Jimmy McMillan explained

Jimmy McMillan
Office:Chairman and leader of the Rent Is Too Damn High Party
Term Start:2005
Predecessor:Position established
Birth Date:1 December 1946
Birth Place:New Smyrna Beach, Florida, U.S.
Residence:Flatbush, Brooklyn, New York City, U.S.
Occupation:Political activist
Perennial candidate
Pilot
Party:Rent Is Too Damn High Party
Otherparty:Republican
Democratic (formerly)
Children:2
Website:JimmyMcMillan.org

James McMillan III (born December 1, 1946)[1] is an American political activist and Vietnam War veteran. He was a perennial candidate in New York City.

McMillan is best known as the founder of the Rent Is Too Damn High Party, a New York–based political party. McMillan ran for office at least six times since 1993, most notably in the 2010 New York gubernatorial election.[2] [3] He declared in December 2010 that he would run in the 2012 U.S. presidential election as a Republican. He did not appear on the ballot in any state and suspended his campaign to return to the Rent Is Too Damn High Party and run for Mayor of New York City in the 2013 election. He attempted to run for governor again in the 2014 election but did not make the ballot.

McMillan announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for President of the United States in the 2016 election,[4] but withdrew from the campaign on December 9, 2015. He subsequently announced that he was retiring from politics[5] before endorsing Republican candidate Donald Trump.[6] The Rent Is Too Damn High Party website announced that McMillan would come out of retirement to make a fourth run for governor.[7] His petitions were challenged and ruled invalid in September 2018.

Early life and education

Originally from New Smyrna Beach, Florida,[8] McMillan served in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War after which he briefly spent time in the 1970s as an R&B recording artist.[9] He graduated from Barkley Private Security Investigations Academy prior to 1993.[10]

Political career

Early campaigns

McMillan's first run for political office came in 1993, when he ran for Mayor of New York on the Rent Is Too Damn High ticket. In the course of that campaign, McMillan was at one point tied to a tree and doused with gasoline;[11] he later climbed the Brooklyn Bridge and refused to come down from it unless television stations broadcast his message.[12] He was disqualified from the ballot for coming 300 petition signatures short of the 7,500 needed to qualify for the general election ballot.

McMillan next ran for Governor of New York in 1994 by traveling from his home in Brooklyn through upstate New York to Buffalo on foot, staying in homeless shelters along the way; he had planned to walk back to Brooklyn, but an injury in Rochester led to him taking a bus home.[13] When he arrived in Buffalo, the site of the state Democratic convention, McMillan disrupted a speech by incumbent Governor Mario Cuomo at the convention and was thrown out because of it.[14] After failing to collect enough signatures to get onto the ballot, he continued in a write-in campaign.

McMillan ran for the United States Senate in the 2000 election in New York but was removed from the ballot.[15]

McMillan qualified for the November general election ballot for Mayor of New York City in 2005 and 2009.[16] [17] In 2005, he received over 4,111 votes (0.32%)[18] and in 2009, he received 2,332 votes (0.2%).[19]

McMillan received 13,355 votes (0.3%) in the 2006 gubernatorial election, coming fifth out of six candidates.[20]

2010 gubernatorial campaign

See main article: 2010 New York gubernatorial election. For the 2010 campaign, McMillan filed petitions to appear on the Democratic primary ballot and the Rent Is Too Damn High line. However, he put very little effort into the Democratic petitions, and the vast majority of the 13,350 signatures bearing his name were collected by Randy Credico, who had partnered with McMillan for a joint Democratic petition.[21] Credico had counted on McMillan to collect 10,000 signatures to put his total at over 20,000, above the 15,000 required to get onto the ballot, but McMillan never followed through, leaving both candidates short of the necessary signatures to force a Democratic primary against state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, who was thus unopposed. Credico, in response, called McMillan a "jack-off" and a "sorry ass", accusing him of "working against me", "turn[ing] in a wagonload of blank pages and then [leaving] Albany in brand new automobiles."[22] McMillan did file the necessary signatures to get onto the "Rent Is 2 Damn High" line; the petitions were technically invalid because they did not include a lieutenant governor candidate, but McMillan was allowed onto the ballot anyway because nobody challenged the petitions.

During an appearance at a 2010 gubernatorial debate in which McMillan figured prominently, he stated his views on gay marriage, by saying "The Rent Is Too Damn High Party believes that if you want to marry a shoe, I'll marry you." After the debate, McMillan garnered significant attention from the media. The Democratic nominee, Andrew Cuomo responded to one of his statements during this appearance by saying "I'm with Jimmy; the rent is too damn high." The appearance inspired a song by The Gregory Brothers.[23] [24] [25]

McMillan, perceived by many as a protest vote, garnered 41,129 votes (0.88%), enough to finish in fifth place out of seven, compared to winning Andrew Cuomo's 2.5 million votes and second-place Carl Paladino's 1.4 million votes. McMillan gained almost as many votes as Libertarian Party candidate Warren Redlich (48,359 votes), and nearly double the votes of Anti-Prohibition Party candidate Kristin M. Davis (20,421 votes).[26] [27] [25]

Regarding his use of black gloves during the debate, "I'm a war vet," McMillan said. "Don't forget I was in Vietnam for two and half years and I have three Bronze Stars, but the chemicals of Agent Orange—dioxin and a lot of other chemicals mixed up—I would get sick. When I get home tonight, I know I'm not going to be able to breathe if I take them off. It could be psychological, I don't know, but I just put em on and wear them anyway."[28]

McMillan's gubernatorial campaign was the subject of an independent, feature-length documentary titled DAMN!.[29] Filmmakers Aaron Fisher-Cohen and Kristian Almgren documented McMillan throughout his campaign for Governor of New York, as well as the events immediately following McMillan's loss of the election. The film was an official selection at the Little Rock Film Festival in Arkansas, as well as at the Brooklyn Film Festival, but did not officially premiere until August 2011.[30] [31]

2012 presidential campaign

McMillan was a registered member of the Democratic Party.[32] Then, on December 23, 2010, he said that he would switch parties and run as a Republican in the 2012 U.S. presidential election, to avoid a primary challenge from President Barack Obama.[33] He also campaigned with performance artist and activist Vermin Supreme and appeared as Supreme's presidential running mate in the 2014 documentary about Supreme's 2012 presidential campaign, Who Is Vermin Supreme? An Outsider Odyssey, directed by Steve Onderick. McMillan and Supreme made a pact, each agreeing to act as vice president for the other if either were elected.[34] [35] He believes that his greatest political strengths include a mastery of social media, an ability to pinch pennies, and inimitable political vision.[36]

McMillan appeared at the Conservative Political Action Conference in February 2011.[37] He also appeared at Northeastern University in March 2011, through the Political Science Student Association, where he discussed key issues. McMillan campaigned during the Occupy Wall Street protests, criticizing the protesters for voting for the wrong person but defending the protesters' right to protest. On November 15, 2011, McMillan held court on the 23rd floor of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority offices kibbitzing with his legal staff and media representatives.[38] McMillan was the keynote speaker at Occupy Tenafly on May Day 2012. There, he told protesters that college tuition is also "too damn high".

He was not invited to any of the Republican debates and did not appear on any primary ballots. However, he did appear in a debate against comedian Connor Ratliff on The Chris Gethard Show, a public access program in New York City. Ratliff was also running for president on the platform of him being old enough to be elected president. On September 13, 2012, McMillan suspended his candidacy to run for Mayor of New York City in the 2013 election, and endorsed President Barack Obama.[39]

2013 mayoral campaign

See main article: 2013 New York City mayoral election. McMillan announced his fourth campaign for Mayor of New York City on September 13, 2012. On April 24, 2013, McMillan released a song and video called "Rent Is Too Damn High" on YouTube. In the song, McMillan raps about the problems of the American economy. In one part of the song, he says, "Rent and the deficit is too damn high. Poverty and unemployment both up in the sky. Wages and education is too damn low, economic recovery is too damn slow." McMillan's video received over 300,000 views in its two first days after being uploaded.[40] [41]

McMillan endorsed Anthony Weiner in the Democratic primary.[42] In the general election, McMillan received 1,990 votes (0.18%).

2014 gubernatorial campaign

See main article: 2014 New York gubernatorial election. On May 22, 2014, McMillan announced his intentions to again run for Governor of New York.[43] However, his petition to be on the ballot was challenged, and he was later thrown off the ballot by the state board of elections, which claimed his petition contained too many photocopied pages to meet the signature threshold.[44] [45]

Subsequently, McMillan endorsed the Libertarian Party candidate, Michael McDermott, for governor.[46]

2017 City Council campaign

McMillan ran for New York City Council in 2017 as a Republican/Rent Is Too Damn High fusion ticket.[47] He lost to Carlina Rivera, a Democrat, finishing second with 12% of the vote,[48] beating out three other candidates of various parties including Liberal and Green.

2018 gubernatorial campaign

McMillan announced another run for governor in 2018, accusing then-incumbent Andrew Cuomo and the Moreland Commission of violating federal civil rights laws.[7] He submitted his petitions on August 21.[49] They were challenged and ruled invalid in September.[50]

Political positions

McMillan's political positions are largely populist:

Personal life

Originally from New Smyrna Beach, Florida, McMillan is single and has two adult children. McMillan claims his eldest child, a daughter, developed disabilities as a result of his exposure to Agent Orange. His younger son (James McMillan IV) served in the U.S. military.[8] The elder McMillan served in the United States Army during the Vietnam War. After his time in Vietnam, he briefly spent time in the 1970s as an R&B recording artist; he claims to have spent a brief time at Brunswick Records before leaving the label to do independent work.[9] McMillan graduated from Barkley Private Security Investigations Academy prior to 1993.[10] McMillan has worked as a male stripper,[61] has smoked marijuana in the past, and considers Deep Throat his favorite film.[62]

According to an interview with the New York Times, McMillan does not currently pay rent on a Flatbush apartment he has claimed as his residence and he has not done so since the 1980s. His landlord apparently allows him to reside in his apartment for free in exchange for performing maintenance work on his apartment building. He had previously told the Wall Street Journal that he pays rent of $800 a month for his apartment, but told the New York Times that he definitely did not pay rent. He pays the rent for an apartment McMillan shares with his son in the East Village in Manhattan, which is $900 per month under current rent controls.[63] The landlord of the East Village apartment is moving to evict McMillan on the grounds that McMillan lives in the Flatbush apartment and not in the East Village one; McMillan, who has held the East Village apartment lease since 1977, claims that the Flatbush apartment is not his residence but instead an office for the Rent Is Too Damn High Party.[64]

As of October 2022, McMillan was living in a nursing home in Queens.[65]

In January 2023, he listed three of his properties for rent on Airbnb with a $100 weekly charge.

In popular culture

McMillan was portrayed by Kenan Thompson in the Weekend Update segment of the sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live on October 23, 2010. Thompson, as McMillan, kept saying "the rent is too damn high" in response to most of the questions put to him. He also referred to himself as a billy goat and "the black Lorax," and said that, if elected, he would be the country's "last black President." The real McMillan praised the portrayal, saying that "that put me over the top... this election is over. Jimmy's gonna win it."[66]

A character parodying McMillan was portrayed in Season 3 Episode 7 of Rick and Morty, "The Ricklantis Mixup".

McMillan's tagline has been quoted by several prominent New Yorkers, including Ritchie Torres[67] and Matthew Yglesias.

In media

McMillan guest starred in the music video for "Punx Not Dead, I Am" by Morning Glory.[68]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Ellen Delaney . Jimmy McMillan of Rent is Too Damn High Party Steals NY Governor Debate . sportsinteraction.com . October 19, 2010 . October 27, 2010 . October 24, 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20101024222854/http://news.sportsinteraction.com/entertainment/jimmy-mcmillan-of-rent-is-too-damn-high-party-steals-ny-governor-debate-95488/ . dead .
  2. http://www.ny1.com/content/127157/ny1-online--rent-is-too-damn-high-party-candidate-for-governor-jimmy-mcmillan-on--inside-city-hall--10-14-10 "Rent Is Too Damn High Party Candidate For Governor Jimmy McMillan On 'Inside City Hall'"
  3. Miller, David Lee. "Cuomo, Paladino Play it Straight in a 7-Candidate Free-For-All Debate in New York". Foxnews.com. October 18, 2010.
  4. Web site: Belcher . Mark . The Rent is Too Damn High Party candidate tosses glove in 2016 election campaign . . December 10, 2015 . October 15, 2015 . December 22, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151222115431/http://wivb.com/2015/10/15/the-rent-is-too-damn-high-party-candidate-tosses-glove-in-2016-election-campaign/ . dead .
  5. News: Edelman . Adam . Rent Is Too Damn High Party founder Jimmy McMillan retires from politics . December 10, 2015 . . December 9, 2015.
  6. Web site: Rent Is Too Damn High Party founder Jimmy McMillan endorses Donald Trump for president. New York Daily News. January 29, 2016. January 29, 2016.
  7. Web site: Rent Is Too Damn High. Rent Is Too Damn High. June 11, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20100112045225/http://rentistoodamnhigh.org/. January 12, 2010. dead.
  8. Katz, Celeste (November 23, 2011). The Rent Is Too Damn High? Apparently Not. New York Daily News. Retrieved November 23, 2011.
  9. Freedlander, David (December 9, 2010). Jimmy McMillan to Take The Rent Is Too Damn High to the Stage. New York Observer. Retrieved 2010-12-10.
  10. McMillan, Jimmy (2010-02). The Road Less Traveled . Retrieved January 24, 2011.
  11. Parente, Michele (June 25, 1993). "A Political Attack? Would-be mayor tied to tree." New York Newsday.
  12. Raftery, Tom and Miguel Garcilazo (October 27, 1993). OWNER OF THE FLYEST HAIR ON EARTH "'Rambo' jams up B'klyn Bridge." New York Daily News.
  13. Claflin, Blair (May 11, 1994). "Hopeful is running-- and walking: McMillan is no shoe-in for Governor." Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.
  14. Cardinale, Anthony (1994). "Unorthodox candidate still campaigning hard for governor." The Buffalo News.
  15. Murphy, Jarrett. "Papa Smurf Runs for Mayor" . Village Voice. October 6, 2005.
  16. Web site: IPOWER . Mcmillan09.org . October 19, 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090130075536/http://www.mcmillan09.org/ . January 30, 2009 . dead . mdy-all .
  17. News: Jimmy McMillan, Mayor . NBC New York . August 26, 2009 . October 19, 2010.
  18. Web site: STATEMENT AND RETURN REPORT FOR CERTIFICATION: General Election 2005, Crossover - All Parties and Independent Bodies . vote.nyc.ny.us . November 8, 2005 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20091122151212/http://vote.nyc.ny.us/pdf/results/2005/general/Manhattan/Croossover%20Mayor%20Re-Cap%20NYC.pdf . November 22, 2009 .
  19. Web site: Online: 2009 NYC General Election Returns . https://archive.today/20120721013804/http://ny1.com/8-queens-news-content/108383/ny1-online--2009-nyc-general-election-returns . dead . July 21, 2012 . NY1 . March 30, 2010 . October 19, 2010 .
  20. Web site: NYS Board of Elections Governor Election Returns Nov. 7, 2006. June 11, 2019.
  21. Katz, Celeste (July 18, 2010). NYS Dems Party Chair: Randy Credico & Co. Fail Petition Test: Update » . New York Daily News. Retrieved 2010-10-23.
  22. Credico, Randy (August 18, 2010). Congratulations, Chuck! You've knocked me off the Democratic primary ballot. The Huffington Post. Retrieved 2010-10-23.
  23. Web site: Rent is Too Damn High Candidate Jimmy McMillan Drops New Music Video, "Debate". September 24, 2013.
  24. News: Jimmy McMillan, 'Rent Is Too Damn High' candidate for NY governor, calls campaign a 'revolution' . Nydailynews.com . October 20, 2010 . October 27, 2010 . New York.
  25. Web site: Rent Is Too Damn High candidate steals show at N.Y. gubernatorial debate . Detroit Free Press . October 19, 2010 . October 27, 2010.
  26. Web site: October 18, 2010 . The 'other guys' win points at gubernatorial debate . October 27, 2010 . Newsday.com.
  27. News: October 19, 2010 . Anti-high-rent candidate becoming folk star . usatoday.com . October 27, 2010.
  28. News: Jimmy McMillan's Debate Gloves Explained . Nydailynews.com . October 19, 2010 . New York . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20101021200924/http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypolitics/2010/10/jimmy-mcmillans-debate-gloves.html . October 21, 2010 .
  29. Web site: Damn the Film. June 9, 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110624191133/http://damnthefilm.com/DAMN!_the_film_the_rent_is_too_damn_high_movie.html. June 24, 2011. dead.
  30. Web site: Jimmy-the Rent is Too Damn High-McMillan Documentary to World Premiere at LRFF. littlerockfilmfestival.org. June 1, 2011. June 9, 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20151208073333/http://www.littlerockfilmfestival.org/2011/06/01/jimmy-the-rent-is-too-damn-high-mcmillan-documentary-to-world-premiere-at-lrff/. December 8, 2015. dead.
  31. Web site: Brooklyn Film Festival. brooklynfilmfestival.org. June 9, 2011.
  32. Web site: Jimmy McMillan Is Not A Registered Member of The Rent Is Too Damn High Party | The New York Observer . Observer.com . October 20, 2010 . October 27, 2010 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20101023061537/http://www.observer.com/2010/politics/jimmy-mcmillan-not-registered-member-rent-too-damn-high-party . October 23, 2010 .
  33. https://huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/23/jimmy-mcmillan-rent-damn-high-president_n_800898.html "Jimmy McMillan Of 'The Rent Is Too Damn High Party' Announces Presidential Bid"
  34. Web site: Who Is Vermin Supreme? An Outsider Odyssey. June 11, 2019. www.imdb.com.
  35. Web site: Who Is Vermin Supreme? An Outsider Odyssey. whoisverminsupreme.com. June 11, 2019.
  36. Wing, Nick. "Jimmy McMillan Of 'The Rent Is Too Damn High Party' Announces Presidential Bid". Huffingtonpost.com. December 23, 2010.
  37. Benjamin, Elizabeth (February 11, 2011). McMillan at CPAC . State of Politics. Retrieved 2011-02-11.
  38. http://gothamist.com/2011/10/09/video_jimmy_mcmillan_serenades_occu.php Jimmy McMillan Serenades Occupy Wall Street Protesters
  39. News: The Rent Is Still Too Damn High: Jimmy McMillan Will Run For Mayor In 2013. Chung. Jen. September 14, 2012. Gothamist. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20130530152818/http://gothamist.com/2012/09/14/jimmy_mcmillan_will_run_for_mayor_i.php. May 30, 2013.
  40. https://www.scribd.com/doc/105589903/A-Rent-is-Too-Damn-High-Party-Event A Rent Is Too Damn High Party Event
  41. http://gothamist.com/2012/09/14/jimmy_mcmillan_will_run_for_mayor_i.php The Rent Is Still Too Damn High: Jimmy McMillan Will Run For Mayor In 2013
  42. [Hadas Gold|Gold, Hadas]
  43. News: Jimmy McMillan prepares to run for governor again on 'Rent is 2 Damn High' ticket . NY Daily News . Glenn Blain . August 27, 2014 . September 19, 2014 . New York.
  44. Spector, Joseph (September 26, 2014). The ballot's no damn good: Jimmy McMillan tossed from governor's race. Gannett. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  45. News: Vielkind. Jimmy. Jimmy McMillan knocked from governor's race. October 18, 2014. Capital.
  46. Web site: Vote Libertarian This One Time. YouTube. https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211220/lU6d1e1shAE . 2021-12-20 . live. March 1, 2015.
  47. Web site: 'Rent is still too damn high!' is still McMillan's platform. The Villager. October 12, 2017. March 4, 2018.
  48. Web site: New York City Council 02 2017. Our Campaigns. March 4, 2018.
  49. Web site: Archived copy . August 22, 2018 . August 23, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180823005919/http://www.elections.ny.gov:8080/reports/rwservlet?cmdkey=whofiled_independent_state . dead .
  50. Web site: 'The Rent Is Too Damn High' Guy Jimmy McMillan Sues to Run For Governor. TMZ. September 16, 2018 . June 11, 2019.
  51. Wing, Nick."Jimmy McMillan Of 'The Rent Is Too Damn High Party' Announces Presidential Bid". Huffingtonpost.com. December 23, 2010.
  52. Web site: Nick Wing . Jimmy McMillan Of 'The Rent Is Too Damn High' Announces Presidential Bid | HuffPost . December 23, 2010 . Huffingtonpost.com . 2019-06-11.
  53. Web site: Meet Jimmy McMillan, Founder and 'CEO' of the Rent Is 2 Damn High Party. https://web.archive.org/web/20101122160344/http://gawker.com/5667450/meet-jimmy-mcmillan-founder-and-ceo-of-the-rent-is-2-damn-high-party. dead. Max. Read. November 22, 2010. Gawker. June 11, 2019.
  54. Web site: Autostraddle — Riese's Team Pick: Jimmy McMillan for The Rent is Too Damn High Party . Autostraddle.com . October 20, 2010 . March 2, 2011.
  55. https://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2011/07/08/too-damn-prophetic-rent-candidate-says-i-told-you-so/?mod=WSJBlog&mod=WSJ_NY_NY_Blog Too Damn Prophetic: Rent Candidate Says ‘I Told You So'
  56. News: Jimmy McMillan Has But One Message, People... Updated x 2 . Nydailynews.com . October 21, 2010 . New York . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20101023011423/http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypolitics/2010/10/jimmy-mcmillan-has-but-one-mes.html . October 23, 2010 .
  57. McMillan, Jimmy. The Official Rent Is Too Damn High Platform . Retrieved December 1, 2010.
  58. Web site: Balaban . Samantha . East Village News, Culture & Life - The Local East Village Blog - NYTimes.com . Eastvillage.thelocal.nytimes.com . 2010-09-13 . 2019-06-11.
  59. News: Jimmy McMillan: Sarah Palin, 'I Love You' . Huffingtonpost.com . January 29, 2011. February 3, 2011 . Elyse . Siegel.
  60. Web site: David Goodman . Newsmaker Interview: Jimmy 'Rent Is Too Damn High' McMillan . Aolnews.com . January 29, 2011 . March 2, 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110313144548/http://www.aolnews.com/2011/01/29/newsmaker-interview-jimmy-rent-is-too-damn-high-mcmillan/ . March 13, 2011 .
  61. http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/gossip/fame-high-rent-jimmy-mcmillan-documentary-activist-media-phenomenon-article-1.949682 Is the fame as high as the rent? Jimmy McMillan documentary looks at activist as a media phenomenon
  62. Rathe, Adam (August 5, 2011). Jimmy McMillan cops to pot smoking, porn watching in new film. New York Daily News. Retrieved August 5, 2011.
  63. News: Sarah Maslin. Opposing Excessive Rent, but Vague About His Own . New York Times. October 19, 2010 . October 27, 2010.
  64. Maddux, Mitchell (August 5, 2011). 'Rent is Too Damn High' candidate facing eviction from rent-controlled apartment. The New York Post. Retrieved August 5, 2011.
  65. Web site: The Rent Is Still Too Damn High: Catching Up With Jimmy McMillan. October 18, 2022. David. Brand. CityLimits. October 18, 2022. citylimits.org.
  66. Amira, Dan (October 25, 2010). Jimmy McMillan's reaction to SNL parody: 'Election over'. New York Magazine. Retrieved 2010-10-25.
  67. News: Biden tells Democrats that package of up to $1.9 trillion should be new target of talks . Washington Post.
  68. Web site: The Rent Is Too Damn High in Morning Glory's New Video . May 15, 2014 . August 6, 2015.

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