SHEEPSHEAD BAY'S ONLY INDEPENDENT NEWS BLOG

An ABC News investigative report revealed a loophole in campaign contribution regulations that allow millions of dollars to be funneled to legislators in the State Senate. Senator Carl Kruger is one of the chief recipients of the dubious funds, the report indicates.

View a transcript of the video

The investigation, which appeared online this past Monday, shows that Kruger received more than $33,000 from a single real estate developer funneled through nine Manhattan parking garage businesses. Corporate campaign contributions to a single legislator are limited to $5,000 per year, but the developer Leonard Litwin, paid out more than six times that amount to Kruger alone.

ABC News found that soon after our state senator became chair of the powerful finance committee, “the money started rolling in.” Campaign disclosure reports show that in the first six months, he received more than a half-million dollars in contributions, double the donations received in all of the previous year. Kruger’s campaign warchest is by far the largest in the State Senate, with nearly $2.2 million.

The enormous amounts given to Kruger since his reign as finance committee chair reveal a deep weakness in our state system, in which corporate interests are wielding powerful sway over our representative. And from the video, it appears as if our Senator Kruger is only too eager to take his thirty pieces of silver.

Though some say Fidler owes the city $88,550 in campaign finance funds, the councilman says he expects to return around $10,000

Councilman Fidler has told Crain’s Insider that he hopes to return about $10,000 of the $88,550 in taxpayer funds he received from the Campaign Finance Board for last November’s elections.

Fidler drew the ire of city press ever since he received the $88,550 – making his total war chest over $170,000 – in matching funds, with the Daily News going as far as demanding he return every penny of taxpayer dollars. His opponent, Gene Berardelli, only raised about $4,000 and did not qualify for matching funds.

Sheepshead Bites has been in constant communication with Fidler’s staff, and though he’s waiting for a city audit to announce the precise amount, the councilman told us from the beginning that he expected to return “five figures.”

The news comes as the Campaign Finance Board launches hearings to review the efficacy of funds, particularly, according to Crain’s, whether it helped grassroots candidates compete. As the race for the 46th illustrated, the CFB’s matching funds stifled challengers with small fundraising apparatuses, and instead funneled public money to incumbents facing underfunded and overwhelmed opponents.

From Crain’s Insider:

Continue Reading »

Daily News published an editorial Sunday pointing the finger at 46th District City Councilman Lew Fidler for owing taxpayers $88,500. Fidler received the money as part of the city’s public funding system for his campaign against Republican Gene Berardelli, and was widely criticized for taking the maximum amount when his opponent had only raised $2,000.

We, too, were shocked at the amount of money Fidler asked for in his massive 41-page affidavit, which included coverage from Sheepshead Bites as evidence of a competitive race. Fidler told the Daily News, “”If it turns out that I don’t need it, I’ll return it.”

That’s why the day after the election we contacted the councilman to see how much he’d be returning. He wrote:

As of today, I have no clue what we spent and we are still paying bills. I can only GUESS that we will be returning a five figure number, but can’t say for sure.

Clearly he has no intention of meeting Daily News’ demand that he return all $88,500. But campaign funds are given out with the expectation that they’ll be spent, so getting five figures back – if that’s what we get – can be seen by some as a positive step.

What do you think? Should Fidler reimburse the city the entire $88,500? Or was he within his right to spend away?

Mayor Michael Bloomberg endorsed Gene Berardelli for City Council over the weekend, raising the stakes in his fight against sitting Councilman Lew Fidler.

In the release from the Berardelli camp, Bloomberg cited the candidate’s work with Brigham Street Park and his efforts in downzoning a portion of Sheepshead Bay as reasons hizzonah would lend his support to the first-time candidate for public office.

“I need a fighter like Gene Berardelli in the City Council so we can keep the city moving in the right direction. I strongly endorse Gene Berardelli in the race for City Council and urge the voters of the 46th district to support him too,” said Mayor Bloomberg in the release.

With just a little over three weeks left until the election, the endorsement’s effects are questionable. Berardelli probably wont be fundraising anymore, and his meager $3,000 or so of contributions is hardly enough to do such campaign basics as send mailers to the district’s residents. But he will appear on the Republican ballot in a year in which the Republican mayor has spent record amounts on media and other materials promoting himself and the party.

But while Berardelli is able to ride off the media-inundated coattails of the sitting mayor, it appears his opponent nailed the resources necessary to buy a little attention himself.

Councilman Fidler has received more than $63,000 in taxpayer funds after submitting a statement of need to the campaign finance board. Although Berardelli has not raised nearly enough money to be eligible for matching funds from the city, Fidler was able to get three times the amount he normally would by citing the district’s past turnout for a Republican mayor, as well as submitting 40 pages of documentation that included campaign coverage by Sheepshead Bites.

City Councilman Lew Fidler (46th District) gets a raw deal in the world of web publishing. He’s got at least two nosy, noisy bloggers in his district. And as the Assistant Majority Leader and the so-called “King of Discretionary Dollars“, he draws a lot of fire from the citywide digerati where lesser-known foes would go under the radar. To his credit, he’s far more active in the online community than his colleagues, a noble feat that often invites more flogging than flattery.

Poor Lew. His suffering knows no end. Republican opponent for City Council, Gene Berardelli, has unveiled a new website with an ingenious name: TheFidler.com. Decorated with a perfectly comic motif of dancing fiddlers, a bobble-head-esque Fidler, and the apocalyptic “Lew Fiddles. We Burn” tagline – the site is owned and operated by the Berardelli campaign. It features articles from around the internet criticizing Councilman Fidler on a variety of issues, from sources including Room Eight and NYC Council Watch.  So far articles have focused on his involvement with LawCash, pork-barrel spending, profiting off of the housing crisis, and failing to engage in a public debate. It also includes satirical photos and a “Whack-a-Lew” game where visitors can tase the good councilman’s nipples.

Apparently, TheFidler.com has its own contributors that produces editorial content, and Berardelli says in his release that anything he writes will bear his name. So far though, all original posts are labeled “TheFidler.com Staff”. While Berardelli notes in the release that he’s “responsible enough to stand behind all content on this site, even if not written by me” – we’re still pleading for him to make contributors reveal themselves. Anonymous posting is questionable enough on blogs; elected politicians (and those who aspire) shouldn’t meddle with such muck.

Overall, though, the site is an obvious attempt to goad Fidler into a confrontation. It pokes fun at the councilman and is begging for a response. From the campaign’s inception, Berardelli has issued several challenges to his incumbent opponent to meet for debates, but the councilman has been dodgy. Berardelli closed his press release by writing, “If the Councilman has a problem with the characterizations, he can come see me – I’m no shrinking violet myself.”

We’d love to see that scene. How ’bout it, Lew?

Gene Berardelli, City Council candidate for the 46th District, has gone Hollywood. The Plumb Beach Republican vying for Democratic Councilman Lew Fidler’s seat to represent Sheepshead Bay, Gerritsen Beach, and Canarsie, has produced a video for NBC New York’s online video voter guide. In it, he says the overturning of term limits was a “rude wake up call” and makes his case for voters. Among the achievements he highlights are his efforts to downzone parts of Sheepshead Bay and organizing the community to make Brigham Street Park a reality.

Kudos to NBC New York for producing these video voter guides. It’s good to see that they haven’t ignored the Republican opposition altogether (we’re lookin’ at you, Courier-Life).

Other videos of interest:

Lew Fidler, City Council #46
Derek Sacerdote, City Council #46
Mark D’Ottavio, Borough President
Marty Markowitz, Borough President
Eugene Myrick, Borough President

Republican Challengers Meet at Lundy's-Cherry Hill in Sheepshead Bay

Yesterday morning, the Republican challengers for Comptroller, Public Advocate, Brooklyn Borough President and the City Council’s 46th District gathered under the  roof of the historic Lundy’s building. The event was the Republican party’s first endeavor to meet voters as formally endorsed candidates. What they encountered was a smattering of supporters, more food than people, and one lone reporter: me.

It was a hum-drum occasion. The Republicans each spoke briefly about their experience and reason for running. It was a litany of complaints about corruption and mismanagement, paired with promises to shine a light on the darknesses of political patronage and the Democratic machine. They promised more transparency in the issuing of contracts and to pressure contractors to do work efficiently. And they promised restraint and common sense, in place of, oh, say, $64 million amphitheaters next to synagogues.

But more than anything else, the event and its lack of coverage illustrated the chief hurdle the Republican party faces in local New York City elections: stigma.

Gene Berardelli, who is running for Lew Fidler’s seat in the City Council, called it the “Scarlet R”. Republican candidates in New York City face a steep uphill battle, as years of Democratic dogmatism threaten their credibility.

After all, this is a group many in the media regard as “token” challengers – and some even forget to mention at all. Courier-Life for example, has completely omitted the Republicans from their new election website. No, I don’t mean they’re not covering them (which they’re not). I mean they’re not even listed as challengers.

It’s bad enough we live in a two-party nation, but a one-party city is simply unacceptable. What, after all, has decades of one-party rule given us? What are we to benefit from the elimination of choice?

I’m not suggesting you should go out and vote Republican this year. What I’m suggesting is that you should have the opportunity to learn about a Republican from your media.

What I learned from yesterday’s meeting was that NYC Republicans are not the ravenous beasts of the national party. They’re home grown, and their opinions can stray far from the usual brand of Republican. Some, like Berardelli, are staunchly pro-environment. Many are pro-choice, pro-gun control, pro-gay rights. Some may even believe in universal healthcare (okay, I haven’t met one of those – yet). What we have in NYC is a unique flavor of Republican – one that has adopted many of the national Democratic Party’s favorite issues while shaving off the dead wood of our city’s machine politics.

Again, I’m not suggesting you vote for a Republican in November. But you should attend a meet-and-greet. You should look at their websites. And you should ask yourself how fair your usual news outlet is being by muting these voices.

Republican candidates for positions across the city are kicking off their campaigns Sunday morning right here in Sheepshead Bay. Gene Berardelli, who is campaigning on the GOP ticket for Lew Fidler’s seat in the City Council, will be meeting residents alongside Public Advocate candidate Alex Zablocki, Comptroller candidate Joe Mendola, and Brooklyn Borough President Candidate Marc D’Ottavio.

Though Republicans historically have had a hard time getting into office in New York City, these candidates come at a time during widespread dissatisfaction with incumbent officials due to the elimination of term limits, ongoing economic malaise, and fraud and corruption issues. While we’re not sure if any of these guys will be different, we owe it to ourselves to get out and meet them and learn about the alternatives.

Here’s the event info, and you can find the press release after the jump:

When: Sunday, August 9 at 10 a.m.
Where: Cherry Hill Gourmet Market
1901 Emmons Avenue (at Ocean Avenue)

Continue Reading »

Rumors are swirling in the political establishment suggesting that the District Attorney has launched a fraud investigation into the contractor hired to collect Simon Belsky’s election petitions.

Belsky, who was petitioning to be on the Democratic primary ballot against Michael C. Nelson for City Council, hired an independent contractor recommended by an unnamed City Councilman. It appears as if the contractor sabotaged Belsky’s campaign by forging signatures, making up names and addresses, and failing to file important documents before deadline.

Of the 2,597 signatures collected by the Belsky team, only 230 were valid. The sum of those 230 were collected by Belsky’s wife and a friend of the campaign. The remaining 2,367 were collected by the contractor, who has yet to be identified. All of those were deemed false or invalid. The Democratic party requires 900 signatures from people within the district to land on the ballot.

Sources throughout the city are hinting that the District Attorney and possibly the FBI are looking into the issue. Penalties for fraud can include severe fines and jail time.

According to sources, the falsified petitions included many entries written in the same handwriting, fake names, and addresses that don’t exist. The consultant was also responsible for submitting documents to challenge Councilman Nelson’s petitions. Those documents were not sent until after the deadline. Belsky later said that Nelson’s campaign had only managed to collect 637 valid signatures – well below the required 900. But since the documents to challenge were not filed in time his invalid petitions will still be counted and Nelson will remain on the ballot.

Belsky declined to comment on the rumors of an investigation at this time, but did say, “It was clearly fraud.”

He added that he is continuing his fight against corruption, mismanagement, and ineptitude in our district, and will be taking his fight to the people. He is currently seeking out alliances with the local civic associations to strengthen their influence upon the politicians and the community boards – which he describes as stooges of the politicians.

With the alliances of those groups, he says, “We can affect change. We can raise hell.”

Though Belsky has collected more than $13,000 for his campaign he has promised to return all of it to his contributors. By election law, he is not required to return those funds and may instead use them to cover campaign expenses, though Belsky has decided to foot those bills himself.

“Every penny is going back to the people who have contributed it,” he said. “My checks are written out. There will not be one person who does not get the full amount back.”

Ms. Rosenthal sat next to Simon Belsky. She leaned over him, nodding, as he read. He spoke as if he was citing Chaucer or Whitman, or even Holy Gospel. All the while, his gruff voice booming, Mrs. Belsky buzzed about, serving drinks and assuring the comfort of her guests. Eventually she came to rest, sitting on the floor. And seeing this scene – a righteous man preaching, an elderly woman revering, and a wife adoring – I realized that I was not going to be writing your usual political profile.

All of that, of course, is absolute literary hyperbole; a writer’s mind twisting a perfectly normal scene. But that doesn’t negate the fact that Belsky is hardly your usual politician. He is, to say the least, rough around the edges. He has taken on causes that most politicians would call esoteric at best. He eschews the conventional political process. And his language… well, he’s more sailor than politician. Continue Reading »