Good morning, it’s Thursday.
Major news is coming out of New York City this morning. You might want to cut to the chase and jump directly to the headlines so you can catch up on what reportedly is the first mayor in modern Big Apple history to be charged while in office.
Your call. But my musings will be here for you when you get back – assuming you manage to pick yourself up off the floor by then.
Personally, I needed a while to wrap my head around this story, which I started to hear word of on the train on my way back from – where else? – New York City. I have to say that I am not sorry to be sitting on the sidelines of this one. It’s a real mess.
Anywho…
Breakfast is, in my opinion, the best meal of the day. I do not consider supposedly “breakfast food” limited to breakfast, for the record. In my book, any time of the day is a good time to consume eggs, waffles, cereal, bagels (preferably with lox and cream cheese), yogurt with fruit, french toast, and, most of all, pancakes.
I don’t actually make or eat pancakes all that often. Too much effort is involved – even with the ready-made mixes that are available in so many varieties (gluten-free, protein-packed, keto etc. and so forth) – and I somehow don’t gravitate to them when I eat out.
If they are made well – big “if” there – pancakes are great, though I guess a lot of that depends on your taste. I personally like my pancakes both crispy (on the outside) AND fluffy (on the inside), a sort of tough combo to get right, and one that I find almost no one – at least in the eating-out world – has managed to perfect to my exacting standards.
Pancakes seem – to me, anyway – like such an American breakfast staple. They’re on the menu at pretty much any self-respecting restaurant, from high-end (perhaps made with fermented buckwheat or sourdough) to the most humble roadside diner.
An estimated 75 billion pancakes are consumed in the U.S. annually, and you would be hard-pressed to find someone living in the 50 states who doesn’t like pancakes – at least a little. But, pancakes actually did not originate in this country, nor are they unique to the U.S. table.
Crepes (France). Blini (Russia). Injera (Ethiopia, Eritrea and parts of Somalia). Socca (a flatbread made with chickpea flour, and France again). Pfannkuchen, Palatschinken, or Eierkuchen (AKA Dutch Baby pancakes, Germany). Roti, Dosa, Appams, Meetha poodA (India).
You get the idea. The pancake – or something close to it – is near about as close to universal a foodstuff as one can get.
It appears that the earliest version of the pancake dates back to ancient Rome and/or Greece. To be sure, these were a rather humble affair made with just flour and water, cooked in oil and eaten hot – perhaps with honey. Something similar was also enjoyed in China around the same time – between 300 and 500 BCE – though that version appears to have been made with millet.
The actual word “pancake” to describe this sort of batter-based delicacy did not appear until the medieval era, according to the Oxford English Dictionary. They were popular among working-class people for being cheap, tasty, and filling – a winning combination.
Today is National Pancake Day – one of two observed throughout the year. (The other is in February).
And neither of these days should be confused with Shrove Tuesday, which is the last day before the start of Lent and its 40 days of austerity. The name is derived from “shrive,” an archaic verb meaning to confess or give penance. It’s traditional in much of the Western world to eat pancakes on Shrove Tuesday because it was a way for Christians to use up their eggs and milk – two ingredients banned during Lent – before the fast officially kicked off.
You might opt for putting in the extra time it takes to whip up some pancakes for breakfast (they also freeze well, I’m told), to brighten up this gloomy morning. More rain is on tap today, with temperatures in the mid-to-high 60s.
In the headlines…
Mayor Eric Adams has been indicted on federal criminal charges, according to multiple reports citing people with knowledge of the matter, and will be the first mayor in modern New York City history to be charged while in office.
The indictment is sealed. It was unclear what charge or charges Adams will face or when he will surrender to the authorities. Federal prosecutors are expected to announce details. The U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan declined to comment.
“I always knew that If I stood my ground for New Yorkers that I would be a target – and a target I became,” Adams said in a video statement. “If I am charged, I am innocent and I will fight this with every ounce of my strength and spirit.”
“I will fight these injustices with every ounce of my strength and my spirit,” Adams said, adding: “I am innocent”. The mayor said he plans to request an “immediate trial so New Yorkers can hear the truth”.
On calls for his resignation, Adams said: “I can also understand how everyday New Yorkers would be concerned that I cannot do my job while I face accusations, but I have been facing these lies for months.”
Close to midnight, Frank Carone, former City Hall chief of staff, exited Gracie Mansion. He described the mayor as “strong” and would not respond to calls to resign saying: Like anybody else, he is innocent until proven guilty and he deserves his day in court.”
A spokesman Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement that the governor was aware of the mayor’s indictment and would be monitoring the situation, adding: “It would be premature to comment further until the matter is confirmed by law enforcement.
The only person who can replace Adams is Hochul. She has the power under the City Charter to take the extraordinary action to remove him from office before his term is up.
Under the charter, Hochul could suspend Adams for up to 30 days and then remove him “after service upon him of a copy of the charges and an opportunity to be heard in his defense.” A governor has not exercised such powers in recent memory.
If Adams’ tenure ends prematurely, Jumaane Williams, the city’s public advocate, is next in line to become the city’s acting mayor and a special election would be scheduled that would likely draw a number of candidates – some of whom have already declared.
Williams has been slowly working behind the scenes to prepare for the job, and reportedly began talking with his allies about the scenario as early as last year, not long after the mayor’s cellphone and other electronic devices were seized in November.
New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, who plans to run against Adams in 2025, said yesterday was “a sad day for New Yorkers,” after news of the indictment broke, and that “the most appropriate path forward” is for Adams to step aside.
News of the indictment is already shifting the flow of local politics. VOCAL-NY just said they have canceled a news conference scheduled to be held today to protest Adams’ proposal to give police more power.
Even before the news of the indictment broke, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York said Eric Adams should resign as mayor, becoming the most prominent Democrat to push for his ouster amid federal corruption investigations involving his administration.
“The flood of resignations and vacancies are threatening gov function,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “Nonstop investigations will make it impossible to recruit and retain a qualified administration. For the good of the city, he should resign.”
Adams, facing a major crisis that is worsening by the day, quickly appointed a new schools chancellor – Deputy Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos – less than 24 hours after the abrupt resignation of David C. Banks, his longtime friend.
A native New Yorker, Ms. Aviles-Ramos, 42, has a deep knowledge of the city’s intricate educational bureaucracy. She rose through the ranks of the school system, serving as an English teacher, high school principal and superintendent in the Bronx.
Congress yesterday gave final approval to a short-term spending bill to avert a government shutdown just ahead of the November elections, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden’s desk but punting a bigger funding fight to the end of the year.
In a pair of votes in quick succession, lawmakers in both chambers overwhelmingly voted to pass the measure to keep federal funding flowing through Dec. 20. The Senate vote was 78 to 18. All the “no” votes were Republicans.
“Our focus now turns exclusively to Nov. 5,” House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters. “Our members are now returning to their districts and they’ll be working in their districts until the election and they will be making their case to the voters.”
Biden applauded Congress for “avoiding a costly government shutdown,” saying in a statement that it gives lawmakers “more time to pass full-year funding bills by the end of this year.”
A bipartisan House majority passed a resolution condemning Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and 13 other current and former members of the administration over their roles in the chaotic and deadly U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
The US, its European allies and several Arab nations unveiled a joint cease-fire proposal to temporarily end the deadly fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, hoping to avert a wider war and bolster stalled negotiations between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
“It is time for a settlement on the Israel-Lebanon border that ensures safety and security to enable civilians to return to their homes,” Biden said in a joint statement issued yesterday evening with President Emmanuel Macron of France.
The situation in Lebanon has become “intolerable” and “is in nobody’s interest, neither of the people of Israel nor of the people of Lebanon,” the statement released by the White House, said.
Biden delivered a blunt assessment of Trump’s character on ABC’s “The View”, saying “there’s not a lot of redeeming value” to him. Asked if he would have won if he stayed in the race Biden said: “I was confident I would beat Trump. He’s a loser.”
A fleet of New York City sanitation trucks served as the first line of defense for Biden as he made an appearance on ABC’s “The View” in Lower Manhattan.
Trump’s advisers are reportedly considering whether to modify his travel after threats to his life from Iran and two assassination attempts, a shift that could affect the way the Republican nominee campaigns in the race’s final stretch.
The leader of a Haitian community nonprofit invoked a private-citizen right to file charges against Trump and his running mate, over the chaos and threats experienced by Springfield, OH, since Trump first spread false claims about legal immigrants there.
Trump, who has peppered his pleas for donations with declarations of ardor for his followers in fund-raising pitches of late, frequently deploying the word “love.”
Senior staff members in the office of Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson of North Carolina have said they will resign on Oct. 1, becoming the latest people to abandon the GOP nominee for governor, after a CNN report that linked him to disturbing comments on a porn site.
Harris promised “a new way forward” for the middle class in a closely watched speech on economic policy in the battleground state of Pennsylvania, and assailed Trump as a friend of billionaires, not working Americans.
Since two teachers and two students were killed at Apalachee High School in Georgia, more than 700 children and teens, including at least one fourth grader, have been arrested and accused of making violent threats against schools in at least 45 states.
The MTA board yesterday unanimously signed off on the agency’s $65.4 billion capital plan designed to prevent the city’s mass transit infrastructure from falling into disrepair — effectively sending Hochul an enormous bill in the process.
The ask — the biggest in the MTA’s history — is turning the screws on Hochul to either once again stick it to transit advocates or find a way to cough up the huge sum of cash.
New Yorkers in critical battleground congressional districts don’t like Hochul — which could make her a political liability for Democrats in the upcoming races that could determine control of the House of Representatives, a set of new polls have found.
Ex-New York Congressman Mondaire Jones apologized to Hochul after saying he didn’t want a “little bitch” as New York governor.
“I want my Democratic governor of New York to be a political animal — I want them to maximize Democratic power,” Jones told The New Yorker in a piece published yesterday.
And in light of a warming climate, public health threats like EEE — currently rare — may someday become more commonplace, according to researchers who see a correlation between warming temperatures and an increase in mosquito-borne diseases.
Federal investigators are seeking communications among the former NYPD commissioner, his twin brother and officers that might show payments made in exchange for favors to nightclubs, according to a person with direct knowledge of the investigation.
Adams’ “City of Yes” housing plan, aimed at tackling the affordability crisis by loosening outdated zoning restrictions to allow “a little more housing” in every neighborhood, overcame a critical hurdle by landing the City Planning Commission’s nod.
Adams’ lawyers slammed the woman accusing him in a lawsuit of sexual assault, questioning the credibility of Lorna Beach-Mathura’s explanation for why she missed a court-ordered deposition earlier this month and referencing past lawsuits she’d filed.
Activists reportedly targeted the Brooklyn home of an NYPD cop, accusing him of aggressively handling a protest over a police-involved shooting in a Brooklyn subway station a day earlier.
A federal judge overseeing New York City’s violent and dangerous jails yesterday ordered Department of Correction leaders to meet with lawyers for prisoners to create a plan for an “outside person” who could run the system.
New York City has a new high school newspaper initiative, Journalism for All. It will create journalism programs at 30 high schools across the city, giving them a curriculum to follow and providing intensive training for teachers.
An Amtrak train derailed as it left Manhattan’s Penn Station yesterday, causing severe delays for both Amtrak and NJ Transit commuters in the area and prompting road closures near the station, according to rail and New York City emergency officials.
Three Rensselaer County officials accused of conspiring to commit ballot fraud were found not guilty on all counts by a federal jury yesterday following a two-week trial that delved into the inner workings of the county’s political machinations.
New Niskayuna Supervisor Erin Cassady-Dorion lists her top priorities as finishing up next year’s preliminary town budget plan and clearing up what she views as strongly held misconceptions about the big water and sewer increases some residents faced.
Two veteran local restaurateurs are collaborating to open the area’s first Japanese-Italian fusion restaurant, due to open in late winter.
The Uncommon Grounds coffee and bagel shop chain is continuing its expansion in the Capital Region with plans for a store at the Albany International Airport.
A new apartment building in Albany’s Park South neighborhood was recently unveiled — a development that is a part of state efforts to address the affordable housing crisis in New York.
The Chief Warrant Officer 2 Casey Nicole Frankoski Endowed Scholarship has passed the $25,000 mark — giving it endowment status at Excelsior University.
Jon Stewart, longtime host of “The Daily Show,” is heading to Albany a week and a half before Election Day. He will host “An Evening with Jon Stewart” on Oct. 25 at the Palace Theatre.
As Schenectady and Saratoga Springs face potential deficits for their 2025 budgets, Mayor Carmella Mantello said the Collar City is operating in the black and she’s considering a cut to the city’s garbage fee as she drafts her first mayoral budget due Oct. 10.
Photo credit: George Fazio.
