All four Democratic Party mayoral candidates demonstrated the truth of his statement before about 1,000 members June 11 at Town Hall as the union seized the reins of the 2001 race by holding its first mayoral forum.

“DC 37 is serious about its political screening process, and the forum allowed the membership to be part of that process,” said Mike Keogh, associate director of DC 37’s Political Action and Legislation Department.

As part of the union’s democratic selection process, the 16 local presidents on the DC 37 Screening Committee interviewed each candidate separately. They also screened candidates for public advocate, city comptroller and other public offices.

The mayoral forum was the final round before deliberations begin on a DC 37 endorsement. At the Town Hall event, each of the candidates was given 20 minutes to present his stand on the issues that affect DC 37 members, their families and New York City. After a one-minute opening statement, the candidate answered questions from the moderator, DC 37 Deputy Administrator Zachary Ramsey, on issues such as job security, privatization, affordable housing, WEP, public schools and the Health and Hospitals Corp.

A question-and-answer session with rank-and-file members in the audience followed, and each candidate concluded by stating the chief reason he wants to be mayor.

The presentations reflected the candidates’ views and long years of experience as public servants.

All four of the Democrats showed that they are generally pro-labor.

Bronx Borough President Fernando Ferrer, who spoke first, promised that if he is elected, no city employees would face layoffs.

He talked about two New Yorks, a division he blamed on Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani.

“In one New York, Wall Street’s jumping, Disneyland is a block away and there are no squeegee guys,” Mr. Ferrer said. “But residents of the other New York are trapped with schools that can’t work, have no health insurance, no decent housing and a Police Department separated from them by fear.”

Build schools not stadiums
Mr. Ferrer called the recent city tax cut “a dud” that puts pennies in the pockets of most New Yorkers while sacrificing public schools and vital city services. “If it’s kids or ballparks,” he said, “I choose kids.”

Mr. Ferrer said he wants to be the next mayor because he understands and “comes from the other New York. I want to restore hope and opportunity to all New Yorkers.”

Mark Green said that as public advocate, he has worked with unions against the mayor and big business. He asked DC 37 members to consider his record: For 30 years he fought the big shots and special interest groups; he launched 244 investigations of police misconduct; and he sued the mayor for illegally releasing Patrick Dorismond’s sealed record.

Enforce the law
Mr. Green attacked the mayor for ignoring the housing crisis, noting that most New Yorkers pay over half their income for housing.

When asked how he would address racial discrimination in city agencies, Mr. Green said he would enforce the law. But he made no reference to the highly publicized racial bias cases in the Parks Dept., limiting his comments to NYPD incidents.

Mr. Green concluded by saying he wanted DC 37 “to join the Green Team as a partner.”

City Comptroller Alan G. Hevesi said if he is elected mayor, the city’s hospital system would remain intact. “Health care is a basic right,” he said.

Mr. Hevesi outlined a plan to fund construction of affordable housing. He proposed using $70 million of the tax revenue generated by the sale of the World Trade Center and $50 million from the profits earned by the state-funded Battery Park City housing development.

NYC a union town
His concluding remarks were that he preferred for members of the union to think of him as a partner, not a boss. He promised to “make sure this city remains a union town.”

City Council Speaker Peter F. Vallone reminded DC 37 that he has always kept his promises to the union.

“The city stops if the union stops,” said Mr. Vallone. “I believe you are the life, blood and guts of the city.” He promised to override the mayor’s veto of Medicare Part B reimbursement on June 28.

When questioned about the threat to sell OTB to privateers, Mr. Vallone said it would be “foolish to sell an asset that brings the city more than $40 million a year in revenue.” Members cheered his promise to demand a cost-effectiveness study, hold public hearings and take legal action — as DC 37 has — to prevent the sale.

Mr. Vallone added, “The mayor would have privatized the whole city if I wasn’t there.”

When asked why DC 37 should support his bid for mayor, Mr. Vallone said jokingly, “Don’t lay me off. I need this job.”

A full DC 37 effort
DC 37 mobilized its leadership of local presidents and their executive boards to attend the forum. The event took months of planning by the Political Action and Legislation Department.The forum was coordinated by PAL Assistant Director Wanda Williams.

Local political action coordinators and field division reps pitched in to distribute leaflets at membership and community association meetings to invite rank-and-file members. The DC 37 Retirees Association and Local 1549 mobilized many activists, and 50 lifeguards from Locals 461 and 508 also helped publicize the event. DC 37 staff coordinated transportation, seating and tee shirt distribution.

DC 37 Deputy Administrator Eliot Seide said, “It was a historic moment for DC 37 that was pulled together by a full union effort.”

Whichever candidate wins DC 37’s endorsement stands to benefit from the union’s powerful political machinery. He will have DC 37’s army of volunteers, its phone banks and other campaign support organized by the PAL Department.

PAC Chair Donald Afflick reminded attendees that with 125,000 active members and 40,000 retirees, DC 37 has the voting power to play a major role in determining the outcomes of the Sept. 11 primary and the Nov. 6 election.

“We’re holding politicians accountable,” Mr. Saunders said. “We have the power to reward our friends and punish our enemies. That’s the importance of being politically active.”

Where they stand on the issues

Below are some of the positions taken by the candidates at the June 11 forum in their statements and in their responses to members’ questions on issues that affect public employees and New Yorkers.

Fernando Ferrer

• No layoffs for city employees. Balance the budget without sacrificing services.
  
  
• Build 150,000 new affordable housing units over 10 years.
  
  
• Says complete civilianization would put over 1,000 police officers on streets.
  
  
• Community policing in neighborhoods, accountability for cops and a police commissioner who cooperates with Civilian Complaint Review Board.
  
  
• HHC has been shorted by the mayor. Keep pubic hospitals and clinics open.
  
  
• Fund CUNY and make it accessible to all New Yorkers.
  
  
• Keep middle schools open.
  
  
• Says if it’s kids or ballparks, he would choose kids.
  
  

Mark Green

• Believes quality services without increasing taxes or cutting services would carry us through hard economic times.
  
  
• Says the city needs to build affordable housing, not stadiums. Fund construction for 50,000 housing units with $100 million bond. End Dept. of Buildings corruption.
  
  
• Wants to end the “us against them” stereotypes, where all police are depicted as brutal and all youths are seen as perpetrators.
  
  
• Promises to enforce the law on workplace discrimination.
  
  
• Instead of privatization, would implement gain sharing, where employees would get a share of the savings for money-saving ideas.
  
  

Alan G. Hevesi

• Says current city budget has substantial but unnecessary tax cuts that endanger all government programs.
  
  
• Promises that HHC hospitals would get city funds to offset the cost of treating uninsured patients, if the state refuses to cover medical costs.
  
  
• Says health care is a basic right. Keep all HHC clinics open. Promised the hospital system would remain intact.
  
  
• Calls for repeal of the Rockefeller drug laws and wants to open 200 computer training centers.
  
  
• Use tax revenue from World Trade Center sale and profits from state-funded Battery Park City houses to fund new affordable housing throughout the city.
  
  

Peter F. Vallone

• Implement transitional jobs and real training programs that lead to real jobs for WEPs.
  
  
• Says city must protect public health care system; led as?City Council restored funds for clinics.
  
  
• Implement transitional jobs and real training programs that lead to real jobs for WEPs.
  
  
• Use tax revenue from sale of World Trade Center for schools and affordable housing.
  
  
• Civilianize Police Dept. to save $300 million in overtime. Assign 10,000 more officers to neighborhoods.
  
  
• Says the problem with schools is that funding is controlled by the state and not the city. Wants to provide fairer distribution of education funding to allow improvements in city schools.