Hankster Independent News of the Day May 2

OPEN PRIMARIES
Pennsylvania Closed Primary Shuts Out a Million Voters (by Damon Eris, IVN) It is safe to say, however, that the number of voters who would have been prevented from voting in Pennsylvania’s primary due to lack of proper identification is dwarfed by the number who were disenfranchised by the state’s closed primary system.

2012
Independent Voters don't decide elections (BY DANIEL TAIBLESON, The Daily Iowan) Even though Pew categorized 35 percent of people as being "Mostly Independent," a firm majority of those people expressed strong party preferences. In fact, 16.5 percent of "Mostly Independent" people expressed a strong preference for the Republican Party, 9.6 percent expressed a strong preference for Democrats, and only 8.9 percent expressed no party preference. In effect, what Pew found was that only 8.9 percent of independent voters are truly independent.

NYC MAYORAL 2013

• NYC Council Approves ‘Living Wage’ Bill Bloomberg Vowed to Veto (By Henry Goldman, Bloomberg.com) The so-called living-wage bill, written after months of negotiating among council members, union leaders and developers, would affect at least 600 workers a year, said Council Speaker Christine Quinn, a Manhattan Democrat. Mayor Michael Bloomberg, an independent, has pledged to veto the measure…. Quinn, 45, who has expressed interest in a 2013 campaign for mayor, walked out of a pre-vote rally at City Hall after lecturing a bill supporter who derisively referred to the mayor as “Pharaoh Bloomberg.”… Such laws, Bloomberg said, are “a throwback to the era when government viewed the private sector as a cash cow to be milked, rather than a garden to be cultivated.” Bloomberg has said he supports efforts in the state Legislature to raise the minimum wage to $8.50 an hour from its current $7.25….
• Neutral’ Dem Andy could back GOPer Kelly (Fred Dicker, NY Post) The often bitter city Democratic primaries historically pit “left and leftier’’ candidates against each other because the electorate tends to be dominated by liberals.
• The Run-Ray-Run Runaround - The many winners of a merely rumored Kelly mayoral campaign. (By Chris Smith, NY Magazine) For more than an hour, Ray Kelly’s answers had been clear, emphatic, and expansive. But when I asked him about City Council speaker Christine Quinn’s statements that if she’s elected mayor in 2013 she wants Kelly to continue as police commissioner, his responses abruptly turned clipped. Had Quinn talked with Kelly directly about her proposal? “Well, she said it publicly,” he replied. Right, but wouldn’t it have been good form, at a minimum, to talk about the idea with him directly? “I don’t recall my conversations with her.” Silence. “I had some discussions with her, but I don’t recall that specifically.”
• Christine Quinn gives back of her hand to political boor - City Council speaker walks out after insult to Mayor Bloomberg (Opinion: NEW YORK DAILY NEWS) A hearty huzzah to City Council Speaker Christine Quinn for challenging the boorishness on display outside City Hall on Monday… At that moment, the speaker struck a blow for civility in a city whose political advocacy all too often descends into shrill catcalling and shouting down opponents… Witness, for that matter, the mindless disruptions of Occupy Wall Street.

NYC LOCAL

• Council’s pots of gold go to power pols (By DAVID SEIFMAN, NY Post) Dominic Recchia (D-Brooklyn), chairman of the powerful Finance Committee, was the biggest winner in the Citizens Union study, collecting $66.7 million to spend on capital projects and nonprofits of his choosing. Erik Dilan (D-Brooklyn), an ally of Brooklyn Democratic leader Vito Lopez, came in second with $37 million. Dead last in 51st place were Dan Halloran (R-Queens) and his predecessor Tony Avella, now a state senator. Over the four-year period, they pulled in just $9.5 million for their constituents.
• Document Drop: Michael Grimm Loses Indy Line (BY Celeste Katz, NY Daily News/Daily Politics) Meng also failed to get the sigs: "The Independence Line will be blank on the November ballot, but I will remain their standard-bearer with the full support of Chairman Frank MacKay and Independence Party activists and organizers.”

MEDIA
The Editorial Plea: How The New York Times Decides Who Wins and Loses Local Elections (By David Freedlander, NY Observer/Politicker) The Times’ coverage of local politics has shrunk in recent years with the closing of the Metro section, but the paper’s ability to make or break candidates has grown. In conversations with nearly two dozen political operatives, office holders and candidates, the consensus was that The Times remains the biggest single factor in deciding who gets elected in this town. The paper’s imprimatur carries more weight than even the biggest unions. Pollsters estimate that a Times endorsement can boost a candidate anywhere between 5 and 20 points. Politicos say that it is worth the equivalent of out-raising your opponent by hundreds of thousands of dollars.