Grimm Fandango, Con't

Remember New York GOP Rep. Michael Grimm?  The guy who threatened to break a reporter in half "like a boy" and got himself deep into tax evasion charges?  Well, he won re-election in 2014. And he may not have that seat much longer.

Representative Michael G. Grimm, a Republican from Staten Island who was elected to a second term in November despite having been indicted on federal fraud charges, has agreed to plead guilty to a single felony charge of tax evasion, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. 

Mr. Grimm, a former Marine and agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation who first ran for office as a law-and-order corruption fighter, is scheduled to appear in federal court in Brooklyn at 1 p.m. on Tuesday for a plea hearing, according to the docket sheet in his case, which provides no further detail. 

He has said he would immediately resign if he were convicted. A guilty plea would almost certainly put him under tremendous pressure to do so.

Hey, let's not forget how long former Florida GOP Rep. Trey Radel held out before he was forced to resign over cocaine use (and he was replaced by the even dumber Curt Clawson.)  Mikey Suits might stick around for a while, convicted felon or not.

But it's Staten Island, and I'm thinking that Grimm's eventual replacement will still be a Republican colostomy bag of an individual.  We'll see how Cuomo handles it should Grimm be out.

Good News Out Of Kentucky

Over in Louisville, the City Council and Mayor Greg Fischer have worked out a deal to raise the city's minimum wage to $9 a hour in 2017.

The lawmakers’ agreement resulted from a series of debates prior to the Louisville Metro Council meeting on Thursday night. All 16 Democrats favored raising the minimum wage, and the nine Republicans voted against it.

Previously, Mayor Greg Fischer had said he would veto the Metro Council’s original proposal to increase the wage to $10.10 an hour over a three-year period. But after the decision on Thursday, he said he agreed to support the increase to $9 during the same time span because “it is a balanced compromised solution.”

“I’m pleased with the Council’s vote, appreciate their hard work on this important issue, and look forward to signing the ordinance into law,” Fischer, a Democrat, wrote on Twitter.

But not everyone is happy with the change as business groups are considering taking the city ordinance to court, claiming the city doesn't have the authority.

Passage of a "compromise" ordinance to eventually raise the minimum wage to $9 an hour in Jefferson County has not diminished concerns of opponents, and a lawsuit over the Metro Council action is possible but not a certainty, business leaders said Friday. 

"We never said we would definitely sue, but our legal concerns remain and our attorneys have drafted papers" with a lawsuit ready to go, if officials decide to pursue that route, said Sarah Davasher-Wisdom, vice president of public policy for Greater Louisville Inc., the metro chamber of commerce.

Where this goes from here is anyone's guess.  Louisville would be the first city in the South to enact a minimum wage law, but whether or not that law ever goes into effect?  I have my doubts.

We'll see.

StupidiNews!

• President Obama has issued pardons for eight drug-related offenders, leaving prison reform advocates wanting more.
• Attorney General Eric Holder says that the Justice Department will open a civil rights investigation into the death of Dontre Hamilton, shot 14 times by a Minneapolis police officer.
• NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio is calling for protesters to suspend demonstrations until after the funerals of two slain NYPD cops killed over the weekend.
• New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie says Sony Pictures "folded" by pulling the Christmas Day release of "The Interview" over hacking concerns.
• Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak is looking to spend his golden years Down Under, as his status as a "distinguished person" has granted him permanent resident status there.