NEW THIS MORNING

IT'S MENG VS. LANCMAN FOR CONGRESS: Queens Democrats chose Assemblywoman Grace Meng to run for retiring Rep. Gary Ackerman's seat and become New York's first Asian-American member of Congress last night, but Assemblyman Rory Lancman plans a primary challenge anyway: http://bit.ly/xhACyF NEW THIS MORNING: * Gov. Andrew Cuomo expects Medicaid Inspector General James Cox to perform less adversarial audits of healthcare providers after dismissing his fraud-busting predecessor, James Sheehan, under pressure from the industry, the New York Times says: http://nyti.ms/FPuJbe * Younger members of the Assembly were put off by Speaker Sheldon Silver's arm-twisting for votes last week, especially since more senior members of the body weren't subjected to such tough treatment, Ken Lovett writes in the Daily News: http://nydn.us/wXUTD9 * The Senate Democrats' unsettled leadership situation and poor performance while in the majority factored into Gov. Andrew Cuomo's decision to sign off on gerrymandered district lines, Fred Dicker writes in the Post: http://nyp.st/zZePsB * A slew of well-financed and influential groups are lining up to carve up, promote or kill a deal to allow for casinos in New York, the Times Union reports: http://bit.ly/wqxbsM * Comptroller John Liu has awarded $6 million in contracts to manage city pension funds to a firm under investigation by New York federal and state prosecutors over claims it ripped off millions from public-employee pension systems around the world, the Post reports: http://nyp.st/xTKwRj *Mayor Michael Bloomberg has attempted to maintain ties with his hometown of Medford, Mass., in a number of small ways, but residents see him as a big city guy, the Times writes: http://nyti.ms/xWMmmW WEEKEND ROUNDUP: * City Council Speaker Christine Quinn shows off her new, slimmer figure in a photo spread in the new issue of Elle on sale this week, the Post said: http://nyp.st/xogybV * The Post's David Seifman said City Council members want to spend the city's $466 million settlement from the CityTime scandal on restoring cuts to social services, complicating the usual spring budget dance: http://nyp.st/zjBiMC * Gov. Andrew Cuomo's use of "messages of necessity" to pass last week's pension and redistricting compromise in the middle of the night is drawing fresh criticism, the Associated Press said: http://bit.ly/zwuN7c