Kathy Hochul has only been on the job since Tuesday, but so far, so good.
First, she corrected the state’s COVID death toll so that the nursing home deaths were included in New York’s internal counts. It’s important to note that New York followed CDC guidelines when reporting deaths to the CDC, so our CDC numbers won’t change. Here’s the conclusion of Philip Bump’s explainer on that:
In other words, analyses of the effects of the pandemic on New York that used CDC data or numbers from media outlets were not compromised by the numbers reported by the state data released under Cuomo. There were not thousands of deaths that went unreported and which Hochul is now bringing to light, as was the case with James’s report on nursing home deaths. Instead, Cuomo was using a narrow definition of covid-related deaths (presumably to make his administration look better) that wasn’t the norm elsewhere.
It is way past time to clean this up, and good for her.
She also announced a school mask mandate and mandatory vaccination or testing of school personnel. The reason for the testing option is because she doesn’t have the power to impose mandatory vaccination, but she can impose testing. I’ll bet that we’ll see more mandates from the legislature soon.
Today, she’s naming Brian Benjamin, who’s a 44 year-old up-and-coming state Senator in Harlem, as her Lieutenant Governor. Given that she’s from Buffalo and has announced that she’s running for Governor, a New York City pick makes sense for her re-election, which is anything but a sure thing. Benjamin seems progressive on some issues (bail reform and ending solitary confinement), but he’s also a former investment banker, and he had a few questionable campaign donations when he ran for NYC Comptroller. We’ll see how he turns out, especially if Hochul is really committed to having him do real work rather than be mostly a ceremonial governor.
Finally, she likes veggie burgers and wears a “Fight like a Girl” hat.
germy
I’m on Team Hochul.
She’s been great so far.
She reminds me of the old time politicians… she travels everywhere and meets everyone. She listens to people and finds common ground.
dimmsdale
Really appreciate your posting about her, Mr. Mix, and hopefully you’ll have more to say about her. NYC resident, know next to nothing about state politics, but so far I’m happy to have a governor who appears to be all about service instead of ego. Thanks!!
MattF
NY governor (unlike e.g., NYC mayor) is automatically a player in the national arena. Should watch to see if Hochul reaches for that after she’s done with post-Cuomo cleanup.
Four Seasons Total Landscaping mistermix
@germy: I knew that I liked her as a politician, but the 15 minute inaugural address clinched it. She covered everything that needed to be covered and didn’t blather on like the last guy used to.
Betty Cracker
Cuomo was a dick, but I envied y’all when he was governor because ours here in FL is infinitely worse. Now I’m really jealous — unqualified envy!
MM, if you or other Empire State residents have a sec, would you mind explaining why Hochul’s reelection isn’t a sure thing, if she continues to do a good job and chooses to run? I know NY politics are fraught, but I’m not clear on the dynamics. Thanks!
trollhattan
@germy: Monster!
trollhattan
@Betty Cracker: Isn’t it weird to know that no matter how awful Cuomo was/is, easily a dozen (probably twice that) states have somebody far worse?
geg6
So far, the only questionable thing I’ve seen from her is the veggie burger. I’d rather eat sawdust.
Four Seasons Total Landscaping mistermix
@Betty Cracker:
Yep, it’s simple: downstate (New York City and suburbs) has way more people than upstate and completely dominate statewide politics. There hasn’t been an upstate Governor in my time in New York. She’s from Buffalo, so she’s got an uphill climb ahead of her.
Benw
Huh, I did not know Shake Shack serves veggie burgers; good to know. Thanks, Gov. Hochul!
So happy about the mask mandate! You guys would not believe some of the insane shit the anti-maskers said at our district BOE meeting. My fav was the one that claimed masks cause infections because when battlefield surgeons in the civil war removed their masks, the rate of gangrene went down! QED libs!
raven
US casualties reported.
trollhattan
@Benw:
Uh, wut?
Nice to know, for bare starters, they were keeping statistics on medical outcomes decades before learning what a germ is.
NeenerNeener
@Four Seasons Total Landscaping mistermix: Yeah, what Mr Mix said.
Joe Falco
@Betty Cracker:
Kemp in GA is bad, but at least he called in National Guard medical staff to help with some of the busiest hospitals because of COVID. He wants to be some sort of DeSantis lite, a moderate of the hard-right variety: do and say all the hard-right things but give some token appearance he doesn’t want everyone in his state to die, unlike DeSantis.
Almost Retired
Glad your gubernatorial drama has a happy ending. I hope ours does too, here in California.
Betty Cracker
@Four Seasons Total Landscaping mistermix: That makes sense to me as an obstacle to winning a primary, but is downstate bias enough to eliminate the advantage of being an incumbent governor with a good track record (making that assumption)? If so, damn!
Baud
Nice to hear. Hope it continues.
jonas
@trollhattan: I did not have “Germ theory of disease is a liberal hoax” on my 2021 rightwing batshit bingo card, but here we are.
MomSense
I already like your Gov. Hochul! I hope she takes after our badass Governor here in Maine.
The Moar You Know
@raven: yep, the shitshow commences.
MontyTheClipArtMongoose
@germy: much like when hillary ran for senate in ny state
wonder why no one ever touted her as a retail pol…
Eunicecycle
@Benw: so I guess if they ever need surgery they don’t want the surgical team to wear masks?
rikyrah
@Betty Cracker:
Because, Tish James might run for Governor.
Kelly
OT: Trevor Noah and crew
https://twitter.com/markoff/status/1430904853459394576
randy khan
Shake Shack, a New York company, is very on brand for the new New York Governor. And the veggie burger will play very well in the Brooklyn.
jonas
Hochul has appointed two major NY Democratic political insiders to key posts — secretary to the governor (sort like chief legislative aide cum chief of staff — very powerful position in NY) Karen Persichilli Keogh and chief counsel to the governor Elizabeth Fine. Keogh was a former Hillary Clinton and Gillibrand aide and recently chief of global philanthropy at JP Morgan Chase; Fine worked with Janet Reno in the Clinton administration and has been most recently head counsel to the Empire State Development agency, which has had a somewhat bumpy ride over the past several years with several corruption scandals. No idea if Fine was there when any of that stuff was going down. This means that the three top executive positions in Albany are now held by women for the first time. I think it also indicates that Hochul intends to be all-in on running for reelection next year, lining up a team of aides with major connections to the party establishment both upstate and down. If Covid improves and the unemployment rate comes down, she’ll probably be in pretty good shape, especially since she can credibly claim not to have been part of Cuomo’s dysfunctional office during her time as Lt. Gov.
MattF
Politico’s been sold to a German publishing house. Outsourcing!
Baud
@MattF: I hope that it improves their reporting.
Benw
@trollhattan: @Eunicecycle: my best guess is that it’s based on an anecdote lifted (and probably wrong) from some civil war doctor’s letters/memoir.
The woman telling the story was a nurse! No idea how she compartmentalizes that.
germy
@MattF:
CaseyL
@Baud: Unlikely: they seem to be another RW outfit. Politico will get even worse, hard as that might seem possible.
piratedan
@Baud: alas, initial reading implies that these guys think Fox News are lightweights…
So I expect TigerBeat to evolve into StormFront Lite….
Baud
@CaseyL:
Oh goodie.
trollhattan
@Kelly: Letter perfect. Well played, gang. “Did you do an insurrection?”
Betty Cracker
@rikyrah: As long as a Dem holding the office is a sure thing, I generally don’t see anything wrong with a Dem primarying an incumbent Dem officeholder. That said, IMO, it’s a better look if the challenger is making that move due to significant policy differences rather than to further their political career.
I don’t know enough about NY politics to guess at where James and Hochul might disagree on policy nor to determine whether a contested primary might endanger Dem efforts to hold the seat.
rikyrah
@piratedan:
no lie told
trollhattan
@Benw:
I’ve settled on somebody remembers watching M*A*S*H thinking it was a Civil War comedy.
Only reason the south lost was they were slow developing helicopter technology.
Baud
jackmac
Here in Illinois our governor (J.B. Pritzker) has just ordered a statewide mandate requiring masks in all indoor locations starting Monday for people ages 2 and up. He’s also ordered mandatory vaccination of all educators from K-college.
Four Seasons Total Landscaping mistermix
@Betty Cracker: The primary is everything. The last Republican candidates for Governor got creamed, and whichever Democrat wins the primary is a more than odds-on favorite to win the general.
Benw
@trollhattan: hahaha!
I guess that’s why they didn’t rise!
SiubhanDuinne
@Baud:
Looking at that, thinking “Sue Trump? Sue Trump? Which one is she again — one of Eric’s kids?”
rikyrah
AshleyStevens (@The_Acumen) tweeted at 7:21 AM on Thu, Aug 26, 2021:
It’s time for mainstream media to put the “covid death counter” back on their daily programming. Maybe that’ll help people realize how much worse it’s gotten. They are supposed to be “journalist”, afterall. Their job is supposed to be to inform the public.
(https://twitter.com/The_Acumen/status/1430867890966724617?s=03)
germy
Hochul just announced her Lt. Gov.
And she was introduced by Al Sharpton!
https://wnyt.com/news/live-hochul-announces-benjamin-as-lieutenant-governor-pick/6218859/?cat=10114
Catherine D.
@germy: That will send western NY mouthbreathers into a frenzy. Wimmins and blackity-blacks.
J.
@Betty Cracker: Born and raised in NYC with family and friends still there. In the past an unknown (to New Yorkers, as in people from NYC) wouldn’t stand a chance, but times have changed. And if Hochul does a good job and spends some time and capital in the Big Apple (and doesn’t alienate Wall Street), I think she stands an excellent chance of getting reelected.