20 North Shore Towers Courier n October 2013 MUDSLINGING IN MAYOR’S RACE BY CRISTABELLE TUMOLA As Bill de Blasio’s support continues to grow, he faces increasing scrutiny of his past. The mayoral candidate received endorsements from more top Democrats this past week, including the party’s highest office holder, President Barack Obama. “Progressive change is the centerpiece of Bill de Blasio’s vision for New York City, and it’s why he will be a great mayor of America’s largest city,” Obama said in a statement announcing his official endorsement on Monday, September 23. The president joins a growing list of national and state Democratic leaders who have backed de Blasio for mayor, including Bill and Hillary Clinton, Governor Andrew Cuomo and U.S. Senator Charles Schumer. In the last week, de Blasio also received the endorsement of former Democratic primary opponent City Comptroller John Liu, the United Federation of Teachers, and, in a rally at Queens Borough Hall on Monday, September 23, the Queens County Democratic Party. But it wasn’t all positive news for the Democratic mayoral candidate. A New York Times article first published on Sunday, September 22 examined de Blasio’s time in Nicaragua helping to distribute food and medicine Democratic mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio picks up the party endorsement at Borough Hall though his rivals are calling his past into question. in the late 1980s and how he “grew to be an admirer of Nicaragua’s ruling Sandinista party.” It also looked at how his time as a young activist has shaped him today. The Sandinistas ruled Nicaragua from 1979 to 1990, and, according to the Times, were denounced by the Reagan administration as “tyrannical and communist,” though liberal supporters said they were “building a free society with broad access to education, land and health care.” The article prompted two of de Blasio’s opponents in the race, Republican candidate Joe Lohta and Independence party candidate Adolfo Carrión Jr. to attack him for his past support of the Sandinista party. “Mr. de Blasio’s involvement with the Sandinistas didn’t happen in 1917; it happened 70 years later when the cruelty and intrinsic failure of communism had become crystal clear to anyone with a modicum of reason. Mr. de Blasio’s class warfare strategy in New York City is directly out of the Marxist playbook. Now we know why,” said Lhota, who has won support from Staten Island Borough President James P. Molinaro. “I’m not surprised that my opponents will throw labels and call names. That’s a Republican tactic, that’s a right-wing tactic,” de Blasio reportedly said, speaking to reporters in response to earlier comments from his rivals. A New York Daily News article published on Sunday, September 22 also brought up another part of de Blasio’s past that not all New York Photo Courtesy Dominick Totino Photography City voters may know — his two legal name changes. De Blasio’s birth name was Warren Wilhelm Jr., but he legally changed it to Warren de Blasio- Wilhelm in 1983, and to Bill de Blasio in 2002, the Daily News reported. Though the article provides new documentation, his legal name changes have been previously reported, and explained by de Blasio. When questioned again on the name change, a spokesperson for the campaign told the Daily News the same explanation the candidate has previously said that “Bill de Blasio took his mother’s family name because his father was largely absent from his life, a fact he has been open about throughout his time in public service.” SALGADO NOT THRU YET BY CRISTABELLE TUMOLA Erick Salgado may have suffered a big loss in the primary, but he is not ready to give up his mayoral hopes. The former Democratic candidate announced on Monday, September 23 he is running in the general election on the School Choice Party Line. “My running for mayor was never about politics. I entered the race because I believed strongly in a set of principles, included among them is a parent or guardian’s right to choose the best school for their child,” Salgado said in statement. The pastor and businessman said the School Choice Party places a high priority on “providing parents and guardians with viable public/private/ charter school options for their children.” One suggestion he has is to give tax credits to parents who enroll their children in private school as a way to offset some of the cost. “Bankruptcy should not be a requirement of parents providing their children a sound education consistent with their religious or philosophical beliefs,” he said. Salgado also explained that he is running as a third party candidate out of concern that the Democratic and Republican candidates are not addressing the needs of the city’s diverse communities. “New York City has evolved away from being a melting pot. It is now a mosaic of many communities, each with its own customs, personalities and issues,” Salgado said. “The next mayor will have to understand this and be able to address these differences from day one in office.” Salgado, who received 2.4 percent of the vote in the primary, will face an uphill battle in the November 5 election. A Quinnipiac University poll released on Thursday, September 19 showed Democratic candidate Bill de Blasio with a 66 to 25 percent lead over Republican Joe Lohta. Independence line candidate former Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrión Jr., had two percent. When questioned again on the name change, a spokesperson for the campaign told the Daily News the same explanation the candidate has previously said that “Bill de Blasio took his mother’s family name because his father was largely absent from his life, a fact he has been open about throughout his File photo time in public service.”
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