"Spitzer turns over records to ethics panel; GOP calls for probe"
By MICHAEL GORMLEY, Associated Press
Last updated: 6:33 p.m., Monday, July 30, 2007
ALBANY -- Gov. Eliot Spitzer has turned over records to the state Ethics Commission that is investigating a plot by his aides to use state police against Republican Senate leader Joseph Bruno, but Republicans say an independent prosecutor without ties to the Democrat is needed.
"We're cooperating and voluntarily handing them over," said Spitzer spokeswoman Christine Anderson.
The records were delivered Friday and are the same e-mails and other documents turned over to the Attorney General's and Inspector General's offices, she said.
They include e-mails involving Secretary to the Gov. Rich Baum, she said.
The Ethics Commission on Friday had asked Attorney General Andrew Cuomo to turn over the records he used in a report released a week ago on the scandal.
Cuomo's probe ended at two top aides: Communications Director Darren Dopp and William Howard, a deputy in the public safety department.
Spitzer and Baum have said they didn't know about the political plot.
Cuomo found Dopp and Howard used state police to compile travel records on days Bruno used state helicopters to fly to New York City to mix state business with Republican fundraisers, then released the records to a local newspaper.
"We believe that additional investigation is warranted to assure the public that you were not personally involved in the actions which the report criticizes nor did you know of those actions or direct the state police to act in an inappropriate manner, as you have stated publicly," Republican Sen. George Winner of Elmira said in a letter to Spitzer.
Winner said his Investigations Committee could also use subpoena power in the case, but is reluctant to get into a legal battle "over the constitutional issues which your office has indicated would be litigated if we proceed with an investigation."
In April, Spitzer appointed a new Ethics Commission chairman, John Feerick, who is the former dean of the Fordham Law School and had run a panel known as the Feerick Commission that led to the adoption of the 1987 Ethics in Government Act.
On Monday, however, the Senate's Republican majority questioned whether the Ethics Commission should handle the investigation.
The Republicans called for a special prosecutor, suggesting Cuomo.
They oppose using executive director, Herbert Teitelbaum, whose law firm has been a political contributor to Spitzer.
State records show the Bryan Cave law firm contributed about $100,000 to Spitzer's campaign for governor, including more than $10,000 in May, a month before the Teitelbaum was chosen to serve on the Ethics Commission.
"Dean Feerick has a reputation that speaks for itself and we trust completely their ability to appropriately determine whether further inquiry is needed beyond what the attorney general and inspector general did," Anderson said.
Spitzer also has an appointee on the Ethics Commission from when he was attorney general.
Two of the five members of the commission were appointed by former Republican Gov. George Pataki, and a third was appointed by Democratic Comptroller Alan Hevesi, who resigned in disgrace when he pleaded guilty to using a state employee as a driver for his wife.
Commission spokesman Walter Ayres had no immediate comment.
Spitzer has apologized, immediately suspended one aide without pay and transferred another out of the executive chamber, and promised to cooperate with the Ethics Commission probe.
He continues to say he knew nothing of the political plot.
"We made mistakes," Spitzer wrote in an opinion piece in The New York Times on Sunday.
"The message was simple: even though they didn't break the law, they forgot what we were about, and that won't be tolerated."
A new poll shows Spitzer is taking a hit for the scandal.
Monday's Siena College Research Institute poll found 46 percent rated Spitzer's job performance as excellent or good, compared to 48 percent who rated it fair or poor.
In June, 55 percent thought he was doing an excellent or good job, compared to 37 percent who considered it fair or poor.
Monday's results are the first in which more New Yorkers were critical of the job he was doing than approved, although the difference is within the poll's margin of error of 3.9 percentage points.
The poll also shows Spitzer is losing critical support in New York City.
"When you lose your base, the rest will follow and that creates real danger for the governor going forward," said Steven Greenberg of the Siena College Research Institute.
Siena's poll shows 59 percent of New Yorkers polled give Spitzer a favorable rating, down from 62 percent in June and 75 percent in January.
Asked to give a letter grade of Spitzer's success so far, voters gave a "C" to the Democrat who promised to transform Albany beginning on "Day One."
"The dip is understandable given the news coverage," said Anderson, Spitzer's spokeswoman.
A WNBC-Marist College poll released Friday found eight in 10 voters also think Spitzer should testify in any further investigation, although the governor still showed strong job approval ratings.
Half of those polled suspected Spitzer knows more about the political plot, despite his denials.
The Siena poll telephoned 620 registered voters July 24-28.
The New York Post reported Monday that two more top Spitzer aides -- policy director Peter Pope and Sean Patrick Maloney, deputy chief of staff -- were named special counsel to the two aides in the conspiracy.
That could mean that Pope and Maloney could refuse to testify despite any subpoena citing attorney-client privilege, the Post reported.
Anderson said Pope and Maloney were temporarily assigned to the counsel's office two weeks ago to help prepare statements, testimony and documents turned over to Cuomo because other office staff were already working to meet a deadline to review hundreds of bills passed at the end of the legislative session.
Although she at first said they weren't designated special counsel, she later corrected that.
She said they weren't involved or accused of being involved in the plot, she said.
Cuomo hadn't asked for them to testify, she said.
Jeffrey Lerner, a Cuomo spokesman, declined comment.
Full Version: THE "PORK" IN NEW YORK
Pages: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53
"IBM laying off 300 at Dutchess County operations"
Associated Press
Last updated: 3:43 p.m., Monday, July 30, 2007
EAST FISHKILL, N.Y. -- About 300 IBM employees in the Hudson Valley will be laid off, company officials said Monday.
Most of the job cuts will be made at the company's East Fishkill semiconductor plant in Dutchess County, with some also coming from the Poughkeepsie facility, according to IBM spokesman Glen Thomas.
About 11,800 people are employed at the two plants.
The layoffs are being made specifically within research and development, as part of the realignment of manufacturing and development, Thomas said.
IBM is eliminating a total of 450 jobs nationwide, including 90 at the company's chip complex in Essex Junction, Vt.
Severance packages will be given to all 450 employees.
IBM has 355,766 employees worldwide.
Associated Press
Last updated: 3:43 p.m., Monday, July 30, 2007
EAST FISHKILL, N.Y. -- About 300 IBM employees in the Hudson Valley will be laid off, company officials said Monday.
Most of the job cuts will be made at the company's East Fishkill semiconductor plant in Dutchess County, with some also coming from the Poughkeepsie facility, according to IBM spokesman Glen Thomas.
About 11,800 people are employed at the two plants.
The layoffs are being made specifically within research and development, as part of the realignment of manufacturing and development, Thomas said.
IBM is eliminating a total of 450 jobs nationwide, including 90 at the company's chip complex in Essex Junction, Vt.
Severance packages will be given to all 450 employees.
IBM has 355,766 employees worldwide.
AND AS THE "TROOPERGATE" WHITE-WASH IN NEW YORK STATE CONTINUES TO UNFOLD ....
"Spitzer says no to call for inquiry by Cuomo - As GOP seeks probe of "Troopergate," aide to governor downplays need"
By JAY JOCHNOWITZ, State editor, Albany, New York Times Union
First published: Tuesday, July 31, 2007
ALBANY -- Gov. Eliot Spitzer on Monday rejected a call by the chairman of the Senate Investigations Committee to appoint Attorney General Andrew Cuomo as a special prosecutor in the "Troopergate" scandal with the power to subpoena the governor's staff.
Sen. George Winner said he proposed the idea as a way to address outstanding questions in the scandal, in which aides to the Democratic governor misused State Police by having them create records of Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno's travels to New York City in an effort to discredit the Republican leader.
Winner said that having Cuomo, a Democrat, revisit the matter with full authority could avoid questions of partisanship and executive privilege that would likely arise if the Republican-controlled Senate does its own probe.
Cuomo, he said, could do an "independent, fair and non-partisan" investigation.
Spitzer spokeswoman Christine Anderson, noting that Cuomo has already once looked into the matter and found no evidence of criminal activity, said "the appointment of a special prosecutor is unnecessary."
But Winner, pointing to the fact that two key aides to the governor did not testify in the original Cuomo investigation, said Cuomo had to rely on incomplete evidence, especially because the aides refused to testify.
"For them to make the leap forward that there's nothing wrong here...is the ultimate in chutzpah," said Winner.
If the governor doesn't comply, he said, his committee may go forward with its own investigation.
Republicans say the panel has subpoena power; Spitzer's office says it lacks the constitutional authority to force the governor's staffers to testify.
Cuomo's office issued only a terse statement that it would be "inappropriate" to comment.
"The findings of our report speak for themselves," said spokesman Jeffrey Lerner.
Bruno called Spitzer's response "the wrong decision because the public demands answers to many questions that still remain."
He said Spitzer could have "moved to put this whole matter behind him" and "assured the public that there is nothing to hide."
He said the Senate "will continue to review all options that are available."
Spitzer has said he would make his staff available to the state Ethics Commission.
Four government reform groups on Monday urged him to have the Ethics Commission move forward with a look at the matter.
Republicans, though, are leery of the panel, which includes Spitzer appointees and is run by a lawyer whose former firm was a generous donor to the governor's campaign.
The affair centers on the actions by two Spitzer aides, Communications Director Darren Dopp and Homeland Security deputy William Howard.
The two had the State Police create records detailing Bruno's travel in New York City while he was using a state helicopter and State Police drivers.
According to an earlier investigation into the matter by Cuomo, Dopp and Howard plotted to document that Bruno was using the aircraft and police drivers to get to political fund-raising events, and released the documents to the media.
The Times Union obtained the records under a Freedom of Information Law request, and published an article about Bruno's travel, as well as Spitzer's.
Cuomo's investigation found no criminality by either Bruno or Spitzer's aides.
The senator, he said, performed only a few minutes of public business in some cases, but acted within the bounds of a lax state policy, which Cuomo recommended be tightened.
Spitzer's aides, he said, crossed ethical boundaries by engaging State Police in a political plot and going directly to acting Superintendent Preston Felton.
Spitzer suspended Dopp indefinitely and exiled Howard from the executive chamber, sending him back to a homeland security job at the State University of New York.
Following the release of Cuomo's report, however, it was learned Dopp and the governor's secretary, Richard Baum, refused to testify in person.
Instead, they submitted sworn statements, which were not used in the report.
In addition to the lack of testimony from Dopp and Baum, Winner said he is concerned that Inspector General Kristine Hamann, who also looked into the matter, didn't interview Spitzer staffers and seems to have mainly reviewed what Cuomo did.
Further, Republicans pointed to a Monday report in the New York Post that said Dopp and Baum were assigned staff counsels, Sean Maloney, a former attorney general candidate, and Peter Pope, a move the Post cast as an effort to stonewall Cuomo's probe.
Anderson said the two lawyers, along with Spitzer's special counsel, Richard Rifkin, were not brought in to obstruct investigators but to assist in compiling the material they needed.
She said that as a result of their work, the office turned over more than was asked for, including some of the more critical e-mails that exposed the scheme.
"We would never have been able to cooperate if it weren't for them," she said.
"If the attorney general didn't have our documents, they didn't have a case."
Jochnowitz can be reached at 454-5424 or by e-mail at jjochnowitz@timesunion.com.
"Spitzer says no to call for inquiry by Cuomo - As GOP seeks probe of "Troopergate," aide to governor downplays need"
By JAY JOCHNOWITZ, State editor, Albany, New York Times Union
First published: Tuesday, July 31, 2007
ALBANY -- Gov. Eliot Spitzer on Monday rejected a call by the chairman of the Senate Investigations Committee to appoint Attorney General Andrew Cuomo as a special prosecutor in the "Troopergate" scandal with the power to subpoena the governor's staff.
Sen. George Winner said he proposed the idea as a way to address outstanding questions in the scandal, in which aides to the Democratic governor misused State Police by having them create records of Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno's travels to New York City in an effort to discredit the Republican leader.
Winner said that having Cuomo, a Democrat, revisit the matter with full authority could avoid questions of partisanship and executive privilege that would likely arise if the Republican-controlled Senate does its own probe.
Cuomo, he said, could do an "independent, fair and non-partisan" investigation.
Spitzer spokeswoman Christine Anderson, noting that Cuomo has already once looked into the matter and found no evidence of criminal activity, said "the appointment of a special prosecutor is unnecessary."
But Winner, pointing to the fact that two key aides to the governor did not testify in the original Cuomo investigation, said Cuomo had to rely on incomplete evidence, especially because the aides refused to testify.
"For them to make the leap forward that there's nothing wrong here...is the ultimate in chutzpah," said Winner.
If the governor doesn't comply, he said, his committee may go forward with its own investigation.
Republicans say the panel has subpoena power; Spitzer's office says it lacks the constitutional authority to force the governor's staffers to testify.
Cuomo's office issued only a terse statement that it would be "inappropriate" to comment.
"The findings of our report speak for themselves," said spokesman Jeffrey Lerner.
Bruno called Spitzer's response "the wrong decision because the public demands answers to many questions that still remain."
He said Spitzer could have "moved to put this whole matter behind him" and "assured the public that there is nothing to hide."
He said the Senate "will continue to review all options that are available."
Spitzer has said he would make his staff available to the state Ethics Commission.
Four government reform groups on Monday urged him to have the Ethics Commission move forward with a look at the matter.
Republicans, though, are leery of the panel, which includes Spitzer appointees and is run by a lawyer whose former firm was a generous donor to the governor's campaign.
The affair centers on the actions by two Spitzer aides, Communications Director Darren Dopp and Homeland Security deputy William Howard.
The two had the State Police create records detailing Bruno's travel in New York City while he was using a state helicopter and State Police drivers.
According to an earlier investigation into the matter by Cuomo, Dopp and Howard plotted to document that Bruno was using the aircraft and police drivers to get to political fund-raising events, and released the documents to the media.
The Times Union obtained the records under a Freedom of Information Law request, and published an article about Bruno's travel, as well as Spitzer's.
Cuomo's investigation found no criminality by either Bruno or Spitzer's aides.
The senator, he said, performed only a few minutes of public business in some cases, but acted within the bounds of a lax state policy, which Cuomo recommended be tightened.
Spitzer's aides, he said, crossed ethical boundaries by engaging State Police in a political plot and going directly to acting Superintendent Preston Felton.
Spitzer suspended Dopp indefinitely and exiled Howard from the executive chamber, sending him back to a homeland security job at the State University of New York.
Following the release of Cuomo's report, however, it was learned Dopp and the governor's secretary, Richard Baum, refused to testify in person.
Instead, they submitted sworn statements, which were not used in the report.
In addition to the lack of testimony from Dopp and Baum, Winner said he is concerned that Inspector General Kristine Hamann, who also looked into the matter, didn't interview Spitzer staffers and seems to have mainly reviewed what Cuomo did.
Further, Republicans pointed to a Monday report in the New York Post that said Dopp and Baum were assigned staff counsels, Sean Maloney, a former attorney general candidate, and Peter Pope, a move the Post cast as an effort to stonewall Cuomo's probe.
Anderson said the two lawyers, along with Spitzer's special counsel, Richard Rifkin, were not brought in to obstruct investigators but to assist in compiling the material they needed.
She said that as a result of their work, the office turned over more than was asked for, including some of the more critical e-mails that exposed the scheme.
"We would never have been able to cooperate if it weren't for them," she said.
"If the attorney general didn't have our documents, they didn't have a case."
Jochnowitz can be reached at 454-5424 or by e-mail at jjochnowitz@timesunion.com.
NEW YORK STATE CONSTITUTION, ARTICLE I, Bill of Rights
Section 1. No member of this state shall be disfranchised, or deprived of any of the rights or privileges secured to any citizen thereof, unless by the law of the land, or the judgment of his or her peers ...
NEW YORK STATE CONSTITUTION, ARTICLE IV, Executive
§ 3. The governor shall communicate by message to the legislature at every session the condition of the state, and recommend such matters to it as he or she shall judge expedient.
The governor shall expedite all such measures as may be resolved upon by the legislature, and shall take care that the laws are faithfully executed.
NEW YORK STATE EXECUTIVE LAW, ARTICLE 2, GOVERNOR
S 4. Secretary and counsel to the governor.
The governor may also appoint and at pleasure remove a counsel to the governor who shall receive a salary to be fixed by the governor within the amount appropriated therefor.
It shall be the duty of such counsel to advise the governor in regard to the constitutionality, consistency and legal effect of bills presented to the governor for his approval and on matters involving the exercise of executive clemency and such other legal matters as may be referred to him by the governor.
S 5. Executive records.
The governor shall cause to be kept in the executive chamber or in the appropriate state office:
1. Journals of the daily transactions of his office.
2. Registers, containing classified statements of such transactions.
3. Separate registers containing classified statements of all applications for pardon, commutation or other executive clemency, and of his action thereon.
4. An account of his official expenses and disbursements, including the incidental expenses of his department.
5. Files of all official records upon which applications for executive clemency are founded; of statements made by judges to him; of sentences to death and of the testimony in capital cases; and of such other papers relating to the transactions of his office as are deemed by him of sufficient value for preservation.
S 6. Examination and inspection by the governor.
The governor is authorized at any time, either in person or by one or more persons appointed by him for the purpose, to examine and investigate the management and affairs of any department, board, bureau or commission of the state.
The governor and the persons so appointed by him are empowered to subpoena and enforce the attendance of witnesses, to administer oaths and examine witnesses under oath and to require the production of any books or papers deemed relevant or material.
Section 1. No member of this state shall be disfranchised, or deprived of any of the rights or privileges secured to any citizen thereof, unless by the law of the land, or the judgment of his or her peers ...
NEW YORK STATE CONSTITUTION, ARTICLE IV, Executive
§ 3. The governor shall communicate by message to the legislature at every session the condition of the state, and recommend such matters to it as he or she shall judge expedient.
The governor shall expedite all such measures as may be resolved upon by the legislature, and shall take care that the laws are faithfully executed.
NEW YORK STATE EXECUTIVE LAW, ARTICLE 2, GOVERNOR
S 4. Secretary and counsel to the governor.
The governor may also appoint and at pleasure remove a counsel to the governor who shall receive a salary to be fixed by the governor within the amount appropriated therefor.
It shall be the duty of such counsel to advise the governor in regard to the constitutionality, consistency and legal effect of bills presented to the governor for his approval and on matters involving the exercise of executive clemency and such other legal matters as may be referred to him by the governor.
S 5. Executive records.
The governor shall cause to be kept in the executive chamber or in the appropriate state office:
1. Journals of the daily transactions of his office.
2. Registers, containing classified statements of such transactions.
3. Separate registers containing classified statements of all applications for pardon, commutation or other executive clemency, and of his action thereon.
4. An account of his official expenses and disbursements, including the incidental expenses of his department.
5. Files of all official records upon which applications for executive clemency are founded; of statements made by judges to him; of sentences to death and of the testimony in capital cases; and of such other papers relating to the transactions of his office as are deemed by him of sufficient value for preservation.
S 6. Examination and inspection by the governor.
The governor is authorized at any time, either in person or by one or more persons appointed by him for the purpose, to examine and investigate the management and affairs of any department, board, bureau or commission of the state.
The governor and the persons so appointed by him are empowered to subpoena and enforce the attendance of witnesses, to administer oaths and examine witnesses under oath and to require the production of any books or papers deemed relevant or material.
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:
And by way of review in here, in the recent NEW YORK MAGAZINE story "The Steamroller in the Swamp - Is Eliot Spitzer changing Albany? Or is Albany changing him?" by Steve Fishman
http://www.commongroundcommonsense.org/for...mp;#entry736520
Two sentences relating to this present on-going SPITZER-ITIC FIASCO here in Albany stand out, to wit:
“The reality is Spitzer does have the smartest people in the room working with him,” says one aide.
What was the upside of handing this self-righteous governor (whose staff, as one close to Spitzer acknowledges, considers legislators “hacks”) an end-of-session gift box?
end quotes
If we take the words in that story at face value, and why shouldn't we, since the "STEAMROLLER" himself has not disavowed them, nor has Joe Bruono or any other "hack" in the legislature, then we can conclude two important things here in connection with this on-going, unfolding SOAP OPERA that is New York State government, to wit:
* The "smartest" people in Albany are the SPITZER-ITES; and
* The SPITZER-ITES consider the legislators to be "hacks" ...
Sooooo ...
It is against this backdrop that we must watch this continuing drama unfold, where one of the "hacks", this Winner dude, who really is a "loser hack" according to the SPITZER-ITES, wants to have an investigation of the SMARTER SPITZER-ITES done by young Andy Cuomo ...
When the SPITZER-ITES, who are SMARTER than George Winner and all the other "hacks" in the legislature, have already gotten to young Andy to have him indemnify the SMARTER SPITZER-ITES by conducting a bogus "investigation" which has already concluded that outside of some minor hinky stuff by a couple of DUMB SPITZER-ITIC minions, this Howard dude who has been banished from the Capital's 2d floor along with the "DOPPSTER", there was no real wrong-doing by the SMARTER SPITZER-ITES ...
I'll tell you ...
This **** is far better than anything that you are going to see on TV on any of those faux "reality" shows ....
If only we citizens could syndicate this, and get it on PRIME-TIME, the advertising revenues would swell the state's coffers, and we would end up with a HUGE surplus, and instead of paying taxes, we would all be getting stipend checks from the government like those people up in Alaska get from the oil revenues ...
And life would be good ...
We could all afford to go to Florida and live in condos overlooking the ocean ...
And so ...
Posted by: John Galt | July 31, 2007 8:00 AM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...nd_ends_61.html
And by way of review in here, in the recent NEW YORK MAGAZINE story "The Steamroller in the Swamp - Is Eliot Spitzer changing Albany? Or is Albany changing him?" by Steve Fishman
http://www.commongroundcommonsense.org/for...mp;#entry736520
Two sentences relating to this present on-going SPITZER-ITIC FIASCO here in Albany stand out, to wit:
“The reality is Spitzer does have the smartest people in the room working with him,” says one aide.
What was the upside of handing this self-righteous governor (whose staff, as one close to Spitzer acknowledges, considers legislators “hacks”) an end-of-session gift box?
end quotes
If we take the words in that story at face value, and why shouldn't we, since the "STEAMROLLER" himself has not disavowed them, nor has Joe Bruono or any other "hack" in the legislature, then we can conclude two important things here in connection with this on-going, unfolding SOAP OPERA that is New York State government, to wit:
* The "smartest" people in Albany are the SPITZER-ITES; and
* The SPITZER-ITES consider the legislators to be "hacks" ...
Sooooo ...
It is against this backdrop that we must watch this continuing drama unfold, where one of the "hacks", this Winner dude, who really is a "loser hack" according to the SPITZER-ITES, wants to have an investigation of the SMARTER SPITZER-ITES done by young Andy Cuomo ...
When the SPITZER-ITES, who are SMARTER than George Winner and all the other "hacks" in the legislature, have already gotten to young Andy to have him indemnify the SMARTER SPITZER-ITES by conducting a bogus "investigation" which has already concluded that outside of some minor hinky stuff by a couple of DUMB SPITZER-ITIC minions, this Howard dude who has been banished from the Capital's 2d floor along with the "DOPPSTER", there was no real wrong-doing by the SMARTER SPITZER-ITES ...
I'll tell you ...
This **** is far better than anything that you are going to see on TV on any of those faux "reality" shows ....
If only we citizens could syndicate this, and get it on PRIME-TIME, the advertising revenues would swell the state's coffers, and we would end up with a HUGE surplus, and instead of paying taxes, we would all be getting stipend checks from the government like those people up in Alaska get from the oil revenues ...
And life would be good ...
We could all afford to go to Florida and live in condos overlooking the ocean ...
And so ...
Posted by: John Galt | July 31, 2007 8:00 AM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...nd_ends_61.html
AND GOING BACK ONCE AGAIN AND FILLING IN THE BLANKS, WE HAVE ....
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
"Seeking probe-able cause - Pols line up possible investigations into mess, but Spitzer plays resister"
By JOE MAHONEY, DAILY NEWS ALBANY BUREAU CHIEF
Friday, July 27th 2007, 4:00 AM
ALBANY - The state Ethics Commission is considering an investigation of the dirty tricks scheme against Senate GOP leader Joe Bruno - a move that could force two of Gov. Spitzer's aides to face interrogators for the first time.
Spitzer was asked repeatedly yesterday why his communications director, Darren Dopp, and chief of staff, Richard Baum, refused to answer questions in Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's inquiry.
Their testimony wasn't necessary, the governor insisted.
Republicans say Dopp and Baum's dodging smells like a cover-up to protect higher-ups.
"Putting people under oath is the way to get them to tell the truth," Senate Deputy Majority Leader Dean Skelos (R-Nassau) said in an interview.
"It's very important that the key people in this investigation - Mr. Baum, Mr. Dopp, Mr. Howard and Superintendent Felton - be put under oath."
The Cuomo report found Bill Howard, a Spitzer homeland security adviser, and Preston Felton, the acting state police superintendent, were involved along with Dopp in planting a newspaper story suggesting Bruno had improperly used state aircraft for political trips.
Howard and Felton were questioned by Cuomo's investigators.
Unlike Cuomo, the Ethics Commission headed by former Fordham Law School Dean John Feerick, has the power to compel reluctant witnesses to testify.
If it takes the case, that could include Spitzer, said a source familiar with its procedures.
One focus for commission investigators likely would be whether there were violations of the Public Officers Law - offenses that, while not criminal, could be punished by fines or removal from office, the source said.
Commission spokesman Walter Ayres said Cuomo and Spitzer's inspector general, who led an internal probe, were asked "to provide their files for the commission's review."
He added, "The commission has made no determination as to whether to investigate the matter."
An Ethics Commission finding last year that Controller Alan Hevesi misused state workers ultimately forced him to resign and plea-bargain to criminal charges after the panel referred the case to the Albany County district attorney.
Spitzer argued his administration isn't trying to hide anything.
"We provided on a voluntary basis an enormous amount of information in terms of individuals, in terms of documents, that was turned over to the attorney general's office," the governor said.
"They then determined there was no violation of law, and hence there was no need for further inquiry."
The Republican-controlled Senate Investigations Committee is also digging into the scandal.
Skelos said it could pursue an investigation whether or not the Ethics Commission moves ahead.
Spitzer's office maintains the Senate does not have the authority to probe his office, though many lawmakers in both parties say they disagree with that stance.
jmahoney@nydailynews.com
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/07/27...le_cause-2.html
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
"Seeking probe-able cause - Pols line up possible investigations into mess, but Spitzer plays resister"
By JOE MAHONEY, DAILY NEWS ALBANY BUREAU CHIEF
Friday, July 27th 2007, 4:00 AM
ALBANY - The state Ethics Commission is considering an investigation of the dirty tricks scheme against Senate GOP leader Joe Bruno - a move that could force two of Gov. Spitzer's aides to face interrogators for the first time.
Spitzer was asked repeatedly yesterday why his communications director, Darren Dopp, and chief of staff, Richard Baum, refused to answer questions in Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's inquiry.
Their testimony wasn't necessary, the governor insisted.
Republicans say Dopp and Baum's dodging smells like a cover-up to protect higher-ups.
"Putting people under oath is the way to get them to tell the truth," Senate Deputy Majority Leader Dean Skelos (R-Nassau) said in an interview.
"It's very important that the key people in this investigation - Mr. Baum, Mr. Dopp, Mr. Howard and Superintendent Felton - be put under oath."
The Cuomo report found Bill Howard, a Spitzer homeland security adviser, and Preston Felton, the acting state police superintendent, were involved along with Dopp in planting a newspaper story suggesting Bruno had improperly used state aircraft for political trips.
Howard and Felton were questioned by Cuomo's investigators.
Unlike Cuomo, the Ethics Commission headed by former Fordham Law School Dean John Feerick, has the power to compel reluctant witnesses to testify.
If it takes the case, that could include Spitzer, said a source familiar with its procedures.
One focus for commission investigators likely would be whether there were violations of the Public Officers Law - offenses that, while not criminal, could be punished by fines or removal from office, the source said.
Commission spokesman Walter Ayres said Cuomo and Spitzer's inspector general, who led an internal probe, were asked "to provide their files for the commission's review."
He added, "The commission has made no determination as to whether to investigate the matter."
An Ethics Commission finding last year that Controller Alan Hevesi misused state workers ultimately forced him to resign and plea-bargain to criminal charges after the panel referred the case to the Albany County district attorney.
Spitzer argued his administration isn't trying to hide anything.
"We provided on a voluntary basis an enormous amount of information in terms of individuals, in terms of documents, that was turned over to the attorney general's office," the governor said.
"They then determined there was no violation of law, and hence there was no need for further inquiry."
The Republican-controlled Senate Investigations Committee is also digging into the scandal.
Skelos said it could pursue an investigation whether or not the Ethics Commission moves ahead.
Spitzer's office maintains the Senate does not have the authority to probe his office, though many lawmakers in both parties say they disagree with that stance.
jmahoney@nydailynews.com
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/07/27...le_cause-2.html
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
"Gov's minions must talk"
Friday, July 27th 2007, 4:00 AM
Editorial
A watchdog agency headed by an esteemed expert on good government has arrived to impose sanity on the Eliot Mess - and not a moment too soon.
The state Ethics Commission, chaired by former Fordham Law dean John Feerick, is the right body to impartially investigate the botched political hit hatched against Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno by Spitzer aides.
Better to entrust the matter to a cool-headed panel than watch it commandeered by Bruno's angry partisans.
Armed with subpoena power, the commission should fill the gaps in Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's report, which found no crime but scuzzy behavior on all sides.
First, Feerick must grill the Spitzer aides who ducked questioning under oath: chief of staff Richard Baum (photo) and now-suspended communications director Darren Dopp.
As we have said, Baum and Dopp were stupid not to talk, Spitzer was stupid not to demand they talk and Cuomo was stupid to accept their refusal.
Their failure to submit to questions emboldened Bruno to charge that Spitzer has something to hide, which he denied to us Wednesday.
Baum and Dopp must now step forward and answer the unanswered questions - including, "What did the governor know and when did he know it?" - under oath.
Spitzer should talk to the commission, if necessary.
No fights, no excuses, no subpoenas.
He took the first step yesterday, offering to share documentation with the panel.
Everyone involved owes an explanation of how, intent on planting an embarrassing news story, they kept tabs on Bruno's movements via state police helicopters and cruisers, including trips to political fund-raisers.
So far, it looks like Spitzer's aides and Bruno misused state resources for political gain - behavior that was wrong and must not recur.
While the panel is at it, there should also be a fresh look at Bruno's use of the aircraft and cars, with an eye toward tightening lax rules that gave the majority leader near carte blanche with trooper transportation.
Bringing in Feerick and his team, who unraveled Alan Hevesi last year, is the way toward the end of the tunnel.
http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2007/0..._must_talk.html
"Gov's minions must talk"
Friday, July 27th 2007, 4:00 AM
Editorial
A watchdog agency headed by an esteemed expert on good government has arrived to impose sanity on the Eliot Mess - and not a moment too soon.
The state Ethics Commission, chaired by former Fordham Law dean John Feerick, is the right body to impartially investigate the botched political hit hatched against Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno by Spitzer aides.
Better to entrust the matter to a cool-headed panel than watch it commandeered by Bruno's angry partisans.
Armed with subpoena power, the commission should fill the gaps in Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's report, which found no crime but scuzzy behavior on all sides.
First, Feerick must grill the Spitzer aides who ducked questioning under oath: chief of staff Richard Baum (photo) and now-suspended communications director Darren Dopp.
As we have said, Baum and Dopp were stupid not to talk, Spitzer was stupid not to demand they talk and Cuomo was stupid to accept their refusal.
Their failure to submit to questions emboldened Bruno to charge that Spitzer has something to hide, which he denied to us Wednesday.
Baum and Dopp must now step forward and answer the unanswered questions - including, "What did the governor know and when did he know it?" - under oath.
Spitzer should talk to the commission, if necessary.
No fights, no excuses, no subpoenas.
He took the first step yesterday, offering to share documentation with the panel.
Everyone involved owes an explanation of how, intent on planting an embarrassing news story, they kept tabs on Bruno's movements via state police helicopters and cruisers, including trips to political fund-raisers.
So far, it looks like Spitzer's aides and Bruno misused state resources for political gain - behavior that was wrong and must not recur.
While the panel is at it, there should also be a fresh look at Bruno's use of the aircraft and cars, with an eye toward tightening lax rules that gave the majority leader near carte blanche with trooper transportation.
Bringing in Feerick and his team, who unraveled Alan Hevesi last year, is the way toward the end of the tunnel.
http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2007/0..._must_talk.html
WXXI
"Spitzer Tries, Unsuccessfully, to Change the Subject"
Karen DeWitt
ALBANY, NEW YORK (2007-07-26) Governor Spitzer attempted to change the subject Thursday, by signing three bills into law, but the governor continued to be plagued by questions over an Attorney General's report on the improper use of the state police by some of the governor's staff.
Governor Spitzer began the day with an attempt to focus on other topics.
He signed bills banning the use of creosote, strengthening safety rules for tour boats, and allowing not for profits to get state funding faster.
Yet Spitzer could not escape from questions about what some are calling "troopergate", as soon as he put down his pen.
The Attorney General's report said that no actual crimes were committed when top Spitzer aides improperly coerced the state police to keep special travel records of the governor's chief political rival, State Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno.
But two of the Governor's top aides did not answer questions from Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's investigators, and instead provided brief statements.
That has left lingering doubts, particularly about the role Spitzer's chief of staff, Rich Baum, played in the scheme.
Spitzer says Baum did not testify under oath, because he didn't have to, to complete the probe.
"I was not the one involved in the back and forth with the Attorney General's office," said Spitzer, who points out that the AG found " no violation of law".
A spokesman for the Attorney General has said that investigators did seek to question Baum, as well as Spitzer's Communications Director, who has been suspended over the incident, but were rebuffed.
When Spitzer was asked whether he, as a former prosecutor, would have accepted statements from the governor's top aides, rather than have them submit to questioning, the Governor said that he did not want to "second guess" the Attorney General.
Senate Majority Leader Bruno, who has accused the governor of "political espionage" for his aides' role in creating the special police logs on the Senator's travels, has called for further investigations.
Bruno says he wants the Senate Investigations Committee to possibly subpoena Baum, and even the governor himself.
The governor's press secretary has said that the Senate does not have the constitutional authority to subpoena members of the executive chamber.
Spitzer says he hasn't really thought about whether he'd answer a subpoena, saying the matter was "hypothetical" .
Finally, the Governor moved to close the press conference.
"My view is that it is now time to move on to the business of the people," said Spitzer.
"We have much to do".
The governor's plea was echoed by Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver.
The Speaker says he accepts the conclusions of the Attorney General's report, and that any lingering questions are simply "political" , and meant to discredit the governor.
"Let's not get sidetracked by what is becoming a sideshow," the Speaker warned.
Meanwhile, the Chair of the Senate Investigations Committee, Senator George Winner, says he's currently requesting additional e-mails and interview transcripts from the Attorney General and State Inspector General, who also investigated the matter.
Winner says he'll decide within a few days whether or not to go ahead with the probe, and he says it could include subpoenas.
"We haven't ruled out the possibility of anything," said Winner.
Governor Spitzer continued his day by announcing plans to further stem cell research, but, as long as Senator Bruno and his fellow Republicans continue to keep the heat on about the lingering questions over the Attorney Generals' report, the topic is likely to overshadow all other issues at the Capitol.
http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wxxi/new...1120605§ionID=1
"Spitzer Tries, Unsuccessfully, to Change the Subject"
Karen DeWitt
ALBANY, NEW YORK (2007-07-26) Governor Spitzer attempted to change the subject Thursday, by signing three bills into law, but the governor continued to be plagued by questions over an Attorney General's report on the improper use of the state police by some of the governor's staff.
Governor Spitzer began the day with an attempt to focus on other topics.
He signed bills banning the use of creosote, strengthening safety rules for tour boats, and allowing not for profits to get state funding faster.
Yet Spitzer could not escape from questions about what some are calling "troopergate", as soon as he put down his pen.
The Attorney General's report said that no actual crimes were committed when top Spitzer aides improperly coerced the state police to keep special travel records of the governor's chief political rival, State Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno.
But two of the Governor's top aides did not answer questions from Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's investigators, and instead provided brief statements.
That has left lingering doubts, particularly about the role Spitzer's chief of staff, Rich Baum, played in the scheme.
Spitzer says Baum did not testify under oath, because he didn't have to, to complete the probe.
"I was not the one involved in the back and forth with the Attorney General's office," said Spitzer, who points out that the AG found " no violation of law".
A spokesman for the Attorney General has said that investigators did seek to question Baum, as well as Spitzer's Communications Director, who has been suspended over the incident, but were rebuffed.
When Spitzer was asked whether he, as a former prosecutor, would have accepted statements from the governor's top aides, rather than have them submit to questioning, the Governor said that he did not want to "second guess" the Attorney General.
Senate Majority Leader Bruno, who has accused the governor of "political espionage" for his aides' role in creating the special police logs on the Senator's travels, has called for further investigations.
Bruno says he wants the Senate Investigations Committee to possibly subpoena Baum, and even the governor himself.
The governor's press secretary has said that the Senate does not have the constitutional authority to subpoena members of the executive chamber.
Spitzer says he hasn't really thought about whether he'd answer a subpoena, saying the matter was "hypothetical" .
Finally, the Governor moved to close the press conference.
"My view is that it is now time to move on to the business of the people," said Spitzer.
"We have much to do".
The governor's plea was echoed by Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver.
The Speaker says he accepts the conclusions of the Attorney General's report, and that any lingering questions are simply "political" , and meant to discredit the governor.
"Let's not get sidetracked by what is becoming a sideshow," the Speaker warned.
Meanwhile, the Chair of the Senate Investigations Committee, Senator George Winner, says he's currently requesting additional e-mails and interview transcripts from the Attorney General and State Inspector General, who also investigated the matter.
Winner says he'll decide within a few days whether or not to go ahead with the probe, and he says it could include subpoenas.
"We haven't ruled out the possibility of anything," said Winner.
Governor Spitzer continued his day by announcing plans to further stem cell research, but, as long as Senator Bruno and his fellow Republicans continue to keep the heat on about the lingering questions over the Attorney Generals' report, the topic is likely to overshadow all other issues at the Capitol.
http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wxxi/new...1120605§ionID=1
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:
"It is deeply troubling to me what happened," Spitzer said.
"I want you to hear from me, had I ever known, suspected, believed, thought that the state police were asked to do something out of the ordinary, I would have said 'Stop immediately. What's going on? You can't do this.'"
end quotes
JOHN GALT REPLIES: Except that is not true, there, Governor Spitzer .....
AND YOU KNOW IT, ELIOT!
Yes, you do ...
And that brings us to the ESSENTIAL OVERLOOKED QUESTION, here ...
The QUESTION that the SPITZER-ITES are trying to rapidly steer us by ...
Which is this, to wit:
* IS THERE EVIDENCE THAT IN THE PAST, THE NEW YORK STATE POLICE HAVE BEEN USED IN A POLITICAL FASHION TO DO HARM TO A NEW YORK STATE CITIZEN?
And if the answer to that question is YES, which it is ....
Then ...
* IS THERE EVIDENCE THAT WHEN HE WAS NEW YORK STATE ATTORNEY GENERAL, THE NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF LAW UNDER ELIOT SPITZER WAS AWARE OF AND CONDONED THE MISUSE OF A NYSP BCI INVESTIGATOR IN THE RENSSELAER COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE FOR POLITICAL PURPOSES ON AUGUST 22, 2001?
IF the answer to that question is YES, which it is, THEN ...
Then we have the beginnings of evidence of an ON-GOING COURSE OF CONDUCT in New York State where the New York State Police are used to stifle political dissent in NYS, or at least in Rensselaer County in NYS ...
AND ...
Then we have the beginnings of a citizen's constitutional tort action against Eliot Spitzer for wilfull violation of section 1 of ARTICLE 1 of the New York State Constitution ...
And so ....
Posted by: John Galt | July 31, 2007 6:24 PM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli..._said_stop.html
"It is deeply troubling to me what happened," Spitzer said.
"I want you to hear from me, had I ever known, suspected, believed, thought that the state police were asked to do something out of the ordinary, I would have said 'Stop immediately. What's going on? You can't do this.'"
end quotes
JOHN GALT REPLIES: Except that is not true, there, Governor Spitzer .....
AND YOU KNOW IT, ELIOT!
Yes, you do ...
And that brings us to the ESSENTIAL OVERLOOKED QUESTION, here ...
The QUESTION that the SPITZER-ITES are trying to rapidly steer us by ...
Which is this, to wit:
* IS THERE EVIDENCE THAT IN THE PAST, THE NEW YORK STATE POLICE HAVE BEEN USED IN A POLITICAL FASHION TO DO HARM TO A NEW YORK STATE CITIZEN?
And if the answer to that question is YES, which it is ....
Then ...
* IS THERE EVIDENCE THAT WHEN HE WAS NEW YORK STATE ATTORNEY GENERAL, THE NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF LAW UNDER ELIOT SPITZER WAS AWARE OF AND CONDONED THE MISUSE OF A NYSP BCI INVESTIGATOR IN THE RENSSELAER COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE FOR POLITICAL PURPOSES ON AUGUST 22, 2001?
IF the answer to that question is YES, which it is, THEN ...
Then we have the beginnings of evidence of an ON-GOING COURSE OF CONDUCT in New York State where the New York State Police are used to stifle political dissent in NYS, or at least in Rensselaer County in NYS ...
AND ...
Then we have the beginnings of a citizen's constitutional tort action against Eliot Spitzer for wilfull violation of section 1 of ARTICLE 1 of the New York State Constitution ...
And so ....
Posted by: John Galt | July 31, 2007 6:24 PM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli..._said_stop.html
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:
Comment by CD_Voter: So what changes if Eliot is found out to have been behind this debacle?
Bruno still stinks.
He still abuses state toys at taxpayer expense, and we’re no closer to having a functional government.
We might as well bring back Pataki, Sweeney and Hevesi.
Day one has come and gone and the NYS Legislature is still dysfunctional.
The only thing they managed to do was bring Spitzer down to their level.
JOHN GALT CALMLY RESPONDS: CD_Voter, you are weak and whiney and wobbley here, AND ....
YOU ARE DEAD WRONG, dude!
EVERYTHING IS CHANGING, AND THAT CHANGE STARTS WITH ELIOT SPITZER!
And unless we citizens can somehow be stripped of this BLOG MEDIUM, there is going to be a HUGE message sent out to all the world that are watching this unfolding drama in out-of-the-way Albany, New York ....
And that is going to in turn send a ripple back in time to Albany, that is going to turn into a tidal wave, and all at once, sweep all of OUR corrupt NYS government away, like Noah's flood ...
That you are ignorant of its happening, or blind to it, does not in any way retard it, or negate it ....
It'll happen despite you, just as it is doing right now in here with these very words ...
Yes, CD_Voter ...
PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD ARE READING THIS STORY NOW ....
And whatever he tries to do for the rest of his life, this story shall be a permanent chapter in the written life of Eliot Spitzer ....
And if that costs him the American presidency, I for one think that that would be a real good thing for both America and Eliot Spitzer ....
And so ...
And my argument in support of my position in here TO THE CANDID WORLD begins with the NEW YORK STATE CONSTITUTION, ARTICLE I, Bill of Rights ...
Wherein is stated:
Section 1. No member of this state shall be disfranchised, or deprived of any of the rights or privileges secured to any citizen thereof, unless by the law of the land, or the judgment of his or her peers ...
end quotes
Eliot Spitzer's alleged misuse of the NYSP for political purposes has the effect of chilling dissent, and thereby, it is a wilfull violation of sect. 1 of ART. I in that his alleged misuse of the NYSP for political purposes tends to disfranchise, or deprive citizens of Rensselaer County in the State of New York of any of the rights or privileges secured to any citizen thereof, unless by the law of the land, or the judgment of his or her peers ....
That Eliot Spitzer is not free to disregard that constitutional language in his capacity as NYS governor is made incandescently clear in NEW YORK STATE CONSTITUTION, ARTICLE IV, Executive, wherein the constitutional duties of Eliot Spitzer as NYS governor are spelled out as follow:
§ 3. The governor shall communicate by message to the legislature at every session the condition of the state, and recommend such matters to it as he or she shall judge expedient.
The governor shall expedite all such measures as may be resolved upon by the legislature, and shall take care that the laws are faithfully executed.
The chief law that Eliot Spitzer is to take care is faithfully executed is NEW YORK STATE EXECUTIVE LAW, ARTICLE 2, GOVERNOR, wherein is stated with respect to Eliot Spitzer's counsel Nocenti as follows:
S 4. Secretary and counsel to the governor.
The governor may also appoint and at pleasure remove a counsel to the governor who shall receive a salary to be fixed by the governor within the amount appropriated therefor.
It shall be the duty of such counsel to advise the governor in regard to the constitutionality, consistency and legal effect of bills presented to the governor for his approval and on matters involving the exercise of executive clemency and such other legal matters as may be referred to him by the governor.
end quotes
It is pursuant to that section of the NYS Executive Law that the Nocenti dude was authorized to act in this TROOPERGATE FIASCO, and pursuant to the NYS Excutive Law, the Nocenti dude was not allowed by OUR laws to circumvent a GRAND JURY by allegedly rigging up with Andrew Cuomo a bogus "investigation" which started with the conclusion that no laws had been violated, and then worked backwards from there to arrange facts to support that conclusion, and to hide or bury evidence which would refute it ...
According to section 5 of the NYS Executive Law, Eliot Spitzer is required to keep accurate records of exactly what went down in this instance of him granting a form of clemency to his executive chamber staff:
S 5. Executive records.
The governor shall cause to be kept in the executive chamber or in the appropriate state office:
1. Journals of the daily transactions of his office.
2. Registers, containing classified statements of such transactions.
3. Separate registers containing classified statements of all applications for pardon, commutation or other executive clemency, and of his action thereon.
4. An account of his official expenses and disbursements, including the incidental expenses of his department.
5. Files of all official records upon which applications for executive clemency are founded; of statements made by judges to him; of sentences to death and of the testimony in capital cases; and of such other papers relating to the transactions of his office as are deemed by him of sufficient value for preservation.
end quotes
And there is the place to start searching for evidence through FOIL, since those records that are to be maintained by the governor in this case, pursuant to section 6 of the Executive Law, are public records subject to FOIL:
S 6. Examination and inspection by the governor.
The governor is authorized at any time, either in person or by one or more persons appointed by him for the purpose, to examine and investigate the management and affairs of any department, board, bureau or commission of the state.
The governor and the persons so appointed by him are empowered to subpoena and enforce the attendance of witnesses, to administer oaths and examine witnesses under oath and to require the production of any books or papers deemed relevant or material.
And so ....
Posted by: John Galt | July 31, 2007 6:57 PM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli..._said_stop.html
Comment by CD_Voter: So what changes if Eliot is found out to have been behind this debacle?
Bruno still stinks.
He still abuses state toys at taxpayer expense, and we’re no closer to having a functional government.
We might as well bring back Pataki, Sweeney and Hevesi.
Day one has come and gone and the NYS Legislature is still dysfunctional.
The only thing they managed to do was bring Spitzer down to their level.
JOHN GALT CALMLY RESPONDS: CD_Voter, you are weak and whiney and wobbley here, AND ....
YOU ARE DEAD WRONG, dude!
EVERYTHING IS CHANGING, AND THAT CHANGE STARTS WITH ELIOT SPITZER!
And unless we citizens can somehow be stripped of this BLOG MEDIUM, there is going to be a HUGE message sent out to all the world that are watching this unfolding drama in out-of-the-way Albany, New York ....
And that is going to in turn send a ripple back in time to Albany, that is going to turn into a tidal wave, and all at once, sweep all of OUR corrupt NYS government away, like Noah's flood ...
That you are ignorant of its happening, or blind to it, does not in any way retard it, or negate it ....
It'll happen despite you, just as it is doing right now in here with these very words ...
Yes, CD_Voter ...
PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD ARE READING THIS STORY NOW ....
And whatever he tries to do for the rest of his life, this story shall be a permanent chapter in the written life of Eliot Spitzer ....
And if that costs him the American presidency, I for one think that that would be a real good thing for both America and Eliot Spitzer ....
And so ...
And my argument in support of my position in here TO THE CANDID WORLD begins with the NEW YORK STATE CONSTITUTION, ARTICLE I, Bill of Rights ...
Wherein is stated:
Section 1. No member of this state shall be disfranchised, or deprived of any of the rights or privileges secured to any citizen thereof, unless by the law of the land, or the judgment of his or her peers ...
end quotes
Eliot Spitzer's alleged misuse of the NYSP for political purposes has the effect of chilling dissent, and thereby, it is a wilfull violation of sect. 1 of ART. I in that his alleged misuse of the NYSP for political purposes tends to disfranchise, or deprive citizens of Rensselaer County in the State of New York of any of the rights or privileges secured to any citizen thereof, unless by the law of the land, or the judgment of his or her peers ....
That Eliot Spitzer is not free to disregard that constitutional language in his capacity as NYS governor is made incandescently clear in NEW YORK STATE CONSTITUTION, ARTICLE IV, Executive, wherein the constitutional duties of Eliot Spitzer as NYS governor are spelled out as follow:
§ 3. The governor shall communicate by message to the legislature at every session the condition of the state, and recommend such matters to it as he or she shall judge expedient.
The governor shall expedite all such measures as may be resolved upon by the legislature, and shall take care that the laws are faithfully executed.
The chief law that Eliot Spitzer is to take care is faithfully executed is NEW YORK STATE EXECUTIVE LAW, ARTICLE 2, GOVERNOR, wherein is stated with respect to Eliot Spitzer's counsel Nocenti as follows:
S 4. Secretary and counsel to the governor.
The governor may also appoint and at pleasure remove a counsel to the governor who shall receive a salary to be fixed by the governor within the amount appropriated therefor.
It shall be the duty of such counsel to advise the governor in regard to the constitutionality, consistency and legal effect of bills presented to the governor for his approval and on matters involving the exercise of executive clemency and such other legal matters as may be referred to him by the governor.
end quotes
It is pursuant to that section of the NYS Executive Law that the Nocenti dude was authorized to act in this TROOPERGATE FIASCO, and pursuant to the NYS Excutive Law, the Nocenti dude was not allowed by OUR laws to circumvent a GRAND JURY by allegedly rigging up with Andrew Cuomo a bogus "investigation" which started with the conclusion that no laws had been violated, and then worked backwards from there to arrange facts to support that conclusion, and to hide or bury evidence which would refute it ...
According to section 5 of the NYS Executive Law, Eliot Spitzer is required to keep accurate records of exactly what went down in this instance of him granting a form of clemency to his executive chamber staff:
S 5. Executive records.
The governor shall cause to be kept in the executive chamber or in the appropriate state office:
1. Journals of the daily transactions of his office.
2. Registers, containing classified statements of such transactions.
3. Separate registers containing classified statements of all applications for pardon, commutation or other executive clemency, and of his action thereon.
4. An account of his official expenses and disbursements, including the incidental expenses of his department.
5. Files of all official records upon which applications for executive clemency are founded; of statements made by judges to him; of sentences to death and of the testimony in capital cases; and of such other papers relating to the transactions of his office as are deemed by him of sufficient value for preservation.
end quotes
And there is the place to start searching for evidence through FOIL, since those records that are to be maintained by the governor in this case, pursuant to section 6 of the Executive Law, are public records subject to FOIL:
S 6. Examination and inspection by the governor.
The governor is authorized at any time, either in person or by one or more persons appointed by him for the purpose, to examine and investigate the management and affairs of any department, board, bureau or commission of the state.
The governor and the persons so appointed by him are empowered to subpoena and enforce the attendance of witnesses, to administer oaths and examine witnesses under oath and to require the production of any books or papers deemed relevant or material.
And so ....
Posted by: John Galt | July 31, 2007 6:57 PM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli..._said_stop.html
"Spitzer says he will testify in ethics probe"
By MICHAEL GORMLEY, Associated Press
Last updated: 3:05 p.m., Tuesday, July 31, 2007
ALBANY -- Gov. Eliot Spitzer said Tuesday he will testify about what he knew of the scheme involving two top aides who used state police to track the whereabouts of Senate Republican leader Joseph Bruno during a campaign to smear the governor's political rival.
"I said I'm happy to, going to, look forward to it," Spitzer said during a press conference in Syracuse.
"If they call me, I'd love to, and even if they don't, I'd love to send them my statement just because this needs to be clarified and made perfectly clear."
Bruno -- and half of New Yorkers in three separate polls -- said Spitzer should testify about what he knew of the plot to compile records on Bruno's use of a state helicopter and a state police driver on days he mixed state business with political fundraisers.
The information gathered by state police was then released to a reporter by the Spitzer operatives.
Spitzer has denied knowing anything about the scheme.
He suspended Communications Director Darren Dopp without pay and transferred public safety deputy William Howard out of the governor's office when it was brought to light by Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's office on July 23.
Spitzer, however, has rejected the Senate Republican majority's call for a special prosecutor or referral to the State Investigations Commission or the Senate's investigations committee.
As of late last week, the investigation was in the hands of the state Ethics Commission.
Spitzer spokeswoman Christine Anderson said Tuesday the governor has agreed to testify before that panel even though his counsel had advised two aides not to be interviewed during Cuomo's initial investigation.
But Bruno said an investigation by the ethics commission -- a board that includes Spitzer appointees -- "does not satisfy the people of New York state."
In a press conference in his district in Troy, Bruno called for the case to be referred to the state Investigation Commission or possibly to Albany County District Attorney David Soares.
If there is no independent investigation, the Senate Investigations Committee would do it as "a last resort" and has subpoena power, he said.
Formed in the 1950s to investigate organized crime and corrupt officials, the state Investigation Commission has broad powers.
"All governmental bodies in the state are statutorily required to cooperate with and assist the commission in the performance of its duties," according to the commission's Web site.
The commission also can grant immunity and hire independent investigators.
The SIC has two commissioners appointed by Bruno, two by Democratic Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, and two -- including the chairman -- by former Republican Gov. George Pataki.
"The people in this state, the majority, when polled, said they do not believe that the governor had no knowledge of what went on," Bruno said.
Bruno said Spitzer is a well-known "micro-manager" and it was "unacceptable to the public" that key Spitzer aides refused to be questioned in Cuomo's investigation.
Bruno also announced he will hold public hearings on the use of state resources for political purposes.
The hearings could include Spitzer's aides using state police to track Bruno as well as Bruno's use of state aircraft and state police drivers.
A Quinnipiac University poll released Tuesday found that most New Yorkers consider Spitzer honest and someone they would likely vote to re-elect.
While the voters who were polled feel the scandal will pass, Spitzer took a hit on how they view his job performance.
Spitzer's approval dropped to 48 percent from 60 percent on June 19.
Just over half of those polled thought the governor and Legislature will be able to work together, but most blamed the difficulty on the Legislature.
The Quinnipiac poll telephoned 1,548 voters from July 25-29 and has a margin of error or 2.5 percentage points.
Like Siena and Marist college polls released since Friday, Quinnipiac found that about half of New Yorkers questioned think there should be more investigation of the scandal.
By differing degrees, the polls also found many New Yorkers suspect Spitzer knew about the political plot, despite his denials.
"Spitzer is in bad shape in his job approval," said Maurice Carroll of the Quinnipiac poll.
"But people still think he's honest and should run for re-election and most said this won't make much difference in how they vote."
"It's not Watergate," Carroll said.
"Watergate started with a crime."
"This is about misbehavior ... but there's something about it that people don't like: Siccing the cops on somebody."
------
Associated Press writers William Kates in Syracuse and Michael Virtanen in Troy contributed to this report.
By MICHAEL GORMLEY, Associated Press
Last updated: 3:05 p.m., Tuesday, July 31, 2007
ALBANY -- Gov. Eliot Spitzer said Tuesday he will testify about what he knew of the scheme involving two top aides who used state police to track the whereabouts of Senate Republican leader Joseph Bruno during a campaign to smear the governor's political rival.
"I said I'm happy to, going to, look forward to it," Spitzer said during a press conference in Syracuse.
"If they call me, I'd love to, and even if they don't, I'd love to send them my statement just because this needs to be clarified and made perfectly clear."
Bruno -- and half of New Yorkers in three separate polls -- said Spitzer should testify about what he knew of the plot to compile records on Bruno's use of a state helicopter and a state police driver on days he mixed state business with political fundraisers.
The information gathered by state police was then released to a reporter by the Spitzer operatives.
Spitzer has denied knowing anything about the scheme.
He suspended Communications Director Darren Dopp without pay and transferred public safety deputy William Howard out of the governor's office when it was brought to light by Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's office on July 23.
Spitzer, however, has rejected the Senate Republican majority's call for a special prosecutor or referral to the State Investigations Commission or the Senate's investigations committee.
As of late last week, the investigation was in the hands of the state Ethics Commission.
Spitzer spokeswoman Christine Anderson said Tuesday the governor has agreed to testify before that panel even though his counsel had advised two aides not to be interviewed during Cuomo's initial investigation.
But Bruno said an investigation by the ethics commission -- a board that includes Spitzer appointees -- "does not satisfy the people of New York state."
In a press conference in his district in Troy, Bruno called for the case to be referred to the state Investigation Commission or possibly to Albany County District Attorney David Soares.
If there is no independent investigation, the Senate Investigations Committee would do it as "a last resort" and has subpoena power, he said.
Formed in the 1950s to investigate organized crime and corrupt officials, the state Investigation Commission has broad powers.
"All governmental bodies in the state are statutorily required to cooperate with and assist the commission in the performance of its duties," according to the commission's Web site.
The commission also can grant immunity and hire independent investigators.
The SIC has two commissioners appointed by Bruno, two by Democratic Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, and two -- including the chairman -- by former Republican Gov. George Pataki.
"The people in this state, the majority, when polled, said they do not believe that the governor had no knowledge of what went on," Bruno said.
Bruno said Spitzer is a well-known "micro-manager" and it was "unacceptable to the public" that key Spitzer aides refused to be questioned in Cuomo's investigation.
Bruno also announced he will hold public hearings on the use of state resources for political purposes.
The hearings could include Spitzer's aides using state police to track Bruno as well as Bruno's use of state aircraft and state police drivers.
A Quinnipiac University poll released Tuesday found that most New Yorkers consider Spitzer honest and someone they would likely vote to re-elect.
While the voters who were polled feel the scandal will pass, Spitzer took a hit on how they view his job performance.
Spitzer's approval dropped to 48 percent from 60 percent on June 19.
Just over half of those polled thought the governor and Legislature will be able to work together, but most blamed the difficulty on the Legislature.
The Quinnipiac poll telephoned 1,548 voters from July 25-29 and has a margin of error or 2.5 percentage points.
Like Siena and Marist college polls released since Friday, Quinnipiac found that about half of New Yorkers questioned think there should be more investigation of the scandal.
By differing degrees, the polls also found many New Yorkers suspect Spitzer knew about the political plot, despite his denials.
"Spitzer is in bad shape in his job approval," said Maurice Carroll of the Quinnipiac poll.
"But people still think he's honest and should run for re-election and most said this won't make much difference in how they vote."
"It's not Watergate," Carroll said.
"Watergate started with a crime."
"This is about misbehavior ... but there's something about it that people don't like: Siccing the cops on somebody."
------
Associated Press writers William Kates in Syracuse and Michael Virtanen in Troy contributed to this report.
"Forget brain drain, report says upstate doesn't draw people"
By MICHAEL HILL, Associated Press
Last updated: 1:42 p.m., Tuesday, July 31, 2007
ALBANY -- Add "brain gain" to the list of upstate New York's woes.
A report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York showed upstate leaders worried about the "brain drain" of college-educated adults should be more concerned about the opposite problem: failure to attract new arrivals.
If upstate New York were its own state, it would have had the nation's lowest "in-migration" rate from 1995 through 2000.
College-educated adults are simply not moving to the region fast enough to counter the natural outflow of people, according to the report from economist Richard Deitz of the Fed's Buffalo branch.
"When you're competing for the educated workforce, these are people who have choices about where they want to live," said Deitz, the report's author.
"The question is: Are we making a competitive offer to those people?"
The exodus of educated young people has long preoccupied policy makers looking to boost the upstate economy.
Even as the report was being released, Gov. Eliot Spitzer was in Syracuse talking about a housing project that would help "make ourselves a place where our kids want to stay, and our kids' kids want to stay."
But Deitz found upstate New York's out-migration rate of college-educated people was close to the national median in those five years.
The region really lags in attracting college-educated people.
Upstate New York is behind not only fast-growing southeastern states like Nevada and Arizona in "brain gain," but behind Rust Belt states like Ohio and Michigan.
College graduates tend to be highly mobile, settling where they can find the best job in a place with the nicest weather, schools and other amenities, Deitz notes.
He suggested a combination of factors could play into the area's brain gain problems, including jobs that don't pay enough to attract people and the perception that the area is not a desirable place to live.
Upstate New York is dogged by image problems, from jokes about snowy Buffalo to the perception that its old industrial cities are decaying.
The Spitzer administration, which hired special upstate economic development "czar" Daniel Gundersen, had no immediate comment on the report.
Researchers looked at 2000 Census data and defined upstate New York as the 49 counties left after excluding New York City, Long Island and the Hudson Valley up to Dutchess and Orange counties.
While the five-year period under study ended in 2000, Deitz believes the trends were continuing.
------
On The Net:
http://www.newyorkfed.org/
By MICHAEL HILL, Associated Press
Last updated: 1:42 p.m., Tuesday, July 31, 2007
ALBANY -- Add "brain gain" to the list of upstate New York's woes.
A report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York showed upstate leaders worried about the "brain drain" of college-educated adults should be more concerned about the opposite problem: failure to attract new arrivals.
If upstate New York were its own state, it would have had the nation's lowest "in-migration" rate from 1995 through 2000.
College-educated adults are simply not moving to the region fast enough to counter the natural outflow of people, according to the report from economist Richard Deitz of the Fed's Buffalo branch.
"When you're competing for the educated workforce, these are people who have choices about where they want to live," said Deitz, the report's author.
"The question is: Are we making a competitive offer to those people?"
The exodus of educated young people has long preoccupied policy makers looking to boost the upstate economy.
Even as the report was being released, Gov. Eliot Spitzer was in Syracuse talking about a housing project that would help "make ourselves a place where our kids want to stay, and our kids' kids want to stay."
But Deitz found upstate New York's out-migration rate of college-educated people was close to the national median in those five years.
The region really lags in attracting college-educated people.
Upstate New York is behind not only fast-growing southeastern states like Nevada and Arizona in "brain gain," but behind Rust Belt states like Ohio and Michigan.
College graduates tend to be highly mobile, settling where they can find the best job in a place with the nicest weather, schools and other amenities, Deitz notes.
He suggested a combination of factors could play into the area's brain gain problems, including jobs that don't pay enough to attract people and the perception that the area is not a desirable place to live.
Upstate New York is dogged by image problems, from jokes about snowy Buffalo to the perception that its old industrial cities are decaying.
The Spitzer administration, which hired special upstate economic development "czar" Daniel Gundersen, had no immediate comment on the report.
Researchers looked at 2000 Census data and defined upstate New York as the 49 counties left after excluding New York City, Long Island and the Hudson Valley up to Dutchess and Orange counties.
While the five-year period under study ended in 2000, Deitz believes the trends were continuing.
------
On The Net:
http://www.newyorkfed.org/
"'Troopergate' fallout continues - Senate Republicans talk of hearings as Spitzer says he plans to testify at closed ethics panel proceeding"
By RICK KARLIN, Capitol bureau, Albany, New York Times Union
First published: Wednesday, August 1, 2007
ALBANY -- The state Senate on Tuesday edged closer to holding hearings on the scandal that has enveloped Gov. Eliot Spitzer, while the governor suggested he might testify under oath -- but before the state Ethics Commission, which holds its proceedings in secret.
"I said I'm happy to, going to, look forward to it," Spitzer said at a news conference in Syracuse.
Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno said the Senate Committee on Investigations and Government Operations, chaired by Sen. George Winner, R-Elmira, could begin hearings as soon as next week.
Senate staff, he said, will work with Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's office on legislation "to prevent abuses by the Executive in the future," according to a statement.
The Senate's move comes after Spitzer on Monday rejected the idea of appointing Cuomo as a special prosecutor armed with subpoena power to compel testimony from the administration.
Last week, Cuomo issued a report concluding that there was no criminality or "surveillance" in what has since been dubbed the "Troopergate" or "Spitzergate" affair.
But Cuomo found that top aides to Spitzer crossed ethical boundaries when they got State Police to recreate itineraries of trips that Bruno made to New York City, where he used State Police drivers to take him to various events, including political fundraisers.
Republicans accuse the Democratic governor of using State Police for political purposes.
They also note that several Spitzer aides refused to testify, and say more investigation is needed.
"The governor's rejection of a special prosecutor will not prevent other investigations from moving forward," Bruno said.
In addition to Winner's committee, Bruno noted other entities could investigate the matter, including the state Commission of Investigation and Albany County District Attorney David Soares, who Bruno said was "reportedly considering an investigation."
Soares spokesman Heather Streeter Orth said the district attorney hasn't been asked to investigate.
"I don't think it's on the radar at this point," she said.
A source familiar with the matter, however, said Soares' public integrity unit is looking at the issue.
Since the affair came to light, Spitzer, who said he was unaware of what his aides were doing, has punished two of the key players.
Communications Director Darren Dopp has been indefinitely suspended from his $175,000 job, while William Howard was moved from the governor's office, where he helped oversee homeland security, to the State University of New York, although he still is collecting his $175,900 salary.
Rick Karlin can be reached at 454-5758 or rkarlin@timesunion.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
By RICK KARLIN, Capitol bureau, Albany, New York Times Union
First published: Wednesday, August 1, 2007
ALBANY -- The state Senate on Tuesday edged closer to holding hearings on the scandal that has enveloped Gov. Eliot Spitzer, while the governor suggested he might testify under oath -- but before the state Ethics Commission, which holds its proceedings in secret.
"I said I'm happy to, going to, look forward to it," Spitzer said at a news conference in Syracuse.
Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno said the Senate Committee on Investigations and Government Operations, chaired by Sen. George Winner, R-Elmira, could begin hearings as soon as next week.
Senate staff, he said, will work with Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's office on legislation "to prevent abuses by the Executive in the future," according to a statement.
The Senate's move comes after Spitzer on Monday rejected the idea of appointing Cuomo as a special prosecutor armed with subpoena power to compel testimony from the administration.
Last week, Cuomo issued a report concluding that there was no criminality or "surveillance" in what has since been dubbed the "Troopergate" or "Spitzergate" affair.
But Cuomo found that top aides to Spitzer crossed ethical boundaries when they got State Police to recreate itineraries of trips that Bruno made to New York City, where he used State Police drivers to take him to various events, including political fundraisers.
Republicans accuse the Democratic governor of using State Police for political purposes.
They also note that several Spitzer aides refused to testify, and say more investigation is needed.
"The governor's rejection of a special prosecutor will not prevent other investigations from moving forward," Bruno said.
In addition to Winner's committee, Bruno noted other entities could investigate the matter, including the state Commission of Investigation and Albany County District Attorney David Soares, who Bruno said was "reportedly considering an investigation."
Soares spokesman Heather Streeter Orth said the district attorney hasn't been asked to investigate.
"I don't think it's on the radar at this point," she said.
A source familiar with the matter, however, said Soares' public integrity unit is looking at the issue.
Since the affair came to light, Spitzer, who said he was unaware of what his aides were doing, has punished two of the key players.
Communications Director Darren Dopp has been indefinitely suspended from his $175,000 job, while William Howard was moved from the governor's office, where he helped oversee homeland security, to the State University of New York, although he still is collecting his $175,900 salary.
Rick Karlin can be reached at 454-5758 or rkarlin@timesunion.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:
And say, Pee Wee Crayton ....
While I've got you on the line in here, so to speak, I read through your piece that you link us to above here ...
http://www.r8ny.com/blog/pee_wee/maggot_br..._its_young.html
And dude, it is superficial ....
The use, or misuse of the New York State Police to intimidate and harass political opponents or enemies of sitting politicians in Albany like Joe Bruno goes back and back and back in time ....
I myself have evidence sitting right before me now that definitively pins a date on it related to Joe Bruno of March 2, 1990 ...
The document in question is a letter on New York State Police letterhead dated March 2, 1990 to a licensed professional engineer up here from Lieutenant Colonel Edward J. Minahan, Assistant Deputy Superintendant, New York State Police to an individual in upstate New York named Paul R. Plante, who used to be the Rensselaer County Associate Public Health Engineer up here in Rensselaer County, charged with NYS Public Health Law enforcement in Rensselaer County until he charged Joe Bruno with alleged wilfull violation of the New York State Public Health Law in 1988, a misdemeanor carrying a sentence of a year in jail ...
And then, well, you know how it goes ...
His *** was gone ...
But that was only the beginning of what we upstate folks call the "LONG, HARD RIDE" for this particular individual up this way ...
In 1989, this individual made it clear that regardless of what hell the State of New York could lay down on him, he was still going to go forth with his efforts to rid Joe Bruno's "REPUBLICAN-CONTROLLED" Rensselaer County Department of Health of corruption ...
So, on December 29, 1989, a political "GOON" up here ran him down on Liberty Lane in the Town of Poestenkill, Rensselaer County, State of New York, and the New York State Police covered up that hit-and-run by themselves making and filing false reports of the incident that completely changed the circumstances of what actually had transpired that morning ...
The March 2, 1990 letter to Plante from Lt. Col. Minahan concerns that cover-up, and it indicates how high up in the chain-of-command of the NYSP knowledge of this cover-up went, since in his letter, Minahan was responding to Plante on behalf of the Superintendant of NYSP ...
In your recent piece, you limit your discussion to the apparent fact that in Albany, the politicians never overtly used the State Police AGAINST EACH OTHER, which may be true ...
But from the citizen's point of view, that is immaterial ....
What concerns us is the POLITICIAN'S USE of the New York State Police AGAINST US ...
To REPRESS US ...
To CHILL participation in what is in reality OUR government ...
To STIFLE us ...
And so ...
Posted by: John Galt | August 1, 2007 8:02 AM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...er_ny_dems.html
And say, Pee Wee Crayton ....
While I've got you on the line in here, so to speak, I read through your piece that you link us to above here ...
http://www.r8ny.com/blog/pee_wee/maggot_br..._its_young.html
And dude, it is superficial ....
The use, or misuse of the New York State Police to intimidate and harass political opponents or enemies of sitting politicians in Albany like Joe Bruno goes back and back and back in time ....
I myself have evidence sitting right before me now that definitively pins a date on it related to Joe Bruno of March 2, 1990 ...
The document in question is a letter on New York State Police letterhead dated March 2, 1990 to a licensed professional engineer up here from Lieutenant Colonel Edward J. Minahan, Assistant Deputy Superintendant, New York State Police to an individual in upstate New York named Paul R. Plante, who used to be the Rensselaer County Associate Public Health Engineer up here in Rensselaer County, charged with NYS Public Health Law enforcement in Rensselaer County until he charged Joe Bruno with alleged wilfull violation of the New York State Public Health Law in 1988, a misdemeanor carrying a sentence of a year in jail ...
And then, well, you know how it goes ...
His *** was gone ...
But that was only the beginning of what we upstate folks call the "LONG, HARD RIDE" for this particular individual up this way ...
In 1989, this individual made it clear that regardless of what hell the State of New York could lay down on him, he was still going to go forth with his efforts to rid Joe Bruno's "REPUBLICAN-CONTROLLED" Rensselaer County Department of Health of corruption ...
So, on December 29, 1989, a political "GOON" up here ran him down on Liberty Lane in the Town of Poestenkill, Rensselaer County, State of New York, and the New York State Police covered up that hit-and-run by themselves making and filing false reports of the incident that completely changed the circumstances of what actually had transpired that morning ...
The March 2, 1990 letter to Plante from Lt. Col. Minahan concerns that cover-up, and it indicates how high up in the chain-of-command of the NYSP knowledge of this cover-up went, since in his letter, Minahan was responding to Plante on behalf of the Superintendant of NYSP ...
In your recent piece, you limit your discussion to the apparent fact that in Albany, the politicians never overtly used the State Police AGAINST EACH OTHER, which may be true ...
But from the citizen's point of view, that is immaterial ....
What concerns us is the POLITICIAN'S USE of the New York State Police AGAINST US ...
To REPRESS US ...
To CHILL participation in what is in reality OUR government ...
To STIFLE us ...
And so ...
Posted by: John Galt | August 1, 2007 8:02 AM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...er_ny_dems.html
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:
And to relate this comment of mine above here to this Pee Wee dude to the theme of this particular thread, the Assistant Rensselaer County District Attorney who maliciously prosecuted this engineer on the false charges fabricated by the New York State Police to cover-up the hit-and-run in 1989 is now running for Rensselaer County District Attorney this fall as a Democrat ....
http://blogs.timesunion.com/localpolitics/?p=193#comments
However, in reality, this candidate, Rich McNally, actually will enjoy the support of not only "STEAMROLLER" Spitzer and likely Sheldon Silver, as well, BUT also Joe Bruno's REPUBLICAN faction here in Rensselaer County ...
While the candidate endorsed by the REPUBLICANS, Greg Cholakis, is in reality a political "outsider" who is openly distrusted by the powerful Joe Bruno faction up here ...
And so, is not thought to have much of a chance at the office in the face of the bi-partisan, behind-the-scenes support that McNally enjoys ...
Because like "STEAMROLLER" Spitzer and Joe Bruno, McNally was not at all afraid to openly condone the use of the New York State Police for political purposes to crush dissent in Rensselaer County, and to protect on-going government corruption in New York State government ...
Which makes him a "made man" and a hero of sorts to many up here who feed off of the corruption that is New York State government ...
And so ...
Posted by: John Galt | August 1, 2007 8:33 AM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...er_ny_dems.html
And to relate this comment of mine above here to this Pee Wee dude to the theme of this particular thread, the Assistant Rensselaer County District Attorney who maliciously prosecuted this engineer on the false charges fabricated by the New York State Police to cover-up the hit-and-run in 1989 is now running for Rensselaer County District Attorney this fall as a Democrat ....
http://blogs.timesunion.com/localpolitics/?p=193#comments
However, in reality, this candidate, Rich McNally, actually will enjoy the support of not only "STEAMROLLER" Spitzer and likely Sheldon Silver, as well, BUT also Joe Bruno's REPUBLICAN faction here in Rensselaer County ...
While the candidate endorsed by the REPUBLICANS, Greg Cholakis, is in reality a political "outsider" who is openly distrusted by the powerful Joe Bruno faction up here ...
And so, is not thought to have much of a chance at the office in the face of the bi-partisan, behind-the-scenes support that McNally enjoys ...
Because like "STEAMROLLER" Spitzer and Joe Bruno, McNally was not at all afraid to openly condone the use of the New York State Police for political purposes to crush dissent in Rensselaer County, and to protect on-going government corruption in New York State government ...
Which makes him a "made man" and a hero of sorts to many up here who feed off of the corruption that is New York State government ...
And so ...
Posted by: John Galt | August 1, 2007 8:33 AM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...er_ny_dems.html
QUOTE(Livyjr @ Jul 30 2007, 05:05 PM) 
"Capital Region housing market continues slide"
By CHRIS CHURCHILL, Business writer, Albany, New York Times Union
Last updated: 12:31 p.m., Monday, July 30, 2007
The Capital Region housing market continues to cool, according to numbers released today by the Greater Capital Association of Realtors.
In Rensselaer County, sales were down six percent.
By CHRIS CHURCHILL, Business writer, Albany, New York Times Union
Last updated: 12:31 p.m., Monday, July 30, 2007
The Capital Region housing market continues to cool, according to numbers released today by the Greater Capital Association of Realtors.
In Rensselaer County, sales were down six percent.
AND HERE IS A VIVID EXAMPLE OF THE VERY REAL COSTS TO THE CITZENS OF NEW YORK STATE RESIDING IN THE TOWN OF POESTENKILL IN RENSSELAER COUNTY OF HAVING A CORRUPT NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION, A CORRUPT NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, A CORRUPT OFFICE OF PROFESSIONAL DISCIPLINE IN THE NEW YORK STATE DEPRTMENT OF EDUCATION, A CORRUPT RENSSELAER COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, AND A CORRUPT POESTENKILL TOWN PLANNING BOARD ....
The cost of paying back the capital costs is also based upon nothing but WILD SPECULATION by TOWN OF POESTENKILL SUPERVISOR MARGARET "PEGGY" SCHMIDT that despite the backslide in housing starts and housing sales in Rensselaer County, somehow, despite this backslide, the Town of Poestenkill is still going to add FIFTY NEW HOMES in the next two years ...
Which is wildly optimistic and unsupported by evidence on her part ....
Which means that the few existing users of the proposed system will end up paying back astronomical costs themselves, when all these other phantom rate payers fail to materialize .......
And so ...
"Voters approve Poestenkill water district"
By BOB GARDINIER, Staff writer, Albany, New York Times Union
Last updated: 11:08 a.m., Wednesday, August 1, 2007
POESTENKILL -- Almost every eligible voter cast a ballot to decide whether to build a water district in the western part of the town.
It took nearly every vote to pass it.
Residents barely approved a measure Tuesday to form the town's first water district, a $9.2 million proposal that won by a razor-thin 274 to 264 votes.
There were just under 600 voters eligible to vote on the measure.
The voting machine count showed the measure failed by a 233-to-234 vote, but the addition of absentee ballots secured the win.
Election results were posted at all public locations in town as well as on the Web site http://www.townofpoestenkill.com.
Water District 1, which will serve the more populated western side of the town, will extend 16 miles of water main on Snyder's Lake Road from the North Greenbush town line to Weatherwax Road, a portion of Weatherwax Road to State Highway Rt. 355, Route 355 to the North Greenbush Town line, Spring Ave. Extension, the entire Hamlet of Poestenkill and portions of State Highway 351.
Water District 1 will also include the installation of 107 fire hydrants, according to town Supervisor Margaret Schmidt.
Residents at recent public hearings were clearly divided on the issue.
While many liked the safety of having a municipal water source, many were intimidated by the costs of the project and some just wanted the town left rural, Schmidt said.
Officials noted two main reasons to build water district.
One is that the town is experiencing steady development and will have 50 new homes built over the next two years, Schmidt said.
The other problem is that many residential wells are polluted.
Tests have shown that traces of trichloroethane, dichloroethane, methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE), bacteria and other contaminants are in local wells.
Schmidt also said many of the small residential lots in town do not meet the required separation distance between well and septic system.
Everyone within a water district pays for the cost to build the water system.
People who hook up to the system will also pay for the water they use and the longterm operation and maintenance.
It is estimated the monthly cost for the water district will be $65 to $70 per month, which includes capital costs, water use, operation and maintenance costs.
The plan now has to be approved by the state Comptroller's office.
And while we are on the subject of corruption in New York State government, we have ...
"Prosecutor to review AG reports on governor's office"
By VALERIE BAUMAN, Associated Press
Last updated: 6:42 p.m., Wednesday, August 1, 2007
ALBANY -- A criminal prosecutor will review reports from the attorney general and inspector general about a scheme involving two of the governor's top aides who used state police to track a political rival.
Although Attorney General Andrew Cuomo found no crimes were committed, Albany County District Attorney P. David Soares' decision to review the actions of Gov. Eliot Spitzer and his staff means a prosecutor with the power to investigate crimes is involved.
Spitzer has denied all involvement and agreed to testify before the state Ethics Commission about what he knew of the scheme to track the whereabouts of Senate Republican leader Joseph Bruno during a campaign to smear the governor's political rival.
"We are currently gathering relevant information from all involved parties including the materials that led the attorney general and the inspector general to conclude that no laws were broken," Soares said Wednesday in a written statement.
"In adhering to our process, we will conduct a dispassionate review of all relevant information."
"All decisions must be supported by credible evidence."
"It must be remembered that while certain conduct may appear unethical or even immoral, the only issue for our consideration is to determine whether the conduct is of such regard that criminal liability can be assessed."
Spitzer suspended Communications Director Darren Dopp without pay and transferred public safety deputy William Howard out of the governor's office after Cuomo's office brought the matter to light July 23.
"While both the attorney general and the inspector general have found no illegal conduct, we respect District Attorney Soares' constitutional authority to make this determination, and his process for doing so," Spitzer spokeswoman Christine Anderson said Wednesday in a written statement.
Bruno had called Tuesday for the case to be referred to the state Investigation Commission or possibly to Soares.
Soares investigated former state Comptroller Alan Hevesi, who resigned in disgrace and pleaded guilty to a felony for using state employees as drivers and companions for his wife.
The plea resulted in no jail time.
"Prosecutor to review AG reports on governor's office"
By VALERIE BAUMAN, Associated Press
Last updated: 6:42 p.m., Wednesday, August 1, 2007
ALBANY -- A criminal prosecutor will review reports from the attorney general and inspector general about a scheme involving two of the governor's top aides who used state police to track a political rival.
Although Attorney General Andrew Cuomo found no crimes were committed, Albany County District Attorney P. David Soares' decision to review the actions of Gov. Eliot Spitzer and his staff means a prosecutor with the power to investigate crimes is involved.
Spitzer has denied all involvement and agreed to testify before the state Ethics Commission about what he knew of the scheme to track the whereabouts of Senate Republican leader Joseph Bruno during a campaign to smear the governor's political rival.
"We are currently gathering relevant information from all involved parties including the materials that led the attorney general and the inspector general to conclude that no laws were broken," Soares said Wednesday in a written statement.
"In adhering to our process, we will conduct a dispassionate review of all relevant information."
"All decisions must be supported by credible evidence."
"It must be remembered that while certain conduct may appear unethical or even immoral, the only issue for our consideration is to determine whether the conduct is of such regard that criminal liability can be assessed."
Spitzer suspended Communications Director Darren Dopp without pay and transferred public safety deputy William Howard out of the governor's office after Cuomo's office brought the matter to light July 23.
"While both the attorney general and the inspector general have found no illegal conduct, we respect District Attorney Soares' constitutional authority to make this determination, and his process for doing so," Spitzer spokeswoman Christine Anderson said Wednesday in a written statement.
Bruno had called Tuesday for the case to be referred to the state Investigation Commission or possibly to Soares.
Soares investigated former state Comptroller Alan Hevesi, who resigned in disgrace and pleaded guilty to a felony for using state employees as drivers and companions for his wife.
The plea resulted in no jail time.
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
"Governor cans Cuomo plan - Spitzer nixes GOP push for AG to reopen dirty tricks probe"
BY JOE MAHONEY
DAILY NEWS ALBANY BUREAU CHIEF
Tuesday, July 31st 2007, 4:00 AM
ALBANY - Gov. Spitzer shot down a Republican proposal to make Attorney General Andrew Cuomo a special prosecutor to reinvestigate the dirty tricks scheme waged against Senate GOP leader Joe Bruno.
Senate Investigations Committee Chairman George Winner (R-Elmira) had said such a move would give Cuomo the power to subpoena evidence and question Spitzer aides who ducked his first inquiry.
Republican senators would shelve their own planned investigation to make way for Cuomo, who is a Democrat like Spitzer, he said.
About 10 minutes after Winner's news conference, Spitzer's office said no.
"The appointment of a special prosecutor is unnecessary" because his first probe and an inquiry by the governor's inspector general found no criminal conduct, spokeswoman Christine Anderson said.
Winner then said the Senate may have to move ahead with its own probe.
"The governor is not exactly being transparent in the effort to get to truth, justice and the American way," Winner told the Daily News in a telephone interview.
In his letter to Spitzer, Winner said, "We believe that additional investigation is warranted to assure the public that you were not personally involved in the actions."
Cuomo's office wouldn't comment on whether he wanted another crack at the case.
After Cuomo's July 23 report found Spitzer aides improperly enlisted the state police to collect data on Bruno's use of state aircraft for a newspaper story, the governor suspended Communications Director Darren Dopp and reassigned homeland security adviser Bill Howard.
Anderson said the governor's office is cooperating with a preliminary investigation by the state Ethics Commission.
That panel's chairman, former Fordham Law School Dean John Feerick, and director Herbert Teitelbaum are Spitzer appointees.
Republicans are skeptical the commission - with the governor's appointees in its top two positions - will pursue the scandal aggressively.
Sources close to Bruno said if the Senate opens its own probe, investigators will likely seek the hard drives of the computers used by the administration officials linked to the dirty tricks.
Spitzer's camp disputed a published report suggesting that the administration had hindered Cuomo's probe by giving special counsel status to two lawyers working for the governor, Sean Patrick Maloney and Peter Pope.
An administration official, speaking on background, said "attorney-client privilege" would not have shielded Maloney and Pope from answering questions if they knew of the scheme.
jmahoney@nydailynews.com
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/07/31...omo_plan-1.html
"Governor cans Cuomo plan - Spitzer nixes GOP push for AG to reopen dirty tricks probe"
BY JOE MAHONEY
DAILY NEWS ALBANY BUREAU CHIEF
Tuesday, July 31st 2007, 4:00 AM
ALBANY - Gov. Spitzer shot down a Republican proposal to make Attorney General Andrew Cuomo a special prosecutor to reinvestigate the dirty tricks scheme waged against Senate GOP leader Joe Bruno.
Senate Investigations Committee Chairman George Winner (R-Elmira) had said such a move would give Cuomo the power to subpoena evidence and question Spitzer aides who ducked his first inquiry.
Republican senators would shelve their own planned investigation to make way for Cuomo, who is a Democrat like Spitzer, he said.
About 10 minutes after Winner's news conference, Spitzer's office said no.
"The appointment of a special prosecutor is unnecessary" because his first probe and an inquiry by the governor's inspector general found no criminal conduct, spokeswoman Christine Anderson said.
Winner then said the Senate may have to move ahead with its own probe.
"The governor is not exactly being transparent in the effort to get to truth, justice and the American way," Winner told the Daily News in a telephone interview.
In his letter to Spitzer, Winner said, "We believe that additional investigation is warranted to assure the public that you were not personally involved in the actions."
Cuomo's office wouldn't comment on whether he wanted another crack at the case.
After Cuomo's July 23 report found Spitzer aides improperly enlisted the state police to collect data on Bruno's use of state aircraft for a newspaper story, the governor suspended Communications Director Darren Dopp and reassigned homeland security adviser Bill Howard.
Anderson said the governor's office is cooperating with a preliminary investigation by the state Ethics Commission.
That panel's chairman, former Fordham Law School Dean John Feerick, and director Herbert Teitelbaum are Spitzer appointees.
Republicans are skeptical the commission - with the governor's appointees in its top two positions - will pursue the scandal aggressively.
Sources close to Bruno said if the Senate opens its own probe, investigators will likely seek the hard drives of the computers used by the administration officials linked to the dirty tricks.
Spitzer's camp disputed a published report suggesting that the administration had hindered Cuomo's probe by giving special counsel status to two lawyers working for the governor, Sean Patrick Maloney and Peter Pope.
An administration official, speaking on background, said "attorney-client privilege" would not have shielded Maloney and Pope from answering questions if they knew of the scheme.
jmahoney@nydailynews.com
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/07/31...omo_plan-1.html
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Elizabeth Benjamin
"Big makeover - or new, top-level fixer - debated"
Monday, July 30th 2007, 4:00 AM
Gov. Spitzer is mulling a staff shakeup in hopes of speeding his recovery from the worst scandal of his political career, according to sources familiar with the governor's thinking.
Another idea Spitzer is considering, sources said, is bringing in someone new who has ties to the Legislature to serve in a senior advisory role and help both retool the governor's image and rebuild the bridges he has burned with state lawmakers in the seven short months since he took office.
Speculation has been swirling for days about the fate of Richard Baum, whose unassuming title - secretary to the governor - belies the power of that post.
But sources close to the beleaguered Democratic governor say Baum is staying for now.
Spitzer spokeswoman Christine Anderson called it an "overstatement" to say the governor is considering a shakeup, adding, "The governor's team is solidly in place."
Even some Spitzer allies have called for Baum's firing after Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's bombshell report revealed the top aide was aware that two other Spitzer staffers had misused the state police to gather potentially damning information on the governor's top political enemy: Republican Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno.
But others aren't so sure that ditching Baum will solve Spitzer's problems.
"It would be like Batman firing Robin," said one Democratic strategist, noting that Baum has worked for Spitzer since he took office as attorney general in 1999.
"At this point, offering him up isn't enough to get [Senate Republicans] off the governor's back."
A high-ranking Senate Republican agreed, saying, "If [Spitzer] fires Baum now, what does that say?"
"He's been saying all along that Baum had no involvement in it."
"We're not looking for anyone's head on a platter," the Republican added.
"What we're looking for is the truth."
Cuomo's report showed Baum knew of efforts by Dopp and another Spitzer aide, Bill Howard, to have state police troopers gather information about Bruno's whereabouts in hopes of trapping him in the misuse of state aircraft for political purposes.
The report found Bruno innocent of wrongdoing.
Baum has insisted he thought the records were being collected in connection with a reporter's Freedom of Information Law request.
But Cuomo's report showed the request wasn't filed until well after Dopp and Howard put their scheme into play.
Both Dopp and Baum refused Cuomo's requests that they testify under oath - a move Baum has said was recommended by Spitzer's counsel David Nocenti.
After Cuomo's report, Spitzer suspended Dopp without pay and reassigned Howard, who is a holdover from the Pataki administration.
But the governor has continued to publicly declare his support for Baum and has refused to discipline him.
Now Senate Republicans are targeting both Baum and Spitzer, asking what the governor knew and when he knew it, and saying both Democrats must testify under oath about their roles in the scandal.
Spitzer has signaled he and his top aide will comply if asked to testify by the state Ethics Commission, which is contemplating its own investigation and, unlike Cuomo's office, has subpoena power.
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, a Democrat who has emerged as a Spitzer ally, said he believes Baum's assertion that he wasn't fully aware of the nasty plan hatched by Dopp and Howard.
But Silver also said Spitzer could have "ended this a lot earlier by either requiring [Baum] to testify or reassigning him someplace."
But, Silver said, even that would probably not have satisfied the Senate Republicans, who are fighting to maintain their slim two-seat majority at a time when Spitzer has publicly stated his desire to help the Senate Democrats take control of the chamber.
"They just don't want Eliot Spitzer to have any credibility, and it's not about [Baum] or anyone else," Silver said.
"They'll just continue this political pursuit."
"I can't figure out what will stop them."
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/07/30...fixer__deb.html
Elizabeth Benjamin
"Big makeover - or new, top-level fixer - debated"
Monday, July 30th 2007, 4:00 AM
Gov. Spitzer is mulling a staff shakeup in hopes of speeding his recovery from the worst scandal of his political career, according to sources familiar with the governor's thinking.
Another idea Spitzer is considering, sources said, is bringing in someone new who has ties to the Legislature to serve in a senior advisory role and help both retool the governor's image and rebuild the bridges he has burned with state lawmakers in the seven short months since he took office.
Speculation has been swirling for days about the fate of Richard Baum, whose unassuming title - secretary to the governor - belies the power of that post.
But sources close to the beleaguered Democratic governor say Baum is staying for now.
Spitzer spokeswoman Christine Anderson called it an "overstatement" to say the governor is considering a shakeup, adding, "The governor's team is solidly in place."
Even some Spitzer allies have called for Baum's firing after Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's bombshell report revealed the top aide was aware that two other Spitzer staffers had misused the state police to gather potentially damning information on the governor's top political enemy: Republican Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno.
But others aren't so sure that ditching Baum will solve Spitzer's problems.
"It would be like Batman firing Robin," said one Democratic strategist, noting that Baum has worked for Spitzer since he took office as attorney general in 1999.
"At this point, offering him up isn't enough to get [Senate Republicans] off the governor's back."
A high-ranking Senate Republican agreed, saying, "If [Spitzer] fires Baum now, what does that say?"
"He's been saying all along that Baum had no involvement in it."
"We're not looking for anyone's head on a platter," the Republican added.
"What we're looking for is the truth."
Cuomo's report showed Baum knew of efforts by Dopp and another Spitzer aide, Bill Howard, to have state police troopers gather information about Bruno's whereabouts in hopes of trapping him in the misuse of state aircraft for political purposes.
The report found Bruno innocent of wrongdoing.
Baum has insisted he thought the records were being collected in connection with a reporter's Freedom of Information Law request.
But Cuomo's report showed the request wasn't filed until well after Dopp and Howard put their scheme into play.
Both Dopp and Baum refused Cuomo's requests that they testify under oath - a move Baum has said was recommended by Spitzer's counsel David Nocenti.
After Cuomo's report, Spitzer suspended Dopp without pay and reassigned Howard, who is a holdover from the Pataki administration.
But the governor has continued to publicly declare his support for Baum and has refused to discipline him.
Now Senate Republicans are targeting both Baum and Spitzer, asking what the governor knew and when he knew it, and saying both Democrats must testify under oath about their roles in the scandal.
Spitzer has signaled he and his top aide will comply if asked to testify by the state Ethics Commission, which is contemplating its own investigation and, unlike Cuomo's office, has subpoena power.
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, a Democrat who has emerged as a Spitzer ally, said he believes Baum's assertion that he wasn't fully aware of the nasty plan hatched by Dopp and Howard.
But Silver also said Spitzer could have "ended this a lot earlier by either requiring [Baum] to testify or reassigning him someplace."
But, Silver said, even that would probably not have satisfied the Senate Republicans, who are fighting to maintain their slim two-seat majority at a time when Spitzer has publicly stated his desire to help the Senate Democrats take control of the chamber.
"They just don't want Eliot Spitzer to have any credibility, and it's not about [Baum] or anyone else," Silver said.
"They'll just continue this political pursuit."
"I can't figure out what will stop them."
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/07/30...fixer__deb.html
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Exclusive
"It's time to stop fighting with all guns blazing, Eliot - Shelly Silver's advice to embattled gov"
By CELESTE KATZ, DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Monday, July 30th 2007, 4:00 AM
Gov. Spitzer may have finally learned his lesson - and if he hasn't, he'd better, says Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver.
Democrat Spitzer has struggled to make the transition from pit bull attorney general to chief executive, Silver said in an exclusive interview with the Daily News.
Until now, "It has been too much of a battle, [where Spitzer felt] he had to fight with all guns blazing, and his staff really felt that way," Silver said.
Spitzer aides were castigated in a report by Attorney General Andrew Cuomo last week for an ill-conceived scheme to embarrass Senate GOP leader Joe Bruno.
"Now, I think they've understood that they have to go forward more cooperatively, and I believe as a result of the experience that's taken place, he'll be better off for it," Silver added.
"He'll be a better governor . . . as we go into the future."
Silver, elected to the Assembly in 1976 and speaker since 1994, has been the man in the middle of the Spitzer-Bruno war.
Cuomo's investigation found Spitzer's communications director and homeland security adviser conspired to plant a newspaper story suggesting Bruno had improperly used state aircraft.
Neither Spitzer nor the aides were found to have engaged in criminal wrongdoing, though the state Ethics Commission has begun a preliminary investigation and Senate Republicans vow to conduct their own probe.
As someone who has seen governors and their controversies come and go - and weathered some of his own - Silver sees the current tumult as "a temporary phase, a blip on the radar screen" of a Spitzer administration that will last at least another 3˝ years and possibly longer.
Silver says he and Spitzer speak at least once a day.
"We talk about going forward," he said.
Spitzer's political success has been largely built on the image of a suit-and-tie street fighter who uses his Ivy League smarts to take on the big guys on behalf of the public.
Being governor is very different from being an attorney general who made his reputation bringing Wall Street brigands to heel.
"As attorney general, or as an assistant district attorney beforehand, you work on your own."
"You make your case, and it was a purely adversarial circumstance," said Silver.
Not so in the executive chamber.
"Now, you've got to work with people who disagree with you to bring about conclusions - and you cannot bring about those conclusions unless you get some degree of cooperation with the people you perceive as your adversaries," he said.
Silver is intimately familiar with the business end of the Spitzer steamroller: They got into it right from the start, sparring over who should replace disgraced Controller Alan Hevesi.
Spitzer looked outside the Legislature.
Silver, heavily armed with the votes to control confirmation, preferred someone from his own ranks.
Silver won: With Bruno's assent, Assemblyman Thomas DiNapoli, a Long Island Democrat, became controller.
Spitzer got mad: He raged at an "insider game of self-dealing" that got DiNapoli the job and reviled Silver and Bruno for "a stunning lack of integrity."
Still, Spitzer had to go on dealing with them to get things done, and Silver says there are no hard feelings; Spitzer's "passion" made him an attractive candidate in the first place.
"Sometimes that passion, that drive, doesn't work out as well - especially when you're on the receiving end of it," Silver said.
"That doesn't mean that drive and passion isn't something to be admired."
Silver is quick to say Spitzer's record is something to be proud of - especially for one who has been in office a mere seven months.
He rattled off a list: ethics reforms; workers' compensation reforms; budget reforms; education financing; expanded health insurance.
"Unfortunately, the ruckus is overshadowing those major accomplishments that took place," Silver said.
As to whether Spitzer can be faulted in the dirty-tricks affair, Silver says that depends on what happens from now on.
"I think now knowing it, [he] can be judged by it [if] he doesn't learn from his mistakes," he said.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/07/30..._all_guns_.html
Exclusive
"It's time to stop fighting with all guns blazing, Eliot - Shelly Silver's advice to embattled gov"
By CELESTE KATZ, DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Monday, July 30th 2007, 4:00 AM
Gov. Spitzer may have finally learned his lesson - and if he hasn't, he'd better, says Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver.
Democrat Spitzer has struggled to make the transition from pit bull attorney general to chief executive, Silver said in an exclusive interview with the Daily News.
Until now, "It has been too much of a battle, [where Spitzer felt] he had to fight with all guns blazing, and his staff really felt that way," Silver said.
Spitzer aides were castigated in a report by Attorney General Andrew Cuomo last week for an ill-conceived scheme to embarrass Senate GOP leader Joe Bruno.
"Now, I think they've understood that they have to go forward more cooperatively, and I believe as a result of the experience that's taken place, he'll be better off for it," Silver added.
"He'll be a better governor . . . as we go into the future."
Silver, elected to the Assembly in 1976 and speaker since 1994, has been the man in the middle of the Spitzer-Bruno war.
Cuomo's investigation found Spitzer's communications director and homeland security adviser conspired to plant a newspaper story suggesting Bruno had improperly used state aircraft.
Neither Spitzer nor the aides were found to have engaged in criminal wrongdoing, though the state Ethics Commission has begun a preliminary investigation and Senate Republicans vow to conduct their own probe.
As someone who has seen governors and their controversies come and go - and weathered some of his own - Silver sees the current tumult as "a temporary phase, a blip on the radar screen" of a Spitzer administration that will last at least another 3˝ years and possibly longer.
Silver says he and Spitzer speak at least once a day.
"We talk about going forward," he said.
Spitzer's political success has been largely built on the image of a suit-and-tie street fighter who uses his Ivy League smarts to take on the big guys on behalf of the public.
Being governor is very different from being an attorney general who made his reputation bringing Wall Street brigands to heel.
"As attorney general, or as an assistant district attorney beforehand, you work on your own."
"You make your case, and it was a purely adversarial circumstance," said Silver.
Not so in the executive chamber.
"Now, you've got to work with people who disagree with you to bring about conclusions - and you cannot bring about those conclusions unless you get some degree of cooperation with the people you perceive as your adversaries," he said.
Silver is intimately familiar with the business end of the Spitzer steamroller: They got into it right from the start, sparring over who should replace disgraced Controller Alan Hevesi.
Spitzer looked outside the Legislature.
Silver, heavily armed with the votes to control confirmation, preferred someone from his own ranks.
Silver won: With Bruno's assent, Assemblyman Thomas DiNapoli, a Long Island Democrat, became controller.
Spitzer got mad: He raged at an "insider game of self-dealing" that got DiNapoli the job and reviled Silver and Bruno for "a stunning lack of integrity."
Still, Spitzer had to go on dealing with them to get things done, and Silver says there are no hard feelings; Spitzer's "passion" made him an attractive candidate in the first place.
"Sometimes that passion, that drive, doesn't work out as well - especially when you're on the receiving end of it," Silver said.
"That doesn't mean that drive and passion isn't something to be admired."
Silver is quick to say Spitzer's record is something to be proud of - especially for one who has been in office a mere seven months.
He rattled off a list: ethics reforms; workers' compensation reforms; budget reforms; education financing; expanded health insurance.
"Unfortunately, the ruckus is overshadowing those major accomplishments that took place," Silver said.
As to whether Spitzer can be faulted in the dirty-tricks affair, Silver says that depends on what happens from now on.
"I think now knowing it, [he] can be judged by it [if] he doesn't learn from his mistakes," he said.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/07/30..._all_guns_.html
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
"Lay off Spitzer & go after real Albany abuses"
By TED LAZARUS
Monday, July 30th 2007, 4:00 AM
Dishonest.
Shameless.
Nixonian.
Critics of Gov. Spitzer, many of whom have borne the brunt of what they perceive to be the self-righteous governor's moralizing about the dysfunction of state government, can hardly contain their glee in denouncing an alleged abuse of power by a politician who so publicly prides himself on exposing abuses of power.
But despite the breathless speculation as to what the governor knew and when he knew it, the attorney general concluded that although two of the governor's aides acted inappropriately in using the state police to compile records of Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno's travel expenses, no laws were broken.
And there is not a shred of evidence that Spitzer himself has done anything wrong.
Moreover, the public is entitled to examine the records of Bruno's travel expenses.
Indeed, if the Spitzer administration had received a Freedom of Information Law request before seeking these records, it would have been required to compile and produce any existing documents.
Unfortunately, the missteps of Spitzer's aides and the state police, and the subsequent out-of-control furor, have unjustifiably jeopardized the reform agenda that the voters of this state demanded when they elected the governor with 70% of the vote last November.
Already, the leaders of the state Senate have threatened to back out of their agreement to enact the campaign finance reform measure that the governor so vigorously supported.
Apparently, Spitzer's opponents have decided that the best way to respond to unethical behavior is to block efforts to strengthen the state government's ethical standards.
Even by Albany standards, this is nonsensical.
To the contrary, this whole tempest should heighten the pressure on the Legislature to pass reform measures.
Lost in the reporting about when the records were sought and how is a scandal far more significant for taxpayers: State legislators like Bruno routinely spend tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars for fund-raising trips.
For example, as reported last week, Bruno commandeered a state helicopter on April 5 to fly from Albany to Manhattan, where he attended to state business for approximately 30 minutes.
He spent the remainder of the day in political meetings.
When Bruno returned to Albany, state troopers were waiting in a state-owned car to chauffeur him to his next political meeting.
This state-sanctioned use of public money for personal political purposes is precisely the type of behavior that Spitzer is seeking to stop - and his pledge to do so is precisely the reason he was elected.
The governor himself has denounced the actions of his aides - in fact he has suspended his communications director and banished the liaison to the state police from his staff - and would likely concede that they served to reinforce the perception that he is a bully.
However, this "scandal" is not Nixonian, but rather Clintonian: inept and ill-advised (but not illegal) behavior has emboldened critics and distracted the public from the merits of a policy agenda that the majority of the electorate supports.
Bill Clinton ultimately overcame several missteps largely due to the overzealousness and ethical shortcomings of critics blinded by personal enmity, and the country was better for it.
While enjoying his "victory lap," Bruno should remember that.
Lazarus is a lawyer in New York City and former deputy campaign manager for Andrea Stewart-Cousins' campaign for state Senate.
http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2007/0..._albany_ab.html
"Lay off Spitzer & go after real Albany abuses"
By TED LAZARUS
Monday, July 30th 2007, 4:00 AM
Dishonest.
Shameless.
Nixonian.
Critics of Gov. Spitzer, many of whom have borne the brunt of what they perceive to be the self-righteous governor's moralizing about the dysfunction of state government, can hardly contain their glee in denouncing an alleged abuse of power by a politician who so publicly prides himself on exposing abuses of power.
But despite the breathless speculation as to what the governor knew and when he knew it, the attorney general concluded that although two of the governor's aides acted inappropriately in using the state police to compile records of Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno's travel expenses, no laws were broken.
And there is not a shred of evidence that Spitzer himself has done anything wrong.
Moreover, the public is entitled to examine the records of Bruno's travel expenses.
Indeed, if the Spitzer administration had received a Freedom of Information Law request before seeking these records, it would have been required to compile and produce any existing documents.
Unfortunately, the missteps of Spitzer's aides and the state police, and the subsequent out-of-control furor, have unjustifiably jeopardized the reform agenda that the voters of this state demanded when they elected the governor with 70% of the vote last November.
Already, the leaders of the state Senate have threatened to back out of their agreement to enact the campaign finance reform measure that the governor so vigorously supported.
Apparently, Spitzer's opponents have decided that the best way to respond to unethical behavior is to block efforts to strengthen the state government's ethical standards.
Even by Albany standards, this is nonsensical.
To the contrary, this whole tempest should heighten the pressure on the Legislature to pass reform measures.
Lost in the reporting about when the records were sought and how is a scandal far more significant for taxpayers: State legislators like Bruno routinely spend tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars for fund-raising trips.
For example, as reported last week, Bruno commandeered a state helicopter on April 5 to fly from Albany to Manhattan, where he attended to state business for approximately 30 minutes.
He spent the remainder of the day in political meetings.
When Bruno returned to Albany, state troopers were waiting in a state-owned car to chauffeur him to his next political meeting.
This state-sanctioned use of public money for personal political purposes is precisely the type of behavior that Spitzer is seeking to stop - and his pledge to do so is precisely the reason he was elected.
The governor himself has denounced the actions of his aides - in fact he has suspended his communications director and banished the liaison to the state police from his staff - and would likely concede that they served to reinforce the perception that he is a bully.
However, this "scandal" is not Nixonian, but rather Clintonian: inept and ill-advised (but not illegal) behavior has emboldened critics and distracted the public from the merits of a policy agenda that the majority of the electorate supports.
Bill Clinton ultimately overcame several missteps largely due to the overzealousness and ethical shortcomings of critics blinded by personal enmity, and the country was better for it.
While enjoying his "victory lap," Bruno should remember that.
Lazarus is a lawyer in New York City and former deputy campaign manager for Andrea Stewart-Cousins' campaign for state Senate.
http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2007/0..._albany_ab.html
And while we are on the subject of "THE PEOPLE'S BUSINESS" in the State of New York, we have ...
"Deficits in Colonie cause lenders worry - Town sinks below city of Albany in credit rating, cites costs"
By JORDAN CARLEO-EVANGELIST, Staff writer, Albany, New York Times Union
First published: Thursday, August 2, 2007
COLONIE -- Citing persistent deficits and a lack of a "realistic" plan for near-term reversal, Wall Street has issued a grim analysis of the town's fiscal health, clouding its image as Albany's most prosperous suburb.
Moody's Investors Service offered a negative outlook for the town's bond rating, which is hovering one level above non-investment grade -- or junk bonds.
The analysis, released earlier this summer as the town prepared to issue $4.9 million in public-improvement bonds, points to six straight years of deficits with the general fund running a cumulative $8.5 million in the red by the end of fiscal 2006.
Colonie's bond rating -- or Wall Street's estimation of the town's ability to meet its obligations to repay the bonds -- was lowered in May 2006.
The newly assigned negative outlook is an indication of the financial community's belief that it may get worse before it gets better.
But town officials argue the Moody's outlook paints a misleading portrait of Colonie's finances by focusing on deficits while ignoring multimillion-dollar surpluses in other accounts.
"There's still a lot of demand for the town of Colonie's paper," said Comptroller Ronald Caponera, adding that the bonds sold quickly.
"It's not a town or city that's on the downslide."
The rating follows two years of tax increases -- including the creation of a highway tax that, as first proposed, would have boosted commercial tax rates nearly 70 percent in a single year.
It also comes as the region's largest suburb has gone to arbitration with its police union over whether officers should contribute toward their health insurance coverage.
The Colonie Police Benevolent Association hired its own economist to disect the town's finances and bolster its argument that officers should not be penalized because the town drained millions in reserves.
"Even while they're going deeper and deeper in debt, they're spending like the old town of Colonie," said attorney Dick Walsh, who represents the PBA.
But Caponera, Colonie's chief money manager, said the PBA dispute and the highway tax are evidence of the town's efforts to reverse direction, attributing the deficits largely to soaring health care costs and contributions to the state pension system.
To offset the blow of the new highway tax, the town began requiring nonunion employees to contribute to their health insurance, a move officials promised to extend to unionized employees when the contracts expire.
The highway tax was necessary, officials said, to pay for rising costs associated with new state requirements to control storm water runoff.
Caponera said Moody's was pleased with the town's efforts in those areas as well as its decision not to use reserve funds in either of the last two budgets.
"I think we're very diligently trying to address the situation," said Supervisor Mary Brizzell.
"Am I concerned?"
"Yes."
"But I'm not overly alarmed."
Brizzell also pointed to unfunded state mandates and said it's a hard balance to strike to hold the line on taxes while maintaining services in a town with aging infrastructure.
In the past, she said, officials have been criticized for holding surpluses.
But opponents of the Republican administration say the town's justifications aren't adequate.
"The challenges that they're talking about are things that other governments have faced as well," said Phillip G. Steck, the town Democratic chairman.
"The burden is on Mary Brizzell now to come forward and say what her plan is for addressing this situation."
For too long, Steck said, Colonie has lived off its reputation of being flush with cash, when, in reality, officials have balked at raising taxes or reducing services to avoid political fallout.
"The bottom line is that if they were doing things properly, this report would not exist," Steck said.
Among Moody's other findings were:
The general fund reserve shrank from $12.2 million in 2001 to a $7.7 million deficit in 2005.
By the end of 2005, landfill revenues decreased because of delays in creating a new landfill cell, leading to a cumulative deficit of $6.7 million in the Landfill Fund.
The town transferred $3.1 million from the Landfill Fund, increasing the deficit there, to support the general fund.
The position of the Highway Fund improved slightly in 2006, with its deficit reduced to $1.2 million.
"There is no viable plan to restore balanced operations and (address) the accumulated deficit in the near term," the report said.
"While the 2007 budget shows the potential for improved operations," the report stated, "it is worth noting that the significant accumulated deficit, combined with pressures of unsettled labor contracts, pose considerable challenges to the town's financial recovery."
Municipalities issue bonds to raise money for capital projects.
A lower bond rating usually means higher interest rates and larger long-term payments, which cost taxpayers more.
The ratings can be seen as a measure of financial health.
The grade assigned to Colonie by Moody's, known as Baa1, is part of a category known as lower medium grade.
It puts the town, where the tax base is $8.4 billion and growing, a notch above the city of Schenectady and a notch below the city of Albany.
Colonie's rating falls well below that of other Albany County suburbs, such as Guilderland and Bethlehem, which have much smaller, less diverse tax bases.
The Moody's report coincides with the start of a routine, though unrelated, state audit of the town's finances by the state Comptroller's Office.
Jordan Carleo-Evangelist can be reached at 454-5445 or by e-mail at jcarleo-evangelist @timesunion.com.
"Deficits in Colonie cause lenders worry - Town sinks below city of Albany in credit rating, cites costs"
By JORDAN CARLEO-EVANGELIST, Staff writer, Albany, New York Times Union
First published: Thursday, August 2, 2007
COLONIE -- Citing persistent deficits and a lack of a "realistic" plan for near-term reversal, Wall Street has issued a grim analysis of the town's fiscal health, clouding its image as Albany's most prosperous suburb.
Moody's Investors Service offered a negative outlook for the town's bond rating, which is hovering one level above non-investment grade -- or junk bonds.
The analysis, released earlier this summer as the town prepared to issue $4.9 million in public-improvement bonds, points to six straight years of deficits with the general fund running a cumulative $8.5 million in the red by the end of fiscal 2006.
Colonie's bond rating -- or Wall Street's estimation of the town's ability to meet its obligations to repay the bonds -- was lowered in May 2006.
The newly assigned negative outlook is an indication of the financial community's belief that it may get worse before it gets better.
But town officials argue the Moody's outlook paints a misleading portrait of Colonie's finances by focusing on deficits while ignoring multimillion-dollar surpluses in other accounts.
"There's still a lot of demand for the town of Colonie's paper," said Comptroller Ronald Caponera, adding that the bonds sold quickly.
"It's not a town or city that's on the downslide."
The rating follows two years of tax increases -- including the creation of a highway tax that, as first proposed, would have boosted commercial tax rates nearly 70 percent in a single year.
It also comes as the region's largest suburb has gone to arbitration with its police union over whether officers should contribute toward their health insurance coverage.
The Colonie Police Benevolent Association hired its own economist to disect the town's finances and bolster its argument that officers should not be penalized because the town drained millions in reserves.
"Even while they're going deeper and deeper in debt, they're spending like the old town of Colonie," said attorney Dick Walsh, who represents the PBA.
But Caponera, Colonie's chief money manager, said the PBA dispute and the highway tax are evidence of the town's efforts to reverse direction, attributing the deficits largely to soaring health care costs and contributions to the state pension system.
To offset the blow of the new highway tax, the town began requiring nonunion employees to contribute to their health insurance, a move officials promised to extend to unionized employees when the contracts expire.
The highway tax was necessary, officials said, to pay for rising costs associated with new state requirements to control storm water runoff.
Caponera said Moody's was pleased with the town's efforts in those areas as well as its decision not to use reserve funds in either of the last two budgets.
"I think we're very diligently trying to address the situation," said Supervisor Mary Brizzell.
"Am I concerned?"
"Yes."
"But I'm not overly alarmed."
Brizzell also pointed to unfunded state mandates and said it's a hard balance to strike to hold the line on taxes while maintaining services in a town with aging infrastructure.
In the past, she said, officials have been criticized for holding surpluses.
But opponents of the Republican administration say the town's justifications aren't adequate.
"The challenges that they're talking about are things that other governments have faced as well," said Phillip G. Steck, the town Democratic chairman.
"The burden is on Mary Brizzell now to come forward and say what her plan is for addressing this situation."
For too long, Steck said, Colonie has lived off its reputation of being flush with cash, when, in reality, officials have balked at raising taxes or reducing services to avoid political fallout.
"The bottom line is that if they were doing things properly, this report would not exist," Steck said.
Among Moody's other findings were:
The general fund reserve shrank from $12.2 million in 2001 to a $7.7 million deficit in 2005.
By the end of 2005, landfill revenues decreased because of delays in creating a new landfill cell, leading to a cumulative deficit of $6.7 million in the Landfill Fund.
The town transferred $3.1 million from the Landfill Fund, increasing the deficit there, to support the general fund.
The position of the Highway Fund improved slightly in 2006, with its deficit reduced to $1.2 million.
"There is no viable plan to restore balanced operations and (address) the accumulated deficit in the near term," the report said.
"While the 2007 budget shows the potential for improved operations," the report stated, "it is worth noting that the significant accumulated deficit, combined with pressures of unsettled labor contracts, pose considerable challenges to the town's financial recovery."
Municipalities issue bonds to raise money for capital projects.
A lower bond rating usually means higher interest rates and larger long-term payments, which cost taxpayers more.
The ratings can be seen as a measure of financial health.
The grade assigned to Colonie by Moody's, known as Baa1, is part of a category known as lower medium grade.
It puts the town, where the tax base is $8.4 billion and growing, a notch above the city of Schenectady and a notch below the city of Albany.
Colonie's rating falls well below that of other Albany County suburbs, such as Guilderland and Bethlehem, which have much smaller, less diverse tax bases.
The Moody's report coincides with the start of a routine, though unrelated, state audit of the town's finances by the state Comptroller's Office.
Jordan Carleo-Evangelist can be reached at 454-5445 or by e-mail at jcarleo-evangelist @timesunion.com.
"Court says lobbyist close to Bruno must hand over documents"
By MICHAEL GORMLEY, Associated Press
Last updated: 1:52 p.m., Thursday, August 2, 2007
ALBANY -- A state appellate court on Thursday ruled that a lobbyist investigated over a private flight provided to Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno must comply with a subpoena he fought.
The Appellate Division panel upheld most of a lower court's decision denying the effort by Jared Abbruzzese, a lobbyist and Albany area businessman, to quash a subpoena issued by the state lobbying commission.
Thursday's 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.
The case isn't related to the scandal that is rocking Albany over two aides to Gov. Eliot Spitzer.
They used state police to track Bruno's use of a state helicopter and state police driver on days he mixed state business with political fundraisers, according to the attorney general's office.
The appellate court addressed an earlier controversy involving Bruno's use of private aircraft, dating to 2005.
It relates to Abbruzzese's role then as president and CEO of the Friends of New York Racing, according to the decision.
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.
Bruno has said he did nothing wrong and was cooperating with the investigation.
David Grandeau, the executive director of the lobbying commission, issued the subpoena for documents and answers to questions about private flights provided to Bruno, an avid horseman.
Records already obtained by Grandeau from an airplane charter firm, Richmor Aviation Inc., show Bruno took a half-dozen flights with staff members and once with a relative.
One "trip sheet" showed a Dec. 1, 2005, flight from Schenectady to a private airport in New Jersey that included the notation: "Mr. Abbruzzese is paying for the senator's portion," according to documents obtained by the lobbying commission.
State lobbying laws require businessmen trying to influence lawmakers to register as lobbyists and report their spending and activities.
At the time, lobbying law prohibited lobbyists from providing gifts of more than $75 to lawmakers.
Gifts to lawmakers are now banned under a reform measure passed into law this year.
Abbruzzese also owned a stake in Empire Racing Associates, one of four groups seeking the state's lucrative franchise to run Aqueduct, Belmont and Saratoga thoroughbred tracks and video slot machines at Aqueduct and Belmont.
But Empire bought him out in December.
The Legislature is scheduled to pick an operator before the New York Racing Association's franchise expires Dec. 31.
Abbruzzese's lawyer, Brendan Tully, didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.
Grandeau has said Bruno could be asked to testify in the case.
Grandeau said Thursday the court challenge was only for the subpoena seeking documents, but he had issued another subpoena seeking testimony from Abbruzzese.
Now, Grandeau said, both subpoenas will go forward.
He declined to discuss the investigation.
Abbruzzese has contributed more than $70,000 since 2000 to New York Republicans and more to the national party, has made corporate jets available to Bruno, and hired Bruno as a consultant.
Abbruzzese's wife has bought land from a real estate investment company that had ties to Bruno.
Meanwhile, businesses with links to Abbruzzese have received hundreds of thousands of dollars in state funding controlled by Bruno and, until the end of last year, by former Gov. George Pataki.
Bruno spokesman John McArdle declined comment on the court decision Thursday, saying it "has nothing to do with us."
The lobbying commission's investigation focuses on whether Abbruzzese violated any lobbying laws designed to limit the influence of special interests on government decisions.
The commission regulates lobbyists and has no authority to take action against lawmakers.
The investigation began after a newspaper article reported that Bruno had taken a private flight Dec. 1, 2005.
The lobbying commission investigated whether Abbruzzese paid for the flight, which could violate lobbying law.
The court decision states that records later found Abbruzzese didn't pay for Bruno's flight, but "in the course of the investigation, additional information was obtained which raised new concerns of possible lobbying act violations regarding other flights."
Abbruzzese fought the subsequent subpoena seeking the trip sheets and other documents related to the flights.
The court found the lobbying commission's investigation found enough evidence to continue, but called for a private review of records to avoid disclosure of "irrelevant communications."
Abbruzzese couldn't immediately be reached for comment.
He could appeal the unanimous decision to the Court of Appeals, the state's highest court.
By MICHAEL GORMLEY, Associated Press
Last updated: 1:52 p.m., Thursday, August 2, 2007
ALBANY -- A state appellate court on Thursday ruled that a lobbyist investigated over a private flight provided to Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno must comply with a subpoena he fought.
The Appellate Division panel upheld most of a lower court's decision denying the effort by Jared Abbruzzese, a lobbyist and Albany area businessman, to quash a subpoena issued by the state lobbying commission.
Thursday's 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.
The case isn't related to the scandal that is rocking Albany over two aides to Gov. Eliot Spitzer.
They used state police to track Bruno's use of a state helicopter and state police driver on days he mixed state business with political fundraisers, according to the attorney general's office.
The appellate court addressed an earlier controversy involving Bruno's use of private aircraft, dating to 2005.
It relates to Abbruzzese's role then as president and CEO of the Friends of New York Racing, according to the decision.
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.
Bruno has said he did nothing wrong and was cooperating with the investigation.
David Grandeau, the executive director of the lobbying commission, issued the subpoena for documents and answers to questions about private flights provided to Bruno, an avid horseman.
Records already obtained by Grandeau from an airplane charter firm, Richmor Aviation Inc., show Bruno took a half-dozen flights with staff members and once with a relative.
One "trip sheet" showed a Dec. 1, 2005, flight from Schenectady to a private airport in New Jersey that included the notation: "Mr. Abbruzzese is paying for the senator's portion," according to documents obtained by the lobbying commission.
State lobbying laws require businessmen trying to influence lawmakers to register as lobbyists and report their spending and activities.
At the time, lobbying law prohibited lobbyists from providing gifts of more than $75 to lawmakers.
Gifts to lawmakers are now banned under a reform measure passed into law this year.
Abbruzzese also owned a stake in Empire Racing Associates, one of four groups seeking the state's lucrative franchise to run Aqueduct, Belmont and Saratoga thoroughbred tracks and video slot machines at Aqueduct and Belmont.
But Empire bought him out in December.
The Legislature is scheduled to pick an operator before the New York Racing Association's franchise expires Dec. 31.
Abbruzzese's lawyer, Brendan Tully, didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.
Grandeau has said Bruno could be asked to testify in the case.
Grandeau said Thursday the court challenge was only for the subpoena seeking documents, but he had issued another subpoena seeking testimony from Abbruzzese.
Now, Grandeau said, both subpoenas will go forward.
He declined to discuss the investigation.
Abbruzzese has contributed more than $70,000 since 2000 to New York Republicans and more to the national party, has made corporate jets available to Bruno, and hired Bruno as a consultant.
Abbruzzese's wife has bought land from a real estate investment company that had ties to Bruno.
Meanwhile, businesses with links to Abbruzzese have received hundreds of thousands of dollars in state funding controlled by Bruno and, until the end of last year, by former Gov. George Pataki.
Bruno spokesman John McArdle declined comment on the court decision Thursday, saying it "has nothing to do with us."
The lobbying commission's investigation focuses on whether Abbruzzese violated any lobbying laws designed to limit the influence of special interests on government decisions.
The commission regulates lobbyists and has no authority to take action against lawmakers.
The investigation began after a newspaper article reported that Bruno had taken a private flight Dec. 1, 2005.
The lobbying commission investigated whether Abbruzzese paid for the flight, which could violate lobbying law.
The court decision states that records later found Abbruzzese didn't pay for Bruno's flight, but "in the course of the investigation, additional information was obtained which raised new concerns of possible lobbying act violations regarding other flights."
Abbruzzese fought the subsequent subpoena seeking the trip sheets and other documents related to the flights.
The court found the lobbying commission's investigation found enough evidence to continue, but called for a private review of records to avoid disclosure of "irrelevant communications."
Abbruzzese couldn't immediately be reached for comment.
He could appeal the unanimous decision to the Court of Appeals, the state's highest court.
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
"TROUBLE IN ALBANY - A Special Counsel for Spitzer - New York's governor needs to come clean."
BY JOSEPH L. BRUNO
New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer is now traveling the state trying to put a scandal behind him that risks enveloping his administration.
It's going to be a hard task.
Here's what we know, thanks to some enterprising reporting by the New York Post and an investigation by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo: Two close advisers to the governor apparently used the New York State Police to carry out a political smear campaign against me by creating documents designed to generate negative press reports about me.
And it nearly worked.
Now, with an outline of what really happened made public, there is only one way forward for Mr. Spitzer.
He needs to support a full airing of the truth.
That support must include publicly testifying under oath, and making advisers available to publicly testify under oath, as part of an independent investigation that should not be limited to a panel of his appointees.
It would be best to appoint an independent counsel to look into the issue.
The abuse of power now being alleged is a very serious matter that has placed a cloud over state government.
It is especially damaging because the scandal involves misusing state troopers and alleged misconduct by the governor's top aides, including the state assistant secretary for Homeland Security.
New Yorkers have made it clear in several polls that they believe the governor knew about the smear campaign and should publicly testify about what he knew and when he knew it.
It is troubling that a governor who campaigned on ethics, openness and accountability, is now trying to sweep the "Troopergate" matter under the rug.
But it is not surprising.
This is not an isolated incident.
It is just the most serious example of a pattern of behavior that raises very serious questions about the governor's judgment, temperament and ability to govern New York State.
When Mr. Spitzer took office earlier this year, the Republican Senate majority--and I, as majority leader--pledged to work with him on critical issues such as strengthening our economy, creating jobs, keeping communities safe and cutting taxes.
But we quickly found that we did not have a willing partner.
We found a man who did not respect opposing viewpoints and who verbally threatened those who disagreed with him.
In his public statements and behind the scenes, the governor has refused to work in a bipartisan manner.
Instead, he has politicized his office like no other governor in history.
Rather than negotiating and compromising with people who challenged him, Mr. Spitzer tried to eliminate them.
That is dangerous for democracy.
And this governor does need to be challenged.
Here's a partial list of his unfulfilled campaign promises and misplaced priorities:
• Mr. Spitzer promised to provide tax relief, but he proposed a budget that included more than $1 billion in new taxes and fees.
The Republicans in the Senate stopped these tax hikes and were successful in getting new tax cuts for businesses.
• Mr. Spitzer promised to promote greater economic opportunity, but instead worked to block the Senate's efforts to make new capital investments in key projects to strengthen New York's economy, particularly upstate.
• Mr. Spitzer promised to be tough on crime, but he hasn't done anything to help the Senate's efforts to impose the death penalty for criminals who kill police officers.
• Mr. Spitzer promised property tax relief, but has tried to thwart every effort by the Senate Republicans to provide relief to people paying the highest property taxes in the country.
• Mr. Spitzer promised to work cooperatively with the state legislature, but then announced that he would run the government without the legislature by using his state agencies.
This type of autocratic rule is not what the Founding Fathers had in mind.
• Mr. Spitzer promised to enact sweeping campaign finance reforms, but instead launched one the most hypocritical and aggressive fundraising campaigns ever--complete with massive "bundling" of million-dollar contributions, and promises of access depending on the size of a donation.
The Senate, which recently opened a probe of the governor's past fundraising practices, has been the only institution willing to point out the governor's hypocrisy.
Mr. Spitzer is not shy about using threats and verbal abuse against those who oppose him.
Wall Street Journal readers will remember that John Whitehead, formerly chairman of the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation, detailed on theses pages a bizarre and threatening phone call from then New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer in 2005.
The call came after Mr. Whitehead wrote an article for this newspaper critical of Mr. Spitzer.
There have been profane and abusive phone calls to members of the Senate and Assembly.
And, of course, the governor also admitted that he lied to Michael Goodwin of the Daily News about whether his father helped bankroll his campaign for attorney general in 1998.
In light of these incidents, New Yorkers are beginning to raise serious questions about the governor's temperament.
And all of this helps place the "Troopergate" scandal in context.
This most recent abuse of power represents an intentional effort to damage me politically and--by extension--to destroy the Republican majority in the state Senate.
Apparently, with the state Assembly and every statewide office controlled by Democrats, Mr. Spitzer came to view Senate Republicans as the only thing standing in his way.
On this particular point, the governor is absolutely correct.
Mr. Bruno, a Republican, is majority leader of the New York Senate.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/fe...ml?id=110010413
"TROUBLE IN ALBANY - A Special Counsel for Spitzer - New York's governor needs to come clean."
BY JOSEPH L. BRUNO
New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer is now traveling the state trying to put a scandal behind him that risks enveloping his administration.
It's going to be a hard task.
Here's what we know, thanks to some enterprising reporting by the New York Post and an investigation by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo: Two close advisers to the governor apparently used the New York State Police to carry out a political smear campaign against me by creating documents designed to generate negative press reports about me.
And it nearly worked.
Now, with an outline of what really happened made public, there is only one way forward for Mr. Spitzer.
He needs to support a full airing of the truth.
That support must include publicly testifying under oath, and making advisers available to publicly testify under oath, as part of an independent investigation that should not be limited to a panel of his appointees.
It would be best to appoint an independent counsel to look into the issue.
The abuse of power now being alleged is a very serious matter that has placed a cloud over state government.
It is especially damaging because the scandal involves misusing state troopers and alleged misconduct by the governor's top aides, including the state assistant secretary for Homeland Security.
New Yorkers have made it clear in several polls that they believe the governor knew about the smear campaign and should publicly testify about what he knew and when he knew it.
It is troubling that a governor who campaigned on ethics, openness and accountability, is now trying to sweep the "Troopergate" matter under the rug.
But it is not surprising.
This is not an isolated incident.
It is just the most serious example of a pattern of behavior that raises very serious questions about the governor's judgment, temperament and ability to govern New York State.
When Mr. Spitzer took office earlier this year, the Republican Senate majority--and I, as majority leader--pledged to work with him on critical issues such as strengthening our economy, creating jobs, keeping communities safe and cutting taxes.
But we quickly found that we did not have a willing partner.
We found a man who did not respect opposing viewpoints and who verbally threatened those who disagreed with him.
In his public statements and behind the scenes, the governor has refused to work in a bipartisan manner.
Instead, he has politicized his office like no other governor in history.
Rather than negotiating and compromising with people who challenged him, Mr. Spitzer tried to eliminate them.
That is dangerous for democracy.
And this governor does need to be challenged.
Here's a partial list of his unfulfilled campaign promises and misplaced priorities:
• Mr. Spitzer promised to provide tax relief, but he proposed a budget that included more than $1 billion in new taxes and fees.
The Republicans in the Senate stopped these tax hikes and were successful in getting new tax cuts for businesses.
• Mr. Spitzer promised to promote greater economic opportunity, but instead worked to block the Senate's efforts to make new capital investments in key projects to strengthen New York's economy, particularly upstate.
• Mr. Spitzer promised to be tough on crime, but he hasn't done anything to help the Senate's efforts to impose the death penalty for criminals who kill police officers.
• Mr. Spitzer promised property tax relief, but has tried to thwart every effort by the Senate Republicans to provide relief to people paying the highest property taxes in the country.
• Mr. Spitzer promised to work cooperatively with the state legislature, but then announced that he would run the government without the legislature by using his state agencies.
This type of autocratic rule is not what the Founding Fathers had in mind.
• Mr. Spitzer promised to enact sweeping campaign finance reforms, but instead launched one the most hypocritical and aggressive fundraising campaigns ever--complete with massive "bundling" of million-dollar contributions, and promises of access depending on the size of a donation.
The Senate, which recently opened a probe of the governor's past fundraising practices, has been the only institution willing to point out the governor's hypocrisy.
Mr. Spitzer is not shy about using threats and verbal abuse against those who oppose him.
Wall Street Journal readers will remember that John Whitehead, formerly chairman of the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation, detailed on theses pages a bizarre and threatening phone call from then New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer in 2005.
The call came after Mr. Whitehead wrote an article for this newspaper critical of Mr. Spitzer.
There have been profane and abusive phone calls to members of the Senate and Assembly.
And, of course, the governor also admitted that he lied to Michael Goodwin of the Daily News about whether his father helped bankroll his campaign for attorney general in 1998.
In light of these incidents, New Yorkers are beginning to raise serious questions about the governor's temperament.
And all of this helps place the "Troopergate" scandal in context.
This most recent abuse of power represents an intentional effort to damage me politically and--by extension--to destroy the Republican majority in the state Senate.
Apparently, with the state Assembly and every statewide office controlled by Democrats, Mr. Spitzer came to view Senate Republicans as the only thing standing in his way.
On this particular point, the governor is absolutely correct.
Mr. Bruno, a Republican, is majority leader of the New York Senate.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/fe...ml?id=110010413
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:
And with respect to your SNOW JOB, Mr. Ravi Batra, to expose it, all we have to do is to go back to the TU story "Pact puts Capitol on notice - DA Soares, Cuomo vow to share resources to clean up corruption in state government" by MICHELE MORGAN BOLTON, Staff writer, Times Union, first published Friday, January 12, 2007, wherein is stated:
ALBANY -- In what they touted as a historic pact, Albany County District Attorney David Soares and Attorney General Andrew Cuomo launched a joint effort Thursday to root out corruption in state government.
"This is not the changing of the guard," Cuomo said.
"It's the changing of an era."
end quotes
SOOOOO ....
Okay, Mr. Ravi Batra ...
To root out CORRUPTION in New York State government, and "TO CHANGE AN ERA" of rampant and endemic corruption in Albany, on January 12, 2007, young Andy Cuomo held a big PRESS CONFERENCE up there in Albany which got a lot of media coverage, and young Andy got to smile a lot and show off his teeth ...
And at this BIG PRESS CONFERENCE, young Andy Cuomo told US that it was "THE CHANGING OF AN ERA" ....
Teamed up with Albany County DA David Soares, young Andy Cuomo was going to change an era and stamp out corruption forever in Albany ...
And then, Mr. Ravi Batra, WITH THIS "TROOPERGATE" SCANDAL, young Andy Cuomo was handed a GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY to clearly demonstrate to US that an "ERA HAD TRULY CHANGED", and that he was really going to ROOT OUT CORRUPTION in OUR government ....
AND WHAT HAPPENED, Mr. Ravi Batra?
Eliot Spitzer is what happened, of course ....
Eliot Spitzer "invited" young Andy Cuomo to "CHANGE THE ERA BACK" to what it was before ...
"AND DON'T ROOT OUT CORRUPTION, YOUNG ANDY, LIKE YOU SAID YOU WERE GOING TO DO; I'M THE GOVERNOR, THESE ARE MY PEOPLE, I WANT YOU TO LEAVE THEM ALONE ..."
And there is YOUR INVITATION, Mr. Ravi Batra ....
By the look of things, Eliot "STEAMROLLER" Spitzer invited young Andy Cuomo to turn his back on his "HISTORIC PACT" with DA David Soares and Eliot Spitzer invited young Andy Cuomo to leave corruption in Albany alone ....
And by the look of things, Mr. Ravi Batra, young Andy Cuomo did ....
And so ...
Posted by: John Galt | August 2, 2007 5:34 PM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...r.html#comments
And with respect to your SNOW JOB, Mr. Ravi Batra, to expose it, all we have to do is to go back to the TU story "Pact puts Capitol on notice - DA Soares, Cuomo vow to share resources to clean up corruption in state government" by MICHELE MORGAN BOLTON, Staff writer, Times Union, first published Friday, January 12, 2007, wherein is stated:
ALBANY -- In what they touted as a historic pact, Albany County District Attorney David Soares and Attorney General Andrew Cuomo launched a joint effort Thursday to root out corruption in state government.
"This is not the changing of the guard," Cuomo said.
"It's the changing of an era."
end quotes
SOOOOO ....
Okay, Mr. Ravi Batra ...
To root out CORRUPTION in New York State government, and "TO CHANGE AN ERA" of rampant and endemic corruption in Albany, on January 12, 2007, young Andy Cuomo held a big PRESS CONFERENCE up there in Albany which got a lot of media coverage, and young Andy got to smile a lot and show off his teeth ...
And at this BIG PRESS CONFERENCE, young Andy Cuomo told US that it was "THE CHANGING OF AN ERA" ....
Teamed up with Albany County DA David Soares, young Andy Cuomo was going to change an era and stamp out corruption forever in Albany ...
And then, Mr. Ravi Batra, WITH THIS "TROOPERGATE" SCANDAL, young Andy Cuomo was handed a GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY to clearly demonstrate to US that an "ERA HAD TRULY CHANGED", and that he was really going to ROOT OUT CORRUPTION in OUR government ....
AND WHAT HAPPENED, Mr. Ravi Batra?
Eliot Spitzer is what happened, of course ....
Eliot Spitzer "invited" young Andy Cuomo to "CHANGE THE ERA BACK" to what it was before ...
"AND DON'T ROOT OUT CORRUPTION, YOUNG ANDY, LIKE YOU SAID YOU WERE GOING TO DO; I'M THE GOVERNOR, THESE ARE MY PEOPLE, I WANT YOU TO LEAVE THEM ALONE ..."
And there is YOUR INVITATION, Mr. Ravi Batra ....
By the look of things, Eliot "STEAMROLLER" Spitzer invited young Andy Cuomo to turn his back on his "HISTORIC PACT" with DA David Soares and Eliot Spitzer invited young Andy Cuomo to leave corruption in Albany alone ....
And by the look of things, Mr. Ravi Batra, young Andy Cuomo did ....
And so ...
Posted by: John Galt | August 2, 2007 5:34 PM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...r.html#comments
QUOTE(Livyjr @ Jul 18 2007 @ 06:31 AM)
Monday, July 16, 2007
"Brennan Center and Friends of the Court File Briefs before U.S. Supreme Court Seeking Affirmance of Decisions Enjoining New York’s Judicial Selection"
Brooklyn District Attorney Charles J. Hynes:
“I am persuaded, from my long experience as a prosecutor, voter, citizen, and lawyer that…the problems of corruption in Brooklyn involving Supreme Court judgeships are not attributable to a single corrupt party boss."
"Rather, as the public record demonstrates, corruption in judicial politics has a long history paralleling the long history of the judicial district convention system,” Hynes wrote.
In addition to noting the statewide nature of the problem, Hynes strikingly explains to the Court that the “corruption brought about by the architecture of the Supreme Court nomination system does not end once the judge is tapped by party leaders to serve on the Supreme Court, or when the judge is elected."
"It often continues, in the form of corruption in the administration of justice.”
Thomas Mann, Norman Ornstein, the Reform Institute and the Campaign Legal Center:
“Although New York’s judicial selection scheme genuflects at the altar of democracy, it prays to a very different god: patronage.”
“By effectively lodging the power to control the nomination of state Supreme Court Justices in local political party leaders, New York’s mandated system makes state Supreme Court Justices—and many below them on the judicial ladder—beholden to local party officials."
"The judges, their law clerks, and other judicial employees become mere patronage spoils.”
http://reformny.blogspot.com/2007/07/brenn...s-of-court.html
"Brennan Center and Friends of the Court File Briefs before U.S. Supreme Court Seeking Affirmance of Decisions Enjoining New York’s Judicial Selection"
Brooklyn District Attorney Charles J. Hynes:
“I am persuaded, from my long experience as a prosecutor, voter, citizen, and lawyer that…the problems of corruption in Brooklyn involving Supreme Court judgeships are not attributable to a single corrupt party boss."
"Rather, as the public record demonstrates, corruption in judicial politics has a long history paralleling the long history of the judicial district convention system,” Hynes wrote.
In addition to noting the statewide nature of the problem, Hynes strikingly explains to the Court that the “corruption brought about by the architecture of the Supreme Court nomination system does not end once the judge is tapped by party leaders to serve on the Supreme Court, or when the judge is elected."
"It often continues, in the form of corruption in the administration of justice.”
Thomas Mann, Norman Ornstein, the Reform Institute and the Campaign Legal Center:
“Although New York’s judicial selection scheme genuflects at the altar of democracy, it prays to a very different god: patronage.”
“By effectively lodging the power to control the nomination of state Supreme Court Justices in local political party leaders, New York’s mandated system makes state Supreme Court Justices—and many below them on the judicial ladder—beholden to local party officials."
"The judges, their law clerks, and other judicial employees become mere patronage spoils.”
http://reformny.blogspot.com/2007/07/brenn...s-of-court.html
QUOTE(Livyjr @ Dec 13 2006 @ 03:47 PM)
"Zwack, Donohue nominated to Court of Claims - The state Senate could confirm as early as today"
By: James V. Franco, The Record12/13/2006
Lt. Gov. Mary Donohue and former County Executive Henry Zwack were both nominated for the nine-year terms that pay $136,700 a year.
Zwack, who resigned as county executive in 2001 after getting indicted, last worked as executive deputy commissioner for the state Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services.
Donohue, a one-time Rensselaer County District Attorney and state Supreme Court judge was elected as Pataki's No. 2 in 1998 and again in 2002.
"I am certain when she is confirmed she will rejoin the bench with the same integrity, vigor and commitment to service that she has demonstrated throughout her public life," Pataki said in a statement.
It looks as if both nominees will sail through the Senate during a special session today.
"Mary Donohue and Henry Zwack are two highly qualified candidates who would work extremely hard on behalf of this state and its residents," said Kris Thompson, a spokesman for state Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno, an ally to both Donohue and Zwack.
"In addition to his vast experience as a public administrator, Henry Zwack has been a practicing attorney since 1979 and has previously represented the interest of a number of municipalities, including Stephentown, New Lebanon and Petersburgh," Thompson added.
Zwack was elected county executive in 1995 to serve the remainder of John Buono's unfinished term after Pataki appointed Bruono to head the Thruway Authority.
He was elected to a full term in 1997.
By 2001, two separate scandals, dozens of indictments and two trials forced him to resign.
In 2001, a jury acquitted him of 10 counts of perjury related to the county's infamous no-show job scandal.
It was discovered Dirk Van Ort was collecting a county pay check as a 911 coordinator while working a carnival in Florida.
But, a special prosecutor indicted Zwack for his testimony in front of a grand jury that ended up indicting Victor Cipolla and Susan Martin for allowing Van Ort to get away with it for so long.
The pair later successfully sued the county for an undisclosed amount of money.
A year later, Zwack, four of his top aides and a Democratic Party boss were indicted for selling political influence in return for civil service favors.
It was alleged that Zwack put pressure on county personnel department employees to give North Greenbush Democratic Party Chairman James Germano's grandson another chance to pass the physical fitness aspect of the civil service exam so he could be a town cop.
The long-running scandal came complete with a high powered legal defense team, secretly made tape recordings and was intertwined with enough innuendos and political intrigue to be a made for television movie.
After Zwack and his co-defendants were acquitted, the Stephentown native went to work for a lobbying firm and later to OASIS.
He could not be reached for comment, Tuesday night.
Charles "CB" Smith, a long time government watchdog and long time thorn in Zwack's side drove the no-show job scandal.
In 2000, the last time it was rumored that Zwack would get a judgeship, Smith penned a letter to Pataki asking him to reconsider.
The nomination never transpired.
"The governor should know by now he should keep the name Zwack as far away from the word judge as humanly possible," Smith said.
"Who knows?"
"He may have a no show law clerk."
http://www.troyrecord.com/site/news.cfm?ne...=7021&rfi=6
By: James V. Franco, The Record12/13/2006
Lt. Gov. Mary Donohue and former County Executive Henry Zwack were both nominated for the nine-year terms that pay $136,700 a year.
Zwack, who resigned as county executive in 2001 after getting indicted, last worked as executive deputy commissioner for the state Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services.
Donohue, a one-time Rensselaer County District Attorney and state Supreme Court judge was elected as Pataki's No. 2 in 1998 and again in 2002.
"I am certain when she is confirmed she will rejoin the bench with the same integrity, vigor and commitment to service that she has demonstrated throughout her public life," Pataki said in a statement.
It looks as if both nominees will sail through the Senate during a special session today.
"Mary Donohue and Henry Zwack are two highly qualified candidates who would work extremely hard on behalf of this state and its residents," said Kris Thompson, a spokesman for state Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno, an ally to both Donohue and Zwack.
"In addition to his vast experience as a public administrator, Henry Zwack has been a practicing attorney since 1979 and has previously represented the interest of a number of municipalities, including Stephentown, New Lebanon and Petersburgh," Thompson added.
Zwack was elected county executive in 1995 to serve the remainder of John Buono's unfinished term after Pataki appointed Bruono to head the Thruway Authority.
He was elected to a full term in 1997.
By 2001, two separate scandals, dozens of indictments and two trials forced him to resign.
In 2001, a jury acquitted him of 10 counts of perjury related to the county's infamous no-show job scandal.
It was discovered Dirk Van Ort was collecting a county pay check as a 911 coordinator while working a carnival in Florida.
But, a special prosecutor indicted Zwack for his testimony in front of a grand jury that ended up indicting Victor Cipolla and Susan Martin for allowing Van Ort to get away with it for so long.
The pair later successfully sued the county for an undisclosed amount of money.
A year later, Zwack, four of his top aides and a Democratic Party boss were indicted for selling political influence in return for civil service favors.
It was alleged that Zwack put pressure on county personnel department employees to give North Greenbush Democratic Party Chairman James Germano's grandson another chance to pass the physical fitness aspect of the civil service exam so he could be a town cop.
The long-running scandal came complete with a high powered legal defense team, secretly made tape recordings and was intertwined with enough innuendos and political intrigue to be a made for television movie.
After Zwack and his co-defendants were acquitted, the Stephentown native went to work for a lobbying firm and later to OASIS.
He could not be reached for comment, Tuesday night.
Charles "CB" Smith, a long time government watchdog and long time thorn in Zwack's side drove the no-show job scandal.
In 2000, the last time it was rumored that Zwack would get a judgeship, Smith penned a letter to Pataki asking him to reconsider.
The nomination never transpired.
"The governor should know by now he should keep the name Zwack as far away from the word judge as humanly possible," Smith said.
"Who knows?"
"He may have a no show law clerk."
http://www.troyrecord.com/site/news.cfm?ne...=7021&rfi=6
"Rensselaer Co. dispute includes judge"
By JIMMY VIELKIND, Staff writer, Albany, New York Times Union
Last updated: 12:24 a.m., Friday, August 3, 2007
TROY - The chairman of the Rensselaer County Democratic Party says a judge should recuse himself from hearing a dispute over the adoption of revised party bylaws.
One town party chairman, Jeffrey Spain of North Greenbush, said the new bylaws will "centralize power" in the hands of County Chair Thomas W. Wade and should be thrown out because they were not properly adopted, according to court documents.
The case is before acting Supreme Court Justice Henry F. Zwack and should be decided next week.
The substance of the case, court documents show, centers around how much notice was given before the bylaw changes were voted on at the county committee's June 11 meeting and whether the court has jurisdiction to intervene in the matter.
But separate from that, Wade said it was "outrageous" that Zwack is hearing the case, because Wade once testified against the judge during a 2002 corruption trial.
Zwack, a Republican, resigned as County Executive in May 2001.
He was then cleared of charges at a pair of trials in September 2001 and April 2002 in which he was first accused of covering up a no-show job scandal and then charged with orchestrating a civil service job-for-votes trade.
Zwack was appointed a judge in December 2006.
In a response to the request for recusal dated July 27, he wrote that "I did not recall that Mr. Wade gave testimony until your correspondence."
He continued: "His testimony at the time did not give me reason to have personal bias or prejudice against Mr. Wade."
"Considered today, of what I can recall of his testimony, it still gives me no reason to any personal bias or prejudice concerning him."
The State Code of Judicial Conduct states that judges should recuse themselves if "the judge's impartiality might reasonably be questioned," and Wade was not satisfied with the reply.
"Any lawyer or law student or citizen can see the obvious need for a judge to step aside in a case where he can be accused of exercising a vendetta or simply following the directions of the hierarchy in his political party," he said.
THE ALBANY, NEW YORK TIMES UNION CAPITAL CONFIDENTIAL BLOG:
And what in the hell is going on with OUR court system here in NYS?
I just read a story in the TU entitled “Rensselaer Co. dispute includes judge” by JIMMY VIELKIND, Staff writer, last updated 12:24 a.m., Friday, August 3, 2007, that disgraced former REPUBLICAN RENSSELAER COUNTY EXECUTIVE Henry Zwack is now sitting in Rensselaer County Supreme Court as an “acting Supreme Court Justice” ….
And what a mockery of justice that is …
Henry Zwack could never get elected to a position on the bench as a Supreme Court Justice with his record, and yet, through a BACKDOOR maneuver by someone in a position of authority in the court system, there he now sits …
WHAT A TRAVESTY OF JUSTICE THAT IS!
Zwack is a Court of Claims judge who was put in there by Pataki and Joe Bruno in a special Senate Session on 12/13/2006 ….
And now, here he is back in Rensselaer County as an acting Supreme Court Justice …
WHAT A BUNCH OF CRAP, HON. JUDITH KAYE!
This reminds me of the words of Brooklyn District Attorney Charles J. Hynes and Thomas Mann, Norman Ornstein, the Reform Institute and the Campaign Legal Center in the story “Brennan Center and Friends of the Court File Briefs before U.S. Supreme Court Seeking Affirmance of Decisions Enjoining New York’s Judicial Selection” at:
http://reformny.blogspot.com/2007/07/brenn…s-of-court.html
Brooklyn District Attorney Charles J. Hynes:
“I am persuaded, from my long experience as a prosecutor, voter, citizen, and lawyer that…the problems of corruption in Brooklyn involving Supreme Court judgeships are not attributable to a single corrupt party boss.”
“Rather, as the public record demonstrates, corruption in judicial politics has a long history paralleling the long history of the judicial district convention system,” Hynes wrote.
In addition to noting the statewide nature of the problem, Hynes strikingly explains to the Court that the “corruption brought about by the architecture of the Supreme Court nomination system does not end once the judge is tapped by party leaders to serve on the Supreme Court, or when the judge is elected.”
“It often continues, in the form of corruption in the administration of justice.”
Thomas Mann, Norman Ornstein, the Reform Institute and the Campaign Legal Center:
“Although New York’s judicial selection scheme genuflects at the altar of democracy, it prays to a very different god: patronage.”
“By effectively lodging the power to control the nomination of state Supreme Court Justices in local political party leaders, New York’s mandated system makes state Supreme Court Justices—and many below them on the judicial ladder—beholden to local party officials.”
“The judges, their law clerks, and other judicial employees become mere patronage spoils.”
end quotes
THE JUDGES, THEIR LAW CLERKS, AND OTHER JUDICIAL EMPLOYEES BECOME MERE PATRONAGE SPOILS …
CORRUPTION IN THE SELECTION OF OUR STATE SUPREME COURT JUSTICES OFTEN CONTINUES IN THE FORM OF CORRUPTION IN THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE …
Damn right it does …
And here appears to be another case of it happening right before our eyes with this loser Henry Zwack wearing the robes of a Rensselaer County Supreme Court Justice ….
Thanks to a BACKROOM DEAL by someone in politics who wants Henry there, despite the fact that the PEOPLE would never elect him …
As OUR Constitution requires …
And so …
Comment by John Galt — August 3, 2007 @ 6:04 pm
http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=5156#comments
And what in the hell is going on with OUR court system here in NYS?
I just read a story in the TU entitled “Rensselaer Co. dispute includes judge” by JIMMY VIELKIND, Staff writer, last updated 12:24 a.m., Friday, August 3, 2007, that disgraced former REPUBLICAN RENSSELAER COUNTY EXECUTIVE Henry Zwack is now sitting in Rensselaer County Supreme Court as an “acting Supreme Court Justice” ….
And what a mockery of justice that is …
Henry Zwack could never get elected to a position on the bench as a Supreme Court Justice with his record, and yet, through a BACKDOOR maneuver by someone in a position of authority in the court system, there he now sits …
WHAT A TRAVESTY OF JUSTICE THAT IS!
Zwack is a Court of Claims judge who was put in there by Pataki and Joe Bruno in a special Senate Session on 12/13/2006 ….
And now, here he is back in Rensselaer County as an acting Supreme Court Justice …
WHAT A BUNCH OF CRAP, HON. JUDITH KAYE!
This reminds me of the words of Brooklyn District Attorney Charles J. Hynes and Thomas Mann, Norman Ornstein, the Reform Institute and the Campaign Legal Center in the story “Brennan Center and Friends of the Court File Briefs before U.S. Supreme Court Seeking Affirmance of Decisions Enjoining New York’s Judicial Selection” at:
http://reformny.blogspot.com/2007/07/brenn…s-of-court.html
Brooklyn District Attorney Charles J. Hynes:
“I am persuaded, from my long experience as a prosecutor, voter, citizen, and lawyer that…the problems of corruption in Brooklyn involving Supreme Court judgeships are not attributable to a single corrupt party boss.”
“Rather, as the public record demonstrates, corruption in judicial politics has a long history paralleling the long history of the judicial district convention system,” Hynes wrote.
In addition to noting the statewide nature of the problem, Hynes strikingly explains to the Court that the “corruption brought about by the architecture of the Supreme Court nomination system does not end once the judge is tapped by party leaders to serve on the Supreme Court, or when the judge is elected.”
“It often continues, in the form of corruption in the administration of justice.”
Thomas Mann, Norman Ornstein, the Reform Institute and the Campaign Legal Center:
“Although New York’s judicial selection scheme genuflects at the altar of democracy, it prays to a very different god: patronage.”
“By effectively lodging the power to control the nomination of state Supreme Court Justices in local political party leaders, New York’s mandated system makes state Supreme Court Justices—and many below them on the judicial ladder—beholden to local party officials.”
“The judges, their law clerks, and other judicial employees become mere patronage spoils.”
end quotes
THE JUDGES, THEIR LAW CLERKS, AND OTHER JUDICIAL EMPLOYEES BECOME MERE PATRONAGE SPOILS …
CORRUPTION IN THE SELECTION OF OUR STATE SUPREME COURT JUSTICES OFTEN CONTINUES IN THE FORM OF CORRUPTION IN THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE …
Damn right it does …
And here appears to be another case of it happening right before our eyes with this loser Henry Zwack wearing the robes of a Rensselaer County Supreme Court Justice ….
Thanks to a BACKROOM DEAL by someone in politics who wants Henry there, despite the fact that the PEOPLE would never elect him …
As OUR Constitution requires …
And so …
Comment by John Galt — August 3, 2007 @ 6:04 pm
http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=5156#comments
"Spitzer energy adviser resigns amid threat investigation"
By MICHAEL GORMLEY, Associated Press
Last updated: 5:15 p.m., Friday, August 3, 2007
ALBANY -- A top Spitzer administration adviser resigned Friday to rejoin the private sector as investigators wrap up a probe into claims he threatened a Republican on the Public Service Commission.
In April, Spitzer energy adviser Steven Mitnick was accused by PSC member Cheryl Buley, an appointee of former Republican Gov. George Pataki, of threatening her career.
She said Mitnick tried to get her to back off efforts to investigate Consolidated Edison over last summer's major blackout in New York City.
During a public PSC meeting, Buley said Mitnick had threatened her career five or six times since Gov. Eliot Spitzer took office Jan. 1.
The Spitzer administration rejected her claim then, but referred the case to the state Inspector General's Office, which is continuing its probe.
"Everything I did was totally on the right side of the rules and totally honorable," Mitnick said of the allegations Friday.
He said he didn't resign because of the investigation.
The resignation of the former Washington-based energy industry attorney comes as Spitzer faces investigations into the activities of two aides who used state police to gather information in a campaign to discredit Senate Republican leader Joseph Bruno.
A state Attorney General's Office investigation said the two aides -- one who has been suspended and another transferred out of the governor's office -- used state police to track the state's top Republican when he used state helicopters and state police drivers while mixing state business with political fundraisers in New York City.
Republican Sen. Thomas Libous of Broome County used Mitnick's resignation to criticize Spitzer on behalf of the Senate Republicans.
"Since he took office, Gov. Spitzer has created a climate that encourages tactics and behavior that apparently fostered Mitnick's actions," Libous said in a prepared statement.
Mitnick said he wanted to return to the private sector and that his resignation was "definitely" not forced by the Buley accusations.
He said he has fully cooperated in the inspector general's investigation, providing sworn testimony and documents.
He also said he wasn't involved in, and has not been questioned in, the current administration scandal involving Bruno's travel.
"I have always been in business, I had a lot of great success there, and I took a leave of absence to help the governor with a transition right after election day," Mitnick said.
"It's been nine months so far and I am keen to return to business in Washington and my family."
"I am this super energy nerd," he said.
"I'm not a politician."
He said he never intended to remain with the administration for the full four or more years.
"He brought his vast knowledge of energy policy to the job and we wish him well as he returns to the private sector," said Spitzer spokeswoman Christine Anderson.
When the probe was launched, the Spitzer camp dismissed Buley's charge as a misunderstanding, arguing that the administration favored Buley's position that a PSC investigation of the blackout was warranted.
Two days later, Spitzer asked his appointed inspector general to investigate Buley's accusation against Mitnick.
"The Inspector General's Office is completing a thorough investigation of this matter, and has taken testimony from more than 30 individuals, some interviewed more than once," said inspector general spokesman Steve DelGiacco.
"We are preparing a detailed report of our findings that we expect to issue by the end of this month."
Buley is the estranged wife of Albany lawyer-lobbyist Jeffrey Buley, a longtime top election law adviser to the state GOP.
She didn't immediately respond to a request for comment left at her home.
In January, the Energy Association of New York State applauded Mitnick's addition to Spitzer's "extraordinary team" of professionals and experts in their fields, rather than political or governmental lawyers and administrators.
Mitnick was named assistant secretary for energy and telecommunications in January at a salary of $145,800 a year.
From 2005 to 2006, he was a senior adviser at McKinsey and Co., an international management and consulting firm.
Before that, beginning in 2002, he was chief executive officer of Conjunction LLC and had been CEO of Energyleader.com and practiced at the Hagler Bailly law firm.
The resignation submitted Friday morning is effective next Friday.
"The governor feels very, very strongly about strong ethics," Mitnick said.
"One of his executive orders in January was on the very subject of what a person like me can do when we leave state government."
"So I am trying to be the perfect guy in terms of talking to companies and in what I can do next."
"And the only way I can really do it, because the rules are pretty sticky, is to leave state government and then look."
By MICHAEL GORMLEY, Associated Press
Last updated: 5:15 p.m., Friday, August 3, 2007
ALBANY -- A top Spitzer administration adviser resigned Friday to rejoin the private sector as investigators wrap up a probe into claims he threatened a Republican on the Public Service Commission.
In April, Spitzer energy adviser Steven Mitnick was accused by PSC member Cheryl Buley, an appointee of former Republican Gov. George Pataki, of threatening her career.
She said Mitnick tried to get her to back off efforts to investigate Consolidated Edison over last summer's major blackout in New York City.
During a public PSC meeting, Buley said Mitnick had threatened her career five or six times since Gov. Eliot Spitzer took office Jan. 1.
The Spitzer administration rejected her claim then, but referred the case to the state Inspector General's Office, which is continuing its probe.
"Everything I did was totally on the right side of the rules and totally honorable," Mitnick said of the allegations Friday.
He said he didn't resign because of the investigation.
The resignation of the former Washington-based energy industry attorney comes as Spitzer faces investigations into the activities of two aides who used state police to gather information in a campaign to discredit Senate Republican leader Joseph Bruno.
A state Attorney General's Office investigation said the two aides -- one who has been suspended and another transferred out of the governor's office -- used state police to track the state's top Republican when he used state helicopters and state police drivers while mixing state business with political fundraisers in New York City.
Republican Sen. Thomas Libous of Broome County used Mitnick's resignation to criticize Spitzer on behalf of the Senate Republicans.
"Since he took office, Gov. Spitzer has created a climate that encourages tactics and behavior that apparently fostered Mitnick's actions," Libous said in a prepared statement.
Mitnick said he wanted to return to the private sector and that his resignation was "definitely" not forced by the Buley accusations.
He said he has fully cooperated in the inspector general's investigation, providing sworn testimony and documents.
He also said he wasn't involved in, and has not been questioned in, the current administration scandal involving Bruno's travel.
"I have always been in business, I had a lot of great success there, and I took a leave of absence to help the governor with a transition right after election day," Mitnick said.
"It's been nine months so far and I am keen to return to business in Washington and my family."
"I am this super energy nerd," he said.
"I'm not a politician."
He said he never intended to remain with the administration for the full four or more years.
"He brought his vast knowledge of energy policy to the job and we wish him well as he returns to the private sector," said Spitzer spokeswoman Christine Anderson.
When the probe was launched, the Spitzer camp dismissed Buley's charge as a misunderstanding, arguing that the administration favored Buley's position that a PSC investigation of the blackout was warranted.
Two days later, Spitzer asked his appointed inspector general to investigate Buley's accusation against Mitnick.
"The Inspector General's Office is completing a thorough investigation of this matter, and has taken testimony from more than 30 individuals, some interviewed more than once," said inspector general spokesman Steve DelGiacco.
"We are preparing a detailed report of our findings that we expect to issue by the end of this month."
Buley is the estranged wife of Albany lawyer-lobbyist Jeffrey Buley, a longtime top election law adviser to the state GOP.
She didn't immediately respond to a request for comment left at her home.
In January, the Energy Association of New York State applauded Mitnick's addition to Spitzer's "extraordinary team" of professionals and experts in their fields, rather than political or governmental lawyers and administrators.
Mitnick was named assistant secretary for energy and telecommunications in January at a salary of $145,800 a year.
From 2005 to 2006, he was a senior adviser at McKinsey and Co., an international management and consulting firm.
Before that, beginning in 2002, he was chief executive officer of Conjunction LLC and had been CEO of Energyleader.com and practiced at the Hagler Bailly law firm.
The resignation submitted Friday morning is effective next Friday.
"The governor feels very, very strongly about strong ethics," Mitnick said.
"One of his executive orders in January was on the very subject of what a person like me can do when we leave state government."
"So I am trying to be the perfect guy in terms of talking to companies and in what I can do next."
"And the only way I can really do it, because the rules are pretty sticky, is to leave state government and then look."
"Spitzer aide reassigned in wake of political flights scandal"
Associated Press
Last updated: 5:23 p.m., Friday, August 3, 2007
ALBANY -- An aide to Gov. Eliot Spitzer involved in the scandal over using state police to track a political rival will have his pay cut with his reassignment to another agency.
Spitzer had promised to reassign assistant secretary for homeland security William Howard immediately after the attorney general on July 23 detailed efforts by Howard and another aide to compile records on state Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno's travels to New York City on state aircraft.
But the administration did not reveal until Friday that Howard has been reassigned to coordinator of preparedness and response at the State Office of Homeland Security.
His new salary is $157,000, compared to $179,500 in his old job.
Howard will still report to New York's chief of homeland security, Michael Balboni, though he will no longer work in the governor's office at state Capitol.
He will work at an office on the other side of Albany.
Spitzer has denied knowing anything about the scheme to compile embarrassing information about Bruno's mix of political and state business on the trips to New York City.
Besides reassigning Howard, the governor suspended communications director Darren Dopp without pay.
Through Attorney General Andrew Cuomo found no evidence of criminality in his probe, Albany's district attorney and the state Ethics Commission are looking into administration's actions.
The governor's office said Howard will support the state's emergency preparedness and response operation in his new job.
Howard had also served under Gov. George Pataki.
Associated Press
Last updated: 5:23 p.m., Friday, August 3, 2007
ALBANY -- An aide to Gov. Eliot Spitzer involved in the scandal over using state police to track a political rival will have his pay cut with his reassignment to another agency.
Spitzer had promised to reassign assistant secretary for homeland security William Howard immediately after the attorney general on July 23 detailed efforts by Howard and another aide to compile records on state Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno's travels to New York City on state aircraft.
But the administration did not reveal until Friday that Howard has been reassigned to coordinator of preparedness and response at the State Office of Homeland Security.
His new salary is $157,000, compared to $179,500 in his old job.
Howard will still report to New York's chief of homeland security, Michael Balboni, though he will no longer work in the governor's office at state Capitol.
He will work at an office on the other side of Albany.
Spitzer has denied knowing anything about the scheme to compile embarrassing information about Bruno's mix of political and state business on the trips to New York City.
Besides reassigning Howard, the governor suspended communications director Darren Dopp without pay.
Through Attorney General Andrew Cuomo found no evidence of criminality in his probe, Albany's district attorney and the state Ethics Commission are looking into administration's actions.
The governor's office said Howard will support the state's emergency preparedness and response operation in his new job.
Howard had also served under Gov. George Pataki.
"Region's foreclosure filings skyrocket - Alarming increase at odds with rest of state, where number declined slightly from last year"
By CHRIS CHURCHILL, Business writer, Albany, New York Times Union
First published: Friday, August 3, 2007
Home foreclosure filings in the Capital Region increased at a staggering pace during the first half of the year, even as filings statewide ebbed, according to newly released statistics.
The region saw 690 foreclosure filings between January and June.
That's far more than the 582 filings the region had for all of 2006, as reported by RealtyTrac, a California company that monitors foreclosure filings.
And the filings exploded in parts of the Capital Region where they previously have not been seen in great numbers.
Saratoga County had 37 foreclosure filings for all of 2006, but had 93 filings for the first half of this year.
Rensselaer County, meanwhile, had just 26 foreclosure filings in the first half of 2006 -- but that number jumped to 149 this year.
Meanwhile, statewide foreclosure filings -- defined as default notices, auction sale notices and bank repossessions -- declined slightly, from 26,527 for the first six months last year to 26,146 for the half this year.
The same property could receive more than one foreclosure filing.
Rising foreclosure rates have received significant attention nationally, with the problem largely blamed on so-called "subprime loans" given to people with shaky credit or low incomes.
Many of those loans have adjustable rates that offer low payments at first, but then rise sharply.
It's unclear if subprime loans are behind the apparent surge in filings in the Capital Region.
But Ronald Kim, a bankruptcy attorney in Saratoga Springs, said Thursday he frequently and increasingly sees clients struggling with adjustable mortgages.
"They're suddenly in a situation where the mortgage is going up every six months," Kim said.
"You're moving the goal posts on these people."
"Unless their incomes go up, it's a real challenge."
Kim said the clients he sees are not poor: They are middle-class people with homes valued at $150,000 to $300,000.
Often they have a tarnished credit history that led them into a subprime loan.
Of course, not every homeowner facing foreclosure took out a loan with adjustable rates.
Viola Glaze, a 38-year-old nurse, and her husband, Sean, were perfectly able to make the fixed-rate payments on their home in Watervliet -- until they both lost their jobs in 2005.
They fell behind on their mortgage payments and have never fully recovered.
The couple is facing foreclosure, even though Glaze said she and her husband now are employed and able to make their payments.
She said unresponsive lenders have been unwilling to help them recover.
"It has really taken a toll on both of us," Glaze said.
Typically, the Capital Region has had very low rates of foreclosure, compared with other metropolitan areas.
And despite the recent increase in filings, that still appears to be true, although RealtyTrac said Thursday it has not yet assembled data for the first half of the year that compares metro areas.
In the first quarter, however, the Capital Region had the 95th lowest rate of foreclosure filings among the nation's 100 largest metropolitan areas.
But the trend in the Capital Region is troubling, and RealtyTrac's numbers suggest the problem might be accelerating.
For example, RealtyTrac said Saratoga County had just seven foreclosure filings for the first three months of 2007, but had 86 filings in the next three months.
Likewise, Albany County had 71 filings in the first quarter, but 180 in the second quarter, RealtyTrac said.
Numbers like that have been seen in other parts of the country, particularly in the Sunbelt, leading to calls for legislation that would restrict subprime lending and programs that would help struggling homeowners.
In New York, Gov. Eliot Spitzer last week announced the creation of a $100 million refinancing program designed to aid homeowners with risky mortgages.
The initiative allows at-risk homeowners to refinance mortgages with 30- or 40-year fixed-rate mortgages at competitive interest rates.
RealtyTrac said the national rate of foreclosure filings increased by 56 percent in the first half of the year, compared with the same period last year.
Churchill can be reached at 454-5442 or by e-mail at cchurchill@timesunion.com.
Foreclosure filings in the Capital Region, by county:
County / 1st half 2006 / 2nd half 2006 / 1st half 2007
Albany / 150 / 150 / 251
Rensselaer / 26 / 25 / 149
Saratoga / 14 / 23 / 93
Schenectady / 117 / 76 / 192
Schoharie / 1 / 0 / 5
Source: RealtyTrac
By CHRIS CHURCHILL, Business writer, Albany, New York Times Union
First published: Friday, August 3, 2007
Home foreclosure filings in the Capital Region increased at a staggering pace during the first half of the year, even as filings statewide ebbed, according to newly released statistics.
The region saw 690 foreclosure filings between January and June.
That's far more than the 582 filings the region had for all of 2006, as reported by RealtyTrac, a California company that monitors foreclosure filings.
And the filings exploded in parts of the Capital Region where they previously have not been seen in great numbers.
Saratoga County had 37 foreclosure filings for all of 2006, but had 93 filings for the first half of this year.
Rensselaer County, meanwhile, had just 26 foreclosure filings in the first half of 2006 -- but that number jumped to 149 this year.
Meanwhile, statewide foreclosure filings -- defined as default notices, auction sale notices and bank repossessions -- declined slightly, from 26,527 for the first six months last year to 26,146 for the half this year.
The same property could receive more than one foreclosure filing.
Rising foreclosure rates have received significant attention nationally, with the problem largely blamed on so-called "subprime loans" given to people with shaky credit or low incomes.
Many of those loans have adjustable rates that offer low payments at first, but then rise sharply.
It's unclear if subprime loans are behind the apparent surge in filings in the Capital Region.
But Ronald Kim, a bankruptcy attorney in Saratoga Springs, said Thursday he frequently and increasingly sees clients struggling with adjustable mortgages.
"They're suddenly in a situation where the mortgage is going up every six months," Kim said.
"You're moving the goal posts on these people."
"Unless their incomes go up, it's a real challenge."
Kim said the clients he sees are not poor: They are middle-class people with homes valued at $150,000 to $300,000.
Often they have a tarnished credit history that led them into a subprime loan.
Of course, not every homeowner facing foreclosure took out a loan with adjustable rates.
Viola Glaze, a 38-year-old nurse, and her husband, Sean, were perfectly able to make the fixed-rate payments on their home in Watervliet -- until they both lost their jobs in 2005.
They fell behind on their mortgage payments and have never fully recovered.
The couple is facing foreclosure, even though Glaze said she and her husband now are employed and able to make their payments.
She said unresponsive lenders have been unwilling to help them recover.
"It has really taken a toll on both of us," Glaze said.
Typically, the Capital Region has had very low rates of foreclosure, compared with other metropolitan areas.
And despite the recent increase in filings, that still appears to be true, although RealtyTrac said Thursday it has not yet assembled data for the first half of the year that compares metro areas.
In the first quarter, however, the Capital Region had the 95th lowest rate of foreclosure filings among the nation's 100 largest metropolitan areas.
But the trend in the Capital Region is troubling, and RealtyTrac's numbers suggest the problem might be accelerating.
For example, RealtyTrac said Saratoga County had just seven foreclosure filings for the first three months of 2007, but had 86 filings in the next three months.
Likewise, Albany County had 71 filings in the first quarter, but 180 in the second quarter, RealtyTrac said.
Numbers like that have been seen in other parts of the country, particularly in the Sunbelt, leading to calls for legislation that would restrict subprime lending and programs that would help struggling homeowners.
In New York, Gov. Eliot Spitzer last week announced the creation of a $100 million refinancing program designed to aid homeowners with risky mortgages.
The initiative allows at-risk homeowners to refinance mortgages with 30- or 40-year fixed-rate mortgages at competitive interest rates.
RealtyTrac said the national rate of foreclosure filings increased by 56 percent in the first half of the year, compared with the same period last year.
Churchill can be reached at 454-5442 or by e-mail at cchurchill@timesunion.com.
Foreclosure filings in the Capital Region, by county:
County / 1st half 2006 / 2nd half 2006 / 1st half 2007
Albany / 150 / 150 / 251
Rensselaer / 26 / 25 / 149
Saratoga / 14 / 23 / 93
Schenectady / 117 / 76 / 192
Schoharie / 1 / 0 / 5
Source: RealtyTrac
"225 jobs victim of paperless world - Albany International cites slump in East Greenbush closure, Menands cuts"
By LARRY RULISON, Business writer, Albany, New York Times Union
First published: Friday, August 3, 2007
MENANDS -- Albany International Corp., a manufacturer of fabrics used in paper mills across the world, is closing its East Greenbush factory and significantly reducing the work force at its historic plant in Menands.
A total of 225 people will lose their jobs in the move, which Chief Executive Officer Joseph Morone described as one of the toughest decisions he's had to make since assuming the company's top job last year.
Albany International was founded in 1895 and has had operations in Menands since 1902.
"This is where it all started," he said.
"And it made it all the more painful."
Morone broke the news to employees at the Menands headquarters Thursday afternoon.
The layoffs will occur between now and January.
Morone said the company must negotiate a settlement with the union for the workers, the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union.
"Their first reaction was shock and a lot of unhappiness," Morone said of telling his employees the news.
Local government officials had a similar response Thursday after the announcement.
"We are surprised and disappointed by this news and intend to reach out to Albany International on two fronts," Rensselaer County Executive Kathleen Jimino said in a statement.
The county will offer employees help at its One Stop Employment Center, she said, and will also try to "bring jobs back to this facility in the future."
Menands Mayor Thomas Coates was caught off guard by the news as well.
"We have not heard a word about it," he said Thursday afternoon.
"We didn't even hear the rumors until the press started calling."
Albany International has 6,000 employees worldwide at 32 plants, and had more than $1 billion in sales in 2006, making it one of the highest grossing companies headquartered in the Capital Region.
Locally, Albany International has 394 employees, down from a peak of about 800 in the 1960s.
Of the 225 jobs being eliminated, 137 are at the East Greenbush plant, which will eventually be sold.
Another 88 factory jobs will be eliminated in Menands, where manufacturing occurs on several floors.
When the cuts are completed, 169 jobs will remain at the Menands facility.
Although the majority will be administrative and executive positions, there will be 54 manufacturing jobs.
Those jobs are to make PrimaLoft, a goose down substitute used in bed comforters and winter jackets, and belts used in corrugated box manufacturing equipment.
The two local factories make different fabrics used in paper-manufacturing machines, a business that makes up a significant portion of Albany International's annual sales.
The East Greenbush facility is part of the company's press fabric manufacturing division, while so-called dryer fabrics are made in Menands.
The dryer is at the back of a paper machine and dries pulp into paper.
Morone said the rapid consolidation of the North American paper industry was the root cause of the need to reduce its own manufacturing on the continent.
"The paper industry in North America has been shrinking fast," Morone said.
"As each one of them shuts down, a chunk of our market evaporates."
"We're caught in a squeeze here."
Morone blamed the consolidation of the paper industry in North America on the growth of the information age, in which people use the Internet more and more instead of paper.
"They're using computers more," he said.
"They're not reading newspapers as much."
Albany International operates three press fabric facilities in North America, including one in South Carolina and another in Canada.
Morone said the company now only needs two, and the East Greenbush facility is too small to be one of them.
Work that has been done in Menands will be shifted to Mexico.
One year ago, the company was forced to shut down another dryer fabric facility in Quebec as part of the same problem with industry consolidation.
Company spokesman Ken Pulver said factory workers in East Greenbush and Menands earn between $40,000 and $60,000 a year.
Morone has been pushing Albany International into growing paper markets in Asia and South America since taking over the CEO post last year.
He has also tried to diversify the company more by getting into advanced materials manufacturing for the aviation industry and other technology markets.
Despite the near elimination of manufacturing here, Morone said the company is not interested in moving its headquarters anywhere.
"We are committed to keeping the headquarters in Albany," he said.
Shares of Albany International (NYSE: AIN) closed trading Thursday at $38.98, up 65 cents, or 1.7 percent for the day.
Rulison can be reached at 454-5504 or by e-mail at lrulison@timesunion.com.
By LARRY RULISON, Business writer, Albany, New York Times Union
First published: Friday, August 3, 2007
MENANDS -- Albany International Corp., a manufacturer of fabrics used in paper mills across the world, is closing its East Greenbush factory and significantly reducing the work force at its historic plant in Menands.
A total of 225 people will lose their jobs in the move, which Chief Executive Officer Joseph Morone described as one of the toughest decisions he's had to make since assuming the company's top job last year.
Albany International was founded in 1895 and has had operations in Menands since 1902.
"This is where it all started," he said.
"And it made it all the more painful."
Morone broke the news to employees at the Menands headquarters Thursday afternoon.
The layoffs will occur between now and January.
Morone said the company must negotiate a settlement with the union for the workers, the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union.
"Their first reaction was shock and a lot of unhappiness," Morone said of telling his employees the news.
Local government officials had a similar response Thursday after the announcement.
"We are surprised and disappointed by this news and intend to reach out to Albany International on two fronts," Rensselaer County Executive Kathleen Jimino said in a statement.
The county will offer employees help at its One Stop Employment Center, she said, and will also try to "bring jobs back to this facility in the future."
Menands Mayor Thomas Coates was caught off guard by the news as well.
"We have not heard a word about it," he said Thursday afternoon.
"We didn't even hear the rumors until the press started calling."
Albany International has 6,000 employees worldwide at 32 plants, and had more than $1 billion in sales in 2006, making it one of the highest grossing companies headquartered in the Capital Region.
Locally, Albany International has 394 employees, down from a peak of about 800 in the 1960s.
Of the 225 jobs being eliminated, 137 are at the East Greenbush plant, which will eventually be sold.
Another 88 factory jobs will be eliminated in Menands, where manufacturing occurs on several floors.
When the cuts are completed, 169 jobs will remain at the Menands facility.
Although the majority will be administrative and executive positions, there will be 54 manufacturing jobs.
Those jobs are to make PrimaLoft, a goose down substitute used in bed comforters and winter jackets, and belts used in corrugated box manufacturing equipment.
The two local factories make different fabrics used in paper-manufacturing machines, a business that makes up a significant portion of Albany International's annual sales.
The East Greenbush facility is part of the company's press fabric manufacturing division, while so-called dryer fabrics are made in Menands.
The dryer is at the back of a paper machine and dries pulp into paper.
Morone said the rapid consolidation of the North American paper industry was the root cause of the need to reduce its own manufacturing on the continent.
"The paper industry in North America has been shrinking fast," Morone said.
"As each one of them shuts down, a chunk of our market evaporates."
"We're caught in a squeeze here."
Morone blamed the consolidation of the paper industry in North America on the growth of the information age, in which people use the Internet more and more instead of paper.
"They're using computers more," he said.
"They're not reading newspapers as much."
Albany International operates three press fabric facilities in North America, including one in South Carolina and another in Canada.
Morone said the company now only needs two, and the East Greenbush facility is too small to be one of them.
Work that has been done in Menands will be shifted to Mexico.
One year ago, the company was forced to shut down another dryer fabric facility in Quebec as part of the same problem with industry consolidation.
Company spokesman Ken Pulver said factory workers in East Greenbush and Menands earn between $40,000 and $60,000 a year.
Morone has been pushing Albany International into growing paper markets in Asia and South America since taking over the CEO post last year.
He has also tried to diversify the company more by getting into advanced materials manufacturing for the aviation industry and other technology markets.
Despite the near elimination of manufacturing here, Morone said the company is not interested in moving its headquarters anywhere.
"We are committed to keeping the headquarters in Albany," he said.
Shares of Albany International (NYSE: AIN) closed trading Thursday at $38.98, up 65 cents, or 1.7 percent for the day.
Rulison can be reached at 454-5504 or by e-mail at lrulison@timesunion.com.
THE ALBANY, NEW YORK TIMES UNION CAPITAL CONFIDENTIAL BLOG:
This crap of someone putting REPUBLICAN Henry Zwack on the bench in Rensselaer County Supreme Court through some kind of political BACKROOM DEAL reminds me of a passage at pp. 12,13 in the book New York State Government, 2d Edition by Robert B. Ward of the New York State business Council wherein was stated with respect to “STEAMROLLER” Spitzer’s alleged “reform agenda” as follows:
A year before Election Day 2006, at the Rockefeller Institute of Government in Albany, candidate Spitzer gave a detailed presentation on his vision for government reform.
The address touched on many of the major issues facing the state.
For instance, Spitzer called for:
* Changes to the court system , promoting the “rule of law” with reforms such as merit appointment rather than election of judges and ***** creation of more integrated courts to reduce costs AND IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF JUDICIAL DECISIONS.
end quotes
That last is a very telling statement in the light of this appearance of REPUBLICAN Henry Zwack as an acting Supreme Court justice on the bench in Rensselaer County Supreme Court through a BACKROOM DEAL, because nobody would elect REPUBLICAN Henry Zwack to such an important judicial position in a million years …..
IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF JUDICIAL DECISIONS ….
Hhhhmmmm …
Something to think about, alright ….
Eliot Spitzer wants to IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF JUDICIAL DECISIONS in the State of New York by eliminating OUR courts, and populating what remains with political hacks, losers and lackeys like Joe Bruno’s ally Henry Zwack ….
Yes, yes, Eliot ….
I think I can see where you are going with this ….
YOU WILL BE THE SOURCE OF THOSE DECISIONS AS GOVERNOR, AND THOSE WHO WILL DO YOUR BIDDING WILL BE YOUR JUDGES …
And we will be right back where we were when we had ROYAL GOVERNORS and a KING in England appointing OUR JUDGES ….
Which means that we are going to get screwed royally in this deal …
And so …
Comment by John Galt — August 3, 2007 @ 7:00 pm
http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=5156#comments
This crap of someone putting REPUBLICAN Henry Zwack on the bench in Rensselaer County Supreme Court through some kind of political BACKROOM DEAL reminds me of a passage at pp. 12,13 in the book New York State Government, 2d Edition by Robert B. Ward of the New York State business Council wherein was stated with respect to “STEAMROLLER” Spitzer’s alleged “reform agenda” as follows:
A year before Election Day 2006, at the Rockefeller Institute of Government in Albany, candidate Spitzer gave a detailed presentation on his vision for government reform.
The address touched on many of the major issues facing the state.
For instance, Spitzer called for:
* Changes to the court system , promoting the “rule of law” with reforms such as merit appointment rather than election of judges and ***** creation of more integrated courts to reduce costs AND IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF JUDICIAL DECISIONS.
end quotes
That last is a very telling statement in the light of this appearance of REPUBLICAN Henry Zwack as an acting Supreme Court justice on the bench in Rensselaer County Supreme Court through a BACKROOM DEAL, because nobody would elect REPUBLICAN Henry Zwack to such an important judicial position in a million years …..
IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF JUDICIAL DECISIONS ….
Hhhhmmmm …
Something to think about, alright ….
Eliot Spitzer wants to IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF JUDICIAL DECISIONS in the State of New York by eliminating OUR courts, and populating what remains with political hacks, losers and lackeys like Joe Bruno’s ally Henry Zwack ….
Yes, yes, Eliot ….
I think I can see where you are going with this ….
YOU WILL BE THE SOURCE OF THOSE DECISIONS AS GOVERNOR, AND THOSE WHO WILL DO YOUR BIDDING WILL BE YOUR JUDGES …
And we will be right back where we were when we had ROYAL GOVERNORS and a KING in England appointing OUR JUDGES ….
Which means that we are going to get screwed royally in this deal …
And so …
Comment by John Galt — August 3, 2007 @ 7:00 pm
http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=5156#comments
"Zwack won't recuse himself from case - Judge says he is not prejudiced against Rensselaer Democrat who testified against him"
By TIM O'BRIEN and JIMMY VIELKIND, Staff writers, Albany, New York Times Union
First published: Saturday, August 4, 2007
TROY -- Rensselaer County's Democratic Party chairman is seeking the removal of a judge from a legal case because he once testified against the jurist.
The party leader, Thomas Wade, is being sued over the handling of changes to the party's bylaws by Jeffrey Spain, chairman of the East Greenbush Democratic Committee.
The case was heard Tuesday by acting state Supreme Court Justice Henry F. Zwack.
Wade testified in a 2001 trial against Zwack, a former county executive.
Zwack was acquitted in two separate trials.
Wade testified in a trial where Zwack was acquitted of trying to rig a civil-service test for the grandson of the then-chairman of the North Greenbush Democratic Committee in return for political support.
"I was subpoenaed to testify as a witness for the prosecution in the corruption trial of Henry Zwack."
"Based on that alone, that is sufficient for any person to presume there is a conflict of interest," Wade said.
In a letter to Wade's attorney, Thomas V. Kenney, Zwack declined to recuse himself.
He said he had forgotten that Wade had testified until the request for recusal.
"On reflection, I recall that his testimony was more than five years ago; that Mr. Wade was a fact witness who testified only briefly and in his official capacity, relating to public records/election returns of the Board of Elections," Zwack wrote.
"I do not recall that his testimony was of any significance, or that it contradicted my recollection of the election records he testified to."
Zwack said he then had no reason not to hear the current case.
"His testimony at the time did not give me reason to have personal bias or prejudice against Mr. Wade," he wrote.
Regina Treffiletti, court attorney for the Third Judicial District administrative office, said it is up to a judge to recuse himself or herself.
If the person making the request is unhappy about the decision, he or she may file an appeal to the Appellate Division.
Spain is asking for changes to the county Democratic Committee's bylaws adopted June 11 to be tossed out.
Spain argues the changes centralize power in the county chairman and diminish the power of the town party leader.
Wade said the dispute mainly focuses on a single word added to the bylaws.
The party's rules said that a town or city committee leader was the person empowered to call a meeting to fill vacancies on the county committee.
The city of Rensselaer and some towns do not have their own committees, he said, so a motion was made at the county committee meeting to change the bylaws to enable the county chairman to call such a meeting.
"Someone should have the ability to nominate someone to fill vacancies when there is no town or city chairman," he said.
But the changes also would enable the county chairman to call meetings to nominate candidates when a town leader declines to do so, he said.
Wade argued that is needed because some town committee leaders have made deals with the GOP in the past not to nominate competing candidates.
Spain maintains that the county committee did not follow its own rules, failing to provide a copy of all proposed changes before the meeting and not filing a certified copy of the rule changes with the state Board of Elections within 10 days.
Tim O'Brien can be reached at 454-5092 or by e-mail at tobrien@timesunion.com.
By TIM O'BRIEN and JIMMY VIELKIND, Staff writers, Albany, New York Times Union
First published: Saturday, August 4, 2007
TROY -- Rensselaer County's Democratic Party chairman is seeking the removal of a judge from a legal case because he once testified against the jurist.
The party leader, Thomas Wade, is being sued over the handling of changes to the party's bylaws by Jeffrey Spain, chairman of the East Greenbush Democratic Committee.
The case was heard Tuesday by acting state Supreme Court Justice Henry F. Zwack.
Wade testified in a 2001 trial against Zwack, a former county executive.
Zwack was acquitted in two separate trials.
Wade testified in a trial where Zwack was acquitted of trying to rig a civil-service test for the grandson of the then-chairman of the North Greenbush Democratic Committee in return for political support.
"I was subpoenaed to testify as a witness for the prosecution in the corruption trial of Henry Zwack."
"Based on that alone, that is sufficient for any person to presume there is a conflict of interest," Wade said.
In a letter to Wade's attorney, Thomas V. Kenney, Zwack declined to recuse himself.
He said he had forgotten that Wade had testified until the request for recusal.
"On reflection, I recall that his testimony was more than five years ago; that Mr. Wade was a fact witness who testified only briefly and in his official capacity, relating to public records/election returns of the Board of Elections," Zwack wrote.
"I do not recall that his testimony was of any significance, or that it contradicted my recollection of the election records he testified to."
Zwack said he then had no reason not to hear the current case.
"His testimony at the time did not give me reason to have personal bias or prejudice against Mr. Wade," he wrote.
Regina Treffiletti, court attorney for the Third Judicial District administrative office, said it is up to a judge to recuse himself or herself.
If the person making the request is unhappy about the decision, he or she may file an appeal to the Appellate Division.
Spain is asking for changes to the county Democratic Committee's bylaws adopted June 11 to be tossed out.
Spain argues the changes centralize power in the county chairman and diminish the power of the town party leader.
Wade said the dispute mainly focuses on a single word added to the bylaws.
The party's rules said that a town or city committee leader was the person empowered to call a meeting to fill vacancies on the county committee.
The city of Rensselaer and some towns do not have their own committees, he said, so a motion was made at the county committee meeting to change the bylaws to enable the county chairman to call such a meeting.
"Someone should have the ability to nominate someone to fill vacancies when there is no town or city chairman," he said.
But the changes also would enable the county chairman to call meetings to nominate candidates when a town leader declines to do so, he said.
Wade argued that is needed because some town committee leaders have made deals with the GOP in the past not to nominate competing candidates.
Spain maintains that the county committee did not follow its own rules, failing to provide a copy of all proposed changes before the meeting and not filing a certified copy of the rule changes with the state Board of Elections within 10 days.
Tim O'Brien can be reached at 454-5092 or by e-mail at tobrien@timesunion.com.
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:
Dear John,
DA Soares had not participated before in the investigation by the AG's Office.
In fact, you quote above a prior newspaper, to wit:
"In a statement Monday, Mr. Soares said his office had found “no basis for criminal prosecution” of Mr. Bruno, and added, without elaborating, that he had not joined the inquiry into the conduct of the governor and his staff."
So, this is a new criminal investigation by a sitting District Attorney whose mission is to protect the public and enforce criminal laws in the exercise of sound prosecutorial discretion.
Your next point is about the "pact."
That didn't apply before, as the investigation done by the Attorney General's Office was by "invitation" and not because it was within the AG's "jurisdiction" by law.
If it had been within the AG's lawful jurisdiction, then the AG would have had subpoena power.
As a way of example, sometime ago, former US Atty Mary Jo White was retained as a private counsel to investigate the Church and the sexual molestation allegations.
While she did it she lacked subpoena power.
Senator George Weiner for example lacks subpoena power unless the Senate is considering legislation and it subpoenas are necessary incident thereto.
I, like all other lawyers in private practice, as former US Atty Mary Jo White, have subpoena power incident to a pending lawsuit.
Your last point about trusting P. David Soares is based upon predicate misunderstandings about the AG's invitation-based investigation and the inapplicability of the "pact."
He is endowed with the awesome responsibility, as are all DAs, to protect the public and use the many arrows in the quiver that is the Penal Law of the state in the sound discretion of the prosecutor.
While DA Soares isn't the legendary DA Bob Morganthau, but he is surely walking on that hard, honor and integrity-based path.
Dated: 8/2/07
/s/
Ravi Batra
Posted by: Ravi Batra | August 2, 2007 9:11 AM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli..._pr.html?page=1
Dear John,
DA Soares had not participated before in the investigation by the AG's Office.
In fact, you quote above a prior newspaper, to wit:
"In a statement Monday, Mr. Soares said his office had found “no basis for criminal prosecution” of Mr. Bruno, and added, without elaborating, that he had not joined the inquiry into the conduct of the governor and his staff."
So, this is a new criminal investigation by a sitting District Attorney whose mission is to protect the public and enforce criminal laws in the exercise of sound prosecutorial discretion.
Your next point is about the "pact."
That didn't apply before, as the investigation done by the Attorney General's Office was by "invitation" and not because it was within the AG's "jurisdiction" by law.
If it had been within the AG's lawful jurisdiction, then the AG would have had subpoena power.
As a way of example, sometime ago, former US Atty Mary Jo White was retained as a private counsel to investigate the Church and the sexual molestation allegations.
While she did it she lacked subpoena power.
Senator George Weiner for example lacks subpoena power unless the Senate is considering legislation and it subpoenas are necessary incident thereto.
I, like all other lawyers in private practice, as former US Atty Mary Jo White, have subpoena power incident to a pending lawsuit.
Your last point about trusting P. David Soares is based upon predicate misunderstandings about the AG's invitation-based investigation and the inapplicability of the "pact."
He is endowed with the awesome responsibility, as are all DAs, to protect the public and use the many arrows in the quiver that is the Penal Law of the state in the sound discretion of the prosecutor.
While DA Soares isn't the legendary DA Bob Morganthau, but he is surely walking on that hard, honor and integrity-based path.
Dated: 8/2/07
/s/
Ravi Batra
Posted by: Ravi Batra | August 2, 2007 9:11 AM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli..._pr.html?page=1
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:
Dear John,
It is out of respect for you and your service to our nation that we have a dialogue; hopefully, meaningful.
We seem to be speaking past each other.
I was speaking of law and its jurisdictional bright line, and you wish for a newspaper article to supplant the law.
The "pact" in question had to do with "member items" and to insure that they were conflict free as required by law of all fiduciaries.
AG Andrew Cuomo, having accepted the invitation, did what he could absent legal jurisdiction.
The criminal matters that the AG's Office can look at are not what's at issue, hence, the necessary "invitation" by the Governor.
While it is perfectly legal to be cynical, and even a partisan cynic, it does not legal jurisdiction make.
Finally, I don’t talk “down” to anyone for that would be uncivil and hubris-laden.
However, I do abstain when the discussion falls below the floor of civility, as blogtalk often seems to as verbal indecency.
You fought for our nation and became disabled as a result of such service and sacrifice, because you have complete trust in a legal document: the Constitution.
All I ask of you is to trust the law, and let it do its thing in a deliberate way.
It is the most noble of all callings, for it seeks to get more perfection out of imperfect beings and is idealism applied.
Dated 8/2/07
/s/
Ravi Batra
Posted by: Ravi Batra | August 2, 2007 9:48 PM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli..._pr.html?page=1
Dear John,
It is out of respect for you and your service to our nation that we have a dialogue; hopefully, meaningful.
We seem to be speaking past each other.
I was speaking of law and its jurisdictional bright line, and you wish for a newspaper article to supplant the law.
The "pact" in question had to do with "member items" and to insure that they were conflict free as required by law of all fiduciaries.
AG Andrew Cuomo, having accepted the invitation, did what he could absent legal jurisdiction.
The criminal matters that the AG's Office can look at are not what's at issue, hence, the necessary "invitation" by the Governor.
While it is perfectly legal to be cynical, and even a partisan cynic, it does not legal jurisdiction make.
Finally, I don’t talk “down” to anyone for that would be uncivil and hubris-laden.
However, I do abstain when the discussion falls below the floor of civility, as blogtalk often seems to as verbal indecency.
You fought for our nation and became disabled as a result of such service and sacrifice, because you have complete trust in a legal document: the Constitution.
All I ask of you is to trust the law, and let it do its thing in a deliberate way.
It is the most noble of all callings, for it seeks to get more perfection out of imperfect beings and is idealism applied.
Dated 8/2/07
/s/
Ravi Batra
Posted by: Ravi Batra | August 2, 2007 9:48 PM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli..._pr.html?page=1
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:
The "pact" is historic as it seeks to insure that the people's money is spent for the people's benefit.
The joining of forces to combat selfish conflicted behavior is indeed an era change.
That said, however, even that strategic alliance cannot be used as a model to expand jurisdictions.
It can be, and was, used to expand resources of existing jurisdictions of both the Albany DA and the AG.
Posted by: Ravi Batra | August 3, 2007 7:35 PM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli..._pr.html?page=2
The "pact" is historic as it seeks to insure that the people's money is spent for the people's benefit.
The joining of forces to combat selfish conflicted behavior is indeed an era change.
That said, however, even that strategic alliance cannot be used as a model to expand jurisdictions.
It can be, and was, used to expand resources of existing jurisdictions of both the Albany DA and the AG.
Posted by: Ravi Batra | August 3, 2007 7:35 PM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli..._pr.html?page=2
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:
John, I agree with most of what you and topo are saying.
If the engineer in question had the bucks to take it up through the Federal Courts (or drew the attention of a big-time Constitutional lawyer who would agree to take the case for free to make a name for himself or herself), said engineer perhaps could--and certainly should---get an order for an unredacted copy, depose the individuals involved in this conspiracy to deprive said engineer of his civil rights under color of law and pursue a lawsuit for damages and perhaps injunctive relief.
HOWEVER, your single-minded focus on Spitzer, culpable as he was, ignores the realities of the political configuration of New York State and Rensselaer County Government.
Spitzer was Attorney General in 2002; George Elmer Pataki was Governor.
Notwithstanding the hallowed language of the Constitution, the political reality is that the AG is supposed to be the Government's lawyer.
The AG represents the Government of the State of New York, its agencies, boards, commissioners, and yes, the Governor.
They love to say they are "the peoples' lawyer", but the truth is, the people are somewhat removed.
The GOVERNMENT decides what "the peoples'" real interests are, and oftentimes, that means representing the official government policy position, as enunciated by the Executive Branch.
In other words: "just find some legal rationale somewhere for what we want to do".
Think US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.
Which is why it was so stunning to all that Andrew Cuomo's report was not a whtewash of the Governor.
We have discussed in the past how you give no free pass to Bruno regarding his and his allies' connection to this unfortunate chain of events involving the engineer, but you accept that Bruno is untouchable while howling for Spitzer's scalp.
And are Cathy Jimino and the others; county and State, who did their respective masters' biddings also "untouchable" and unworthy of further mention?
You're going to think I'm defending Spitzer.
I'm not doing that.
I'm asking you to see the larger picture.
Believe me, I know that it's easy to single out one person as the villain when you feel that you've been wronged.
Unfortunately, reality is much more complicated than that.
Posted by: Mike | July 29, 2007 10:16 PM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...itz.html?page=1
John, I agree with most of what you and topo are saying.
If the engineer in question had the bucks to take it up through the Federal Courts (or drew the attention of a big-time Constitutional lawyer who would agree to take the case for free to make a name for himself or herself), said engineer perhaps could--and certainly should---get an order for an unredacted copy, depose the individuals involved in this conspiracy to deprive said engineer of his civil rights under color of law and pursue a lawsuit for damages and perhaps injunctive relief.
HOWEVER, your single-minded focus on Spitzer, culpable as he was, ignores the realities of the political configuration of New York State and Rensselaer County Government.
Spitzer was Attorney General in 2002; George Elmer Pataki was Governor.
Notwithstanding the hallowed language of the Constitution, the political reality is that the AG is supposed to be the Government's lawyer.
The AG represents the Government of the State of New York, its agencies, boards, commissioners, and yes, the Governor.
They love to say they are "the peoples' lawyer", but the truth is, the people are somewhat removed.
The GOVERNMENT decides what "the peoples'" real interests are, and oftentimes, that means representing the official government policy position, as enunciated by the Executive Branch.
In other words: "just find some legal rationale somewhere for what we want to do".
Think US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.
Which is why it was so stunning to all that Andrew Cuomo's report was not a whtewash of the Governor.
We have discussed in the past how you give no free pass to Bruno regarding his and his allies' connection to this unfortunate chain of events involving the engineer, but you accept that Bruno is untouchable while howling for Spitzer's scalp.
And are Cathy Jimino and the others; county and State, who did their respective masters' biddings also "untouchable" and unworthy of further mention?
You're going to think I'm defending Spitzer.
I'm not doing that.
I'm asking you to see the larger picture.
Believe me, I know that it's easy to single out one person as the villain when you feel that you've been wronged.
Unfortunately, reality is much more complicated than that.
Posted by: Mike | July 29, 2007 10:16 PM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...itz.html?page=1
AND ONCE AGAIN, GOING BACK AND FILLING IN SOME BACK GROUND, WE HAVE ...
"Spitzer's staff faces fallout - Aides involved in political scandals affected; one resigns, other demoted"
By JAMES M. ODATO, Capitol bureau, Albany, New York Times Union
First published: Saturday, August 4, 2007
ALBANY -- Gov. Eliot Spitzer's office on Friday announced staff shake-ups involving two top aides sharply criticized for their actions in recent months.
The governor's office revealed energy policy adviser Steven Mitnick resigned amid an investigation into his alleged bullying of a Public Service Commission official.
He quit his $145,800 post, effective next Friday, to pursue other opportunities.
The administration also officially demoted William Howard, the former deputy for homeland security.
Howard, who a few days ago was shifted to a job as coordinator of preparedness and response at the State Office of Homeland Security at the University at Albany, had his pay cut by more than $18,000.
Mitnick's resignation comes as the state Inspector General's Office prepares a report on PSC Commissioner Cheryl Buley's assertions that he repeatedly tried to get her to vote against an investigation of Consolidated Edison's handling of a blackout last summer in Queens.
Buley, who made the extraordinary allegations April 18 in a public meeting of the commission, said she received six to 10 unwelcome telephone calls from Mitnick, assistant secretary to the governor for energy and telecommunications.
Buley, a former commissioner and chairwoman of the Racing and Wagering Board, said Mitnick threatened her position if she did not cooperate and proposed moving her to a better-paying job in an attempt to influence her behavior.
Spitzer has said he was unaware of such activities by Mitnick and the governor's press office has denied he acted improperly.
But a Republican senator, Thomas Libous of Binghamton said the allegations about Mitnick's behavior reflect the "bullying and outright intimidation that this administration has used to try to get its way."
"Governor Spitzer has created a climate that encourages tactics and behavior that apparently fostered Mitnick's actions," he said.
"This helps put the current Troopergate scandal into context by showing that it was not an isolated incident."
Libous also complained that Inspector General Kristine Hamann has yet to issue findings in her investigation, which began shortly after the accusations surfaced.
Her spokesman, Steven Del Giacco, said a report on the investigation, which has included interviews of more than 30 people, will be made public this month.
Mitnick, who left the private sector to join Spitzer in January, will be returning to a private-sector job.
He and his lawyer, John Murad, did not return calls.
His resignation letter says he adhered to the strictest principles of ethics and accountability and is leaving so he can pursue opportunities in the energy industry.
A spokesman for Mitnick, Robert Bellafiore, said Mitnick hadn't planned on a lengthy public service career and needed to quit to negotiate a new job.
Christine Anderson, a spokeswoman for Spitzer, said Mitnick was not asked to leave.
"He brought his vast knowledge of energy policy to the job and we wish him well as he returns to the private sector," she said.
Buley said she thought it was an "interesting coincidence" that Mitnick is departing at this time.
She also declared frustration that the IG report had not concluded.
"I don't understand why it's taking so long," she said.
Spitzer also ran into difficulty with his choice for the new leader of the PSC, Angela Sparks-Beddoe, a utility lobbyist who dropped out of the running amid questions by Senate Republicans, including Libous, of her fitness for the post.
Howard since January had been working in the governor's chamber on loan from his $175,900-a-year job as director of Center of Homeland Security Research, Training and Education at the university.
Attorney General Andrew Cuomo last week bashed Howard for his role in gathering information about Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno's travels in New York City.
A report by Cuomo's office said Howard abused his power by directing acting State Police Superintendent Preston Felton to provide reports on places they picked up and dropped off Bruno while driving him around Manhattan.
The creation of the records was part of a politically motivated scheme to discredit Bruno, Cuomo concluded.
Howard's new $157,000 post is just $1,000 less than that of his new boss, F. David Sheppard, the homeland security director.
A second Spitzer aide implicated in the Bruno travel scheme, communications director Darren Dopp, was suspended for at least 30 days without pay.
M. Odato can be reached at 454-5083 or by e-mail at jodato@timesunion.com. State Editor Jay Jochnowitz contributed to this report.
"Spitzer's staff faces fallout - Aides involved in political scandals affected; one resigns, other demoted"
By JAMES M. ODATO, Capitol bureau, Albany, New York Times Union
First published: Saturday, August 4, 2007
ALBANY -- Gov. Eliot Spitzer's office on Friday announced staff shake-ups involving two top aides sharply criticized for their actions in recent months.
The governor's office revealed energy policy adviser Steven Mitnick resigned amid an investigation into his alleged bullying of a Public Service Commission official.
He quit his $145,800 post, effective next Friday, to pursue other opportunities.
The administration also officially demoted William Howard, the former deputy for homeland security.
Howard, who a few days ago was shifted to a job as coordinator of preparedness and response at the State Office of Homeland Security at the University at Albany, had his pay cut by more than $18,000.
Mitnick's resignation comes as the state Inspector General's Office prepares a report on PSC Commissioner Cheryl Buley's assertions that he repeatedly tried to get her to vote against an investigation of Consolidated Edison's handling of a blackout last summer in Queens.
Buley, who made the extraordinary allegations April 18 in a public meeting of the commission, said she received six to 10 unwelcome telephone calls from Mitnick, assistant secretary to the governor for energy and telecommunications.
Buley, a former commissioner and chairwoman of the Racing and Wagering Board, said Mitnick threatened her position if she did not cooperate and proposed moving her to a better-paying job in an attempt to influence her behavior.
Spitzer has said he was unaware of such activities by Mitnick and the governor's press office has denied he acted improperly.
But a Republican senator, Thomas Libous of Binghamton said the allegations about Mitnick's behavior reflect the "bullying and outright intimidation that this administration has used to try to get its way."
"Governor Spitzer has created a climate that encourages tactics and behavior that apparently fostered Mitnick's actions," he said.
"This helps put the current Troopergate scandal into context by showing that it was not an isolated incident."
Libous also complained that Inspector General Kristine Hamann has yet to issue findings in her investigation, which began shortly after the accusations surfaced.
Her spokesman, Steven Del Giacco, said a report on the investigation, which has included interviews of more than 30 people, will be made public this month.
Mitnick, who left the private sector to join Spitzer in January, will be returning to a private-sector job.
He and his lawyer, John Murad, did not return calls.
His resignation letter says he adhered to the strictest principles of ethics and accountability and is leaving so he can pursue opportunities in the energy industry.
A spokesman for Mitnick, Robert Bellafiore, said Mitnick hadn't planned on a lengthy public service career and needed to quit to negotiate a new job.
Christine Anderson, a spokeswoman for Spitzer, said Mitnick was not asked to leave.
"He brought his vast knowledge of energy policy to the job and we wish him well as he returns to the private sector," she said.
Buley said she thought it was an "interesting coincidence" that Mitnick is departing at this time.
She also declared frustration that the IG report had not concluded.
"I don't understand why it's taking so long," she said.
Spitzer also ran into difficulty with his choice for the new leader of the PSC, Angela Sparks-Beddoe, a utility lobbyist who dropped out of the running amid questions by Senate Republicans, including Libous, of her fitness for the post.
Howard since January had been working in the governor's chamber on loan from his $175,900-a-year job as director of Center of Homeland Security Research, Training and Education at the university.
Attorney General Andrew Cuomo last week bashed Howard for his role in gathering information about Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno's travels in New York City.
A report by Cuomo's office said Howard abused his power by directing acting State Police Superintendent Preston Felton to provide reports on places they picked up and dropped off Bruno while driving him around Manhattan.
The creation of the records was part of a politically motivated scheme to discredit Bruno, Cuomo concluded.
Howard's new $157,000 post is just $1,000 less than that of his new boss, F. David Sheppard, the homeland security director.
A second Spitzer aide implicated in the Bruno travel scheme, communications director Darren Dopp, was suspended for at least 30 days without pay.
M. Odato can be reached at 454-5083 or by e-mail at jodato@timesunion.com. State Editor Jay Jochnowitz contributed to this report.
QUOTE(Livyjr @ Aug 1 2007, 05:15 PM)
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
"Governor cans Cuomo plan - Spitzer nixes GOP push for AG to reopen dirty tricks probe"
BY JOE MAHONEY
DAILY NEWS ALBANY BUREAU CHIEF
Tuesday, July 31st 2007, 4:00 AM
ALBANY - Gov. Spitzer shot down a Republican proposal to make Attorney General Andrew Cuomo a special prosecutor to reinvestigate the dirty tricks scheme waged against Senate GOP leader Joe Bruno.
Senate Investigations Committee Chairman George Winner (R-Elmira) had said such a move would give Cuomo the power to subpoena evidence and question Spitzer aides who ducked his first inquiry.
About 10 minutes after Winner's news conference, Spitzer's office said no.
"The appointment of a special prosecutor is unnecessary" because his first probe and an inquiry by the governor's inspector general found no criminal conduct, spokeswoman Christine Anderson said.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/07/31...omo_plan-1.html
"Governor cans Cuomo plan - Spitzer nixes GOP push for AG to reopen dirty tricks probe"
BY JOE MAHONEY
DAILY NEWS ALBANY BUREAU CHIEF
Tuesday, July 31st 2007, 4:00 AM
ALBANY - Gov. Spitzer shot down a Republican proposal to make Attorney General Andrew Cuomo a special prosecutor to reinvestigate the dirty tricks scheme waged against Senate GOP leader Joe Bruno.
Senate Investigations Committee Chairman George Winner (R-Elmira) had said such a move would give Cuomo the power to subpoena evidence and question Spitzer aides who ducked his first inquiry.
About 10 minutes after Winner's news conference, Spitzer's office said no.
"The appointment of a special prosecutor is unnecessary" because his first probe and an inquiry by the governor's inspector general found no criminal conduct, spokeswoman Christine Anderson said.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/07/31...omo_plan-1.html
THE NEW YORK POST
"NAME CUOMO AS 'SPECIAL CRIMINAL PROSECUTOR' IN SPITZER PROBE: STATE GOP"
By FREDRIC U. DICKER State Editor
ALBANY - Senate Republicans will demand that Gov. Spitzer name Attorney General Andrew Cuomo as "special criminal prosecutor" - armed with full subpoena powers - in the dirty-tricks scandal that has engulfed the Spitzer administration, The Post has learned.
Senate Investigations Committee Chairman George Winner (R-Elmira) plans to make the unprecedented request for Democrat Cuomo to probe Democrat Spitzer as soon as today, sources said.
He and Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno became convinced the Spitzer-controlled state Ethics Commission - which has begun a preliminary investigation - can't conduct a fair review, the sources said.
Winner's action also stems from his failed effort last week to obtain information on the scandal from state Inspector General Kristine Hamann, a Spitzer appointee who claims to have conducted her own probe.
"Hamann has refused to cooperate with the Senate, she has stonewalled us, and while she claims to have investigated the scandal, there's no evidence she ever did," a senior Senate aide said.
If Spitzer rejects the request, Winner plans to ask Cuomo - whose office produced a scathing report on the scandal last week - to personally urge the governor to designate him as a special prosecutor.
And if that effort fails, Winner - with Bruno's approval - will activate his subpoena-possessing investigations committee for a full-scale probe of the scandal, sources said.
That probe would be overseen by an outside, experienced criminal prosecutor "with a stellar reputation and respect on both sides of the political aisle," a senior Senate official said.
Cuomo's report concluded that top Spitzer aides conspired with the State Police to gather what they hoped would be damaging information on Bruno (Rensselaer), the governor's leading Republican foe.
While Cuomo has said he found no criminal conduct, he conceded his investigators were unable to question two key figures who stonewalled the probe: Spitzer's chief of staff, Richard Baum, and now-suspended communications director, Darren Dopp.
With subpoena power, Cuomo would likely be able to compel their testimony and the testimony of others, possibly including Spitzer.
The Ethics Commission, which announced last week a preliminary inquiry of the scandal, is headed by former Fordham Law School Dean John Feerick, a Spitzer appointee and friend.
Several commission members and senior staff officials have also either contributed to Spitzer or have personal ties to him or to his friends.
"The Senate has no confidence in the Ethics Commission," said a source close to Bruno.
http://www.nypost.com/seven/07302007/news/...tate_editor.htm
THE NEW YORK SUN"
"Inspector General Failed To Use Subpoena Power in Spitzer Probe"
By JACOB GERSHMAN, Staff Reporter of the Sun
July 30, 2007 updated 7/29/07 11:17 pm EDT
Although armed with subpoena power, the New York State Office of the Inspector General completed an investigation of the Spitzer administration's plot against a political rival without interviewing two key aides to the governor, issuing any subpoenas, or preparing any final report, a spokesman for the office said.
Unlike Attorney General Cuomo's office, which conducted a separate, concurrent investigation into the matter, the state inspector general had the subpoena power to compel the two aides — Mr. Spitzer's communications director, Darren Dopp, and chief of staff, Richard Baum — to testify under oath and force the administration to turn over e-mail records.
A spokesman for the inspector general's office, Stephen Del Giacco, declined to say why the office did not issue any subpoenas.
In response to questions, he said repeatedly: "We concurred with what the attorney general found."
The news that the inspector general, Kristine Hamann, a Spitzer appointee, chose not to use her office's subpoena power has increased suspicion among Senate Republicans that the office's probe was biased toward the governor and incomplete, and it prompted more calls for further inquiry into the scandal.
"I don't think there was a report or an investigation," a spokesman for the Senate Republicans, John McArdle, said.
"I don't think they did anything, period."
State Senator George Winner, a Republican who has submitted letters to the inspector general's office and the attorney general's office asking to review e-mails, testimonial transcripts, and other supporting documents, said the inspector general "didn't do anything but be a convenient foil to allow the governor to say he's been exonerated by his own agency."
Mr. Spitzer has described the inspector general's investigation as "independent," and in defending himself has pointed to the office's finding that the administration did not commit any illegal activity.
Ms. Hamann, a former prosecutor in the Manhattan district attorney's office, said in a July 23 statement that her office agreed with the conclusions drawn by the attorney general's office, which faulted two Spitzer aides, Mr. Dopp and the governor's liaison to the state police, William Howard, for their roles in the plot against the Republican Senate majority leader, Joseph Bruno, and also found no evidence of criminal wrongdoing.
A report issued by the attorney general's office last week found that the two aides led a campaign to discredit Mr. Bruno that involved asking police to take special measures to monitor Mr. Bruno's use of air and ground security escorts on days he attended fund-raisers and leaking the travel records to the Times Union of Albany.
Mr. Spitzer insists that proper punishment has been meted out; he indefinitely suspended Mr. Dopp and demoted Mr. Howard.
Senate Republicans say they suspect knowledge of the plot went farther up the chain of command and have focused their scrutiny on Mr. Baum, who said he thought that Mr. Dopp had been responding to a proper press request and said he was unaware that the state police had taken special measures to keep track of Mr. Bruno.
A spokesman for the attorney general said investigators in the office sought to interview Messrs. Dopp and Baum.
Following the advice of the administration's top legal counsel, David Nocenti, the two aides declined to be interviewed and submitted sworn statements.
All e-mails provided to the attorney general's office and the inspector general's office by the Spitzer administration were handed over voluntarily.
Mr. Spitzer told the New York Times on Friday that he would allow Messrs. Dopp and Baum to testify before the State Ethics Commission, which is conducting a preliminary review of the scandal and may launch a full probe.
Senate Republicans are also considering whether to conduct their own inquiry.
http://www.nysun.com/article/59375?page_no=1
"Inspector General Failed To Use Subpoena Power in Spitzer Probe"
By JACOB GERSHMAN, Staff Reporter of the Sun
July 30, 2007 updated 7/29/07 11:17 pm EDT
Although armed with subpoena power, the New York State Office of the Inspector General completed an investigation of the Spitzer administration's plot against a political rival without interviewing two key aides to the governor, issuing any subpoenas, or preparing any final report, a spokesman for the office said.
Unlike Attorney General Cuomo's office, which conducted a separate, concurrent investigation into the matter, the state inspector general had the subpoena power to compel the two aides — Mr. Spitzer's communications director, Darren Dopp, and chief of staff, Richard Baum — to testify under oath and force the administration to turn over e-mail records.
A spokesman for the inspector general's office, Stephen Del Giacco, declined to say why the office did not issue any subpoenas.
In response to questions, he said repeatedly: "We concurred with what the attorney general found."
The news that the inspector general, Kristine Hamann, a Spitzer appointee, chose not to use her office's subpoena power has increased suspicion among Senate Republicans that the office's probe was biased toward the governor and incomplete, and it prompted more calls for further inquiry into the scandal.
"I don't think there was a report or an investigation," a spokesman for the Senate Republicans, John McArdle, said.
"I don't think they did anything, period."
State Senator George Winner, a Republican who has submitted letters to the inspector general's office and the attorney general's office asking to review e-mails, testimonial transcripts, and other supporting documents, said the inspector general "didn't do anything but be a convenient foil to allow the governor to say he's been exonerated by his own agency."
Mr. Spitzer has described the inspector general's investigation as "independent," and in defending himself has pointed to the office's finding that the administration did not commit any illegal activity.
Ms. Hamann, a former prosecutor in the Manhattan district attorney's office, said in a July 23 statement that her office agreed with the conclusions drawn by the attorney general's office, which faulted two Spitzer aides, Mr. Dopp and the governor's liaison to the state police, William Howard, for their roles in the plot against the Republican Senate majority leader, Joseph Bruno, and also found no evidence of criminal wrongdoing.
A report issued by the attorney general's office last week found that the two aides led a campaign to discredit Mr. Bruno that involved asking police to take special measures to monitor Mr. Bruno's use of air and ground security escorts on days he attended fund-raisers and leaking the travel records to the Times Union of Albany.
Mr. Spitzer insists that proper punishment has been meted out; he indefinitely suspended Mr. Dopp and demoted Mr. Howard.
Senate Republicans say they suspect knowledge of the plot went farther up the chain of command and have focused their scrutiny on Mr. Baum, who said he thought that Mr. Dopp had been responding to a proper press request and said he was unaware that the state police had taken special measures to keep track of Mr. Bruno.
A spokesman for the attorney general said investigators in the office sought to interview Messrs. Dopp and Baum.
Following the advice of the administration's top legal counsel, David Nocenti, the two aides declined to be interviewed and submitted sworn statements.
All e-mails provided to the attorney general's office and the inspector general's office by the Spitzer administration were handed over voluntarily.
Mr. Spitzer told the New York Times on Friday that he would allow Messrs. Dopp and Baum to testify before the State Ethics Commission, which is conducting a preliminary review of the scandal and may launch a full probe.
Senate Republicans are also considering whether to conduct their own inquiry.
http://www.nysun.com/article/59375?page_no=1
QUOTE(Livyjr @ Aug 4 2007, 02:31 PM)
THE NEW YORK SUN"
"Inspector General Failed To Use Subpoena Power in Spitzer Probe"
By JACOB GERSHMAN, Staff Reporter of the Sun
July 30, 2007 updated 7/29/07 11:17 pm EDT
Although armed with subpoena power, the New York State Office of the Inspector General completed an investigation of the Spitzer administration's plot against a political rival without interviewing two key aides to the governor, issuing any subpoenas, or preparing any final report, a spokesman for the office said.
Unlike Attorney General Cuomo's office, which conducted a separate, concurrent investigation into the matter, the state inspector general had the subpoena power to compel the two aides — Mr. Spitzer's communications director, Darren Dopp, and chief of staff, Richard Baum — to testify under oath and force the administration to turn over e-mail records.
A spokesman for the inspector general's office, Stephen Del Giacco, declined to say why the office did not issue any subpoenas.
In response to questions, he said repeatedly: "We concurred with what the attorney general found."
http://www.nysun.com/article/59375?page_no=1
"Inspector General Failed To Use Subpoena Power in Spitzer Probe"
By JACOB GERSHMAN, Staff Reporter of the Sun
July 30, 2007 updated 7/29/07 11:17 pm EDT
Although armed with subpoena power, the New York State Office of the Inspector General completed an investigation of the Spitzer administration's plot against a political rival without interviewing two key aides to the governor, issuing any subpoenas, or preparing any final report, a spokesman for the office said.
Unlike Attorney General Cuomo's office, which conducted a separate, concurrent investigation into the matter, the state inspector general had the subpoena power to compel the two aides — Mr. Spitzer's communications director, Darren Dopp, and chief of staff, Richard Baum — to testify under oath and force the administration to turn over e-mail records.
A spokesman for the inspector general's office, Stephen Del Giacco, declined to say why the office did not issue any subpoenas.
In response to questions, he said repeatedly: "We concurred with what the attorney general found."
http://www.nysun.com/article/59375?page_no=1
THE NEW YORK POST
"SPITZER 'GAG' REFLEX - 'COUNSEL' PLOY SILENCED AIDES IN AG'S PROBE"
July 30, 2007 --
Gov. Spitzer's administration silenced two more top figures in the dirty- tricks scandal - using a highly unusual maneuver that prevented Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's investigators from questioning them, The Post has found.
Peter Pope, the governor's close friend and "policy director" who once headed Attorney General Spitzer's criminal division, and Sean Patrick Maloney, the governor's No. 2 administrator, were secretly named "special counsels," even though neither is on the governor's legal staff, sources said.
The two were dispatched to "debrief" and coach two central figures in the alleged conspiracy to have the State Police collect damaging information on Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno - Spitzer's chief-of-staff, Richard Baum, and now-suspended communications director, Darren Dopp - as they prepared to answer questions from Cuomo's probers.
The rare, if not unprecedented, designation of Pope and Maloney as special counsels granted them "lawyer-client privilege," blocking Cuomo's probers from interviewing them on all aspects of the shocking scandal.
The appointments were made two weeks ago, after Cuomo began the probe on July 5 in the wake of The Post's stunning disclosure - initially denied by the governor and his aides - that a secret State Police surveillance program aimed at destroying Bruno, the state's top Republican, was under way.
Pope and Maloney were named special counsels two weeks ago, after Cuomo began investigating.
Baum and Dopp repeatedly rejected requests from Cuomo's probers to answer questions under oath about the scandal - most likely at the direction of Pope and Maloney, administration insiders say.
Their refusal to testify set off a storm of criticism last week, even as Spitzer repeatedly defended it.
"The designation of Pope and Maloney hindered the investigation," said a source with first-hand knowledge of the situation.
"Maloney, as Baum's No. 1, would have known all about what Baum did or didn't do in relation to the scandal.
"Pope, given his past role in the Attorney General's Office, most likely would have been providing advice on any possible criminal exposure," the source added.
A top legal expert familiar with the probe said Pope and Maloney could have advised Baum and Dopp without special-counsel status, "except if there was a desire on the part of people in the chamber [Spitzer's office] to make sure nobody learned what they knew."
The rare special-counsel designation for Pope and Maloney was approved without public notice by Spitzer's chief counsel, David Nocenti, and relayed to the governor's staff in an internal "executive chamber" memo that raised eyebrows among some who received it, sources said.
Meanwhile, as knowledge that Pope and Maloney were providing legal assistance to Baum and Dopp spread, some members of the governor's office began asking why senior Spitzer aides were serving "as private counsels to public officials under investigation for improper behavior," said a source close to the probe.
"Was this the proper use of government resources, or was this the providing of public lawyers as private defense counsels to public employees who may have broken the law?" asked a former senior counsel to former Gov. George Pataki.
fredric.dicker@nypost.com
http://www.nypost.com/seven/07302007/news/...c_u__dicker.htm
THE NEW YORK POST
"ELIOT'S STONEWALL
July 30, 2007 -- How high is the stone wall the Spitzer administration has erected around Troopergate - its deployment of the State Police to destroy state Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno?
It's hard to say.
But news that the governor's men conferred "special counsel" status on two top-level administration lawyers - in an apparent effort to shield them from being forced to tell investigators what they know of the scandal - suggests that it is higher than any outsider had imagined.
That it is a very high wall, indeed.
Details of the new development are reported this morning by Post State Editor Fredric U. Dicker - who also brings word that the state Senate Investigations Committee is moving closer to opening a probe of its own into the sordid affair.
According to Dicker, Peter Pope, the governor's principal policy adviser and a close friend, and Sean Patrick Maloney, principal deputy to the govenor's chief of staff, were detailed to provide legal advice to two other high-ranking administration officials - chief of staff Richard Baum and communications director Darren Dopp.
The Pope-Maloney designation arguably conferred a lawyer-client privilege on the two men - possibly enabling them to avoid testifying as to any independent knowledge of the Bruno plot at any point in the future.
The most benign explanation of the assignments is that the administration assigned counsel to Baum and Dopp to spare them the expense of hiring lawyers of their own.
(This would be ironic, insofar as Bruno's alleged misuse of taxpayer funds is what the Troopergate plot was supposed to demonstrate.)
Equally likely, however, is that Pope and Maloney got their assigments precisely to keep them out of the chain of evidence should the scandal proceed beyond Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's Troopergate inquiry.
And that could amount to obstruction of justice - an extraordinarily serious matter at any level of government, but a wholly unacceptable state of affairs when it occurs in the Executive Chamber.
In the event, Baum and Dopp refused Cuomo's requests to testify before his investigators.
The attorney general didn't have subpoena power, and the result was a huge hole in the effort to find out who knew what, and when they knew it, regarding Troopergate.
So, as it stands, four principal figures from the highest echelons of the tightly knit Spitzer administration - Baum, Pope, Maloney and Dopp, the men most likely to know precisely who sicced the State Police on Bruno - have had nothing to say on the matter.
It must not be allowed to end like this.
And, as noted here last week, the state Ethics Commission simply doesn't pack the necessary horsepower to clear things up.
Yes, the commission has announced a preliminary probe of its own.
But the commission is an executive branch entity - that is, it is largely controlled by Spitzer himself - and so cannot conduct a credible investigation.
An independent prosecutor - armed with subpoena power - is what's needed.
To that end, Dicker also reports this morning that Senate Investigations Committee chairman George Winner is going to ask Spitzer to give Cuomo special-prosecutor status - complete with subpoena power - and turn him loose.
Winner also will make clear that if the governor declines, he intends to do the job - get to the bottom of the scandal - all by himself.
We would prefer that Cuomo - or, if not, an equally credible independent attorney - get the job.
But Winner will do, if it comes to that.
The stone wall around Troopergate simply must come down - if only because Eliot Spitzer simply cannot govern effectively while it stands.
http://www.nypost.com/seven/07302007/posto...editorials_.htm
"ELIOT'S STONEWALL
July 30, 2007 -- How high is the stone wall the Spitzer administration has erected around Troopergate - its deployment of the State Police to destroy state Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno?
It's hard to say.
But news that the governor's men conferred "special counsel" status on two top-level administration lawyers - in an apparent effort to shield them from being forced to tell investigators what they know of the scandal - suggests that it is higher than any outsider had imagined.
That it is a very high wall, indeed.
Details of the new development are reported this morning by Post State Editor Fredric U. Dicker - who also brings word that the state Senate Investigations Committee is moving closer to opening a probe of its own into the sordid affair.
According to Dicker, Peter Pope, the governor's principal policy adviser and a close friend, and Sean Patrick Maloney, principal deputy to the govenor's chief of staff, were detailed to provide legal advice to two other high-ranking administration officials - chief of staff Richard Baum and communications director Darren Dopp.
The Pope-Maloney designation arguably conferred a lawyer-client privilege on the two men - possibly enabling them to avoid testifying as to any independent knowledge of the Bruno plot at any point in the future.
The most benign explanation of the assignments is that the administration assigned counsel to Baum and Dopp to spare them the expense of hiring lawyers of their own.
(This would be ironic, insofar as Bruno's alleged misuse of taxpayer funds is what the Troopergate plot was supposed to demonstrate.)
Equally likely, however, is that Pope and Maloney got their assigments precisely to keep them out of the chain of evidence should the scandal proceed beyond Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's Troopergate inquiry.
And that could amount to obstruction of justice - an extraordinarily serious matter at any level of government, but a wholly unacceptable state of affairs when it occurs in the Executive Chamber.
In the event, Baum and Dopp refused Cuomo's requests to testify before his investigators.
The attorney general didn't have subpoena power, and the result was a huge hole in the effort to find out who knew what, and when they knew it, regarding Troopergate.
So, as it stands, four principal figures from the highest echelons of the tightly knit Spitzer administration - Baum, Pope, Maloney and Dopp, the men most likely to know precisely who sicced the State Police on Bruno - have had nothing to say on the matter.
It must not be allowed to end like this.
And, as noted here last week, the state Ethics Commission simply doesn't pack the necessary horsepower to clear things up.
Yes, the commission has announced a preliminary probe of its own.
But the commission is an executive branch entity - that is, it is largely controlled by Spitzer himself - and so cannot conduct a credible investigation.
An independent prosecutor - armed with subpoena power - is what's needed.
To that end, Dicker also reports this morning that Senate Investigations Committee chairman George Winner is going to ask Spitzer to give Cuomo special-prosecutor status - complete with subpoena power - and turn him loose.
Winner also will make clear that if the governor declines, he intends to do the job - get to the bottom of the scandal - all by himself.
We would prefer that Cuomo - or, if not, an equally credible independent attorney - get the job.
But Winner will do, if it comes to that.
The stone wall around Troopergate simply must come down - if only because Eliot Spitzer simply cannot govern effectively while it stands.
http://www.nypost.com/seven/07302007/posto...editorials_.htm
THE NEW YORK TIMES
"Spitzer Moves to Rebuild His Image"
By PATRICK HEALY
Published: July 29, 2007
Eliot Spitzer was at a loss for words.
Gov. Spitzer faced scrutiny at the Capitol last week over efforts by his staff to discredit a political rival.
The governor’s senior staff had gathered at short notice on Monday morning in Albany, and a grave Mr. Spitzer was addressing them.
All their hard work for the last seven months was about to be subsumed by scandal, he said, according to several people present.
A trusted aide was being suspended over a dirty-tricks operation.
Ethics was supposed to be the gold standard, not the black eye, of a Spitzer administration.
“This is what we stand for,” Mr. Spitzer began, and then stopped.
Aides in the room recalled that he seemed to choke up as he had to remind them, and himself, about a core principle he had hoped would define his tenure.
In conversations with allies and friends this week, as he has grappled with his aides’ misuse of the State Police to try to tarnish a political opponent, Mr. Spitzer has expressed regret and frustration.
He knows that he has alienated people with his steamroller style and needs a plan to win them back.
Yet he has also told friends that he will not allow the scandal to straitjacket him.
At the same time, friends say, he has acknowledged that perhaps his fighting spirit helped create an atmosphere in which his aides may feel comfortable pushing the line (and, in this instance, crossing it).
Hovering over everything appears a cloud of self-doubt for this most self-assured man: How much does Eliot Spitzer need to change?
And how much can he?
“His overwhelming feeling is to take this responsibility on his own shoulders,” said Lloyd Constantine, Mr. Spitzer’s mentor and a senior adviser.
“On a personal level, not a legal level, he’s feeling mea culpa."
"People have urged him to fight back and defend himself, but his view is, ‘No, we have to heal ourselves first.’"
"He’s taking it very hard.”
Aides to Mr. Spitzer, a Democrat, say that as he moves to rebuild his image and relationships, he will take some of the bluster and confrontation out of his day-to-day language and the statements made by his office.
There will be more talk of cooperation with Republicans, with the Legislature.
Of course, New York has been here before with Mr. Spitzer.
In 2005, when he was attorney general, he declared “war” on an ally of Gov. George E. Pataki during a telephone conversation; afterward, he said he regretted his word choices and flashes of temper.
But the harsh language did not fade for long.
In an interview on Friday, Mr. Spitzer said he still planned to campaign for Democratic legislative candidates — a long-standing point of contention with his Republican critics.
Pete Grannis, Mr. Spitzer’s commissioner of environmental conservation, said that “it would be impossible for this governor to defang himself,” given his nature.
Still, he added, there is now a need for Mr. Spitzer to re-evaluate his style.
“He knows he needs friends and more friends — you can’t govern this state without people beside you,” Mr. Grannis said.
“I think the entire administration is going to have to figure out how to govern a little better.”
Mr. Spitzer himself appears clear-eyed about the implications of the scandal.
In the interview, he conceded that he had lost political capital, and that his reputation for steely adherence to ethics had been damaged.
He also acknowledged elevating the target of the State Police operation, Joseph L. Bruno, the Senate Republican leader, to the status of an obstacle in the eyes of his staff.
Still, he said he would not speculate publicly on whether he had fostered a taste for combat in his office that led some of his aides, according to the investigation by the attorney general, to use the State Police to gather records on Mr. Bruno’s taxpayer-financed travel in hopes of weakening him as an opponent.
“This is going to be seen — and I understand it very clearly — it is going to be seen as more than a blemish,” Mr. Spitzer said in the interview, conducted in his Manhattan office.
“My feeling is real loss, both substantively and from a perception perspective, about what we’re trying to do."
"The perception matters, not just because I’m worried about what’s the public perception of me, but because the perception about what we’re doing affects our capacity to do it."
“I’m going to work extraordinarily hard to rebuild that and say to myself, ‘You’re now back at a point where you’ve given away, through a self-inflicted wound, the upside of the capital that you’ve accumulated by doing many good things,’ ” Mr. Spitzer said.
The governor is preparing himself for a possible onslaught of scrutiny.
The State Ethics Commission is reviewing the attorney general’s report, and the Senate plans to hold hearings.
None of Mr. Spitzer’s friends say he is self-pitying; they say he still sees his future as bright, be it running for re-election in 2010 or possibly for president after that.
But they say this is a personally challenging moment for a man trained to look at facts and problems with a lawyer’s eye.
He is now dealing with betrayal and controversy, accusations of lying and arrogance, and questions swirling around him: “What did you know and when did you know it?”
“We can’t allow the Republicans to drag Eliot into a Whitewater-type four-year investigation here,” said Len Lenihan, the Democratic Party leader in Buffalo, who discussed the matter with Mr. Spitzer last week.
“Our mission now is to move forward, so he’s trying to apologize very clearly and get this moving."
"But this is all very new for him.”
Mr. Spitzer made clear early on that he would vigorously challenge his opponents, especially Mr. Bruno.
Even before taking office in January, he poached one of Mr. Bruno’s senators, Michael A. L. Balboni, for a job in the administration as deputy secretary for public safety.
Then, audaciously by Albany standards, he campaigned hard for the Democrat who went on to win Mr. Balboni’s Senate seat, further eroding Mr. Bruno’s slim majority in the Senate.
“I think he saw Senator Bruno as an obstacle, period,” Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, a Democrat, said in an interview.
“He tries to weaken his opponent through having a public debate, usually."
"I don’t think he wanted to take Joe out, but weaken him and weaken his position.”
Asked about his view of Mr. Bruno, Mr. Spitzer said: “Obstacle in the sense that we disagree on policy?"
"Sure.”
But it was never personal, he said — even though people close to Mr. Bruno said the governor had once referred to the 78-year-old majority leader as “senile.”
“Does Eliot realize that he fostered a climate that may have encouraged his office to attack Bruno?"
"Absolutely,” said one New York Democrat who discussed this point with Mr. Spitzer last week, and who described their private conversation on the condition of anonymity.
Noting Mr. Spitzer’s previous job, the Democrat added:
“This is the way a prosecutor works."
"He had obstacles that he wanted to overcome; he had enemies to weaken."
"And he was the general, and he had an army.”
Although Mr. Spitzer has accepted responsibility for the scandal on his watch, some of his closest allies remain worried for him — and, indeed, some are skeptical that he is being fully truthful, noting that he worked closely on media and political strategy for eight years with Darren Dopp, the architect of the plan to embarrass Mr. Bruno.
(Mr. Dopp, Mr. Spitzer’s communications director, has been suspended indefinitely.)
“A lot of his supporters think he has a dirty hand in this,” said a Spitzer ally in New York City who figures prominently in the governor’s social and political circles.
“It comes down to a man’s image."
"If George Pataki — no micromanager, him — said, ‘I didn’t know what was going on,’ people would believe him."
"If Rudy Giuliani said it, people wouldn’t believe him."
"And with Eliot, they don’t believe it.”
Mr. Spitzer said he had not heard this concern, but added that he needed to “get back to work and rebuild the notion that we’re doing the people’s business.”
Neither Mr. Spitzer nor his aides are suggesting, though, that the scandal will ever entirely fade, or that it will never be used against him again.
“This will have a long-term good effect and a long-term negative effect for Eliot’s political future,” Mr. Constantine said.
“The good effect is that you grow through adversity, and this is a big bad thing, and Eliot has already grown from it — though, as he said to me, ‘I don’t want to grow quite this much, this fast.’
“The negative thing is, this controversy will always be there — it will come up in the next debate, in the next campaign,” Mr. Constantine added.
“For the rest of his life, he’ll be talking about it."
"It’s neither fair nor unfair."
"He understands that."
"He’s awfully smart, awfully smart.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/29/nyregion...ml?pagewanted=1
"Spitzer Moves to Rebuild His Image"
By PATRICK HEALY
Published: July 29, 2007
Eliot Spitzer was at a loss for words.
Gov. Spitzer faced scrutiny at the Capitol last week over efforts by his staff to discredit a political rival.
The governor’s senior staff had gathered at short notice on Monday morning in Albany, and a grave Mr. Spitzer was addressing them.
All their hard work for the last seven months was about to be subsumed by scandal, he said, according to several people present.
A trusted aide was being suspended over a dirty-tricks operation.
Ethics was supposed to be the gold standard, not the black eye, of a Spitzer administration.
“This is what we stand for,” Mr. Spitzer began, and then stopped.
Aides in the room recalled that he seemed to choke up as he had to remind them, and himself, about a core principle he had hoped would define his tenure.
In conversations with allies and friends this week, as he has grappled with his aides’ misuse of the State Police to try to tarnish a political opponent, Mr. Spitzer has expressed regret and frustration.
He knows that he has alienated people with his steamroller style and needs a plan to win them back.
Yet he has also told friends that he will not allow the scandal to straitjacket him.
At the same time, friends say, he has acknowledged that perhaps his fighting spirit helped create an atmosphere in which his aides may feel comfortable pushing the line (and, in this instance, crossing it).
Hovering over everything appears a cloud of self-doubt for this most self-assured man: How much does Eliot Spitzer need to change?
And how much can he?
“His overwhelming feeling is to take this responsibility on his own shoulders,” said Lloyd Constantine, Mr. Spitzer’s mentor and a senior adviser.
“On a personal level, not a legal level, he’s feeling mea culpa."
"People have urged him to fight back and defend himself, but his view is, ‘No, we have to heal ourselves first.’"
"He’s taking it very hard.”
Aides to Mr. Spitzer, a Democrat, say that as he moves to rebuild his image and relationships, he will take some of the bluster and confrontation out of his day-to-day language and the statements made by his office.
There will be more talk of cooperation with Republicans, with the Legislature.
Of course, New York has been here before with Mr. Spitzer.
In 2005, when he was attorney general, he declared “war” on an ally of Gov. George E. Pataki during a telephone conversation; afterward, he said he regretted his word choices and flashes of temper.
But the harsh language did not fade for long.
In an interview on Friday, Mr. Spitzer said he still planned to campaign for Democratic legislative candidates — a long-standing point of contention with his Republican critics.
Pete Grannis, Mr. Spitzer’s commissioner of environmental conservation, said that “it would be impossible for this governor to defang himself,” given his nature.
Still, he added, there is now a need for Mr. Spitzer to re-evaluate his style.
“He knows he needs friends and more friends — you can’t govern this state without people beside you,” Mr. Grannis said.
“I think the entire administration is going to have to figure out how to govern a little better.”
Mr. Spitzer himself appears clear-eyed about the implications of the scandal.
In the interview, he conceded that he had lost political capital, and that his reputation for steely adherence to ethics had been damaged.
He also acknowledged elevating the target of the State Police operation, Joseph L. Bruno, the Senate Republican leader, to the status of an obstacle in the eyes of his staff.
Still, he said he would not speculate publicly on whether he had fostered a taste for combat in his office that led some of his aides, according to the investigation by the attorney general, to use the State Police to gather records on Mr. Bruno’s taxpayer-financed travel in hopes of weakening him as an opponent.
“This is going to be seen — and I understand it very clearly — it is going to be seen as more than a blemish,” Mr. Spitzer said in the interview, conducted in his Manhattan office.
“My feeling is real loss, both substantively and from a perception perspective, about what we’re trying to do."
"The perception matters, not just because I’m worried about what’s the public perception of me, but because the perception about what we’re doing affects our capacity to do it."
“I’m going to work extraordinarily hard to rebuild that and say to myself, ‘You’re now back at a point where you’ve given away, through a self-inflicted wound, the upside of the capital that you’ve accumulated by doing many good things,’ ” Mr. Spitzer said.
The governor is preparing himself for a possible onslaught of scrutiny.
The State Ethics Commission is reviewing the attorney general’s report, and the Senate plans to hold hearings.
None of Mr. Spitzer’s friends say he is self-pitying; they say he still sees his future as bright, be it running for re-election in 2010 or possibly for president after that.
But they say this is a personally challenging moment for a man trained to look at facts and problems with a lawyer’s eye.
He is now dealing with betrayal and controversy, accusations of lying and arrogance, and questions swirling around him: “What did you know and when did you know it?”
“We can’t allow the Republicans to drag Eliot into a Whitewater-type four-year investigation here,” said Len Lenihan, the Democratic Party leader in Buffalo, who discussed the matter with Mr. Spitzer last week.
“Our mission now is to move forward, so he’s trying to apologize very clearly and get this moving."
"But this is all very new for him.”
Mr. Spitzer made clear early on that he would vigorously challenge his opponents, especially Mr. Bruno.
Even before taking office in January, he poached one of Mr. Bruno’s senators, Michael A. L. Balboni, for a job in the administration as deputy secretary for public safety.
Then, audaciously by Albany standards, he campaigned hard for the Democrat who went on to win Mr. Balboni’s Senate seat, further eroding Mr. Bruno’s slim majority in the Senate.
“I think he saw Senator Bruno as an obstacle, period,” Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, a Democrat, said in an interview.
“He tries to weaken his opponent through having a public debate, usually."
"I don’t think he wanted to take Joe out, but weaken him and weaken his position.”
Asked about his view of Mr. Bruno, Mr. Spitzer said: “Obstacle in the sense that we disagree on policy?"
"Sure.”
But it was never personal, he said — even though people close to Mr. Bruno said the governor had once referred to the 78-year-old majority leader as “senile.”
“Does Eliot realize that he fostered a climate that may have encouraged his office to attack Bruno?"
"Absolutely,” said one New York Democrat who discussed this point with Mr. Spitzer last week, and who described their private conversation on the condition of anonymity.
Noting Mr. Spitzer’s previous job, the Democrat added:
“This is the way a prosecutor works."
"He had obstacles that he wanted to overcome; he had enemies to weaken."
"And he was the general, and he had an army.”
Although Mr. Spitzer has accepted responsibility for the scandal on his watch, some of his closest allies remain worried for him — and, indeed, some are skeptical that he is being fully truthful, noting that he worked closely on media and political strategy for eight years with Darren Dopp, the architect of the plan to embarrass Mr. Bruno.
(Mr. Dopp, Mr. Spitzer’s communications director, has been suspended indefinitely.)
“A lot of his supporters think he has a dirty hand in this,” said a Spitzer ally in New York City who figures prominently in the governor’s social and political circles.
“It comes down to a man’s image."
"If George Pataki — no micromanager, him — said, ‘I didn’t know what was going on,’ people would believe him."
"If Rudy Giuliani said it, people wouldn’t believe him."
"And with Eliot, they don’t believe it.”
Mr. Spitzer said he had not heard this concern, but added that he needed to “get back to work and rebuild the notion that we’re doing the people’s business.”
Neither Mr. Spitzer nor his aides are suggesting, though, that the scandal will ever entirely fade, or that it will never be used against him again.
“This will have a long-term good effect and a long-term negative effect for Eliot’s political future,” Mr. Constantine said.
“The good effect is that you grow through adversity, and this is a big bad thing, and Eliot has already grown from it — though, as he said to me, ‘I don’t want to grow quite this much, this fast.’
“The negative thing is, this controversy will always be there — it will come up in the next debate, in the next campaign,” Mr. Constantine added.
“For the rest of his life, he’ll be talking about it."
"It’s neither fair nor unfair."
"He understands that."
"He’s awfully smart, awfully smart.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/29/nyregion...ml?pagewanted=1
THE NEW YORK TIMES
"Spitzer and Two Aides May Testify Before Ethics Panel"
By PATRICK HEALY
Published: July 28, 2007
Gov. Eliot Spitzer said yesterday that he would allow two senior aides to testify — and that he might testify himself — if the State Ethics Commission called or subpoenaed them as it reviews the misuse of the State Police by Spitzer aides in an effort to undermine a political rival.
In an interview in his Manhattan office, Mr. Spitzer said he was inclined to appear before the Ethics Commission if asked, but said that before sitting for sworn testimony, he would need clearance from his legal counsel, David Nocenti.
“I would want to — I hesitate only because executives tend to sometimes have their lawyers say, ‘Executive privilege, you’ve got to think about this,’ ” Mr. Spitzer said.
“Of course I would want to."
"What I’ve said about this matter, I’ve said 100 times."
"I don’t mind repeating it over and over again.”
It was Mr. Nocenti who advised the two aides, Richard Baum and Darren Dopp, to refuse to submit to questioning by investigators from the state attorney general’s office.
A report from that office, released Monday, revealed that members of Mr. Spitzer’s staff had improperly used the State Police to develop a dossier on the use of state aircraft by Joseph L. Bruno, the Senate Republican leader, in order to plant an embarrassing article about Mr. Bruno in the news media.
Republican leaders and some in the news media have attacked Mr. Spitzer, a Democrat, and his office for not heeding the request of the attorney general’s investigators to interview Mr. Baum, a senior adviser to the governor, and Mr. Dopp, his communications director.
Some have suggested that the administration is stonewalling and has not faced up to the seriousness of the scandal.
Mr. Spitzer was elected in November on a platform of ethical reform.
Mr. Spitzer said in the interview that he would not fight any attempt by the Ethics Commission to compel testimony from Mr. Baum and Mr. Dopp, and added that he was not involved in the decision that the two men not testify in the attorney general’s investigation.
Mr. Baum said yesterday that Mr. Nocenti had decided against it to protect the privacy of the conversations between Mr. Spitzer and his advisers.
The attorney general did not have subpoena power to compel testimony in this case; Mr. Nocenti provided brief, sworn statements from the two men instead.
Walter Ayres, a spokesman for the Ethics Commission, said yesterday that the commission had only begun gathering relevant documents from the attorney general’s office and the state inspector general, and that it was too soon to say whether a full-blown investigation would begin.
He said he could not comment on whether Mr. Spitzer, Mr. Baum or Mr. Dopp might be subpoenaed.
He said that as far as he knew, there was no commission precedent for subpoenaing a sitting governor.
Mr. Baum added in a separate interview about the Ethics Commission, “If they feel sworn testimony is necessary, I will give it.”
Mr. Dopp, who was an architect of the State Police operation, has not responded to interview requests this week.
By signaling their willingness to cooperate with the Ethics Commission, Mr. Spitzer and Mr. Baum made clear that they preferred the scrutiny of that body, led by a Spitzer appointee, to that of the Republican-led State Senate, whose calls for an inquiry drew sharp resistance from the governor.
Mr. Dopp has been suspended indefinitely, and Mr. Spitzer spoke of him yesterday as almost certainly gone from his staff.
“On a personal level it’s very painful; this is somebody who I’d spent a lot of time with over eight and a half years, who I like,” Mr. Spitzer said.
“That is never easy.”
“He had a sense of the world that I appreciated,” the governor added.
“I will miss him.”
Mr. Baum, who has denied any knowledge of the misuse of the State Police, remains on staff as Mr. Spitzer’s staff secretary and chief political adviser.
He has been subject to intense scrutiny, given that he and Mr. Dopp often worked hand in glove.
Asked if Mr. Baum would still be in his job a month from now, Mr. Spitzer said: “Oh, yeah."
"Absolutely."
"Yes.”
Other Spitzer aides said the only reason Mr. Baum might step aside at this point is if Mr. Baum believed he was proving harmful to Mr. Spitzer.
Mr. Baum said he also expected to remain on the governor’s staff.
“As always, I work at the pleasure of the governor,” he said.
“I don’t contemplate me leaving, and neither does the governor.”
In the interview, Mr. Spitzer reiterated his statements this week that he was unaware of any effort by his staff to discredit Mr. Bruno, and that he had been told that the State Police were following procedure in complying with inquiries from reporters about Mr. Bruno’s travel.
Mr. Baum has been a focus in the scandal because Mr. Dopp worked for him; the two men have coordinated media and political strategy on Mr. Spitzer’s behalf for years, operating in similar roles when Mr. Spitzer was attorney general.
According to the report, Mr. Baum received e-mail messages from Mr. Dopp in May and June about travel records that would apparently show that Mr. Bruno used state aircraft for travel to both political events and state business appointments.
(Such trips are allowed under state rules, the investigation concluded.)
One of Mr. Dopp’s e-mail messages, sent at a time when Mr. Bruno was awash in negative news reports about his personal business dealings, said, “Think a travel story would fit nicely in the mix.”
Mr. Baum said he was aware of general news media inquiries about Mr. Bruno’s travels, but did not respond to Mr. Dopp’s e-mail messages, nor did he dissuade him.
“I didn’t know what he was doing,” Mr. Baum said of Mr. Dopp.
“I didn’t engage; it wasn’t a priority for me.”
Asked yesterday if he believed Mr. Baum should have blocked Mr. Dopp’s effort, Mr. Spitzer said: “I think when you look back at it, the answer speaks for itself at this point."
"But if you believe, as Rich did, that this was stuff in response to media inquiry, it is what it is."
"Now just to be clear, I never got those e-mails."
"This was stuff I wasn’t involved in.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/28/nyregion...ref=todayspaper
"Spitzer and Two Aides May Testify Before Ethics Panel"
By PATRICK HEALY
Published: July 28, 2007
Gov. Eliot Spitzer said yesterday that he would allow two senior aides to testify — and that he might testify himself — if the State Ethics Commission called or subpoenaed them as it reviews the misuse of the State Police by Spitzer aides in an effort to undermine a political rival.
In an interview in his Manhattan office, Mr. Spitzer said he was inclined to appear before the Ethics Commission if asked, but said that before sitting for sworn testimony, he would need clearance from his legal counsel, David Nocenti.
“I would want to — I hesitate only because executives tend to sometimes have their lawyers say, ‘Executive privilege, you’ve got to think about this,’ ” Mr. Spitzer said.
“Of course I would want to."
"What I’ve said about this matter, I’ve said 100 times."
"I don’t mind repeating it over and over again.”
It was Mr. Nocenti who advised the two aides, Richard Baum and Darren Dopp, to refuse to submit to questioning by investigators from the state attorney general’s office.
A report from that office, released Monday, revealed that members of Mr. Spitzer’s staff had improperly used the State Police to develop a dossier on the use of state aircraft by Joseph L. Bruno, the Senate Republican leader, in order to plant an embarrassing article about Mr. Bruno in the news media.
Republican leaders and some in the news media have attacked Mr. Spitzer, a Democrat, and his office for not heeding the request of the attorney general’s investigators to interview Mr. Baum, a senior adviser to the governor, and Mr. Dopp, his communications director.
Some have suggested that the administration is stonewalling and has not faced up to the seriousness of the scandal.
Mr. Spitzer was elected in November on a platform of ethical reform.
Mr. Spitzer said in the interview that he would not fight any attempt by the Ethics Commission to compel testimony from Mr. Baum and Mr. Dopp, and added that he was not involved in the decision that the two men not testify in the attorney general’s investigation.
Mr. Baum said yesterday that Mr. Nocenti had decided against it to protect the privacy of the conversations between Mr. Spitzer and his advisers.
The attorney general did not have subpoena power to compel testimony in this case; Mr. Nocenti provided brief, sworn statements from the two men instead.
Walter Ayres, a spokesman for the Ethics Commission, said yesterday that the commission had only begun gathering relevant documents from the attorney general’s office and the state inspector general, and that it was too soon to say whether a full-blown investigation would begin.
He said he could not comment on whether Mr. Spitzer, Mr. Baum or Mr. Dopp might be subpoenaed.
He said that as far as he knew, there was no commission precedent for subpoenaing a sitting governor.
Mr. Baum added in a separate interview about the Ethics Commission, “If they feel sworn testimony is necessary, I will give it.”
Mr. Dopp, who was an architect of the State Police operation, has not responded to interview requests this week.
By signaling their willingness to cooperate with the Ethics Commission, Mr. Spitzer and Mr. Baum made clear that they preferred the scrutiny of that body, led by a Spitzer appointee, to that of the Republican-led State Senate, whose calls for an inquiry drew sharp resistance from the governor.
Mr. Dopp has been suspended indefinitely, and Mr. Spitzer spoke of him yesterday as almost certainly gone from his staff.
“On a personal level it’s very painful; this is somebody who I’d spent a lot of time with over eight and a half years, who I like,” Mr. Spitzer said.
“That is never easy.”
“He had a sense of the world that I appreciated,” the governor added.
“I will miss him.”
Mr. Baum, who has denied any knowledge of the misuse of the State Police, remains on staff as Mr. Spitzer’s staff secretary and chief political adviser.
He has been subject to intense scrutiny, given that he and Mr. Dopp often worked hand in glove.
Asked if Mr. Baum would still be in his job a month from now, Mr. Spitzer said: “Oh, yeah."
"Absolutely."
"Yes.”
Other Spitzer aides said the only reason Mr. Baum might step aside at this point is if Mr. Baum believed he was proving harmful to Mr. Spitzer.
Mr. Baum said he also expected to remain on the governor’s staff.
“As always, I work at the pleasure of the governor,” he said.
“I don’t contemplate me leaving, and neither does the governor.”
In the interview, Mr. Spitzer reiterated his statements this week that he was unaware of any effort by his staff to discredit Mr. Bruno, and that he had been told that the State Police were following procedure in complying with inquiries from reporters about Mr. Bruno’s travel.
Mr. Baum has been a focus in the scandal because Mr. Dopp worked for him; the two men have coordinated media and political strategy on Mr. Spitzer’s behalf for years, operating in similar roles when Mr. Spitzer was attorney general.
According to the report, Mr. Baum received e-mail messages from Mr. Dopp in May and June about travel records that would apparently show that Mr. Bruno used state aircraft for travel to both political events and state business appointments.
(Such trips are allowed under state rules, the investigation concluded.)
One of Mr. Dopp’s e-mail messages, sent at a time when Mr. Bruno was awash in negative news reports about his personal business dealings, said, “Think a travel story would fit nicely in the mix.”
Mr. Baum said he was aware of general news media inquiries about Mr. Bruno’s travels, but did not respond to Mr. Dopp’s e-mail messages, nor did he dissuade him.
“I didn’t know what he was doing,” Mr. Baum said of Mr. Dopp.
“I didn’t engage; it wasn’t a priority for me.”
Asked yesterday if he believed Mr. Baum should have blocked Mr. Dopp’s effort, Mr. Spitzer said: “I think when you look back at it, the answer speaks for itself at this point."
"But if you believe, as Rich did, that this was stuff in response to media inquiry, it is what it is."
"Now just to be clear, I never got those e-mails."
"This was stuff I wasn’t involved in.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/28/nyregion...ref=todayspaper
THE NEW YORK TIMES
"Two Powerful Men, Two Powerful Egos and a ‘Clash of Titans’"
By LESLIE EATON
Published: July 28, 2007
They are both outsized political powerhouses, with aggressive habits, huge ambitions and a history so tangled that political mavens have been waiting months for what seemed an inevitable explosion.
One, of course, is Gov. Eliot Spitzer.
The other is not — as one might expect — Joseph L. Bruno, the State Senate’s Republican majority leader, who has recently emerged as the governor’s most prominent foe.
No, the other figure who has fascinated Albany watchers is Andrew M. Cuomo — like Mr. Spitzer, a Democrat.
Mr. Cuomo, who replaced Mr. Spitzer as attorney general in January, has made no secret of his desire one day to be governor, a post he disastrously sought in 2002.
Many eyes have been on Mr. Cuomo as he has handled the recent Bruno imbroglio, investigating the senator’s penchant for traveling by state aircraft and the related efforts by the governor’s staff to try to discredit him.
As shell-shocked New Yorkers know by now, the attorney general released a toughly worded report saying that some of Mr. Spitzer’s top aides tried to use the state police to embarrass Mr. Bruno.
In the days since, the report has created new complications for Mr. Cuomo’s already complex and, some say, competitive relationship with the governor — and sparked speculation about his motives.
Did Mr. Cuomo, some people have asked, pull his punches by not demanding that two of Mr. Spitzer’s aides testify about the scheme?
Mr. Cuomo’s office has said the attorney general’s office did not have the power to compel the two aides to talk.
But Paul Shechtman, a criminal defense lawyer and former prosecutor who was chairman of the State Ethics Commission under Gov. George E. Pataki, called the report a “puzzlement” because investigators did not talk to the two aides, Darren Dopp, Mr. Spitzer’s communications director, and Richard Baum, his chief adviser.
“It is hard-hitting and critical and at the same time, given the failure to interview two principal players, sort of stunningly incomplete,” Mr. Shechtman said.
(Mr. Spitzer has said he will allow the two men to testify before the State Ethics Commission.)
But others have wondered whether the attorney general was trying to embarrass Mr. Spitzer by releasing the report on a Monday, ensuring that it would be talked and written and gossiped about for days.
“People will look at it and say Andrew’s ambitious, out to get Eliot,” said Douglas A. Muzzio, a professor at Baruch College’s School of Public Affairs.
His own opinion is that Mr. Cuomo “called it the way he saw it.”
Yet there is also a sense among some political analysts that Mr. Cuomo has emerged with his reputation enhanced and his power increased because both the governor and state Republicans have embraced the report’s findings.
Henry J. Stern, for example, the longtime parks commissioner who founded the good-government group New York Civic, said:
“If anyone thought six months ago which one would be incompetent, they thought Cuomo would be the jerk and Spitzer would be the cool guy."
"But that appears not to be the case.”
Mr. Cuomo’s spokesman, Jeffrey B. Lerner, would not comment on how involved Mr. Cuomo was with the investigation, the report, or the timing of its release.
The report itself lists as the authors Ellen Nachtigall Biben, a former prosecutor in the Manhattan district attorney’s office who now heads the attorney general’s public integrity unit; Linda A. Lacewell, a former federal prosecutor who worked on the government’s Enron cases; and Jerry H. Goldfeder, an election lawyer who, like Ms. Lacewell, is a special counsel to Mr. Cuomo.
But many people give Mr. Cuomo credit for the outcome.
“This is the kind of issue, this clash of titans, that most politicians would have ducked,” said Stuart H. Brody, a labor lawyer and chairman of the Democratic Rural Conference.
“Instead of ducking, Andrew stood up and got the job done.”
If people sometimes see Mr. Cuomo and Mr. Spitzer as rivals, that may be because they are so much alike.
They are almost the same age: Mr. Cuomo, at 49, is only 18 months older than Mr. Spitzer.
They both have powerful fathers; Mr. Cuomo’s, of course, was the governor of New York and remains an influential figure in the state, while Mr. Spitzer’s is a wealthy real estate developer who bankrolled his son’s first political forays.
Early in their careers, both Mr. Spitzer and Mr. Cuomo worked as prosecutors for Robert M. Morgenthau, the legendary Manhattan district attorney, though Mr. Cuomo’s tenure was relatively brief, while Mr. Spitzer became chief of the rackets bureau.
But their relationship has been rocky at times.
In 2000, Mr. Spitzer complained publicly that Mr. Cuomo had taken over — and taken credit for — his efforts to control hand-gun sales.
Mr. Spitzer did not endorse Mr. Cuomo until after he won the Democratic primary for attorney general, which some believe rankled Mr. Cuomo.
The two men have become polite and mutually complimentary, if not warm; George Arzt, a political consultant who has worked closely with both, describes them as cordial.
But, he said, “the relationship will not get any better after this.”
Mr. Cuomo, known as a media-seeking missile during his days as federal housing czar, has kept a much lower profile as attorney general.
He did not hold a news conference to publicize his findings, instead putting out a three-sentence statement saying basically, “We were asked to investigate, and we did.”
During last year’s campaign, Mr. Cuomo promised voters that he was no longer the brash young man who had served as an enforcer for his father, Gov. Mario M. Cuomo.
Or even the Andrew Cuomo who was accused of arrogance when he unsuccessfully challenged the party favorite, H. Carl McCall, for the Democratic nomination for governor five years ago.
Instead, Mr. Cuomo portrayed himself as humbled by hard knocks, which included his highly public divorce from Kerry Kennedy.
The way he handled the Spitzer/Bruno investigation not only allows Mr. Cuomo to prove he has changed; it also lets him position himself as a real reformer, said Hank Sheinkopf, a political consultant who has advised Mr. Cuomo’s past opponents.
“He’s much smarter and uses power a lot better,” Mr. Sheinkopf said.
“He’s showing patience.”
Although New York’s attorney general is elected, not appointed, and in theory can oppose the governor, in practice such clashes have been rare.
Even Mr. Spitzer, in his two terms as attorney general, seemed to spend far more time and effort prosecuting Wall Street firms than policing the Pataki administration.
But in his campaign for governor, Mr. Spitzer vowed to clean up Albany, as did Mr. Cuomo.
John Marino, who worked for Mr. Cuomo’s father and knows Mr. Spitzer, acknowledged that the two had had some problems, but insists that they have been on friendlier terms in recent times.
At a Labor Day breakfast last year, “they were talking about stuff I don’t know anything about, Nascar and cars," he said.
Still, Mr. Marino added, "They are now in jobs that make things more difficult."
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/28/nyregion...&oref=login
"Two Powerful Men, Two Powerful Egos and a ‘Clash of Titans’"
By LESLIE EATON
Published: July 28, 2007
They are both outsized political powerhouses, with aggressive habits, huge ambitions and a history so tangled that political mavens have been waiting months for what seemed an inevitable explosion.
One, of course, is Gov. Eliot Spitzer.
The other is not — as one might expect — Joseph L. Bruno, the State Senate’s Republican majority leader, who has recently emerged as the governor’s most prominent foe.
No, the other figure who has fascinated Albany watchers is Andrew M. Cuomo — like Mr. Spitzer, a Democrat.
Mr. Cuomo, who replaced Mr. Spitzer as attorney general in January, has made no secret of his desire one day to be governor, a post he disastrously sought in 2002.
Many eyes have been on Mr. Cuomo as he has handled the recent Bruno imbroglio, investigating the senator’s penchant for traveling by state aircraft and the related efforts by the governor’s staff to try to discredit him.
As shell-shocked New Yorkers know by now, the attorney general released a toughly worded report saying that some of Mr. Spitzer’s top aides tried to use the state police to embarrass Mr. Bruno.
In the days since, the report has created new complications for Mr. Cuomo’s already complex and, some say, competitive relationship with the governor — and sparked speculation about his motives.
Did Mr. Cuomo, some people have asked, pull his punches by not demanding that two of Mr. Spitzer’s aides testify about the scheme?
Mr. Cuomo’s office has said the attorney general’s office did not have the power to compel the two aides to talk.
But Paul Shechtman, a criminal defense lawyer and former prosecutor who was chairman of the State Ethics Commission under Gov. George E. Pataki, called the report a “puzzlement” because investigators did not talk to the two aides, Darren Dopp, Mr. Spitzer’s communications director, and Richard Baum, his chief adviser.
“It is hard-hitting and critical and at the same time, given the failure to interview two principal players, sort of stunningly incomplete,” Mr. Shechtman said.
(Mr. Spitzer has said he will allow the two men to testify before the State Ethics Commission.)
But others have wondered whether the attorney general was trying to embarrass Mr. Spitzer by releasing the report on a Monday, ensuring that it would be talked and written and gossiped about for days.
“People will look at it and say Andrew’s ambitious, out to get Eliot,” said Douglas A. Muzzio, a professor at Baruch College’s School of Public Affairs.
His own opinion is that Mr. Cuomo “called it the way he saw it.”
Yet there is also a sense among some political analysts that Mr. Cuomo has emerged with his reputation enhanced and his power increased because both the governor and state Republicans have embraced the report’s findings.
Henry J. Stern, for example, the longtime parks commissioner who founded the good-government group New York Civic, said:
“If anyone thought six months ago which one would be incompetent, they thought Cuomo would be the jerk and Spitzer would be the cool guy."
"But that appears not to be the case.”
Mr. Cuomo’s spokesman, Jeffrey B. Lerner, would not comment on how involved Mr. Cuomo was with the investigation, the report, or the timing of its release.
The report itself lists as the authors Ellen Nachtigall Biben, a former prosecutor in the Manhattan district attorney’s office who now heads the attorney general’s public integrity unit; Linda A. Lacewell, a former federal prosecutor who worked on the government’s Enron cases; and Jerry H. Goldfeder, an election lawyer who, like Ms. Lacewell, is a special counsel to Mr. Cuomo.
But many people give Mr. Cuomo credit for the outcome.
“This is the kind of issue, this clash of titans, that most politicians would have ducked,” said Stuart H. Brody, a labor lawyer and chairman of the Democratic Rural Conference.
“Instead of ducking, Andrew stood up and got the job done.”
If people sometimes see Mr. Cuomo and Mr. Spitzer as rivals, that may be because they are so much alike.
They are almost the same age: Mr. Cuomo, at 49, is only 18 months older than Mr. Spitzer.
They both have powerful fathers; Mr. Cuomo’s, of course, was the governor of New York and remains an influential figure in the state, while Mr. Spitzer’s is a wealthy real estate developer who bankrolled his son’s first political forays.
Early in their careers, both Mr. Spitzer and Mr. Cuomo worked as prosecutors for Robert M. Morgenthau, the legendary Manhattan district attorney, though Mr. Cuomo’s tenure was relatively brief, while Mr. Spitzer became chief of the rackets bureau.
But their relationship has been rocky at times.
In 2000, Mr. Spitzer complained publicly that Mr. Cuomo had taken over — and taken credit for — his efforts to control hand-gun sales.
Mr. Spitzer did not endorse Mr. Cuomo until after he won the Democratic primary for attorney general, which some believe rankled Mr. Cuomo.
The two men have become polite and mutually complimentary, if not warm; George Arzt, a political consultant who has worked closely with both, describes them as cordial.
But, he said, “the relationship will not get any better after this.”
Mr. Cuomo, known as a media-seeking missile during his days as federal housing czar, has kept a much lower profile as attorney general.
He did not hold a news conference to publicize his findings, instead putting out a three-sentence statement saying basically, “We were asked to investigate, and we did.”
During last year’s campaign, Mr. Cuomo promised voters that he was no longer the brash young man who had served as an enforcer for his father, Gov. Mario M. Cuomo.
Or even the Andrew Cuomo who was accused of arrogance when he unsuccessfully challenged the party favorite, H. Carl McCall, for the Democratic nomination for governor five years ago.
Instead, Mr. Cuomo portrayed himself as humbled by hard knocks, which included his highly public divorce from Kerry Kennedy.
The way he handled the Spitzer/Bruno investigation not only allows Mr. Cuomo to prove he has changed; it also lets him position himself as a real reformer, said Hank Sheinkopf, a political consultant who has advised Mr. Cuomo’s past opponents.
“He’s much smarter and uses power a lot better,” Mr. Sheinkopf said.
“He’s showing patience.”
Although New York’s attorney general is elected, not appointed, and in theory can oppose the governor, in practice such clashes have been rare.
Even Mr. Spitzer, in his two terms as attorney general, seemed to spend far more time and effort prosecuting Wall Street firms than policing the Pataki administration.
But in his campaign for governor, Mr. Spitzer vowed to clean up Albany, as did Mr. Cuomo.
John Marino, who worked for Mr. Cuomo’s father and knows Mr. Spitzer, acknowledged that the two had had some problems, but insists that they have been on friendlier terms in recent times.
At a Labor Day breakfast last year, “they were talking about stuff I don’t know anything about, Nascar and cars," he said.
Still, Mr. Marino added, "They are now in jobs that make things more difficult."
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/28/nyregion...&oref=login
THE NEW YORK TIMES
Op-Ed Contributor
"An Apology From Albany"
By ELIOT SPITZER
Published: July 29, 2007
Albany
WE made mistakes.
Though two independent investigations proved that no illegal activity occurred on my watch, it is crystal clear that what members of my administration did was wrong — no ifs, ands or buts.
I have apologized to Joe Bruno, the Senate majority leader, and now I want to apologize to all New Yorkers.
What you’ve been reading about in the papers and watching on television this week is not what we are about.
In fact, it represents just the opposite.
On my first day in office, I brought my staff together and told them what our guiding principles must be:
“First, we’re going to fight for what we believe in."
"And second, we’re going to maintain the highest ethical standards while doing it.”
Over the past few weeks, two members of my administration forgot that second principle — creating an appearance that the State Police were being used inappropriately.
As soon as this became clear, we acted immediately and decisively, suspending one of my longtime advisers indefinitely and transferring the other out of the governor’s office.
These steps were not taken lightly.
Both of these people have served New York with distinction for decades.
But the message was simple: even though they didn’t break the law, they forgot what we were about, and that won’t be tolerated.
The worst thing that could happen now would be for this to stop our progress, preventing us from building on our many successes of the past six months: health insurance for every child; historic investment in our schools tied to accountability; the largest property tax cut in history; ethics, lobbying and campaign finance reform; breaking the impasse at ground zero; and a 20 percent cut in workers’ compensation rates that will save New York businesses $1 billion and make our state more competitive.
Albany had long been mired in gridlock, but we are changing that.
Working together with the Senate and Assembly, we have managed to make remarkable progress — and we are on the brink of so much more.
There are two ways this can go.
We can get bogged down in partisan politics that serve only to distract us from the business at hand — the kind of head-hunting that we’re beginning to see for people in my administration who were cleared by these investigations.
Or we can move forward and pick up where we left off, addressing the long list of issues and challenges that matter to all New Yorkers — which are just as important today as they were last week.
So let us keep our eye on the ball and focus our energy and our resources on the needs of New Yorkers — fighting for a revitalized economy, more jobs, lower health care costs, better schools and lower taxes.
We will renew those two guiding principles I spoke about on my first day in office.
We will continue to fight vigorously to change the status quo on behalf of all New Yorkers.
I’m never going to apologize for that.
But we must recognize that this effort will succeed only if our means for changing the status quo are as honorable as our ends.
Eliot Spitzer is the governor of New York.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/29/opinion/29spitzer.html
Op-Ed Contributor
"An Apology From Albany"
By ELIOT SPITZER
Published: July 29, 2007
Albany
WE made mistakes.
Though two independent investigations proved that no illegal activity occurred on my watch, it is crystal clear that what members of my administration did was wrong — no ifs, ands or buts.
I have apologized to Joe Bruno, the Senate majority leader, and now I want to apologize to all New Yorkers.
What you’ve been reading about in the papers and watching on television this week is not what we are about.
In fact, it represents just the opposite.
On my first day in office, I brought my staff together and told them what our guiding principles must be:
“First, we’re going to fight for what we believe in."
"And second, we’re going to maintain the highest ethical standards while doing it.”
Over the past few weeks, two members of my administration forgot that second principle — creating an appearance that the State Police were being used inappropriately.
As soon as this became clear, we acted immediately and decisively, suspending one of my longtime advisers indefinitely and transferring the other out of the governor’s office.
These steps were not taken lightly.
Both of these people have served New York with distinction for decades.
But the message was simple: even though they didn’t break the law, they forgot what we were about, and that won’t be tolerated.
The worst thing that could happen now would be for this to stop our progress, preventing us from building on our many successes of the past six months: health insurance for every child; historic investment in our schools tied to accountability; the largest property tax cut in history; ethics, lobbying and campaign finance reform; breaking the impasse at ground zero; and a 20 percent cut in workers’ compensation rates that will save New York businesses $1 billion and make our state more competitive.
Albany had long been mired in gridlock, but we are changing that.
Working together with the Senate and Assembly, we have managed to make remarkable progress — and we are on the brink of so much more.
There are two ways this can go.
We can get bogged down in partisan politics that serve only to distract us from the business at hand — the kind of head-hunting that we’re beginning to see for people in my administration who were cleared by these investigations.
Or we can move forward and pick up where we left off, addressing the long list of issues and challenges that matter to all New Yorkers — which are just as important today as they were last week.
So let us keep our eye on the ball and focus our energy and our resources on the needs of New Yorkers — fighting for a revitalized economy, more jobs, lower health care costs, better schools and lower taxes.
We will renew those two guiding principles I spoke about on my first day in office.
We will continue to fight vigorously to change the status quo on behalf of all New Yorkers.
I’m never going to apologize for that.
But we must recognize that this effort will succeed only if our means for changing the status quo are as honorable as our ends.
Eliot Spitzer is the governor of New York.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/29/opinion/29spitzer.html
THE NEW YORK OBSERVER
"Goo-Goos Ready to Join the Spitzer Chorus"
by Azi Paybarah
Published: July 30, 2007
Citizens Union, Common Cause and several other good-government groups who have been conspicuously absent from the conversation about Eliot Spitzer's staff problems are about to weigh in.
They're working on a joint statement about the Joe Bruno affair that could be released later today or early tomorrow, according to a person working on it.
Recent precedent suggests that what the groups say is more than an academic exercise.
Former comptroller Alan Hevesi, you may recall, suffered badly in his struggle to hang on to his statewide post when the good government groups abandoned him.
http://www.observer.com/2007/goo-goos-are-almost-ready
"Goo-Goos Ready to Join the Spitzer Chorus"
by Azi Paybarah
Published: July 30, 2007
Citizens Union, Common Cause and several other good-government groups who have been conspicuously absent from the conversation about Eliot Spitzer's staff problems are about to weigh in.
They're working on a joint statement about the Joe Bruno affair that could be released later today or early tomorrow, according to a person working on it.
Recent precedent suggests that what the groups say is more than an academic exercise.
Former comptroller Alan Hevesi, you may recall, suffered badly in his struggle to hang on to his statewide post when the good government groups abandoned him.
http://www.observer.com/2007/goo-goos-are-almost-ready
THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:
"Goo Goos To Spitzer: Direct Your Staff To Testify"
As promised, Citizens Union of the City of New York, Common Cause/NY, the League of Women Voters of New York State, and NYPIRG have sent a letter to Gov. Eliot Spitzer urging him to have his aides cooperate with the state Ethics Commission investigation in the interest of "transparency and openness in state government."
"We write to urge you to direct all relevant staff members to fully cooperate with and testify before the New York State Ethics Commission regarding the events surrounding New York State Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno's use of state aircraft and misuse by your office of the State Police to provide documentation of Senator Bruno's activities."
"We support the Ethics Commission's review of this matter and believe this step is essential to answering lingering questions about this episode, allowing the air to be fully cleared and for your administration to move forward without distraction."
Interestingly, the letter makes no mention about what Spitzer himself should do if called on to testify.
These groups have all supported Spitzer to varying degrees, with Citizens Union going so far as to endorse him outright during last year's election.
They have appeared at Spitzer's side during many press conferences to chide Bruno and his fellow Republicans for failing to see things the governor's way.
They have acted as traveling spokespeople on Spitzer's behalf, spreading the gospel of his reform message across the state.
All of which only serves to make their abandonment of Spitzer on this issue all the more significant.
NOTE: Upon reflection, I realize the people who have joined the Spitzer administration are all from the environmental advocacy side of things as opposed to good government, with the exception of former NYPIRGian, Blair Horner, who, as noted earlier, now works for AG Andrew Cuomo.
Posted by Elizabeth Benjamin on July 30, 2007 4:27 PM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...u.html#comments
"Goo Goos To Spitzer: Direct Your Staff To Testify"
As promised, Citizens Union of the City of New York, Common Cause/NY, the League of Women Voters of New York State, and NYPIRG have sent a letter to Gov. Eliot Spitzer urging him to have his aides cooperate with the state Ethics Commission investigation in the interest of "transparency and openness in state government."
"We write to urge you to direct all relevant staff members to fully cooperate with and testify before the New York State Ethics Commission regarding the events surrounding New York State Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno's use of state aircraft and misuse by your office of the State Police to provide documentation of Senator Bruno's activities."
"We support the Ethics Commission's review of this matter and believe this step is essential to answering lingering questions about this episode, allowing the air to be fully cleared and for your administration to move forward without distraction."
Interestingly, the letter makes no mention about what Spitzer himself should do if called on to testify.
These groups have all supported Spitzer to varying degrees, with Citizens Union going so far as to endorse him outright during last year's election.
They have appeared at Spitzer's side during many press conferences to chide Bruno and his fellow Republicans for failing to see things the governor's way.
They have acted as traveling spokespeople on Spitzer's behalf, spreading the gospel of his reform message across the state.
All of which only serves to make their abandonment of Spitzer on this issue all the more significant.
NOTE: Upon reflection, I realize the people who have joined the Spitzer administration are all from the environmental advocacy side of things as opposed to good government, with the exception of former NYPIRGian, Blair Horner, who, as noted earlier, now works for AG Andrew Cuomo.
Posted by Elizabeth Benjamin on July 30, 2007 4:27 PM
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...u.html#comments
THE NEW YORK OBSERVER
"Maloney Debunks Special Counsel Powers"
by Azi Paybarah
Published: July 30, 2007
So I just spoke with one of Eliot Spitzer's top aides, Sean Patrick Maloney, who, along with another staffer, was named “special counsel” right around the time when the attorney general's investigations into the governor’s office began.
According to this story in the New York Post, the appointments may have been intended to thwart the investigation into whether other aides to the governor tried to use the state police to gather travel information about Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno.
Maloney, a lawyer who worked in the White House in Bill Clinton’s second term, said that in fact, his new title didn’t provide him any kind of shield.
He said that there's no such thing as after-the-fact attorney client privileges, meaning that he was, and still is, available to be questioned about anything he knew before he became a "special counsel."
(He has yet to be questioned by investigators.)
For what it's worth, Maloney's assessment squares with that of one legal expert I spoke to, who said that the only privileges that apply retroactively are marital ones.
(A wife can't be forced to testify about any conversations she had with her husband, ever, no matter when they got married.)
http://www.observer.com/2007/draft-maloney...-counsel-powers
"Maloney Debunks Special Counsel Powers"
by Azi Paybarah
Published: July 30, 2007
So I just spoke with one of Eliot Spitzer's top aides, Sean Patrick Maloney, who, along with another staffer, was named “special counsel” right around the time when the attorney general's investigations into the governor’s office began.
According to this story in the New York Post, the appointments may have been intended to thwart the investigation into whether other aides to the governor tried to use the state police to gather travel information about Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno.
Maloney, a lawyer who worked in the White House in Bill Clinton’s second term, said that in fact, his new title didn’t provide him any kind of shield.
He said that there's no such thing as after-the-fact attorney client privileges, meaning that he was, and still is, available to be questioned about anything he knew before he became a "special counsel."
(He has yet to be questioned by investigators.)
For what it's worth, Maloney's assessment squares with that of one legal expert I spoke to, who said that the only privileges that apply retroactively are marital ones.
(A wife can't be forced to testify about any conversations she had with her husband, ever, no matter when they got married.)
http://www.observer.com/2007/draft-maloney...-counsel-powers
NEWSDAY
"Legal experts aren't backing senators' call"
July 31, 2007
Mario Cuomo named the attorney general as a special prosecutor to take over the racially charged Tawana Brawley case when a local district attorney had a conflict of interest.
George Pataki had Attorney General Dennis Vacco take over a capital case from a Bronx district attorney who was averse to asking for the death penalty.
But the push by Senate Republicans yesterday to have Gov. Eliot Spitzer name Attorney General Andrew Cuomo as special prosecutor to probe possible crimes in the Spitzer administration's effort to discredit Republican Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno got negative reviews from legal experts yesterday, because it doesn't fit the pattern.
On one hand, some said, Cuomo already has prejudged the case by concluding last week that Spitzer's office engaged in no "unlawful" conduct.
On the other, Albany County District Attorney David Soares has no known conflict if he wanted to launch a probe, and an inquiry by the state Ethics Commission is already under way.
"I think we have institutions already in place to make this inquiry," said Eric Lane, a Hofstra University law professor who once served as a legislative counsel in Albany.
"In my view, it's a waste of time and absolutely unnecessary at this point to name Cuomo."
"I think it's a terrible idea," said Stephen Gillers, a New York University Law School criminal-law expert.
In New York, the attorney general typically does not have criminal jurisdiction, including the power to subpoena witnesses or question them before a grand jury.
The governor has virtually unlimited power under the state constitution and a section of the Executive Law to confer that jurisdiction in a particular case.
Senate advocates of the idea argued yesterday in a letter to Spitzer that Cuomo's report last week did not include testimony from two top Spitzer aides - Darren Dopp and Richard Baum - who refused to be interviewed.
Naming Cuomo as special prosecutor would give him the power to subpoena them, potentially changing his conclusions.
Spitzer rebuffed the idea in a statement.
Lane said that new facts might indeed lead to different conclusions, but pointed out that the Ethics Commission also has subpoena power, as does the Senate itself.
"The ethics board is already going on; they'll find the facts and they have the power to make a criminal referral," he said.
Gillers thinks Cuomo's office erred by reaching a conclusion to exculpate Spitzer before it heard from the aides.
"Cuomo's office has committed itself to a position," he said.
"If the reason to appoint an outside counsel now is to ensure that there's a full airing of the facts, you don't want to ask somebody who's already jumped the gun to say there was nothing unlawful."
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/state/ny...enews-headlines
"Legal experts aren't backing senators' call"
July 31, 2007
Mario Cuomo named the attorney general as a special prosecutor to take over the racially charged Tawana Brawley case when a local district attorney had a conflict of interest.
George Pataki had Attorney General Dennis Vacco take over a capital case from a Bronx district attorney who was averse to asking for the death penalty.
But the push by Senate Republicans yesterday to have Gov. Eliot Spitzer name Attorney General Andrew Cuomo as special prosecutor to probe possible crimes in the Spitzer administration's effort to discredit Republican Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno got negative reviews from legal experts yesterday, because it doesn't fit the pattern.
On one hand, some said, Cuomo already has prejudged the case by concluding last week that Spitzer's office engaged in no "unlawful" conduct.
On the other, Albany County District Attorney David Soares has no known conflict if he wanted to launch a probe, and an inquiry by the state Ethics Commission is already under way.
"I think we have institutions already in place to make this inquiry," said Eric Lane, a Hofstra University law professor who once served as a legislative counsel in Albany.
"In my view, it's a waste of time and absolutely unnecessary at this point to name Cuomo."
"I think it's a terrible idea," said Stephen Gillers, a New York University Law School criminal-law expert.
In New York, the attorney general typically does not have criminal jurisdiction, including the power to subpoena witnesses or question them before a grand jury.
The governor has virtually unlimited power under the state constitution and a section of the Executive Law to confer that jurisdiction in a particular case.
Senate advocates of the idea argued yesterday in a letter to Spitzer that Cuomo's report last week did not include testimony from two top Spitzer aides - Darren Dopp and Richard Baum - who refused to be interviewed.
Naming Cuomo as special prosecutor would give him the power to subpoena them, potentially changing his conclusions.
Spitzer rebuffed the idea in a statement.
Lane said that new facts might indeed lead to different conclusions, but pointed out that the Ethics Commission also has subpoena power, as does the Senate itself.
"The ethics board is already going on; they'll find the facts and they have the power to make a criminal referral," he said.
Gillers thinks Cuomo's office erred by reaching a conclusion to exculpate Spitzer before it heard from the aides.
"Cuomo's office has committed itself to a position," he said.
"If the reason to appoint an outside counsel now is to ensure that there's a full airing of the facts, you don't want to ask somebody who's already jumped the gun to say there was nothing unlawful."
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/state/ny...enews-headlines
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