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New York Today

New York Today: Hold the Ziti

Todd Howe, center, exiting court on Monday after his first day of testimony as a government witness in the corruption case against Joseph Percoco and three other defendants.Credit...Dave Sanders for The New York Times

Good cloudy Tuesday morning to you.

What is it about bribery that makes politicians hungry?

Testimony yesterday in the federal graft trial of Joseph Percoco, a close adviser to Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, hung briefly on the word “ziti,” which the star witness said was how Mr. Percoco referred to bribes.

“Joe threw in this term ziti, which we used throughout the entire bribery scheme” — a “Sopranos” reference, said the witness, Todd R. Howe.

Last month, in the trial of the mayor of Allentown, Pa., the foodstuff — or was it a payoff? — in question was “meatballs.”

The former mayor of Trenton called his illicit cash “pizza,” while a Maryland state senator craved “lollipops,” at $1,000 a pop, prosecutors said.

In Chicago, politicians were caught on tape discussing the old standbys “lettuce” and “Cheddar.”

Food makes sense as a cover word for money, said Robert A. Leonard, head of the forensic linguistics program at Hofstra University: Both are desirable, and food often sounds natural in regular conversation.

“The best code words are language that seem to mean something totally different than what it really means, but seems to fit into the context,” said Mr. Leonard, who testifies as an expert language witness in criminal cases. “Food is good because it’s quotidian.”

The magic word doesn’t have to be a foodstuff. In a 1995 case, a former New York City transportation official prosaically referred to payoffs as “commitments.” Farther afield, in South Africa, the code phrase was “Eiffel Tower”; in the Democratic Republic of Congo it was “making a whiskey”; and in Lebanon a common remedy for unlined pockets is “aspirin.”

Secret language often figures in perjury and bribery cases, Mr. Leonard said, because these are crimes that are often “committed via the uttering of a word.”

Here’s what else is happening:

Cloudy with a chance of meatballs.

And by meatballs, we mean snow. A flurry is possible this morning, but skies should become mostly sunny by this afternoon, with a high around 38.

Snow, rain and sleet may fall tomorrow.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority could drastically reduce its construction costs by rethinking how it manages projects, prioritizing efficiency over bureaucracy, according to a new report. [New York Times]

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A view of the Second Avenue subway as it was under construction.Credit...Josh Haner/The New York Times

Joseph Percoco, once one of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s closest aides, sought to actively sell his influence in Albany in two separate bribery schemes, witnesses testified. [New York Times]

Families for Excellent Schools, a charter-schools organization known for its battles with Mayor Bill de Blasio, said it was shutting down. [New York Times]

Police departments face new challenges not only fighting cyber offenses, but also keeping track of them, in part because of an outdated crime classification system. [New York Times]

• Mayor de Blasio repeatedly rejected state lawmakers’ calls for the city to contribute more money to the deteriorating subway system. [New York Times]

Mayor de Blasio struck a new deal with the original developers of Willets Point, near Citi Field, to build 1,100 apartments for low- and moderate-income residents. [New York Times]

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Mayor Bill de Blasio struck a new deal with the original developers of Willets Point, near Citi Field, to build 1,100 apartments for low- and moderate-income New Yorkers, a school, open space and retail outlets — but no mall.Credit...Todd Heisler/The New York Times

A police officer who saw a sergeant fatally shoot a mentally ill woman testified that the woman never swung a baseball bat at the sergeant, as he asserted. [New York Times]

Displaced Bowery tenants, some of whom are lodged at a nearby hotel, are threatening a hunger strike if building repairs aren’t complete by Wednesday. [Bowery Boogie]

Governor Cuomo signed an executive order banning state agencies from doing business with companies that discriminate. [NY1]

New York’s public building costs are the most expensive in the world, a new study revealed. [New York Post]

Today’s Metropolitan Diary: “Back-Seat Singer

For a global look at what’s happening, see Your Morning Briefing.

Start your day with a morning run at Fort Tryon Park in Inwood. 7:30 a.m. [Free]

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A man walking under Billings Arch in Fort Tryon Park in Manhattan.Credit...Emon Hassan for The New York Times

It’s National Frozen Yogurt Day. Pick up a free fro-yo at participating 16 Handles locations. Noon to 6 p.m. [Free, but you must download an app]

Play more than 100 games, and meet their developers, at Winter Play, at Microsoft in Midtown. 6 to 9 p.m. [$15]

Bring a blanket to an indoor screening of “Rebel Without a Cause” under the palm trees at Brookfield Place in Lower Manhattan. 7 p.m. [Free]

Devils at Senators, 7:30 p.m. (MSG+). Knicks host Bucks, 7:30 p.m. (MSG). Nets host Rockets, 7:30 p.m. (YES).

Alternate-side parking remains in effect until Feb. 12.

For more events, see The New York Times’s Arts & Entertainment guide.

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Looking for lovers, poles apart.Credit...Cheryl Gerber for The New York Times

Are you in love with someone with opposing political views?

If so, we want to hear about it.

Ahead of Valentine’s Day, The New York Times is looking for couples whose relationship spans our country’s increasingly fractious partisan divide.

If you’d like to participate, tell us about your relationship by filling out this form here. If you can, include your responses on video and have your partner join you. If you would be willing to come to the studio at the Times building in Midtown to be filmed, let us know.

Your responses could be used in a coming story.

New York Today is a morning roundup that is published weekdays at 6 a.m. If you don’t get it in your inbox already, you can sign up to receive it by email here.

For updates throughout the day, like us on Facebook.

What would you like to see here to start your day? Post a comment, email us at nytoday@nytimes.com, or reach us via Twitter using #NYToday.

Follow the New York Today columnists, Alexandra Levine and Jonathan Wolfe, on Twitter.

You can find the latest New York Today at nytoday.com.

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