Frank Morano

Frank Morano, a local Independence Party activist who is perhaps best-known for encouraging Lindsay Lohan to run for public advocate (it was before her D.U.I.s), does not think the rise of John McCain spells the end of Michael Bloomberg’s presidential ambitions.

Morano made his case in an email to me earlier this morning:  read more »

That hyper-publicized Michael Bloomberg interview with Dan Rather on DNET is airing tonight at 8 p.m., and according to several news outlets, the major development is that Bloomberg says that he’s not running for president and that he isn't electable anyway.

Does this reiteration of his official position change anything?

Certainly, the Bloomberg's small-but-passionate group of presidential boosters seem to think not.

Even as the interview airs, members of the Draft Bloomberg effort will be gathering for their weekly meeting at the Old Town.

Another Bloomberg supporter, Independence Party activist Frank Morano, put it this way:

“It’s more or less the same thing he’s said before. I don’t think the fact that he said he’s not running, again, is news.

“I believe and it’s my hope that when the major party notions are picked next years that the mayor will have a sense of duty and feel there is no other option other than to jump into the race.”

Below is an excerpt of the interview Rather's network sent over.  read more »

On Friday, a group of volunteers will circulate petitions to draft Michael Bloomberg to run for president, which will be a rare tangible (if unauthorized) sign of the mayor's hypothetical candidacy.

The petition effort is being organized by Independence Party activist Frank Morano, who has had mixed success trying to get other high-profile figures to run for office.

The petitioning will take place at 11 a.m. on Friday, at the corner of 31st St & 7th Ave, outside of the building where the Mayor conducts his weekly radio address. And, as Morano noted in a media advisory, “he'll have to pass the petition gatherers as he enters and leaves the building.”

Which means photo-ops, for anyone who's interested.

Days after it was discovered that $3.6 million was stolen from a government account under the watch of term-limited Comptroller Bill Thompson, Independence Party activist Frank Morano -- who has an interesting record of recruiting candidates -- has sent out a letter urging Richmond County Clerk Stephen Fiala to run for comptroller on the Republican and Independence Party lines.

Morano's letter almost certainly has more to do with riding a wave a bad press for Thompson than backing an eventual winner. But there it is.  read more »

UPDATE: The letter is after the jump.

-- Azi Paybarah

WARNING: If you find accounts of the perpetual feuding within the Independence Party to be boring and incomprehensible, do not read any further.

The state Independence Party organization has taken the unusual step of forming a three-member panel (sound familiar?) to investigate the party's county organizations and see if their rosters contain phantom party members. (This, according to IP member Frank Morano, who is perhaps best known in NY political circles for an ostensibly earnest effort to draft Lindsay Lohan into politics.)

State party rules require a certain number of active members to be on a county organization's committee in order for it to have the power to endorse candidates and function autonomously. Morano said that he and others suspect some organizations have on their committees people who never asked to be there, people who moved out of state and others who are ineligible to serve.

The members of this new panel include Tom Connolly, who chairs the Rensselaer County organization, state party secretary Bill Bogart and Morano.

All three are loyalists of state chairman, Frank MacKay, who is in a protracted fight with Lenora Fulani and others in the party.

For those of you who could benefit from a quick review: MacKay says that Fulani is a racist and her followers are under the spell of a cult led by pseudo-psychologist Fred Newman, while Fulani and her people say that MacKay is a racist and a pawn of the Democratic and Republican Parties.

Imagine those IP holiday parties!

-- Azi Paybarah

Here's an unusual bid to spur the youth vote: a letter to Lindsay Lohan from gregarious local Independence Party activist Frank Morano, who holds a day job as a producer on the Curtis and Kuby radio show.

Morano, who is in his twenties, appeals to Lohan as a "role model" who should "seriously consider entering the political arena." He suggests that she make a bid for public advocate as her debut.

He's serious, as far as I can tell.

December 27th, 2006

Dear Ms. Lohan: I've quite simply been in awe of not only your talents as an actress, singer and model, but your remarkable ability to handle the constant media scrutiny that you've been subject to, even when it clearly crosses the line of what's appropriate. As you probably know, you're a role model to hundreds of thousands of young Americans, particularly young women all over the country. As someone in his twenties, I can't praise you enough for using this position to raise awareness on so many issues affecting young people, like substance abuse and the importance of a good work ethic.  read more »

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The race to fill the Staten Island City Council seat being vacated by Andrew Lanza, who is going to the state Senate, is shrinking before it really grows.

Independence Party activist Frank Morano announced he will not be a candidate in next year's special election for that seat, saying the ongoing court battle over control of the IP is taking up too much time.

In an email sent to supporters, Morano said, "First, I'm currently in the midst of a complicated court battle for the heart and soul of the Independence Party of Staten Island. If I were to run for any office at this point, it would be a distraction that could potentially lead to our borough's best hope for long-term political reform in the hands of divisive, controversial extremists who would undo the great work that so many of us have done."

He went on to endorse "Assemblyman Vincent Ignizio" who Morano called "a dear friend and someone who I trust enormously. "

"So, while I won't be a candidate for City Council this year, I'm incredibly excited about the upcoming election where I'll be campaigning hard for Vincent Ignizio."

Also running for that seat is Manny Innamorato, who announced his candidacy on Saturday.

Anybody else running for that seat?

-- Azi Paybarah

The state's Independence Party has had enough distractions and internal fighting this year to make them look more like a circus and less like the New York's largest minor party.

They might be hard to take seriously at all -- if it weren't for term limits. It's an issue where their procedure-orientated agenda dovetails neatly with voter pessimism, giving them a weird relevance even as their other issues - internal fights, alleged anti-Semitism -- turn people away.

Yesterday, the IP chairman of Staten Island, Frank Morano, sent Christine Quinn a lengthy letter asking her not to yield to the growing pressure from her constituents on the city council by changing term limits.

"It's been such a disappointment to scores of New Yorkers all over the city that you seem to be entertaining the idea of tinkering with our city's Term Limits law. I'd like to urge you not to do so."

It's only an early shot across the bow, and nothing compared to what billionaire term-limits advocate Ron Lauder (or Mike Bloomberg, for that matter) may do if and when Quinn tries to pass new legislation on the matter or put it on the ballot. But still, it's worth marking an occasion where the Independence Party may be more in tune with average voters than the elected council.

-- Azi Paybarah

Sarah Lyons, a Lenora Fulani ally was removed yesterday as the County Chairperson for the Independence Party on Staten Island.

Replacing Sarah is 21-year-old Frank Morano, formerly of Draft Golisano fame.

So far, the state Independence Party has taken action in Brooklyn, Queens and The Bronx.

So what is next? A recall of Manhattan County Chair Cathy Stewart?

State Chairman Frank McKay hopes so. The numbers, he said, are there. Then again, so is Fred Newman.

Of the 900 or so county committee members in Manhattan, "I feel very strongly that there are 106 to 163 outright cult members that, I hope this never happens, but if Fred Newman ever asked them to drink Kool Aid...that they might actually do that," McKay told The Politicker. "I hope it's simply a political cult."

Most of the others don't even know they're on the county committee, he said.

--Azi Paybarah