Donovan Fumbles Over Minimum Wage In Testy Televised Debate

Things got heated Tuesday night at NY1’s live televised debate between Staten Island DA Daniel Donovan and Councilman Vincent Gentile at the College of Staten Island, as the candidates clashed over issues like the Eric Garner case, Iran, immigration, and prosecuting FEMA fraud.

Despite being comically mismatched height-wise, with Donovan towering over Gentile, the Brooklyn councilman seemed to be landing the most punches throughout the night. Perhaps the most memorable blow occurred when, during an exchange with his opponent, Donovan appeared not to know the federal minimum wage.

Given the chance to ask Donovan anything, Gentile asked him point blank what the federal minimum wage was. (It is $7.25, though in New York City it is overriden by the state’s $8.25 minimum wage). Even after being pressed by Gentile on the issue for a second time, Donovan seemed to dodge the question, speaking instead about a tax and regulatory reform that he believes should accompany a potential minimum wage hike.

NY1’s Errol Louis, who moderated the debate, finally told Gentile, “You can only control the question, not the answer.”

Later Donovan told reporters he had simply misheard the question and came up with the correct answer.

“I didn’t know that. I thought he asked me what the minimum wage should go to,” he said.

When asked why Donovan seemed to avoid the question — twice — a spokeswoman for the DA said the same thing: that he had misheard it.

The Gentile campaign is using this gaffe to paint Donovan as ignorant of the issues and out of touch with low-wage workers.

The Eric Garner case also came to the forefront during the event when protesters were escorted out of the room shouting “black lives matter,” “you have blood on your hands,” and “I can’t breath” — phrases associated with Garner protests — at the beginning and end of the debate.

Gentile pressed the Staten Island prosecutor on why he supported keeping the deliberations of the grand jury during the Garner case under wraps despite the fact that the defendant was already known to the public. Donovan replied that secrecy was necessary in order to make sure that witnesses cooperated.

On immigration, Gentile continued to back President Barack Obama’s plan to halt the deportation of undocumented immigrants. Donovan shifted his stance slightly, this time clarifying that while he was against amnesty, he would only deport those who had committed egregious crimes, and that he believes in incentivizing immigrants who have come to the country legally.

Overall, the consensus seems to be that Donovan lost this battle, but is still likely to win the special election slated for May 5.

Louis, who somehow managed to tweet throughout the debate, moderated the event alongside a three-member panel: NY1 reporter Courtney Gross, Staten Island Advance senior opinion writer Tom Wrobleski, and reporter Rachel Shapiro.

The candidates are competing for the 11th Congressional District seat, which covers Staten Island and parts of Southern Brooklyn and was left vacant by disgraced Congressman Michael Grimm.