NY Minute: Gov. Andrew Cuomo says he's not optimistic about FEMA money for flood victims

by **Rumrunner** Thu Jul 11, 2013 10:46 am

After making all these promises of FEMA money to upstate residents, Cuomo now saying he is not optimistic that flood victims in Central New York and the Mohawk Valley would get financial help from Washington.

By Teri Weaver | [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

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Syracuse, N.Y. -- Change is coming. But, of course, we've got to get through one more day of storms.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo goes to Jamestown and Ithaca today to promote his Start-Up NY program, which used to be called Tax-Free NY. He's talking about the tax-free zones at Jamestown Community College and Cornell University. Private colleges are in the running to host future tax-free businesses; state-run campuses are automatically considered potential sites for the lucrative tax breaks.

New York
Cuomo was in Buffalo on Tuesday to talk about his newly appointed commission to investigate public corruption. After his talk at the University of Buffalo Law School, the governor said he wasn't optimistic that flood victims in Central New York and the Mohawk Valley would get financial help from Washington.

Get out the popcorn: Cuomo declares New York City politics "theater."

Case in point: Eliot Spitzer has until Thursday (!) to collect nearly 4,000 signatures from registered Democrats to get on the ballot to run for the city's comptroller. To make tomorrow's deadline, the former governor is paying canvassers $800 a day, according to the New York Daily News.

And this is flat out entertaining and informative: Listen to the July 9 "Capitol Pressroom" show to see how Spitzer reacts to Susan Arbetter's thoughtful and pointed questions on live radio.

New York's Department of Transportation commissioner was in Syracuse Tuesday to talk with elected officials about the Interstate 81 project. Her meeting provided an unexpected result: she decided to delay a request to go ahead with a $32 million study on I-81, promising to come back with more details and a thorough community outreach plan.

Sandra Lee is now a novelist. No word on whether the leading man in "The Recipe Box" is based on a certain New York governor.