Brooklyn's Progress
June/July 2007

BY STEPHEN WITT

Some reporters carry mental axioms while working.

Mine of late is to be skeptical, not cynical. In other words, it’s valid, even prudent, to doubt and question what some say. This doesn’t mean that only selfishness motivates human actions.

This came to mind on my recent trip as an “embedded reporter” with the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce to meet with the borough’s elected officials representing us in Washington, D.C.

As a veteran reporter, I’ve dealt with all these officials at one time or another, but going to Washington gave me the opportunity to see them up close and personal on their home turf.

The legislative offices we visited included Senators Hillary Clinton and Charles Schumer, and Rep. Nydia Velázquez, Ed Towns, Vito Fossella, Anthony Weiner, Yvette Clarke and Jerrold Nadler.

Of the lot, two are running for higher office – Sen. Clinton for president and Rep. Weiner for mayor.

I noted some observations about both. While Sen. Clinton doesn’t have the people skills or charisma of her husband, she is intelligent, tough and has a solid grasp on issues. She is also on campaign mode and after her breakfast speech before the Chamber Alliance of New York State, she worked the room like an old pro – shaking hands and posing for photos.

As it happened, immediately following the breakfast we had a meeting with one of her aides. I could not help but notice the magazines in the waiting area of her office: National Geographic, U.S. News and World Report, Newsweek, American Heritage, Business Week and Fortune, perhaps ironically with a cover story about New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg possibly running for president.

Sen. Clinton’s aide came into the room and met with us out in the hall. He seemed friendly and took notes, but some grumbling within the Chamber’s 17-member party after learning that aide’s primary duty involved issues related to the more rural parts of the state.

At Rep. Weiner’s office, the aide at the front desk had each of us fill out a form complete with name, address, job title and phone contact, making me wonder if it wasn’t perhaps for some type of campaign mailing list.

Afterward, we were ushered into a side room where Rep. Weiner came in and briefly went through the Chamber’s concerns before admonishing them for not decrying Mr. Bloomberg’s plan for congestion pricing with hardly a thought about it.

Then he was off for a congressional vote, a man on the move physically and politically – proactive, smart and even slightly arrogant. His demeanor oozed Washington.

The nation’s capital, you see, is a town of marble, museums and monuments. Add in cartloads of tax money, high-priced lobbyists, and a bevy of self-important support staff and you get a healthy dose of skepticism.

But between the War in Iraq, global warming and the upcoming presidential and mayoral elections, it’s hardly time for cynicism.