Knickerbocker

Gov. Paterson fined $62K for taking free Yankees tickets

December 20, 2010 , ι By BRENDAN SCOTT

ALBANY – The state’s top ethics watchdog slapped Gov. Paterson with a whopping $62,000 fine this morning for accepting free World Series tickets last year from the New York Yankees. The Public... Read on

ALBANY – The state’s top ethics watchdog slapped Gov. Paterson with a whopping $62,000 fine this morning for accepting free World Series tickets last year from the New York Yankees.
	 
The Public Integrity Commission’s penalty – the first of its kind against a sitting governor – follows a months-long investigation into the Democratic governor’s freebie foul initially set off by a story in The Post.
	 
READ HOW THE POST BROKE THE STORY
	 
READ THE FULL ETHICS REPORT
	 
"The moral and ethical tone of any organization is set at the top," Commission Chairman Michael Cherkasky said. "Unfortunately the Governor set a totally inappropriate tone by his dishonest and unethical conduct. Such conduct cannot be tolerated by any New York State employee, particularly our Governor."
	 
The $62,125 fine comes less than two weeks before Paterson is slated to handover the Executive Mansion to Attorney General Andrew Cuomo.
	 
The commission found that Paterson and his aides had no intention to pay when they first solicited the Yankees for five free tickets to Game One against the Philadelphia Phillies.
	 
The Yankees have various interests before the state and regularly register as a lobbying entity. It’s against state law for a public official to accept gifts from a registered lobbyist.
	 
Paterson was fined $60,000 for three violations of the state ethics law and $2,125 for the face value of the five VIP seats.
	 
brendan.scott@nypost.com
	 

	 <object classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" codebase="http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=8,0,0,0" id="vxFlashPlayer5450" width="380" height="252" ><param name="movie" value="http://publish.vx.roo.com/nypost/viral/2010/flashembed/" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="allowFullscreen" value="true" /><param name="quality" value="high" /><param name="scale" value="noScale" /><param name="wmode" value="windowed" /><param name="flashvars" value="vxTemplate=http://publish.vx.roo.com/nypost/viral/2010/NYPost_Mini_Scalable.swf&amp;vxSiteId=b0debab1-419e-413a-bc36-ecb11d2ff4f8&amp;vxChannel=NY Post&amp;vxClipId=1458_1119766&amp;vxClickToPlay=clip&amp;vxTint=&amp;vxServerBase=&amp;vxBitrate=300&amp;vxCore=http://publish.vx.roo.com/nypost/viral/2010/vxCore.swf&amp;" /><embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://publish.vx.roo.com/nypost/viral/2010/flashembed/" width="380" height="252" allowScriptAccess="always" allowFullscreen="true" quality="high" scale="noScale" wmode="windowed" flashvars="vxTemplate=http://publish.vx.roo.com/nypost/viral/2010/NYPost_Mini_Scalable.swf&amp;vxSiteId=b0debab1-419e-413a-bc36-ecb11d2ff4f8&amp;vxChannel=NY Post&amp;vxClipId=1458_1119766&amp;vxClickToPlay=clip&amp;vxTint=&amp;vxServerBase=&amp;vxBitrate=300&amp;vxCore=http://publish.vx.roo.com/nypost/viral/2010/vxCore.swf&amp;" ></embed></object>

PRINT
EMAIL
SHARE
- Yahoo! Buzz
- Digg
- Reddit
- Fark It
- Newsvine
- StumbleUpon
- Twitter
- Facebook
RSS

Paterson: Loss of top aide contributed to downfall

December 16, 2010 , ι By BRENDAN SCOTT, Post Correspondent

ALBANY – Out-going Gov. Paterson this morning blamed many of his political woes on the early departure of – and his failure to replace - a trusted aide who failed to pay his taxes.Charles O'Byrne,... Read on

ALBANY – Out-going Gov. Paterson this morning blamed many of his political woes on the early departure of – and his failure to replace - a trusted aide who failed to pay his taxes.
	 
Charles O'Byrne, the governor's first chief of staff, or "secretary" as the position is formally known, was forced to resign in October 2008 after The Post revealed he had run up an income tax debt of $300,000.
	 
O'Byrne, a lawyer and former Jesuit priest, had been one of Paterson's closest confidents since he served as Senate minority leader and was generally viewed as the governor's most capable strategist.
	 
Paterson said during his weekly appearance on WOR 710-AM this morning that regretted not taking the time to find a better replacement.
	 
"This is almost like my partner," Paterson said. "What I should’ve done is stop the clock, conduct a search and stop worrying about the time because you’re going to have to live with whoever you get."

AP

Paterson first appointed Bill Cunningham, a member of his father's law firm, before ousting him months later in favor of his current executive Lawrence Schwartz.
	 
"Eventually, four months after that, I got the right person," Paterson continued. "But a lot things happened in those four months that caused me a lot of problems."
	 
Paterson's job approval had by February 2009 plummeted to 28-69 percent from 55-41 percent in November, according Siena College polls. His favorability rating fell to 40-47 percent from 64-19 percent during the same period.
	 
What happened in those intervening months? A failed budget-cutting session, a budget proposal that includes a staggering 137 taxes and fees and the circus like Senate nomination process that ended with an anonymous Paterson aide trashing would-be Senator, Caroline Kennedy.
	 
The governor's popularity never fully recovered. He announced last winter that he would not run to keep his office.

PRINT
EMAIL
SHARE
- Yahoo! Buzz
- Digg
- Reddit
- Fark It
- Newsvine
- StumbleUpon
- Twitter
- Facebook
RSS

Gov. Paterson's aide in domestic violence case fired

December 13, 2010 , ι By FREDRIC U. DICKER, STATE EDITOR

ALBANY – Gov. Paterson has quietly dumped scandal-scarred ex-aide David Johnson from the state payroll, nearly nine months after he was suspended for allegedly beating his former girlfriend in the... Read on

ALBANY – Gov. Paterson has quietly dumped scandal-scarred ex-aide David Johnson from the state payroll, nearly nine months after he was suspended for allegedly beating his former girlfriend in the Bronx, it was learned today.
	 
Johnson, once Paterson’s closest personal aide and the governor’s $132,000-a-year “director of executive services,’’ was quietly dropped from the state employment roster Nov. 19, the same day reports appeared that a Bronx judge ruled that prosecutors could move ahead with a domestic violence case against him.
	 
Paterson spokesman Jessica Bassett would say only “no comment’’ on why the governor’s action took so long.
	 
Paterson suspended Johnson without pay Feb. 25 after shocking revelations that the governor, at least one other aide, and a senior State Police official had sought to convince Shurr-una Booker not to pursue criminal charges against Johnson.
	 
Johnson, who was charged with assault, criminal mischief, menacing and harassment, is due back in court Jan. 5.

PRINT
EMAIL
SHARE
- Yahoo! Buzz
- Digg
- Reddit
- Fark It
- Newsvine
- StumbleUpon
- Twitter
- Facebook
RSS

Cuomo: I'll spend more than $4M on union war

November 23, 2010 , ι By BRENDAN SCOTT, Post Correspondent

ALBANY – Gov.-elect Andrew Cuomo said he was girding for a multi-million-dollar war with public employee unions to defend his efforts to close a projected $9 billion budget deficit without raising... Read on

ALBANY – Gov.-elect Andrew Cuomo said he was girding for a multi-million-dollar war with public employee unions to defend his efforts to close a projected $9 billion budget deficit without raising taxes.
	 
The Democratic attorney general told The Post's Fred Dicker that he was willing to spend the $4 million remaining in his campaign war chest next year to counter any union-backed campaigns against his budget plans.
	 
"They will attack me," Cuomo said during an interview on Albany's WGDJ Talk 1300-AM. "I understand it. I understand why they do it. I anticipate it and I am prepared for it."
	 
"It's not going to be that my argument is going to lose only because I don't have the resources or the capacity to make the argument," he continued. "If the public hears the argument and hears both sides it's not even going to be close."
	 
Cuomo's comments came on the heels of a preemptive advertising campaign by the Civil Service Employees Association, the state's largest union. The ad, in an apparent shot at Cuomo, criticizes politicians for "talking out of both sides of their mouth" to support both government layoffs and private-sector job growth.
	 
Previous governors have watched their approval ratings plummet amid multi-million-dollar union-backed ad campaigns.
	 
Cuomo said he would also call on business groups, private-sector unions, government reform groups and media opinion makers to back his agenda. The $4 million in his campaign account "is not enough to wage the kind of campaign that I want to be prepared to wage," he said.

PRINT
EMAIL
SHARE
- Yahoo! Buzz
- Digg
- Reddit
- Fark It
- Newsvine
- StumbleUpon
- Twitter
- Facebook
RSS

Poll: Voters optimistic Cuomo will get the job done

November 15, 2010 , ι By BRENDAN SCOTT

ALBANY – Democratic Gov.-elect Andrew Cuomo is heading into office with broad support – including backing from 4 in 10 Republicans – while most New Yorkers want his former foe to quit politics for... Read on

ALBANY – Democratic Gov.-elect Andrew Cuomo is heading into office with broad support – including backing from 4 in 10 Republicans – while most New Yorkers want his former foe to quit politics for good, the latest Siena poll found.
	 
The first statewide survey since the election found voters have an overwhelmingly favorable view of Cuomo, 64 to 26 percent, the attorney general’s highest approval rating since May.
	 
Cuomo actively touted Republicans support during the campaign and has tapped several prominent Republicans to serve on his transition team.
	 
Nearly three quarters believe Cuomo will succeed in tackling stubbornly high unemployment – the No. 1 concern for voters – while just below 50 percent say he’ll finally fix the state’s budget woes.
	 
Meanwhile, voters agree 58 to 27 percent that Cuomo’s former opponent, Tea Party-backed Republican Carl Paladino, should not remain active in New York politics. Cuomo trounced Paladino on Election Day, 62 to 34 percent.
	 
While Cuomo is enjoying high popularity now, the poll suggests the incoming executive could run into political trouble if he makes good on his plans to cut taxes and spending.
	 
Some 52 percent of voters oppose cuts to either health care or education – which together make up the lion’s share of state spending - even if it means raising taxes to pay for them. The state faces a $9 billion budget deficit next year.
	 
Voters also opposed any speculation that Cuomo should run for president until he proves himself as governor, 85 to 11 percent.
	 
A majority – 53 percent – believe Democrats and Republicans should share power in the closely divided state Senate no matter which party is finally declared the victor after recounts in three disputed races.
	 
brendan.scott@nypost.com

PRINT
EMAIL
SHARE
- Yahoo! Buzz
- Digg
- Reddit
- Fark It
- Newsvine
- StumbleUpon
- Twitter
- Facebook
RSS

Carl Paladino invokes dead son in new Internet video

November 01, 2010 , ι POST WIRE SERVICES

With a day to go before Election Day, GOP gubernatorial hopeful Carl Paladino tried to connect with voters with the help of an online video invoking his dead son.Paladino said his desire to run for... Read on

With a day to go before Election Day, GOP gubernatorial hopeful Carl Paladino tried to connect with voters with the help of an online video invoking his dead son.
	 
Paladino said his desire to run for office came last year after his son Patrick died in a car accident.
	 
<object width="500" height="390"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Vu59lXm7XTM&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Vu59lXm7XTM&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="500" height="390"></embed></object>
	 
"I knew it was a very mischievous and not too endearing of an effort to do," Paladino said in the newly-released 13-minute video. "But I figured I could do it ... because I had my son on my shoulder and that's what his life was about."
	 
Paladino trails in the polls to Democrat Andrew Cuomo. One poll had Cuomo leading by 20 percent.
	 
The same Quinnipiac University survey released last week also that Cuomo was backed by 19 percent of Republicans and 88 percent of Democrats.
	 
With AP

PRINT
EMAIL
SHARE
- Yahoo! Buzz
- Digg
- Reddit
- Fark It
- Newsvine
- StumbleUpon
- Twitter
- Facebook
RSS

NY attorney general, comptroller races now in dead heat: new poll

October 31, 2010 , ι By FREDRIC U. DICKER

ALBANY - A bombshell new poll out this morning shows that the Republican candidates for attorney general and state comptroller, who've trailed their Democratic opponents for weeks, have closed the... Read on

ALBANY - A bombshell new poll out this morning shows that the Republican candidates for attorney general and state comptroller, who've trailed their Democratic opponents for weeks, have closed the gap and are tied just a day before Election Day.
	 
The Siena College survey also found that Attorney General Andrew Cuomo continues to hold a massive, 25 percentage point, lead over Buffalo builder and Republican candidate Carl Paladino in the race for governor.
	 
But the big news in the poll was that Republican AG hopeful and Staten Island District Attorney Dan Donovan is tied, 44-44 percent, with Manhattan state Sen. Eric Schneiderman while investor Harry Wilson, the GOP comptroller candidate, is also tied, 44-44 percent, with appointed incumbent Comptroller Tom DiNapoli.
	 
The new figures means Wilson has closed a 17 percent point gap with DiNapoli that Siena found sevreal weeks ago while Donovan closed a gap of seven points.
	 
“While Schneiderman improved his support among Democrats, Donovan improved his support among Republicans and now has a majority of independents supporting him,'' said Siena pollster Steven Greenberg.
	 
“Schneiderman continues to lead big in New York City. However, his previous narrow lead of 44-41 percent in the downstate suburbs has now become a 21-point lead for Donovan.
	 
“Harry Wilson has narrowed, no, has eliminated Tom DiNapoli's 17-point lead. Both candidates have the support of 44 percent of the voters, with 12 percent still undecided,” continued Greenberg.
	 
“What sports analogy should I use? If this were a baseball game, it would be tied heading to the ninth inning. In football, it would be tied at the two-minute warning. Or perhaps a fifth set tie-breaker at the U.S. Open. But no matter what sports analogy you use, it is clear that momentum is on Wilson's side,'' Greenberg continued.

PRINT
EMAIL
SHARE
- Yahoo! Buzz
- Digg
- Reddit
- Fark It
- Newsvine
- StumbleUpon
- Twitter
- Facebook
RSS

Rep. John Hall in dead heat with GOP challenger

October 27, 2010 , ι By FREDRIC U. DICKER, STATE EDITOR

ALBANY - Incumbent Democratic U.S. Rep. John Hall is in a dead heat with his Republican challenger in the battle for the 19th Congressional “Tappan Zee Bridge'' district that includes parts of... Read on

ALBANY - Incumbent Democratic U.S. Rep. John Hall is in a dead heat with his Republican challenger in the battle for the 19th Congressional “Tappan Zee Bridge'' district that includes parts of Westchester, Rockland,Putnam, Orange, and Dutchess Counties, a new poll out this morning shows.
	 
The Siena College survey found Hall leading GOP opponent Nan Hayworth by just one percentage point, 47-46 percent, well within the poll's plus- or minus-3.8 percent margin of error.
	 
The good news for Hall is that a Siena poll two weeks ago found him trailing Hayworth, 46-43 percent.
	 
“John Hall and Nan Hayworth have divided up the voters of the 19th CD virtually down the middle. Over the last two weeks, Hayworth has stayed constant and Hall has picked up four points, largely from previously undecided independent voters,” said Siena College pollster Steven Greenberg.
	 
“Hall continues to have a high single-digit lead in Rockland and Westchester Counties. Hayworth continues to lead in Orange County, although the lead is down to seven points from 21 points. And the battleground counties of Dutchess and Putnam continue to divide their votes nearly evenly,'' Greenberg continued.
	 
A Siena poll yesterday showed incumbent Democratic U.S. Rep. Scott Murphy, who once held a strong lead, falling to nine percentage points behind Republican challenger Chris Gibson in the Albany-area seat once held by Democratic U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.

PRINT
EMAIL
SHARE
- Yahoo! Buzz
- Digg
- Reddit
- Fark It
- Newsvine
- StumbleUpon
- Twitter
- Facebook
RSS

Cuomo still pounding Paladino: poll

October 27, 2010 , ι By FREDRIC U. DICKER, STATE EDITOR

With just six days to go to Election Day, yet another new poll shows Democratic Attorney General Andrew Cuomo crushing Republican challenger Carl Paladino in the race for governor.A Quinnipiac... Read on

With just six days to go to Election Day, yet another new poll shows Democratic Attorney General Andrew Cuomo crushing Republican challenger Carl Paladino in the race for governor.
	 
A Quinnipiac University survey released this morning found Cuomo leading Buffalo builder Paladino, 55-35 percent, nearly identical to the 55-37 percent lead Cuomo held in an Oct. 7 Quinnipiac poll.
	 
The new poll showed Cuomo backed by 19 percent of Republicans, along with 88 percent of Democrats.
	 
Independent voters favored the Democrat by a narrow, 44 – 41 percent.
	 
Cuomo was ahead among women by a whopping, 57 – 30 percent, and among men, 53 – 39 percent.
	 
The poll also found the state’s two Democratic U.S. senators holding commanding leaders over their GOP challengers.
	 
U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand led former Westchester Congressman Joseph DioGuardi, 57 – 34 percent, while Sen. Charles Schumer was leading political consultant Jay Townsend, 64 – 32 percent.
	 
“That Republican wave that’s said to be sweeping the country runs into a levee – a dam, a blockade, whatever figure of speech you like – at the New York border, probably because of Carl Paladino’s foot-in-mouth disease. Attorney General Andrew Cuomo can start measuring the Executive Mansion curtains. This race is all but over,” said Quinnipiac University Polling Institute Director Maurice Carroll.

PRINT
EMAIL
SHARE
- Yahoo! Buzz
- Digg
- Reddit
- Fark It
- Newsvine
- StumbleUpon
- Twitter
- Facebook
RSS

Gibson leads Murphy by nine points in latest poll

October 26, 2010 , ι By BRENDAN SCOTT

ALBANY – This doesn't bode well for New York's congressional Democrats: Freshman Rep. Scott Murphy's once-comfortable lead over upstart Republican Chris Gibson has suddenly become a nine-point... Read on

ALBANY – This doesn't bode well for New York's congressional Democrats: Freshman Rep. Scott Murphy's once-comfortable lead over upstart Republican Chris Gibson has suddenly become a nine-point deficit.
	 
The latest Siena poll shows Gibson - a retired Army colonel with a Ph.D. in government - leading Murphy 51 to 37 percent in the sprawling Albany-area congressional district. Just last month, he trailed Murphy 37 to 54 percent.
	 
The survey found Gibson made huge gains among independents, turning a 28-point deficit into a 7-point lead, but he also shored up his base in heavily Republican district. Last month, he led 59 to 32 percent among Republicans. Now, he's leading 76 to 18 percent.
	 
"Republican voters have come home to Gibson," said Siena pollster Steve Greenberg.
	 
Republicans outnumber Democrats 187,000 to 125,000 in the district, which stretches from the northern outskirts of Poughkeepsie to the Adirondacks. The territory had long been in GOP hands until Democrat Kirsten Gillibrand upset incumbent Republican John Sweeney in 2006.
	 
Murphy won the seat in a 2009 special election after Gov. Paterson appointed Gillibrand to U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's former Senate seat.
	 
Both sides blanketed local airwaves with attack ads, although Democrats privately acknowledge that Republicans, aided by other right-leaning political groups, have outspent them 2 to 1 in recent weeks.
	 
Yesterday, Gibson received backing from the National Federation of Independent Businesses. Former President Bill Clinton plans to visit the district the day before the election to stump for Murphy.
	 
brendan.scott@nypost.com