Rangel Seeks Support in NW Bronx

This past Saturday, Congressman Charles Rangel was in the Bronx, meeting and seeking the support of the William Jefferson Clinton Democratic Club, relatively unknown political club that once was led by disgraced Bronx (former) Assemblyman Nelson Castro and his associates.

Rangel was accompanied by Councilwoman Inez Dickens, which leads us to believe that maybe the Congressman is prepping Dickens to take over the seat when he retires, assuming he wins the upcoming June primary against his strongest challenger, State Senator Adriano Espaillat.

The meeting was held at the residence of community activist David Williams on Creston Avenue and was led by former Castro staffers, current NW Bronx District Leader Steve Santana and former district leader Yocasta Polanco. Castro's former Chief of Staff, Krystal Nieves was also one of the coordinators. Many political operatives we talked to, said that it would be of no surprise if Castro himself is playing an active, yet behind-the-scences role in the district. Some have seen the former Assemblyman holding bi-weekly meetings in an undisclosed location on the Grand Concourse.

Congressman Charles Rangel with District Leader
Steve Santana and Manny Tavarez

It caught our attention the presence of Manny Tavarez, who challenged State Senator Gustavo Rivera in 2012 and despite coming up short, many were surprised he obtained over 35 percent of the votes. Word in the street is that Tavarez is eyeing another run against Rivera. This could prove to be an uphill battle as NW Bronx Councilman Fernando Cabrera is seriously considering challenging Rivera. Another possibility for Tavarez would be running for State Assembly and challenging Victor 'Levergate' Pichardo. This would put Tavarez on a collision course with Hector Ramirez, who came in a close second in last year's election. We also hear that former Obama campaign staffer and candidate himself, Haile Rivera (no relation to Senator Rivera) will be supporting Ramirez in September and will run as District Leader.  No word on Yudelka Tapia and her political ambitions but when we consulted with the City's Campaign Finance Board, Tapia's $108,000 debt remains unresolved.

While only a group of 15-20 residents were on hand for the meeting, it is clear that Congressman Rangel is seeking support from anyone and everyone who can help him in his re-election efforts. Without Castro, it is questionable how much influence or political muscle this club has in the district.

No official word on what Espaillat's Bronx outreach efforts may be. Our 'consultants' do tell us that it is highly unlikely, and a major mistake for Espaillat to be involved with this group given their close ties to Castro (who remains to be sentenced for perjury charges).

CBP will remain vigilant and post any updates as we receive information. Stay tuned ...

GUSTAVO RIVERA IN HOT, HOT, HOT WATERS

Here at Changing Bronx Politics (CBP), we are not surprised to hear that the so-called 'beloved' State Senator from the NW Bronx, the Honorable Gustavo Rivera, is in hot waters with Bronx County Boss Carl Heastie and the Bronx Dems. 

BRONX DEMOCRATIC PARTY BOSS CARL HEASTIE: The Honorable Gustavo Rivera has had a tendency of going against the Party at every opportunity he gets. When Heastie and Bronx Dems. rallied behind Bill Thompson for Mayor last year, Honorable Rivera supported Christine Quinn, who came in 3rd place in the Bronx and citywide (Bill de Blasio came in first followed by Thompson). 

And as if that was not enough, Honorable Gustavo Rivera decided to 'stick his noses' in the Speaker's race and supported Melissa Mark-Viverito vs the County's pick, Dan Garodnick, who ultimately conceded to Mark-Viverito. Honorable Gustavo Rivera might have scored some brownie points with Mark-Viverito and some of the progressives who supported her candidacy but locally, he burned his bridges with Party Boss and the entire organization. And if Mayor de Blasio has any say, he might not be as nice as Speaker Mark-Viverito was with her foes.

JEFF KLEIN: As if having the Party not-against-you-but-not-with-you is not enough, the Honorable Gustavo Rivera has acted as the 'pitbull' with no mouthguard, 'el alcahuete' of the Senate Democrats, against his colleague State Senator Jeff Klein. The Honorable Gustavo Rivera may think he has more 'cojones' than Klein but he is forgetting who is Jeff Klein and the immense power and clout he has in NYS politics. As they say in his homeland Puerto Rico, Honorable Gustavo Rivera 'esta abombao'. Klein is ready to put his mighty war chest to oust the Honorable Gustavo Rivera.

REV. RUBEN DIAZ, SR.: And let us add the Honorable Gustavo Rivera's latest insult to injury by mocking the heavy accent of another of his colleagues, outspoken Reverend State Senator Ruben Diaz, Sr. 

JOSE RIVERA: It is no secret that former Bronx Party Chair, known to many as 'El Padrino' of Bronx politics, Jose Rivera (no relation to the Honorable) has very little, if any, interest in keeping the Honorable Gustavo Rivera acting as if he's the Godfather of the NW Bronx. 

FERNANDO CABRERA: We al know that local Councilman Fernando Cabrera is no friend of the Honorable Gustavo Rivera. Both want to have control of the NW Bronx and both see each other as a threat, whether they admit it or not. Cabrera is even rumored to be one of the possible candidates looking to oust the Honorable Gustavo Rivera. Will Party Boss Heastie stay out it in this case? Remains to be seen.

DOMINICANS: The district which the Honorable Gustavo Rivera represents has a high concentration of Dominicans and while he does not like to admit it or has no interest in acknowledging this fact, they do matter. The Honorable Gustavo Rivera relied on former Assemblyman Nelson Castro (see below) to make him appeared Dominica-friendly, the Honorable Gustavo Rivera has very little respect for this group and we believe the feeling is mutual. He takes his Puertorican pride to a level we all know as arrogant. This will come back to haunt him. 

ADRIANO ESPAILLAT: With State Senator Adriano Espaillat's likely challenge against Congressman Charles Rangel, we could safely assume that Senator Espaillat will need, seek and welcome the support of the Honorable Gustavo Rivera, who in turn, also needs Espaillat to again, re-introduce him as Dominican-friendly. In 2012, when Espaillat challenged, and almost won, Congressman Rangel, the Honorable Gustavo Rivera, once again, defied Bronx Party Boss Heastie who were supporting Rangel, and supported Espaillat for Congress. Word on the street was that the Honorable Gustavo Rivera only showed face when the candidate was in the area but the folks doing the hard work were Nelson Castro's team. We can attest that for better or worse, Castro himself was very active and visible in their efforts to elect the first Dominican-American to Congress. The Honorable Gustavo Rivera was, well, around. 

NELSON CASTRO & VICTOR 'LEVERGATE' PICHARDO: Disgraced Assemblymember, who represented the NW section of the Bronx, was Rivera's base. While the Honorable Gustavo Rivera would probably deny it,  it is of no secret that he never had or has a base established in the district he represents. The recent, and questionable, election of his protege Victor "Levergate" Pichardo means nothing since Pichardo is a newbie to Bronx politics and lacks a base as well. 

PEDRO ESPADA: The Honorable Gustavo Rivera may not like to mention his name but we all know that even if a dog ran against the former, and imprisoned Senator, he (dog) would have won. So we urge the Honorable Gustavo Rivera to not think of himself so high and to make sure he knows he walks the same streets we do and lives on the same planet. Or does he? 

It is clear that his days as the Honorable State Senator from the NW Bronx are numbered.  Maybe he should start looking at trying out for American Idol.

Honorable Gustavo Rivera, our best wishes!

Another Bronx Scumbag On His Way to Federal Prison

Eric Stevenson has proven, yet again, that the Bronx is in desperate need of a leadership change. If you look at a timeline of events, the Bronx has been mass-producing corrupted politicians and someone needs to stop this. Thank the Heavens for US Attorney Preet Brahara.

Check out the column from the NY Times.

Assemblyman From the South Bronx Is Convicted on Bribery and Extortion Charges

By BENJAMIN WEISER, NY Times 

January 13, 2014

Eric Stevenson

Eric A. Stevenson, a New York assemblyman, was convicted on Monday of taking more than $20,000 in bribes in return for helping four businessmen build an adult day care center in his South Bronx district.

A federal jury in Manhattan deliberated for roughly 90 minutes before returning a verdict finding Mr. Stevenson, 47, guilty of charges that included bribery, conspiracy to commit honest services fraud and extortion.

The conviction of Mr. Stevenson, a Democrat in his second term, automatically vacates his 79th District Assembly seat, an Assembly spokesman said.

Judge Loretta A. Preska of Federal District Court said Mr. Stevenson would be sentenced on May 20. Prosecutors said he faced a maximum sentence of 20 years on each of two counts and lesser maximums on the others.

After the verdict was delivered, Mr. Stevenson, standing in the courthouse lobby, said: “I want to reserve my thoughts and my feelings. I don’t feel down. We’ll see what the future brings.”

The weeklong trial was the first arising out of an Albany corruption scandal that erupted last April when, on the same day that the office of Preet Bharara, the United States attorney in Manhattan, announced charges against Mr. Stevenson, it also revealed that another Democratic assemblyman, who turned out to be Nelson L. Castro, had resigned his office and was cooperating with the authorities.

That same week, Mr. Bharara announced charges against Malcolm A. Smith, a Democratic state senator accused of trying to bribe his way onto the ballot to run for mayor of New York. He has pleaded not guilty.

Mr. Stevenson “brazenly betrayed the public that elected him,” Mr. Bharara said on Monday. “Graft and greed are intolerable in Albany, and we will go to trial as often as we have to until government in New York is cleaned up.”

Prosecutors have filed papers seeking forfeiture of any pension money related to Mr. Stevenson’s service in the Assembly.

The prosecution’s case rested largely on the testimony of Sigfredo Gonzalez, a Bronx political operative who ran unsuccessfully in 2008 for the 79th District Assembly seat. He began cooperating with the authorities after he was caught trying to bribe Mr. Castro, who was already helping the government.Prosecutors indicated that the most audacious aspect of the scheme was when

Mr. Stevenson agreed to introduce legislation that would place a three-year moratorium on competing centers opening in the city. The measure would have been worth hundreds of thousands of dollars to the businessmen, who have all since pleaded guilty to conspiracy, the prosecutors said.

Mr. Stevenson’s lawyer, Muhammad Ibn Bashir, focused his attack on Mr. Gonzalez and his questionable past, which included admissions that Mr. Gonzalez had pleaded guilty to crimes including participating in an insurance scheme and lying to government.

“Just look at him. Look at his history,” Mr. Bashir said in his summation, adding, “He has never respected the boundaries of the law.”

But the prosecutors, Paul M. Krieger and Brian A. Jacobs, said Mr. Gonzalez’s testimony was corroborated by video and audio recordings made secretly of his conversations with Mr. Stevenson, which were played at trial, in which testimony began last Tuesday.

Mr. Stevenson could be heard on the recordings using code words to discuss money, expressing concern at being found out and even making threats against those who might seek to expose him, prosecutors said.

In meetings about a year ago, Mr. Stevenson asked Mr. Gonzalez whether the businessmen were “putting together a nice little package for me.” He also told Mr. Gonzalez, “I want a blessing in place, man.”

At one point, he cautioned Mr. Gonzalez, “Be careful of no mistakes, man, those recorders and all those things, man.” And: “Make no paper trail or nothing.”

“Are these the words of an assemblyman just doing his job?” Mr. Krieger argued during his summation. “Absolutely not,” he continued. “Stevenson was doing everything he could to cover up his paper trail, to cover up his relationship with the businessmen.”

Concejal Mantiene Juego con Dios y con el Diablo

El Concejal Dominico-Boricua Fernando Cabrera 

Continua Jugando con Dios y con el Diablo

El Bronx -- Las acusaciones de posible soborno contra el Concejal y Reverendo Fernando Cabrera esta 'como papa caliente' en el Bronx y en las conversaciones politicas. Cabrera, quien representa la parte Noroeste del Bronx en el Concejo Municipal, ahora cambia, de nuevo, su posicion en cuanto al proyecto de convertor el Kingsbridge Armory al Centro Nacional de Patinaje. 

Aquí una cronología de la posición del Concejal Cabrera en torno al proyecto del Kingsbridge Armory:

Primero, es el único de todos los oficiales electos que cuando anunciaron su apoyo para la construcción de un proyecto de convertir el Armory al Centro Nacional de Patinaje, estuvo aislado.

Luego, cuando vino el Alcalde Bloomberg para una firma de acuerdo, acto realizado adentro del Armory, el Concejal Cabrera estuvo allí muy sonriente ante las cámaras.

Después, surge las acusaciones que este estuvo detrás de un plan macabro para obtener una suma de $9.9 millones del grupo de inversionistas que están apoyando al proyecto, para que el pueda darle su respaldo. Claro esta, la simple intención de querer sobornar a los inversionistas es un crimen federal. Aun existe la posibilidad que el Fiscal, ya sea del Bronx o del Estado de Nueva York, puedan darle seguimiento. 

Cabrera entonces dice que no es verdad y que le preocupa el trafico de vehículos/entaponamientos en la zona para os residentes ya que como esta, los estacionamientos están muy escazos y por lo tanto, no apoya al proyecto.

El 21 de Noviembre, Cabrera cambia de posición, de nuevo. En la Junta del Condado del Bronx, la cual es presidida por el Presidente del Bronx, Ruben Diaz, Jr., Cabrera apoya el proyecto. 

El Presidente Diaz, Jr. estuvó contento pues pensó que ya Cabrera estaba respaldando el proyecto. 

Sorpresa que se llevo Diaz, Jr. cuando el pasado jueves 5 del presente, Cabrera lo enfrenta (a Diaz, Jr.) en una audiencia realizada por el Sub-Comité del Uso de Tierra del Concejo Municipal. Cabrera incluso ataco a los activistas comunitarios que se unieron al proyecto y concluyo exhortandole a sus colegas en el Consejo a no aprobar el proyecto de patinaje. 

Nadie sabe que decisión tomaría el Concejal Cabrera el día de mañana pero si de algo se esta seguro es que su futuro político desde ya esta en peligro de extinción. Los comentarios entre los políticos del Bronx es que "ya la maquinaria esta buscando a quien apoyar para que se postule contra un traicionero" en las elecciones municipales del 2017. Aun es muy temprano para decir quien seria pero entre los que mas suenan están los activistas Yudelka Tapia y Hector Ramirez, ambos que ya se han postulados en reiteradas ocasiones a varias posiciones pero no han podido lograrlo. También suele a sonar Steve Santana, actual Líder Distrital, quien era y se mantiene como la mano derecha del ex-Asambleísta Nelson Castro. Claro esta, el Partido Demócrata del Bronx y el Presidente del Condado Ruben Diaz, Jr serán los que decidirán quien seria el contrincante con mejores posibilidades de enfrentar al Concejal Cabrera en el 2017.

En el 2014, se realizaran las elecciones Congresionales y como ya se ha publicado, el Senador Estatal del Alto Manhattan buscara de nuevo este escaño con el propósito de convertirse en el primer Congresista de origen Dominicano electo en la historia de los EEUU. Dichas elecciones se llevaran a cabo en Junio 2014, y el papel del Cabrera en esa contienda estaría por verse. En el 2012, cuando Espaillat se postuló para ese escaño en contra del actual Congresista Charlie Rangel, Cabrera le dio una 'galleta sin mano' a la candidatura de Espaillat ya que se esperaba que Cabrera respaldaría a quien le confirmo su Dominicanidad. Pero no fue así. Cabrera, y ya vemos que para este es una rutina, de ultimo minuto, respaldó a Rangel.

Según nos informan, el Senador Estatal Gustavo Rivera, quien si respaldo a Espaillat en el 2012, pueda que no este de su lado en esta ocasión pues de hacerlo, corre el peligro que el Partido Demócrata y el Presidente Ruben Diaz, Jr. no respalden su re-elección en Septiembre, cuando es muy probable que este (Gustavo Rivera) tenga un contrincante 'de peso fuerte'. 

Así que aun esta por verse que sucederá con el Concejal Y PASTOR Cabrera pero claro esta, sabemos que no puede seguir con Dios y con el Diablo! 

2013 shaping to be exciting year for Bronx City Council Candidates

January 16, 2013

What do these individuals have in common: Albert Alvarez, Pedro Alvarez (not related to previous), Ralina Cardona, Walter Newsome, William Rivera, Carlos Sierra, Yudelka Tapia, Raquel Batista and Felipe De Los Santos?

In case you did not, all these individuals are registered candidates for office. While many are under "undetermined"- meaning they have not declared for which district they are running for - some have made public statements of their intentions. In some cases, it's juts what we hear on the streets.

We will do a quick rundown of who they are although we admit, some we have no idea who they are so we will just say "information not available".

Albert Alvarez: has been Chief of Staff to Councilman/Majority Leader Joel Rivera, who represents the 15th Council District since 2001. We are assuming that Albert will be seeking to replace his boss. His first reporting shows he raised $2,511 and spent $116.

William Rivera: Rivera has declared he's running for the 15th Council District, same district Albert Alvarez is seeking. His first reporting shows he raised a mere $300 and spent zero.

Ralina Cardona: Ralina is a respected community activist in the South Bronx. She's also the New York State Director of the League of United Latin American Citizens, also known as LULAC. It sis believed she will be running in the newly-ran 8th District, which is represented by Counilwoman Melissa Mark-Viverito. 30% of the district are Bronx voters so given that she's a known Bronxite, she has a real shot at the seat. Her first reporting shows she raised $5,550 with $0 spent. 

Pedro Alvarez: Pedro is known in some local circles due to his support of candidates in the past. He is a tax-preparer who runs P. Alvarez & Associates located at 23 East 170th Street (corner of Townsend Ave). In 2009, Alvarez supported Carlos Sierra (see below) for City Council. From what we hear, he's running for District 15. His first reporting shows he raised $6,310 and spent $1,499.

Walter Newsome: According to his Linkedin page, Newsome served as an "Elected Official at Bronx Democratic County Committee," "Project Manager at Wilson Elser" and "Special Projects Coordinator at The Office of the District Attorney" in the Bronx.    

Like, Pedro Alvarez, he is running for the 16th Council District, which is currently    

represented by term-limited Councilwoman Helen Foster.  His first reporting shows he raised zero and spent zero.

Felipe De Los Santos: De Los Santos is Project Manager at HHH Continuum of Care. His Linkedin page also mentions he served as an "Intern/Assistant to Special Counsel at New York State Senate." De Los Santos is also running for District 16, hence his slogan "Team 16."

Last month, DNAinfo.com ran this story where De Los Santos was quoted and you can say, profiled to some extent. He has put out an 8-minute video which he discusses his campaign. You can see video here. 

According to the article on DNAinfo.com, De Los Santos is a law student at Seton Hall University, a resident of nearby Riverdale from Dominican parents. If he remains committed, and could raise some cash, De Los Santos' campaign could change how we do politics in the Bronx. He does have an uphill battle but determination is what matters. www.team16.org 

Carlos Sierra: Sierra is making a second try to represent the residents of the 16th Council District. In 2009, he ran a very low-budget campaign and despite lacking any significant support from any union, groups or elected officials, Sierra received an impressive 37% of the votes vs Councilwoman Foster. One would think that given such impressive numbers in 2009, Sierra would be the leading or favorite candidate of the Bronx Democratic Party. However, this is not the case. Unlike the last time around, there will be more than one Hispanic candidate on the ballot (assuming Pedro Alvarez, William Rivera and Felipe De Los Santos are able to get on the ballot).  In his first reporting, Sierra raised $14,805 and spent $779. We must admit, Sierra did pretty well for himself. To his benefit, there's no incumbent on the ballot so we'll see what happens in the coming months. We suggest he seeks a professional consultant, an experience and known Campaign Manager and work his neighborhood.  www.votesierra.com  

Raquel Batista: Batista served as Vice President, Corporate Responsibility and Compliance  for Vantage Properties. Prior to this position, she served as Executive Director of the Northern Manhattan Coalition for Immigrant Rights. She's also joining the crowded field of candidates in the 15th Council District (like Albert Alvarez, William Rivera & Yudelka Tapia - see below).

Batista is not a party insider or soldier. She has been making the rounds of several events of the Bronx Democratic Party but our sources within the party tell us that she's really someone who they have no relationship with.  

In her first reporting, Batista raised an impressive $20,005 and spent $1,106. For someone who is said to not be known or having any relationships with the community, this is definitely an impressive amount of money raised. In fact, Batista out-raised all the other potential candidates. $20,000 makes a very strong statement and gives credibility to Batista's campaign.  www.raquelbatista.com

Yudelka Tapia: Tapia has also decided to run for the 15th Council District. Although she resides in the 14th, Tapia is taking advantage of redistricting (which permits candidates to run for any district even if they do not reside in them) and this has caused some party officials to wonder if Tapia will be seeking office every time an election comes around. This is the fourth time Tapia seeks office. She has been a candidate for Assembly once and for City Council twice. She might get lucky this time around. If she's unsuccessful, Tapia might need to consider another career in politics. 

In her first filing, she reported $16,178 in donations and spent $3,543, mostly in attorneys handling her case. As Bronx Times Boro Beat reporter Bob Kappstatter reported in his October 25th, 2012 column, "Yudelka COULD run, but without new matching funds unless she pays off $47,774 in fines and repays or accounts for $59,930 out of the original $78,828 in matching funds."

It is no doubt that Tapia is considered a loyalist of Bronx Democratic Party Chairman Carl Heastie and loyal supporter of Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. However, such loyalty and friendship has not been able to elect her into office (except District Leader in the 86th Assembly District).

Tapia might want and need to ask for the endorsement of State Senator Adriano Espaillat, since she oversaw the Bronx operations for Espaillat's 2012 unsuccessful Congressional campaign. www.yudelkatapia.com

Two other individuals that did not show any filings with the Campaign Finance Board but that have surfaced as possible candidates in the 15th Council District are Radame Perez, supermarket owner/successful real-estate developer and Ischia Bravo, Executive Director of the Bronx Democratic Party

This is it folks...for now! 2013 is definitely shaping to be an exciting year for us Bronxites. We wish all candidates the best. 

Hope you found our analysis useful and if you feel we have made an error, feel free to comment. We will publish everyone's comments.