A coalition of local and statewide reform activists protest at Nassau Republican State Senator Jack Martin’s district office to pressure the newly elected Senator to live up to signing Ed Koch’s NY Uprising pledge and pass independent redistricting; Koch applauds rally

New York, NY – Democratic activist and New Roosevelt Initiative founder Bill Samuels and a coalition of progressive groups and young activists rallied Saturday afternoon at the district office of newly elected Nassau Republican State Senator Jack Martins …

Join us at a rally to demand that Republican State Senator Jack Martins KEEP HIS WORD by passing INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING.

As a businessman I am keenly aware of the importance of keeping spending in line with revenue, so I understand that New York State’s deepening budget crisis requires swift and decisive action from Albany. But as a New Yorker, I want solutions that do not unfairly place the burden of Albany’s mess on local communities and families.

Governor Cuomo currently supports putting a 2% property tax cap into effect to curb spending at the local level and keep property taxes stable.

A …

The failure of Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos and his Senate Republicans to consider and publicly support a petition by Rules Committee members to have a public hearing on Governor Cuomo’s Redistricting Reform bill is a censorious action that proves they have no real interest allowing a public debate on the issue.

Advocates Cuomo use political capital to persuade a few Senate Republicans to vote for the bill while simultaneously adding the plan to his budget proposal before Thursday deadline to increase pressure on the GOP caucus; Urges Cuomo to line-item veto additional funding for LATFOR to force a resolution; Samuels calls on GOP Majority Leader Dean Skelos to immediately voice any legitimate objections to the bill, so they can be debated by the Rules Committee

The current Democratic leadership in Albany must face the fact that they had an opportunity to pass a reform agenda while controlling the State Senate, Assembly and the Governor’s mansion and almost nothing got done. In November voters responded accordingly.

Until Democrats and Republican in Albany demonstrate tangible results on reform issues neither party will gain the confidence of the voters.

Bill Samuels, founder of the New Roosevelt Initiative, publicly called on disgraced, now-indicted State Senator Pedro Espada to forgo using his remaining campaign funds to establish a legal defense fund on his own behalf to fight prosecution from the Department of Justice and New York Attorney General. As of his last filing on September 3rd, Espada, who was arraigned on federal corruption charges in Brooklyn on Tuesday, had almost $300,000 left in his campaign committee account.

Bill Samuels, founder of the New Roosevelt Initiative, testified in Albany before the State Senate Legislative Task Force on Demographic Research and Reapportionment, calling on lawmakers to pass independent redistricting legislation as soon as possible and include a constitutional amendment on redistricting so that the reforms cannot be simply ignored by the next legislature. Samuels also outlined five State Senate Districts—7th, 11th, 38th, 46th, and 49th—that he predicts will be targeted for gerrymandering in the next redistricting plan, further proving …

With the Election on Tuesday, one of the best ways to reform Albany or any legislature is to elect more women. You can read more of our editorial on the importance of women in the legislature on our website at http://www.newrooseveltinitiative.com/electing-women or in today’s Huffington Post at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bill-samuels/why-electing-more-women-w_b_775918.html.

On Tuesday, October 26, 2010, the New York State Young Democrats Caucus of Color hosted their Post-Primary Young Professionals Mix and Mingle.

Held at Arctica Bar in New York City, the Caucus welcomed various young professionals and elected officials to join in the discussion of youth involvement in the democratic process. As Election Day draws near, Democrats are facing one of their toughest election cycles. The work of young people on various races is crucial now more than ever.

The founder of …