Results tagged “fundraising”

Let there be cake! Actually, the Department of Education has the opposite sentiment, and is banishing the age old tradition of school bake sales to the history books. The new regulations will also trim the fat from vending machines, and aims to limit how much sugar and fat students digest during the school day.

New York investor Hassan Nemazee, whose prolific political fundraising for Democrats like Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and Charles Schumer, was released on $25 million bond yesterday. Nemazee is " accused of lying about his assets to obtain a $74 million loan from Citibank." The NY Times further explains, he "orchestrated the fraud by using forged documents showing that he held accounts with collateral worth hundreds of millions of dollars," but the accounts never existed or were closed. Nemazee did end up paying the money back to Citibank on Monday, but was arrested on Tuesday. He is under house arrest—monitoring device plus no computer or Internet access—at his Upper East Side duplex, which the Daily News says is worth $20 million (that plus his $8 million Katonah estate are what's securing his bond). Vice President Joe Biden, Rep. Carolyn Maloney and Sens. Barbara Boxer, Chris Dodd and Schumer told Politico they plan to return his donations. Time has a 2-minute look at Nemazee.

Today is the 24th annual AIDS Walk New York, which benefits the Gay Men's Health Crisis and over 50 other AIDS service programs. This year's fundraiser is expected to have 45,000 participants. Last year, the over $7 million was raised and, since 1986, the event has raised over $100 million to benefit HIV programs and services in the tri-state area. The event kicks off in Central Park at 10 a.m. (with plenty of entertainment before) and walkers will travel 6.2 miles around Manhattan. Which also means there are street closures along the route (Central Park's exit at 72nd Street & Central Park West; Central Park West to 110th Street; 110th Street to Riverside Drive; Riverside Drive to 74th Street; 74th Street to Central Park West). A post-walk rally for gay marriage equality is also scheduled in Times Square, between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m.

The Post says former mayor Rudy Giuliani is "launching a new fund-raising committee to dole out cash to New York GOP candidates." Which might open the door for him to run for governor in 2010.

An estimated 45,000 people walked in the 23rd annual AIDS Walk New York today and raised a record total of over $7 million. Per NY1, "it is the most money ever raised by an AIDS walk in the United States." AIDS Walk founder and producer Craig R. Miller noted how in spite of the faltering economy, people donated, "New Yorkers stated loudly and clearly that the critical work of Gay Men's Health Crisis and more than the 50 other HIV/AIDS service organizations must be supported if we are to see an end to the domestic AIDS crisis."

As the City Council reels from slush fund mess and other budget scandals, the NY Times found more 12 of the 51 City Council members, or approximately 25%, were using campaign funds to pay relatives or themselves. One aid to familial lining of pockets is the fact that taxpayers are filling campaign war chests with cash, even when Council Members are running unopposed or face barely credible challenges.

This morning, Senator Barack Obama delivered a 45-minute speech at Philadelphia's National Constitution Center, attempting to put behind him the controversial remarks made by his mentor, pastor Jeremiah A. Wright. Though Obama quickly denounced the remarks last week, the story didn't go away. Today, he reiterated his condemnation of Wright’s more inflammatory beliefs about racism in America, but would not denounce him entirely, giving way to a broader discussion about race:

I suppose the politically safe thing would be to move on from this episode and just hope that it fades into the woodwork. We can dismiss Reverend Wright as a crank or a demagogue, just as some have dismissed Geraldine Ferraro, in the aftermath of her recent statements, as harboring some deep-seated racial bias… I can no more disown him than I can disown the black community. I can no more disown him than I can disown my white grandmother – a woman who helped raise me, a woman who sacrificed again and again for me, a woman who loves me as much as she loves anything in this world, but a woman who once confessed her fear of black men who passed by her on the street, and who on more than one occasion has uttered racial or ethnic stereotypes that made me cringe...

Continue reading "Obama Talks Race While Trying to Quell Controversy"

Hillary Clinton's campaign happily announced that the Senator from New York had raised $35 million during February, her best month ever. Adviser Harold Ickes used the news to accentuate the positive, "We have been through a dry period in the last eleven contests but we are about to start our upswing." Clinton is thrilled with the fundraising efforts, saying, "It’s incredibly gratifying to see people coming forward with their vote of confidence." She also said her $5 million personal loan to the campaign was not paid back.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg hasn't totally eschewed the Republican party. According to the NY Sun, the Democrat-turned- Republican-turned- independent will be "entertaining" Nancy Reagan "as well as hosting a fund-raiser for the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library." Like the former First Lady, Bloomberg has progressive views on health and science issues (like stem cells). And Bloomberg has been known to host many fund-raisers for various people and causes. But some suspect that Bloomberg might be looking for...