Major League Baseball's All-Star Game is coming up next Tuesday, and two Mets (David Wright, Jose Reyes) and seven Yankees (Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Mariano Rivera, Andy Pettitte, Robinson Cano, Phil Hughes, C.C. Sabathia) were chosen to represent our local teams. But fans have a last chance to vote Yankee Nick Swisher, who is one of five eligible players in the AL vying for a final spot online, into the game. Unfortunately, you're going to have to go through John Kerry to do so. more ›

Untitled photo of Monster Segway, by JCN on flickr more ›

Is this the first election season where you’ve supported one of the candidates? Sort of. This is the first time I’ve supported someone during the primaries, which carries a lot of weight with people who were already going to vote for Obama. In 4th grade I campaigned for Reagan (it worked), and in 2004 I did a bunch of fundraisers for John Kerry (Sorry, America, I failed). Basically, after Bush beat Al Gore and tried to ruin America, I decided to be more politically involved. But not too much! I want to remain “cool.” more ›

Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama made a campaign swing into our neighborhood yesterday, drawing a crowd of thousands to Yanitelli Center at St. Peter's College, and as well as supporters to a fund-raiser in Midtown last night. At St. Peter's, He told the audience, "I'm not running because of long-held ambitions. I'm running because of what Dr. (Martin Luther) King called the 'fierce urgency of now.'" more ›

The LA Times invaded the Big Apple to investigate the amazing fund-raising power of Hillary Clinton in Chinatown. The leading 2008 Democratic contender was able to raise $380,000 during one April fund-raiser - and back in 2004, John Kerry was only able to raise $24,000. more ›

Thought Governor Eliot Spitzer and Senator Hilary Clinton appeared at a press conference to discuss health coverage of New York children, they had to answer questions about campaign donations they accepted from fugitive apparel executive Norman Hsu. Clinton received $23,000 from Hsu and announced that she would donate the money to charity after revelations that Hsu has been wanted in California for defrauding California investors since 1991. Hsu has fled to Hong Kong but has been living in New York as a high-profile donor since 2003. Guess when those cases grow cold, they stay cold. more ›

There are lots of great stories about how couples meet. Kindergarten, the Peace Corps, a subway platform, by chance at a bar, you name it. But we love this Daily News story about how one couple met, because it appeals not only to the romantic in us, but to our respect for jury duty: Traci Nagy and Jonathan Cinkay met while serving on the same jury during a Queens murder trial. A fellow juror told Nagy "I thought you should date John," and Nagy explained to the News, "We were in the jury room so much and we weren't allowed to talk about the case. We talked about movies, travel, everything. It was a very good way to get to know someone." more ›

One firefighters' group is taking their attacks on Rudy Giuliani's record to the videotape. The International Association of Fire Fighters, which worked with the Uniformed Firefighters Association (already a vocal critic of Giuliani) and Uniformed Fire Officers Association, produced a video called Rudy Giuliani: Urban Legend. more ›

We don't know about where you are, but it seems like spring can't decide whether or not to happen. Some days are warm, some days are cold, and sometimes you aren't sure which. Baseball may have started up (and soccer/football winding down) but it still seems cold out there. Unless it's not. Anyways, onto the -ists. more ›

The Smoking Gun has decided to bookend the weekend with Rudy Giuliani tidbits. On Monday, The Smoking Gun printed parts of Giuliani's 1993 "vulnerabilities study" which, among other things, offered suggestions on how to answer questions about the former mayor's marriage to his second cousin. Today's installment is Giuliani's tour rider for speaking engagements. At $100,000 for one hour Giuliani time (45 minute speech, 15 minutes of Q&A), one also has to provide certain hotel and travel accommodations. The Smoking Gun writes, "We've previously posted the tour riders of Dick Cheney and John Kerry, but those two pols look like pikers compared to the high-rolling, diva-like Rudolph Giuliani, wannabe Republican presidential candidate." Why is Giuliani a diva? He needs at least a Gulfstream IV! And he doesn't like "direct, on-camera flash bulbs," either, but we can't blame him on that count - they do make him look more ghostly. more ›

As the world holds it's breath, teetering precariously on the cusp of the Superbowl (well, at least in America), the wheels of the -ists keep on turning. more ›

It was bound to happen: Supporters of former mayor Rudy Giuliani's presidential ambitions are in talks with various September 11 victims' families. Why? To perhaps create a 9/11 halo/force field around Giuliani when he may be attacked by opponents. The NY Post had the exclusive scoop on how some families have been contacted, including high-profile FDNY widow Marian Fontana, who was invited to a Giuliani exploratory committee dinner. Fontana says that while she appreciates Rudy's efforts post-September 11, she feels "not ready to endorse," preferring to know what their views on different issues are. more ›

Peace activist Cindy Sheehan was found guilty, along with three other women, of trespassing at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. In March, Sheehan and three other women, Melissa Beattie, Susan Benjamin and Patricia Ackerman, were arrested after they tried to deliver a petition to Peggy Kerry (yes, sister of Senator John Kerry), who is the liaison for NGO's. Kerry refused to meet with them, believing their tactics, which included appearing with 100 members, were a publicity stunt. At the time, the U.S. Mission said, "We invited her in to discuss her concerns with a U.S. Mission employee. She chose not to come in but to lay down in front of the building and block the entrance. It was clearly designed to be a media stunt, not aimed at rational discussion," while organizing group Women Say No to War said the mission refused to send someone to meet the women. The women read the petition aloud while sitting on the sidewalk and were then arrested. more ›

Chartered flights: $161, 751. Photography: $51,313. Flowers: $13,169. Winning re-election: Priceless - or $29.5 million. more ›

The bottom line from the latest Quinnipiac poll? Mayor Bloomberg is enjoying some of the the highest approval numbers of his mayorship, but New Yorkers don't want him in Washington. Mayor Bloomberg has an approval rating of 70% - a far cry from his numbers in November 2003, which had two-thirds of New Yorkers saying they wanted a different mayor. more ›

The Daily News' Ben Smith looks at a possible stumbling block for Rudy Giuliani's presidential hopes. And it would be a big one. With September 11 fire responders falling ill and memos about the Giuliani administration opening downtown earlier, in spite of EPA warnings, becoming a bigger and bigger story this year, some who hope for "Giuliani 2008" are concerned that Rudy could be vulnerable, the way John Kerry was when the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth emerged in the last presidential election. Smith writes:

Many of the workers who spent time near Ground Zero, including at least one of his top aides, have come down with respiratory and other illnesses doctors link to the air quality following the attacks. Giuliani and former Environmental Protection Agency chief Christie Whitman have traded blame over the fact that more workers didn't wear respirators. But it was Giuliani's old rival, Sen. Hillary Clinton, who helped organize research into the health impact of the towers' collapse. more ›

Bad news for Fernando Ferrer: He's trailing Mayor Bloomberg by a whopping 31 points according to a Quinnipiac poll. And this poll, unlike earlier ones where Bloomberg enjoyed a 27 point lead, is after fears about the subway terror threat on October 7, which might mean that New Yorkers, despite their grousing, might really love Mayor Bloomberg! The Mayor introduced a new health plan to insure children, which Ferrer's campaign says is the second instance of the Mayor copying Freddy's promises. "Plagiarism," the Ferrer campaign slinged as he campaign with John Kerry on the Lower East Side. More shockingly, it seems that some of the diners at the Harlem International House of Pancakes (where the Mayor previously served diners) when Mayor B got an endorsement from Reverend Calvin Butts were actually Bloomberg volunteers. It's Flapjackgate! more ›

Paul Boocock, Actor and Writer more ›

There are rumors that former Massachusetts Governor William Weld is considering to run for NY State Governor on the Republican ticket, since it seems like Governor George Pataki is on his way out, with bigger political ambitions in mind and a state that really hates him. Weld is an interesting Republican, as he believes drugs like marijuana should be legalized (that stance basically killed his attempt to be Ambassador to Mexico), is pro-choice and has relatively more liberal views. That could make him interesting and compelling matchup against Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, who is the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination. Gothamist imagines that the attack on Weld would be that he's a carpetbagger politician, just trying to shore up the Republican party's hold on governorships. Weld has been working in a NYC law firm since his resignation as Governor in 1997, so he's not a total carpetbagger, but still, Gothamist wonderes if this phenomenon will continue of well-known politicians retrenching in areas they haven't really lived before in order to help the party (think any number of Senators, such as Hillary Clinton or even Elizabeth Dole who did return to her homestate). more ›

The NY Times' news analysis says Bush's plan is "bold" and "risky" (yeah, he's a cowboy!). The White House on the SoU. And DCist rounds up various media reaction. more ›

Gothamist on NYC after the election. more ›

The Daily News has an editorial to President Bush from New York. more ›

About 49% of the population is still reeling from Senator Kerry's concession. Gothamist's own Doug Gordon (also of Planet Gordon) and his wife are in Boston, and were captured for the world to see on BBC News Front Page. He tells us, "All I can say is that there is nothing quieter than the sound of 10,000 people not saying a word." And we expect the Secret Service and FBI to be investigating many more street crimes of this nature. more ›

Senator John Kerry called President Bush to concede the election. Reports say Kerry will give a speech at 1PM this afternoon. more ›

Yesterday's annual Halloween Parade reminded Gothamist of the protests during the Republican National Convention but just at night: Lots of people in mocking Bush costumes, men and women dressed like hookers (just not meeting clandestinely with delegates), and lots of enthusiasm. We hadn't been on the street for more than five minutes before we saw our first child throwing up from his sugar overload. The Daily News reports that other popular costumes were John Kerry, Martha Stewart, and anything with not much clothing. Gothamist hopes all of you had a happy Halloween. more ›

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It's the Friday before the election, which mean news organizations will be unusually busy in reporting the most minute stories from the respective campaign trails and wondering if the Bush administration will pull a "We've got Osama" rabbit out of the hat or how Kerry can get more mileage out of the missing explosives story. Some subjects of non-election stories are irked that reporters are bothering them and not covering the election (but St. Bernard puppies are IMPORTANT). Gothamist has been loving the NYTimes 2004 Election Guide, especially it's Electoral Vote Calculator. We love making the electoral votes even, like we did above (and Tien as well), because that would just serve our stupid electoral college system right. We're heartened to hear that the Feds will be policing people's voting rights on Tuesday, and liked NY magazine's ideas on how you can still help out with affecting the vote; Gothamist will be reporting from our NYC sidelines, but if you happen to be traveling to swing states, let us know and tell us your experiences. more ›

'Tis the season for presidential endorsements. The city's paper of record, The New York Times, bestowed an endorsement of Senator John Kerry for President yesterday, describing him as a man with a "strong moral core" and "not just a modest improvement on the incumbent," closing with:

We look back on the past four years with hearts nearly breaking, both for the lives unnecessarily lost and for the opportunities so casually wasted. Time and again, history invited George W. Bush to play a heroic role, and time and again he chose the wrong course. We believe that with John Kerry as president, the nation will do better. more ›

Hello, nurse: It's the Age of Fey and Poehler, as they are the first all-female Weekend Update team on Saturday Night Live. Tina Fey and Jimmy Fallon had a nice chemistry - you know, sharp, caustic and riffing on how Jimmy was stupid and pretty and Tina was slutty and angry - but we were feeling Fallon Fatigue, as he couldn't really keep his shizzle together during skits, especially ones with Horatio Sanz. So Gothamist was terrifically excited to see Amy Poehler's blond, twinkling yet semi-maniacal eyed. face next to Tina behind the desk. And, for the boys (and girls), there is the promise of lots of lesbian flirting this season. more ›

The pundits are talking about how Senator Kerry seemed "presidential" and how President Bush only had thirty minutes of material, as the respective presidential aides are trying to spin that their candidate won the debate. Our thoughts: John Kerry was solid, strong and articulate, even if he's kind of a bore, while President Bush, though very approachable, unraveled towards the end - he was Pausey McPausepants. Not that everyone can be a smooth talker, but it'd be nice to have confidence in the person speaking. President Bush will need to find at least his B-game if he wants to be competitive in the debates. Newscoverage from the NY Times and Washington Post (WP TV critic Tom Shales quotes a politico saying "It was Andy Griffith meets Barney Fife.") ; the NY Post headline is "Toe to Toe," though in the article, they do note Kerry was more prepared and the President was repetitive and seemed unsure. And check this out: The NY Times' Katherine Seelye basically blogs the debate; no mention of any drinking games played. [Per a reader's comment yesterday, we'll work on a drinking game for the next debate, but some early thoughts: 1 drink if Bush smirks; 1 drink if they mention Osama; 1 drink if Kerry's face looks more melty than usual; 1 drink if Bush breaks a rule; 1 drink if Kerry can't really smile because he's using some of Theresa's Botox; 2 drinks if the candidate compliments the opponent; 2 drinks if they invoke September 11; chug if there's substantial domestic policy debate; chug if Bush has a coherent response...and if Bush starts speaking in Spanish, go to your local bar and drink and drink and drink...yeah, you might not chug, but you'll still get ass-drink.] more ›