By MICHAEL SCHENKLER
with Angela Montefinise

State Attorney General Mike Gianaris?

Has a nice ring to it – especially to Mike himself.

The young, bright, ambitious Harvard Law School grad and current Assemblyman from Astoria who said he got into politics “to do something productive with one’s life,” dropped by the Tribune’s office this week – donuts in tow – to chat with us and ended up talking about basketball, Greek Easter, and his planned 2006 run for State Attorney General.

Although Gianaris, who is the son of Greek immigrants, said he is just “exploring” the possibility of a State Attorney General race four years from now, he has already begun raising the $4 to $5 million he believes he needs to make the run, and said, “Unfortunately, because of the way the political system is organized, you almost have to start it early.” He’s already spoken to Tom Manton and company, as well as colleagues and friends, and told us, “I haven’t been discouraged yet.”

Why State Attorney General? He said while munching on a Chocolate Glazed, “I got into this field of work – public service – because I want to do what I can to help my fellow citizens…. When you get into the field for that reason, it’s reasonable that you want to be in a position to help even more. I’m hopeful that, in the future, I will have a position that will allow me to affect my fellow citizens positively even more.” When pushed, he did say, “I’m not fixated on the State Attorney General race,” but Mike seemed pretty focused at the moment.

Will being a Greek American help him or hurt him? He quickly said, “Help,” especially in fund-raising, but he said he doesn’t think he will be looked at as a special interest candidate because, “I hope to have contributions from many other people.”

Is he supporting the current Attorney General in his 2006 run for Governor? With a laugh, Gianaris safely responded, “He hasn’t declared yet, so there’s nothing to support.”

Why is he qualified, being a second-termer in the Assembly? He explained, “I have experience in the issues that the Attorney General usually deals with.” He believes his chances of winning are “substantial,” and said – as a lawyer and Assembly staff member in the past – he has had in-depth experience with issues of the environment, consumer affairs, and public safety, and has shown he is “effective in achieving” his goals.

He pointed to successes – or partial successes – that he has helped foster for the Astoria community in its battle against the New York Power Authority. He mentioned that he was the prime sponsor of a bill to phase out old power plants in favor of new ones, and he played a major role in a settlement with the Power Authority that led to the eventual closing of the highly-polluting Poletti plant. When pushed on the question, “Why can’t it close now,” Gianaris said, “If you pull the plug on Poletti today, you could have blackouts.”

Mike used the ongoing power plant battle to show that he “doesn’t back away from a fight,” but said, “As a legislator, you have to pick your fights carefully.” He’s not going to start a battle over a piece of legislation currently in committee that he said, “I don’t expect to get out of committee.” The piece of legislation would create tougher emissions standards for power plants that would force many of the older ones to filter more than they currently do, adding, “You can’t take every bill and use it to embarrass someone.” He emphasized his point, “Just by introducing that bill, it got the subject in the open and helped to get my other bill on phasing out old power plants passed.” Working with other members in order to get things done for the people, he asserts, “I’ve been a champion of sheparding legislation through a difficult process.”

He thinks Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver has done a good job, despite having to contend with a Republican Governor and good ol’ Joe Bruno. He acknowledged that, while he “always has” his own vote, those three men make most of the decisions in Albany , and said the process “needs work, no question about it.” He also said, however, that if Silver went back to all of his members all of the time for their input, “we would take a hit on substance,” but added, “I think government would run more effectively if it was more open and deliberative…. The process should be opened up, members need more input.”

One issue on which he clearly stood out from the pack, was the redistricting of State lines by members of the Legislature. He said, “Anytime the Legislative body is drawing its own lines, it’s a conflict.” When asked whether he’ll propose legislation against it, he said, “I just may do that.”

As State Attorney General, he would have complete input in terms of his office, and he already knows what new items he would tackle in the job that Spitzer has not. He said he wants to address the backlog in the Human Rights Commission, enforce pay equity laws for women, and go after State polluters.

When it comes to pollution, Gianaris said, “My district has much worse air quality than the rest of the City,” and he believes conservation is the first step to stopping pollution. He is proposing legislation to bring New York ’s auto emissions standards up to California ’s levels, and discouraged this writer from considering a Hummer as our next vehicle.

In the immediate future, despite his promising election prospects, Gianaris said he is “focusing on continuing” his “successful work in the Assembly,” and balancing the budget. Before April, the Assembly has to cut two billion dollars, and by next fiscal year, the gap could be between eight and 10 billion dollars.

He said he doesn’t mind borrowing “if we have a comprehensive plan immediately for how we’re going to pay it back. Debt service just gets factored into the budget in the future and doesn’t help anyone.” Without that plan, Gianaris said, “I don’t like the idea of borrowing,” especially from the country’s pending tobacco settlement payment. He said, “If we take that up front, we’ll lose most of the settlement because of debt service. We’ll lose five or six billion dollars of it just from borrowing. I don’t like it.”

Besides being an intelligent, well-spoken politico, Gianaris is also good people. He boasts high-powered friends and was cool and calm throughout the entire session. He joked around with a loud, hearty laugh, talking about an infamous and somewhat brutal Albany basketball game.

He was making more than twice the salary he is making now at a law firm he worked at right after law school, but he wanted a job that allowed him to “wake up in the morning and smile because I’m going to work.”

He was able to deal with our rigorous challenging questions without retreating to “off the record” anonymity to respond. He used intellect, a real good political gut and conveyed an honesty not often seen in a political up-and-comer.

Mike Gianaris is worth watching. He has the ability to excel in the Assembly, a body that could stagnate stars. But we believe Mike has recognized the true difficulty of achieving there without leading the fight against the system.

Instead he’s looking four years into the future at the State Attorney General position.

Mike Gianaris is going somewhere. And we guarantee, wherever it is, he’s the type of guy who will bring the donuts with him.

One View Of What Makes An American

I received the following via email, written by an Australian in response to a report allegedly published in a Pakistani newspaper offering a reward to anyone who killed an American – any American:

“An American is English, or French, or Italian, Irish, German, Spanish, Polish, Russian or Greek. An American may also be Canadian, Mexican, African, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Australian, Iranian, Asian, or Arab, or Pakistani, or Afghan. An American may also be a Cherokee, Osage, Lakota, Comanche, Mohegan, Hopi, Blackfoot, Navaho, Apache, or one of the many other tribes known as native Americans.

“An American is Christian, Agnostic, Atheist; or he could be Jewish, or Buddhist, or Muslim. In fact, there are more Muslims in America than in Afghanistan . The only difference is that, in America , they are free to worship as each of them chooses. An American is also free to believe in no religion. For that he will answer only to God, not to the government, or to armed thugs claiming to speak for the government and for God.

“An American is from the most prosperous land in the history of the world. The root of that prosperity can be found in the Declaration of Independence, which recognizes the God-given right of each man and woman to the pursuit of happiness.

“An American is generous. Americans have helped out just about every other nation in the world in their time of need. When Afghanistan was overrun by the Soviet army 20 years ago, Americans came with arms and supplies to enable the people to win back their country. As of the morning of Sept. 11, Americans had given more than any other nation to the poor in Afghanistan .

“Americans welcome the best: the best products, the best books, the best music, the best food, the best athletes. But they also welcome the least. The national symbol of America – The Statue of Liberty – welcomes your tired and your poor, the wretched refuse of your teeming shores, the homeless, tempest tossed. These, in fact, are the people who built America . Some of them were working in the Twin Towers the morning of Sept. 11, earning a better life for their families. I’ve been told that the World Trade Center victims were from at least 30 other countries, cultures, and first languages, including those that aided and abetted the terrorists.

“So you can try to kill an American if you must. Hitler did. So did General Tojo, and Stalin, and Mao, and every bloodthirsty tyrant in the history of the world. But, in doing so, you would just be killing yourself. Because Americans are not a particular people from a particular place. They are the embodiment of the human spirit of freedom. Everyone who holds to that spirit, everywhere, is an American.”