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In today’s CapCon, former Gov. George E. Pataki was the last Republican to win statewide in New York. What advice does he have for Nassau County Bruce Blakeman as he tries to do the same? I asked him about that Wednesday.
Then, Blakeman was also in Albany Wednesday and pushed back on framing that he’s completely aligned with President Donald J. Trump. He’s not, he says, and plans to make that clear in the coming weeks.
And, new lobbying data shows that spending increased during this year’s legislative session compared to 2025, due entirely to expenses more than doubling. Here are the top spenders of the year and top-lobbied bills at the end of session.
Plus, lawmakers want to repeal a decades-old ban on bathhouses enacted during the AIDS crisis in New York City and Hochul has signed a bill on Legionnaires’ disease.
Names in today’s CapCon: George Pataki, Bruce Blakeman, Kathy Hochul, Donald J. Trump, Sanford N. Berland, Jordan Wright, H. Carl McCall, Mario Cuomo, Lee Zeldin, Dave Catalfamo, Mary Beth Walsh, Jerry Jennings, John T. McDonald, Blake Washington, Karen Persichilli Keogh, David Weinraub, Erik Bottcher, Tony Simone, Cordell Cleare
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