A Brooklyn lawmaker is urging Gov. Spitzer, a fellow Democrat, to pull his nominee to head the Metropolitan Transportation Authority because the businessman is a member of a predominantly white club.
Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries wrote a letter to Spitzer urging him to withdraw real-estate mogul Dale Hemmerdinger’s nomination because he belongs to the Harmonie Club, a social group that Mayor Bloomberg quietly left in 2001 while he was first running for office.
Noting that the MTA has a largely black and Hispanic ridership, Jeffries wrote, “As reported by the New York Post . . . Sen. Barack Obama canceled a fundraising appearance at the club because of” its membership.
“Under the circumstances, Mr. Hemmerdinger appointment sends the wrong signal to the minority community, where many will find his appointment offensive and will find your appointment of him insensitive and inappropriate,” he wrote in the Oct. 4 letter.
Spitzer spokeswoman Christine Anderson said, “Membership is only a concern if the organization discriminates – which it does not.”
Jeffries acknowledged to The Post that he was aware that Harmonie was founded decades ago by Jews who were excluded from other clubs, but insisted that racial instances are flaring up around the city and that extra sensitivity is necessary.