ZOHRAN OVER TRUMP

In the weirdest political courtship since James Carville and Mary Matalin (or Josef Stalin and Adolf Hitler, depending on your feelings toward the men in question), Mayor Zohran Mamdani and President Donald Trump were on the same page concerning two New York issues. Issues that, theoretically, should have put them further apart than Jelly Roll and Joan Baez. 

The first of Mamdani's asks was for help in getting $21-billion in grants for affordable apartments and -- get this -- a new neighborhood in the Sunnyside section of Queens. I didn't even know you could build a new neighborhood, but that's why I'm not a mayor or real estate developer. Well, there are other reasons, none having to do with the Epstein files (where the real estate developer is mentioned over 1,000 times).

How did it go? According to Mamdani's press secretary Joe Calvello, “The president was very enthusiastic about this idea." Maybe Trump's addled mind thought the housing would be used to imprison people with non-white skin color. But let's be optimistic and take him at his (usually misanthropic) word.

Their voters would ask, "What's not wrong with
this picture?"

Aware that Trump is a sucker for positive headlines and phony awards, Mamdani sweetened the deal by gifting him with a mock-up of a New York Daily News front page paying fealty with “Backs new era of housing" and “Trump delivers 12,000+ homes, most since 1973.” You can see by the photo how both men felt about this folderol. Or, as it's called now, performative politics.

The second issue centered on the arrest of Columbia University student Elimina Aghayeva by -- who else? -- ICE goons. In a rare moment of not condemning or mocking a person with a name he couldn't pronounce, Trump agreed with Mamdani that it wasn't a good idea and had her freed a few hours later.

I repeat: Donald Trump freed from ICE custody a foreigner with a funny name on the request of the Socialist Mayor of New York from Kampala, Uganda. What kind of a world are we living in?

When hardcore Mamdani supporters ask their hero How can you work with that terrible person?, he can reply, That's how you get shit done sometimes. You don't like it? Vote for Adams next time. 

When hardcore MAGA screams, Why did you help that Commie mayor with tax money and freeing a foreigner from ICE, Trump can reply, Look, I just bombed Iran!

                                                            ******************

METRO NO-WIN MAYOR

If the Post put the same effort in reporting
news as creating their front pages, they'd win
a Pulitzer Prize.

It should be obvious that the establishment fears Mayor
Zohran Mamdani not because he's going to destroy New York but that he will keep his promises without destroying it. 

Therefore, it's incumbent for the New York Post to churn out cut-and-paste front pages like the one on the right to amp up the fear factor. (I don't recall any tears when previous mayor Bill de Blasio declared Zoom classes would eliminate "snow days".) Expect future Post headlines like these:

MAM BEFORE THE STORM: Zohran holds storm press conference despite not having meteorology degree

NO SNOW ZO: Mamdani refuses to join New Yorkers sledding on hill outside Gracie Mansion

ZOVERTIME OVERDRIVE!: Mamdani okays snowplow operators to cash in on snowstorm by working overtime to keep streets clear 

ULYSSES S. MAMDANI: Historian says Zohran's beard similar to that of corrupt RINO president

ZO: "NO HO!": Mamdani cracks down on underage sex work, costing teens spending money

MOM, DAMNIT!: Mayor insists on single mothers having affordable healthcare whether they want it or not

ZOMNY CARD: Riders complain free buses more crowded: "Saving $3 not worth it"

ZO GROWS SHOPPING TIME: Longer lines at grocery stores as lower healthcare costs end choice between medicine or food

MAMDANI: "SALAMI? BALONEY!": Zohran's veggie meals hurting local meat industry

ZOHRAN NO RAN: Thousands run marathon in rain while Mamdani keeps dry at pricey UES restaurant

MAMDANI NOT GOING FOURTH: Fireworks as Mamdani declares Independence (Day) from all-American franks in favor of Mideastern kabobs

ZO DOC? NO DOCS!: Mamdani cures cancer, puts surgeons out of work

                                                      ****************

ADAMS & SKEEVE

 Like Long Covid or a pesky fly in the kitchen, Eric Adams will not go away. Less than two weeks after Zohran Mamdani was sworn into office, the former Mayor and present-day grifter turned up in Times Square -- an ironic spot for a guy who doesn't seem to understand that his time is up.

Adams announcing this scheme outside the
NYPD in Times Square -- this guy does not
understand the concept of irony.

In what was undoubtedly the opening salvo in his upcoming four-year attempt to
steal more than just the spotlight, Adams introduced the NYC Token. This isn't what you'd use to ride the subway, but a crypto currency that, will be used to  "address anti-Americanism, antisemitism, to teach our children how to embrace the blockchain technology of how to run cities correctly."

 Adams couldn't stop talking about -- make that took advantage of --antisemitism when the Muslim candidate kicked his ass in the primaries. Adams then ramped it up in the general election, when he received 6,897 votes out of over two million cast. While antisemitism is and will always be a problem, Adams (and his fellow fathead Andrew Cuomo) explicitly linked it to Mamdani. In their thirst to win the election, they were really campaigning on the anti-Muslim ticket. Who says politics is cynical?

So, while watching the news reports of the crooked-as-the-Shenandoah-River former mayor's crypto crap, I muttered to my wife, "This is just a pump and dump." Not like I'm any genius when it comes to economics -- every celebrity crypto business is a sham. Guess what happened.

Thirty minutes! That is some fast work there, pardner. Maybe faster than all those payoffs from Turkish officials. Here are some more details:

A wallet tied to the token’s deployer pulled $2.5 million in USDC liquidity at the market peak, only to re-add $1.5 million after the token’s price had already plunged more than 60%, according to Bubblemaps. The token’s market cap briefly touched $600 million before crashing below $110 million.

Observers likened the activity to the infamous LIBRA token collapse last year, where manipulated liquidity preceded a multi-million dollar wipeout. Critics also warned of centralized control and opaque fund flows.

Are you weeping yet?

Two kinds of people invest in celeb crypto. Wide-eyed fans who think some of that star-power translates into riches, and insiders who are out to scam them. And whether it's Kim Kardashian or Donald Trump, the scammers (and their friends) always win -- in this case, in a half hour. It doesn't matter how many times it happens, numbskulls fall for it.  And thank God because it gives me something to write about. As the president says, I like uneducated people. Sometimes.

Now Donald Trump's newest protégé successfully pulled a fast one on the public. If this is how "to teach our children how to embrace the blockchain of how to run cities correctly" as Adams promised, we've got a hell of a future ahead of us. It's all Mamdani's fault, I guess.

                                    *********************

THE NEW YOUNG MAYOR, HE AIN'T WHAT THEY USED TO BE

The right-wing nightmare: a Muslim guy, two
women, and New York City.

A couple of weeks ago, I turned on the TV and what to my wondering eyes did appear was Zohran Mamdani making a statement at the site of the 1964 World's Fair in Queens.

It had been so long since the election -- three days? -- that I suddenly remembered, Oh yeah, this is going to be our next Mayor. 

Mamdani had shaken up the political word, the Democrat establishment, and -- best of all -- Mario Cuomo by winning the second-hardest job in the world (after President of the United States or, in the current admiration's case, the President's spokesperson explaining why it was OK for her boss to call a female reporter "Piggy"). 

The next time Mayor-Elect Mamdani appeared on my TV screen was when he was in the Oval Office standing next to the (literally) sitting president. Trump was remarkably affable, far different from the late-night social media-scribbling madman we usually know him as. He was funny in his own way, as he was when David Letterman dropped into see him unannounced at Trump Tower three decades ago.

Mamdani looks down on Trump.

Mamdani, on the other hand, appeared determined to prove that he was up for both the job of Mayor and holding his own with the Big Mouth-in-Chief. It was gratifying seeing this 34-year-old Ugandan-born, Socialist Muslim winning the office Maro Cuomo so ravingly, knavingly, cravenly craved. 

It's easy to picture the former Governor thinking back on what he should have done. Maybe a return to the time he created his father's unofficial campaign slogan against Ed Koch, VOTE FOR CUOMO, NOT THE HOMO. Targeting Zohran's beard, VOTE FOR MARIO, NOT THE HAIRY-O would have had the classic Cuomo wit. 

Are they sure it wasn't paid by Ted Cruz?

Stupid? No more than deliberately mispronouncing Mamdani's name every
chance he had, or the way his campaign briefly released an apocalyptic ad predicting a Mamdani administration would be the dream of pushers, pimps, drunk drivers, and wife-beaters (the men, not the undershirts). And it was AI-generated! Damn you for putting so many hungry New York actors out of work!

Going forward, then, Mario Cuomo will be known not just as the former Governor of New York forced to resign over sexual harassment claims, or the loser of both the New York' Mayoral primary as a Democrat and the election as an independent, but the guy who made Curtis Sliwa appear Churchillian. Possible next move: cohosting his dopey brother's basement podcast. WATCH THE CUOMOS, NOT MARIA BARTIROMO!

                                                           ***********

ZO VS CUO

I got this thing wrapped up... right?

 Just to show you how fast things can change in politics, five months ago I noted a
young, unknown upstart named Zohran Mamdani was the only "semi-serious" challenger to Andrew Cuomo in the race for Mayor of New York. And even then, he was polling 20 points behind the former Governor. My unspoken belief was This guy has zero plus zero chance of winning this thing.

Who's laughing now?

By September, the guy with the beard and funny name had flipped the table, running 20 points ahead of Cuomo. Upon recalculation, my prediction was more on the order of, This guy is going to crush Cuomo like a trash compactor at the city dump.

 One month later, that lead has been cut in half, with current mayor Eric Adams now out of the race (and in the pockets of billionaire Bill Ackman). Doing further calculations, I have arrived at the answer, I think Mamdani will probably likely possibly win. Maybe. 

Mamdani supporters can take heart that the poll is based on only 500 respondents in a city of 4.7-million registered voters. Cuomo fans are all in by their guy laughing when a radio show host claimed Mamdani would cheer another 9/11. 

No wonder why Republicans prefer Cuomo over their candidate Curtis Sliwa. He's been believably accused of sexual harassment, doesn't contradict anti-Muslim remarks, and is running strictly to rehabilitate his tattered image. He's just like Trump! Yay! Trump even supports him! So it's OK if we do, too!

Cuomo is even vowing to move to Florida if Mamdani wins. Just like Alec
"Deadeye" Baldwin swore to move to a gated community in Beverly Hills to escape the New York paparazzi and tabloids nine years ago. Hah! Once you've tasted the fame (positive or negative) and power that comes with being a celebrity in New York, there's no going anywhere else. Unless, if you're Donald Trump, that anywhere is Washington, DC.

Yeah, let's give it to a nepo baby like Andrew
Cuomo. By the way, who are Mamdani's
parents anyway?

My latest prediction: Mamdani wins in relative landslide (which these days is over 1%). Republican bigwigs will continue to spend their time calling him a Communist, trying to deport him, and predicting Muslims will take over the country. And Mamdani's voters will be disappointed when he can't keep most of his promises. Sounds like rather than being a Commie, he's a real red white & blue American politician. 

PS: Yesterday, I was almost prevented from early voting because my current signature wasn't identical to my original one from 30 years ago. I offered to show them my recently-renewed driver's license, but that isn't allowed. Fortunately, I was given a do-over. Voting in New York can be a funny thing, but I'm not laughing.

                                                        *****************

THEY'LL GIVE YOU A WRING

 

An establishment Democrat in prayer.

For all the grief Democrats are getting from friend and foe alike, you have to give them credit for one thing: when it comes to opposing Donald Trump, nobody is better at wringing their hands.

He wins the 2024 election? Wring their hands. Appoints conspiracy theorists to his cabinet? Wring their hands. Sends armed military to the streets of Los Angeles and Washington, DC? Double-wring. (The only reason Trump hasn't sent tanks into New York is because we don't do handwringing when punching back is an option.)

But it's not just the human jack-o'lantern in the White House making Democrats wondering What do we do? Now it's the chance of a genuinely popular Democrat becoming Mayor of New York.

Memo to Democrats: times are changing.

By now, Zohran Mamdani needs no introduction -- unless it's to Andrew Cuomo who continues to deliberately mispronounce his name, or to Eric "Turkey Trot" Adams, our current delusional mayor who currently polls at 9%, eight points behind GOP nominee Curtis Sliwa (he of the red beret). Mamdani himself currently polls seven points higher than his Democrat rivals combined.

So what is the official Democrat response to Mamdani's Obama-like popularity here? Hand wringing, of course. As of now, none of the party old guard (emphasis on old) has endorsed him. 

Their worries are threefold. 1) The young guy is a threat to their stranglehold on the party. 2) He's a Socialist Democrat. 3) He'll scare away potential disaffected Trump voters by associating all Democrats with the hammer & sickle.

To address their concerns: 1) That's the point. 2) Vermont keeps re-electing socialist-Democrat Bernie Sanders. 3) That red train has left the station. 

Good luck changing their minds.

Focusing on number three: A recent Gallup poll finds 93% of Republicans approve of the president and his antics. Ninety-three percent! That's one-third of the country. And we're not even including Trump's congressional lapdogs.

To Chuck Schumer, Hakeem Jeffries, Kathy Hochul and the other Democrats who continue to cry We need to get Trump voters on our side, I ask them if they ever read a history book or even remember events during their own lifetimes.

Benito and his babe seeing the world
differently after he loses his base.

Italians didn't execute Benito Mussolini and his sidepiece before hanging them upside down because a fascist-lite candidate from a (non-existing) opposing party ran against him.  Hitler didn't kill himself because German voters wanted to vote for a different Nazi without a funny-looking moustache. 

Let's move on to the U.S.  Lyndon Johnson didn't abstain from running for re-election and Richard Nixon didn't resign from office because they felt shame for their actions. 

Does anybody see a pattern here? Only Trump can defeat Trump. The same goes for his acolytes. 

This is what upsets Republicans.

Mamdani's race, religion, and politics will have nothing to do with how Republicans vote nationwide. Nor will Gavin Newsom's admittedly funny trolling. It's only when GOP policies really start having an effect on them, whether it be regarding their health, tariffs, deregulation, or seeing their employees swept up by masked ICE stormtroopers will they even begin to realize they might be in trouble. 

Say, I've got an idea for the Dem establishment: Support the candidates that excite their voters! I mean, it worked for Obama (after trying to get him to drop out in favor of the utterly unlikeable Hillary Clinton). Meanwhile, they'll just have to accept the fact that they will never get the vote of people like these:

 Somewhere, Bobby Kennedy is looking down at his idiot son and wondering, This is what I got my brains blown out for? 

                                                                   ***********

ZO HO HO!

When Andrew Cuomo makes the classic
"politician face", you know change is in the air.

That earsplitting choking sound that woke you up from a sound sleep last night was Andrew Cuomo phoning his congratulations to Zohran Mamdani for winning the Democratic mayoral primary here in New York. Cuomo had warned us that his usual voters -- most of whom regularly receive junk mail regarding funerals and mausoleums -- would stay home due to the heat. (Ninety-nine degrees on Election Day, the hottest on that date in over a decade.) 

The hands-on legend (in more ways than one) lost to Mamdani by around seven points. This despite because of getting the support of millionaires, billionaires, and fellow sex-hound Bill Clinton. Memo to the DNC: Younger voters really don't like anyone named Clinton or Cuomo. And whether you like it or not, they are the future of your party, while those who remember Johnny Carson aren't. Or to put it another way: who do you think Harvey Weinstein would have endorsed were he not currently serving time for rape? 

"They love me now!"

Just to emphasize how wacky this race was, the New York Post actually endorsed Adrew Cuomo despite being his mortal enemy during his time as Governor -- especially during the covid lockdown. When Rupert Murdoch endorses Andrew Cuomo for anything other than resigning from office, you know there's little daylight between those two power-mad, leather-faced dinosaurs.

The New York Post, always the
party-pooper.

I've made jokes on this blog about Zohran Mamdani, believing that he would be
another Bernie Sanders -- a socialist democrat who would wind up breaking the hearts of his supporters when he met his inevitable end. And come November, that still may happen. Hey, it wouldn't come as a shock if the old guard Democrats somehow manipulate the ranked voting to somehow nominate Scott Stringer or -- gulp -- Andrew Cuomo. Watch how well that works out.

It's always been great sport to rightfully make fun of the difference between the male-dominated white Congressional Republicans with their age spots, gray hair, and purple hands (take it from me, low platelets), while the Democrats were the "rainbow" party with men, women, trans, white, brown, black, and whatever John Fetterman is. 

Laugh it up, Archie. Let's see how
you are on Election Day.

But at the end of the rainbow sits people with names like Pelosi, Schumer, and, yes, Clinton. Like Archie Rice (as portrayed by Laurence Olivier in The Entertainer), these and other Democrats are... well, let's allow Google's AI Overview to describe Archie: He is depicted as a selfish and deceitful individual who clings to the spotlight despite his dwindling talent and the negative impact on his family.  

Let Wikipedia offer a spoiler alert: The film ends with Archie making an apparently final performance to an apathetic audience. 

Now let's consult Microsoft Copilot to answer the obvious question: Yes, Andrew Cuomo has left the door open to running as an independent in the upcoming New York City mayoral election. After conceding the Democratic primary to Zohran Mamdani, Cuomo told FOX Business he’s “not ruling out” a run in November. In fact, he had already formed an independent ballot line called the “Fight and Deliver Party” earlier this year, signaling his intent to stay in the race regardless of the primary outcome. 

Writer John Osborne meant The Entertainer as a metaphor for the decline of the British Empire. I think it's time for a remake that takes place in the Democrat Party. There's a plethora of choices to play the lead.

                                                                   ***************

HEDGEFUNDING OUR BETS

It takes five strong men with guns and clubs
to protect themselves from one unarmed
protestor.

 As we continue to live in a country ruled by a president whose spirit creature is the wendigo, a Republican party increasingly comfortable with the idea of Fourth Reich on its home turf, and a Los Angeles Police Department missing the good ol' days of Rodney King-style justice, let us return to the calmer climes of New York politics where the mayoral race has entered its latest lap.

I don't know these people six out of nine ways
from Sunday.

Nine Democrats -- two-thirds of whom fall in the category of Who the hell is that? --
took part, including the now obligatory hedge fund manager. His appearance answered the question "How do you tell a Republican skeezeball from his Democrat counterpart?" Answer: the latter brags about arriving to the debate on a bicycle. No joke.

Yabba-dabba-dope.

To give you an idea of just how serious some of these folks were, one of them, Jesscia Ramos, dropped out within hours of the debate and threw her utterly worthless support behind Andrew "I Am Not A Sex Pest" Cuomo. Ramos' move was that of a pro -- as in "quid pro quo" regarding a job in the next likely mayoral administration. Meanwhile, candidate Scott Stringer, a mainstay in New York politics since a subway ride cost 90 cents, continues to show his desperation for any political power higher than Comptroller, even as he's better suited to cosplaying Barney Rubble.

This left Cuomo and Zohran Mamdani to do the heavy-lifting in terms of one-on-one political attacks, cutting off each other, and all-around yelling exercises. I have a feeling, though, that Cuomo's ire against his main opponent is strictly personal, seeing that Mamdani is getting far more traction than expected -- so much so that even my laptop tells me when I've misspelled his name. 

It was no surprise, then, we received a piece of mail from the Cuomo campaign 48 hours later explaining the differences between him and his pesky rival. Right off the bat, the flyer wants us to "get to know the candidates" via their clothes. Cuomo: rough & tumble ordinary joe. Mamdani: a RISK (in a color font similar to his skin) wearing a shirt from The Muslim Men's Wearhouse. 

Gee, what do you suppose they're trying to get across? Especially since it's really easy to find photos of him in the dull pinstriped suit he's been sporting for months. Hey, he even showed up to the debate in one! Way to tell the voters what kind of person Mamdani really is! 

Forget about reading where the two guys stand on the issues, because you know already. (Although it's worth noting that the Cuomo list has a shiny, friendly white background while Mamdani's is darker and -- well, is it safe to say more threatening to the easily-threatened?). So it's best to go with the people who paid for the flyer, Fix The City, Inc. The little print reminds us that Fix The City, Inc. has no connection to any campaign (wink wink!), but it's good to take a closer look --like with a microscope -- at the names behind it. 

Yeah, deliver Gracie Mansion to Cuomo.

The first is DoorDash, the food delivery service that makes you think of struggling working-class folks, but is actually run by three Chinese-American billionaires. (I emphasize their nationality because they emphasize Mamdani's.) That trio of miscreants have helped to create headlines like DoorDash Accused of Purposely Misleading its Customers; Canada's Antitrust Watchdogs Sue DoorDash Over Prices, Discounts; and DoorDash, GrubHub, Uber Eats Settle With New York City Over Minium Wages, Fee Caps. Yup, it's the old story of billionaires who can't afford to pay minimum wage to their workers. Sad!

The other two names behind Fix The City, Inc. are John Fish and Matthew Hulsizer. Both are -- well, whaddaya know! -- billionaire hedge fund managers. Gee, I wonder in whose favor Fix The City, Inc. wants to have the city fixed for? C'mon, Andrew, it's time to replace that blue collar jacket with a blonde Trump wig.

Oh, and a helpful hint to Mamdani: Fix the City, Inc. lifted that photo of you from your own campaign website. It wouldn't hurt to replace it with one in a dull pinstriped suit. Gotta play the game, y'know. Look how far it's gotten Andrew Cuomo.

                                                                          *************

                                                     

RACE BAITING

Spring has arrived here in New York, and with it come its familiar signs -- foggy mornings, young women in pajamas walking their dogs, and political ads crowding the television airwaves like psychos on the subway. And lucky us -- we get to see them for two different states!

When you realize this required several takes to 
capture every angle, Fulop's feat isn't so
impressive.

Across the Hudson River, the Democratic primary candidates for New Jersey governor are big on images and scary words. Steve Fulop runs up a long flight of stairs in his gym clothes to prove that he's in shape to take on Donald Trump and Elon Musk. Navy vet and current House of Representatives member Mikie Sherrill stands by a helicopter ready to take aim at Donald Trump and Elon Musk. 

I'm pretty sure Trump did a similar ad
against Biden.

Sean Spiller, former mayor of Montclair, uses mock-ups of newspaper headlines
warning us about the damage done by Donald Trump and Elon Musk. In the silliest spot, A.I.-generated images show Josh Gottheimer boxing Donald Trump (presumably Musk is Trump's cornerman). All of these ads leave me wondering if J.D. Vance is embarrassed or relieved that the candidates don't consider him worth mentioning. 

It would appear, then, it doesn't matter which of these candidates wins the primary since they're all promising the same outcomes. Not so in New York, where the two leading candidates for Mayor are different enough to make things interesting. If politics is ever interesting.

Polling at 37%, Andrew Cuomo is the favorite to win on name recognition alone. His commercials deftly avoid any mention of past brushes with corruption and groping which cost him his previous job of Governor. (By the way, you know a politician is hungry for any kind of power when they try to get a job at a lower position than before.) 

A rare photo of Andrew Cuomo not getting handsy
with a young female.

Unlike the Jersey governor ads, Cuomo's are strictly of the handshake and speechifying varieties; no aircrafts or boxing matches here. Yet unable to change his questionable ways, the image to the right is from a commercial created by an allegedly-independent PAC in collusion with Cuomo's official campaign. This failed sleight of hand cost the former governor $622,000 in fines, not one cent of which will cost him a vote. Name recognition -- it's a good thing!

Speaking of name recognition, Zohran Mamdani has gotten traction by being the only semi-serious challenge to Cuomo, at least to younger voters. Over 30 years younger than the former governor, Mamdani proudly boasts of "progressive values" that has boosted him to number one in the hearts of 18-49 year-olds. Those votes have placed him in second place at (drumroll, please)... 18%. 

Mamdani hoping that Republican voters
confuse him with J.D. Vance.

That's 20 points behind King Cuomo. Only in New York is that considered a serious candidate by a news media desperate for any kind of excitement in an otherwise tedious race. Finally realizing the dreaded Babyboomers must be served, Mamdani has made a couple of key changes in his campaign style. First, he's traded in his hoodies for suits that make him look more Mayoral and less John Fetterman. 

Unfortunately, not all the older New Yorkers are warming up to a leftist Muslim endorsed by a former U.S. Representative who called the rapes and killing of Israelis on Oct. 7 "a lie". Nor do they take to headlines like "Mamdani passes on condemning the Holocaust". Stuff like this is concerning in a city second only to Tel Aviv with the largest Jewish population in the world. Another worry involves black voters, 50% of whom support Cuomo to the 8% Mamdani can boast of. 

"I'll take pandering to minorities for $100, Ken."

These problems seem to explain two commercials I've noticed this week running on Jeopardy! They're essentially identical except for the narrators. One of them features the voice of a 60ish Jewish woman. The second, a 50ish Black man. Neither hits the "accents" very hard, but just enough to let the target audiences know that Mamdani is safe to vote for. 

The first spot runs as Jeopardy! went into a commercial break, while the second is in the same break just before returning to the show. Apparently, the Mamdani campaign believes Jewish people are more likely to watch commercials, while Black viewers go the bathroom and return 30 seconds before the second half of the show. 

And if you wonder where Mayor Eric Adams is, well, as WABC-TV News reports, the Democrat-turned-Independent-turned-loser is polling at 8% "and falling". Look for his next ad to feature someone with a Turkish accent.

                                         

                                                                       **********

RACE TO THE BOTTOM

Glad she finds it funny.

 I've made the point over and over that Democrats must be a pretty sorry bunch if they
couldn't successfully make the case against Donald Trump. But by the same token, I've made the reverse argument regarding the office of Mayor of New York. Republicans should have learned from Rudy Giuliani B.C. (Before Crazy) and Mike Bloomberg: Fiscally conservative, socially moderate, cleaning the streets, lowering crime. Being able to read the room.  Nothing difficult to grasp there.

Glad they find it funny.

Instead, after two terms of our former Idiot Mayor Bill de Blasio (whose name I had to Google because I emptied my brain of him so thoroughly), and our current corrupt leader Eric "I Love Turkey" Adams, the local GOP still can't come up with any serious candidate to provide a clear choice for Republicans, disaffected Democrats, and pissed-off Independents (hey, that's me!).  

And as we face a Mayoral election this year, neither major party is doing anything not to look like the fools that they are. The recent mayoral debate must be the first where the incumbent -- the aforementioned Eric "Fly Turkish Airlines" Adams -- didn't participate on advice of his lawyer. Now that's a mayor I can put my confidence in!

The only way Cuomo couldn't offer an
 unwanted kiss.

Since then, Andrew Cuomo has thrown his tarnished hat into the ring. The former Governor has decided that enough time has elapsed to hope New Yorkers have forgotten those charges of sexual impropriety (all denied) and all-around nastiness that pushed New York Democrats and Republicans alike into forcing him out of Albany... and into Manhattan.

Socialist Zohran Mamdami helping to elect
Donald Trump.

Seemed like a fool's errand. Until the most recent polling had Cuomo in the lead with 38% voter approval over Adams' measly 10% . And if you're keeping score, Zohran Mamdani, a former rapper-turned-State Assembly member from Queens, comes in at 12%. In case you'd like to learn more about Mamdami, his platform includes the usual Santa Claus promises: free transit buses, minimum hourly wage of $30 (and you think egg sandwiches are expensive now!), free child care, and city-run grocery stores. (If those stores are run as well as the escalators at the city-run 83rd Street subway station, there's going to be mass starvation.) And just to make sure he's got the Columbia University vote tied up, Mamdani is a pro-Palestine Muslim Socialist.  

These three make up only a small part of the clown show that is the mayoral circus. Even perennial candidate Scott Stringer is in the race, after having lost in 2021 due to (all together now) charges of sexual impropriety. Other candidates' side hustles include hedge fund manager, lawyer for white-collar criminals, and pastor -- three jobs that should disqualify them all from politics.

"But don't touch my kitty!"

So who's the leading Republican candidate? Curtis Sliwa, the Trump-supporting leader of the Guardian Angels, tossed his beret into the ring with the promise of eradicating the rat problem by unleashing feral cats into the city streets. Any chance of convincing Mike Bloomberg to return to his old job?

                                                                            

                                                               ***************