Brooklyn Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries, the subject of criticism for signing a letter with a very positive posture toward Atlantic Yards, has issued the following statement backing away from the tone of the letter:
Jeffries added, in response to my question, "Yes, I did not draft the letter, and to the extent there is any additional uncertainty about my views toward the project, I would of course be delighted to address the issue at tomorrow's town hall meeting."
"My colleagues in the legislature, including Sen. John Sampson, the leader of the democratic majority of the New York State Senate, requested a meeting with the principal developer of the proposed Atlantic Yards project, and invited me to participate. I remain highly critical of the project and the direction it has taken in recent years. I continue to believe that the extraordinary measure of eminent domain should not be used for the purpose of building a basketball arena."So I'm guessing he didn't write the letter he signed along with Sampson and Assemblyman Nick Perry. The question, which I suspect will be raised at tomorrow's PHNDC meeting, is why he signed it.
Jeffries added, in response to my question, "Yes, I did not draft the letter, and to the extent there is any additional uncertainty about my views toward the project, I would of course be delighted to address the issue at tomorrow's town hall meeting."
How is it that someone with a law background doesn't seem to care if he actually agrees with something that he signs his name to?
ReplyDeleteThere is a way to build trust. This is not it.
I am not sure how long you have been in the neighborhood, but Hakeem's record of legislative accomplishment and creativity during his relatively short time in the Assembly has earned him widespread support and trust in the community, particularly among the working families and middle class folks victimized by displacement and gentrification. And any doubt about his talents as an attorney must mean you failed to attend the Atlantic Yards hearing at Pratt earlier this year.
ReplyDeleteyes, true, his integrity and consistency are impeccable. just see here:
ReplyDeletehttp://dddb.net/php/latestnews_Linked.php?id=2402
But the question still remains, how does an attorney and legislator sign a letter he either hasn't read or disagrees with?
I am a relative newcomer, having only been in the area for 29 years (3 years in Boerum Hill and 26 years in Fort Greene), so please forgive me while I catch up.
ReplyDeleteI personally witnessed Hakeem's masterful performance at the hearing held Pratt and was heartened when he seemed to call for the MTA to exercise its fiduciary responsibility. That is what makes his signature on this letter to Ratner/Prokorhorov all the more inexplicable.
Well then, fortgreenesteve, stop hiding behind the curtain of a blog post, expose yourself and ask Hakeem the question tonight directly. And if you do not like the answer, because you are obsessed with a single issue and can care less about all of the working families that have been gentrified from Fort Greene during the "last 26 years", perhaps you should revive your 2006 candidate from the political graveyard so he can be resoundingly rejected by the community a second time, since the overwelming majority of people who live in our neighborhood think Hakeem is doing a tremendous job
ReplyDeleteYes, it was really something how Hakeem won his unchallenged race in 2008. Remarkable. of course hakeem will be asked about this tonight, and then some. you may like him and that is fine, but you cannot argue that he is consistent on this one rather major issue.
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