Ignoring a person dressed in a yellow chicken suit standing across the street holding up a sign that said "Mike, What's Today's Excuse?" Mayor Michael Bloomberg strolled into a Queens day care center Thursday to announce a new initiative.
The sign refered to the mayor's failure to show up at Thursday night's debate at the Apollo Theater in Harlem and his reasons for staying away.
At the Long Island City day care center, Rosie O'Donnell, who said she was a life-long Democrat, introduced Bloomberg as "the lovely Mayor Bloomberg." The mayor announced a second-term plan to pool three child care programs under one umbrella.
The plan calls for the integration of child care programs run by the Department of Education, Human Resources Administration and the Administration for Children's Services.
Later, O'Donnell defended the mayor's decision to attend just two debates in spite of criticism from Democrats. She compared the controversy with overeating.
"We seem to be a glut in this culture where everyone thinks all-you-can-eat is the best thing you can do, and, you know, frankly, I feel two is enough," she said.
Meanwhile, leaders of the city's gay and lesbian community endorsed Democratic mayoral candidate Fernando Ferrer Thursday, as Bloomberg announced a deal on medical insurance for domestic partners.
Assemb. Deborah Glick (D-Manhattan) charged that Bloomberg broke promises he made in 2001 to the gay and lesbian communities. She said he appealed a court decision that would legalize gay marriage and vetoed legislation for medical benefits for domestic partners of people doing business with the city.
An hour after Ferrer's event, Bloomberg announced he had struck a deal with four health insurers that would allow domestic partners of people who work in small businesses to get medical insurance. Bloomberg said the deal would grant "unprecedented access" for domestic partners.
Finally, after his Queens event, Bloomberg hopped to Chinatown, where several organizations endorsed him for mayor, including York Chan, president of the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association.
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