Since taking office, Mayor “Red” Bill de Blasio has been hard at work trying to convince Albany to allow New York to raise taxes on our richest citizens to find universal pre-K for all of New York City. Meanwhile in Albany, Governor Andrew “Don’t Call Me Mario” Cuomo has resisted every call to allow de Blasio to do this. So, why is this important, and where do we stand with this whole mess? You can find out tomorrow at a town hall meeting at Borough Hall that’s being held by advocates of de Blasio’s plan.
We got an email informing us of the town hall, being held at Borough Hall Wednesday night from 6:30pm to 8:30pm. The town hall is being organized by New York Communities for Change, and according to the email, will feature parents, elected officials, community representatives and other organizers to talk about de Blasio’s pre-K plan. And presumably, they’ll talk about how to push for it, since the state elected officials are promising that if de Blasio drops this, they’ll fund pre-K for all of New York state. Which sounds nice of course, until you remember that New York’s state legislature makes Ukraine look like a functional, shining beacon of government accountability.
So if you support the pre-K plan, it’s gonna take a hell of a push, because even the idea of a marginal tax rate gives Cuomo a mini-stroke in an election year. After all, it’s not like you get to be president if you’re a tax raisin’ New York liberal.
Beyond the chance to put your money where your voting mouth was and actually get involved in the biggest political battle happening in New York at the moment, the town hall also sounds like a chance to meet your neighbors and find out what kind of people they are. And if any of them are single.
Universal pre-K Town Hall, Wednesday, February 19, 6:30pm – 8:30pm, Borough Hall, 209 Joralemon Street