Sunday, April 10, 2011

NY Corrupt Party Boss Crowley 7896








The Post Has Reported What True News Said Last Month That the Cronyism Still Plagues the NY Court's 
The NYP Goes Back to 30 Years to Journalist Jack Newfield Investigation of the Queens and Brooklyn Surrogate Courts, They Should Have Went Back to Tammany Hall or the 1930's When Mayor Fiorello H. La Guardia believed it was control of the Surrogate's Court of New York County, more than any other factor, that kept the Tammany Hall political machine alive
Cronyism still plagues New York’s courts (NYP) ‘Patronage, favoritism and nepotism are still a way of life for New York’s judiciary,” wrote then-Post reporter Maggie Haberman in January 2000. Seventeen years later, it seems very little has changed — at least in Queens.  The Observer reports that relatives of Queens Democratic boss Rep. Joe Crowley are again bellying up to the state Supreme Court patronage trough — four years after anti-nepotism rules pushed them away.  Back in 2011, Joe’s cousins Bernadette and Theresa won lucrative court assignments, even as their sister Margaret served as a clerk in the judicial district — a conflict forbidden by court system rules and soon halted.  But when Margaret left her (well-paid) post in 2015, family members began getting court appointments almost immediately.  Bernadette Crowley and her husband and law partner Gregory Gina (and Margaret, who’s now in private practice) have won various well-compensated posts as court evaluators and/or legal guardians.  It’s not forbidden by the rules, but it doesn’t smell clean, does it?  The anti-nepotism reforms followed on years of Post reporting by Haberman, Allen Salkin and the late Jack Newfield.  Back in 1998, they found that the vast majority of lawyers receiving repeat Queens Surrogate Court assignments had direct ties to the county Democratic Party and its then-leader, Rep. Thomas Manton.  Newfield later noted that Manton’s own firm had received more than $400,000 in court patronage from 1997 to 2000. The Crowley clan had similar success.  Those exposés (Brooklyn had its own outrages) helped force a 2002 review by the state’s then-Chief Judge Judith Kaye that found rampant cronyism in the Supreme and Civil Court systems. The “cure” included the rules that the Crowley clan got caught violating in 2011. But those reforms plainly didn’t go far enough. Newfield’s charge that the “patronage courtrooms in Brooklyn and Queens” might as well be “rigged casinos in Las Vegas” still rings true At a minimum, it’s surely time for current Chief Judge Janet DiFiore to lead a new review. The rising odor is a sign the stables need cleaning again. * U.S. Rep. Joe Crowley’s relatives who have lucrative court assignments thanks to him shows that the anti-nepotism reforms plainly did not go far enough and at a minimum, it’s time for current Chief Judge Janet DiFiore to lead a new review, the Post writes.


Crowley When It Comes to Court Appointments All In the Family  

Family of Queens Democratic Boss Snatches Up Supreme Court Appointments (NYO) Relatives of Congressman Joseph Crowley, chairman of Queens Democratic Party, are once again picking up appointments and payments from the borough’s Supreme Court—six years after anti-nepotism rules banned members of the clan from profiting off the system.  A minor scandal broke out in 2011 when reports arose that jurists in the borough had handed out lucrative temporary work to Bernadette and Theresa Crowley, cousins of the party boss and sisters to Queens Councilman Elizabeth Crowley, at the same time that their other sister Margaret held a six-figure clerking gig under Supreme Court Justice Darrell Gavrin. State strictures forbid lawyers from getting court-ordered assignments in a judicial district where a member of their nuclear family holds any moderately well-compensated position.  And so began a four year hiatus for the Crowleys from Queens Supreme Court. But state payroll records indicate that Margaret Crowley left her job a few months into 2015, and her family members began scooping up appointments from Supreme Court judges almost immediately afterward. In July of that year, a judge named Bernadette Crowley guardian ad litem in a foreclosure case, a position given when a defendant is absent, senile or a minor, and in which the attorney attempts to locate a person capable of answering the suit. In December 2015, another judge designated her the legal guardian of a mentally incapacitated woman.  Meanwhile, her husband and law partner Gregory Gina snagged three judicial appointments as a court evaluator—an attorney who determines whether a person requires a legal guardian—that July and October. Records indicate Gina had never received any assignment from any court in New York State before or since.  In 2016, Bernadette Crowley received two appointments as court evaluator. Margaret Crowley, now in private practice, got named a court evaluator herself in cases in December of last year and in February of this year.   These jobs do not violate court rules—but they do fit into a well-documented pattern of the Queens judicial system doling out appointments to attorneys tied to the local Democratic machine.  County political organizations, and their chairmen, hold tremendous sway over the nominating process which selects and elects candidates to the state Supreme Court. In theory, New York’s partisan system gives primary voters the opportunity to pull the lever in September for their preferred delegates to the judicial convention—but in reality, the delegates are usually insiders handpicked by machine leadership, and often run unopposed, meaning their names do not even appear on the ballot.  The conventions thus serve as little more than ceremony, with the delegates merely anointing the candidates the County organization has already ordained. In deep-blue regions like Queens, securing the Democratic line is tantamount to victory, and so jurists are indebted to the chairman and the machine for their jobs.  Neither the congressman nor his cousins responded to requests for comment.  The Queens party boss is a rising figure nationally, having delivered a speech in support of Hillary Clinton at the Democratic convention last July. In November, his colleagues voted him chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, making him the fourth-ranked member of the minority delegation, three slots below Leader Nancy Pelosi.


Another Judge Faces Ethics Probe
Judge handling estate of Durst’s missing wife faces ethics probe (NYP) The Manhattan judge overseeing the estate of Robert Durst’s long-missing wife, Kathie, is facing a potential ethics probe by the State Commission on Judicial Conduct.  Bob Abrams, attorney for Kathie Durst’s sister, Carol Bamonte, has reported Surrogate’s Court Judge Nora Anderson to the commission for refusing to investigate conflict-of-interest claims.  Kathie Durst was the first wife of the eccentric real-estate heir.  She vanished from the couple’s Westchester weekend home in 1982. Her former husband remains the only suspect in her disappearance and is currently awaiting a murder trial in Los Angeles over a friend’s 2000 death.  Abrams said in a letter to the commission Tuesday that Anderson appointed a lawyer, Charles Cap­etanakis, as guardian to protect Kathie’s interests in a proceeding to have her ­declared dead.  Abrams grew suspicious of the report and learned that Capetanakis had ties to Stephen Holm, an attorney for Robert Durst who runs a foundation with Robert’s second wife, Debrah Lee Charatan, his letter says.  Capetanakis’ firm and Holm were co-defendants in a $10 million legal malpractice lawsuit that was dismissed in 2015.



Queens Boss Crowley Plays the Field in BP Race
In State Races He Picks the Candidate in Special Elections
Campaign 2012
Campaign Notebook(NYDN) * Republican state Senate candidate Bob Cohen has been sued by New York City for allegedly allowing drugs and gambling in buildings he owns in Manhattan, but his spokesman calls him a “hero,” the News says: * It looks like Congressman Joe Crowley is truly playing the Queens Borough President field after all. At former Councilwoman Melinda Katz‘s kickoff event last night, Mr. Crowley told Politicker he’s “happy to lend our name” to Councilwoman Leroy Comrie‘s campaign kickoff event too, and he’s in talks to do so. Additionally, Mr. Crowley said he would attend the event for all “Democrats in good standing who ask, who are serious about running.* "[Melinda Katz] said [Rep. Joe] Crowley’s appearance at her event should not be interpreted as an early endorsement from the Queens Democratic Party." [Lisa Colangelo] * Curtis Sliwa Describes His Role on Melinda Katz’s Campaign(NYO)


Crowley: We Don't Fix Tickets in Queens

Queens Democratic Leader Joe Crowley: We don’t operate that way in Queens County, in terms of trying to set people up for the purposes of diverting votes
 

Queens Democratic Leader Matty Troy (1973): They’ll put another Italian into the race to cut Gene's [Mastropieri's] vote and I'll find a guy named Abe Schwartz and get his name on the ballot to cut Feinblatt. Soon there'll be 14 Italians and 14 Jews running. 
The only difference is the reformers will get people to run by telling them they're doing their bit for good government and I have to get jobs for the losers I put up. Theyll put another Italian into the race to cut Gene's [Mastropieri's] vote and I'll find a guy named Abe Schwartz and get his name on the ballot to cut Feinblatt. Soon there'll be 14 Italians and 14 Jews running. The only difference is the reformers will get people to run by telling them they're doing their bit for good government and I have to get jobs for the losers I put up. (Gatemouth, Roomeight) "Crowley: No Stalking Horse In NY-6 www.capitaltonight.com


DOI Goes After the Bronx Surrogate Court, Why Not the Queens Surrogate Court Which is A Bank to Queens Boss Crowley

Lawyer, Hired by Bronx Surrogate, Wore Wire in Cleanup Effort (Weisslawny) John J. Reddy Jr., who was hired by Bronx Surrogate Lee L. Holzman to clean up a scandal in his court, wore a wire as a part of a 2009 investigation conducted by the New York City Department of Investigation, according to sources.

 

Queens Surrogate Court Crowley's Bank

Today's Queens Democratic machines still use the Surrogate Court (True News) *   A Court, Not Votes, Sustains a Political Machine in Queens (NYT)

Surrogate's Court And Why It Should Go(True News)

 

 

 

Crowley The Cash Cow(Queens Politics)


Crowley Money Machine Fueled By 100 Year Old Unchanged Tammany Hall Rules and Laws
Crowley Lives in Virginia
Boss Joe Crowley and his mini-Me Evan Stavisky the president of the Parkside Group have even more to lose than the Brooklyn machine if Turner wins.  They have been racking in millions from the pols and Queens courts.  Like the Brooklyn machine, Crowley and Stavisky have lost a lot of races in the past few years but the media never notices.  In 2009 they lost 5 of the 6 city council candidates they supported in the primary.  The way both the borough machines prosper is in there total control of incumbent elections, judicial elections, the Board of elections and the election law which was written 100 years ago by Tammany Hall leaders.  Crowley uses the special election law to control who gets elected in Queens. State lawmakers leave in retirement in the middle or their term or go to jail also in the middle of their term.   If Crowley's pick for Weiner seat Weprin loses it will be such an embarrassment to the Democratic Party that it will put pressure on Albany to change the special election law that the NYT calls Scams and Undemocratic. Crowley will be attacked by fellow democrats in Washington who would say that the winner of a contested Democratic Primary would never lose in such a safe democratic seat.

Stavisky Organized Crime Looting of Government and Politics are Enabled By the Press and the Queens Organization
Maybe reporters that flack for the Parkside Group will begin asking if they can win the big races. More  and More Flack   Last year they were paid over $2 million by the Democratic State Senate PAC to lose control of the senate.  They were in the middle of the City Council member items slush fund corruption.  Perhaps a newspaper will print a story about how Evan Stavisky wife is the Democratic leader from Rockland County while Evan is a district leader in 26th Assembly District in Queens.


The Queen's Politburo
One Corrupt Political Boss Will Pick the Next Congressman

Tammany's Crowley

NY's Election Law not Albany's ethic disclosure laws are what keeps our elected officials corrupt.  One Irish pol who never gets any negative press compared to Vito Lopez will because of the Weiner's perfect storm will get to pick Brooklyn Jewish seat. If Weiner was leaving a city council seat Boss Crowley would would not be able to choose the winner.  The Charter changes put into effect after Donald Manes who was Queens Boss before Crowley killed himself after being caught in the Koch's administration corruption, took the power away from political bosses to pick the parties nominee.   

Good government groups and the media have stayed away from election law reform.  True News will use the opportunity of the Weiner replacement special to investigate the corruption of the Queens machine.  Crowley epicenter of corruption is the Queens courts, esp the Surrogate Court which has had a history of corruption. Every time Crowley tries for a leadership post in Washington it seems his fund raising becomes the focus of an investigation.

A Jailed Elected Official is An Opportunity to the Queeens Machine
We will look at why so many Queens elected officials have been indicted or are under serious criminal investigations.  Already convicted in the last couple of years Alan Hevesi (in jail), Brian McLaughlin (in Jail), Tony Seminerio (died in jail) and Hiram Monserrate. When McLaughlin, Seminerio and Monserrate were forced to resign it was Crowley who picked there successor by giving them the Democratic nomination in the special. When When picked Peralta to take Monserrate he also go to pick Maya to replace Peralta in the assembly.  Crowley also controls without opposition who becomes a judge, who becomes surrogate and who becomes the district attorney.  The Queens County Leader is has already pick the replacements for Assemblywomen Pheffer and Mayersohn.  Jo Ann Shapiro for Pheffer and Mike Simanowitz for Meyerson.


Newfield and Wayne Barrett
Dead Wood: NY's Investigative Reporters
Not since the death or old school investigative report Jack Newfield in 2004 has any reporter in New York covered how the corrupt Queens Democratic Machine use the courts as there personal bank.  Today over a decade later nothing has changed.  The new Queens Surrogate Kelly was like Nahman elected without a primary.  Today's Queens Democratic machines still use the Surrogate Court as their personal bank.  All that has happen has Crowley has replaced Manton.  Crowley Bolz and Reich all receive most of the loot from the Queens Surrogate Court.  The only difference is Newfield is long gone and the clueless, inexperienced and none caring corporate journalist of today report political gossip, don't do investigative pieces and only write about corruption when the U.S. Attorney indicts a pol.


NYP and Daily News Both Being Sued By Judges
Have the lawsuits against the NYP and Daily News scared those papers away from corrupt judges? Errol Louis and the Daily News are both being sued about an investigative story Lewis wrote about Judge Martin. What interesting about both of this cases is that one lawyer is suing both papers. Howard Schwab from Lester Schwab Katz & Dwyer LLP.


Newfield Before Today's Corporate Hired Guns Reporters on the Corrupt Queens Democratic Mob

In 1998 Newfield reported that Frank Bolz III, chairman of the Queens Democratic Party's law committee, is the single biggest recipient of assignments from Nahman - collecting $178,050 for 47 paid guardianship appointments since 1992.  Bolz is the law partner of Queens Assemblyman Joseph Crowley's father and brother. Gerard Sweeney, Manton's former law partner and campaign treasurer, is the current counsel to the public administrator - appointed by Nahman. Sweeney's law partner, Michael Reich, is executive secretary of the Queens Democ-ratic organization and has received 27 real-estate receiverships from nine differ-ent Queens judges. In 2000 Newfield wrote "The law firm of Queens Democratic Party leader Tom Manton has received more than $400,000 in court patronage since 1997. One partner -- Frank Bolz -- heads the party's law committee. Another, Gerard Sweeney, is counsel to the public adminis-trator. A third, Mike Reich, is executive secretary of the Queens party organiza-tion. They should apply antitrust laws to Manton's Monopoly." The rule is that a lawyer can get only one assignment of more than $5,000 during any 12-month period. Records show that lawyers like Batra, Bolz and Harvey Green-berg get a lot of assignments for $4,800 each.



More Than A Majority of the Queens State Elected Officials Were Pick by the Party Boss, Not In Open Elections
Liberal Party 4 Sale
Crowley made a deal with Gov Paterson to give a government job to former State Senator John Sabini so Monserrate could walk into the senate.  Queens pols under investigation Congressman Meeks, State Senator Huntley and Smith.  Ray Harding convicted in the pension scandal gave Hevesi son Andrew his party line after a payoff. Assemblywoman Ann Margaret Carrozza quit after the media charged she live outside the city. Julissa Ferreras is under investigation for a non profit she rand for Monserrate. Both the Brooklyn pols indicted Kruger and Boyland were payoff by the company that paid Seminerio. Senator Toby Ann Stavisky was elected to the Senate in a special elections in 1999 after her husband died. Sen. Malcolm A. Smith won a special election in 2003.

 


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There been almost no investigation into the courts since Jack Newfield died in 2004

QUEENS COURT DOLES LEGAL BUSINESS TO DEM INSIDERS * DIRTY DOZEN' GRAB PATRONAGE $$$ A PATRONAGE DIRTY DOZEN'

 

Even in Liberal Educated Manhattan You Have to Be Political Connected to Run

Forget Open Elections Where Anyone Can Run
Micah Z. Kellner who won his Assembly seat with no serious opposition because he was given the Democratic nomination in the heavily Democratic Manhattan. In other words whoever get the Democratic Line in a special elections wins. Now Kellner and all of the other pols are pushing Dan Quart to get the Democratic nomination in another East Side Assembly District.  Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, State Senator Liz Krueger and Councilmembers Jessica Lappin & Dan Garodnick on the Steps of City Hall to endorse Dan Quart for New York State Assembly.  Manhattan which used to be the center of reform and good government is a closed operation, outsiders not welcomed. Even Liz Kruger was elected in a special election in 2002, where she was given the Democratic nomination by the party bosses.
 
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The City's Democratic Bosses Who Pick Judges Control Court Receiverships
When the Riverton apartments in Harlem faced foreclosure, a retired judge, Seymour Boyers, was paid $760,000 as receiver

Connected Lawyers Reap Foreclosure Benefits The foreclosure crisis has caused a surge in the number of court-appointed receivers for distressed properties in New York, and politically connected lawyers are benefiting.(NYT) *  Lawyers with political connections earn large fees recieving distressed NYC properties(The Real Deal)

Foreclosure Court Patronage Reaches Bloomberg's Deputy Mayor

Mark Lebow, husband of First Deputy Mayor Patricia Harris, has earned $352,000 as a court-appointed receiver of a distressed property since 2009. The New York Times says he is one of many politically-connected lawyers who get the lucrative receiverships from city judges. Mark Lebow was appointed by the mayor to the MTA Board which has also had problems with corrupt contractor CityTime. MTA dumps CityTime contactor from subway radio overhaul - NYPOST.com




Politically Connected Got Court $$$ 
Billy Thompson retired judge fathergot six cases
Dominick Calderoni, a law partner of State Senator Jeffrey D. Klein (6 receiverships)
Paul Vallone, a scion of one of Queens’s most powerful political families, who is expected to challenge Dan Halloran earned nearly $17,000 for one assignment * A ticket agent is suing Queens NYC Councilman Dan Halloran
Howard R. Vargas, a commissioner of the Taxi and Limousine Commission



Requiem For Heavyweight Political Machines?

Everyone knows about Ed Koch's desire to send a message to Obama about his Israel policy by helping Turner pull an upset over Weprin.  What has not been focused on is what effect a Weprin loss will have on exposing the weakness of the corrupt Democratic machine political leaders of both Brooklyn Vito Lopez and Queens Joe Crowley.  Both men control tiny groups of pols and consultants who grow rich by controlling political parties and the election law.  A Turner win will give newspapers, reforms and good government groups a chance to break up the corrupt Lopez and Crowley machines.  The embarrassment will be something to see.  Why keep corrupt political machines that cannot deliver votes?  It is crazy that a Turner  GOP win could have more impact on breaking up the corrupt machine, that newspaper editorials, reformers and good government group have failed at, making the NYC's political parties more democratic.  


Can Corrupt Boss Lopez Deliver the Vote?
Boss Lopez who is under federal investigation for use of government money to run his political organization the non profit Bushwick Senior Citizens. Lopez has it all on the line by supporting Weprin and Espinal in the 54AD.  Since Lopez does not have much support or troops in the Weiner district he is counting on the home club of Carl Kruger the Thomas Jefferson Club(TJ).  The Brooklyn machines has it work cut out for themselves since the first poll taken a couple of weeks ago just as the campaign was getting started showed Turner 6% ahead in Brooklyn.



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Old Bull Meade Esposito Had A Vote For His Guys
The TJ club is held together also by government funds pumped to them by Kruger and Lew FidlerLopez and the club has lost a lot of races in the past few years. Yassky for Comptroller, Kathleen Rice for AG, both surrogate court positions in Brooklyn and even his home council district.  Yet mayoral candidates keep meeting with Lopez and the TJ club in hopes of an endorsement.   Speaker Quinn keep sending member items to Lopez and the TJ Club trying to lock in their support.  
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The Political Bosses Smoke and Mirror Operations Will Be Exposed By Defeat 
A win by Turner and maybe even the clueless souls running for mayor might get it that the TJ clubs endorsement are not worth what they were in the old days when Meade Esposito and Tony Genovese. In other words a Turner win will make it clear that political machines can no longer deliver a vote. Lopez and Crowley play a smoke and mirror game.  Gaining their power from Tammany Hall election and party rules. If Lopez candidate loses in the 54AD it will be time to examine how much Williamsburg and Bushwick gentrification has cut into the Brooklyn Bosses ability to deliver his base.  
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Crowley Money Machine Fueled By 100 Year Old Unchanged Tammany Hall Rules and Laws
Crowley Lives in Virginia
Boss Joe Crowley and his mini-Me Evan Stavisky the president of the Parkside Group have even more to lose than the Brooklyn machine if Turner wins.  They have been racking in millions from the pols and Queens courts.  Like the Brooklyn machine, Crowley and Stavisky have lost a lot of races in the past few years but the media never notices.  In 2009 they lost 5 of the 6 city council candidates they supported in the primary.  The way both the borough machines prosper is in there total control of incumbent elections, judicial elections, the Board of elections and the election law which was written 100 years ago by Tammany Hall leaders.  Crowley uses the special election law to control who gets elected in Queens. State lawmakers leave in retirement in the middle or their term or go to jail also in the middle of their term.   If Crowley's pick for Weiner seat Weprin loses it will be such an embarrassment to the Democratic Party that it will put pressure on Albany to change the special election law that the NYT calls Scams and Undemocratic. Crowley will be attacked by fellow democrats in Washington who would say that the winner of a contested Democratic Primary would never lose in such a safe democratic seat.

Stavisky Organized Crime Looting of Government and Politics are Enabled By the Press and the Queens Organization
Maybe reporters that flack for the Parkside Group will begin asking if they can win the big races. More  and More Flack   Last year they were paid over $2 million by the Democratic State Senate PAC to lose control of the senate.  They were in the middle of the City Council member items slush fund corruption.  Perhaps a newspaper will print a story about how Evan Stavisky wife is the Democratic leader from Rockland County while Evan is a district leader in 26th Assembly District in Queens.



NYT is Suprised to Find Anger At Obama in the 9th District - Sitting Around the Office to Long Guys?

In the Race to Succeed Weiner, a Surprising Anger at Obama(NYT) The race has become something far more unsettling to Democrats: a referendum on the president and his party that is highlighting the surprisingly raw emotions of the electorate.  Weiner seat in GOP $ight Here Comes the Cash (NYP) * Firefighters endorse Dem Weprin for Weiner's seat (NYDN) * Turner Tells Weprin to Apologize to Ed Koch(NYO)The not-entirely dead NY Sun newspaper endorses  * NY-9: “The protest announced yesterday drew just three attendees.” [Colby Hamilton / WNYC]  * Before NY-9 Faceoff, Mayor Bloomberg Weighs In (NYDN) *Turner, Weprin have first debate in race for Weiner's seat(NYP)

 "If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position." Geraldine A. Ferraro

Is The New York Times Completely out of Touch With New York City? (Brooklyn Ron)

 

Azi Paybarah (Twitter)


NY Political Parties for Sale: Ballot Corruption by Political Mob Bosses

The leaders of New York’s Political Mob are the City’s party leaders who exist with the Tammany Hall power control template, unchallenged and unaccountable to the voters in New York’s broken down election system. Their soldiers are campaign consultants who also operate as lobbyists and are as accountable to the voters as Bernie Madoff was to his investors. In this war the 4th estate has limited itself to covering only the horse race and simply reprinting the candidate’s press releases. The press coverage of politics is amazingly similar to the SEC reviews of Madoff’s records over the years. New York’s Political Mob Wars

Pay to Play Indy Party

Indy Party chief in jam over wife loan The wife of the chairman of the state Independence Party solicited and received a $10,000 business loan from a candidate who got the party's coveted endorsement days later. (NYP) * MacKay and Co. overturned local recommendations in Western NY, favoring incumbents over challengers. * MacKay Under Fire * Frank vs. Frank, Take II

Pay to Play Liberal Party
Ray Harding, former head of NY Liberal party, pleads guilty to taking $800K in pension fund scandal

Pay to Play GOP
Indictment Over Bloomberg Campaign Funds (NYT)

Working Families Party

Working Families Party Documents Subpoenaed - NYTimes.com * All In The Family Part 1 * Cuomo declines Working Families ballot line - Crain's New York ...

Ballot Corruption

True News has been reporting that ballot lines are for sale for two years while the good government groups have hidden from the issues. Organized Crime Politics Ballot Lines for Sale (TN) * Tammany’s Ballot Control Again and Again (TN) * Organized Crime Politics - Episode Two: The Rigged Election System

Pay to Play Lopez Vito power! Lopez got big campaign cash from winning G’point Hospital bidder (Brooklyn Paper) More on Vito's Corruption from True News

Pay to Play Crowley
Queens Crap: Rep. Crowley under investigation *
Another New York Party Leader Under Investigation
Congressman and Queens Democratic Leader Joe Crowley

Qns. Rep. Crowley faces Wall St. donation probe (NYP)

Is Haggerty the E. Howard Hunt of the Bloomberg Operation? Frank Morano wants the Board of Elections to investigate the Indy Party.

City Program for Homeless Is Criticized The city comptroller, John C. Liu, says a program that delivers subsidies for housing suffers from lax oversight. (NYT)


Dems and GOP Run the Corrupt Board of Elections


The Daily News Says Big Change at BOE

A Vote For Big Changes At The NYC Board Of Elections?

True News Says Some Old Bull Shit

Throw The Bums Out: Board of Elections Bozos Have to Go!

So As We Were Saying... George Gonzalez Is The New NYC Board Of Elections Chief: Updated

Tuesday, July 20, 2010


NY Political Parties for Sale: Ballot Corruption


NY Political Parties for Sale: Ballot Corruption by Political Mob Bosses

The leaders of New York’s Political Mob are the City’s party leaders who exist with the Tammany Hall power control template, unchallenged and unaccountable to the voters in New York’s broken down election system. Their soldiers are campaign consultants who also operate as lobbyists and are as accountable to the voters as Bernie Madoff was to his investors. In this war the 4th estate has limited itself to covering only the horse race and simply reprinting the candidate’s press releases. The press coverage of politics is amazingly similar to the SEC reviews of Madoff’s records over the years. New York’s Political Mob Wars

Pay to Play Indy Party

Indy Party chief in jam over wife loan The wife of the chairman of the state Independence Party solicited and received a $10,000 business loan from a candidate who got the party's coveted endorsement days later. (NYP) * MacKay and Co. overturned local recommendations in Western NY, favoring incumbents over challengers. * MacKay Under Fire * Frank vs. Frank, Take II

Pay to Play Liberal Party
Ray Harding, former head of NY Liberal party, pleads guilty to taking $800K in pension fund scandal
Pay to Play GOP
Indictment Over Bloomberg Campaign Funds (NYT)

Ballot Corruption

True News has been reporting that ballot lines are for sale for two years while the good government groups have hidden from the issues. Organized Crime Politics Ballot Lines for Sale (TN) * Tammany’s Ballot Control Again and Again (TN) * Organized Crime Politics - Episode Two: The Rigged Election System

The Political Party Puppet Show

Opposing Campaigns, With One Unlikely Link (NYT) Roger J. Stone Jr., a Republican political consultant, is working with one candidate for New York governor behind the scenes while advising another. * Is Roger Stone Double Dipping?

Paladino Hires Haggerty * John Haggerty Indicted Over Bloomberg Campaign Funds - NYTimes.com
Bloomberg's Recent Independence Party Donations

NY Political Parties for Sale: Ballot Corruption (True News)

 

 

 

Organized Crime Politics - Episode Two: The Rigged Election System


Competive Elections + Press/Public Outrage = Change and Action

NY's Falling Voter Participation



Organized Crime Politics Ballot Lines for Sale


Tammany’s Ballot Control Again and Again



New York’s Political Mob Wars


The Real Campaign is to Suppress Challengers

 



Continuing contempt of court(NYP Ed)

Behind The Working Families Field Operation: Candidates Pay Salaried WFP Employees As Independent Contractors, In Addition To Data & Field Services (CHN)

Leftist Parties in New York Have New Appeal(NYT)

 

 

Will Corrupt Queens Boss Crowley Pick the Next Congressman? . . . A lame duck

The DN argues against a special election, which would enable major party bosses to pick the candidates. 

The State's Tammany Hall election law is never included in the media or good government groups reform agenda.  Even with several special election scheduled this year besides the Weiner seat.  Over the years many of the state's elected officials were chosen by party bosses, including Carl Kruger who has $2 million in his election account and never has faced a democratic challenger or serious race.

For Weiner’s Successor, Perhaps, Lame-Duck Status (NYT) * Place Holder for Seat Young and ambitious Democrats may not get a chance to run for Weiner's seat, as Queens Dems look for a placeholder who could give up the seat in redistricting next year. Queens Republicans, however, want a strong challenger who could win it and hold it *  Anthony Weiner's resignation put onus on Gov. Cuomo to insure voters, not bosses, pick his successor(NYDN Ed)

 

Last week the NYT said A Court, Not Votes, Sustains a Political Machine in Queens. True News said it was much more than the court that was fueling that political machine.  Yesterday the NYT wrote an article on when is a blogger a journalist. Today True News looks a Queens local newspapers that have not only turn they back on journalism but have become partners, house organs with the Boss Crowley’s political machine.



Soviet Queens Pravda 
A Takeover Of Journalism by Lobbyist and Politicians


In queens the local newspaper, the political machine and government all work together.  The paper do not preform the role of checks and balances that Founding Father envisioned to protect the people from the government and ensure a working democracy.  Instead Queens local newspapers have gamed journalism to operate as a co-machine in Queens.  They work in campaigns and are lobbyist to the same elected officials they help elect or reelect.  The papers operate as the house organ for the Democratic  party to controling who becomes gets elected or becomes a judge in Queens county.  The judges in turn send the legal ads worth tens of thousands dollars to the local papers.

At the heart of the queens newspaper conspiracy is Michael Nussbaum.  He wears many hats.  Executive V.P. and Associate Publisher TRIBCO owners of the Queens Tribune and several other papers and magazines in that borough.  Nussbaum owns the papers along with Congressman Ackerman and Mike Schenkler who services as publisher of the operation.  Schenkler calls Nussbaum the driving force behind  Multi-Media, which he calls the papers printing, promotion arm.  What Schenkler does not tell us is that Multi-Media does campaign printing for elected officials like State Senator Shirley Huntley, Assemblyman Edward Braunstein and Councilman Peter Koo.  One of Nussbaum papers hired the wife of Councilman Leroy Comrie Marcia to run their southeast queens local edition.  

A queens pol says Nussbaum and a large political consultant lobbyist group work together often in printing for candidates. Parkside is run by Evan Stavisky who works for almost all the candidates backed by the queens machine.  Stavisky moved into the big time by working for Brian Mclaughlin and many of the organization that led to the former queens congressman conviction.  Stavisky was in the middle of the city council slush fund non investigation where Quinn and the others walked away untouched. n 2005 in a NYT article Dick Dadey executive director of Citizens Union expressed concern about what he called "a growing problem" of council members being lobbied by firms that serve as political consultants to many of them.  It not just the local queens newspapers that control what becomes news.  Most of the political writers in NYC know but have not written how Evan lives in Rockland County where his wife is an elected county democratic leader and Evan services an elected district leader in Queens.  It is a deal reporters who do not understand politics make to endure that they continue to get news tips from Stavisky. Stavisky is part of the permanent government.  In 2009 he lost 5 out of 6 council races.  In 2010 he was paid over $2 million by the senate democrats who lost their majority.  This year he lost a congressional district which was 4 to 1 democratic to a republican. 


Newspaper V.P. Nussbaum is not only campaign consultant he is also a lobbyist for developers like Patrick Thompson who is trying to clear FAA clearance to finally redevelop the illegally partially torn down 20 years ago RKO Keith.  Schenkler wrote that Nussbaum “brings us Asian clients and friends. His network includes the very top government officials and business giants in the Far East as well as their counterparts here in our country.”    If you want to know where Nussbaum gets his asian clients all you have to do is check with one of the other papers owner Congressman Ackerman.  The congressman is a member and the former Chair of the Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific which has oversight on U.S. policy towards nations in Asia.  Ackerman has already show that he knows how to use the paper to benefit himself and his partners.  He was Nussbaum papers publisher and weekly columnist until 1978 when he was elected to the state senate. Ackerman's wife is also the publisher of the Hill in Washington DC.


Nussbaum Was Convicted for Bribery in 1987 of Soliciting a $250000 Bribe for Borough President Donald Manes
Nussbaum  was a member of Queens machine before he became a journalism.  He was a public relations consultant who was found guilty for collaborating with Donald R. Manes, the Queens Borough President, in soliciting a $250,000 bribe for the awarding of a cable-television franchise in Queens.  It was all part of massive scandal that U.S. Attorney Giuliani started to get him into the mayor's office, that involved Mayor Koch, the city's Parking Violations Bureau, the death of the Queens Borough President, judges, the Bronx county leader and a tangled.  Nussbaum conviction was later overturned by a higher court. The appeals court ruled that Mr. Nussbaum could not be charged with bribery because he was not a public official, and that there was insufficient evidence linking Mr. Manes - the only public official implicated - to any bribery plot.  Manes killed himself as another scandal CitySourse began to point to him.


Queens Courier Owner Schneps Follows Nussbaum into the Political Printing Business
It is clear that Ackerman and Nussbaum are not the only political running local newspapers in the city today. Vicky Schneps who owns the Queens Courier.  She also owns a string of other Queens Papers.  He son owns a couple of papers in Brooklyn,    She was paid $18,000 by 2010 State Senate candidate John Messer for printing.  Printing is how Nussbaum connects to campaigns. Schneps was also paid and $9500 for T-Shirts by Messer.


Pols and Judges Pay Newspapers With Legal Ads
Most local papers in NY survive today with legal ads from the court. Other states have abandoned the government subsidy of legal ads by allowing them to be placed on the Internet for free. Local papers depend on the Albany pols to make money. If you ever wonder why they play up to local elected officials and print their press releases now you now know why.


The Queens Organization Understands the lesson of the Soviet Union . . . . Control Information, Control People
As the demonstrations in Russia indicate the former home of Provida is moving toward democracy.  Not only is Queens and the rest of New York stuck with newspapers designed to control them. That control which really means an uninformed public has help cause Queens to become the most corrupt borough in the city.  Where assemblymen rip off hospitals and little leagues, a comptroller rips off the CFB and taxpayers and a congressman get free mortgages from a developers.




Perv Ex Councilman Works for Queens Pols . . . Where are the Women's Groups?

Women Activists Has Claimed That Pols Not Taking Sexual-Abuse Seriously Has Led to An Increase In That Crime

Perv pol lands Qns. lobbyist gig (NYP) Disgraced ex-Councilman Dennis Gallagher now works with a Queens consultant who’s under attack for trying to strong-arm GOP candidates into hiring him, The Post has learned. Gallagher, who stepped down in 2008 after pleading guilty to sexual-abuse charges stemming from accusations that he raped a woman in his Middle Village office, is listed on a city government database as an “additional lobbyist” with GSP Consulting, a Sunnyside-based firm run by Jay Golub. Gallagher, a Republican, confirmed that he does consulting work with Golub and that he’s done consulting for Councilman Peter Koo (R-Queens) but said he hasn’t done any work for Republicans in Queens “on a paid basis.”* The Councilman and the Crooked Building Consultant (Village Voice) * Former boss confirms that Pinky(Gallagher) sold porn(Queens Crap) * Dennis Gallagher’s New Calling (NYO) * Judge Throws Out Rape Indictment of New York City Councilman(NYT) * Queens DA Richard Brown, who once prosecuted former City Councilman Dennis Gallagher on charges of sexually abusing a woman in his office, now finds himself joined with the former lawmaker again -- on election petitions for the Sept. 13 GOP primary.(NYP)


The 1% Private Equity Firms Contribute to Crowley

 Private Equity PAC Showed A Lot of Love To Congressman Joe Crowley(NYO)In 2010, Mr. Crowley, who is a member of the House Ways and Means Committee, came under scrutiny for his contributions from the financial industry. That fall, the House Ethics Committee conducted a probe of Mr. Crowley after he collected $23,500 in donations from financial industry executives at series of fundraisers held in late 2009, just before he voted on legislation to impose tougher restrictions on Wall Street. The Ethics Committee dropped their investigation of Mr. Crowley in Januar

 


 

Joe Crowley pushed for ramp approval despite pleas from constituents

From Willets Point United: *  Feds approve Van Wyck ramps to Willets Point(NYDN)

 

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