Will Latinos lend a hand to Nicole Malliotakis?

If there's a way for them to help her, they're going to. “Come November I'm either not going to vote for mayor or I'll vote for Nicole (Malliotakis),” said one Brooklyn Democratic bochinchero. This person is one of about a dozen Latino politicos that are so encabronado (pissed off) with New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio that they are considering lending a hand to his presumptive general election opponent. “I'm reaching out to her and see what I can do to help,” said one Bronx Democrat. A very well-known Latino figure is due to meet with the Staten Island assemblywoman and would also consider endorsing Malliotakis. Most of the Latinos I spoke to are not happy with the mayor and think that at least with Malliotakis they'll get a straight response about their concerns. Sure, but what about her voting for Donald Trump? “I'm not officially endorsing her. It's just payback to the mayor,” one bochinchero said. Ah, vindictive política.

Cuomo’s broken bridge

Republicans have been upfront in their criticism of Gov. Andrew Cuomo for naming the new Tappan Zee Bridge after his late father, Gov. Mario Cuomo. But I caught up with some Democratic bochincheros who also didn’t pull any punches, including one who said: “We voted to name a bridge after a governor who built more prisons than any other governor in the history of New York state.” Bam! Another Dem bochinchero in Albany said: “You know Mario Cuomo even used economic development money to build prisons and yet every minority legislator voted to name a bridge after him.” These Dems are going for the jugular here. And one Democrat told B&B, “It’s ironic that as Southern states dismantle monuments to the Confederacy, New York is naming a new monument to what would be considered a new Jim Crow-type of government of the North.” Damn! Now, if only they had the political cojones to go on the record with these statements ...

Is NYC speaker what they really want?

At least dos of the contenders vying for New York City Council speaker are already thinking of consolation prizes – namely the Finance Committee chair, and at least one of them would settle for Land Use chair. Don't get me wrong, they both want the top job. Pero, the way the backroom race is shaping up, the ambicioso council members are already hedging their bets as the field narrows over the next five months. Insider bochincheros we’ve spoken to have laid out multiple scenarios for the race among the handful of council members who want the job. For now it's all rope-a-dope moves and gossip as the insider marathon tightens.