -- another buyer draw -- also requires state and city approvals.

Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has pledged to enforce a 1998 court order barring Bistricer from converting rental buildings to condos or co-ops because of "financial improprieties." Indeed.

More to come.

Technorati tags: Working Families Party | Affordable Housing

How Much to Own a Home?

The Drum Major Institute has put out their overview on the middle class squeeze. Here's the piece that jumped out at me:

An annual income of $84,957 was needed to qualify to purchase the median priced U.S. home, which cost $248,000 in the third quarter of 2006, according to the Center of Housing Policy. This put homeownership beyond the median annual salaries of such solidly middle-class occupations as registered nurses (median salary $58,640), elementary school teachers ($47,104), police officers ($45,780), and accountants ($47,604). (click here)

If we want America to be a nation of homeowners then that needs to change. What are your ideas for making housing more affordable?

Technorati tags: Working Families Party | Affordable Housing

House Votes NO on Surge

Today the House of Representatives passed a nonbinding resolution that says NO to George Bush's plan to increase American involvement in Iraq, 246 to 182. Now the real fight over the war's budget can start.

See who voted which way.

Technorati tags: Working Families Party | Iraq

House Votes Today on Iraq Resolution

The U.S. House is set to vote today on a resolution opposing George Bush's plan to escalate American involvement in Iraq. Today's vote to say NO to escalation is a self-described "first step" by House Democrats towards bringing the troops home.

The WFP agrees that sending more of our troops into harm's way is wrong, and that our U.S. Representatives need to take this first step towards bringing our troops home.

More details are emerging on the next steps that House Democrats have planned to bring the troops home (read this post for background).

The powerful speaker of the House of Representatives, Democrat Nancy Pelosi, said she will support money for US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan only if the Pentagon meets strict standards of rest, training and equipment for the soldiers.
. . .
"If we are going to support our troops, we should respect what is considered reasonable for them: their training, their equipment and their time at home," Pelosi said, according to the Post.

"What we're trying to say to the president is, you can't send people in who are not trained for urban warfare . . . who are not prepared to contend with an insurgency."

The all-volunteer US military is already stretched thin and unable to supply enough armored vehicles or body armor for all deployed soldiers, according to published reports.
. . .
Her remarks coincided with a similar statement Thursday by Representative John Murtha, a Pelosi ally and war critic.

Murtha, who heads a key budget subcommittee that can block funds to the military, said he wants the troops to spend at least one year at home between deployments, would end a program forcing soldiers to remain in the military after their contracts expired, and would make sure the soldiers are fully "combat ready" before heading into a war zone.

More on Murtha in this article:

Democrats say the votes are the first step toward forcing Bush to change course in a war that has killed more than 3,100 U.S. troops and lost favor with voters.

"This country needs a dramatic change of course in Iraq and it is the responsibility of this Congress to consummate that change," said Rep. John Murtha, who chairs the House panel that oversees military spending.

Murtha, D-Pennsylvania, is preparing legislation that would set strict conditions on combat deployments, including a year rest between combat tours; ultimately, the congressman says, his measure would make it impossible for Bush to maintain his planned deployment of a total of about 160,000 troops for months on end.

Finally, here's an online briefing by Rep. Murtha on what comes next:



Technorati tags: Working Families Party | Iraq

More on the "Readiness Strategy"

Following up on yesterday's post on Iraq, Rep John Murtha discussed requiring that military units meet formal Army readiness standards of training and equipment before they're deployed to Iraq. Since Bush wants to deploy troops to Iraq without training and body armor, this would counter the proposed escalation.

In today's House debate, Bush's proposal to escalate American involvement in Iraq drew criticism from House Republicans. The most telling comments from the Republican side came from Florida Representative Ric Keller:

"Imagine your next-door neighbor refuses to mow his lawn and the weeds are all the way up to his waist, so you decide you're going to mow his lawn for him every single week . . . The neighbor never says thank you, he hates you and sometimes he takes out a gun and shoots you. Under these circumstances, do you keep mowing his lawn for ever?"

And the U.S. Senate is getting back into the act, announcing that they will start debate this Saturday on the anti-escalation resolution after the House votes this Friday.

Before Friday's House vote, make sure you tell your Representative to keep going until the troops come home.

Technorati tags: Working Families Party | Iraq

Democrats' Iraq "Readiness Strategy"

With the House debate on Iraq in Day 2, new details of the Democratic strategy to end the war are becoming public. From Politico.com:

Top House Democrats, working in concert with anti-war groups, have decided against using congressional power to force a quick end to U.S. involvement in Iraq, and instead will pursue a slow-bleed strategy designed to gradually limit the administration's options.

Led by Rep. John P. Murtha, D-Pa., and supported by several well-funded anti-war groups, the coalition's goal is to limit or sharply reduce the number of U.S. troops available for the Iraq conflict, rather than to openly cut off funding for the war itself.
. . .
Murtha, the powerful chairman of the defense subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee, will seek to attach a provision to an upcoming $93 billion supplemental spending bill for Iraq and Afghanistan. It would restrict the deployment of troops to Iraq unless they meet certain levels adequate manpower, equipment and training to succeed in combat. That's a standard Murtha believes few of the units Bush intends to use for the surge would be able to meet.

In addition, Murtha, acting with the backing of the House Democratic leadership, will seek to limit the time and number of deployments by soldiers, Marines and National Guard units to Iraq, making it tougher for Pentagon officials to find the troops to replace units that are scheduled to rotate out of the country. Additional funding restrictions are also being considered by Murtha, such as prohibiting the creation of U.S. military bases inside Iraq, dismantling the notorious Abu Ghraib prison and closing the American detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

It's worth reading the whole article.

We'll get to see this strategy in action here in New York, as Republican Reps Randy Kuhl and Vito Fossella decide how they're going to vote. New York Republicans Tom Reynolds, Peter King and John McHugh have decided to vote for expanding American involvement in Iraq, while James Walsh is going to abandon his Republican colleagues and vote to oppose the Bush expansion plan. From Newsday:

Two of New York's Republican lawmakers stayed on the fence Tuesday as Congress began debating a resolution opposing a troop increase in Iraq - a measure that could have more sway over their political futures than on U.S. fighting forces.

We'll let New York Rep Charlie Rangel have the last word:

"Today, you have to decide whether or not you want this war to continue, and how many people have to die . . . [the resolution opposing escalation] is not going to hurt our beloved warriors, it's going to help our country, it's going to help them."

Right on.

What do you think? Ending the war is the important thing - is this plan the way to do it?

Technorati tags: Working Families Party | Iraq

Westchester-Putnam Chapter: Raising Wages and Winning Elections

The Westchester-Putnam Working Families Chapter is having a good week.

Last night, the Yonkers City Council passed a living wage bill, with the wage indexed to inflation. The vote was originally set for next Tuesday, but the City Council President said, "what the hell, let's do it now", and they did. Now comes the hard part: the bill passed with 4 5 votes, but and it needs 5 votes if there's a veto. With elections coming up in November, expect whether the Mayor vetoes the bill and who votes to override that veto to become hot campaign issues.

But the Westchester-Putnam Chapter wasn't there to celebrate their victory, because yesterday was also Election Day. The chapter endorsed winning candidate Ken Jenkins. Ken won with 81% of the vote out of 2,232 votes cast, and more than 5% of Ken's votes came on the WFP line.

Keep up the good work!

Find the Working Families chapter nearest you.

Technorati tags: Working Families Party