Once popular with her politico peers, New York City Council speaker Christine Quinn lost some support after this summer's slush fund scandal. And, with all the bad press, the openly gay Quinn's dreams of becoming mayor became quite dim.

It should come as no surprise, then, that Quinn supports Mayor Mike Bloomberg's bid for a third-term, a rare move for the city.

We originally assumed Quinn wanted more time to regain people's confidence, but NY Post claims there's more nuance than just that:

Quinn's support for a term-limit extension for Mayor Bloomberg comes at a price, according to City Hall insiders. They say that Quinn , who has lost the confidence of her colleagues, will not be re-elected speaker.

Rather than go back to being an ordinary council member and have to give up her big staff and SUV, Quinn will leave the council and become a deputy mayor under Bloomberg. The deal for extending term limits also includes Bloomberg - who regards Quinn highly - endorsing her for mayor in 2013.

The move would also give Quinn a leg up on the experience side, which would no doubt come into play in a rhetorical campaign. Say what you will about Quinn, but this lady's one crafty, adept politician.

There are treasure troves of art and there are castles full of priceless antiques…and then there's The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

We’re not telling you anything new, of course. Taking up more than one city block, holding court on 79th street, above Central Park, and featured in countless media, almost everyone in the Western world has caught wind of the Met. We were a little surprised, then, that the venerable institution held an after-hours party exclusively for the gays, complete with top shelf booze, Britney Spears remixes and loads of attractive young gents. And, as the pink icing, they managed to wrangle out City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, around whom a flurry of security and lackeys swooned. So, what gives?

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Lesbian politician Christine Quinn's desperately trying to win back her political peers.

The New York City Council Speaker came under earlier this month after the NY Post reported that the council had funneled millions into fake organizations and used the dough as a slush fund. The paper also revealed that Quinn knew about the potential fraud many months ago and fumbled in cleaning up the mess. Now, as the investigation heats up and Quinn's calling in defense lawyers, the lesbian politico's apparently apologizing left and right:

In a series of private meetings with rank-and-file members of the City Council on Monday, Speaker Christine C. Quinn kept apologizing. She told them she had blundered badly in her response to revelations about the Council’s appropriation of money to fictitious organizations.

“I’m terribly sorry for the way I did this, with no consultation,” one council member recalled her saying. “You read in the paper about people in crisis situations doing things and you say, ‘How could they have been so stupid?’ And now I know how they could have been that stupid.”

We have to admit, we're a bit surprised, as well. We always thought Quinn to be an above-it-all sort of girl. Now we think she may just be another politician out for her own.

Christine Quinn's trying her hardest to control the damage from this month's slush fun scandal. The openly lesbianic New York City council speaker found herself in the spotlight after NY Post reported that millions of city funds had been stashed in phony organizations and distributed at the council's discretion. On Friday, as calls for her head grew louder, Quinn announced sweeping reforms, saying that she and her staff would limit discretionary funds, thus giving much of the power to the Mayor's office.

While Quinn's announcement was meant to quell criticism, some of her peers still aren't having it:

Brooklyn Councilman Charles Barron has called for Quinn to step down, and although other members tossed around the word coup yesterday, they said there were no plots to oust her from her post.

Quinn spokesman Jamie McShane said the speaker acknowledges the hurt feelings and is calling and meeting with her colleagues to address them.

"Chris acknowledges that she should have consulted her members prior to announcing the reforms," McShane said. "She's reaching out, seeking feedback and suggestions, and she'll continue to do so throughout the week."

Speaking of reaching out, Speaker Quinn also upped her defense by hiring defense attorney Lee S. Richards III. Richards will no doubt come in handy as federal and state authorities dig deeper into her involvement in the scandal.

Christine Quinn must be sweating right about now.

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Homo-politico Christine Quinn finds herself in an unflattering spotlight this morning. New York Post reports that federal investigators are taking a closer look at the City Council Speaker's book keeping. Records show that Quinn and her staff stuffed about $4.7 million into phony non-profits, thus saving the money for later, unspecified use.

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New York City Speaker Christine Quinn may not be advocating for animals, but she knows more needs to done to save human lives.

The 41-year old sappho-politico penned a letter to the NY Times celebrating the city's commitment to HIV awareness. The city, however, can only do so much:

In order to help New Yorkers, the City Council and the Health and Hospital Corporation announced additional Council financing of $5.6 million for public hospitals to expand rapid H.I.V. testing. This investment has helped the hospitals expand their reach beyond AIDS centers and prenatal care clinics to offer rapid H.I.V. testing to current hospital patients, visitors to the emergency rooms and outpatient clinics.

Rapid testing helped hospitals test almost 134,000 patients last year, and allowed doctors and counselors the chance to provide education and services on the spot if a person tested positive.

Increasing the availability of testing can be vital in the early detection of H.I.V., and early detection can be the crucial factor in fighting this devastating illness.

The only way to truly combat this crisis is to ensure that all New Yorkers take a simple first step — learn their H.I.V. status.

You heard the woman - go get yourself an HIV test. It does a body good.

Animal activists are hopping mad over Christine Quinn's alleged anti-animal politics.

The pigeon hating NYC speaker apparently scored a total zero on the League of Humane Voters of New York City's annual scorecard. Apparently she didn't do enough to help the city's horses, pets and other four-legged creatures.

The group's press release reads thus:

Animal lovers will howl when they find out that Speaker Christine Quinn and 9 other members of the City Council are getting zeros on our City Council Humane Scorecard. Many New Yorkers care deeply about animal welfare. Our City Council Humane Scorecard will shed light on politicians' voting records and hold them accountable to their constituents.

Good thing Rover can't vote.

Homo-politico Christine Quinn visited Ireland recently and took some time to blast Ian Paisley, Jr: the MP who said he's repulsed by gays. Says Quinn:

Statements like that shouldn't be made. They are totally unhelpful and hurtful to people. It shouldn't have been said.

Sometimes when people say things like that they don't realize the impact. Lots of people are affected, the people at the center of the remarks, their family, their friends.

Comments like that are personal and very painful.

Yes, even more painful than calling pigeons "flying rats".

We were seeing stars at the 11th annual NY Gay & Lesbian Anti-Violent Project Courage Awards.

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We understand that activists can get hyperbolic, but some animal rights gurus are getting downright crazy after Christine Quinn talked smack about pigeons. The openly gay NYC council speaker caused a minor blip this week when she derided the birds as "flying rats," a common comparison: "I am not a fan of pigeons. I have no love of pigeons at all. I find them to be flying rats, and I have no use for them." Some truly bored activists are deeply offended by Quinn's words and even went so far as to compare "flying rat" to "nigger". From NY Post:

Urban Wildlife Coalition founder Johana Clearfield wrote Quinn, slamming her as "clueless," since "pigeons have nothing in common with rats" - and calling her comment an "epithet . . . much like the n-word."

Um, first of all, calling a pigeon a flying rat is nothing like calling someone a nigger. Second, pigeons lack the intelligence and cognizance to understand the implications of Quinn's words. So, basically, it's moot.