Friday, March 11, 2016

Will Bob Capano emerge as one of the leaders of a “New” Brooklyn GOP

He is one of the few Brooklyn Republicans who has been talking about stitching the Brooklyn Republican Party back together again


Meanwhile, Brooklyn Republican Bob Capano continues to rack up space in local newspapers ---  Part of that was by emerging as the only Republican “Leader” willing to speak out on topics of importance to the community 


Quite often lately, this blog has followed Robert Capano, the once and future GOP candidate for the City Council from Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights and parts of neighboring areas. Largely, this blog has been focused on Bob’s recent effective use of the local media to accomplish two things: first, get his name back in front of the public after he had been a few years out of the limelight, but still very active in Brooklyn Republican politics; and second, to help take a leadership role in the Republican Party in 2016 and 2017 following repeated destructive assaults on the Republican organization in Brooklyn in 2013 and 2015. Capano’s success in that regard is manifest by the continuing coverage of his activities and comments in and by local newspapers.

The most recent of those items is a guest spot doing an opinion column in the Brooklyn Eagle (See “OPINION: Brooklyn conservative calls for 'Common Sense' to fight crime, help NYPD” by Bob Capano, 3/10/16, For The Brooklyn Daily Eagle [http://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/2016/3/10/opinion-brooklyn-conservative-calls-common-sense-fight-crime-help-nypd]).

In that article, Capano basically said Mr. Paul Massey and  NY1 polling was exactly right.  “....  The vast majority of Brooklynites and New Yorkers, regardless of political party affiliation, fully support our NYPD and do not want to give our streets back to criminals. [Capano says that he knows] this is especially true in Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights and Bensonhurst, where [he has] spent many years working closely with our 68th Precinct and local residents....”

Most important, Bob Capano stepped forward as one of the new Republican leaders in Brooklyn when he said the following: “....  This is why it is surprising that local Brooklyn Democratic leaders have remained silent in standing up to these far-left policies of Melissa Mark-Viverito. Common sense dictates that we do not mess with what has worked to make NYC safe, and we stop the experimentation with these far-left criminal justice reforms....”

RECENT MEETING WITH CAPANO AND ONE OF HIS SUPPORTERS

I recently met with Mr. Capano and one of his supporters in the leadership of the Brooklyn GOP.  Although most of that conversation was off the record, Capano did authorize me to observe that he wanted to work toward unifying the Brooklyn GOP and its Conservative Party allies for the 2016 election cycle, long before he intended to actively and specifically campaign for the City Council in 2017.

He noted that there were many things that Republican conservatives could do immediately to show that they are both present and active in Southwest Brooklyn. Lately, his chosen method has been to speak out as an active Brooklyn Republican, both in local papers and at organized meetings. These presentations were on a variety of topical subjects relevant to Brooklyn generally, and Southwest Brooklyn in particular.

On the practical political side, Capano said he was getting ready to announce several early members of his financial and political committees along with several other significant patrons who were committed to support his efforts going forward.

The other person present expressed his belief that Bob Capano’s plan to keep both his name and his positions on topical matters repeatedly before the public will be part of a triad of notable things that will keep Capano at or near the top of the Brooklyn GOP —  AND  —  way ahead of anybody else interested in joining the race for the City Council further down the road. The other two parts of that triad would be overwhelming financing for a Capano candidacy foe City Council; and a unifying  leadership presence inside a Brooklyn GOP rising from the ashes, most recently from the 2015 primary, convention and Bd. of Elections conflicts, and the 2016 lawsuit.

64 comments:

Anonymous said...



Can we get a link to the poll you are referring to about Brooklyn residents saying they are less safe?

I see a poll about NYC residents, but nothing about Brooklyn residents.

Thank you.

Anonymous said...

Gale, do you think that Capano's use of "Common Sense" and referring to Republicans as "Conservatives" in the title of his Brooklyn Eagle "opinion" column was an intentional thing to cause some people to confuse it with Kassar's "Common Sense" "Opinion" column in the Home Reporter?

Anonymous said...

GM, much as you are enamored with Bob Capano, you neglect to mention that Capano is still a Staten Island resident and a member of the Richmond County Republican Committee. And there is no unifying the Conservatives and Republicans in Brooklyn. It's no secret that the Conservatives want to end any remaining influence that the GOP has in Brooklyn. One could say they are hysterical about any prospective GOP Candidate emerging, Bob Capano and anyone else not beholden to them.

Anonymous said...

Capano supporter? Who, pray tell, could that be?

Anonymous said...

The "New" Brooklyn GOP is a Staten Island resident?

Galewyn Massey said...

RESPONSE: THE "RELEVANT FACT" EDITION

TO: "ANONYMOUS SAID... 9:33 AM... 4:20 PM... & 1:09 PM..." ABOVE

First, Bob Capano is unequivocally and solidly a Brooklyn GOP "LEADER" regardless of any formal nearby address he might have.

Second, months ago, the "Capano supporter" mentioned in my post above had been so obvious to me that; when Mr. Capano told me that he was interested in running for the City Council again, I almost immediately called that perceived supporter and that Brooklyn supporter confirmed his support for Capano as the GOP candidate for the Brooklyn Council seat.

Third, the only relevant fact about Capano's residence presently is that >>> it in no way precludes Bob Capano's running for the Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights NYC Council seat nor setting up a finance committee for that purpose, including for NYC campaign matching funds.

SO SAVE YOUR WHINING FOR THE "CAMPAIGN" FOR THE GOP NOMINATION -- IF YOU CAN FIND AN APPROPRIATE GOP CANDIDATE OF YOUR OWN

Anonymous said...

If Bob Capano raises $200,000 by the end of the year the GOP and conservatives will be coming aboard.

Anonymous said...

Isn't that is one of them "IF - THEN" statements where nobody can know if it is true until the if part comes true?

The only way Capano gets $200,000 is if Catsawhatsis writes him a check for it. What are the chances of that?

Anonymous said...

As long as he has Lu-creature and Arnaldo the hut behind him he can't lose.

Anonymous said...

Bob Capano will encourage everybody to be onboard his campaign bus, but nobody, whether their name is Arnaldo or Marty or Ted, will be put there ahead of everybody or even anybody else.

Anonymous said...

It is very interesting that things have gotten so desperate for the GOP in Brooklyn that the only viable alternative to whatever candidate the prolific patronage mill AKA Brooklyn Conservative Party hoists on us lives in Staten Island and is a member of the Staten Island GOP.

Anonymous said...

Il Vinciatore !!

Anonymous said...

I dont know this for sure but i believe Robert maxed out with the campaign finance board when he ran for council on 2009. I assume he can do that again and then some with his now staten island connections and also throughout city through the CAT MAN.

Anonymous said...

Conservatives will only accept Quagione or McCabe. Which means that Ghora and Golden will only support Quaglione of McCabe. Brooklyn Conservatives would have made Boss Tweed blush. If not one of those two they'll support Linda Sarsour if they think they can get an extra job out of it.

Anonymous said...

Capano nor anyone else can win without conservative party.

Anonymous said...

What is 2:02 PM talking about? The Conservative Party didn't back Council Members Albanese or Gentile. Neither of them ever had the Conservative Party line & a much stronger Conservative Party never beat them for the Council.

Anonymous said...

No republican

Anonymous said...

Golden and Ghorra will only back the candidate picked by the Brooklyn Conservatives. Capano should remember how they stabbed Bob Turner in the back in the Congressional in favor of Wendy Long!

Anonymous said...

McCabe has been building a base from Bay Ridge for years.

Capano is talking about moving to Brooklyn someday.

Anonymous said...

McCabe will never run against Quaglione. Conservatives will pick Republican candidate. They will go with whoever gives them the most. Malliotakis had to promise them the moon to get them to switch support from Trump to Rubio but they still did it.

Galewyn Massey said...

UPDATE: THE " 'NEW LEADER' BOB LIKES ME" EDITION

ENOUGH OF ALL YOUR PICAYUNE DETAILS & JEJUENE BACK-BITING !!! WHEN IT COMES TO BOB CAPANO'S GETTING READY TO SWEEP ANY & ALL GOP OPPOSITION ASIDE LIKE A BUNCH OF LINT BALLS --- IT GETS MORE REAL EVERY DAY, SORT OF LIKE "THE DONALD"

Bob Capano liked my post above so much, he sent a copy of it out as his own release to his list of media outlets.

To paraphrase Sally Field, "He likes me.... He really likes me...."

"THE BOB" has me so giddy, next I'll be quoting Cole Porter; or maybe even, Chris Matthews.....

Anonymous said...

Enough with your obsession with Bob Capano already. He lives on Staten Island and aside from perennial also ran Lucretia no one will support him. Get some more sources for some new stories already. ;-)

Anonymous said...

I stand with gale!

And Capano!

#MakeBrooklynGreatAgain

Anonymous said...

Agree
#bobforbrooklyn

Anonymous said...

After last time,I can't tell if John Quaglione would want to run ever again for any office.

Anonymous said...

Bob lives on Staten Island and is a member of County Committee. Nobody cares about Lucretia's crackpot ideas...

Anonymous said...

I saw Bob and Arnaldo playing Bocce Ball in Bath Beach the other night. I think it's a done deal.

Anonymous said...

If bob in bath beach guess he made the move to brooklyn.

Anonymous said...

Lucretia and Bob are as Brooklyn as L&B pizza!

Anonymous said...

INS swept up Arnaldo and deported him to Corleone Sicily where Don Lucretia has guarenteed his safety

Anonymous said...



Why not give someone in the area a chance to run? Of course Bob is interested in the salary, but he hasn't lived here for years now.

Galewyn Massey said...

RESPONSE: THE "THERE IS NO OTHER CREDIBLE CANDIDATE" EDITION

EVEVERYBODY NOT BACKING BOB CAPANO NEEDS TO SHUT THEIR PIE HOLES UNTIL THEY HAVE A CREDIBLE CANDIDATE OF THEIR OWN -- SO FAR THE ONLY REPUBLICANS [AND POSSIBLY ONE CONSERVATIVE] MENTIONED ARE IN THE "LOL" CATEGORY

Bob Capano CAN legally run without changing a thing, Bob has very long and good ties to Brooklyn and the Council District; and you can't beat somebody with nobody....

Q.E.D. -- Right now, Bob Capano is "King of the Hill" for the 2017 GOP nomination for the Bay Ridge-Dyker Heights City Council District.

Anonymous said...

i agree with Gale. One mailing showing bob growing up in area through years and reminding people of have working in brooklyn as recent as 4 years ago with turner and showing up at local meeting over next year erases all this living where arguments..i think bob did about 7 points better than john running for council and if goal is to win, bob seems like best candidate with name ID and resume.

Anonymous said...

If anybody is the way GM talks about it: king of the hill; that would be John Quaglione. He was the last Republican/Conservative candidate for the council from Bay Ridge. He is well known as State Senator Golden's Bay Ridge Office manager. And Mr. Quaglione has been in the local papers and on facebook and twitter more than your Staten Islander BC.

Anonymous said...

The Brooklyn Conservatives will sabotage any candidate not anointed by them and beholden to them. They'll back Linda Sarsour if the deal looks good enough.

Anonymous said...

I heard the Brooklyn Conservatives already cut a deal with Peter Abbate.

Anonymous said...

They will cut a deal with anybody.

Anonymous said...

The conservative party reign over brooklyn gop needs to stop

Anonymous said...

Now that the Brooklyn Conservatives can't feed at the trough of the Rubio campaign they can stop pretending that they were supporting him in the first place.

Anonymous said...

Any campaign the Brooklyn Conservatives are involved in is for sure to be a losing one.

Anonymous said...

What are you guys talking about? Conservative Chairman Kassar, who is Republican Golden's Chief of Staff, can back a Democrat any time he wants like many times before.

Anonymous said...

Comments above accurate. Look there is NO republican that has made any concrete actions to run for city council period.

Anonymous said...

No matter which Republican runs the Conservatives will go after him with a vengeance if he doesn't give them a good deal beforehand. It's all about patronage for them no matter how good the candidate.

Anonymous said...

True..but considering there is no brooklyn gop to speak of or gop leaders who seem to have any interest isnt the brooklyn conservative party the only game in town?

Galewyn Massey said...

RESPONSE: THE "THREE-CARD MONTE" EDITION

WHEN YOU HAVE TO ASK, "WHO'S THE MARK ?" --- GUESS WHAT !

The Conservative Party might wind up the "...only game in town"; but whose fault is that ??? (My personal favorite answer to that question has the initials NYSSMG [long version].)

As for the nature, quality and legitimacy of the Conservatives' "...only game in town" --- it's always a game of "Three-card Monte" or a close variant of that; the dealer and the shill(s) are always in cahoots; and if you don't know who "The Mark" is, look out !!! It's definitely (begins with a "Y"; and ends with a "U"; with a little "o" in the middle -- now, YoU sound it out).......

Anonymous said...

lots of people with all kinds of agendas all want to make sure no viable democrat emerges against Golden.

And the democrats seem to have no problem with that.

Galewyn Massey said...

COMMENT: THE "I HEARD SOMETHING SIMILAR" EDITION

WITH 2016 POSSIBLY BEING A BIG YEAR IN MANY DEMOCRAT PRECINCTS, WHY NO ATTEMPT TO TAKE THE ISOLATED AND EXPOSED REPUBLICAN STATE SENATE SEAT IN BROOKLYN ???

In New York State the Democrats have been within a few seats of taking permanent control of the Upper Chamber for years.

Given demographic shifts, internal discord in the local GOP, and a Federal criminal probe of the GOP incumbent, how is it that no enterprising Democrats have stepped up to seize the moment, or at least be ready to do so.

Three-card Monte --- dealers and shills and look-outs --- Republicans, Conservatives and Democrats.....

Questions ??? Answers ???

Anonymous said...

Hang on a second, guys. Is this the same Bob Capano who went to John Catsimatidis looking to be his chief political adviser and instead was given a job bagging groceries at a Lower East Side bodega? I'm just trying to make sure I'm thinking of the same Bob Capano.

Galewyn Massey said...

RESPONSE: THE "BASICALLY -- YOU'RE KIND OF CLOSE" EDITION

Your timeline is off a bit, but you have some of the slots correct. Bob Capano is now plugged into the Johnny Cats' complex on multiple levels: including local PR, operations, personnel, national marketing & fuel services, and political consulting & PR.

Anonymous said...

John Cats is bent on paying back the Brooklyn Conservatives for their betrayal in 2013. They eagerly accepted his generous contributions and then used evey dirty trick imaginable against him after they endorsed Lhota. If it's not Capano it'll be somebody else that Cats backs against them whether they nominate Quaglione or McCabe.

Anonymous said...

Gale, get to a mirror and clean up. It's all over your nose.

Anonymous said...

Cats is known for paying back enemies, just ask eric ulrich..its payback for marty and conservatives. Capano will be fully supported for this and cats genuinely likes capano.

Anonymous said...

It's going to get very messy in the City Council race. It all depends on whether Quaglione and or Capano run, several people on GOP side waiting to see what they do before jumping in. Different people depending on who is the candidate.

Anonymous said...

Interesting point. Why do you think come will decide to run or not run if john does and some will decide to run or not run if bob runs. Make it sound like didfferent decision for different people depeding on which one, if any runs

Anonymous said...

Perceived consequences from John Cats and Marty Golden holding people back. One thing is certain that if John Q doesn't run and Conservatives try to shove their own on the Brooklyn GOP they are gonna get strong push back from unexpected places.

Galewyn Massey said...

OVERALL RESPONSE: THE "IT DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE AT ALL" EDITION

SOMEBODY WILL DO THIS & SOMEBODY ELSE WILL DO THAT --- BLAH, BLAH, BLAH.....

All that interest by so many in 2017; and next to nothing by anybody in 2016.... Maybe, that makes sense to somebody, it sure does not to me.

Meanwhile, Bob Capano does stuff like going to the Bay Ridge Historical Society meeting the other night. Guess what !?! About half a dozen people, maybe more, came up to him and wished him well on his run for the City Council [I guess people do read the papers and check-out the blogs]. Bob was introduced around & also introduced himself to many more of the fifty or sixty people who were at the BRHS meeting. That's called old school retail campaigning.

Anonymous said...

GM, your obsequious adoration of Capano is beneath you seriously. Are you sure it was five or six people shaking his hand and not four or eight? Bob doesn't even live near the District and actually lives in another borough he's been gone for many years and in the two races he ran in Brooklyn he lost by 40% and 21%.

Anonymous said...

<< Bob was introduced around & also introduced himself to many more of the fifty or sixty people who were at the BRHS meeting >>

I just spit my 5th cup of coffee all over my screen.

There has never been 50 or 60 people at a Bay Ridge Historical Meeting, bud.

Galewyn Massey said...

RESPONSE: THE "I GUESS THAT BOB CAPANO IS NOW THE LOCAL DONALD TRUMP" EDITION

TO: "ANONYMOUS SAID... AT 9:08 AM"

THANKS FOR BRINGING THAT UP..... IT'S NOW OBVIOUS THAT BOB CAPANO'S APPEARING AT AN EVENT WILL ADD SIGNIFICANT NUMBERS TO THE CROWD

As you have testified, my good brother ["bud"], "There has never been 50 or 60 people at a Bay Ridge Historical Meeting...." Q.E.D.: Bob Capano's presence at the BHS meeting made for a much bigger crowd on hand.

What next, BC's prospective opponents putting up roadblocks around his events around the Council District in Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights, B'hurst and Bath Beach ???

Anonymous said...

Capano's presence drew a big crowd? Either someone is ingesting peyote or that was one of the funniest jokes ever made on this blog!

Anonymous said...

Yo 9:08. I was there. There was about 75 people there, ask tom mccarthy the prez..or better yet ted general who was there..i an sure he will say so in his column..sure you will say they are lying also...hahaa

Anonymous said...

Gale

Wow, it seems the democrats and/or other republicans or conservatives are running scared of capano as whenever a post comes out highlighting his activities the comments sky rocket!

Galewyn Massey said...

RESPONSE: THE "IS THIS THE BILL O'REILLY SAYING "GOTCHA!' " EDITION

TO: "ANONYMOUS SAID... 2:27 PM"

You've figured it out..... My "hits" and the number of reader comments go UP when I do a post about Bob Capano..... That is the #1 reason that I have done as many Capano items as I have up to now. Another reason is that Bob and/or one of his close supporters keeps feeding me his material.

[btw, if there were any other candidate doing the same, I'd be covering them as well (has anybody noticed that I DO mention Liam McCabe a lot.... Imagine if he were a Republican and not an enrolled CP/NYS voter)]

Anonymous said...

Mccabe has to do more than count some homeless and register to be a republican before being taken seriously