THE "PORK" IN NEW YORK, Thoughts of an older American on Constitutional Government in the USA Options

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Michael Goodwin

"Cleaning up a cover up - Gov narrows his denials about what he knew and when he knew it"

Wednesday, September 5th 2007, 4:00 AM

If you think Gov. Spitzer had no knowledge of the plot to smear a rival Republican, you are wrong.

If you think Spitzer had no knowledge the plot involved the state police, you are wrong again.

And if you think Spitzer had no knowledge the plot would use the media to spread dirt, strike three, you're out.

Take heart - you're not alone.

I believed Spitzer had sweepingly denied any knowledge of those three issues.

But the governor's office now says it wants to "clarify" for me what the governor knew about the plot to smear Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno.

It is a surprising turn, one that suggests to lawyers I consulted that Spitzer is following legal advice to sharply narrow the scope of earlier denials.

The move could mean Spitzer is, one Albany insider said, "creating a record" in case evidence or testimony contradicts his earlier denials, which were usually far more sweeping.

I think of it as cleaning up the coverup.

The "clarification" came in a response to my scoffing at Spitzer's claim that "he had no knowledge of the plot to use the state police for a political smear job."

Spitzer's spokeswoman called those words "misleading."

"Eliot has never asserted that he had 'no knowledge' of the situation," Christine Anderson wrote in an e-mail.

"To the contrary, the governor has repeatedly and publicly said that:

1. He believed there was a media request for documents relating to Bruno's travel (and, he has added, his own travel as well);

2. He knew that Darren [Dopp] was collecting documents relating to that travel, which showed travel on days of political events, and

3. He knew that when those documents were provided to the media, there would be a news story about it."

After repeating the points, Anderson tackled what Spitzer didn't know.

"What the governor was NOT aware of was HOW the documents were being collected - i.e., that the state police was re-creating records, that the superintendent was handling the requests personally, or that standard operating procedures were not being followed in every way."

Like fireworks, Anderson's claims drew oohs and aahs from my legal sources, three of whom are familiar with the details of "Troopergate."

All said they had never heard Spitzer restrict his denials to the state police actions.

And two focused on Anderson's references to a "media request" instead of to requests under the Freedom Of Information Law.

The distinction could matter because, according to the damning report by Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, the FOIL request at the heart of the case came after Spitzer aides used one as a false pretext to order the state police to produce documents.

If Spitzer knew about the info gathering before the actual FOIL was filed, he is admitting to far earlier knowledge of the plot.

In a phone conversation yesterday, Anderson insisted her e-mail was consistent with Spitzer's prior statements.

When I noted that many press reports had used variations of "Spitzer said he knew nothing," she said she had been unable to correct them all.

She added of Spitzer, "He's not a robot."

"He's not going to use the same phraseology every time."

That's a fact.

For example, talking to the Daily News Editorial Board on July 26, Spitzer was asked whether he was aware, as Cuomo found, that the plan to use the media to damage Bruno started last May.

"I was only aware that when there were media inquiries they were gathering information to respond to it," Spitzer answered.

Pressed about the charge of an early targeted, systematic attempt, Spitzer insisted: "I was not aware of that."

He also said "I know nothing" about damaging e-mails that described the plan.

We'll see.

If my guess and my sources are right, Spitzer is preparing to testify, and he knows that what he will have to say under oath to avoid perjury will contradict what most people have heard him say publicly.

mgoodwin@nydailynews.com

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2007/0...a_cover_up.html

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK POST

"GOPER RIPS 'GOV'ER-UP"

By FREDRIC U. DICKER State Editor

September 5, 2007 -- ALBANY - State Republican Chairman Joseph Mondello yesterday accused Gov. Spitzer of seeking to "cover up" his involvement in the dirty-tricks scandal, saying, "It appears he is actually resisting every effort to explore what really happened."

Mondello's blast came in response to The Post's report yesterday that Spitzer and his top aides were resisting efforts by the state Ethics Commission to obtain potentially explosive private e-mails and other records relating to the scandal, which involved the governor's use of the State Police to gather supposedly damaging information on Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno.

"The people of New York overwhelmingly demand that Gov. Spitzer and his administration disclose all the facts about their use of the State Police to advance their personal political agenda," continued Mondello.

"It is disturbing that the governor's administration would reject the will of the people and continue to hide their private e-mails and prevent a full and unfettered investigation."

Mondello's attack came just hours after Spitzer again insisted that he had "cooperated fully" with the commission.

"All I can tell you is I have cooperated fully, turned over everything they've asked."

"Anything they've wanted, they've gotten from me," added Spitzer - pointedly referring to himself and not to other members of his administration.

Spitzer has claimed in the past to have cooperated fully with scandal probes conducted by Attorney General Andrew Cuomo and Inspector General Kristine Hamann.

However, Spitzer and his aides failed to turn over what investigators believe to be a number of private e-mails relating to the scandal sent from their Blackberries and other communication devices.

In addition, two top Spitzer aides, Chief of Staff Richard Baum and Communications Director Darren Dopp, refused to be questioned under oath during Cuomo's probe of the scandal in July.

Dopp was suspended without pay for a month in the wake of Cuomo's bombshell report on the scandal, although he was reinstated to his $175,000-a-year post last week just days before he is expected to be questioned by the commission.

fredric.dicker@nypost.com

http://www.nypost.com/seven/09052007/news/...ps_gover_up.htm

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

I just finished reading the NEW YORK DAILY NEWS story by Michael Goodwin entitled "Cleaning up a cover up - Gov narrows his denials about what he knew and when he knew it", Wednesday, September 5th 2007, 4:00 AM ...

And perhaps that story carries within it some clues as to why the "STEAMROLLER" is so testy lately ....

And I have to say that the title of that article, "Cleaning up a cover up", made me think of none other than Nelson Sheingold!

Eliot Spitzer’s former MASTER OF THE ART OF THE GOVERNMENT COVER-UP from Eliot’ days as NYS AG ….

The MASTER OF THE ART OF THE GOVERNMENT COVER-UP, indeed!

This Nelson Sheingold dude is the KING OF THE GOVERNMENT COVER-UP!

In federal District Court for the Northern District of New York in 2005, in the matter of former Rensselaer County Associate Public Health engineer Paul R. Plante, P.E. v. Rensselaer County Executive Kathleen Jimino et al, "COVER-UP ARTISTE" Nelson Sheingold got Plante’s federal civil rights lawsuit stemming from Plante’s unlawful incarceration in the Stratton VA Hospital based on a fraudulent involuntary psychiatric commitment order thrown out of federal court by the simple expedient of burying an August 16, 2002 AFFIRMATION of Assistant New York State Attorney General LISA ULLMAN wherein Ullman had confirmed while under oath that Plante had been involuntarily committed to the Stratton VA Hospital PURSUANT TO MENTAL HYGIENE LAW 9.45 FOR SEVERAL HOURS ON AUGUST 22, 2001, so that "COVER-UP ARTISTE" Sheingold could then testify to an alternate story that was totally false ....

Which false story required Sheingold to also bury the sworn affidavit of an Albany, New York Police Officer who was an eye-witness to Plante’s unlawful incarceration, and who was able to finally secure Plante’s release by demonstrating to VA Hospital officials the fact that they were holding Plante unlawfully, and in violation of his civil rights, to boot …

And then, Nelson Sheingold also had to bury the statements of a NYSP BCI Investigator in the office of Rensselaer County District Attorney Kenneth Bruno who was himself a witness to the commission of crimes in the matter of Plante’s unlawful incarceration by Rensselaer County and New York State public officials …

And of course, Nelson Sheingold had to lie under oath to the federal court ….

AND HE DID IT LIKE A PRO!

And so ….

It's no wonder that Eliot Spitzer has an un-clear conscience today ...

And I wonder what Niebuhr would have to say to the "STEAMROLLER" about that ...

Especially after the "STEAMROLLER" quoted Niebuhr as saying, "we need a sense of contrition about the common human frailties and foibles which lie at the foundation of both the enemy's demonry and our vanities ...."

We upstate countryfolks would say, in the absence of Niebuhr, that Eliot "STEAMROLLER" Spitzer does indeed need a massive dose of contrition after what he had Nelson Sheingold do to bury Plante's federal civil rights lawsuit ...

Which civil rights lawsuit, like TROOPERGATE, involved the use of the State Police to advance Eliot Spitzer's political agenda ....

And so ...

A small world it is ...

And so ...

Posted by: John Galt | September 5, 2007 7:38 PM

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...buhr_think.html

[Livyjr]

"Spitzer tells reporter to 'get a life' after scandal question"

Associated Press

Last updated: 5:52 p.m., Wednesday, September 5, 2007

VESTAL, N.Y. -- Gov. Eliot Spitzer scolded a local TV journalist who asked about his political troubles during a media event on the opening day of classes at a Binghamton-area high school.

"Get a life buddy," Spitzer snapped at WBNG-TV anchor and reporter Justin Moss after the last of three questions about fallout from the scandal involving Spitzer aides who schemed to discredit his main political rival.

"It caught me off guard for sure."

"What do you say to that?" Moss said.

"I kind of backed off."

Spitzer spent part of the morning at Vestal High School lecturing a class about preparing for careers in the global economy and then spoke about the state's commitment to education funding.

At a question and answer session, Moss asked about the future of top Spitzer aide Darren Dopp, recently returned to the state payroll after a suspension for his role in using the state police to compile travel records on Republican Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno.

"I don't know," Spitzer replied.

Moss asked if the governor is worried about Dopp's upcoming testimony in investigations of the incident.

"Not in the slightest bit," the governor said.

"Any other questions?"

"Any about education?"

"Anything about something that matters?"

Moss took one more shot, asking if the scandal has been a distraction from the main business of government.

That prompted Spitzer's caustic reply.

"I didn't think the question was that controversial," Moss said.

Spitzer spokesman Paul Larrabee said the governor was at the school to focus on improving the quality of the education for students in New York state.

"It is our belief that the reporter was being overly aggressive in that context; that we were guests in the school district on the first day of classes, surrounded by students, and other reporters were endeavoring to ask on-topic questions," Larrabee said.

Since the scandal erupted in late July, Spitzer has spent most of his time away from Albany at events like the Wednesday appearance.

Wherever he appears, he's often hit with questions about the ongoing political and legal fallout from the Bruno scandal.

During and since the campaign for governor, critics have publicly questioned Spitzer's temperament, pointing to his use of a profanity to describe himself to a ranking Republican as a steamroller, among other things.

[Livyjr]

"Slump hurts view of future - Housing and stock woes, political problems, hit like waves on a beach in August, battering consumer confidence"

By ERIC ANDERSON, Deputy business editor, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Thursday, September 6, 2007

COLONIE -- Consumer confidence tumbled in New York in August, and the director of the Siena Research Institute in Loudonville, which conducts the monthly survey, says he's not at all surprised.

"August was a dismal month economically," said Douglas Lonnstrom, who also is a professor of statistics and finance at Siena College.

He blamed the slump in housing, a developing credit crunch that is pushing interest rates higher on everything from adjustable-rate mortgages to credit card debt, a gyrating stock market, and even the political problems that have enveloped Gov. Eliot Spitzer.

"The Democrats have plummeted more than anyone else," Lonnstrom said.

Spitzer "got elected on this change on day one platform."

"(Consumers) have seen no change."

The Troopergate scandal also hurt Spitzer, Lonnstrom added.

Then there's the stock market.

"We go up 200 and down 200."

"Markets hate uncertainty and that's what we have right now," he said.

Members of the Times Union Reader Network echoed concerns raised by the survey.

"I think most of us are disappointed about how state politics has hit new lows," wrote Mark Grimm of Guilderland.

"People were hoping the economic climate of New York finally might change.

"Instead, more spending, more special interests, more frustration with a cumbersome government increasing the hurdles to economic growth," he added.

A separate part of the Siena survey found that consumers' plans to make major purchases are at a five-year low, and that could spell trouble for everyone from car dealers and contractors to furniture retailers and electronics stores statewide.

One TURN member, Andrew Carter of Catskill, said a recent job loss had made his family more cautious about their spending.

A software developer, he was able to quickly find another job with comparable pay.

Nevertheless, a plan to build a garage at their new home is being put on hold, he said.

"We'll just have to shovel the car out this winter," Carter said.

Sally and Shawn Spring, meanwhile, say they're driving less to cut their spending on gasoline, even though both of their cars -- a small BMW and a Pontiac G6 -- get nearly 28 miles per gallon.

The Castleton couple said they're planning for their retirement and watching their spending.

"We're both going to be 61," Sally Spring said.

"At our age, we have everything."

"We don't need to buy a house."

"We wait for bargains."

And the Rev. Robert Loesch of Sand Lake wrote that he pays down his credit card balance each month, has no current major debts, and minimizes his driving both to save gas and reduce his carbon emissions.

He criticized the military occupation of Iraq, which he blamed for the federal government's budget deficit and lower consumer confidence.

Economists follow consumer confidence closely because they say it's a strong indicator of the willingness to spend.

And consumer spending typically makes up two-thirds of the nation's overall economic activity.

Not everyone is cutting back.

While TURN member Nancy Peters said she and her husband have noticed prices escalating, the retired couple work part time and plan at least two vacations in the next six months.

The consumer confidence survey is modeled after one conducted by the University of Michigan to permit national comparisons.

The statewide index stood at 73.8 in August, down 7.2 points from July.

Upstate fell 6.4 points to 69.9, while the metropolitan New York City area was off 7.2 points to 73.8.

All figures were below the national index of 83.4.

Lower-income individuals, those 55 and older, and Democrats were among the consumers feeling least confident, the survey found.

Republicans, those under age 55, and upper-income individuals felt most confident.

Lonnstrom said the confidence index could rebound with a bit of good news, or fall further if energy prices spike or the housing market weakens more.

"You're looking at a credit crunch on top of energy prices," he said.

"My personal hope is it doesn't get any worse."

Anderson can be reached at 454-5323 or by e-mail at eanderson@timesunion.com.

[Livyjr]

"Panel: NYRA picks bad bet in deal - State Racing & Wagering Board determines a $7.5M pact fails to meet rules for no-bid contracts"

By JAMES M. ODATO, Capitol bureau, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Thursday, September 6, 2007

ALBANY -- The state Racing & Wagering Board suspects the New York Racing Association violated racing law by arranging a no-bid contract with a firm that's supposed to make sure it does business properly.

The state board has been asking NYRA over the past month to justify why it granted a sole-source contract to Getnick & Getnick to serve as a business integrity counsel.

The racing association, which is operating under a federal bankruptcy court shield, negotiated a five-year contract guaranteeing the law firm $125,000 monthly for five years, plus expenses.

A bankruptcy court judge is expected to rule on the $7.5 million deal Sept. 19.

The law firm previously worked for NYRA under a court order, overseeing the association's operations after its 2003 indictment.

"We've determined Getnick & Getnick does not meet the requirements of sole source contracts," said Daniel Toomey, a spokesman for the racing board.

"We believe they would be violating" procurement practices in racing law.

The revelation comes as Gov. Eliot Spitzer calls for NYRA to employ a "business integrity counsel" such at Getnick to oversee compliance with "all applicable laws and regulations" as part of the terms of a proposed 30-year franchise extension.

NYRA contends Getnick offers unique qualities, including an understanding of its operations and the racing industry, and therefore is eligible to be a sole source contractor.

Still, the racing board wants to know why NYRA failed to honor a requirement that contracts of $250,000 be competitively bid.

Even without court approval, Getnick & Getnick served as NYRA's integrity consultant during the six-week Saratoga meet.

The creditors' committee in the bankruptcy case objects to the deal and critics question the firm's employment after receiving $5 million from NYRA as its court-appointed monitor for 18 months.

In that role, Getnick delivered a positive report about NYRA to a U.S. magistrate handling the NYRA criminal case just before he dismissed tax fraud charges.

Bennett Liebman, coordinator of the Racing & Gaming Law Program at Albany Law School, said the Getnick deal presents an appearance of a conflict and needs competitive bidding.

Meanwhile, Assembly Minority Leader James Tedisco, R-Schenectady, whose district includes parts of Saratoga Springs, said he supports NYRA as the franchise holder but dislikes breaking up the franchise.

Spitzer proposes to have NYRA run races at Aqueduct, Belmont Park and Saratoga, and have another firm operate a proposed video slots casino at Aqueduct.

That decision would come within two months.

Tedisco said Saratoga Springs needs an ironclad assurance that it will continue to receive real estate taxes on the track.

Under the franchise deal, the state promises the racing association $75 million to get out of bankruptcy court.

It also will forgive tens of millions owed the state.

But the state will get clear title to the three tracks in return.

State officials said the taxing authorities won't lose because payments in lieu of taxes will be paid by the state.

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver embraced the governor's vision, saying he is glad Saratoga and Belmont would be essentially unchanged and that VLTs would be only at Aqueduct.

The three losing bidders for the racing franchise -- Empire Racing Associates, Capital Play LLC and Excelsior Racing Associates -- are urging lawmakers to disregard Spitzer's plan.

An official close to Excelsior said the state would lose the chance for substantial revenues because the plan calls for development only at Aqueduct, while the bigger Belmont property offers much more opportunity for gambling expansion and economic programs.

The state intends to spread the word publicly within a few days that any entity with gaming management experience can bid on running the Aqueduct VLT parlor, not just the losing bidders.

A Spitzer administration official said the state expects partners of some of the bidders, such as Delaware North, to express interest.

Eric Moser, the lawyer for the creditor's committee, said NYRA seems to have struck a good deal.

"It's a generally favorable development," he said, adding the creditors continue to object to the Getnick & Getnick contract.

NYRA's bankruptcy court filings show it lost $370,000 in July and has liabilities of $360 million.

C. Steven Duncker, NYRA's chairman, said creditors should get about 100 cents on the dollar if the deal goes through.

And James Heffernan, a NYRA trustee, said NYRA would be able to contribute $20 million immediately toward $56 million in delinquent pension fund payments.

James M. Odato can be reached at 454-5083 or by e-mail at jodato@timesunion.com.

[Livyjr]

"Lobbying commission pushes case of lobbyist' flights for Bruno"

By MICHAEL GORMLEY, Associated Press

Last updated: 7:33 p.m., Thursday, September 6, 2007

ALBANY -- The state lobbying commission agreed Thursday to try to compel a businessman to answer questions about what appear to be free flights for Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno.

It was one of the last acts of the Temporary State Commission on Lobbying, created in 1977, to reduce the influence of lobbyists on government decisions and officials.

The lobbying watchdog will be combined with the state Ethics Commission later this month, under a single government integrity commission.

It will be up to that new commission to decide whether to subpoena Jared Abbruzzese, a lobbyist and Albany area businessman, to testify about trips for Bruno that could violate lobbying laws.

But Abbruzzese, who has fought the appearance in court battles he's lost over the last year, might not even be subject to the laws.

He would be questioned on whether he provided private flights to the Republican leader of the Senate as either a businessman, lobbyist, or as a principal in a horse racing group.

Bruno has long been a supporter of the horse racing industry in the state and will play a critical role in awarding the state thoroughbred racing franchise by Dec. 31 to operate Aqueduct, Belmont and Saratoga race tracks for the next 30 years.

Abbruzzese had been president and CEO of the Friends of New York Racing and had also owned a stake in Empire Racing Associates, one of the associations seeking the lucrative state racing franchise.

An ongoing federal investigation into Bruno's private business dealings stems from this case, which began with a lobbying commission probe of Bruno's relationship with Abbruzzese.

Bruno directed $500,000 in state grants over the past two years to a private company linked to Abbruzzese.

"Your point," lobbying board member Andrew Celli told Executive Director David Grandeau, "is there is enough here today to move it forward and I think we should ... "

"We're at the end of the road in terms of the court process."

"I don't think we're being unfair to him by moving this forward."

"I think we're being fair to the public," Celli said.

"I'd love to cross-examine him," said Grandeau, the feisty watchdog who has rankled lobbyists and some board members for a decade in the job that ends Sept. 22.

On Aug. 2, the Appellate Division upheld most of a lower court's decision denying the effort by Abbruzzese to quash a subpoena.

The decision modifies the lower court ruling by saying the documents sought, which include "trip sheets" that show who paid for private flights Bruno was on, should be reviewed by a judge or referee, but not in open court.

Abbruzzese could appeal to the state's highest court, the Court of Appeals, but the high court often doesn't take up unanimous decisions from the appellate division as in this case, Grandeau said.

Abbruzzese's lawyer, Brendan Tully, didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.

[Livyjr]

"Albany assault prompts warning - Woman beaten and robbed while waiting for a bus near the Capitol"

By JORDAN CARLEO-EVANGELIST, Staff writer, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Saturday, September 8, 2007

ALBANY -- The face of downtown's latest crime spree is bruised, broken and soon to be repaired with a titanium plate.

This is the damage wrought by two thugs who assaulted and robbed Louise Finkell while she waited for a bus Monday morning across the street from the state Capitol, according to police and her family.

Finkell, 57, a state worker and city resident, was punched from behind without warning just after 10 a.m. Labor Day at Washington Avenue and Swan Street -- a corner that on most days would have been mobbed with state workers.

She was headed to meet her daughter for a day of shopping at Stuyvesant Plaza.

"The first thing they did was not ask her for her pocketbook but to strike her," said Finkell's outraged older brother, Anthony Tartaglia, angered further by the way the attack on his sister was first reported by police to the media -- as a simple robbery.

"This is more than just robbery," said Tartaglia, 75, of Delmar, a retired Albany Medical College dean, "and the people of Albany have to be warned about it."

His sister has several broken bones in her face and will undergo surgery Monday to repair the damage, he said.

The violence and bravado of the broad-daylight assault -- one of a half-dozen recent robberies -- have triggered warning messages to workers in at least two nearby state agencies.

The robberies have occurred generally in and around Center Square over the last two weeks, though police said the level of violence in Finkell's attack seems to have been an exception.

The attack on Finkell also underscores the paradoxes of crime in Albany.

Police have struggled with an increase in shootings this year despite an overall decline in serious crimes -- most of which, according to a recent study, don't involve guns.

The same one or two young men are believed to be responsible, and police say they have worked to pass safety information to neighbors.

But at least one neighborhood e-mail alert suggested not enough was being done.

"Although police have been working hard on this issue, they have unfortunately not communicated these recent incidents to neighbors and visitors," read the alert from the Lark Street Community Watch.

The message suggested that the communication lag was the result of December's police reorganization.

"We're not hiding it," Police Chief James Tuffey said Friday, pointing out that the information in the e-mail was provided by his department.

"I'm glad that people are involved and concerned about what's happening."

Tuffey dismissed the idea that the departmental restructuring is causing communication problems, also saying new units created then are being deployed in Center Square.

Sixth Ward Common Councilman Richard Conti said he and others continue to work with police to improve communication.

"There is concern about the flow of information, the timeliness of the flow," Conti said.

"I think that going through the reorganization some things may have fallen through."

"The chief is sensitive to that."

Mayor Jerry Jennings said he was not aware of the attack on Finkell, which happened only a few blocks from his City Hall office.

"I'm very sorry to hear about this," Jennings said, expressing confidence in police to deal aggressively with it.

Jim Regan, 49, lives in Pine Hills with his family and travels downtown every day to his job as an analytical chemist for the state Health Department.

"Downtown is pretty safe," Regan said in West Capitol Park within sight of where Finkell was attacked.

"It could happen anywhere."

In the Hudson Park neighborhood, which abuts Center Square to the south, neighborhood association president Roger Bearden said people are wary but far from panicked.

"People are concerned, but I think it's more, 'Hey, let's remember some more of the lessons: You don't walk with your iPod on your ears at 2 in the morning,"' Bearden said.

Meanwhile, Tartaglia praised the officers who have aided his sister.

However, he is adamant that the full story of what happened to her be known.

"Maybe they don't want to frighten people, but they have to know," Tartaglia said, pausing as if to think better of what he said next.

"If I ever caught these guys, they would rue meeting this 75-year-old."

Carleo-Evangelist can be reached at 454-5445 or by e-mail at jcarleo-evangelist@ timesunion.com.

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Elizabeth Benjamin

"GOP scrambles to keep Troopergate from fizzling out"

Monday, September 10th 2007, 4:00 AM

The end of the Troopergate scandal may be near for Gov. Spitzer and his aides.

With the Troopergate probe unlikely to result in criminal charges against aides to Gov. Spitzer, some Senate Republicans worry they're losing control of the scandal.

A source familiar with Albany County District Attorney David Soares' investigation into the aides' scheme to smear Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno said Soares will announce his findings before the end of the month and is all but certain not to bring any charges.

This could leave Senate Republicans, who have been dining out on the scandal since July, in a quandary.

How long will they be able to continue their own probes into alleged misconduct by Spitzer if other, more independent entities find no wrongdoing?

"If the investigation is thorough and there are no criminal charges, it becomes very difficult for us to move forward," said one Republican senator.

"It's a fine line."

" ... We risk losing the confidence of the people and the newspapers."

The Republicans' hopes could rest with the state Ethics Commission, which has no criminal jurisdiction but could reignite the scandal by finding evidence of misconduct.

The commission may release its Troopergate-investigation report soon as well, as it will cease to exist when it merges with the Lobbying Commission on Sept. 22.

In anticipation of things not going their way, the Republicans have sought to discredit both Soares and the Ethics Commission, saying they're too close to Spitzer to be objective.

Soares' office hasn't put anyone under oath, the Republicans note, and while the DA has twice interviewed Spitzer's communications director, Darren Dopp, about his role in the scandal, Spitzer himself hasn't been called.

The Ethics Commission hasn't asked Spitzer to testify yet, either, a Spitzer spokeswoman confirmed.

Meanwhile, the Senate Republicans have three committees holding public hearings on Spitzer-related topics.

The Senate Investigations Committee has held two Troopergate hearings, which the Democrats lambasted as partisan "show trials."

As proof, Senate Democratic sources said former Spitzer energy adviser, Steven Mitnick, agreed to testify before the committee last week but was promptly "disinvited" when Republicans learned he wouldn't dish dirt on his former boss, Spitzer's chief of staff Richard Baum.

"Obviously, [Bruno] is trying to call witnesses on a very selective basis to serve his own political ends," said state Sen. Eric Schneiderman, a Democratic committee member.

Bruno spokesman John McArdle called the claim that Republicans lost interest in Mitnick "nonsense."

McArdle said Mitnick refused to testify because he's still under investigation by the state inspector general for allegedly threatening a Republican Public Service Commission member.

The Senate Committee on Racing, Gaming and Wagering is scheduled to meet on Wednesday for a hearing on Spitzer's recommendation that the New York Racing Association continue to run the state's three Thoroughbred race tracks.

One scheduled witness is Bennett Liebman, an Albany Law School professor, who has raised questions about NYRA's relationship with Getnick & Getnick, a Manhattan law firm that includes a Spitzer donor.

The firm helped NYRA avoid a federal indictment and recently signed a five-year, $125,000-a-month, no-bid contract with the association to monitor its conduct and compliance.

The contract will be void if the Legislature refuses to approve Spitzer's plan to keep NYRA.

The Senate Elections Committee has been conducting hearings on campaign finance reform - a big pre-Troopergate wedge between Spitzer and the Senate Republicans.

Bruno recently raised eyebrows by refusing to rule out issuing a subpoena to Spitzer's 83-year-old father, Bernard, to testify about the multimillion-dollar loans he made to his son's 1994 and 1998 attorney general campaigns.

Bruno spokesman McArdle said yesterday the Senate has "no plans" to call on Bernard Spitzer to testify.

ebenjamin@nydailynews.com

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/09/10...ate_from_f.html

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK POST

"SPITZER AIDES IN MYSTERY MEETINGS

September 10, 2007 -- Gov. Spitzer's aides have been holding late-night "black car" meetings to prevent the creation of e-mails or telephone records that could be subpoenaed in the state dirty-tricks scandal, The Post has learned.

The top-secret rendezvous have taken place on a regular basis since Attorney General Andrew Cuomo issued his bombshell report on July 23 outlining a plot by top Spitzer aides to use the State Police to gather supposedly damaging information on Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno (R-Rensselaer), an individual close to the scandal said.

"There are a lot of big black cars driving through neighborhoods lying in wait for people so that messages can be delivered personally and after dark," said the source, an experienced public employee who demanded anonymity.

"This is being done to avoid any phone, e-mail, or snail-mail trails."

"Many people have heard about some of these late-night drive-bys," the source added.

The surreptitious contacts have taken place in various Albany-area communities, where all of those so far named in the scandal live, the source said.

The Spitzer aides are "all involved in it," said the source.

"The [state] Ethics Commission has been asking people, 'Have you had a telephone conversation with this person, or have you sent an e-mail to that person?'"

"What they should be asking is, 'Did you have any late-night meetings with the people involved?' " the source continued.

Reached for comment, Spitzer spokeswoman Christine Anderson insisted, "No such meetings as those have taken place."

Meanwhile, the Spitzer administration is invoking a new claim to fight the Ethics Commission's efforts to obtain private, scandal-related e-mails written by the governor's top aides.

"The governor's claim now is that 'civil liberties' are involved and that he can't be expected to pressure his employees to give up their private e-mails," a source familiar with the situation told The Post.

A source close to the Ethics Commission also confirmed a report in last week's Post that Spitzer and his aides "are really stonewalling the commission in terms of requests for documents that have been made."

Another commission source said investigators had gained access to some of the computer hard drives used by aides to the governor and were "attempting to recreate some of the previously deleted e-mail records" relating to the scandal.

Also, a commission source confirmed an increasingly widespread belief that the Ethics Commission, which is set to be replaced by a new Commission on Public Integrity on Sept. 22, doesn't appear to have enough time to complete the dirty-tricks probe.

"The current commission is going to have to hand the probe off to the new commission, and that's going to create a complex set of problems of its own," said the source.

The new, 13-member commission will be dominated by appointees of Spitzer.

fredric.dicker@nypost.com

http://www.nypost.com/seven/09102007/news/...stery_meeti.htm

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK POST

"ELIOT'S E-MAIL ENIGMA"

September 5, 2007 -- The fierce attempts by Gov. Spitzer and his aides to withhold e-mails about his office's dirty-tricks scandal raises yet again an obvious question: Just what exactly are they trying to hide?

Is there something about those messages that are just too damaging for Team Spitzer voluntarily to disclose?

Something more harmful than the specter of the Executive Chamber fighting requests for the e-mail by the state Ethics Commission, as Post State Editor Fredric U. Dicker reported yesterday, and letting everyone simply assume the worst?

Indeed, something perhaps that ties the governor himself to the affair - in which his office had State Police collect supposedly damaging information about Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno and then fed it to a compliant newspaper?

It sure seems that way.

After all, if Spitzer were as blameless as he has claimed, he could have made this whole sordid scandal disappear long ago - simply by insisting that he and his aides be allowed to testify under oath and by having them turn over all e-mails, public and private, that have a bearing on the probes of the affair.

Instead, his office has fought at every turn to withhold information.

Two key aides - Spitzer's newly reinstated communications director, Darren Dopp, and his chief of staff, Richard Baum - pointedly refused, for example, to answer questions during Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's probe of the affair.

Aides also intentionally withheld private e-mails from Cuomo.

"They punted the [Ethics Commission's e-mail] requests to the private lawyers rather than make . . . Dopp and [Spitzer's demoted homeland-security adviser, Bill] Howard, who are on the state payroll and under their control, turn them over," Dicker quoted one source as saying.

Meanwhile, two other aides were given "special counsel" status, which allowed them to assert lawyer-client privilege and avoid being questioned.

Now, as Dicker notes, Team Spitzer is resisting efforts by the Ethics Commission to obtain those private e-mails.

What are New Yorkers to think?

But this time, the Spitzer folks' attempts at obfuscation may fail: Unlike Cuomo, the ethics panel has the power to subpoena testimony, e-mail and any other records it believes to be relevant.

It mustn't hesitate to do just that.

Again, if Spitzer has nothing to hide, he shouldn't mind handing over documents and having aides - and even himself - sit through questioning under oath.

Either way, though, the truth needs to out.

Maybe this time, finally, it will.

http://www.nypost.com/seven/09052007/posto...mail_enigma.htm

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK POST

"GOV NOW SUPPORTS AIDE HE BLASTED"

By FREDRIC U. DICKER State Editor

August 30, 2007 -- ALBANY - Gov. Spitzer, who last month suspended top aide Darren Dopp for improper conduct in the explosive dirty-tricks scandal, changed his tune yesterday and insisted, "He didn't violate any rule, any law, any ethical obligation that we are aware of."

Spitzer, who restored Dopp to his $175,000-a-year job as communications director Monday, also claimed the punishment of his longtime aide was "perhaps arguably too severe."

Spitzer's eyebrow-raising comments to an upstate TV station came just days before Dopp is expected to be questioned by the state Ethics Commission.

The panel is probing the use of the State Police by Dopp and other top aides to the governor to gather supposedly damaging information on Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno (R-Rensselaer.)

Dopp's lawyer suggested earlier this month that his client's loyalty to the governor might not hold if he were not returned to the state payroll.

Spitzer suspended and denounced Dopp in the wake of a bombshell report from Attorney General Andrew Cuomo in late July outlining details of the scandal.

Aides to Bruno said earlier this week that they believed Spitzer put Dopp back on the payroll to buy his silence before the commission and the Albany County District Attorney's Office, which is also probing the scandal.

Meanwhile, the GOP-controlled Senate Investigations Committee announced that Spitzer's inspector general, Kristine Hamann, facing a subpoena to testify about her knowledge of the scandal, had agreed to appear at a public hearing next Thursday.

fredric.dicker@nypost.com

http://www.nypost.com/seven/08302007/news/...de_he_blast.htm

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK POST

"ELIOT'S ETHICS AMNESIA"

August 31, 2007 -- Gov. Spitzer Wednesday afternoon told an upstate TV station that Communications Director Darren Dopp - front and center in the "Dirty Tricks" scandal that's embroiled the administration for nearly two months now - "didn't violate any rule, any law, any ethical obligation that we are aware of."

No "ethical obligation that we are aware of"?

OK.

So, if that's the case, why did Spitzer suspend Dopp from the state payroll?

The governor ordered the suspension after Attorney General Andrew Cuomo confirmed in detail the reporting of Post State Editor Fredric U. Dicker on Dopp's role in the bungled smear of state Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno.

To wit, Dopp and Bill Howard, assistant Homeland Security secretary, recruited acting State Police superintendent Preston Felton into a plan to embarrass Bruno.

True, the Cuomo report didn't declare that a crime had been committed.

But that may have been because Cuomo lacked the power to question Dopp (or other key aides such as Spitzer chief of staff Richard Baum) under oath.

On top of that, Spitzer's deputy chief of staff, Sean Patrick Maloney, and policy director, Peter Pope, were designated as "special counsels" - whereupon lawyer-client privilege shielded them from Cuomo's questioning.

As a result, Cuomo was unable to learn exactly how far up the chain of command this apparent conspiracy went - into the governor's office, for example.

Even so, following the release of Cuomo's report, a supposedly outraged Spitzer suspended Dopp indefinitely.

"Indefinitely" ended Monday: Dopp's $175,000 salary was restored just before he is to testify before the State Ethics Commission - and while Albany County DA David Soares is continuing his own investigation of the matter.

Spitzer's newfound support for Dopp - during the same interview, he declared that the suspension was "arguably too severe" - sure looks like another signal to Dopp to stay loyal to the governor as the multiple probes continue.

Even more troubling, frankly, is the prospect that Spitzer is actually telling the truth - that is, that he sees no ethical transgressions in Dopp's conduct.

Not to wear out the facts, but Dopp did sic the State Police on his boss's most bitter political enemy - nobody is disputing that, after all.

If Spitzer really doesn't see the ethical issues raised by this entire affair, then maybe he truly is beyond help.

Either way, it remains that Eliot Spitzer was handed a resounding mandate to reform the politics and government of the Empire State - and he squandered it in the blink of an eye.

And it seems that he hasn't noticed.

http://www.nypost.com/seven/08312007/posto...ics_amnesia.htm

[Livyjr]

"Spitzer aide meets with Soares' investigators - Lawyer for Darren Dopp says questions focused on Bruno actions, e-mails related to Troopergate affair"

By RICK KARLIN, Capitol bureau, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Saturday, September 8, 2007

ALBANY -- Investigators for Albany County District Attorney David Soares looking into the Troopergate scandal questioned gubernatorial aide Darren Dopp for nearly three hours Friday, focusing on what Dopp's lawyer said were Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno's longtime use of state aircraft and e-mails between Dopp and others in the affair.

Dopp, Gov. Eliot Spitzer's communications director, briefly broke his silence after he and his lawyer, Terence Kindlon, emerged from the meeting at Soares' office.

"I want to tell my side of the story," Dopp said, adding he has hidden nothing from investigators, but doesn't want to comment further due to the ongoing investigation.

"I look forward to the time when I can tell my side of the story."

Friday marked the second meeting Dopp and Kindlon have had with members of Soares' office.

Kindlon said the two assistant district attorneys and investigator they spoke with appeared to be interested in Bruno's flights.

"Senator Bruno has been flying in this helicopter back and forth between New York City and Albany about 15 years now," Kindlon said of the Brunswick Republican.

"Senator Bruno's use of the helicopters has been questioned many, many times."

A Times Union story on three such helicopter trips earlier this year triggered the scandal.

Following the story, which questioned whether the trips were proper, Bruno accused Spitzer's office of keeping tabs on him in an act of political espionage.

That led to an investigation by Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, who in a July 23 report concluded that Dopp, former homeland security official William Howard, and acting State Police Superintendent Preston Felton had improperly gotten State Police personnel to create from memory itineraries of Bruno's trips to New York City.

Cuomo found no real espionage and said no laws had been broken.

But he also concluded that Spitzer's aides improperly enlisted State Police for what was essentially a political matter.

Since then, Howard has been reassigned and Dopp was suspended from his job. '

While not back at work, Dopp's $175,000 salary was restored late last month.

Kindlon said that he presented Soares' investigators with a series of newspaper articles about Bruno's use of state aircraft on Friday.

They also discussed e-mails from Dopp's official New York state account and a private account.

"There's a long, long series of e-mails that has been the subject of investigation by Mr. Cuomo, the Albany County District Attorney, and there were many, many questions about that, all of which I felt we answered quite satisfactorily."

Kindlon said the e-mails were limited in scope, and added that they included communications with a reporter who he did not identify.

Cuomo's report had noted that the Times Union reporter who wrote the travel story on Bruno, James M. Odato, filed Freedom of Information Law requests to obtain the information Spitzer's aides had gathered.

Kindlon asserted that Dopp has done nothing wrong.

"Darren has done nothing illegal."

"He's done nothing unethical," said Kindlon.

He also noted that Dopp was not subpoenaed to meet with Soares.

"We've told the DA's office that they don't need to subpoena anything."

"All they need to do is describe it and we'll provide it."

The meeting with Dopp and Kindlon came as Soares is said to be nearing an end to the Troopergate investigation.

A source close to Soares had said earlier that the DA does not believe anything criminal occurred.

Soares spokeswoman Heather Orth declined to comment on Friday's meeting.

Karlin can be reached at 454-5758 or by e-mail at rkarlin@timesunion.com.

[Livyjr]

"NYRA still owes $1 million promised to avoid prosecution"

By MICHAEL GORMLEY, Associated Press

Last updated: 1:05 p.m., Tuesday, September 11, 2007

ALBANY -- The New York Racing Association hasn't paid $1 million it promised federal prosecutors in a 2004 deal that deferred and ultimately avoided a criminal prosecution, a spokesman for U.S. Attorney Roslynn R. Mauskopf said Tuesday.

The news comes a week after NYRA gained the support of Gov. Eliot Spitzer to hold onto the lucrative state franchise to run the Aqueduct, Belmont and Saratoga thoroughbred tracks for up to 30 years.

Spitzer also proposes a state bailout of NYRA's debts that could exceed $200 million.

A state Senate committee is scheduled to consider Spitzer's recommendation in a hearing on Wednesday. The franchise, which NYRA has held since 1955, expires Dec. 31.

"They still owe $1 million, but they did declare bankruptcy," said Robert Nardoza, spokesman for the federal attorney for the Eastern District of New York.

The debt was first reported in the New York Daily News Tuesday.

Nardoza said the federal prosecution couldn't be reopened even if the total $3 million in restitution isn't fully paid because the indictment was dismissed as part of a deal that included management and other reforms at NYRA.

Now, the federal government is one of NYRA's creditors awaiting payment or partial payment of debts.

Nardoza said about $2 million was paid before NYRA sought U.S. Bankruptcy Court protection from its creditors as it reorganized under new management.

NYRA that had been dogged for years by state and federal investigations into its management and compensation of top officers.

A federal conviction could have dissolved NYRA.

The $3 million restitution was to cover fines and the cost of the investigation.

Federal and state officials -- including Spitzer as attorney general -- were investigating corruption, mismanagement, tax evasion, money laundering and other allegations.

There was no immediate comment from NYRA or Neil Getnick, the court-appointed federal monitor who helped secure the agreement for NYRA to avoid prosecution.

His law firm, Getnick & Getnick, has been hired by NYRA as its counsel to assure business integrity, a major factor considered by Spitzer in evaluating NYRA and three other competitors for the franchise.

NYRA has said its fiscal problems were mostly the result of its failure to compete with rising forms of gambling including casinos and lotteries.

The new franchise, however, will include revenue from video slot machines.

[Livyjr]

"Spitzer: 'Passion' for reform, lack of humility allowed scandal"

By MICHAEL GORMLEY, Associated Press

Last updated: 5:33 p.m., Tuesday, August 7, 2007

ALBANY -- The New York Post reported Monday that the administration didn't turn over e-mails from personal e-mail addresses from top aides to Spitzer.

"We did a diligent search of what was in our custody and control," Spitzer spokeswoman Christine Anderson said Tuesday.

She said that means the only electronic correspondence turned over to Cuomo was from government e-mail accounts.

In addition, state Inspector General Kristine Hamann, who ran an investigation concurrent with Cuomo, had subpoena power, but didn't use it.

"At no point in our investigation were our requests for information refused, so there was no need to issue subpoenas," said Steven DelGiacco, spokesman for Hamann's office in the first expansive comment on the case.

Asked about the refusal by Baum and Dopp to be interviewed, DelGiacco wouldn't discussion specifics of the investigation.

Spitzer's counsel's office had argued that the statements by Baum and Dopp addressed Cuomo's concerns.

"We concluded that the state police had not conducted surveillance of Sen. Bruno and that no laws had been violated," DelGiacco stated.

"However, we also determined, in agreement with the attorney general's office, that two officials of the governor's office had engaged in serious misconduct."

He said a separate report by Hamann would be "redundant."

"Once the Attorney General's Office issued its report, which was consistent with the results of this office's investigation, the inspector general decided that further inquiry by us would not result in a final resolution of this matter," he said.

"In view of the fact that, pursuant to statute, the inspector general reports to the secretary to the governor, Richard Baum, and that questions have been raised about Baum's possible actions, further investigation by this office would present a direct conflict and serve no practical purpose."

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

"Exclusive - Senior Spitzer aide Darren Dopp is target of Ethics probe"

By JOE MAHONEY, DAILY NEWS ALBANY BUREAU CHIEF

Wednesday, September 12th 2007, 4:00 AM

ALBANY - Darren Dopp, the senior aide Gov. Spitzer put back on the state payroll after a month's suspension for Troopergate, is a target of the State Ethics Commission probe of the dirty tricks plot.

Dopp has been sent an Ethics Commission letter giving him 15 days to provide a written explanation in response to suspicions he may have violated state law as Spitzer's communications director, according to his lawyer, Terence Kindlon, and a source close to the probe.

Dopp was served with a commission subpoena Monday, directing him to turn over a raft of e-mails and other documents relating to a conspiracy to generate a news story smearing Senate GOP leader Joe Bruno, Kindlon said.

Spitzer chief of staff Richard Baum, who was informed of the scheme through e-mails, also has gotten a subpoena "along with a number of other people," a source said.

Unlike Dopp, Baum did not receive a "15-day letter" that would signal he is a target.

Spitzer spokeswoman Christine Anderson said she could not comment on the ongoing probe.

Kindlon, arguing the subpoena to Dopp is overly broad, said he'll try to quash it.

"The subpoena asks for just about everything on the planet," the lawyer said.

"Instead of a laser beam, it's more like a bright flash of light."

He also said the subpoena could also raise First Amendment issues because e-mail exchanges between Dopp and Albany Times Union reporter James Odato, among other journalists, are being sought.

The commission earlier subpoenaed records from Odato but quickly withdrew it.

"What they have been denied through the front door they are trying to get through the back door," Kindlon said.

The commission has the authority to investigate suspected breaches of the Public Officers Law.

Dopp and Baum refused to answer questions Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's investigators wanted to put to them before completing a July 23 report that concluded Spitzer aides misused state police in their effort to smear Bruno.

Cuomo determined there was no spying on Bruno but said Spitzer aides leaned on state police to create documents Dopp fed to the Albany paper for a story raising questions about the senator's use of state aircraft.

Bruno contends the plot was an effort to eliminate him as a rival and to potentially get him indicted.

Spitzer restored Dopp to the state payroll Aug. 27, but he has not returned to the communications office.

jmahoney@nydailynews.com

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/09/12...is_targe-2.html

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

AND WHAT ON EARTH IS UP WITH THIS, PRAY TELL?

"Relieving One Fear"

September 10, 2007 at 6:40 pm by Jay Jochnowitz, State Editor

If you’ve been hesitant to report a terrorist plot because you’re afraid of a lawsuit if you’re wrong, worry no more.

Gov. Eliot Spitzer signed a “Freedom to Report Terrorism Act,” which shields people from civil and criminal liability if they report someone who they believe is involved in a criminal or terrorist act.

Malicious acts of false reporting aren’t covered.

http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=5378#comments

Posted by: John Galt | September 12, 2007 8:32 AM

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...he_day_107.html

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

AND WHAT ON EARTH IS UP WITH THIS, PRAY TELL?

"Relieving One Fear"

September 10, 2007 at 6:40 pm by Jay Jochnowitz, State Editor

If you’ve been hesitant to report a terrorist plot because you’re afraid of a lawsuit if you’re wrong, worry no more.

Gov. Eliot Spitzer signed a “Freedom to Report Terrorism Act,” which shields people from civil and criminal liability if they report someone who they believe is involved in a criminal or terrorist act.

Malicious acts of false reporting aren’t covered.

http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=5378#comments

Posted by: John Galt | September 12, 2007 8:32 AM

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...he_day_107.html

THE ALBANY, NEW YORK TIMES UNION CAPITAL CONFIDENTIAL BLOG:

I have to say truthfully that when I read these words above here describing this thread, I was so taken aback that I was speechless!

From the bowels of what hell did this “Freedom to Report Terrorism Act” come from, I wonder ….

And where are the contents of the BILL JACKET, pray tell, which supports this “Freedom to Report Terrorism Act”?

CAN WE HOPE TO SEE THEM ON-LINE WITH A LINK IN HERE?

AND HOW IS IT THAT THIS IS THE FIRST TIME THAT WE ARE HEARING A WORD ABOUT THIS “Freedom to Report Terrorism Act”?

WHO in New York State has been hesitant to report a terrorist plot because they’re afraid of a lawsuit if they’re wrong?

WHERE IS THE SUPPORTING DATA HERE?

WHO is it that these people are reporting “terrorist plots” to, in the first place, so that such reporting is going to expose the reporters to a lawsuit if they are wrong?

SOMETHING SOUNDS OUTLANDISH HERE?

If these people are wrong, then there should be no problems for them, BECAUSE THE INVESTIGATIVE AGENCIES WOULD TAKE NO FURTHER ACTION!

OR WOULD THEY?

What exactly is going on here?

Gov. Eliot Spitzer signed a “Freedom to Report Terrorism Act,” which shields people from civil and criminal liability if they report someone who they believe is involved in a criminal or terrorist act …

IF THEY REPORT SOMEONE TO WHOM?

And so …

Comment by John Galt — September 11, 2007 @ 7:16 pm

http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=5378#comments

[Livyjr]

THE ALBANY, NEW YORK TIMES UNION CAPITAL CONFIDENTIAL BLOG:

I am not going to say in here that I am aware of every single thing that goes on in New York State, or the world, for that matter ….

BUT …

I am over 60 years old now, and I have never heard of one person in New York State being subjected to “civil and criminal liability if they report someone who they believe is involved in a criminal or terrorist act” ….

And you would think in this day and age especially that IF people in NYS were being subjected to civil and criminal liability if they report someone who they believe is involved in a criminal or terrorist act, that that would be headline news ….

AND YET, WE HAVE NEVER HEARD OF EVEN ONE SINGLE CASE WHERE SUCH A THING HAS EVER HAPPENED ….

Nor could it have, given the safeguards already built-in to our civil and criminal procedure laws here in NYS …

SO?

What the hell is really going on here?

Clearly, Eliot Spitzer is indemnifying someone for some reason from existing provisions of our laws here in NYS, which means that he is creating a “SPECIAL CLASS” of citizens here in NYS ….

FOR WHAT PURPOSES?

Why did the TU give us no other or further background here, I must wonder …..

What is the real deal here, folks?

This sounds much too much like a prescription for the SULLAN PROSCRIPTIONS from the sick days of Rome, where people could denounce their neighbors as “enemies of the state” when they coveted their possessions and wished to take over on them, or when they wished to rid themselves of their political enemies …

Or it sounds like some hellish law from Nazi Germany in the late-1930’s that would protect “good” German citizens if they denounced someone as a “jew” to the “state” ….

Eliot Spitzer is taking the NYS BILL OF RIGHTS from OUR NYS Constitution and he is shredding it in his bid to make NYS the “best place to do business in the world” ….

And no one in NYS seems to give a damn …

Which really is quite a statement about the population of the state of New York ….

And it is another reason why so many young people flee this “state” …

The way people fled Nazi Germany back in the 1930’s …

And so …

Comment by John Galt — September 12, 2007 @ 7:46 am

http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=5378#comments

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

Galt,

I too am worried about this new law Elliot signed in.

Indemnification?

Let's say the worst is true?

How do you imagine this could play out?

Can you elaborate?

Posted by: truth-championer | September 12, 2007 8:19 AM

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli..._86.html?page=2