A hearing on mayoral control of city schools is set for Thursday, but the mayor himself won't be there, something that's not sitting well with the legislators he's trying to win over. NY1's Bobby Cuza filed the following report.
It was just two weeks ago that Mayor Bill de Blasio was in Albany, sitting through a four-hour state Senate hearing on extending mayoral control of city schools. So there's no reason, he seemed to suggest, to attend another Senate hearing Thursday in Manhattan.
"I think to go to Albany, it's been four hours answering any and all questions. It's literally every single question that was offered," de Blasio said. "I think that was a great show of respect. We covered the subject matter well."
But Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan said Tuesday, "I am extremely disappointed the Mayor doesn't believe this hearing is significant enough to attend...With the future of mayoral control at stake, Mayor de Blasio has left too many unanswered questions about his stewardship of the New York City school system."
De Blasio, of course, has fought hard to dislodge Senate Republicans from power, but Wednesday, he would not suggest Flanagan may be politically motivated. Instead, he pointed to a coalition of business leaders backing mayoral control - some of them appearing alongside him, and not all of them allies - to demonstrate what he called a bipartisan consensus.
"I've met plenty of Republicans and and plenty of Democrats who feel the exact same way, including my two predecessors, who felt it was indispensable," de Blasio said.
During a nearly two-hour news conference at City Hall Wednesday, the mayor also fielded a number of questions into the various investigations into his fundraising and potential conflicts of interest, which a state agency has also cited in withdrawing support for the construction of two new residential buildings in Brooklyn Bridge Park.
"Let's get real. That has no bearing on anything. There's no facts. There's no reason not to move forward," he said.
The mayor also defended the decision to deny NY1's Freedom of Information Law request seeking communications with consultant Jonathan Rosen, citing an exemption because Rosen is a so-called "agent of the city."
"Jonathan Rosen is someone who I've consulted with for years and years, and we made a legal determination that that was a category that was different," de Blasio said.
As for Thursday's hearing, in place of the mayor, Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña will be testifying.