John Sweeney

The Irish equivalent of the Plaza is the Shelbourne Hotel, give or take a couple hundred condos.

Built in 1824, in a landmark building overlooking a park in the heart of Ireland's capital, the Shelbourne has had a long reign as what The New York Times called "the princess of Dublin hotels." Like the Plaza, the 225-room hotel never lost its cache with tourists, even as more luxurious competitors popped up and service started to decline--in October 2004, an Irish court ruling stripped the Shelbourne of its five-star status, and the hotel decided to become unclassified.

A few months later, Irish oil magnate/hotelier John Sweeney swooped in with a consortium of investors and bought the down-at-the-heels hotel for 120 million Euros and promised to restore it to its former splendor with a 40 million Euro makeover.  read more »

Here are a couple of events that got left off our list yesterday.

A new political club in Assemblyman Rory Lancman’s district - which used to be represented by Brian McLaughlin before he was implicated in a contract-rigging scandal - is having its first meeting tonight in Fresh Meadows, featuring as guest speaker Queens District Attorney Richard Brown.

Another event happening tonight, unrelated, is the first in a series of planned New York City fund-raisers for Democratic Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand, who defeated incumbent John Sweeney in a Republican-leaning district upstate and has been the target of Republican challenges ever since.

If you've got any others, feel free send them in or plug them in the comments section. Details for the Gillibrand fund-raiser are after the jump.  read more »

In one of his first interviews since losing a re-election campaign in his upstate district last year, former Representative John Sweeney said that a 911 call made by his wife where she complained that he was "knocking her around the house" was "simply what happens sometimes in families."

Speaking on WROW just now, Sweeney said that when it became public that a 911 call had once been made by his wife, "We didn't deny that a call was made. We didn't deny there had been problems in my family at that particular time."

Sweeney said he still isn't sure how the call was made public.

"As of today, we still haven't gotten a conclusive report back," he said. "We know somebody violated the law. They know somebody violated the law. Probably from within the New York State police, but it may have been within some other law enforcement entity that had access to this information. And we may never get the final story on that. "

-- Azi Paybarah

Democrat Kirsten Gillibrand upset incumbent Rep. John Sweeney, who was dogged by allegations that he beat his wife. CNN has the results at 53-47 percent.

Another embattled upstate congressman, Tom Reynolds, is holding off his challenger, Jack Davis, 54-46 with about 7 percent of the votes counted.

-- Azi Paybarah

No matter the outcome today, there is some good news for upstate Rep. John Sweeney, whose re-election has been in jeopardy since a story surfaced about a domestic abuse 911 call by his wife.

"The good news today is, it ends, the smearing ends," Sweeney told reporters.

-- Azi Paybarah

Anybody who shares a name with an elected official, candidate, or press aide, can sympathize with Maureen Donovan whose last name is one letter off from the very busy press aide to congressman John Sweeney (of the infamous 911 calls).

Here's Donovan's automated response to from Donovan's Yahoo account:

If you are trying to e-mail Maureen Donovan w/info re: political campaigns, news stories, or visits to NYC, you have the wrong Maureen Donovan! From the many e-mails I have received in error, my guess is that this person's e-mail address is "maureenodonovan@yahoo.com." Note the "o" in the middle of the address. Subtle difference, but one that has caused me to get dozens of e-mails, some of which seem to contain rather sensitive information, that are not intended for me. Please check and correct this in your e-mail address book. THANKS!

-- Azi Paybarah

Here is congressman John Sweeney's wife - the one who called 911 from her home - defending her husband and, of course, blaming Kirsten Gillibrand for the whole thing.

As Ben and Liz noted, she doesn't deny, or even address, that December 2005 incident.

-- Azi Paybarah

John Sweeney's wife briefly discussed the incident in her home which led her to call 911. And Liz has the script for the new ad she's doing [added].

A Republican congressional candidate in the neighboring upstate district subsequently endorsed Sweeney's Democratic opponent, calling it an "act of conscience." That other Republican, Warren Redlich, went on to say Sweeney is "what's wrong with Washington."

Hillary Clinton said John Kerry's "botched joke" about students who don't study getting "stuck" in Iraq was inappropriate.

Some of those stuck soldiers offer their own response.

Ben explains that Freddy Ferrer joining a mostly-Republican consulting firm means "Freddy is showing about as much loyalty to his party that many of its prominent figures showed him."

Eliot Spitzer's campaign gave $250,000 to the Working Families Party.

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver - who doesn't have a race, does he? - received $669,116 in contributions.

Sue Kelley tries making an issue of John Hall's stock portfolio.

Early and Often notes that Alan Hevesi isn't the only one with chauffeur problems.  read more »

And pictured above is the guy driving Chris Callaghan's Tax-Less Express, pictured -- strangely enough -- between two cars from Hillary Clinton's motorcade outside the Poughkeepsie Journal.

-- Azi Paybarah

First, reports surfaced that a domestic disturbance in upstate Republican congressman John Sweeney's home led his wife to call 911.

Then, a Republican congressional candidate in the neighboring upstate district endorsed Sweeney's Democratic opponent, calling it an "act of conscience."

That other Republican, Warren Redlich, went on to say Sweeney is 'what's wrong with Washington."

Ouch.

-- Azi Paybarah

Sparks fly in close races over what to do in Iraq.

John Kerry responds to the White House criticism of his "botched joke" about Iraq.

The News gets a hold of a 1995 2005 police report of an incident in which Rep. John Sweeney's wife called the police to report that her husband was "knocking her around the house."

Charles Schumer and Mike Bloomberg write an op-ed [subscription] about what New York can learn from London, and say an independent firm will issue a report next month on how to lure businesses here.

After his meteoric rise in politics, Ned Lamont is once again the underdog.

Republicans are donating a lot of money to keep the state Senate out of Democratic hands.

Jeanine Pirro paid her driver $150,000 in overtime over two years.

Andrew Cuomo is endorsed by the Albany Times Union.

Alan Hevesi's lawyer said the State Ethics Commission ignored threats to the comptroller outlined in a 2003 letter from state police.

John Faso told the New York Sun he has no regrets about how his gubernatorial race is going.

-- Azi Paybarah

There are two stories coming out about a December 2005 police incident at the home of Republican congressman John Sweeney which could derail his re-election.

From the Daily News:

POWERFUL UPSTATE Rep. John Sweeney got into an early-morning fracas with his wife that became so frightening she called 911 for help, the Daily News has learned.

Gayle (Gaia) Sweeney told the 911 dispatcher that her husband was "knocking her around the house," according to a December 2005 state police report obtained by The News.

After Gayle Sweeney said, "Here it comes, are you ready?" the call was disconnected.

From the Times Union:

``Complainant stated that she and husband got into verbal argument that turned a little physical by her being grabbed by the neck and pushed around the house,'' [State trooper Scott W.] Gunsel wrote in the narrative portion of the blotter entry, according to the document. ``Suspect had scratches on face. Both parties refused medical attention. Complainant removed to friend's house for the evening ... refused any type of prosicution (sic) arrest.''  read more »

-- Azi Paybarah

Ned Lamont returns to the issue of the Iraq War in his race against Joe Lieberman.

Bill Clinton said his wife's senate office had become the "de facto" governor's office because the current governor wasn't doing enough for New Yorkers.

Andrew Cuomo's victory on election night could be considered a comeback of sorts for his dad, who helped out behind the scenes.

The retired police officers who make up Alan Hevesi's 6-man security detail have special permission to collect their pensions while also collecting a salary from the state.

Hevesi collected $100,000 in contributions from companies that do business with his office.

State police may have improperly withheld information from a reporter about a police incident at the home of Republican congressman John Sweeney [second item].

Mike Bloomberg said there may not be room for an independent candidate in 2008.

The Post editors endorse four Republicans for congress: Peter King, John Sweeney, Sue Kelley and Vito Fossella.

Errol Louis writes that Democrats may be surprised by how well Democratic challenger Steve Harrison is doing against Fossella.

John Faso plans to spend election night in Albany, which leads some to think he's already expecting a defeat.

Police Commissioner Ray Kelly opens up about what he reads to help lower crime.

Fred Siegel writes that France today is a lot like New York City before Rudy Giuliani.

And John Edwards lays out a plan to help Uganda.

-- Azi Paybarah

John Sweeney pulls an ad he was shooting.

New York City's traffic problem may finally get solved.

Chris Owens eyes a race for Brooklyn Borough President.

Judicial Reports takes a long, long look at Vito Lopez's finances.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee calls Howard Dean a chicken. I mean a duck.

Evan Bayh campaigns in New Hampshire. Again.

Another page scandal?  read more »

And pictured above is debate participant Hillary Clinton.

-- Azi Paybarah

Republican John Sweeney's lead over Kirsten Gillibrand in the 20th congressional district upstate is a "strong" 14 percentage points, according to the new Siena poll. But Sweeney's lead is down from 19 points in August.

The poll notes "Both candidates hold voters of their own party, with Sweeney leading among Republicans 77-17 percent and Gillibrand leading among Democrats 73-21 percent. Independent voters give their support to Sweeney 46-40 percent."

-- Azi Paybarah

Ben follows Hillary's cross-wearing habits.

Kirsten Gillibrand tries making a strip club an issue in her race against John Sweeney.

Rudy's blogger thinks Hotline is cheerleading for John McCain.

New York Magazine notes that Esquire withdrew its endorsement of Tom Reynolds because of his weird press conference where he used kids as a human shield. The other Esquire endorsements are here

John DeSio wonders who posted this ad looking for a "fearless investigative reporter" on Craigslist.

Mike Bloomberg gave $143.9 million to charities last year.

Barry Popik wonders why the mayor hasn't held a fund-raiser for Chris Callaghan.  read more »

Shelly Silver parks himself on the couch and opens up to City Hall News.

-- Azi Paybarah

Comptroller Hevesi waited until this morning to publicly state he still wasn't satisfied with the Moynihan Station project, giving cover to Assembly Speaker Shelly Silver in case he wants to put off the scheduled vote today by the Public Authorities Control Board, the final approval needed to release state funds for the project. He has already expressed reservations about the project, which would renovate Farley Post Office as a train station.

The item is, as of right now, still on the agenda, according to P.A.C.B. spokesman John Sweeney, but that could change by the meeting's start at 2 p.m.

-Matthew Schuerman

The state Democratic Party takes an original approach today to criticizing Rep. John Sweeney, attempting to quantify his lack of dedication to his upstate district by counting the number of times the congressman has blown off local media outlets.

I'm not sure sticking up for the press is a great vote-getting strategy -- as aggrieved constituencies go, journalists could hardly rank much lower in the public's estimation -- but we certainly appreciate the effort. (The full release is after the jump.)  read more »

We're immediately commencing a study of our own to determine some of the other least accessible officials in New York. Nominations welcome.

-- Josh Benson

In another sign that national Dems are looking to New York -- and an anticipated Hillary landslide -- to pick up seats in the House, DCCC Chair Rahm Emanuel just called to talk about Congressman John Sweeney.

Emanuel just told reporters a few minutes ago on a conference call that U.S. Rep. John Sweeney really, really ought to appear before a New York Assembly committee investigating his role in organizing a $27,000 Lake Placid ski weekend for members of Congress that was attended mostly by lobbyists, local officials, and executives from the New York Power Authority.

Ted Blazer, the Chief Executive of the Olympic Regional Development Authority, which organized the trip, has testified that Sweeney was in charge of picking the guests. Sweeney has countered that he had nothing to do with the invitations, for which he said Blazer's organization was responsible.

Assemblyman Richard Brodsky has asked Sweeney to testify and address the discrepancy. Emanuel, who desperately hopes to replace Sweeney with Democrat Kirsten Gillibrand, said that the congressman owes it to New York voters to answer Brodsky's questions.

"You look at the news today, we got Iraq, raising energy prices, the economy," said Emanuel . "We are all busy people here, what are we doing drafting invite lists for a ski trip?"

And what are such busy people doing, for that matter, concerning themselves with proceedings in the New York State Assembly?

Jason Horowitz

The Sun reports that the Javits expansion plan comes down to the vote of the Public Authorities Control Board, and Sheldon Silver. AP reports Richard Brodsky has asked John Sweeney to appear before an assembly committee to answer questions about a $27,000 Lake Placid ski weekend.

KT McFarland has another brother, the Post reports.

—Nicole Brydson

Check out the comments under this post by Liz Benjamin.

Could John Sweeney be the first New York elected official to lose his job over the Bush administration's homeland security aide cutbacks?

The state Democrats are attacking "hypocritical" John Sweeney for campaigning with John McCain, a man he trashed on behalf of the Bush-Cheney campaign in 2000.

It will be interesting to watch how often this theme resurfaces as other New York Republicans who supported Bush six years ago cozy up to McCain ahead of the 2008 election.

But I'm not sure the hypocrite charge amounts to more than an annoyance. The Bush versus McCain stuff has a time-capsule quality to it at this point - at least for those of us who remember the genuine intra-party rancor around here in 2000 leading up to and following the GOP presidential primary.

And there's been no shortage of Bush loyalists going over to McCain. Exhibit A has his base of operations right under our noses here in New York.  read more »

Anyway, here's the release.

Of course John McCain's recent trips to the donor-heavy New York area couldn't just be about giving speeches at graduations.

Ever the coveted fundraising draw, McCain will headline an event this Saturday for embattled Congressman John Sweeney.

The event happens to be slightly farther uptown than usual -- in Sweeney's heavily Republican district in Saratoga Springs, to be precise.

Anyone looking to see the Senator up close -- and safely out of the rain -- can do so for a contribution between $150 and $1000.

John E. Sweeney's still favored to win upstate, but according to Congressional Quarterly, lawyer Kirsten Gillibrand is raising some serious cash.

Gillibrand's strong early fundraising -- which ranked her 14th among all House challenger candidates as of March 31 -- has prompted CQPolitics.com to change its rating on the race to Republican Favored from Safe Republican.

Gillibrand reported raising $716,000 through the end of the year's first quarter, and had $511,000 left in cash on hand.

And that's before she puts any significant amount of her own money behind the race.

- Tom McGeveran

Josh Marshall’s spinoff, TPM Muckracker, has an interesting item about Albany Rep. John Sweeney.

He is apparently paying his wife a 10% commission on money she raises for his campaign, which "means that the Sweeneys benefitted personally from every contribution."

Sweeney’s spokeswoman says there’s nothing unusual about; the reporter disagrees.

In what even John Podhoretz thought was an act of arrogant overreach, the House Republicans voted Wednesday to repeal the rule that kept members under indictment -- as Tom DeLay may soon be -- out of leadership. It was a voice vote, but Josh Marshall has been trying valiantly to get these guys on the record.

There are only a few GOP members we care about down here in the city: Peter King on Long Island, John Sweeney upstate, and, of course, our own Vito Fossella.

King told me he voted Yes on the DeLay rule, and pointed out he'd opposed it when the Republicans first introduced it to demonstrate their purity 12 years ago. "It's a consitutional issue - the presumption of innocence," he said.

Sweeney voted Yes on the DeLay rule, his spokesman Demetrios Karoutsos emails, in part to protect "the integrity of government from partisan attacks of a political nature." Tom DeLay must surely appreciate that effort.  read more »

Silence, so far, from the Fossella camp.

When President George W.  read more »

Sometime around 8 p.m.  read more »

Since John Sweeney ascended to the presidency of theA.F.L.-C.I.O.  read more »