Subject: POLITICO New York Playbook: DE BLASIO press shake-up -- CUOMO bans insider lobbyist -- REDSTONE saga
From: "Azi Paybarah, Jimmy Vielkind and Mike Allen" <[email-masked]>
To: [email-masked]
Date: Fri, 6 May 2016 05:04:04 -0600

05/06/2016 07:00 AM EDT

By Azi Paybarah in Manhattan, Jimmy Vielkind in Albany, and Mike Allen in D.C., with Daniel Lippman

KAREN HINTON EXITS -- De Blasio loses second press secretary, replacement not named -- Times' J. David Goodman: "Mayor Bill de Blasio's press secretary will leave her post next month, the latest sign that the administration is continuing its long struggle to control and disseminate its own message. The press secretary, Karen Hinton, sent a letter of resignation last month ... Ms. Hinton is expected to depart after the budget is made final, most likely in June, roughly a year after she was hired.

"In his two and a half years as mayor, Mr. de Blasio, a Democrat, has often lamented that his liberal policies have not been clearly conveyed to New Yorkers, pointing to those challenges as an explanation for the criticism that has buffeted his administration. The press office has undergone shifts in personnel and new hirings, including at least two rounds of changes since last May, when Ms. Hinton was brought in - filling a post that had been empty for three months. ... Her influence as the top spokeswoman appeared to diminish after a senior de Blasio aide, Phil Walzak, who was the former press secretary, issued a rare rebuke over comments by Ms. Hinton critical of Albany last August,
 saying they did not reflect the views of the administration. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d54232a7416ef90fa6fb807e522bac8644fa5366c02af3c1c 

-- Flashback, July, 2015: The cost and benefit of Karen Hinton, via POLITICO New York's Dana Rubinstein: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59daf96b40104814ce9a3b21194b9d2951b952f83937d67551e 

FORMALLY BANNED - POLITICO New York's Jimmy Vielkind: State officials have been formally banned from speaking with Todd Howe, a lobbyist at the center of a federal criminal probe into how SUNY Polytechnic Institute awarded several development contracts. In a memo dated Monday, Cuomo's counsel, Alphonso David, advised agency leaders that the directive was being made "in light of ongoing investigations." On Friday, federal officials subpoenaed the administration as part of their ongoing probe, and an administration official told POLITICO New York and other outlets that such a ban would be imposed.

"All policy makers at executive agencies and authorities are directed not to engage in 'lobbying communications' with Mr. Todd Howe, his staff, and agents as well as any representative of WOH Government Solutions without advance approval from the Office of Counsel to the Governor," David wrote. "Specifically, this directive requests that agency leadership refrain from communications with the parties referenced above that constitute any 'attempt to influence' pending or proposed legislation, regulation, executive action, resolution, procurement or ratemaking action, whether on the state or local level." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59de2a570264397cfc15b88bc1cb18743ca87bf2b523c4038ab 

-- POLITICO New York reported Monday that Howe has been advising SUNY Poly as well as at least two companies it contracted with to build multi-million dollar facilities: LPCiminelli and COR Development. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59dd3589f76971f897cc908b7a2c79202da1673f7f9ebc4a7c5 

QUOTE OF THE DAY: "Is there some larger force at play that's coordinating all these kinds of investigations," -- John Liu on the probes surrounding the mayor, via BRIC-TV and CityLimits.org: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d16a0ac8259c57ee21c298a85a9c90a0d04dae34a3009f211 

BONUS QUOTE OF THE DAY: "It's not old history for people who never heard it before ... Trump, in my opinion, is bigger than the Republican Party." -- Roger Stone, on attacking Hillary and the GOP, via NY1: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d985f266c67025d51059518e672a9c465102d72b1b60c22be 

LIST OF THE DAY - "Welcome to the Absolute Best of New York," by Alan Sytsma in New York Mag http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d11ff887adee5672ede2176be014aef72b5518a056d75d3a7

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Politico Albany bureau chief Jimmy Vielkind, Jim Larson of NYSUT, Joe Nocera, NYT columnist, Cuomo spokeswoman Dani Lever (h/t Devora Kaye), former Post reporter Stefan Friedman, now a partner at Mercury Public Affairs, Arthur and Alex Leopold, who were the youngest members of Obama's national fund-raising team, two-time baseball MVP, Willie Mays, who signed "with the New York Giants after graduating from high school in 1950", actor Gabourey Sidibe of Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, who played the title character in the 2009 film, Precious, actor and Hillary Clinton supporter, George Clooney (Friday), Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan, Wiley Norvell, comms. adviser for Housing and
 Economic Development for Mayor de Blasio (h/t Devora Kaye), Dutchess County Democratic Chair Elissa Sumner, WNYC's associate director Melinda Siriwardana, and Democratic district leader Kevin Carroll, who works as a scheduler for Councilman Stephen Levin, composers Pyotr Tchaikovsky and Johannes Brahm (Saturday), J. Peter McDonald, director of communications for the NYPD, former lobbyist Jim Crane, comedian and Queens native Don Rickles, and the late president Harry Truman (Sunday)

-- Oops: Yesterday's newsletter incorrectly stated the birthday for NYPD Deputy Commissioner and former broadcast journalist John Miller. It is May 12.

TABS -- Post: "MUMMY DEAREST" -- Daily News: "SHOCK & STRAW: Report: '13 straw-donor scheme eyed; Blaz lawyers up for alex-cash probe; Press sec'y out after less than a year" -- SEE THEM: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d92a0f59aeaff35081b6670c30c030295da9f7ee7f8d71c0e 

-- amNY: "IT'S IN THE BAG: City Council passes 5 cent fee on paper, plastic to reduce garbage" -- Metro: "SUMMER AT THE MOVIES" -- Newsday: "SPOTA VOUCHED FOR BURKE" -- Hamodia: "NYC Lawmakers Impose 5-Cent Charge for Plastic Bag" -- El Diario [translated]: We want protection: Day laborers unite so the city will invest $11 million in this labor sector

FRONT PAGES -- NYT, 2-col., above the fold: "RYAN 'NOT READY' TO SUPPORT TRUMP, IN A RARE REBUKE: Move Lays Bare Party Split on Whether Candidate Represents Core Values" -- WSJNY, 2-col., above the fold: "Most Households Won't Pick Up Water Credit" -- SEE THEM: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d9f346d5af06b17c2770b9ffa1e41982b2db19d7a20a7d091 

WET HOT AMERICAN SUMNER -- POLITICO's Joe Pompeo: The Sumner Redstone saga has industry insiders salivating in Hollywood and Times Square as the long-awaited trial probing the 92-year-old Viacom and CBS chief kicks off in Los Angeles today. This soap opera's got it all: power, sex, divorce, family intrigue and a $42 billion media empire to boot. So it's easy to see why publications from the California trades to the New York tabloids have been all over it. 

--The New York Times has three stories in its business section today raising the curtain on the proceedings (A: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d6f2c7fe0f41511a7226fb872b467b52b1722188abcf1efd2 B: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d9d401b9db0fe7db378adb596fe9ff36725046f650b6aad87 C: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d70fde4c1b4d9130f4ac5e3b0761d01f9dc44b1ea45ef2ae6 Last night, Fortune dropped a three-part, supposedly 16,000 word feature on the whole affair: "The Disturbing Decline of Sumner Redstone" (http://for.tn/1O0wer9). And you can expect a lot more where that came from over the coming week-the trial is scheduled to last five days.

THE MEGYN KELLY EFFECT -- POLITICO's Joe Pompeo: News Corp. is counting on the Fox News megastar's debut book, due out this fall, to give its publishing unit HarperCollins a boost. For a while, HarperCollins was riding high on the runaway success of its "Divergent" series. But as the hype died down, revenues dropped. During a Thursday conference call with financial analysts to discuss News Corp's latest earnings results, CEO Robert Thomson said that the Kelly book, along with the paperback edition of Harper Lee's "Go Set a Watchman," will "boost HarperCollins after a slowdown."

AFTER CORDIAL HEARING, FLANAGAN CRITIQUES DE BLASIO - POLITICO New York's Eliza Shapiro: State Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan said Thursday he is no closer to extending mayoral control of New York City schools following Mayor Bill de Blasio's testimony before the Senate education committee Wednesday, a blow to the mayor's efforts to win a seven-year mayoral control extension. "Too often, the Mayor showed a disturbing lack of personal knowledge about the City schools," Flanagan, one of the mayor's most reliable political foes, said in a press statement. "In addition, he has left too many unanswered questions and failed to provide specifics on many of the issues raised by my colleagues
 on both sides of the aisle."

"Until that occurs, I will not entrust this Mayor with the awesome responsibility of operating the New York City school system," he said. Flanagan's statement was a scathing, if unsurprising, reminder that de Blasio's control over 1,800 New York City schools is largely dependent on a group of Senate Republicans that have seemed to encourage his political failure at every turn after the mayor tried and failed to unseat the Senate's Republican majority in the 2014 elections. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59df81a051b97057855f165a635bbc299f34e95d2044d06c299 

CITY COUNCIL -- BAG FEE PASSES -- 28 vote yes, 20 vote no -- POLITICO New York's David Giambusso and Gloria Pazmino: The issue has been remarkably divisive in the overwhelmingly Democratic council, as members argued the bill's benefits to the environment versus its impact on low-income communities. Yet after a rare debate and vote that lasted close to two hours, Into 209A prevailed by a vote of 28 to 20. With the mayor's signature, which his office says is forthcoming, all plastic and paper single-use bags will cost a nickel come October 16, making New York City the biggest city in the country to enact such a fee. ... the legislation got a boost on April 22 with the publication of Mayor
 Bill de Blasio's OneNYC update, which made clear he supported the measure. Prior to that, the mayor had expressed concerns and did not make his position known. Last week, City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito also expressed her support for the bill, all but guaranteeing the bill's passage. 

-- Debate: Councilman Eric Ulrich, who opposed the bill, asked what he would tell the dog-walkers in his district, referring to the common use of bags to clean up dog feces. Councilman Antonio Reynoso, who supported the bill, responded saying, "Your argument is full of dog poop." Councilman Joe Borelli called the bill "stupid," for which he was chided by Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer, who supported the bill. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59de0dea6edcf44700d2136d79b82cc72c2dda79e0438fa2d01 

ONEONTA, A HAVEN FOR TRANSGENDER HEALTH CARE - The Guardian's Molly Redden: "Four times a year, Jill Williams, 62, climbs into the cab of her 2010 Toyota pickup and heads from Pittsfield, Massachusetts, to a doctor's office two-and-a-half hours away. Williams, who is transgender, has grown used to the drive. With the majority of medical professionals knowing little about how to provide care to transgender people, countless trans individuals across the country face incredibly restricted health care options. Williams is one of thousands of people willing to go far - usually to a major city - to see a doctor who has experience in transgender health care, or at least is not openly hostile. But
 Williams isn't headed for a city. And in a stark illustration of how sparse her options are even here, in one of the most populous parts of the north-east, her route bypasses major metropolitan areas for an unlikely haven at the foot of the Catskill mountains: Oneonta, New York." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d74b63339ab71c84bd02ac3dde47b8bd0200f3a2abd36f1f9 

POLICE PROBE -- Internal Affairs looking into adultery allegations against Brooklyn chief, aired on Facebook -- Post's Shawn Cohen and Tina Moore: "The NYPD is investigating a top chief's relationship with a female underling who complained on social media that he chases "pregnant married girls around the department," police sources said. Tabatha Foster, who recently retired from the NYPD, went on a Facebook tirade against Jeffrey Maddrey, head of NYPD's Patrol Borough Brooklyn North, earlier this week accusing the married cop of sleeping with 'all the police officers on the job' - apparently including herself. ... 'It looks bad on paper, but we're not the morale police,' a police source
 said. 'He has an ingenious mind when it comes to tactics and he's a great motivator for his police officers in Brooklyn North. On the face of this, this shouldn't have any impact on his great career.'" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d6621c93fe1746b214eaf0cafe6af488184d06ae63b1710e0 

OUT AND ABOUT - "NYC Council Speaker Melissa Mark Viverito, NYC Council Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer, NYC Council Members I. Daneek Miller and Helen Rosenthal toured the America to Zanzibar: Muslim Cultures Near and Far exhibit at the Children's Museum of Manhattan earlier this week with the museum's executive director Andy Ackerman, the museum's honorary board chair Laurie M. Tisch, museum board member Judith Hannan, the exhibit's academic advisor Hussein Rashid and others. America to Zanzibar: Muslim Cultures Near and Far is a groundbreaking new interactive exhibit for children and families that explores the diversity of Muslim cultures in New York City, the U.S. and abroad. The
 exhibit showcases the cultural expressions of various Muslim communities around the world through age-appropriate experiences with art, architecture, travel, trade, design and more." Info on the exhibit  http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d75faaccaaaebfe612a7cbb2d29f8afde437705e05d62bc1c ... PICS http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d2784d4f10f2769d9eee6ab47c161966bfbcf4679c66faa61 ... http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d6a78d210194b41ab53dddf4f6d36be46161ae8a8cd1608dd ... http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59dc61c3e1e0f81a7d7ffb53c76551688e147fac908cecb3701 ... http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d728f573aa913fc715e12d180a5d7feeb0d187cb0c53df100

REPUBLICANS FOR HILLARY? "Hillary forces target Bush donors: Their message to moderate Republicans: She represents your values better than Trump," by Politico Morning Money's Ben White: "Clinton's supporters in recent days have been making a furious round of calls to top Bush family donors to try to convince them that she represents their values better than Donald Trump ... Top targets for the Clinton team include people like Woody Johnson, Jeb Bush's former finance chair and the owner of the New York Jets. ... [Clinton] supporters ... drew up a list of Wall Street donors who supported Jeb Bush and other unsuccessful Republican candidates months ago but wanted to wait until Trump locked
 down the nomination before beginning to make the calls. ... Potential sources of support for Clinton could include people like Jack Oliver." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d4288f977b559f9efae88b4567b18320bec3f115410839f53

TRANSITIONS -- "NFL hires ex-Murdoch aide Natalie Ravitz," by Politico's Joe Pompeo: "Ravitz, who was the News Corp. and 21st Century Fox chairman's chief of staff from 2012 to mid-2015, has been named senior vice president of communications at the NFL. Ravitz, who had previously worked as a press secretary and senior adviser to Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and in former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's education department, will report to Joe Lockhart, a former White House press secretary for Bill Clinton who joined the league in January as executive vice president of communications."  http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59df9a598aef0b6e8ca41e718e2f15c0efe9486515a21c631f2

--TJ Ducklo will be joining the Bloomberg Media communications team as communications director of Bloomberg Politics working closely with co-managing editors Mark Halperin and John Heilemann beginning on Monday. He has previously been a spokesperson for the MPAA, Viacom, and DC's 2024 Olympic Bid. 

REGIONAL PLANNER -- "Transportation enthusiast to think regionally for de Blasio administration," by POLITICO New York's Dana Rubinstein: "New York City is getting its first "regional planning" director, and it will be Carolyn Grossman, an urban planner so besotted with infrastructure that she got engaged inside the cavern that will become the 86th Street stop on the Second Avenue Subway. "'As far as we know this is the only city office of regional planning that exists in the nation,' Grossman, 33, told POLITICO New York on Thursday." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d8cee2f5099f682443efb12f9f9293ef513deb91342132cb7

#UpstateAmerica: Jessica Blain-Lewis, an assistant District Attorney for Albany County DA David Soares, is competing on Survivor. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e72e47312a03e59d3fe9f13265592443bd88bf617c99d863878515a2a3f64f8a 

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