The New York Observer » John Liu

Audited! Parks And Recreation Get a Stern Talking To

The Parks Department has left a bad taste in the city's mouth—and its coffers.

Yesterday, Comptroller John Liu announced that Parks lost the city $8.8 million by poorly managing concessions and vendors, according to a new audit from the comptroller's office. Read More

Knives Out: Politicians Blast Bloomberg’s Zuccotti Eviction; Occupy Enters New Phase

In the aftermath of Mayor Bloomberg’s clearing of Zuccotti Park last week, as helmeted police were still pushing stragglers up Broadway and the first morning commuters appeared, a protester named Jake shouted a warning at the cadre of cops shoving protesters away from their erstwhile home.

“There were people smoking crack, people with puppies begging for money, we looked like shit,” Jake yelled to the police. “Now what do we look like? Peaceful protesters getting our asses kicked. This is the best thing that could have happened. There are thousands of people watching us.” Read More

Why is Liu Stalling?

City comptroller John Liu, whose campaign finances are under federal investigation, apparently doesn’t quite get it. He admits that recent revelations about dubious record-keeping and shady fund-raising practices, along with the federal indictment of one of his fund-raisers, are “quite embarrassing.” No kidding. But investigators aren’t looking to embarrass the comptroller. They’re trying to enforce laws that Mr. Liu’s campaign may have skirted or violated. That should be more than merely “embarrassing.” Read More

Liu, With No Choice, Makes a Good One

City Comptroller John Liu really had no choice. Faced with serious questions about his campaign fund-raising, Mr. Liu backtracked from his position that an inquiry could be handled in-house. Instead, under mounting public criticism, Mr. Liu asked former State Attorney General Robert Abrams to conduct an independent audit of his campaign’s books.

Good move. And good choice. Mr. Abrams, who served as A.G. from 1979 to 1993, has an impeccable reputation and would seem to have no ax to grind.

What remains uncertain, however, is whether Mr. Abrams will have the resources—in terms of a budget and personnel—to conduct a thorough investigation of Mr. Liu’s tangled campaign finances. Read More

Liu’s Dubious Donors

City Comptroller John Liu— the man who oversees the city’s financial ledger—says that revelations about phantom donors, bundled contributions and other irregularities in his fund-raising practices do not require the services of an outside auditor. Would he say that same about, say, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, one of Mr. Liu’s favorite targets? Hardly. So why Read More

As the Debt Ceiling Rises, the Dow Drops

It would almost seem that the stars had finally aligned. After weeks of stalled talks and contentious meetings between House Republicans and Democrats that escalated into a public spat between Speaker John Boehner and President Obama, a bill finally made it through the House and into the Senate, where it was speedily approved Tuesday morning Read More

Mr. Liu’s Math Needs Work

According to City Comptroller John Liu, all those warnings you’ve been hearing about the escalating costs of public employee pensions and health benefits are wrong. Mr. Liu recently put out a report that argues that the cost of pensions and benefits actually will go down beginning in 2016. Did we mention that Mr. Liu is Read More

UFT Organizes an Anti-Bloomberg Rally, Sanders, Halloran, Avella Speak Out

The Chief-Leader captures some good vitriol at a recent UFT protest aimed at reversing Mayor Bloomberg's proposal to lay off thousands of teachers.

Democratic City Councilman James Sanders said "we need to take this surplus" and "make sure we save the teachers." The surplus, as I and other people have noted, don't really Read More

Bloomberg Politely Declines to Fight Liu Over Theoretical Surplus

In a radio interview this morning, City Comptroller John Liu, again, did not take sides in the dispute between Governor Cuomo and Mayor Bloomberg over whether or not the city has a surplus.

Cuomo's people say there is a surplus, and thus, no need for layoffs.

Bloomberg's people say there is no surplus, and says Read More

New York’s New Governor Leaves Bloomberg Begging

At the Somos el Futuro legislative conference in Albany this weekend, State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli could be seen hugging Senator Charles Schumer-not because he was feeling particularly affectionate, but because Assemblyman Felix Ortiz, chairman of the conference, which gathers top Democratic officials to discuss issues of concern to Hispanic New Yorkers, had urged attendees to Read More

On Redistricting, Weiner and Liu Stand Out

Independent, non-partisan redistricting is a major goal now being pushed in Albany by former Mayor Ed Koch and good-government reformers. Recently, Anthony Weiner--a Democratic congressman and all-but announced 2013 mayoral candidate--took some heat for his opposition to reforming the way New York's legislative lines are drawn after each census.

But Weiner is not the only likely Read More

Letting the Public Peek at Pensions: Props to You, Liu!

Transparency in government is a good thing, so we welcome City Comptroller John Liu's plan to allow unprecedented public access to the city's vast $113 billion pension system. Fund managers may not be so thrilled about this sort of transparency, but they'll have to get used to it as part of the price of doing Read More

Ed Koch Says John Liu Should Be ‘Denounced’

Ed Koch responds to John Liu's email complaining about naming the Queensboro Bridge after the former mayor.

What's interesting in Koch's response is where he describes Liu meeting him to seek his support during the 2009 comptroller's race, which came, obviously, years after Koch made remarks in the 1980s that Liu found offensive.

Koch emails:

I did Read More

John Liu Emails to Complain About Ed Koch Getting a Bridge, Still Wants Sonny Carson to Have His Street

Shortly after city lawmakers voted to rename a bridge after former Mayor Ed Koch, they received an email from the City Comptroller, complaining of a "double standard."

"I’m unable to hold back," City Comptroller John Liu wrote in a 5:31 a.m. email addressed to City Council members.

In the email, Liu recalls a "tongue-lashing" he got Read More

Knocking Down Comptroller’s Labor Report: Bloomberg, Littlefield

Mayor Bloomberg took a swipe at NYC Comptroller John Liu's major report saying public sector workers, on average, earn far less than their private-sector counterparts, something that has been in debate amid the economic crunch in local governments nationwide.

On his weekly radio show, Bloomberg said Liu's report "didn't include pensions" into their calculation, and, Read More