Cymbrowitz Bill To Save Mute Swans Axed By Cuomo
Sheepshead Bay Assemblymember Steve Cymbrowitz had a bill he championed through both the assembly and senate to give mute swans a two-year stay of execution vetoed by Governor Cuomo, the Daily News reported.
“Obviously I’m very disappointed,” Cymbrowitz told the media outlet. “I’m sure that many people in my district and throughout the state will share this sentiment.”
Cymbrowitz sponsored the measure after learning the Department of Environmental Conservation planned to wipe out the state’s wild mute swan population by 2025 as they are considered a prohibited invasive species with an aggressive streak that makes them dangerous to native wildlife.
The long-necked water fowl are a favorite among residents who line the harbor of Sheepshead Bay and Manhattan Beach, who often feed them crusts of bread and other snacks. Statewide there are an estimated 2,200 mute swans with a many inhabiting Sheepshead Bay, Jamaica Bay and Prospect Park.
In his veto, Cuomo did promise that a revised DEC plan would include parts of the bill, but Cymbrowitz is less than enthusiastic. .
The DEC already promised to consider nonlethal methods for managing the swans and then last June shot two swans to death upstate in full view of the public, he said.
Yes Grimm Can Remain In Congress As A Convicted Felon
GOP Congressman Micheal Grimm can remain in office even if he is he pleads guilty to a single felony charge of tax fraud, as reported in the the New York Times.
According to the website FactCheck.org:
Federal Office Holders
The Constitution requires that members of the House and Senate fulfill three requirements:
- All members of the House must be at least 25 years old, and members of the Senate must be at least 30 years old.
- Members of the House must have been a U.S. citizen for at least seven years, and members of the Senate must have been a U.S. citizen for at least nine years.
- They have to be an “inhabitant” of the state “when elected.”
Prison is not a bar to running for federal office, either. In 1798, Rep. Matthew Lyon ran for Congress from prison and won. He assumed his seat in Congress after serving four months in prison for “libeling” President John Adams. An effort was made to expel Lyon from the House, but it failed.
Grim, 44, who represents part of Brooklyn in his mainly Staten Island District, is in his third term and easily bested Democrat Dominec Recchia to win re-election in November, despite running with a 20-count felony indictment hanging over his head.
He had said during the campaign that he would step down if convicted of any fraud charges, but supporters have long said the indictment was politically motivated from the start.
Scheduled Events Today:
10 a.m. – Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis delivers toys to the Guild for Exceptional Children, 1273 57th St.
1 p.m. – New York City Councilman David Greenfield and community leaders hold a rally to support the New York City Police Department, 5822 16th Ave.
3 p.m. – State Sen. Marty Golden and Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis hold roundtable about trip to China, 7408 5th Ave., Bay Ridge.
3 p.m. – Brooklyn District Attorney Ken Thompson is joined by representatives of the NYPD to announce results of long-term firearms trafficking investigation, 350 Jay St., 19th Floor.
