POLITICS FRIDAY: BERNIE GIVES MAJOR SPEECH EMPHASIZING EDUCATION TO LOS ANGELES TEACHERS UNION; DEMOCRATIC MACHINE WORKS THEIR MAGIC IN QUEENS DA RACE

Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders gave a major speech focusing in large part on education in front of a huge teachers union. Of course it was not the UFT but the United Teachers of Los Angeles. Diane Ravitch introduced Sanders. Her introduction unfortunately is not on the video but Ravitch support is significant as Bernie's education plan looks like what Diane and others on our side have been advocating and Ravitch is advising him on education.

Bernie's speech rips into privately run charter schools and their lack of union representation. He lashes out at growing segregation in charter schools and he supports a moratorium on federal funding going to new charter schools. He then calls for charter accountability. Sanders says he supports $60,000 a year minimum pay for public school teachers along with cost of living adjustments, tripling of Title I funding and more.

I know, I can already see the comments about how we can't afford any of this. I'd like to ask a question: Isn't it nice to be pandered to instead of villified? If 1/10 of what Sanders is proposing becomes reality, if he just takes on the charters, we will be in better shape than we have been in decades.

Are we going to see Bernie invited to speak at the first UFT Delegate Assembly in October?  Don't bet on it. The reality is that on public education Bernie is way ahead of the other candidates. Read his education plan. If you are not willing to support him because he is too far to the left, demand other Democratic candidates endorse his education plan.

Meanwhile back here in Queens, there is absolutely no astonishment that it looks like Melinda Katz with the backing of the Democratic Party machine will win the recount over progressive Tiffany Caban in the Democratic primary for Queens District Attorney. For full disclosure here, I have nothing against Katz who in my Jamaica High School centric view of the world was very good to us but I like seeing the Queens machine, just like the Unity Caucus machine, dented.

From the Queens Chronicle:

Borough President Melinda Katz will be the likely winner of the laborious hand recount of ballots cast in the Queens district attorney’s race, a lawyer for her opponent, insurgent Tiffany Cabán, said Thursday.

He predicted the margin will be 50-60 votes when the tally is certified early next week by the Board of Elections.

“This is a step in the process that will now go to court,” said Jerry Goldfeder, the election lawyer for the Cabán campaign.

As he spoke to reporters, the final ballots of more than 91,000 votes cast last month in the primary election were being tabulated, marking the end of a grueling, three-week review.

The battle is expected to move now to Queens County state Supreme Court on Aug. 6, where a specially appointed judge from Brooklyn is expected to rule on the validity of more than 200 disputed ballots.

Katz, nevertheless, declared victory in the race shortly after the hand count ended. 

 “Now that every valid vote has been counted and recounted, the results confirm once again that the people of Queens have chosen Melinda Katz as the Democratic nominee for District Attorney,” said Andrew Kirtzman, a spokesman for Katz.

The recount that began July 10 in a BOE storage facility in Middle Village ended just a little after 11 a.m. when the last ballot — it was marked as a vote for Katz — was recorded and returned to storage.

“I want to emphasize that this race is not over,” Cabán told reporters outside the recount facility.

“We are going to continue to fight to make sure that every single vote is counted.

“There are hundred of ballots cast by registered and eligible Queens Democrats that were wrongly invalidated. 

“Our campaign will be in court to protect Queens voters from being disenfranchised.”

At issue will be two sets of disputed ballots totalling around 200 votes, enough to sway the final outcome.

The Cabán campaign is asking the judge to validate 114 affidavit ballots that were never opened by the BOE because the voters failed to fill out a line declaring their party affiliation as Democrat.

Can't wait to see the UFT take credit for this one.