My breakfast-of-candidates (BOC) with Bill Thompson, the NYC Comptroller who is running for mayor, was more like a mid-day series of disjointed phone calls than a friendly breakfast at a divey Brooklyn coffee shop. Still, I appreciated the time he took to talk to me on the phone.
The comptroller/mayoral candidate was scheduled to call me at 10 am on Saturday morning. I was told that he'd be calling from a car on the way to Brooklyn Borough Hall for the kickoff to his 5 Borough Tour. At 10 am I sipped coffee at my desk in the dining room with a sharpened pencil, a couple of working pnes and a digital sound recorder and waited for his call.
And waited reciting my mantra: the candidate is always late.
It was closer to 10:30 when the candidate called and I launched into my usual line of BOC opening questions about birth, childhood and school days. This seems to loosen up the candidates—and the reporter—and creates an easy rapport.
"Hey, you're Brooklyn-born, aren't you?" I asked right off the bat.
"I've lived in Brooklyn all my life," Thompson told me.
Born in 1953, Thompson grew up in Bedford-Stuyvesant. His mother was a Chicago-born public school teacher and his dad, who is from St. Kitts, was an attorney who later became the first African American state senator and later an Appellate Court judge.
Thompson attended PS 161 in Crown Heights and Hudde Junior High School and grew up in a 4-story brownstone on Vanderbilt Avenue that was purchased by his grandparents in 1939.
A self-described average kid who did "well enough in school", Thompson's parents and grandparents placed a high value on "education, working hard and earning the things you get. 'How did you do in school today?' That was always the question. They were very focused on achievement," he told me.
Thompson attended Tufts University where he majored in political science. "I wasn't the greatest college student," he told me. For him, the most important aspect of his college experience was the opportunity "to meet people from all over the world and other backgrounds."
At Tufts, he says, he also learned how to take care of himself. In college he realized that "if you make the wrong choices, you pay."
Straight out of college, Thompson was hired to work on the congressional campaign of Fred Richmond and lived in various apartment in Park Slope (on 6th Avenue between Lincoln and St. Johns and on Carroll Street between 7th and 8th Avenues), which he describes as "a great place to live."
Thompson eventually served as Congressman Richmond's chief of staff. It was this job that convinced him that he wanted to work in politics. "I liked constituent relations, policy, and dealing with health issues."
Somewhere in this chronology, Thompson got married and had a daughter, now 30, who attended The Berkeley Carroll School, a private school in Park Slope, where she was "a lifer." He also bought a brownstone on Vanderbilt and Prospect Place. He has since remarried and now has two stepchildren: 11-year old twins.
In 1983 Thompson became Deputy Borough President for Howard Golden. "I'm very proud of the work we did—if I do pat myself on the back," he told me. "It was important time for Brooklyn. I'm proud of the development of Metrotech, new housing, the professional focus. The Borough President's office had more authority then in terms of city-wide budget, land use and development contracts."
After ten years in the Borough President's office, Thompson went into the private financial sector "to do something different but I still had my hands in municipal finance." He says that another reason he left the Borough President office was because it was stripped of its power in the 1990's.
But public service beckoned. In March 1996 Thompson became head of the Board of Education (BOE), a part- time position, and stayed until 2001. Certainly it's a dubious distinction to be chairman of a famously dysfunctional boards. But Thompson manages to sing the praises of his time there. "There are many generalizations about how dysfunctional the BOE was," he told me.
"During my time there: we got rid of decentralization that had been going on from 1960-1996. Now that was totally dysfunctional. Local boards selected principals, budgets, everything. The chancellor basically ran the high schools. Decentralization had to end; what we did was a pre-cursor to mayoral control, which I believe in."
In 2001, Thompson won the comptroller's seat and has been there ever since. He ran as a "fiscal activist" and was sworn in as the city's first black comptroller on January 1, 2002, by his own father.
Education?
At this point in the conversation I could tell that we were running out of time andI quickly asked him to elaborate on his education plan:
He listed his top five factors that contribute to a good school
Thompson: 1. The principal; 2. Teacher collaboration; 3. A collaborative environment; 4. A welcoming environment for parents and parental involvement; 5. Nutrition for kids.
Mayoral Control of the School?
"I support it but it needs to be changed. The parents have been shut out and that's a problem. There needs to be better oversight over contracts and there's a need for independent information gathering about test scores," he told me.
When I asked Thompson if he thought an educator should be the Chancellor he said: "I would get rid of Klein. People confuse structure with education. There needs to be an educational vision.”
Thompson did say that Bloomberg and Klein have created change and that's a good thing with one caveat: "They benefited from great press. Their "success" speaks more to how they sold this. Math scores for instance. The tests are easier. The NAEP (Nation Assessment of Educational Progress) scores have been flat for four years."
At this point in our conversation, Thompson, who is extremely friendly, smart, polite and easy to talk to, told me that he had to get out of the car. "I'll call you back in an hour. At 12:30 or so."
I waited around for a couple of hours and eventually concluded that he'd gotten busy too busy to call. A member of his campaign staff emailed me a day later to say that the candidate would call back at 4 p.m. on Monday.
Two days later
"Sorry that one hour turned into three days," Thompson told me by way of hello. Knowing that our time was limited I jumped right in.
What makes a great mayor?
"A great mayor understands New York and its people. He has a vision of what the city should be. But it’s about understanding the city," Thompson said.
Thompson's Favorite NYC Mayor?
"You need to pick pieces or part of mayors. Ed Koch was a great mayor during a very difficult time. His spirit: he was a great leader and had some really creative ideas.
"David Dinkins was great because of his humanity.
"Giuliani, not for his humanity. But he's remembered for crime reduction and proving that government can work.
And Bloomberg?
"Bloomberg did positive things during his first term. Restoring confidence after 9/11, he helped to calm things and convince people and businesses not to move out of the city. But I don’t think Mike understands the people and what they do on a regular basis, their struggles. There's a gap in his understanding.
"For instance the MTA fare increases. He said he felt sorry for the riders but also sorry for the MTA.
"The minimum wage increase. He said no-one in the city make minimum wage. But 20% of the people in this city earn minimum wage. He is not understanding the life of the people here."
Does Thompson understand the people?
Thompson says he understands ordinary New Yorkers. I thought about his brownstone in Prospect Heights and the fact that his daughter was a lifer at Berkeley Carroll. He's had well-paying jobs in city government and even a stint in the private financial sector.
"I’ve gone through a lot of struggles. This is my home. I'm a native New Yorker," he told me. He didn't elaborate on this and I let it slip (dang) but he did go on:
"Money helps to separate Bloomberg from the people. That much money creates a different outlook. When Obama came to the city and it cost $400,000 Bloomberg said: "'that’s not a lot of money.' But it is a lot of money."
Unemployment among African Americans?
I asked Thompson to comment on the Bureau of Labor statistics that showed an unusually high rate among African Americans. It was the comptrollers office that brought this analysis to the attention of the New York Times in a press release.
"It's frightening when you look at rate of increase. Last year it was 5.7% now it’s 14.7% among African Americans. The Hispanic unemployment rate is 9.3%. We can't have this kind of inequality. At this rate there will be 400,000 African Americans unemployed by 2010.
I asked Thompson if this will be top priority if he becomes mayor. He hedged a bit but then said: "We have to take what we have: job training, upgrading of skills, programs we have but they’re not tied together." Rather than talk about ideas and real solutions, Thompson seemed more comfortable with broad statements: "You can’t have a city where 14.7% of the population is unemployed. This goes to issues of opportunity and inequality. There needs to be opportunity for all New Yorkers.
Campaign Finance?
Skipping around, I asked Thompson to respond to Bloomberg's comment during the Working Families Party forum that "There is no such thing as a totally fair campaign:
"That was just an attempt to excuse the $115 million he is spending on this campaign," Thompson told me clearly exasperated by the disparity between his spending and what the mayor can afford. "Is it his money? Yes. Did he earn the money? Yes. But it affects the structure of the campaign. Finance distorts things dramatically. It pollutes government. We have campaign finance laws so that government isn’t just for rich people," Thompson said.
Race, class and electoral politics?
This seemed a natural segue into issues of race and class. Thompson seemed to waver.
"You can govern fairly, everyone brings a separate outlook to the table. All of our backgrounds and what we've experienced help to craft how we see things," he told me.
I knew we were running out of time and I still had a long list of issues of concern to Brooklynites. But first I wanted to k
now: What does the Democratic Party stand for?
"It stands for working people, middle class Americans. There is a huge contrast between Democrats and republicans. That said, the party is not monolithic and there’s a great deal of variation."
Issues of Concern to Brooklyn
I must say, I found his answers to Brooklyn-specific questions to be a bit lackluster. And that surprised me. Or maybe it shouldn't have. He's been endorsed by all the Democratic clubs from Greenpoint to Coney Island and maybe he wants to remain vague on issues that Brooklynites are passionate about to stay out of the fray.
Atlantic Yards?
" I did initially support it. I have real concerns now. I will continue to re-evaluate it, meet with individuals, have a conversation. I plan to sit down to talk and evaluate," he said.
My reaction: You lived in Prospect Heights and initially supported the Atlantic Yards???? Yikes. And why aren't you more outraged now? Many Brooklyn Democrats are.
What about Superfund for the Gowanus?
At first I think he misunderstood my question.
"I would be collaborative. Listen to residents rather than tell them what the Gowanus area should be. It has been discussed for decades. Should it be open space, commercial, housing…" he said.
Then he made a correction:
"Oh you’re talking about Superfund. The mayor is supporting an alternative plan to try to have more control, to do it in a faster period of time. I would work in conjunction with the community and I'm not as concerned about Superfund stigma. I would look for input from community.
My reaction: He's not that familiar with the issue.
Community based development?
"I like to talk about smart growth, fair growth. Don’t destroy communities, involve them in planning. The last few years there has been a top down approach. I would work with the community to see how we should approach development.
My reaction: Vague answer without much passion for the idea.
Vision for Coney Island?
"What the people want there is affordable housing. The developers are not talking to the community. City Councilman Recchio is trying to involve the community. It's important to maintain flavor and bring people in. But what they want is affordable housing.
My reaction: Affordable housing is not the only issue on the table in Coney Island. What about the hotels? The recreation areas? What about the mayor's plan, the developer's plan, the Municipal Arts Society plan? What about the history of Coney Island?
Condos for Affordable Housing?
"I think the affordable housing for luxury condos equation needs to be rethought. The problem is that affordable housing is treated as an afterthought.
My reaction: Affordable housing treated as an afterthought is a good line.
Small Business?
In answer to this question, I sensed a bit more passion. Thompson told me that one of the things he loves about Brooklyn Heights and Park Slope are the small shops. "I used to love to go to a bread shop on Court Street," he said. I wondered if it was Caputos but I forgot to ask. I have the feeling that a small business platform may be in the works for the campaign.
"I've been meeting with small business people over a period of time to get their opinions. Just had a meeting today. We discussed tax abatements, retail retention zone, a number of ideas. How to protect what is great about our neighborhoods is important. I want to collect ideas going forward and have a round table.
Big Ideas?
I knew we were just about out of time. I asked if he had any big ideas to add sparkle to his campaign. His answer was disappointing and lackluster.
"We have a few ideas rolling out over the next few weeks in the areas of small business, job creation, education."
My reaction: His "I'll get back to you" answer was disappointing.
City Budget?
I asked Thompson how bad the city budget really is. Critics of Bloomberg are saying that this year's budget was a pre-election Band Aid solution; the cuts weren't so bad but trouble lies ahead…
"Next year will be much worse. After the election they'll be closing down senior centers, childcare vouchers will be reduced and more," Thompson said.
My reaction: The fact that he said "they'll be closing down senior centers" suggests that Thompson doesn't think he's going to be the mayor. That said, Thompson suggests that Bloomberg is waiting until after the election to make the cuts. This is a big issue for Thompson and one that he can potentially be passionate about.
And what about reform of the City Council?
"The City Council has lost its independence. It isn't an independent institution. Every mayor wants to work with the City Council…(he trailed off).
My reaction: No talk of reform to the way the City Council works was disappointing.
How are you framing your concerns to the public?
"When you ask New Yorkers if their future is brighter than before they say no. I will make them aware of the flaws in the city: the rise in homelessness, unemployment,
And Finally: Overturning of term limits?
I asked Thompson how big a deal he's going to make out of the fact that Bloomberg overturned term limits.
"New Yorkers are upset and frustrated by what he did. He said he would never go against what the voters wanted. And then he did. He lied to the people. And that resonates with them."
And those are fightin' words. The candidate who has been called the stealth candidate by the New York Times has plenty to run on. He just needs to get his juices flowing and find some passion about the issues that matter to New Yorkers.
The big deal this weekend in Brooklyn is Siren Fest (officially the Siren Music Festival) in Coney Island,
