HatTrick for the Feds This Weekend Mr. Malcolm Smith Goes to Jail
Disgraced former Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith surrendered to prison today in rural Pennsylvania after a failed bid to stay out of jail pending appeal of his corruption conviction. Disgraced official Malcolm Smith begins 7-year prison term (NYP) * Disgraced Queens politician Malcolm Smith, who was convicted of bribing political leaders to back a GOP mayoral bid, went to prison in rural Pennsylvania after a failed bid to stay out of jail pending an appeal, the Daily News reports:
Smith Wants to Train for Jail
Smith Jail Delay Health Issues
Disgraced former state Senate majority Leader Malcolm Smith was scheduled to turn himself in last week so he could begin his seven-year jail sentence on corruption charges, but he got his surrender date pushed back more than six weeks by claiming that he must be checked for prostate cancer by his own doctor before prison.
Malcolm Smith Bribe Deal Mayor Will Follow Him to Jail
Former Rockland County mayor sentenced for taking bribes (NYDN) The former mayor of a
Former Senate Majority Leader Smith Gets 7 Years Jail Sentence For Bribe to Get GOP Ballot Line
Malcolm Smith sentenced to 7 years in prison (NYP) Smith is due to surrender to authorities on Sept. 21. * * Malcolm Smith, the former majority leader of the state Senate, was sentenced to seven years in prison after being found guilty of attempting to use bribes to enter the 2013 New York City mayoral race on the Republican ticket, The Wall Street Journal reports: * Malcolm Smith, Ex-New York Senate Majority Leader, IsSentenced to 7 Years in Bribery Case: Mr. Smith, a Democrat,…
Thursday Update Malcolm Smith, Ex-New York Senate Majority Leader, Is Sentenced to 7 Years in Bribery Case (NYT) Mr. Smith, a Democrat, was convicted of agreeing to the bribery of Republican Party leaders to let him run for mayor of New York City on their party line in 2013.
Albany's Blue Wall of Silence as Smith's Fellow Pols Duck Their Former Majority Leader Conviction
Every New York politician should heed this judge’s warning (NYP Ed) “The corruption of the process is really serious,” the judge noted. If elected officials are “going to invoke selfless good deeds, then they have to be selfless in their respect of the process.“And of all the people in this scheme who were going to benefit the most, it was the person who wanted to be the mayor, even if he wanted to be a good mayor. Because somebody who wants to be a good mayor doesn’t get to be a good mayor if he gets there by using corruption to achieve the office.” The judge also wrote off Smith’s entrapment defense. “If Mr. Smith had just said no to the scoundrel, which would have been so easy . . . then we wouldn’t be here.” The judge means the seven-year sentence as a message to other politicians: * Former NYC Councilman and former AG Oliver Koppell has not stopped talking about the “Bottle Bill” since its long-sought passage in 1982. Now, he has filed a class-action suit in state Supreme Court, charing that the Walgreen Company has violated the bottle law, turning away from its Duane Reade stores and even harassing the people most dependent on the 5-cent redemptions.
What About the City's GOP Bottom Feeders Bosses That Sold Line to Smith?
Ex-GOP boss Isaacs nixed Malcolm Smith bribe(NYP) Quid pro quos are OK — but he draws the line at being bribed. former Democratic state Sen. Malcolm Smith enough support to put him over the top to become the GOP’s mayoral candidate in 2013 — in exchange for being hired to provide legit legal work. But Isaacs had a quick change of heart during a Feb. 14, 2013, sit-down in a parked car in Manhattan with an undercover posing as a crooked developer when Isaacs realized the offer was really a $30,000 bribe. Isaacs, testifying at Smith’s White Plains federal corruption trial, told jurors he is a personal-injury lawyer and “bells went off” when he realized the job was for “real estate work.” “He was bribing me because he didn’t care what I was going to do,” said Isaacs, who soon after began working with the feds to nail Smith.
Savino Throws Halloran Under the Bus
Ex-head of Bronx GOP admits taking bribe, but spreads blame(NYP) Joseph “Jay” Savino told White Plains federal Judge Kenneth Karas that Councilman Dan Halloran instigated the entire scheme to get state Sen. Malcolm Smith (D-Queens) on the GOP ballot for mayor.The fallen Bronx power broker said the deal was concocted after he reached out to Halloran in January 2013 for help ensuring that the City Council didn’t replace one of Savino’s hand-picked commissioners on the city’s Board of Elections. “He basically told me the only way I would keep my commissioner is to come to this lunch,” Savino said. Savino said he met with Halloran and others – including an undercover agent he referred to as “Raj” — at Spark’s Steak House in Midtown on February 1. There, Savino said, it was proposed that he’d be hired for legal services on development projects in Rockland County and the Bronx in exchange for him helping get Smith on the GOP mayoral ballot. Savino said he agreed to accept a $30,000 retainer — including $15,000 up fro
Corrupt Pols Like Smith Are Not Affraid of the Press, Local DA or AG
Corrupt Pols Like Smith Are Not Affraid of the Press, Local DA or AG
Very sad to see guys my age pay the price for corruption. For family men these are supposed to be the good years.
@errollouis It sad to think that people like smith think the press and DAs would never catch or stop them
GOP Bottom Feeders And Why the Party is Dying in NY
Corrupt Dan Halloran Convicted
Smith A Broken Man
Disgraced former Sen. Malcolm Smith says he is a “humbled and broken man,” and argues he deserves leniency because his attempt to bribe his way into NYC Hall was not for financial gain.
Big Ugly Voters Limits On Junket Reimbursements
They Can Still Use Their Campaign Funds
Heastie orders limits for out-of-session travel reimbursements (NYP) Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie — whose own bills were called into question before he became the body’s leader — issued orders Friday to limit what had been a gusher of $172-per-day expense payments. * Smith blew $2M in elex cash (NYP) State Sen. Malcolm Smith blew through more than $2 million in campaign cash over five years — bunking at ritzy hotels, dining at four-star restaurants and even traveling to China , campaign- finance records show. The lavish spending included a November 2011 junket to China , where Smith and his entourage forked over $1,148 to stay at the Beijing Grand and about $2,500 for other lodgings. * Assembly members now have limit to reimbursement for tripsto Albany whenLegislature isn't in session (NYDN)
True News Had Turner Taking Over the Corrupt Queens GOP Two Weeks Ago
State GOP leader Ed Cox is expected to announce Thursday that former U.S. Rep. Bob Turner will head the Queens Republican Party, ending years of in-fighting and legal disputes over its leadership, thePost reports: * As expected, former Rep. Bob Turner was recognized as the new leader of the Queens Republican Party last night, potentially ending two decades of internecine warfare, the Observer writes:
Halloran 10 Years Smith and Tabone Get Ready to Eat the Cheese
Ex-Councilman Dan Halloran gets 10 years for bribery scheme (NYP) White Plains federal jury last July deliberated a mere 85 minutes before finding Halloran guilty on five counts of bribery, wire fraud and racketeering.
The Bottom Feeder GOP Has A Lone History of Selling Their Ballot Line
The conviction ended a bizarre two-month trial in which Karas rejected Halloran’s bid to pursue an insanity defense related to a brain tumor he had removed in 2012and also saw Halloran proceed with the case without Smith and another co-defendant, former Queens Republican Vice Chairman Vincent Tabone — even after a mistrial was declared. Both Smith and Tabone were convicted on federal corruption charges in February and have yet to be sentenced. Halloran negotiated for $110,000 in bribes to be paid out to three city GOP leaders through the mayoral-race-fixing scheme, and he sought another $75,000 in payments for himself. He was caught on tape telling an undercover FBI agent and a crooked Rockland County developer working with the feds that money “greases the wheels” in New York politics. To get the GOP line, Smith — then one of the state’s top Democrats — would have needed the support of three of the five borough Republican committees. Queens and the Bronx were allegedly secured for the scheme, but Smith never secured a third borough committee. Halloran testified that he knew the undercover agent posing as a developer was asking him to break the law and that he only went along with the conversation in order to legally snag campaign cash. He claimed the money he secured through the Smith scheme was legitimate consulting fees and that he never planned to follow through with forwarding the Council funds. Following the jury’s verdict, Assistant US Attorney Douglas Bloom alleged that Halloran lied through his teeth about being innocent during his five days on the witness stand. Karas then also agreed, saying he “was also very troubled with Mr. Halloran in terms of his candor.” * Former city councilman Dan Halloran gets 10 years in prison New York Daily News * Former NYC councilman Dan Halloran gets 10-year prison sentence Newsday * US Attorney SDNY @SDNYnews Fmr NYCcouncilman Daniel Halloran sentenced to 10 years in prison for role in bribery& fraud schemes * Former New York City Councilman Daniel Halloran was sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in two corruption schemes, including taking bribes to help then-state Sen. Malcolm Smith run for mayor in 2013, The New York Times reports:
If Smith Wants to Cut Jail Time Forget Letters, Make 2015 the Year of the Rat
Where is the Outrage From the GOP About Their Ballot Line Being for Sale?
Ex-State Sen. Malcolm Smith is asking that letters detailing how he has impacted individual lives and the community be sent to the judge ahead of his sentencing on corruption charges, the State ofPolitics reports:
Ex-State Sen. Malcolm Smith is asking that letters detailing how he has impacted individual lives and the community be sent to the judge ahead of his sentencing on corruption charges, the State of
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Smith Guilty of Attempt to Fix Mayor's Race
Former state Sen. Malcolm Smith was convicted in a failed bribery scheme to secure the GOP line in the 2013 mayoral elections, and the Queens pol faces up to 45 years behind bars
Malcolm Smith Guilty On All Counts (YNN) * Former State Senator Malcolm Smith Found Guiltyon Corruption Charges (NYO) Mr. Smith was indicted in 2013 for undertaking a bribery scheme to land himself on the Republican ballot for mayor. Federal prosecutors alleged that Mr. Smith, a Democrat, tried to bribe Republican county leaders in an unsuccessful attempt to allow him to run on the GOP ballot line. A former Republican city councilman, Dan Halloran of Queens, was found guilty last year of quarterbacking Mr. Smith’s bribery scheme and trying to line up support for him in Queens * Former State
Former State White Plains federal jury took a little over two hours deliberating before convicting Smith and an accomplice, former Queens Republican Vice Chairman Vincent Tabone, on bribery charges.* Ex-state Sen. Malcolm Smith found guilty of bribery (NYDN) * Brooklyn Sen. John Sampson’s trial on federal corruption charges has been rescheduled for June 22, falling after the last day of session currently slated for June 17, the Times Union reports: * US Attorney Preet Bharara said that former Sen. Malcolm Smith’s conviction demonstrates that New York is the “show me the money” state.* Malcolm Smith guilty of trying to rig NYC mayor’s race(NYP) * Ex-state Sen. Malcolm Smith found guilty of bribery (NYDN) “As the jury unanimously found, the give-and-take of the political process should not be the giving and taking of bribes, which is what Malcolm Smith and Vincent Tabone tried to make it,” Bharara said. He said the scheme “was just one of many pockets of corruption this Office has uncovered in New York , which has become the ‘show me the money’ state. It should not be asking too much to expect public officials at least to obey the law.”* Malcolm Smith Found Guilty in Federal Corruption Trial(NYDN)
Malcolm Smith Locates Huntley's Bags Of Money All Over Albany
Before She Went to Jail Former Senator Huntley Told the FBI That Bags Of Cash Were All Over Albany
Malcolm Smith boasted about plan to bribe senators: undercover agent(NYP) White Plains federal corruption trial of Smith (D-Queens) and former Queens GOP Vice Chairman Vincent Tabone, the agent, known to the jury as “Raj,” said Smith indicated that legislators preferred under-the-table cash through consulting fees rather than getting campaign donations. Smith wanted the undercover agent to supply the money to the senators — none of whom were named in court– in exchange for future political favors. “You know…some of them may not want [the money] for their campaigns,” Smith told the wire-wearing agent in an audiotape played for jurors . “They may say, ‘You know what, you know, can I be a consultant?’ They may need it personally.”
Raj testified that it was Smith “who brought up,” how to pay off senators – a move aimed at discrediting the Democratic ex-pol’s entrapment defense to charges he ran a $200,000 bribery scheme to try buying his way onto Republican line in the 2013 mayoral race.
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To get on the GOP line, Smith — once one of the state’s top Democrats — needed the support of at least three of the five borough Republican committees. Queens was secured through Tabone and The Bronx through former Bronx GOP Chairman Joseph “Jay” Savino. He never got the third vote. Smith, the feds say, turned to Moses Stern — a crooked Rockland County Spring Valley , NY
Smith claimed he was a victim of entrapment. Another co-defendant, former City Councilman Dan Halloran (D-Queens), was convicted in July of pocketing $20,500 in cash bribes for acting as an intermediary who set up the cross-party negotiations. Tabone, who was also convicted of tampering with a government witness, faces up to 30 years in prison.
What About the City's GOP Bottom Feeders Bosses That Sold Line to Smith?
Ex-GOP boss Isaacs nixed Malcolm Smith bribe(NYP) Quid pro quos are OK — but he draws the line at being bribed. former Democratic state Sen. Malcolm Smith enough support to put him over the top to become the GOP’s mayoral candidate in 2013 — in exchange for being hired to provide legit legal work. But Isaacs had a quick change of heart during a Feb. 14, 2013, sit-down in a parked car in Manhattan with an undercover posing as a crooked developer when Isaacs realized the offer was really a $30,000 bribe. Isaacs, testifying at Smith’s White Plains federal corruption trial, told jurors he is a personal-injury lawyer and “bells went off” when he realized the job was for “real estate work.” “He was bribing me because he didn’t care what I was going to do,” said Isaacs, who soon after began working with the feds to nail Smith.
Savino Throws Halloran Under the Bus
Savino Throws Halloran Under the Bus
Ex-head of Bronx GOP admits taking bribe, but spreads blame(NYP) Joseph “Jay” Savino told White Plains federal Judge Kenneth Karas that Councilman Dan Halloran instigated the entire scheme to get state Sen. Malcolm Smith (D-Queens) on the GOP ballot for mayor.The fallen Bronx power broker said the deal was concocted after he reached out to Halloran in January 2013 for help ensuring that the City Council didn’t replace one of Savino’s hand-picked commissioners on the city’s Board of Elections. “He basically told me the only way I would keep my commissioner is to come to this lunch,” Savino said. Savino said he met with Halloran and others – including an undercover agent he referred to as “Raj” — at Spark’s Steak House in Midtown on February 1. There, Savino said, it was proposed that he’d be hired for legal services on development projects in Rockland County and the Bronx in exchange for him helping get Smith on the GOP mayoral ballot. Savino said he agreed to accept a $30,000 retainer — including $15,000 up fro
Smith Trial Jury Still Out Update
Dismissed juror says she would’ve voted to convict Malcolm Smith(NYP)White Plains , says she sides with the government and would have voted to convict both Smith and former Queens Republican Vice Chairman Vincent Tabone on corruption charges if she had become a “regular” juror. “I went in there thinking that each was guilty by association, then flipped back and forth, but with the final summation … my personal opinion is ‘yes,’ they are guilty of each and every charge,” Liller told The Post on Friday. * Jury Deliberations Underway in Malcolm Smith Bribery Trial (NY1)
Smith Jury Sick Delay
Jury deliberations in the corruption trial of former Sen. Malcolm Smith were delayed once again today, after the foreman of the jury was hospitalized with flu-like symptoms.* Juror illness delays deliberations in Malcolm Smith trial(Capital)* The federal trial of state Senate Deputy Majority Leader Tom Libous will wait until after New York ’s legislative session is scheduled to end.
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Wednesday
Malcolm Smith spearheaded $200K bribery scheme: prosecutor(NYP)New York ’s next mayor that he spearheaded a $200,000 bribery scheme with equally crooked Republicans to buy his way onto the 2013 GOP line, a federal prosecutor said in closing statements Tuesday. “Smith was the first person in this bribery scheme … This is about a man that wanted to be a mayor so bad that when things weren’t going his way he turned to bribery,” Assistant US Attorney Douglas Bloom told jurors in closing remarks in the White Plains federal court retrial of Smith (D-Queens) and former Queens GOP Vice Chairman Vincent Tabone. Bloom also tried to shoot down Smith’s entrapment defense, saying the indicted pol was usually the first person to mention bribery in conversations with the undercover federal agent he knew as “Raj.” “Smith was ready and willing with every crime,” he added.Prosecutors say Smith turned to the agent posing as a businessman and Moses Stern — a crooked Rockland County developer turned federal witness — for money and help plotting the botched scheme to buy the GOP line for mayor. In return, Smith allegedly promised them $500,000 in transportation funds for a road project in suburban Spring Valley . Smith’s lawyer Gerald Shargel, however, told jurors that his client was deceived into thinking he was being offered legitimate political support when it was actually “all a lie.”“Stern was just telling lies. How would Malcolm Smith know it was a lie?” the lawyer said. Smith faces up to 45 years in prison, and Tabone faces up to 30 years.
Defense delivers final arguments in Malcolm Smith case (New 12)*
Malcolm Smith spearheaded $200K bribery scheme: prosecutor(NYP)
Manhattan GOP Leader's Legal Fee Bribe OK
Ex-GOP boss Isaacs nixed Malcolm Smith bribe(NYP) Manhattan with an undercover posing as a crooked developer when Isaacs realized the offer was really a $30,000 bribe. Isaacs, testifying at Smith’s White Plains federal corruption trial, told jurors he is a personal-injury lawyer and “bells went off” when he realized the job was for “real estate work.” “He was bribing me because he didn’t care what I was going to do,” said Isaacs, who soon after began working with the feds to nail Smith.
Dumb As Shit NYC GOP Turns to A Hispanic After Obama Win, Then Smith Offers $$$?
Obama’s win in 2012 catalyst for Malcolm Smith bribery scandal(NYP) New York City mayoral candidate to woo “disenfranchised” voters the following year. Savino said Smith, who was one of the state’s most powerful Democrats and had already aligned himself with Republicans in the Senate, was the GOP’s choice for a cross-party endorsement. He said top city Republicans even met with billionaire developer Stephen Ross to talk about fund-raising for Smith. But when Obama defeated Mitt Romney in November 2012, the Republicans instead opted to court a Hispanic candidate in Democrat Adolfo Carrión, who was then Bronx borough president. GOP leaders “looked at the numbers” and determined they’d have a better shot scoring the mayoral seat by running a Hispanic. They liked Carrión because he was a “Hispanic Democrat with a conservative base,” Savino said.* Smith-Tabone jurors hear tapes, FBI agent(Queens Chroncile) Sources have reported that the agent, who was known as “Raj,” was subjected to cross-examination on Tuesday from Smith’s lawyer, Gerald Shargel. Shargel is pursuing an entrapment defense, and Tabone’s team is expected to do likewise. Former Republican City Spring Valley , NY
New Manhattan
Manhattan GOP chairman shakeup in the works(NYP) There’s a leadership shake-up coming at the Manhattan Republican Party. Adele Malpass is replacing Dan Isaacs as the head of organization. “I’m going to be the chairman. I’m looking forward to the opportunity,” said Malpass. An announcement is expected Monday. The Manhattan GOP has become irrelevant in local politics in recent years. It has no elected representatives serving in city or state legislative offices. It used to have representatives in Congress, the state Senate and Assembly and the City Council * Manhattan GOP leader Isaacs caught on FBI tape entertaining $30G bribe from agent – pol whines ‘I have never been charged’(NYP) * State Republican Party Dumping Manhattan GOP Chair: Sources (NYO)
Malcolm Smith Locates Huntley's Bags Of Money
Before She Went to Jail Former Senator Huntley Told the FBI That Bags Of Cash Were All Over Albany
Malcolm Smith boasted about plan to bribe senators: undercover agent(NYP) White Plains federal corruption trial of Smith (D-Queens) and former Queens GOP Vice Chairman Vincent Tabone, the agent, known to the jury as “Raj,” said Smith indicated that legislators preferred under-the-table cash through consulting fees rather than getting campaign donations. Smith wanted the undercover agent to supply the money to the senators — none of whom were named in court– in exchange for future political favors. “You know…some of them may not want [the money] for their campaigns,” Smith told the wire-wearing agent in an audiotape played for jurors . “They may say, ‘You know what, you know, can I be a consultant?’ They may need it personally.”
Raj testified that it was Smith “who brought up,” how to pay off senators – a move aimed at discrediting the Democratic ex-pol’s entrapment defense to charges he ran a $200,000 bribery scheme to try buying his way onto Republican line in the 2013 mayoral race.
Silver Can't Stink Up Smith Trial
Sheldon Sliver’s corruption case cast a shadow over former Sen. Malcolm Smith’s bribery trial on Friday — as defense attorneys complained that publicity about the scandal would rob the Queens Democrat of a fair trial. White Plains federal Judge Kenneth Karas delayed the start of closing arguments so he could question all 16 jurors one-by-one about whether they had heard of the Silver case — in which the state Assembly speaker is accused of taking $4 million in bribes and kickbacks. After about 45 minutes, Karas decided the case could continue.
Smith Dumps On the Tax Payers One Last Time
Malcolm Smith blows city money on self-promotional newsletter(NYP) Former state Sen. Malcolm Smith — who faces federal corruption charges in a trial that starts Monday — blew tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars on a self-promotional newsletter marking the end of his 14-year career. The four-page mailer — filled with 36 pictures of Smith with the heading “accomplishments” repeated across the top — landed in the mailboxes of 123,000 voters in southeast Queens in the days between Christmas and New Year’s. Smith was succeeded by Leroy Comrie, who defeated the scandal-scarred incumbent in September’s Democratic primary. He faces trial for allegedly trying to bribe his way onto the Republican ballot for mayor in 2013.
More About Malcolm Smith and His Up-Coming Trial
NYC GOP A Party of Bottom Feeders
Joseph (Jay) Savino, the chairman of the Bronx County Republican Committee, took a $15,000 bribe in a plot to get state Sen. Malcolm Smith on the ballot for New York City mayor. He also doesn't live in the Bronx, was subpoenaed in connection with a federal probe into bidding on voting machines and has dined out on Bronx GOP funds.
Bronx GOP Boss Jay Savino busted in bribery scheme • Bronx Times *Bronx GOP Boss Jay Savino busted in bribery scheme • Bronx Times
His arrest in the Rockland town of Congers on corruption charges could mark the end of a dubious political career. The 45-year-old lawyer saw his father, a former Republican city councilman from the Bronx, sent to prison in 1985 for tax evasion and for illegally possessing a machine gun and three pistols with silencers.
Thursday Smith Trial Up-Date
Corrupt Pols or Puppets Who Work For Lobbyist Crooks "Welcome to New York"
Cash envelopes over drunken steak dinners were the opposite of what he wanted,” lawyer Evan Lipton said in White Plains Federal Court
Former state Sen.Malcolm Smith’s lawyer argues that his mayor ambitions were pure as his corruption trial begins(NYDN) Prosecutors say Smith tried to bribe his way onto the 2013 Republican ballot for mayor in a $200,000 scheme, with former Queens GOP Vice Chairman Vincent Tabone allegedly helping to distribute the cash.Smith was recorded as saying. Authorities say that Tabone accepted $20,000 at a boozy dinner at Sparks Steak House in Midtown on Smith’s behalf from an undercover agent he believed to be a developer looking to curry favor. “That’s what this case is about. . . . A man who wanted to be mayor and the men who were willing to be bought,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Perry Carbone said. Smith, once a prominent Queens Democrat, faces up to 45 years in prison if convicted. Tabone, who faces a new witness-tampering charge, could serve up to 30 years.* Malcolm Smith tried to buy election in alleged $200K bribery scheme(NYP) “He thought he could avoid the primary and jump right into the general election. How did he do that? Bribes. To get on the GOP line in the 2013 mayoral race, Smith — once one of the state’s top Democrats — needed the support of three of the five borough Republican committees. Queens was allegedly secured through Tabone and The Bronx through former Bronx GOP Chairman Joseph “Jay” Savino. Carbone called Tabone one of the men who “held the keys to that ballot” and alleged the political operative was ready to give his up for a “fistful of cash.” Smith, the feds say, turned to Moses Stern — a crooked Rockland County Spring Valley , NY
The GOP Tries to Pay to Play Mayor's Race and Daily News Reports on the Independence Party?
Smith Trial Starts Today, NYC Media Ignores
The NY Media Covers Putin's Corrupt Election in Crimeans and is Silent About Selling the Mayor's Ballot Line in A NYC
Will Putin Take Over NYC Next?
In two weeks it will be one year since Senator Malcolm Smith, Councilman Dan Halloran, Bronx Republican Chairman Jay Savino and Queens GOP VP Vince Tabone. The media has not done one investigative story about the Smith attempt to buy the mayor's seat. As U.S. Attorney Bharara pointedly asked: “What can we expect when transgressions seem to be tolerated and nothing ever seems to change?” “Putting dirty politicians in prison may be necessary, but is not sufficient. Hard as it is to believe, New York’s public-corruption crisis is getting worse.
The press has a role to play, Mr. Bharara said, noting that he is saddened by recent reports of newspaper closings and staff downsizing. "Rather than just covering the cases that my office and other offices are already bringing, figure out ways to break new ground and to cover new stories," he said. "Groundbreaking corruption coverage is not just good copy, it's a path to good government." Bharara Preet Bharara hopes for more muckraking in ... - Capital Sept 18, 2013 As Queens City Councilman Dan Halloran, who was also arrested, put it in an FBI transcript, “Money is what greases the wheels.” Politics is “all about how much.”
‘Bribing’ his way onto the ballot: State Sen., city Councilman Halloran face fed rap today(NYP) State Sen. Malcolm Smith and city Councilman Dan Halloran will be slapped with federal charges today in a stunning bribery scheme to rig this year’s mayoral election.* The king of Queens graft(NYP Ed) Smith has been linked to so many dubious schemes the FBI must have had an entire branch on his tail: Bid-rigging for the Aqueduct racino. Co-founding a Katrina charity that saw nearly $30,000 vanish. Diverting campaign funds for lavish personal trips and meals. Even opening (and then ruining) a Queens charter school in what appears to be a plot to boost home sales for a developer and big-time donor.
Secret Smith Tapes
Democratic Majority Leader and the Republican Mayor Candidate
Jury hears tapes of Malcolm Smith plotting to regain power at bribery ...Newsday At one secretly recorded 2012 meeting, informant Mark Stern -- a Rockland County Orthodox fundraiser who began cooperating when he faced fraud charges -- promised Smith $50,000 to donate to Senate Democratic colleagues to kick-start a bid for a leadership post and ultimately a run for mayor of New York City.
Smith's Plan A Regain Leadership of the Senate, Plan B Make the GOP Ballot in the Mayor's Race
Smith responded, "What do you need?" When the donor said he wanted to choose an aide from the Jewish community to serve on Smith's payroll as his second in command if he got a Senate leadership post, Smith quickly agreed. Then the two men, meeting for just the second time, in a Rockland County deli after being introduced by a mutual friend, toasted their deal. "Absolutely mazel-tov!" said an enthusiastic Smith. "That's great for both of us!" The tapes were played during the testimony of the FBI undercover agent, who posed as an associate of Stern. A prosecutor indicated that tapes may continue for two more days when testimony resumes next week.* Malcolm Smith Had Two-Pronged Plan For Mayor's Race(WSJ) State Senator Wanted to Win Leadership Position, Then Run For City's Top Job as a Republican. New York state Sen. Malcolm Smith had trouble keeping what he called his "Plan A" straight from his "Plan B," according to testimony Friday at his federal corruption trial on bribery charges.
To Regain the Leadership Smith Says He Has to Put the Senators on the Payroll
A Federal Bureau of Investigation agent who posed as a wealthy real-estate developer during a sting operation testified that Mr. Smith used the terms Plan A and Plan B interchangeably when discussing his two-pronged ultimate goal.The agent, who was allowed to testify under a pseudonym because he has ongoing cases, said Mr. Smith's goal boiled down to first regaining either the state Senate majority or minority leadership role. Then, Mr. Smith, a Democrat, wanted to use that platform to raise his profile and run for New York City mayor as a Republican in 2013. He avoided his own party's primary race because it was contentious and crowded. Mr. Smith, 57 years old, was recorded during an August 2012 meeting at a kosher deli in Wesley Hills, N.Y., with Moses "Mark" Stern, who wore a wire. Mr. Stern cooperated with the government in hopes of reducing a potential 440-year prison sentence connected to a fraud case in which he pleaded guilty. At the deli, Mr. Smith explained he wanted money so he could make campaign donations to fellow state senators facing hotly contested re-election races. Even as minority leader, "it still puts me in a better position to run for mayor then just being in the Senate," he told Mr. Stern and a rabbi who attended. "So it's phase one, then phase two."The FBI agent testified that at two meetings Mr. Stern was recorded providing several checks, totaling $27,000, to Mr. Smith for political donations. "I basically put the [state Senate] members on payroll," Mr. Smith was recorded as saying.
Fed Judge Jury Cannot Be Told About Smith Selling Votes to Lobbyists for Campaign $$$
Smith catches break as judge shoots down prosecutors’ bribe tactic(NYP) Albany votes like shares of stock. As The Post first reported, federal prosecutors hoped to detail how the disgraced Queens Democrat told dozens of top New York lobbyists during a 2008 political golf outing in upstate Kingston that their clients would be shut out of state politics if they didn’t make large contributions. Smith, the feds said, told the lobbyists “they should treat the fund-raiser as an ‘IPO’ [initial public offering] by donating early while prices were low and while there was still an opportunity to participate” before Democrats took control of the state Senate.
The Smith Trial in 3 Weeks Will Isaacs Have to Testify?
New Manhattan GOP Leader Isaacs Out
Manhattan GOP chairman shakeup in the works(NYP) Manhattan
In 2008 When Senate Campaign Spending Was Half Of What It is Today the FBI Says Smith Offered Pay to Play Deal With Lobbyists
Malcolm Smith offered to sell votes ‘like shares of stock’(NYP) New York lobbyists that their clients would be shut out of state politics if they didn’t make large contributions, the feds say in a new filing. “Smith told the attendees that they should treat the fund-raiser as an ‘IPO’ [initial public offering] by donating early while prices were low and while there was still an opportunity to participate,” Assistant US Attorney Justin Anderson wrote Wednesday, of the August 2008 gathering in upstate Kingston. “Smith’s comments implied that those who failed to make contributions to his campaign at that time would find themselves having to pay more later or being unable to accomplish anything with the Senate under Smith’s leadership.”* Federal prosecutors are trying to use Sen. Malcolm Smith’s 2008 comments about contributing early to the Senate Democrats before the prices rose – along with their power – against him in his pending federal corruption trial.
Smith Trial Starts In January On Time
Judge declines to delay Malcolm Smith trial (Capital) Judge Kenneth Karas ruled Thursday that the pregnancy of Deborah Misir, the lead defense counsel for co-defendant Vincent Tabone, is not a compelling reason to sever the cases or delay the trial. Misir has been confined to bed rest while she deals with a high-risk pregnancy. Grant Lally—Misir’s husband and partner in Lally & Misir—appeared in court on Thursday to argue for the delay, after removing himself from the case during a failed attempt to unseat Rep. Steve Israel on Long Island. “It’s outrageous,” Lally said after the decision. “Ayatollah Bharara wants to bring Sharia law that discriminates against pregnant women to the United States
Smith Tabone No Trial Delay
Lawyer’s pregnancy may push back Malcolm Smith trial(NYP) White Plains federal Judge Kenneth Karas Monday to reject a bid by ex-Queens Republican Vice Chairman Vincent Tabone to push the Jan. 5 trial back to September so that Tabone can be represented by lawyer Deborah Misir. “Tabone’s desire to have Ms. Misir present at trial simply does not outweigh the public interest in and Smith’s right to a speedy trial,” wrote Assistant US Attorney Douglas Bloom. * Prosecutors asked White Plains federal Judge Kenneth Karas Monday to reject a bid by ex-Queens Republican Vice Chairman Vincent Tabone to push his Jan. 5 trial back to September so that Tabone can be represented by lawyer Deborah Misir, the Post writes:
GOP Boss Vincent Tabone Lawyer Pregnant Wants Delay
One of the Bums Who Made Sure the City's GOP Were Corrupt and Leaderless Has One More Trick to Stay Out of Jail for a While
Pregnant Lawyer Requests Delay in New York Corruption Retrial(NYP) Deborah N. Misir, who represents Vincent Tabone, a former leader of the Queens Republican Committee, told Judge Kenneth M. Karas of Federal District Court that she must avoid stress.
Smith Tabone No Trial Delay
Lawyer’s pregnancy may push back Malcolm Smith trial(NYP) White Plains federal Judge Kenneth Karas Monday to reject a bid by ex-Queens Republican Vice Chairman Vincent Tabone to push the Jan. 5 trial back to September so that Tabone can be represented by lawyer Deborah Misir. “Tabone’s desire to have Ms. Misir present at trial simply does not outweigh the public interest in and Smith’s right to a speedy trial,” wrote Assistant US Attorney Douglas Bloom. * Prosecutors asked White Plains federal Judge Kenneth Karas Monday to reject a bid by ex-Queens Republican Vice Chairman Vincent Tabone to push his Jan. 5 trial back to September so that Tabone can be represented by lawyer Deborah Misir, the Post writes:
GOP Boss Vincent Tabone Lawyer Pregnant Wants Delay
One of the Bums Who Made Sure the City's GOP Were Corrupt and Leaderless Has One More Trick to Stay Out of Jail for a While
Pregnant Lawyer Requests Delay in New York Corruption Retrial(NYP) Deborah N. Misir, who represents Vincent Tabone, a former leader of the Queens Republican Committee, told Judge Kenneth M. Karas of Federal District Court that she must avoid stress.
Malcome Keeps Flake
‘I had a stellar year': Malcolm Smith during debate(NYP) State Sen. Malcolm Smith, facing federal corruption charges that could send him to prison for years, claimed in a televised debate Wednesday night that he has had “a stellar year” in Albany and deserves to be re-elected. Smith’s Democratic primary rivals gave him a surprising pass on the corruption issue, leaving it to New York 1 moderator Errol Lewis to ask how Smith could serve his southeast Queens constituents while under indictment.
“I had a stellar year,” replied Smith. “The legal issues are something that are out there.” Now comes a dramatic, and immensely ironic, split between three of the city’s most influential unions — the United Federation of Teachers on the one hand, and the Patrolman’s Benevolent Association and the Sergeants Benevolent Association on the other.
Smith Says Gentrification Was Created to Get Rid of Blacks and The Reason He Was Indicted
Sen. Malcolm Smith told a Queens audience that racially motivated forces of gentrification are behind his indictment on charges he tried to bribe his way onto the GOP line in the 2013 NYC mayor’s race. Mr. Smith warned the crowd that the accusations are part of a plot to eliminate a powerful black outer borough politician and target his district for real estate development and racial displacement. “Don’t get caught up with the innuendos, don’t get caught up with the media spin, don’t get caught up with the false allegations.* Smith claims federal bribery rap was a racist conspiracy(NYP)
Smith the Fixer Takes On A Serious Issue of Race and Gentrification to Win Reelection
I can’t tell you much, but I can tell you one thing: being an African-American who is from Queens, who is independent, who is ambitious, must have upset somebody,” Mr. Smith, whose opponents in the primary are both also black, said. “Be careful who you talk to, be careful what you say. Because they’ve got their eye on southeast Queens, they’re trying to shift it. The same way Harlem is no longer Harlem and Brooklyn is no longer Brooklyn.” “Don’t get caught up with the innuendos, don’t get caught up with the media spin, don’t get caught up with the false allegations. I can’t tell you much, but I can tell you one thing: being an African-American who is from Queens, who is independent, who is ambitious, must have upset somebody,” Mr. Smith, whose opponents in the primary are both also black, said. “Be careful who you talk to, be careful what you say. Because they’ve got their eye on southeast Queens, they’re trying to shift it. The same way Harlem is no longer Harlem and Brooklyn is no longer Brooklyn.” “You will see my innocence is exactly what I say it is. You find out who is behind the attack on all the African-American leadership in this city, that will come out as well,” he said. “If you don’t believe southeast Queens gentrification is beginning to happen, look around.” * * U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said that the culture of corruption in Albany will only change when the public says enough is enough, Gannett Albany reports:
Smith promised to disclose “who is behind the attack on all the African-American leadership in this city” when the time is right, meaning after the polls close.
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Courtney Gross Thursday: FBI Tape Show Smith Agreeing to Pay to Play for the GOP Ballot Line
Tape at Senator’s Trial Shows Discussion of Payments(NYT) The three men sat around a coffee table in a gold-wallpapered suite of the Essex House on Central Park South and talked about an improbable plot: enticing New York City’s five Republican county leaders to help State Senator Malcolm A. Smith, a Democrat, run for mayor as a Republican. A Federal Bureau of Investigation posing as a businessman, the other a Rockland County developer, Moses Stern, trying to avoid a lengthy prison sentence, informed him that they had gotten commitments from the five leaders to sign letters authorizing him to run.
In exchange, the men had promised envelopes of cash to three of the county leaders — a total “in the range of say 200 grand,” said the F.B.I. agent, Anil Modi. Half of the cash would be paid upfront and half when the leaders delivered the authorizations, known as Wilson-Pakula letters.
At one point, Mr. Modi, leaning forward animatedly, told a laid-back Mr. Smith how he would pay off the county leaders.“We’re going to do it in a way that there’s no ties to me,” he said. “We’re going to go play golf somewhere and your golf bag will be a little heavier when you leave the course.”“Mm, hmm,” Mr. Smith said. Not surprisingly, his companions wondered why he was so tight-lipped. “When I get pensive, that’s when I’m even more excited,” was his enigmatic explanation.Mr. Smith did make a suggestion about how to sequence the payments. “I wouldn’t give them more than like 10, just to start out,” he said. Mr. Smith also was heard advising the men that any money they doled out must be reported as campaign donations, unless the county leaders agreed to accept the money in the form of legal retainers or accountant’s fees. “Then that’s your business,” Mr. Smith said.
The strategy of disguising illicit payments is heard throughout the recorded conversations, with Joseph Savino, a former Bronx County leader who has pleaded guilty to accepting bribes, proposing: “It could also be an insurance thing,” in which Mr. Modi and Mr. Stern would buy insurance from an agency run by Mr. Savino’s family. If he takes the stand, Mr. Smith is likely to be asked why he agreed to help the two men obtain a $500,000 allocation from state transportation funds to improve a road that would enable them to build a community center intended for Spring Valley’s Hasidic and Haitian communities, a project that was a ruse in Mr. Smith’s seduction by Mr. Modi and Mr. Stern.* Former councilman wanted to secure City Hall posts for Republicans: tapes(NYP)
The court day seemed more damaging to the other two defendants. In an earlier meeting at Essex House, Daniel J. Halloran III, at the time a Republican city councilman from Queens, whom prosecutors portray as the plot’s go-between, was heard telling Mr. Modi and Mr. Stern that he had negotiated prices with three county leaders, including “25 now and 25 for Vince once the delivery occurs.” He was referring to Vincent Tabone, then the vice chairman of the Queens Republicans and now the third defendant. Mr. Halloran also told the two men that in return for the Wilson-Pakula letters, Mr. Smith would have to guarantee that if elected mayor he would name Republicans to half of his judgeship and half of his commissioner appointments.
“I’m not looking for the whole loaf, we’re looking for half,” Mr. Halloran said,— and that Smith would make him his deputy. Halloran could be heard telling a wired-up undercover agent and Moses Stern, a crooked developer-turned-federal-witness, that Republicans should get at least half of the city’s high-paying commissioner posts and half the nonpaying, but influential, seats on city boards. “The first dep and a guarantee on the agency heads being split in the party,” says Halloran. “If he goes to City Hall and … cuts the baby in half so to speak, he plays Solomon, everything, everything works out.” The now ex-councilman says the Republican Party learned the hard way a decade earlier when it gave Mike Bloomberg its line for mayor, adding Bloomberg wound up making “certain promises he didn’t keep” while only honoring “the financial part of the agreement.” Halloran did not elaborate on what the “financial part” meant. He also demanded Raj convince Smith that half of his potential judicial appointments should he become mayor be Republican and that the party have heavy influence in branches of City Hall that could make “things happen” for politically friendly developers — such as the Board of Standards and Appeals and the Buildings Department.* In Dan Halloran's New York, Republicans Rule(WSJ) Former Councilman Wanted GOPers In Top Positions In Exchange For Helping Malcolm Smith. On a tape played Wednesday during their bribery trial, Mr. Halloran, a Republican, said he wanted Mr. Smith to name him as the first deputy mayor so the GOP "would have control over half of the appointments." But in another secretly recorded meeting at the same hotel two days later, Mr. Smith, 57, was skeptical that Mr. Halloran negotiated the approvals. "Dan is, you know, you just got to watch Dan…he's all, you know, fluff and stuff," Mr. Smith was recorded saying. At the meeting, the undercover agent and a cooperating witness named Moses Stern told Mr. Smith they believed it would cost about $200,000 to secure the committees' approval. Mr. Smith's response was highlighted during his lawyer's opening statement, when he said the state senator didn't receive, give or order up bribes. "The question becomes, I'm telling you, there is a legal and legitimate way" to run on the GOP line, Mr. Smith said, also advising the men to get business retainers from the GOP officials. Prosecutors argue those were attempts to disguise bribes.
Wednesday: Smith Trial Tapes Proves Elected Officials Do Not Give A Shit About the People They Represent
Ballot Line For Sale, Party Leaders for Sale, Pols for Sale
On Trial’s Tapes, Talk of New York Politics, Secret Cash and Strip Clubs(NYT) It is, the testimony indicates, a world where trust between men is enhanced by visits to strip clubs, where cash for favors is passed “under the table,” where candidates are supported by party leaders because of whom they promise to appoint as judges and commissioners. In hours of recorded conversations involving Mr. Smith, of Queens, and another defendant, former City Councilman Daniel J. Halloran III of Queens, as well as several Republican county leaders, there is no talk of the city’s economy, the plight of the poor or the host of other issues that, in theory, should influence an endorsement. At one point in January 2013, an undercover agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and a Rockland County developer, who was cooperating with federal authorities to spare himself a long prison sentence, were on their way to a meeting with Vincent Tabone, the Queens Republican vice chairman and now the third defendant at the trial in United States District Court here. They needed his authorization and that of two other county leaders so Mr. Smith, a Democrat, could run for mayor on the Republican line. They were wary about how far they could go to entice Mr. Tabone because they had never met him. “We were told this guy was for sale and willing to take a bribe under the table, but we were nervous about how open we could be with him,” Anil Modi, the F.B.I. agent, testified on Tuesday. According to the recordings played in court, they called Mr. Smith, at various times the majority leader and minority leader of the State Senate, to seek his guidance. “Do I have the authority to do whatever it is to cut a deal or whatever needs to be done on your behalf?” Moses Stern, the developer, asked.“You do what you think is necessary,” Mr. Smith replied. “O.K. I mean it’s all the way, whatever it takes, correct?” Mr. Stern asked. “I’m on, we’re on a team together,” Mr. Smith replied. On the witness stand, Mr. Modi said to a question posed by Douglas B. Bloom, an assistant United States attorney, that the two men were referring to bribes Mr. Halloran said later in the conversation that while Philip Ragusa, the Queens Republican chairman, was “not an under-the-table guy,” his deputy “Tabone is.”
NYC's GOP Leaders Love Strip Clubs
Mr. Halloran recommended persuading Mr. Savino by taking him “to the steak house Sparks in Manhattan, then you take him to a strip club afterward.” Mr. Halloran and Mr. Savino had already been to strip clubs together, according to the recordings. Mr. Halloran told the two informers he had also been to a strip club in Tampa, Fla., with Craig Eaton, the Republican leader of Brooklyn, who is not charged in the case.* Daniel Halloran claims informant who caught state Sen. Malcolm Smith targeted former Presidential candidate(NYDN) The former City Councilman, who's on trial with Smith for an alleged bribery scheme, says Rockland County businessman Moses Stern went after Republican politicians like Mike Huckabee and U.S. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina.* Recording: Ex-Councilman Halloran Discussed Malcolm Smith’s Alleged Bribery Scheme With Fed(WCBS) * Daniel Halloran claims informant who caught state Sen. Malcolm Smith targeted former Presidential candidate(NYDN) The former City Councilman, who's on trial with Smith for an alleged bribery scheme, says Rockland County businessman Moses Stern went after Republican politicians like Mike Huckabee and U.S. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina.
More about the Smith Trial
More about the Smith Trial
* Though the New York region has more than 75 percent of the country’s Yiddish Speakers, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York has just one interpreter on call, and that lack of translators led to a mistrial in state Sen. Malcolm Smith’s bribery case, The Wall Street Journal reports
Though the New York region is home to more than 75 percent of the nation’s 159,000 Yiddish speakers, according to U.S. Census data, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York has but a single interpreter on call, down from five in 2009.
Harroran to Continue Case Judges Agrees
The new trial for Smith and Tabone will begin in January. The jurors had only committed to stay with the case through late June and, because of their schedules, could not commit for another month, the judge said. A Westchester County judge on Tuesday declared a mistrial in the corruption case against Democratic Queens Sen. Malcolm Smith after four jurors needed to excused as the case was expected to continue for another month.*Mistrial means Malcolm Smith gets his wish: he can run for re-elex w/o specter of conviction * Mistrial declared Tuesday in the corruption case against state Sen ... New York Daily News * Mistrial declared in Malcolm Smith bribery case New York Post * Mistrial Declared in Malcolm Smith's Federal Bribery Case Wall Street Journal* Mistrial declared in Malcolm Smith bribery case(NYP) But another co-defendant, former Councilman Dan Halloran (D-Queens), was allowed to move ahead with his trial after his lawyer, Vinoo Varghese, argued that Halloran was “teetering on bankruptcy” and could not afford another courtroom go-round. The trial – which is now expected to conclude by mid-July — would have lasted much longer if Smith and Tabone also remained on trial. “I don’t want to retry this case,” the judge said. “Retrying this case is like putting on a wet bathing suit.” The government had contended it didn’t share the recordings on the grounds they weren’t relevant to the case, but defense lawyers argued the case might not have even made it to trial if they’d had all of the recordings early on to review and prepare a better defense. “I’m still running. It’s full steam ahead,” Comrie told The Post moments after the mistrial was declared. But Smith may turn the mistrial to his political benefit, claiming he was unfairly targeted. Both Smith and Halloran face up to 45 years behind bars if convicted, while Tabone faces 25 years in prison. * Mistrial Is Declared in Malcolm Smith Corruption Trial(NYT)*Smith now gets to seek re-election, and could try to turn the mistrial to his political benefit, saying he was unfairly targeted by the feds. Former NYC Councilman Leroy Comrie says his primary challenge to Smith is “full steam ahead.”
Trial Shows NY's Pols Operate As A Organize Crime Gangs and Act Like Idiot
Daily News Calls It Dumb and Dummer Meets Goodfellows
Bada Bing Mayor Smith
The Daily News writes that it would be a pity if the federal corruption trial of state Sen. Malcolm Smith ends in a mistrial because the proceedings have painted a telling portrait of how New York politics work
Malcolm’s moishegas (NYDN Ed) Corruption trial exposes the ugly underbelly of New York politics. It’s a world where players bond in strip clubs and exchange envelopes of cash while casually discussing schemes to buy their way into City Hall. If it were a movie pitch, it would be “Goodfellas” meets “Dumb and Dumber.” Guilty or innocent of the crimes, we can convict the men of acting as comical caricatures. Smith bragged to an undercover FBI agent, for example, about how he put fellow senators “on the payroll” by donating to their campaigns before being elected majority leader in 2008. He joked about giving his corrupt backers the run of Gracie Mansion: “You pull this off, you can have the house,” Smith said. “I’ll be a tenant.”
Asked about his relationship with a Brooklyn GOP leader, Halloran quipped: “Look, I’ve been in a strip club with him with a naked woman on his lap — how close do I need to be?” He also referred to Tabone as “a f---ing whore” whose support could be easily bought. When an FBI agent testified about handing Tabone an envelope stuffed with $20,000 in a midtown steakhouse, his lawyer claimed he was too drunk to understand that he was being bribed — having knocked back “six or seven vodka tonics without eating.”Halloran, too, tried to float a last-minute excuse, that he wasn’t thinking straight as a result of previous brain surgery to remove a benign tumor — a transparent dodge that was shot down by Judge Kenneth Karas.
Smith Judge Mistrial Up to Jurors
Vey iz mir. In English, it’s been crazy enough
WHITE PLAINS — A federal judge will leave it up to jurors to determine whether to declare a mistrial in state Sen. Macolm Smith's corruption ..
U.S. District Judge Kenneth Karas says he’ll poll jurors to see if they’re willing to stay longer to resolve problems with secretly recorded conversations prosecutors recently unveiled. Smith, a lifelong Democrat state senator from Queens, is on trial with ex-City Councilman Dan Halloran and Queens GOP chairman Vincent Tarbone over an alleged bribery scheme to put Smith on the Republican ballot for mayor.
Mistrial motion weighed at Malcolm Smith's corruption trial The Journal News / Lohud.com * Judge to poll jurors in Malcolm Smith's corruption trial Newsday*Jurors will determine if Malcolm Smith case ends in mistrial(NYP) * “There are a lot of odd people, Yiddish-speaking oddballs or alleged Yiddish-speaking oddballs.”* Delay in Translating Recordings May Affect Jury Availability at State Senator’s Trial(NYT)\ Jurors at the trial of Malcolm A. Smith are being polled to find out if they can serve longer while the defense team translates 28 hours of Yiddish conversations from federal witness Moses Stern.* Judge Won't Dismiss Indictments In Malcolm Smith Case(WSJ)
NYC These Are Your Political Leaders
The Three Stooges On Trial Pie Fight
First Halloran Said He Was Nuts, Smith Said He Was Tricked, Now Tabone Says He Was Drunk. Is This A Court Room or A 5th Grade Classroom?
Drunk political schemer thought Smith bribe was payment for legal consultation(NYP) A Queens Republican operative accused of pocketing $25,000 as part of a failed scheme to help state Sen. Malcolm Smith rig last year’s mayoral race was so boozed up when he took the cash that he thought he was being paid for legal consulting services, a lawyer claimed Thursday. Ahern, a lawyer for ex-Queens GOP Vice Chairman Vincent Tabone, accused the government of entrapment.
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A Special Message Delivered By NYC's Pols to New Yorkers
Diane Savino: The Marginalized Smith Wanted to Be the Big Man Again
State Sen. Diane Savino testified at state Sen. Malcolm Smith’s trial that Smith felt marginalized, a feeling that went back to 2009 when he lost his job as majority leader during the Senate coup
Witness Says Senator Was ‘Marginalized’(NYT)
A colleague of Malcolm A. Smith, the New York state senator on trial for bribery charges, said Mr. Smith believed he was the victim of a “coup.”That powerless feeling, the colleague, State Senator Diane J. Savino testified on Thursday, went back to 2009 when Mr. Smith had just lost his job as majority leader in what she described as “a coup.” Two Democrats had joined with the Republicans to create a bipartisan majority that was intended to rule the chamber. Eventually the remaining Democrats decided they did not want Mr. Smith as their leader. “They had marginalized him,” Ms. Savino said, using the word a second time as Mr. Smith, betraying no emotion, looked on from the defense table.“He thought he had an opportunity because the Republican Party did not have a candidate and there were several — five or six — candidates for the Democrats,” she testified. The plan to circumvent a crowded Democratic field, she said, seemed “kind of goofy,” but “he was serious about it.”Mr. Smith, 57, is on trial in the United States District Court here on charges of bribing the city’s Republican county leaders to give him what is known as a Wilson-Pakula letter that would authorize him to run as a Republican.
The AG is Connected to the Ballot Sale Trial
AG Schneiderman Vouched for Moses Stern, A Shady Real Estate Developer
Update
Defense lawyers attack Monsey informant at pols' trial(LoHud)
Why the Case is Tried in Westchester
One of the mysteries of the case has been why it is being tried in Westchester, when all three defendants do their political work in Queens. The answer, it has emerged, is that the case had its genesis in Rockland County, where Moses Stern, also known as Mark Stern, lived and was facing charges of defrauding Citigroup of $126 million. Rockland, along with Westchester and six other counties, is in the jurisdiction of the Southern District of New York.
Why the Case is Tried in Westchester
One of the mysteries of the case has been why it is being tried in Westchester, when all three defendants do their political work in Queens. The answer, it has emerged, is that the case had its genesis in Rockland County, where Moses Stern, also known as Mark Stern, lived and was facing charges of defrauding Citigroup of $126 million. Rockland, along with Westchester and six other counties, is in the jurisdiction of the Southern District of New York.
He also kept dirt on politicians — in case of a "rainy day," a former associate said.Stern, in fact, was introduced to Smith during the undercover sting by a rabbi who dropped Schneiderman's name when vouching for Stern's pull in the fundraising community, a law enforcement source said. The rabbi, according to the source, described Stern as a "macher" who raised a lot of money for Schneiderman and could, perhaps, do the same for Smith. As DNAinfo.com New York first reported, Schneiderman received tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from Esther and Joseph Markowitz, who live in upstate Monsey. While the couple has not been charged with any wrongdoing, their cash has been linked to an alleged plot hatched by City Councilman Daniel Halloran to funnel illegal cash into his campaign coffers using straw donors, which was revealed as part of a larger bribery investigation Tuesday.The couple is also close to Moses (Mark) Stern, the key government witness who prosecutors say helped broker the bribery plot to get Smith, a Democratic state senator, on the Republican ballot for mayor.Smith bragged that it was OK for him to try to bribe his way into Gracie Mansion— Because it’s simply “the business of government
Saturday Update
Video shows Smith making deals in bid to become mayor(NYP) “You pull this off, you can have the house [Gracie Mansion]. I’ll be a tenant,” Smith told the agent during one of their meetings.Smith even boasted that it was acceptable for him to pay his way into Gracie Mansion because that’s “the business of government,” according to tapes of conversations he had with the undercover agent. But a late disclosure of a trove of recorded phone calls by federal prosecutors has led defense attorneys to demand a mistrial or dismissal of the indictments.
“I am asking for a mistrial,” Smith lawyer Gerald Shargel said in court Friday. Lawyers for Smith co-defendants Queens GOP City Councilman Dan Halloran and former Queens GOP Vice Chair Vincent Tabone pushed even harder, arguing Friday that the case should be dismissed. Both sides will submit briefs on whether the case should be dismissed over the weekend and Judge Karas will rule Monday at 10 a.m.
Judge to Consider Retrial or Dismissal in Malcolm Smith Case(NYT) Kenneth Karas indicated that he might end the current trial of a New York state senator and two others because Yiddish translators are scarce.* Decision in Malcolm Smith Trial Expected Monday Wall Street Journal * Yiddish translations could delay Malcolm Smith corruption trial The Journal News
Judge to Consider Retrial or Dismissal in Malcolm Smith Case(NYT) Kenneth Karas indicated that he might end the current trial of a New York state senator and two others because Yiddish translators are scarce.* Decision in Malcolm Smith Trial Expected Monday Wall Street Journal * Yiddish translations could delay Malcolm Smith corruption trial The Journal News
Malcolm Smith judge to decide on mistrial Monday Newsday* Newly Disclosed Tapes Could Stop Malcolm Smith Corruption Trial CBS Local * Malcolm Smith's lawyers want mistrial over Yiddish recordings The Journal News* * State Sen. Malcolm Smith’s lawyers are calling for a mistrial in his corruption case, saying prosecutors withheld more than 90 hours of secret recordings—largely in Yiddish—until this week, Gannett Albany reports:
Smith Plan to Rub Out the GOP Leaders He Bribed Once He Became Mayor
If They Gave Oscars for Corruption Tapes Smith's on FBI Video Would Be A Sure Winner
Jurors in the White Plains courtroom also were shown video footage of former Bronx GOP leader Joseph Savino being handed a cash-stuffed envelope from the undercover at a meeting at Sparks Steakhouse in Midtown last year. Savino has already pleaded guilty to accepting the payola.
Mistrial Possible in Smith Trial Because of Yiddish Recording Not Turn Over to the Defense
A federal judge said he might have to consider adjourning state Smith’s case or declaring a mistrial and impaneling a new jury after recordings of conversations in Yiddish, which is not easily translated, were presented as possible evidence
Oy Gevalt! Untranslated Yiddish Recordings Stall State Senator’s Trial(NYT)
State Senator’s Bribery Trial Held Up by Recordings in Yiddish(NYT)In an odd twist in a courtroom saga dense with allegations of political corruption, the fate of State Senator Malcolm A. Smith and two other defendants may be put on hold because, of all things, Yiddish. Since it could take weeks to translate the material — none of the lawyers or defendants speak Yiddish much beyond such Americanisms as mensch and chutzpah, and there are few court-certified Yiddish translators — the judge said he might have to consider adjourning the case or declaring a mistrial and impaneling a new jury. The judge postponed his decision until at least Friday to give prosecutors a chance to show him how the recordings might be expeditiously translated so the case could proceed with the same jury.* Judge Considers Declaring Mistrial in Malcolm Smith Case(WSJ)At Issue Are 9,000 Recorded Conversations Not Turned Over to the Defense Prosecutors argued that those conversations weren't relevant to the case against Mr. Smith and former City Councilman Daniel Halloran. They are charged with trying to bribe city Republican officials, who had to permit Mr. Smith to run on the GOP line. * Malcolm Smith corruption case judge may declare mistrial(Newsday) Prosecutors said there were only 737 calls longer than two minutes, offered to help with the translation and urged Karas to avoid a mistrial. But Shargel said early checks indicated calls that went "to the heart of the case.""We can't effectively represent our clients without having access to this information," he said.
Judge Karas on Thursday allowed jurors to hear the final set of government recordings of meetings with the defendants, and told them to not return until Monday. He did not tell them the trial was in jeopardy
He then called the jurors into the courtroom. They viewed grainy videotapes of the F.B.I. agent, handing over an envelope filled with $25,000 in hundred-dollar bills to Vincent Tabone, then the vice chairman of the Queens County Republican Committee, and an envelope of $15,000 to Joseph J. Savino, the Bronx Republican chairman, in an Audi S.U.V. parked outside Sparks Steak House in Midtown Manhattan. The three had been schmoozing at the restaurant on Valentine’s Day 2013, which had prompted one defense lawyer, Leo Ahern, to call the bribery event “the Valentine’s Day Massacre.”
They also saw Mr. Smith listen as the F.B.I. agent, Anil Modi, described the payments he had made in exchange for the Republican authorizations.“They got a 100,000 dollar reasons to come out and say, “Hey, here we go,' ” Mr. Modi told Mr. Smith in a meeting on March 21 in Mr. Smith’s legislative office in Albany.
“Right, right,” Mr. Smith replied. “You gave it to them already.”“I gave them like we discussed, half,” Mr. Modi said.“Oh I got you, I got you,” Mr. Smith replied.“They got to come through,” Mr. Modi said. “Right, right, right, right,” Mr. Smith replied. Mr. Modi became more specific, telling Mr. Smith that he had given the money in cash so one of the recipients could take a vacation, another pay his child’s tuition at Stanford University and a third pay off a mortgage.“And of course then they’re all going to want positions with you and stuff,” Mr. Modi said, alluding to earlier conversations in which the county leaders and Mr. Halloran were asking Mr. Smith for Republican appointments as judges and commissioners should Mr. Smith be elected mayor. “Yeah, oh, sure, yeah,” Mr. Smith replied. Mr. Smith even assured Mr. Modi and Mr. Stern, who was also there, that it was unlikely the county leaders would renege on the deal.“Then you’re looking over your shoulder all the rest of your life,” he said of the recipients of the payments.What if the leaders tried to shake them down for more money, Mr. Modi asked. “I’d say, ‘absolutely not,' ” Mr. Smith replied. “I’d say, ‘I’m not giving you a freaking dime.’ I’d say, ‘If I even give you a nickel more, you’d have to stand on the Empire State Building, and drop every person you endorsed, and hold Malcolm up and say he’s the best thing since sliced bread. Matter of fact, he’s better than sliced bread.' ” Mr. Smith even assured Mr. Modi and Mr. Stern, who was also there, that it was unlikely the county leaders would renege on the deal. “Then you’re looking over your shoulder all the rest of your life,” he said of the recipients of the payments. What if the leaders tried to shake them down for more money, Mr. Modi asked.“I’d say, ‘absolutely not,' ” Mr. Smith replied. “I’d say, ‘I’m not giving you a freaking dime.’ I’d say, ‘If I even give you a nickel more, you’d have to stand on the Empire State Building, and drop every person you endorsed, and hold Malcolm up and say he’s the best thing since sliced bread. Matter of fact, he’s better than sliced bread.' ”
Tapes Prove" New York State politics and Campaign Fund Raising, All About the Fucking Money
“I was being very clear that I was going to take his money,” the agent testified. “I expected we would do zero work related to that.” The agent also said he previously gave Stern $6,500 in cash to create checks in others people’s names for Halloran’s campaign. Smith, prosecutors say, turned to Stern and the undercover agent for money and help pulling off the scheme. The senator, in turn, promised them $500,000 in funds for a project in Spring Valley. The agent told jurors he and Stern first met with Smith separately on that November 2012 day at the Ritz-Carlton — and that Smith was given $12,000 for writing a letter to Spring Valley officials aimed at putting the crooked community-center project in motion.The transcripts of the recorded conversation from mid-November show Mr. Halloran was seeking contributions in cash; he had lost the race for Congress and no longer needed to secure matching funds. “I can take green,” he said.* Smith Double Deals His Business Partner Charge Former Gov. David Paterson sunk own company's Port Authority deal to get dad back into politics: lawsuit(NYDN) A former business partner of David Paterson filed a federal lawsuit against the former governor, claiming the appointment of his father, Basil Paterson, to the Port Authority’s board was meant to create a conflict of interest that canceled upcoming contracts
Smith Tries to Get $$$ For His Campaign Consultants . . . Were They In On the Deal?
Mr. Smith pointed out that campaign donations might not be enough to sway some senators. Some, Mr. Smith elaborated, might want paid consultancies. “Sometimes it takes cash, sometimes it takes checks, sometimes it takes a job,” Mr. Modi said in a recorded conversation.“Right, right, right,” Mr. Smith replied.* Tapes in State Senator’s Trial Reveal Quid Pro Quo Arrangements(NYT)
"Hank Sheinkopf, an adviser to Mr. Smith, (2008) denounced the senators behind the revolt. “This is obviously an attempt by a couple of people to get personal power at the expense of the taxpayers,” Mr. Sheinkopf said. “It disrupts the Senate at a critical period, when issues like mayoral control are yet undecided."* From Daily News 2008 "Smith's supporters say the 52-year-old is perfectly suited for the task: a skilled communicator who's adept at bringing lawmakers together. "He's like one of those really great coaches who gets the absolute best out of his players," said state Sen. Eric Schneiderman, a Manhattan Democrat. "That's a real special quality." * Aqueduct IG gaming report rips Paterson, Senate leadership (TU) In revelations likely to have an impact on the elections just 11 days away -- especially the races that could determine Democrats' tenuous control of the state Senate -- the report holds special disdain for the behavior of Senate leaders John Sampson, who runs the majority conference, and Malcolm Smith, the former majority leader who was pushed aside after the June 2008 Senate coup. In May 2009, an assistant to Senate Secretary Angelo Aponte e-mailed a memo analyzing the bids of all six bidders at the time to AEG consultant Hank Sheinkopf, who has worked for numerous Democrats. When questioned by the inspector general's investigators, Sheinkopf invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.* * Former state Sen. Shirley Huntley is due to be release from a federal halfway house May 31, but the fate of Smith and the eight people she caught on a federal wire is still unclear, the Post writes: * State Sen. Malcolm Smith allegedly put lawmakers ‘on the payroll’ to win majority leader position(NYDN) The Queens Democrat spent $50,000 or $60,000 to secure other senators’ votes to appoint him majority leader, according to court papers filed ahead of Smith’s bribery trial. Long before his bust in bribe scheme to secure a spot on the mayoral ballot, state Sen. Malcolm Smith had fellow lawmakers "on the payroll," the feds say. Smith said he contributed $1,000 to the campaigns of approximately 10 senators during the last week of their 2008 campaigns, the court papers allege. "In return, he gained their votes for majority leader," the Manhattan Federal Court filinth
AEG51 5ths' Hank Sheinkopf An Adviser to Smith When the Dems Won A Majority of the State Senate
Indicted senator Smith told FBI informant about pay scheme to get majority leader position
Halloran Described As the Quarterback of the Smith Ballot Deal Says "I can take green"
Monday: Campaign Contribution to Senators to Buy the A Leadership Position is Not A Crime, Judge
Jury Listens To Taped Conversations In Malcolm Smith Corruption Trial(WCBS) The jury on Monday heard recorded conversations involving the lawmaker, on trial for corruption, and government informant Moses “Mark” Stern, who came up with $27,000 in cash to be delivered to various state senators with the reminder the money was from Smith, WCBS 880′s Irene Cornell reported. But the judge explained to the jury that is not a crime; that’s politics. Meanwhile on Monday, the jury was being bombarded with taped evidence of multiple bribe schemes, including a conversation featuring Halloran, one of Smith’s co-defendants, who is heard asking for cash, saying: “It doesn’t have to be checks. I can take green.” Halloran, described by prosecutors as the “quarterback” in Smith’s game plan, was dealing with two men posing as wealthy real estate developers who were dangling thousands of dollars in front of him in return for political favors. The “businessmen” were, however, working for the government — one was an undercover FBI agent, the other was Stern, a convicted con man facing a life sentence in prison. In one converation, Halloran is heard giving the undercover agent his approval for a scheme that involved outright thievery from the city. The agent testified he made it clear he would keep the money after overbilling the city, and all Halloran cared about, said the witness, was receiving cash to fund his campaign for Congress. “Whatever I was making on the deal was not his concern,” the agent testified.
Saturday's Update: Secret Smith Tapes
Democratic Majority Leader and the Republican Mayor Candidate
Jury hears tapes of Malcolm Smith plotting to regain power at bribery ...Newsday At one secretly recorded 2012 meeting, informant Mark Stern -- a Rockland County Orthodox fundraiser who began cooperating when he faced fraud charges -- promised Smith $50,000 to donate to Senate Democratic colleagues to kick-start a bid for a leadership post and ultimately a run for mayor of New York City.
Smith's Plan A Regain Leadership of the Senate, Plan B Make the GOP Ballot in the Mayor's Race
Smith responded, "What do you need?" When the donor said he wanted to choose an aide from the Jewish community to serve on Smith's payroll as his second in command if he got a Senate leadership post, Smith quickly agreed. Then the two men, meeting for just the second time, in a Rockland County deli after being introduced by a mutual friend, toasted their deal. "Absolutely mazel-tov!" said an enthusiastic Smith. "That's great for both of us!" The tapes were played during the testimony of the FBI undercover agent, who posed as an associate of Stern. A prosecutor indicated that tapes may continue for two more days when testimony resumes next week.* Malcolm Smith Had Two-Pronged Plan For Mayor's Race(WSJ) State Senator Wanted to Win Leadership Position, Then Run For City's Top Job as a Republican. New York state Sen. Malcolm Smith had trouble keeping what he called his "Plan A" straight from his "Plan B," according to testimony Friday at his federal corruption trial on bribery charges.To Regain the Leadership Smith Says He Has to Put the Senators on the Payroll
A Federal Bureau of Investigation agent who posed as a wealthy real-estate developer during a sting operation testified that Mr. Smith used the terms Plan A and Plan B interchangeably when discussing his two-pronged ultimate goal.The agent, who was allowed to testify under a pseudonym because he has ongoing cases, said Mr. Smith's goal boiled down to first regaining either the state Senate majority or minority leadership role. Then, Mr. Smith, a Democrat, wanted to use that platform to raise his profile and run for New York City mayor as a Republican in 2013. He avoided his own party's primary race because it was contentious and crowded. Mr. Smith, 57 years old, was recorded during an August 2012 meeting at a kosher deli in Wesley Hills, N.Y., with Moses "Mark" Stern, who wore a wire. Mr. Stern cooperated with the government in hopes of reducing a potential 440-year prison sentence connected to a fraud case in which he pleaded guilty. At the deli, Mr. Smith explained he wanted money so he could make campaign donations to fellow state senators facing hotly contested re-election races. Even as minority leader, "it still puts me in a better position to run for mayor then just being in the Senate," he told Mr. Stern and a rabbi who attended. "So it's phase one, then phase two."The FBI agent testified that at two meetings Mr. Stern was recorded providing several checks, totaling $27,000, to Mr. Smith for political donations. "I basically put the [state Senate] members on payroll," Mr. Smith was recorded as saying. He said it is more effective to make several contributions than one large one.Said He Bought With Cash His Senate Major Position
Saturday's Update: Secret Smith Tapes
Democratic Majority Leader and the Republican Mayor Candidate
Jury hears tapes of Malcolm Smith plotting to regain power at bribery ...Newsday At one secretly recorded 2012 meeting, informant Mark Stern -- a Rockland County Orthodox fundraiser who began cooperating when he faced fraud charges -- promised Smith $50,000 to donate to Senate Democratic colleagues to kick-start a bid for a leadership post and ultimately a run for mayor of New York City.
Smith's Plan A Regain Leadership of the Senate, Plan B Make the GOP Ballot in the Mayor's Race
Smith responded,
"What do you need?" When the donor said he wanted to
choose an aide from the Jewish community to serve on Smith's payroll as
his second in command if he got a Senate leadership post, Smith quickly
agreed. Then the two men, meeting for just the second time, in a
Rockland
County deli after being introduced by a mutual friend, toasted their
deal. "Absolutely mazel-tov!" said an enthusiastic Smith. "That's great
for both of us!" The tapes were played during the testimony of the FBI
undercover agent,
who posed as an associate of Stern. A prosecutor indicated that tapes
may continue for two more days when testimony resumes next week.* Malcolm Smith Had Two-Pronged Plan For Mayor's Race(WSJ)
State Senator Wanted to Win Leadership Position, Then Run For City's
Top Job as a Republican. New York state Sen. Malcolm Smith had
trouble keeping what he called his "Plan A" straight from his "Plan B,"
according to testimony Friday at his federal corruption trial on bribery
charges. To Regain the Leadership Smith Says He Has to Put the Senators on the Payroll
A Federal Bureau of Investigation agent who posed as a wealthy real-estate developer during a sting operation testified that Mr. Smith used the terms Plan A and Plan B interchangeably when discussing his two-pronged ultimate goal.The agent, who was allowed to testify under a pseudonym because he has ongoing cases, said Mr. Smith's goal boiled down to first regaining either the state Senate majority or minority leadership role. Then, Mr. Smith, a Democrat, wanted to use that platform to raise his profile and run for New York City mayor as a Republican in 2013. He avoided his own party's primary race because it was contentious and crowded. Mr. Smith, 57 years old, was recorded during an August 2012 meeting at a kosher deli in Wesley Hills, N.Y., with Moses "Mark" Stern, who wore a wire. Mr. Stern cooperated with the government in hopes of reducing a potential 440-year prison sentence connected to a fraud case in which he pleaded guilty. At the deli, Mr. Smith explained he wanted money so he could make campaign donations to fellow state senators facing hotly contested re-election races. Even as minority leader, "it still puts me in a better position to run for mayor then just being in the Senate," he told Mr. Stern and a rabbi who attended. "So it's phase one, then phase two."The FBI agent testified that at two meetings Mr. Stern was recorded providing several checks, totaling $27,000, to Mr. Smith for political donations. "I basically put the [state Senate] members on payroll," Mr. Smith was recorded as saying. He said it is more effective to make several contributions than one large one.
The Buying of the GOP Ballot Line Trial Continues Today Staring Senator Diane Savino
What the Mayor Never Meet With Lobbyists Berlin Rosen Who Responded to NYT's Powell Question to the Mayor's Office?
Lobbyists who backed de Blasio for mayor have access(NYP)Mayor de Blasio personally met with six registered lobbyists in his first three months in office — half of whom were his supporters in last year’s mayoral race, The Post has learned. Records provided by the Mayor’s Office show that de Blasio huddled with Vincent Pitta — who was representing Long Island College Hospital and health-care workers in Local 1199 of SEIU — the same day he declared the rescue of the struggling hospital as “truly historic.” A series of subsequent setbacks for the hospital have risked making the Feb. 22 celebration Hizzoner’s “Mission Accomplished” moment.Pitta had given $400 to de Blasio’s mayoral campaign, and his firm — Pitta Bishop Del Giorno & Giblin — was a paid adviser for Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito’s election campaign. The mayor strongly backed Mark-Viverito’s campaign to become council speaker. De Blasio also met with the Real Estate Board’s Steve Spinola in mid-February, at a session with other board members that was on the mayor’s public schedule but was closed to the media.It was at that meeting that de Blasio expressed a willingness to build taller buildings in exchange for more affordable housing units. Other registered lobbyists on the mayor’s list included teachers-union chief Michael Mulgrew, who was in the middle of contract talks; Bob Master and Chris Shelton of the Communications Workers of America; and Tony Marx of the New York Public Library, which was mulling a major renovation of its 42nd Street main location.*Flashback Lobbyists Lined Up To Help Host Million-Dollar Bill de Blasio/Hillary Clinton Fundraiser
How Come Berlin Rosen Is Not Registered As A NYC Lobbyist?
Berlin Rosen Operates In the Dark Pools of Power and NYC Lobbyist
NYT Michael Powell - A couple of weeks back, I called the mayor’s press office and asked about Mr. de Blasio’s perhaps too-optimistic cost projections for prekindergarten. Twenty minutes later, I heard from Dan Levitan of Berlin Rosen, which is the “it” P.R. firm of the city’s left and a close adviser to the mayor. He advised that I should study the mayor’s proposals carefully if I presumed to take “a skeptical look” at prekindergarten. I asked if Berlin Rosen had a contract to handle queries placed with the mayor’s office. He replied that he handled the “campaign” for pre-K. Lobbyists Search for Berlin Rosen * When Campaign Aides Are Lobbyists, Questions Mount - City Limits(City Limits) * 8 Lobbyists Consultants and Citizen United * True News (The Bund): Dark Pools * City Hall's new 'in' crowd of lobbyists (CrainsNY) Lobbyists behind the campaigns of ascendant power brokers are now poised to cash in.* The Perma-Campaign: For Bill de Blasio, the Race Never Ends(NYO)
Twitter / BerlinRosen: Congratulations to whole team ...
Apr 24, 2014 - Congratulations to whole team @TwoTreesNY on the approval of Domino Sugar Refinery. Amazing project for NYC. Proud to be a part of it. Two Trees Cedes to de Blasio’s Demands, Agrees to Build More Affordable Housing at Domino Site
Secret Budget Negotiations, are Lobbyist the Reason for the Closed Doors?
Secret Budget Negotiations, are Lobbyist the Reason for the Closed Doors?
Disputes Over City Budget Not Yet Spilling Into Public View(NY1)
Malcolm Smith’s lawyers demand new jury in corruption trial(NYP) * State Sen. Diane Savino was subpoenaed to testify at fellow Sen. Malcolm Smith’s federal corruption trial and said she was told she’d be asked for background on Smith, who she has reportedly known since before his days in the Senate, the Daily News reports:\* Sen. Diane Savino has been subpoenaed to testify at fellow Sen. Malcolm Smith’s federal corruption trial.
State Sen. Malcolm Smith is dropping his bizarre bid to use
convicted ex-Queens Sen. Shirley Huntley to prove his innocence at his
upcoming corruption trial next week. Gerald Shargel, a...* State Sen. Malcolm Smith to head to trial (NYDN) State Sen. Malcolm Smith to head to trial on bribery, extortion charges
The
Democrat from Queens has also been charged with wire fraud, and faces
up to 45 years in prison if convicted. Smith, who heads to trial Monday,
is accused of trying to buy a spot on the 2013 mayoral ballot as a
Republican by paying off the city's GOP bosses. 
The
Queens pol, arrested on April 2, 2013, will pursue an entrapment
defense, arguing the feds used a devious cooperating witness — Rockland
County businessman Moses Stern — to snare him in a scheme they
concocted. His fellow defendants are former Queens City Councilman
Daniel Halloran
and ex-Queens Republican Party Vice Chairman Vincent Tabone.Prosecutors
claim $80,000 in cash was promised or paid to Halloran,
Tabone and Bronx GOP Chairman Joseph Savino, who pleaded out last year.
In one of numerous secretly recorded meetings, Stern warned the bribes
would cost "a pretty penny."
More About Malcolm Smith
GWB investigation: Port Authority executive director Foye testified before grand jury - See more at: http://www.northjersey.com/news/gwb-investigation-port-authority-executive-director-foye-testified-before-grand-jury-1.1018059#sthash.A9KxPBvT.dpuf
After Bruno's Acquitted Malcolm Smith Legal Team With Give His Jury the Ol Razzle Dazzle
The Huntley Tapes
Malcolm Smith has a surprise witness he says will clear his name (NYP) Queens state Sen. Malcolm Smith wants to present a surprise witness to prove his innocence at his upcoming corruption trial — convicted ex-Queens Sen. Shirley Huntley, stunning new court papers filed Friday reveal.Smith, who is claiming he was framed by the government, wants two secret conversations that Huntley recorded with him submitted as evidence to bolster his defense. “These recorded conversations demonstrate that Smith had no predisposition to engage in any criminal conduct,” Smith attorney Gerald Shargel said.
The Smith motion also asks the judge to dismiss recorded statements uttered by co-defendant Dan Halloran, the ex-Queens Republican councilman, that suggest politicians are corrupt. Shargel said the statements are prejudicial to his client. Smith’s trial starts June 2 in White Plains.Huntley pleaded guilty last year to stealing $87,700 in public funds from her nonprofit group. She secretly taped nine lawmakers and political operatives who were targeted by the feds, including Smith. Meanwhile prosecutors asked the judge to allow its undercover FBI agents to testify without revealing their names. The feds wants their identities protected because the agents are involved in ongoing criminal probes and don’t want their covers blown.Smith: Paying Fucken Money to Politicians is Legal
'Payroll' politicians are fine: state Sen. Smith(NYDN) In papers filed in Manhattan Federal Court on Friday, Smith said there was nothing criminal about his comments, caught on FBI wiretap, that he gave cash to his Democratic colleagues. The Queens politician, 57, is charged with attempting to bribe local Republican Party leaders in an attempt to score a spot in the 2013 mayoral electionAt the Time of the Smith Trial in June Expect Movement in the AEG Gambling Investigation
Others representing clients in the hunt include another longtime Cuomo family retainer, Tonio Burgos; the firm founded by Dan Klores, a close friend of the governor’s; and the firm headed by former Senator Alfonse M. D’Amato,
a Republican who has become a major fund-raiser for Mr. Cuomo. Nowhere
is the competition more intense than in the Catskills and the
Hudson Valley, the area closest to New York City, where 11 bidders
include the casino giant Caesars Entertainment
and Genting Group, a Malaysian company with a popular video lottery
outpost at the Aqueduct racetrack, in Queens.Still, like its rivals,
Greenetrack is gearing up fast: Its
representatives include Park Strategies, Mr. D’Amato’s lobbying firm,
and Charlie King, a former executive director of the State Democratic
Party and a longtime friend of Mr. Cuomo’s. Flashback Behind an Army of Lobbyists, an Instant Force in Gambling(NYT) * GamblingIndustry Bets Big on NYS, Has Spent $50M on Lobbying and Campaign ContributionsSince 2005 (Common Cause) * Lobby dollars and a dream - Times Union* Oneida Indian Nation spent the most in NY on gambling ...* Lobbyists cash in on racinos' big bet | New York Post * Interests Spent Big for NY Casino Lobbying | BloodHorse.com * Is Cuomo's Gambling Plan a Win for Lobbyists? - New York Mag * NY Times: Casino Referendum Hot Target for Lobbyists(NYT)
Gambling Industry Bets Big on NYS, Has Spent $50M on Lobbying and Campaign Contributions Since 2005
- See more at:
http://www.commoncause.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=dkLNK1MQIwG&b=5287775&ct=12188661#sthash.5nancMzu.dpuf
Legislator Up for Re-election Wants to Delay Bribery Trial
(NYT) Senator Malcolm A. Smith, who has been charged in a plot to bribe his way onto the ballot to run for mayor of New York, says his trial would interfere with his re-election campaign. * No delay on Smith trial - Queens Chronicle: Editorials * Judge refuses to delay Malcolm Smith's NY trial - WSJ.com * Contenders for Malcom Smith Seat Undaunted by Comrie Candidacy(NYO)
Vinny the Chin Halloran Says Stop the Trial, I Am Nuts
Queens Deputy Borough President Leroy Comrie is definitely running for the seat held by criminally-charged state Sen. Malcolm Smith, the News has learned. Comrie, a former city councilman, said he will run even if it means waging a primary against Smith, whose federal bribery trial is set to begin in June, report our Lisa L. Colangelo and Reuven Blau.Smith, the former Senate Democratic majority leader, is accused of participating in a scheme to buy his way into the Republican mayoral primary last year. He has denied the charges.
Smith Investigation Ongoing
The prosecutors want the info kept secret because the investigation that busted the state senator and other political figures is ongoing. White Plains Federal Court Judge Kenneth Karas said Monday he wants to see the evidence next week so he can decide whether it needs to be kept secret, according to Grant Lally, lawyer for Vincent Tabone, a Republican party official charged in the case.
4/9/2013
Should Smith Hire Body Guards?
Political and court experts say his fight in scandal has only begun
4/3/2112
Putting Pols In Jail Will Not Break Albany's Crime Wave
Groundhog Corruption
It’s no surprise, of course, that the system invites corruption; the
rules are written by those who profit by them. And, as Bharara pointedly
asked: “What can we expect when transgressions seem to be tolerated and
nothing ever seems to change?” “Putting dirty politicians in prison may be necessary, but is not
sufficient. And the dream of honest government cannot come to pass
unless there is real change in the culture,” the U.S. attorney said. Empire state of rot(NYP Ed)
Hard as it is to believe, New York’s public-corruption crisis is
getting worse. And simply jailing dirty pols won’t end it. This is “more
than a prosecutor’s problem,” said Bharara.
Elections And Everything Else for Sale NYC II
Organized Crime Politics
Welcome to the Biggest Corruption Sandal In NYC History
‘Bribing’ his way onto the ballot: State Sen., city Councilman Halloran face fed rap today(NYP) State Sen. Malcolm Smith and city Councilman Dan Halloran will be slapped with federal charges today in a stunning bribery scheme to rig this year’s mayoral election. Expect several corruption scandals to come together as more players at tied into the six that were arrested. The Pols Blue Wall of Silence is Up - Pols off Twitter and Face Book Today Yesterday’s indictments also show the lingering, corrupting effect of legislative pork (i.e., “member items”), despite the boasts of “reform” by pols like Gov. Cuomo and Council Speaker Chris Quinn.
Graft on top of graft on top of graft A Life of Crime Politics
Malcolm & Dan on FBI wiretaps; plot bares ‘business’ as usual in NY(NYP) * The fall (and fall) of Sen. Smith(NYP) * The fall (and fall) of Sen. Smith(NYP) * A ruined life gets even worse for Halloran (NYP) Dan’s debt, divorce woes
The king of Queens graft(NYP Ed)Smith has been linked to so many dubious schemes the FBI must have had an entire branch on his tail: Bid-rigging for the Aqueduct racino. Co-founding a Katrina charity that saw nearly $30,000 vanish. Diverting campaign funds for lavish personal trips and meals. Even opening (and then ruining) a Queens charter school in what appears to be a plot to boost home sales for a developer and big-time donor.
Smith’s friends now are abandoning him like rats. Gov. Cuomo said he
has “zero tolerance for any violation of the public integrity and the
public trust.”
Witness at the Center of Malcolm Smith Bribery Case Owes $126M to Citigroup(DNAINFO)
GOP power broker Tabone quits amid Smith scandal(NYP)
But Cuomo himself seemed OK with the arrangement that gave Smith considerable power.* The DN characterizes Halloran as the “greedy Gordon Gekko” of the scheme to buy Smith’s way onto the GOP line.* Cox Calls On Savino, Tabone To Resign(YNN) * Halloran's alleged straw donor link with Smith(CrainsNY)@ChrisBragg1 Markowitz couple seems to have given
* Malcolm Smith’s staff will take a trimming(TU) * Quinn defends member items but definitely not Dan Halloran(Capital) * Cuomo On Corruption: ‘People Do Stupid Things’(YNN) * Mayoral Candidates Spar Over Member Items In Wake Of Major Bribery Arrests(NY1) * Manhattan GOP Chair Tells Supporters There’s Not ‘Another Shoe to Drop’(NYO) * Monsey Chosid Named As Key Figure In Mass NYC Political Bribery Scandal(vosizneias.com/) * Spring Valley Mayor Noramie Jasmine: “I am asking the community not to prejudge me, rather to keep me in your prayers for my good name to restore.”
GOP power broker Tabone quits amid Smith scandal(NYP)
But Cuomo himself seemed OK with the arrangement that gave Smith considerable power.* The DN characterizes Halloran as the “greedy Gordon Gekko” of the scheme to buy Smith’s way onto the GOP line.* Cox Calls On Savino, Tabone To Resign(YNN) * Halloran's alleged straw donor link with Smith(CrainsNY)
* Malcolm Smith’s staff will take a trimming(TU) * Quinn defends member items but definitely not Dan Halloran(Capital) * Cuomo On Corruption: ‘People Do Stupid Things’(YNN) * Mayoral Candidates Spar Over Member Items In Wake Of Major Bribery Arrests(NY1) * Manhattan GOP Chair Tells Supporters There’s Not ‘Another Shoe to Drop’(NYO) * Monsey Chosid Named As Key Figure In Mass NYC Political Bribery Scandal(vosizneias.com/) * Spring Valley Mayor Noramie Jasmine: “I am asking the community not to prejudge me, rather to keep me in your prayers for my good name to restore.”
With the Smith Trial Date State A Chain Reaction That Bags the AIG Pols?
Sen. Smith’s fraud and bribery trial set for June(NYP) A federal judge on Monday ordered state Sen. Malcolm Smith’s fraud and
bribery trial to begin June 2, quietly rejecting the powerful Queens
Democrat’s bid to push the date back a few months so he could smoothly
seek re-election. Tabone is accused of pocketing $25,000 as part of a failed scheme to get
Smith — one of the state’s top Democrats — on the 2012 Republican line
for mayor. Smith’s lawyer, Gerald Shargel, told The Post “we’ll be ready for trial” June 2 .* In State Report on Casino, a Few Cameos for Sharpton(NYT)
More on the AEG Cover Up
More on the Malcolm Smith Scandal
More on the AEG Cover Up
More on the Malcolm Smith Scandal
The Post’s Fred Dicker argues that Smith’s arrest hearkens back to the “bad old days” of Albany corruption and reflects poorly on the leadership of Cuomo, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Senate Republican Leader Dean Skelos
So much for Albany's orgy of self-congratulation:
Fredric U. Dicker
Bharara by loading up charges Smith and Halloran could get 45 Years Tabone and Savino 25 Years is putting pressure on the bums to rat on higher ups just like Judge Sirica did with the 7 that were arrested for the Watergate breakin. There are a few pols sweating right now that Smith will rat on them.
A phony Rockland County construction
project generated by the FBI led to the arrest of Spring Valley Mayor
Noramie Jasmin and Deputy Mayor Joseph Desmaret, who accepted bribes
from undercover federal agents in connection with Smith and Halloran, The Journal News writes: * Many of Smith’s colleagues in Albany
were not surprised to hear of his arrest due to the fine ethical line
that Smith walked for years, while some declined comment for fear of
upsetting Smith, The New York Daily News reports * Halloran was struggling with hundreds
of thousands of dollars in debt from late mortgage payments and a
divorce from his ex-wife, Cynthia, before he got involved in an alleged
extortion scheme to deliver Republican ballot access for Smith’s bid for
mayor, the New York Post learns: Bronx Republican Chairman Jay Savino was fired from his position on the Clarkstown Town Board, where he handled the town’s tax certioraris, after he was arrested in connection with rigging the New York City mayoral race, The Journal News writes: Republican New York City mayoral candidate George McDonald recalled that while meeting with the five bosses of the city’s Republican Party to persuade them to support his bid for mayor, they wanted a candidate who could make contributions to the party’s coffers, the Times reports: * Cuomo stopped by Buffalo and Rochester on a victory tour after his administration passed its third on-time budget and said that the bribery incident in New York City works against the good faith he has helped build among the public in Albany, the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle writes
Smithfellas
From the Indictment
…and then he reportedly (and quietly) fired Tabone from both posts.* How silly Vince Tabone was allegedly patting someone down for a wire. How silly. He didnt realize that the Donnie brasco movie took place in the seventies. Those wiring gadgets went out of style in the eighties and now Feds use small bugs and put them in creative places. *Gonzalez: Sen. Malcolm Smith's alleged bribery scheme is the dumbest, most delusional plot ever concocted(NYDN) * You can't do anything without the f------ money': FBI tapes reveal elaborate plot to bribe New York GOP officials to put Dem state Senator Malcolm Smith on mayoral ballot(NYDN)
* Sources: Queens GOP Leader Facing Major Corruption Charges Resigns(NY1)
.
___________________________________
Bronx GOP Boss Savino Going to Rat
Former Bronx GOP Chairman Jay Savino pleaded guilty to federal corruption charges.
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. — The former Republican Party chairman in the Bronx has pleaded guilty to corruption charges, admitting to accepting a bribe to let a Democratic state senator run for New York City mayor as a Republican. Joseph Savino entered the plea to three public corruption counts Tuesday in federal court in White Plains.* Former Bronx GOP Chairman Jay Savino Pleads Guilty To Corruption Charges(NYDN)
* Former Bronx GOP Chairman Pleads Guilty In Connection With ...(NY1)* Savino pleads guilty in corruption scandal with Spring Valley ties(LoHud) * Ex-Bronx GOP boss pleads guilty in corruption case(TU) *Ex-Bronx GOP boss pleads guilty in corruption case(WSJ) * Ex-Bronx County Republican Chairman Joseph Savino pleads guilty to bribery ...(Bronx 12)
Savino copped to taking a $15,000 bribe from an undercover agent in exchange for agreeing to help Smith get a Wilson-Pakula waiver to compete in the primary without switching his registration.
The feds say in court papers that Savino could apply to enter the witness protection program as the entrenched ex-politico’s cooperation “is likely to reveal activities of individuals who might use violence, force, and intimidation against” him and his family. He faces up to 30 years in prison and nine years of supervised release when he’s sentenced on Feb 25 – although he’s likely to get a significantly reduced sentence. His lawyer Robert LaRusso said he’d seek probation for Savino.
We Hear Your Now Melvin Lowe
Because
he is a
Democrat, Smith needed three Republican leaders' permission. According
to court papers, Savino accepted $15,000 from an undercover
FBI agent last Feb. 1 at a Manhattan restaurant. As part of the plea,
he must forfeit the money. Savino faces up to 30 years in prison at a
Feb. 25 sentencing.* Political Consultant Melvin Lowe Arrested in Corruption Case ...
Selling the GOP Line
Savino Throws Halloran Under the Bus
Joseph
“Jay” Savino told White Plains federal Judge Kenneth Karas that
Councilman Dan Halloran instigated the entire scheme to get state Sen.
Malcolm Smith (D-Queens) on the GOP ballot for mayor.The fallen Bronx
power broker said the deal was concocted after he
reached out to Halloran in January 2013 for help ensuring that the City
Council didn’t replace one of Savino’s hand-picked commissioners on the
city’s Board of Elections. “He basically told me the only way I would
keep my commissioner is to come to this lunch,” Savino said. Savino said
he met with Halloran and others – including an undercover
agent he referred to as “Raj” — at Spark’s Steak House in Midtown on
February 1. There, Savino said, it was proposed that he’d be hired for
legal services on development projects in Rockland County and the Bronx
in exchange for him helping get Smith on the GOP mayoral ballot. Savino
said he agreed to accept a $30,000 retainer — including $15,000 up
front.
Because he is a Democrat, Smith needed GOP support in at least three boroughs to run as a Republican without changing his party affiliation. Smith had Halloran allegedly set up meetings with Savino and Queens Republican Vice Chairman Vincent Tabone to arrange bribes for their support, while Halloran pocketed thousands for himself, prosecutors said
4/4/2013
________________________________________________________________________________
More on those Arrested
Smith had no chance of winning, he likely had his sights on the Campaign Finance Board’s 6-to-1 fund matching. As a mayoral candidate, he could get a maximum match of $1,050 for each $175 donation.
Smith blew $2M in elex cash (NYP) State Sen. Malcolm Smith blew through more than $2 million in campaign cash over five years — bunking at ritzy hotels, dining at four-star restaurants and even traveling to China, campaign- finance records show. The lavish spending included a November 2011 junket to China, where Smith and his entourage forked over $1,148 to stay at the Beijing Grand and about $2,500 for other lodgings. That same month, the one-time Democratic Senate leader shelled out more than $1,000 at four of the city’s top steakhouses — Ben Benson’s, Capital Grille, Bobby Van’s and Smith & Wollensky. FBI agents yesterday served a subpoena on Smith’s Queens office as the senator stayed out of sight.*The king of Queens graft(NYP Ed) Smith has been linked to so many dubious schemes the FBI must have had an entire branch on his tail: Bid-rigging for the Aqueduct racino. Co-founding a Katrina charity that saw nearly $30,000 vanish. Diverting campaign funds for lavish personal trips and meals. Even opening (and then ruining) a Queens charter school in what appears to be a plot to boost home sales for a developer and big-time donor.
Before the NYP said Smith might run as a GOP fusion candidate don't you think their reporters should ask the city's GOP if they were on board? All they went with was the fantasy of a failed state senate majority leader who know they is future will most likely be corruption trials and jail, no matter how he tires to kiss up to the establishment buy being pro business and changing his mind to now be pro stop and frisk.
Party poops on Malcolm(NYP)
Malcolm Smith, a Queens Democrat, is undaunted by the cool reception he received from NYC GOP leaders in response to him running for mayor in 2013 on their ballot line. He hopes to meet each one personally to convince them.True News (The Bund): New York's Corrupt Political Parties
Errol Lewis Reaches Back to His Jack Newfield Days And Takes Malcolm Smith Apart
In this sudden flood of interviews and articles coming from Malcolm Smith and his secret handler Hank Sheinkopf part of a so called listening tour to convince GOP leaders to make him their pick for mayor a real interview by NY1's Errol Lewis to cut through the public relations crap and uncovered the real bum, dummy and liar Smith NY1 Online: State Senator Malcolm Smith Speaks About Possible Mayoral Run(NY1)
Errol Lewis: You Hired Gerald Shargel and paid him $50,000 to protect you from a grand jury probe
Malcolm Smith: The probe was aginst New Directors and not me?
Lewis: You hired an attorney to protect yourself. The probe was against you.
Smith: You have to ask people handing New Direction
Lewis: New Directions is a group you help fund and establish. What Happen
Smith: Some people took over, You know the rest as well as I do
Lewis:
Smith: I don't know because I did not run the operation
Lewis: Do you know if they did some good for the people in your district?
Smith: That i could not tell you I was not there every day
Smith: No I do not know
Lewis: Do you know what happen to the public money you gave New Directions? Did it do any good for the people of your district?
Smith: No I do not
Lewis: Your Idea of funding community groups is to get them the money and whatever happens is what ever happens happens
Smith: It is not our responsibility to monitor them. I would hope it did some good
Called him on the the deal he cut Pedro Espada to keep the Democrats in charge of the senate
Smith: If I had to do it over I would not have done it again. lessons learned
How is the world is smith involved in this issue
New York - State Sen. Smith Voices Support for Metzitzah B’Peh. NYC Senators Living Beyond Their Means
You’re overpaying on senators’ rent
(NYP) The rent that state senators pay on the taxpayers’ dime is too damn
high! Data obtained by The Post found that 19 of the 27 senators
representing parts of New York City — 70 percent — submitted rental
bills that exceeded their $40,000 annual allotment for 2011-12.
Smith Got GOP Support Because of Deal Between Queens Dem and GOP and he paid for it . . . What Does That Have to Do With A Mayoral Run?
Smith Makes His Pitch to Republicans, Forgets Supporting Bill Thompson(NYO)
“Even my first three terms in the Senate I was cross-endorsed by the
Republican Party, I even had the Independent line, so it’s not something
that’s unusual,” Mr. Smith saidSmith Makes His Pitch to Republicans, Forgets Supporting Bill Thompson(NYO)
The NY Media Covers Putin's Corrupt Election in Crimeans and is Silent About Selling the Mayor's Ballot Line in A NYC
Will Putin Take Over NYC Next?
In two weeks it will be one year since Senator Malcolm Smith, Councilman Dan Halloran, Bronx Republican Chairman Jay Savino and Queens GOP VP Vince Tabone. The media has not done one investigative story about the Smith attempt to buy the mayor's seat. As U.S. Attorney Bharara pointedly asked: “What can we expect when transgressions seem to be tolerated and nothing ever seems to change?” “Putting dirty politicians in prison may be necessary, but is not sufficient. Hard as it is to believe, New York’s public-corruption crisis is getting worse.
The press has a role to play, Mr. Bharara said, noting that he is
saddened by recent reports of newspaper closings and staff downsizing. "Rather
than just covering the cases that my office and other offices are
already bringing, figure out ways to break new ground and to cover new
stories," he said. "Groundbreaking corruption coverage
is not just good copy, it's a path to good government." Bharara Preet Bharara hopes for more muckraking in ... - Capital Sept 18, 2013 As Queens City Councilman Dan Halloran, who was also
arrested, put it in an FBI transcript, “Money is what greases the
wheels.” Politics is “all about how much.”
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