Former NYC Council candidate and Brooklyn Heights resident Doug Biviano announced today that he’ll be challenging NYS Assemblymember Joan Millman for the Democratic nomination this election year.
He’s produced a campaign video along with this press release:
GOOD GOVERNMENT ADVOCATE DOUG BIVIANO ANNOUNCES CANDIDACY
TO CHALLENGE MILLMAN FOR STATE ASSEMBLY
Biviano Says Millman’s Silence
On Corruption Too Costly To Ignore
Political reformer and progressive Democrat Doug Biviano entered the race for New York State Assembly today in Brooklyn’s 52nd AD, declaring that the incumbent Joan Millman’s record of silence on the widespread corruption in Albany was too costly to ignore.
“We all know what’s going on in Albany,” said Biviano, who was voted one of the Top Ten People of 2009 by the Brooklyn Heights Blog for his bold campaign for City Council against the Brooklyn machine and boss Vito Lopez. “Every week, there’s another story about one of Millman’s colleagues in the Assembly or State Senate being arrested or under investigation for stealing millions of our taxpayer dollars. It’s no coincidence that this same State legislature has run up a $10 billion debt that they have no clue how to fix, except for borrowing billions more for our kids to repay and closing hospitals, token booths, senior centers, and schools. Well, unlike Joan Millman, when I see something, I say something. I won’t play that same cynical game up in Albany where politicians like Millman refuse to speak out against the corrupt system that is destroying our state, because it is that very same corrupt system that ensures they keep getting reelected.”
Even more outrageous than her silence, Joan Million is Chairman of the State Assembly’s Election Law Committee, the body that purposely does nothing to change the laws filled with legal traps that result in dozens of challengers to incumbents being thrown off the ballot each year by the Board of Elections and the courts. “Millman is in a unique position to introduce the reforms every good government group in this State says is imperative to end the dysfunctionalism in Albany and yet she hasn’t lifted a finger to fix our broken system. Why not?” Biviano wants Millman to answer.
A few weeks ago, Doug Biviano issued a press release demanding “A New Standard in Albany” and challenged Joan Millman to finally speak out against her colleagues’ crimes. Millman again said nothing. But Biviano received an outpouring of impassioned responses from residents across the district outraged at the dysfunction in Albany. It was the strength of this grassroots uprising that convinced him that after 13 years of Millman, the people of Brooklyn’s 52nd AD were ready for change. “I’ve spoken to my neighbors and they understand that if we’re going to end the culture of corruption ruling Albany, our only chance is to start the movement right here in Brooklyn.” This election is about a whole lot more than just whether you like your elected official. It’s about preserving our neighborhoods, saving our essential services, and making sure businesses and jobs do not leave the city.”
In conjunction with his announcement this morning, Biviano unveiled his campaign’s new website at www.bivforbrooklyn.com. The website features Biviano’s first commercial of the campaign, a 60-second webspot that features a Public School mother from Brooklyn Heights explaining why she is supporting Doug Biviano for Assembly. Biviano, his three young children, and his wife, Lee, also appear in the ad.
Biviano said that he had gotten a fast start to fundraising and knocking on doors, but he emphasized that Millman would use every advantage she has as an incumbent to stay in office and would likely spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to keep her seat. He encouraged anyone who wants to contribute to his campaign or join the fight to clean up Albany to contact him through his website (www.bivforbrooklyn.com) or reach out to him through Facebook.
Brooklyn’s 52nd Assembly District includes Brooklyn Heights, Downtown Brooklyn, Boerum Hill, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill, the Columbia Waterfront, DUMBO, Fulton Ferry Landing, Gowanus, Wyckoff, Red Hook, Park Slope, Prospect Heights, and Vinegar Hill. The Democratic Primary for New York State Assembly is September 14th, 2010.
