HOPING TO SPARK

by Tom Wrobleski
June 19, 2005

It's no secret that the Democratic mayoral field hasn't caught fire with voters, including those on the Island.

And don't think the candidates themselves don't know it.

"This is a lazy time," Weiner said during campaign stop here last week, where he was endorsed by Assemblyman Mike Cusick (D-Mid-Island). "I think people are looking for an alternative, and they don't know I'm there yet."

Weiner called the current dynamic "utterly predictable" and thinks the tables will turn his way before it's all over.

He pointed out that Democrats like U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer and Ed Koch had surged from the back of the pack to become party nominees in years past.

And don't forget that many thought the 2001 mayoral race was "run and won" before 9/11 helped catapult Bloomberg to City Hall over Democrat Mark Green.

Weiner hopes to grab attention by focusing on middle-class issues, especially his call to cut taxes for New Yorkers who make less than $150,000 a year.

"Middle-class Staten Island families are going to find that there's a candidate talking about the things they care about," Weiner said.

And allow Weiner to be a little bold.

"I'm going to win Staten Island," he said, "that's one thing I can predict."