De Blasio Faces Criticism After Honoring Dwight 'Doc' Gooden As Part Of TV Pilot
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- New questions were mounting Monday night about a city-staged event honoring former Mets player Dwight "Doc" Gooden.
As CBS2 Political Reporter Marcia Kramer reported, taxpayer dollars were spent for the event and lobbyists were involved. And it turns out that the event is being used in a TV series.
Music blared from a loudspeaker, and red, white and blue bunting hung above the columns at City Hall.
The stage was set for Mayor Bill de Blasio to give former Mets pitcher Gooden the key to the city he did not get after the Mets won the 1986 World Series, because of his drug problems.
"I'm wearing my Mets colors today to honor this great team," de Blasio said.
The key to the city was real, and Gooden was really standing there to receive it. But it was also the ultimate in reality TV.
De Blasio was participating in a scene being shot for a television pilot, and it raised all kinds of questions – like why city taxpayers dollars were being spent, and why Boston Red Sox fan de Blasio – whose team lost that very 1986 World Series – accepted the role.
"Full disclosure – some of us may have been associated with other teams," he said.
The city claimed the costs were "minimal," but a knowledgeable source pegged it at as much as $4,000.
And as for why de Blasio agreed to take part, the producer – sports radio host Amy Heart – apparently enlisted the influential lobbying firm of James A. Capalino. Capalino was associated with the Rivington nursing home condo conversion fiasco, and bundled $45,000 for de Blasio's 2013 election campaign.
It all prompted a volley of denials, Kramer reported.
"We had no idea Capalino's firm was involved," said de Blasio press secretary Eric Phillips.
"Ms. Heart approached Capalino+Company with an inspiring idea," said a spokesman for the firm, James Yolles. "The firm has a few diehard Mets fans on staff and took this on pro bono."
But good government groups said the mayor should have been more transparent, given the corruption probes that engulfed his administration.
"He shouldn't be having events where all the answers aren't known upfront, given his problems with the investigations around his fundraising activity, so that any questions are answered immediately and don't have to be asked," Dadey said.
As for the mayor's fundraising, Campaign Finance Board records show series producer Heart's husband has given nearly $3,000 to the mayor's 2017 reelection campaign. Heart did not respond to a request for comment.
