Posts Tagged ‘Jose Rivera’

Originally Published in The New York Sun, September 11, 2008

By Andrew Wolf

The defeat suffered by the Bronx County Democratic organization, which lost every race in which it supported a candidate in Tuesday’s primary, may mean new leadership for the county party.

The organization was opposed by a so-called rainbow coalition of legislators, which includes prominent black, white, and Hispanic lawmakers from throughout the borough. That coalition is expected by political observers and activists to move quickly to depose the current Democratic leader, Assemblyman Jose Rivera, as soon as Monday night.

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First Published in The New York Sun, January11, 2008

By Andrew Wolf

If you are looking for a reason why the economic good times in the city seem to have passed by the borough of the Bronx, events in recent days should offer some clues.

In a national atmosphere where the word of the day is change, in the Bronx, among the poorest places in the entire nation, the watchword is “more of the same.”

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First Published in The New York Sun, February 5, 2007

By Andrew Wolf

This is Fashion Week, when designers come here to exhibit their fall lines. I am celebrating the news that Punxsutawney Phil failed to see his shadow, which bolsters my hopes of donning my spring wardrobe a bit earlier this year.

Now that I think about it, my spring wardrobe is not much different from my winter and fall wardrobes. Jeans, corduroy sports coat (put away in the closet for summer), blue oxford shirt, no tie, and brown penny loafers. For me, this outfit has been pretty much it for the past forty years. (more…)

First Published in The New York Sun, December 29, 2006

By Andrew Wolf

On the first day of the new state administration everything is supposed to change, but if one of Governor-elect Spitzer’s key appointments is any indication of things to come, the current Albany atmosphere will change little.

Last week, Mr. Spitzer appointed Lorraine Cortes-Vasquez to the post of secretary of state. Ms. Cortes-Vazquez is a prominent ally of the Bronx Democratic organization. (more…)

First Published in The New York Sun, December 18, 2006

By Andrew Wolf

George Washington Plunkitt, the state senator and Democratic Party leader of a century ago, would be proud. Today’s Bronx politicos have taken his concept of “honest graft” and kicked it up a notch. As the Bronx continues to deteriorate, seemingly stuck in a permanent mode of decay and depression, political leaders find new ways to line their pockets as their constituents suffer.

This was driven home dramatically this past week with the unsealing of a new indictment against a Bronx state senator, Efrain Gonzalez. His constituents are among the poorest in the most poverty stricken county in the state. Yet when given the opportunity to bring some resources back to his district, Mr. Gonzalez, prosecutors charge, instead stole the money to finance a lavish personal lifestyle. (more…)