Schumer: ‘An American citizen has won’ the marathon.
‘And another great American citizen is going to win this race.’
U.S. Senator Charles Schumer, Democratic City Comptroller Nominee John Liu and just about every other elected official in Northeast Queens led a large, boisterous rally for Democratic City Council candidate Kevin Kim at the Bay Terrace Shopping Center on the last Sunday before Election Day.
The event was held in memory of Al Cahn, a longtime community and Democratic activist who passed away this week at the age of 96. The tireless Cahn has inspired countless fellow Democrats in the area, collecting as many as 1,500 petition signatures himself just last year. A moment of silence preceded the rally.
The rally, which drew about 100 Kim supporters, also attracted a small band of extreme right-wing protestors supporting Republican opponent Dan Halloran, with signs reading “Don’t Tread on Me” and “You Lie,” the latter quoting the recent incident in which South Carolina Congressman Joe Wilson triggered bipartisan outrage across the country by shouting the phrase at President Obama. The protestors also shouted at the Kim supporters, one calling them “Communists” and “Socialists” like “Barack Hussein Obama” and another screaming “Don’t take away our freedom.”
The rally speakers dismissed the protestors as coming from the same fringe circles that have fueled the national anti-government “tea party” movement.
Besides Senator Schumer and Councilman Liu, attending the rally were: Assembly Members Rory Lancman, Mark Weprin, Ann-Margaret Carrozza, Grace Meng and Michael Gianaris; City Council Members David Weprin and Jim Gennaro; former Council District 19 candidate Steve Behar; District Leader and Queens County Young Democrats President Costa Constantinides; District Leaders John and Mary Ann Dorsa; members of CWA Local 1180, St. John’s College Democrats, the Michel Regular Democratic Club of College Point, the Jefferson Democratic Club and the Saul Weprin Democratic Club; representatives from City Council Speaker Christine Quinn’s office; community leaders Pauline Chu, Yonghwa Ha, Barbara Leonardi, Dilip Chauhan, Michael Tkach and David Fischer; and many local volunteers and supporters.
