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New York Post
19 minutes ago
- New York Post
Curtis Sliwa's quality-of-life crackdown makes sense. But he still won't be the next mayor of New York City
Will Curtis Sliwa have any regrets if he wakes up on November 5 and Zohran Mamdani is the new mayor of New York — knowing he could have stepped aside and cleared the crowded campaign field that many fear will split the vote? 'Nope,' the Republican candidate told me. So he's not willing to sacrifice his candidacy to save the city he loves from socialism? Advertisement 'That's based on the idea that everyone is going to go over and vote Cuomo. Ain't happening. They hate Cuomo. I'm in the streets every day. All I hear is 'slapping fannies and killing grannies.' He's never apologized,' Sliwa said of Andrew Cuomo's Covid and #MeToo scandals. 8 Curtis Sliwa regularly campaigns in the subways he's patrolled as a Guardian Angel for decades. Debra L Rothenberg/Shutterstock Meanwhile, a new AARP poll shows Mamdani's support at 42% among registered voters; Cuomo is at 23%, fellow independent Adams is at 9%, and Sliwa claims 16%. It would stand to reason the three need to become one to beat the Democratic socialist. Advertisement But Sliwa says it isn't happening. 'Nobody is getting out. Cuomo isn't, [Eric] Adams isn't. Every day there's a discussion about dropping out, that's a good day for Mamdani,' Sliwa said. I met with the 71-year-old at his Midtown campaign headquarters. While he's been an NYC tabloid figure since the late 1970s, when he launched the civilian crime-fighting group the Guardian Angels, he's lately been almost unrecognizable — taking off his signature red beret in meetings to look more like a serious politician. 8 Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic Socialist, is leading the crowded field in the mayoral race. James Keivom Advertisement The thing is, I love everything Sliwa has to say, especially about quality-of-life crackdowns. He wants to cut taxes, ditch congestion pricing and tackle the costly epidemic of fare evasion. 'I laugh when Mamdani says 'free bus fare' and everyone is having a heart attack. I said, 'Hold on, people aren't paying in the first place. Why don't we just enforce the fare?'' Sliwa said. 'Adams didn't do it. Cuomo didn't do it. We need a no-tolerance policy.' 8 Mayor Eric Adams, who is running as an independent, is not performing well in polls. REUTERS Advertisement Can I get an amen? Like Mamdani, Sliwa speaks about affordability, especially for younger New Yorkers who cannot 'afford the American dream anymore. They're in their 30s and still living in a dormitory' — I think he means they have a lot of roommates — 'yet they have a professional career and make good money.' Unlike the photogenic Mamdani, the Republican is not offering a buffet of cockamamie socialist policy 'solutions.' But in this crowded field, I don't think Sliwa has a shot at taking down Mamdani and his dangerous DSA ideology. He wholeheartedly disagrees. 'I have a very good shot.' 8 Curtis Sliwa regularly campaigns on the subway, calling it the 'best focus group of all. All it costs you is a swipe.' Debra L Rothenberg/Shutterstock The last time Sliwa ran for mayor, in 2021, the city was lumbering through the Covid cloud. He lost to Eric Adams and earned only 27.8% of the vote. 'I feel I can start with about 28%,' Sliwa said, 'and if I can get up to 32, 33, 34%, I'll be the next mayor of New York City.' Advertisement This time around, his campaign is pushing early voting, trying to court Millennials and Gen Z-ers who aren't drunk on Mamdani's 'everything is free' socialist brew — and reaching out to Muslim voters. Mamdani is far, far more progressive than most Muslims in the city. But Sliwa believes many conservative Muslims are turned off by cultural attacks from some politicians on the right, like Marjorie Taylor Greene. Last month, the representative from Georgia shared a meme of the Statue of Liberty covered in a burka. Because of insults like that, 'Some feel compelled to support Mamdani,' said Sliwa. 8 Curtis Sliwa has been a tabloid staple since the late 1970s, when he started the Guardian Angels. Bettmann Archive Advertisement Still — 'All the halal and coffee wagons, Uber drivers are all capitalists. I'm working on them to vote for me.' Sliwa blames Adams and his cronyism scandals for the rise of Mamdani. As for Cuomo, 'He told a group in the Hamptons that he's moving to Florida if he loses. He's waving a white flag,' alleged the Canarsie native. Despite reports, Sliwa said President Trump hasn't offered him a job in Washington to get him out of the race — nor has Trump called the Republican candidate to offer support. 8 Curtis Sliwa has started removing his signature red beret during some campaign meetings. James Messerschmidt for NY Post Advertisement Sliwa is non-plussed. 'I believe the president has far more serious issues to deal with, like peace in Ukraine and, if he can — and he alone can — resolving the Gaza situation.' As we wrap up our interview, Sliwa puts on his hat and we venture down Sixth Avenue. The red beret is like a beacon, attracting a Midtown crowd. One man taps him for a selfie. A group of blue-collar workers abandon their spot in a lunch-truck line to shake his hand and wish him luck. A smartly dressed woman in her 50s flags him down. A black man calls out in heavily-accented English from behind the wheel of a black SUV: 'Curtis, I've always wanted to meet you!' Advertisement 8 Curtis Sliwa said New York voters haven't forgiven Andrew Cuomo and that he's never apologized for his personal and professional scandals. Matthew McDermott 8 Curtis Sliwa and his wife Nancy are passionate about cats and animal rights. Matthew McDermott A union plumber who grew up in Staten Island jumped off a bench to offer his support. He and his colleagues said they would vote for Sliwa … but they all moved out to the 'burbs during Covid because the city was too dirty, too crime-ridden and too expensive. It's a familiar refrain. Sliwa wants to save the city — are there enough voters left who want to as well?
Los Angeles Times
19 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
North Hollywood's blighted Valley Plaza approved for demolition
Valley Plaza in North Hollywood — once a centerpiece of 1950s commerce that drew John F. Kennedy — has descended into a swath of blight over the years, a collection of neglected buildings and empty parking lots that draw squatters and TV producers in need of an apocalyptic-looking settings. On Tuesday, a panel of Los Angeles city commissioners appointed by Mayor Karen Bass voted to declare a swath of Valley Plaza a public nuisance after a hearing that drew neighbors who complain about decrepit conditions and crime at the site at Laurel Canyon Boulevard and Victory Boulevard. The commissioners' vote paves the way for demolition of six buildings in the plaza and ends a long-suffering chapter of commercial neglect in the San Fernando Valley. While the demolition won't solve the greater problem of retail closings in Los Angeles — where neighborhoods grapple with empty storefronts and shuttered restaurants— local leaders are hopeful that another developer or retailer will take over the site. The empty structures of Valley Plaza created a burden on the city's police and fire departments, who continually respond to calls, said City Councilmember Adrin Nazarian at a Building and Safety Department Commission hearing on the site Tuesday. Just before he spoke, an unresponsive individual was found in one of the buildings, said Nazarian, whose eastern San Fernando Valley district includes North Hollywood. 'The people of North Hollywood have waited too long, enough is enough,' said Nazarian. Fred Gaines, an attorney for the owner Charles Company blamed the city, telling the commissioners that his client sought demolition permits. The developer has been unable to demolish the mall because replacement plans need to be approved first by the city. An inspector for the department countered the developer hadn't fully completed the application. 'We are ready, willing and able to go forward and demolish these buildings,' Gaines told the commissioners. One of the San Fernando Valley's oldest outdoor shopping malls, Valley Plaza opened in the early 1950s and quickly become an successful retail site. Then-Massachusetts Senator Kennedy included the area on his itinerary during his 1960 presidential campaign. In 1961, the Valley Plaza Tower was among the first skyscrapers built in L.A. following the 1957 repeal of a 150-foot building height limit, according to the Los Angeles Conservancy. The tower is occupied today by Wells Fargo and not among the sites declared a nuisance under Tuesday's vote. Economic fallout from the 1990s recession and 1994 Northridge earthquake, as well as competition from more modern shopping centers, helped end Valley Plaza's run. During his 2012 run for president, Republican nominee Mitt Romney held a news conference on a dusty parking lot in front of derelict buildings and tried to link Valley Plaza's decline to President Obama's economic policies. The mall's Sears, a staple in the neighborhood, closed in early 2020. Jennifer Clark, who lives in the area, said the site has been an eyesore since she moved to North Hollywood 24 years ago. Today, that the site is used as a filming locations for scenes needing a backdrop of dilapidated buildings, or a dystopian future, she said. 'Unfortunately, these fictional stories are our reality,' said Clark. Suzanne Stinson, a homeowner who lives three blocks away, said she feared that a fire would be set on the property during the Santa Ana wind season. 'I do not wish my neighborhood to become the next Altadena or Pacific Palisades by burning to the ground,' said Stinson, who urged the structures to be demolished. Charles Company, a real estate and development firm, is owned by Mark and Arman Gabaee. Arman Gabaee was sentenced in 2022 to four years in federal prison in what prosecutors described as one of the biggest corruption cases in L.A. history. From 2010 to 2017, Arman Gabaee made monthly $1,000 payoffs to a L.A. county official in return for county leases, attractive rental terms, and nonpublic information. He also offered to buy the official, Thomas J. Shepos, a $1-million home in return for the county spending $45 million to lease office space at a Gabaee property in Hawthorne. Gaines, the attorney for Charles Company, told the commission on Tuesday blamed problems at the site on a nearby homeless encampment behind the parking lot. He said a national tenant, who he didn't name, visited the site but refused to sign a lease because of the encampment. The tenant said, 'Until this is cleaned up, we're not interested,' said Gaines. Nazarian said that he hopes to see residential housing and retail built on the site, calling it a 'phenomenal location' for investment that is close to two freeways. 'We need retail business,' said Nazarian at a news conference before Tuesday's commission vote. 'This area lost a lot of retail taxes over the course of the last 30 years because all the residents would go to Burbank or elsewhere to shop.' Nazarian blamed owner Charles Company for neglecting the site, describing Valley Plaza as a 'once-blossoming' corner of the San Fernando Valley. 'They don't care about the property,' said Nazarian.
CNN
19 minutes ago
- CNN
Pam Brown asks Texas Democrat what he accomplished by walkout
Texas State House leader Gene Wu explains how a Democrat-led walkout is raising national awareness about gerrymandering amidst Republican redistricting of congressional maps.
