McCall, who sought unsuccessfully to become the state’s first black governor, has remained active politically, endorsing various candidates for statewide and local office. Carrión would have much of a chance without solid support from black Thompson, New York’s only black elected official holding a citywide office. Carrión that his effort to become New York City’s first Puerto Rican mayor would be crippled by dividing the minority vote between himĪnd Mr. The politicians, mostly black and Hispanic elected officials, told Mr. Carrión was unlikely to prevail inĪ Democratic mayoral primary that also included William C. Carrión’s decision to run for the lower position came after intense urging from many politicians in the Bronx and the rest of the city. Late last year, Mr.Ĭarrión announced that he would not run for mayor - as he had long planned - but for comptroller instead. Carrion’s effort to win citywide office in what is expected to be a crowded race for comptroller. The presence in the campaign of two prominent names is intended to give added heft to Mr. Carrión’s predecessor, former Borough President Fernando Ferrer, in He also served as the finance chairman of the mayoral campaign of Mr. Hindery is a former chairman and chief executive of the YES Network. McCall was the Democratic candidate for governor in 2002, losing to George E. Hindery Jr., a longtime media executive, according to advisers to Mr. They point only to his ethnicity.Ĭarrion has no accomplishments, and his resume would not merit his election to a citywide office, let alone a state or federal position.Adolfo Carrión Jr., the Bronx borough president and candidate for city comptroller, is expected to name two co-chairmen for his campaign: former State Comptroller H.Ĭarl McCall and Leo J. No one ever says he deserves the position on the merits. No one ever mentions Carrion’s accomplishments. When pundits have mentioned Carrion as a replacement for Clinton, they chiefly mention his ethnicity and the need for Governor David Paterson to satisfy the State’s Latino population with such an appointment. Now that it’s crystal clear, in our minds, that Carrion can be trusted with neither HUD nor SBA, we must turn out attention to the Senate. From what we can tell, Carrion’s chief interactions with small businesses in The Bronx have been to ask for campaign checks. At a time when their businesses were already struggling, the affected merchants greeted this proposal with disgust. One of Carrion’s most high-profile moves several years ago was to demand that the small businesses along the Grand Concourse be removed from their spaces to preserve the residential character of the street. The “hot sheet” motels that clutter the Northeast Bronx still sit there, choking any potential redevelopment of that area. If Carrion has done very little to develop housing in The Bronx, he has done nothing to develop small businesses. While this might make more sense than HUD, we still think Carrion is not at all qualified to run such an important office. said his humble beginnings growing up in public housing inspired him to be in public service and help the Latino community. Has Carrion been effective in changing that? Clearly, the answer is no.Ĭarrion’s name has also been floated to head the Small Business Administration. That was true when Carrion came into power, and that remains true today. The Bronx’s unemployment rate is still the highest in the State, and its poverty rate is still one of the highest in the nation. As for urban development, the major projects that have moved forward in The Bronx during the past seven years were all generated out of Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s office.Ĭarrion has shown no real initiative to rebuild The Bronx’s economic standing, and at best has stayed out of the way while other offices worked. But there has been no overwhelming housing boom in The Bronx, at least not one that Carrion could take any credit for. The idea that Carrion could be tapped to fill a cabinet post probably even surprised the borough president, yet this is a serious rumor. Reports have circulated across Bronx political circles that Carrion has been considered as a possible head of the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Despite having no real accomplishment to hang his hat on, Carrion has been pushed forward as a credible candidate for a cabinet position. HUD Pick Took a Different Path From Her Predecessors Previous leaders of the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s New York and New Jersey office had experience in. One name that continues to be tossed around is that of Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrion Jr. Both events have turned The Bronx political scene into a resume rush, with elected officials scrambling to fill a high-level spot in the Obama administration or even replace Clinton as New York’s junior Senator. Senator Hillary Clinton has been appointed Secretary of State. We have a new Democratic presidential administration on the way in January.
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