{"id":21006,"date":"2026-04-06T21:46:58","date_gmt":"2026-04-06T21:46:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/mamdanis-investigation-nominee-faces-questions-on-independence\/"},"modified":"2026-04-06T21:46:58","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T21:46:58","slug":"mamdanis-investigation-nominee-faces-questions-on-independence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/mamdanis-investigation-nominee-faces-questions-on-independence\/","title":{"rendered":"Mamdani\u2019s investigation nominee faces questions on independence"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Mayor<\/p>\n

DAYS THE BUDGET IS LATE:<\/b><\/span> 6<\/p>\n

DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE: <\/b>During his campaign, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani had a historic number of volunteers who canvassed on his behalf. Among them was his pick to lead the Department of Investigation.<\/p>\n

In February, Mamdani nominated former federal prosecutor Nadia Shihata to lead the investigation department, which acts as a watchdog over city government.<\/p>\n

On Monday as part of the confirmation process, she faced questions from members of the City Council, who focused particular attention on her prior support of the administration she would be charged with auditing and investigating.<\/p>\n

Shihata gave $700 to Mamdani\u2019s campaign in four installments last year. She spent a day canvassing for the then-mayoral hopeful. And after graduating from law school 20 years ago, she struck up a friendship with Ramzi Kassem, who is now the mayor\u2019s chief counsel in City Hall and the person who reached out to see if she\u2019d be interested in the job.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow do you compartmentalize that political kinship, if you will, with a role that may have you investigating that very leader and his administration?\u201d asked Council Member David Carr, leader of the body\u2019s Republican caucus.<\/p>\n

Shihata pushed back, saying the support she offered to her future boss would not cloud her ability to probe city government should she be approved by the Council, which has veto power over the pick. And she clarified that she and Kassem are not close friends, though she did consult him before establishing a law firm after leaving the Department of Justice.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have investigated people I have supported in the past,\u201d she said in response to Carr\u2019s question. \u201cThat has not affected my ability to investigate them and reach conclusions driven by the evidence of the law.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shihata worked for 11 years as a federal prosecutor for the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, which has pursued past public corruption cases in tandem with DOI. Her stint there included serving as chief of the Organized Crime and Gangs Section and deputy chief of the Public Integrity Section \u2014 two roles that give her a law-enforcement pedigree typical of DOI commissioner candidates.<\/p>\n

It is the training she received there that will serve her well in her potential new gig, according to someone who knows a thing or two about independence from City Hall.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese questions were raised when I was up for confirmation, and I don\u2019t think there\u2019s a lot of doubt that I ultimately was very independent,\u201d said former DOI Commissioner Mark Peters, who was a longtime friend and campaign treasurer to former Mayor Bill de Blasio before the then-mayor tapped him to lead DOI.<\/p>\n

Once installed as commissioner, Peters pursued the administration aggressively \u2014 some might say that\u2019s putting it mildly \u2014 and released several bombshell probes before de Blasio fired him, citing an independent report that found Peters abused his power and mistreated staffers.<\/p>\n

Speaking with Playbook, Peters said Shihata would be an excellent DOI commissioner.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re like I was and like Nadia is \u2014 a trained, professional investigator and prosecutor \u2014 inherent in that training is learning how to be independent and compartmentalize other parts of your life,\u201d he said. \u201cProsecutors are supposed to be politically independent. And well-trained prosecutors are.\u201d \u2014 Joe Anuta<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

From the Capitol<\/h3>\n

\"Gov.<\/p>\n

BUDGET MONTH: <\/b>Gov. Kathy Hochul is preparing to send state lawmakers a second stopgap spending bill as a broader deal over the state budget remains elusive.<\/p>\n

The Legislature will return on Tuesday to take up the extender legislation. The bill will cover payroll for thousands of state workers, but it’s not yet clear how long the government will be funded. The Legislature was initially scheduled to be on a two-week hiatus this month, but the late spending plan has scrambled the legislative calendar.<\/p>\n

“We’re still working out the details on the length of each extender,” Hochul said Monday during an unrelated event in Albany. “Certainly we gave a longer one because of the religious observances of Easter and Passover.”<\/p>\n

Read more from Blue Light News Pro\u2019s Nick Reisman.<\/i><\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

BLAKEMAN AVOIDS A PRIMARY: <\/b>Libertarian Larry Sharpe did not submit petitions to run for the Republican gubernatorial nomination, so GOP standard-bearer Bruce Blakeman is locked in as his party\u2019s presumptive nominee.<\/p>\n

Sharpe still plans to gather petitions later this spring to run as a Libertarian in November, eight years after he received 95,000 votes on that minor line. But he didn\u2019t hit the 15,000 signatures needed to also run in the major party\u2019s primary.<\/p>\n

\u201cRepublicans are leaving the state left and right, there\u2019s not enough out there for me to get,\u201d Sharpe said, adding that it was a challenge finding registered Republicans to collect signatures since they\u2019re \u201cgetting pressure from the elites to not carry for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sharpe also blamed the weather since February: \u201cWe had two snowstorms,\u201d he said. \u201cHow am I supposed to get signatures when I\u2019ve got snowstorms?\u201d<\/p>\n

As of a couple of hours before the Monday filing deadline, the state Board of Elections had posted submissions from three gubernatorial candidates. Each of these was able to skip gathering petitions thanks to their backing at a party convention: Hochul, on the Democratic line; Blakeman, who\u2019s endorsed by the Republicans and Conservatives; and Amy Taylor, the Working Families Party\u2019s placeholder. \u2014 Bill Mahoney<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

FROM CITY HALL<\/h3>\n

\"Mayor<\/p>\n

NEEDS NOT MET:<\/b> Mamdani administration officials are moving to curb child welfare investigations of cases they say should instead be referred to community-based groups \u2014 a shift based on data showing most families can\u2019t afford necessities that often form the basis of such cases.<\/p>\n

At a Monday press conference, Mamdani tied the city\u2019s preliminary racial equity plan<\/a> to its \u201cTrue Cost of Living\u201d report<\/a>, which found roughly 70 percent of families with children can\u2019t meet basic expenses and nearly three-quarters of kids live in economically insecure households. For single parents, the crisis is nearly universal, with up to 93.8 percent falling short. By contrast, the only households meeting the cost of living are two-adult households with no children.<\/p>\n

\u201cNew York City\u2019s affordability crisis and its history of racial inequity are bound together,\u201d Mamdani said.<\/p>\n

The Administration for Children’s Services\u2019 child protection division is also strained and has required substantial funding. The city is set to spend roughly $142 million<\/a> in the 2026 fiscal year on child protection personnel alone, with an average cost of about $2,800 per case.<\/p>\n

The administration\u2019s plan for children and families is to redirect those resources \u2014 expanding community-based referrals, training mandated reporters on when a report is legally required and emphasizing prevention.<\/p>\n

According to the New York City Family Policy Project, a child welfare policy and research group, New York\u2019s investigation rate was 17 percent higher than the national average in 2024 with nearly 80 percent of investigations unsubstantiated. This past December, Hochul signed a bill<\/a> banning anonymous child abuse reports, following claims that such tips can double as harassment, often directed at families of color.<\/p>\n

Nora McCarthy, director of the Policy Project, said the city\u2019s shift in approach is likely driven in part by research showing the strongest predictors of investigations are economic: income loss, housing instability and material hardship.<\/p>\n

\u201cPoverty is the driver,\u201d McCarthy said. \u201cWhen you have a lot going wrong in terms of being able to meet your basic needs, you can really start having trouble, like getting your child to school.\u201d \u2014 Gelila Negesse<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

FROM THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL<\/h3>\n

\"Republican<\/p>\n

WHO\u2019S THE WILD MAN NOW: <\/b>Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani today endorsed Republican House candidate Anthony Constantino, who is in a bitter primary against Assemblymember Robert Smullen.<\/p>\n

The endorsement from the ex-mayor came after Constantino said he wrote \u201ca beautiful two-page letter\u201d to Giuliani.<\/p>\n

\u201cRudy has a great eye for talent,\u201d Constantino told Playbook.<\/p>\n

The campaign to succeed outgoing Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik in the sprawling North Country House district has been a bruising one. Smullen has accused Constantino, the impresario of a sticker company, of hawking bawdy stickers mocking<\/a> President Donald Trump. Constantino has called Smullen \u201cSlime Bob.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Republican establishment has largely lined up behind Smullen<\/a>, a retired Marine colonel who has the backing of the state GOP.<\/p>\n

That makes endorsements from leading MAGA figures like Giuliani all the more valuable for Constantino\u2019s outsider bid. Giuliani played a central role in Trump\u2019s effort to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. And Constantino has a flair for advertising his MAGA bona fides, like erecting a large pro-Trump sign<\/a> atop a building.<\/p>\n

In the lead up to the endorsement, Giuliani met with Constantino in Florida to discuss the race. Constantino came away charmed by the man once known as \u201cAmerica\u2019s Mayor.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to become friends with him. He\u2019s brilliant. He\u2019s kindhearted,\u201d Constantino said. \u201cHe likes the regular person. He doesn\u2019t consider himself better than anyone.\u201d \u2014 Nick Reisman<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

IN OTHER NEWS<\/h3>\n

\u2014 OPEN TO WORK:<\/b> New York City\u2019s Economic Development Corporation still has no leader as business leaders voice concerns over the city\u2019s economic and job growth. (Gothamist<\/a>)<\/p>\n

\u2014 ALLEGED SCHEME:<\/b> Frank Carone, former chief of staff to Eric Adams, says associates charged by federal prosecutors in an insurance fraud scheme scammed him too. (THE CITY<\/a>)<\/p>\n

\u2014 POLITICAL MISCHIEF: <\/b>New York State Assembly member Andrew Hevesi accused primary rival Jonathan Rinaldi of changing his registration. (The New York Times<\/a>)<\/p>\n

Missed this morning\u2019s New York Playbook? We forgive you. <\/b>Read it here<\/i><\/a>.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

DAYS THE BUDGET IS LATE: 6 DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE: During his campaign, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani had a historic number of volunteers who canvassed on his behalf. Among them was his pick to lead the Department of Investigation. In February, Mamdani nominated former federal prosecutor Nadia Shihata to lead the investigation department, which […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":21007,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21006","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21006","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21006"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21006\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21007"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21006"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21006"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21006"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}