FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM MARCH 7, 2019 • THE QUEENS COURIER 11
Pol, pro-Amazon biz owner clash on text 'threat'
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Th e Long Island City restaurant owner
who fl ew to Seattle last week to try and
rescue the Amazon HQ2 deal, may have
gone too far in his campaign against the
elected leaders he blames for chasing the
e-commerce giant out of town.
John Brown Smokehouse owner Josh
Bowen met for two hours with John
Schoettler, the company’s vice president
for real estate and facilities, saying
“someone had to represent Queens”
aft er Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer
and state Senator Michael Gianaris had
“abdicated their duties” for opposing the
Amazon deal for political reasons.
“If Mike and Jimmy had just talked
to these guys, it would have been a
whole diff erent story,” Bowen said aft er
he returned from his mission to Seattle.
Bowen created a Twitter page called
@JimmyVanJobKiller in recent weeks
as well as a website calling for Van
Bramer’s resignation, but he may have
gone a text too far when he sent this message
to his councilman.
“As much as it grosses me out to
extend this off er, I do it for my borough.
You will call John Schoettler and apologize.
You can be at the back of the parade
or in front of a fi ring squad. If they come
back, y’all may get elected dog catcher,”
Bowen wrote.
Bowen wasn’t fi nished with his text. He
then warned the councilman he would be
blamed for the loss of Amazon during an
appearance on the Fox News Channel.
“I will be on Neal Cavuto tonight. I can
leave you out of it and focus on Amazon
coming back or I can add another sound
bite on to the funeral pyre of Jimmy’s
career. Make the f—–g call. And let me
know by 4. You were used by activists.
I’m trying to keep you, and western
queens, from the history books.”
Van Bramer was not amused posting
a screenshot of Bowen’s text on Twitter
calling it a threat, which was ultimately
reported to the NYPD.
“Josh Bowen, who recently went to
Seattle to meet with Amazon sent this
text today,” Van Bramer tweeted on
March 1. “Demanding an elected offi cial
make a call to Amazon by a certain time
— or else. Th is is disgusting. Did others
get this too? I don’t respond to threats.”
A Van Bramer spokesman said there
would be no further comment other than
the tweet for the time being.
Screenshot of Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer’s March 1 tweet.
Meanwhile, Bowen, a St. Louis native
known for his dry wit, laughed off any
controversy on March 1.
“Th at’s just Jimmy playing the victim.
Look, all I was trying to do was to
get him to call the man and get Amazon
back here,” Bowen said. “Th e imagery
might be dark but there were no threats
intended there. I’m just trying to do the
right thing for the neighborhood and the
right thing for Queens. Th at’s it.”
Bowen ended the phone interview
abruptly. He had an interview to do.
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