As one Democratic insider supporting Mr. de Blasio put it, “You can’t attack what’s not there.”
Hey Mr. Green -- how will you represent us if you won't even talk to us?
That may be true, but it’s also hard to vote for someone with less presence than a ghost. Last week’s Public Advocate Forum, hosted by MYD, allowed our members, students from co-host Pace University, and others from the community to hear from all of the non-Green candidates: Former ACLU chief Normal Seigel, Brooklyn Councilman Bill de Blasio, and Queens Councilman Eric Gioia. Former PA and most-recognized candidate Mark Green has been keeping a low profile and refusing to engage in public debates–kind of ironic for someone who wants to advocate on our behalf, no?
Candidates + our Community Service Director and Pace grad Heather James
Here are some initial impressions on the candidates’ opening remarks from Marty Glyer, MYD member and furious note-taker during the Forum. His full set of notes, including some highlights from the Q&A and his ‘grades’ for the various candidates, after the jump. Please note that these are solely his impressions, and do not necessarily reflect the views of MYD or anyone else.
First was Norman Siegel. Man, not what I was expecting at all for an opening answer: he spent a vast chunk of his time scolding MYD for not including the Republican candidate for PA, and then went on to rail on PACE for not allowing literature to be distributed within the room. Not going to lie, I was taken aback. At first. But then it occurred to me that, so long as your moral compass is set in the right direction, its probably a good thing to be so grumpy, spiky, and tough. And he definitely didn’t seem to mind if he came off that way.
Next was Bill de Blasio. He was well spoken, and very well put together, giving the impression that knew the job and could handle it. However, he didn’t seem quite as authentic as Siegel (I guess its kind of hard to be disingenuous when you are being so spiky), and he seemed to spit out a few too many canned lines in a row. And, forgive me for this, can we have a moratorium on politicians espousing “Change?” I know it sounds good in your head, but it seems to fall flat when you hear it from most people.
The final candidate was Eric Gioia. Young, smart, clear, and concise. He seemed to take the stance of reconciler and conciliatory, a bringing people together to a consensus in order to move forward toward the right thing. Extremely engaging. Much more “people” and “community” oriented. Despite working as a Janitor to pay for NYU tuition, I might question how bull-doggedly he would bust down walls in the job.
Questions and Answers
After this initial opening question, a total of 7 questions were asked, ranging from the Economy to Food stamps, from acting as a counterweight to the mayor despite a small budget to minority/female owned businesses and entrepreneurs.
I could write out a play by play and some details, but I’m sure I’d lose some of you. So…some highlights:
Siegel gave a pledge to reduce the number of homeless people on the streets by 50%, and seems to have a clear plan in mind on how to do so – one that doesn’t involve homeless shelters (he related a story about being told that most homeless people would rather live out on the street than a shelter, because they were so horrid. Having seen them himself, Siegel said that this seemed “the rational decision.”). On the homelessness issue, the other two candidates mainly stuck to low- to middle-class housing assistance, and how to keep people in their homes. De Blasio proposed rent subsidized apartments for those who had lost their homes for 1 year, allowing them time to get back on their feet (and this would be a cost effective way, as this would be cheaper than putting the family in a rent shelter).
Regarding the budget for the Public Advocate’s office – Gioia: “The watchdog’s budget cannot be set by those being watched.” Siegel: The budget for either of my opponents’ campaigns is twice as large as the PA’s budget.
This may be just me – and my fellow Econ Issue Committee members – but I got all excited when Gioia talked about the need for banks to be opened in underprivileged communities, as this allows people to save more money out of each paycheck, build credit, and potentially move up in society (This was an issue the Econ Committee wrote about).
Siegel, in regards to minority and female owned businesses got off a good line: He said that when we pledge for “liberty and justice for all,” we are merely giving “lip service.” He then went on to talk about diversity within the city government, and how the higher up one got in the government echelons, the more Caucasian it became. He would want to put out a public record of the racial/gender make up of the various government offices in the city.
Gioia talked about his family in Queens, and the need to work on a local level with entrepreneurs, getting them to know each other, work together, and see the real positive changes that can come from community minded businesses.
As a general note, Siegel seemed to be big on volunteers, as well as advocacy training for normal citizens, so they could learn how to stand up and speak to power effectively if there was an issue they disagreed with – and he specifically cited Bloomberg’s 3rd term run.
Gioia tended to dig into what he had done in the past – the “best hits” file, I call it – and how he would apply similar methods to his job in the PA’s office.
All three candidates support marriage equality (I knew MYD would rope in a question about it somewhere in the evening). Gioia invoked Dr. King, calling marriage equality “the civil rights issue of this generation.” Both he and de Blasio chose to approach the question as a moral issue, and were hit by Siegel over this, who called their answers “Self-righteous.” Siegel pointed out – rightfully in my opinion – that when dealing with religion and homophobia, it must be a process of persuasion, rather than denouncing.
Ending impressions
Siegel – well, we got a chance to see his style of advocacy in action by the end of the evening: just before the final question, he was handed a slip of paper which told him that the president of PACE university had been phoned about the ban on literature in the room. On the spot, the policy was reversed. Quite impressive, actually. He came off as tough as nails, with a body language and tone of voice to prove it. Was extremely knowledgeable and often went over time, not from veering off subject but from providing background and ideas. Very forceful, and willing to speak his mind, as he reprimanded his opponents, the venue, the host, the mayor, and Mr. Gioia again over the course of the evening…and these moments were a little uncomfortable to watch. He’ll definitely rub people the wrong way, however, which might impede his ability in the job.
Quote to take away: “Advocates don’t throw out arguments that can possibly persuade people.”
Grade: A-
De Blasio – I almost feel a little sorry for him. Sitting between his two opponents, he seemed to come off as the Middle Bear, but rather than being “just right,” it often felt “not enough.” Not to say he wasn’t knowledgeable and didn’t have good ideas, because he did. But he seemed to lack the grit, steel, and bull-doggedness of Siegel while being outshone in terms of policy, background experience, and engaging tone of Gioia.
Quote to take away: …sorry, I got nothing. For whatever reason, my mind started going elsewhere when he spoke. Harsh…but true. My notes tend to be sparse on his answers.
Grade: C+/B-
Gioia – More than made up for that initial impression of not being tough enough. Continually referenced his roots from Queens, and even told a story about getting into fights as a kid (at which point I thought “ok, I get it. You’re tough. Move on.”). Engaging, extemporizing on the spot based on what he saw in the room. He was the only one to look at his opponents or the moderator when he spoke. He often broke out the “best hits” file, saying what he has done in the past – which is an awful lot, by the way – and how he would implement similar policies. Big focus on local levels and communities. He was young (in a good way), authentic, and able to connect with his listeners when he spoke.
Quote to take away: after invoking Dr. King’s “arc” line: “It’s the job of good people to put their shoulder to the arc and make it bend faster.”
Grade: A/A-
Politicker: Mark Green’s Un-Green Campaign
