Seperated by a few city blocks, Mayor Bill de Blasio and Gov. Andrew Cuomo spoke yesterday at dueling education rallies in Albany. De Blasio addressed about 1,000 supporters, mostly union members, to push for his tax on the wealthy for pre-K and after-school programs. Meanwhile, Cuomo committed to supporting charter schools in front of around 7,000 charter-school parents, teachers, and students. He didn't mention de Blasio by name, but charter supporters are upset the mayor revoked $200 million in funding for charters and denied three charters space in public school buildings. Many at the charter rally said they support de Blasio's tax plan. And more than 30 charter school leaders boycotted the charter rally. Afterwards, the mayor and governor met privately and characterized their discussion as productive, but leading to no changes on their stances about the pre-K tax. De Blasio said he'd support Cuomo for re-election either way. The mayor also faces resistance on the charter-school front from two allies. City Council Speaker Melissa Mark Viverito and Public Advocate Letitia James, unhappy the mayor allowed most charters to move into public schools, are pressing ahead with a lawsuit to block them.
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