Get in, loser. Cohen’s casino team is hiring.

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Aug 01, 2024 View in browser   By Jason Beeferman and Sally Goldenberg The team working to build a casino next to Citi Field just got a boost. | paul.hadsall via flickr MEET THE (NEW) METS: After a rough stretch, billionaire Steve Cohen is holding a hot hand. One of the most powerful but little-known people in the state Legislature is joining the ranks of the sprawling and highly-compensated team behind the Mets owner’s casino bid, Playbook is first to report. And the move gives Cohen another in with state Senate leadership after losing the support of Jessica Ramos, whose backing is critical for his quest to build a high-end gaming facility with a hotel, concert venue and a park next to Citi Field. Eric Katz, who served as lead counsel to the state Senate majority for the past three years — one of the highest non-elected positions in the Legislature — is joining Cohen’s Metropolitan Park as its general counsel, a spokesperson for the company confirmed. It’s the latest sign that Cohen isn’t done yet, even after the progressive Ramos publicly panned his project in May. In fact, Katz’s hiring now puts two former forces of the Legislature in Cohen’s corner. Shontell Smith, who was both counsel and chief of staff to the Senate majority as recently as 2022, now works on behalf of Cohen’s bid through her role as a partner at lobbying and consulting firm Tusk Strategies. Katz will face a two year ban from lobbying the Legislature directly, while Smith’s ban is up. She can now work to persuade her former colleagues — namely Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins — to approve Cohen’s project even without Ramos’ coveted backing. Cohen will need all the legislative firepower he can muster as he attempts to convince Senate leadership to pass a bill to free up the city parkland next to the baseball stadium to make way for the casino. (The site is currently a parking lot.) Traditionally, legislative moves to free up city parkland would need buy-in from the local lawmaker — in this case Ramos. But she has been adamant in her opposition following a series of spats with Cohen’s team, even as the Mets owner spent millions of dollars to sway her and her community otherwise. (The bid has support from the local Assemblymember, borough president and City Council member.) Ramos did not respond to requests for comment. In May, Stewart-Cousins also seemed unlikely to advance a parkland bill without approval from Ramos. A state Senate source says her opinion has not changed. Stewart-Cousin’s staff declined to comment. — Jason Beeferman and Sally Goldenberg   Millions of retiring Americans rely on Social Security benefits, but the program is running at a deficit and Congress has struggled to find a solution for years. Join POLITICO on August 7 to explore what can be done to save the program. What other steps can Congress take to ensure its future? And how could Social Security impact the affordability and housing crisis facing aging New Yorkers? REGISTER HERE.     From the Capitol Speaker of the House Mike Johnson speaks at Columbia University amid campus unrest in April. House GOP lawmakers are threatening to subpoena Columbia University. | Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images HOUSE GOP VS. COLUMBIA: House Education Committee Chair Virginia Foxx threatened to subpoena Columbia University officials today, accusing them of stonewalling the committee’s antisemitism probe. In a letter to Columbia President Minouche Shafik and the co-chairs of the Board of Trustees, Foxx, a North Carolina Republican, accused the university of failing to provide “priority items” key to an investigation it started in February into the school’s response to antisemitism on campus. That includes a list of student and faculty disciplinary cases connected to alleged antisemitic incidents since Hamas’ deadly Oct. 7 attack on Israel or conduct related to a pro-Palestinian student encampment earlier this year. She also asked for recordings of Board of Trustees meetings since April 17, when Shafik testified at a congressional hearing on antisemitism. “In many cases, these items were requested months ago,” she wrote. “Columbia’s continued failure to produce these priority items is unacceptable, and if this is not promptly rectified, the Committee is prepared to compel their production.” Foxx gave administrators until Aug. 8 to submit the documents. — Madina Touré MONEY MAN: Fresh off announcing a run for mayor, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander is touting a 10 percent net return on the city’s pension funds over the last year. That outpaces last fiscal year’s 8 percent return, and is well over the 7 percent legally required target, Lander’s office said in a press release. The comptroller’s office has fiduciary responsibility over five retirement funds for city workers, totaling $274 billion in investments. Lander didn’t exactly need to be an investing wizard. It’s been a good year for the stock market, at the S&P 500 netting a roughly 23 percent return over the same period. Lander’s office noted that, saying public equities delivered the lion’s share of returns, particularly investments in companies linked to artificial intelligence. — Jeff Coltin COP SHOP: The ranks of the New York State Police are set to expand again under Hochul, who has been eager to reframe the law enforcement debate. Her office announced today the entrance examination for the next State Police class will begin Aug. 15. New York is spending $66 million for additional academy classes in the year to increase the State Police’s numbers. Hochul has also sought to increase the number of women serving in the State Police. The number of women troopers has increased from 558 to 680 since 2021. The push comes as Hochul has responded to the persistent concerns raised by voters over public safety. Even with some violent crimes being reduced, voters have continued to cite the issue as a major problem facing the state. Republicans successfully seized on the crime issue during the 2022 elections and Hochul clinched a relatively narrow victory for a full term. “Public safety is my top priority, and we will continue to make record investments in law enforcement so that New York State is best prepared to protect New Yorkers,” Hochul said. — Nick Reisman IN OTHER NEWS... — YOU’RE BEING SUED, ERIC: The City Council is suing Mayor Adams for failing to implement a package of laws passed last year. (City & State) — TRUMP’S GAG ORDER: A narrowed version of Trump’s New York gag order will remain in place for now. (POLITICO) — CITY HOMELESSNESS REPORT: A new report slams Hochul and Adams for their handling of the city’s homelessness crisis. (New York Daily News) Missed this morning’s New York Playbook? Read it here.   Follow us on Twitter Jason Beeferman @JasonBeeferman   Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook  |  Playbook PM  |  California Playbook  |  Florida Playbook  |  Illinois Playbook  |  Massachusetts Playbook  |  New Jersey Playbook  |  New York Playbook  |  Brussels Playbook  |  London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters Follow us

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