Hall of Shame
Call it an arrogance of power, a failure of leadership, or an outright betrayal of the public trust - New York's Democrat leadership has turned our government in Albany into a national joke. Over the last four years, Democrat leaders have done more for the late night comics and scandal-hungry bloggers than they have for our families and businesses. They say power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. This new section is intended to educate New Yorkers about the disturbing pattern of corruption and bad behavior among New York's top Democrats. Check back here regularly for new members of the Democrat's Hall of Shame. New Yorkers deserve better.
Eliot Spitzer (D)
On March 17, 2008, New York Governor Eliot Spitzer resigned from office as a result of his involvement in the Emperors Club VIP Prostitution ring. Known as “Client #9,” Spitzer paid out $15,000 over the course of 6 months, engaging in sexual liaisons with over half a dozen women. According to reports, Spitzer also used the prostitution service as attorney general--while he simultaneously prosecuted others for what he deemed as personal failings, moral and ethical corruption, and the promotion and patronage of illegal prostitution rings.
Alan Hevesi (D)
On December 22, 2006, State Comptroller Alan Hevesi entered into a plea deal with the Albany County District Attorney, which called for his immediate resignation, payment of a $5000 fine, and barred him from ever running for public office again. From 2003-2006, Hevesi defrauded the government by having state employees chauffeur his wife around the state and assist her in matters unrelated to state business. Over the course of those three years, Hevesi defrauded the tax payers of the state by $200,000, which he wasforced to reimburse as a result of his plea deal.
Hiram Monserrate (D)
On February 9, 2010, New York State Senator Hiram Monserrate became the first member of the Senate expelled by a vote of his own colleagues since 1861. He was expelled as a result from his assault conviction, stemming from the December 2008 domestic altercation with girlfriend Karla Giraldo where he allegedly hit her in the face with a glass bottle. Unfortunately for Monserrate, he couldn’t slash his way out of this one, as he was expelled by his colleagues by a vote of 53-8. The courts sentenced him to three years probation, a $1000 fine, 250 hours of community service, and one year of domestic abuse counseling.
Eric Massa (D)
Congressman Eric Massa resigned his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives on March 8, 2010 amid a llegations that he sexually harassed male staffers. Then he gave a series of radio and television interviews in which he accused Democrats of forcing his resignation because of his opposition to the health-care bill, claimed the White House chief of staff once accosted him in the shower, and talked about tickling men until they had difficulty breathing. What??
Charlie Rangel (D)
On March 3, 2010 Congressman Charlie Rangel (NY-15) relinquished his chairmanship of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee after a long list of ethical violations. During his tenure in office, Rangel has received more than $75,000 in rental income from a villa he owns in the Dominican Republic but never bothered disclosing this income on his tax returns or on Congressional disclosure forms. Previously, in August 2009, Rangel admitted that he had failed to disclose $660,000 worth of income and assets, which prompted further Ethics committee investigations into Rangel’s shadowy deals. Rangel’s ethical misgivings do not end there, however. Notably, Rangel rents four rent-stabilized apartments in a Harlem building, at well below market rates. According to reports, Rangel uses one apartment as a campaign office, which is in direct violation of city and state regulations that prohibit the use of rent-controlled apartments for purposes other than as a primary residence.
Ann-Margaret Carrozza (D)
On July 7, 2009, the New York Daily News reported on Assemblywoman Ann-Margaret Carrozza of Queens and her claims of maintaining primary residence in a house she is renting out, while her husband and children occupy a $1.8 million Long Island mansion. To further add insult to injury, the Assemblywoman and her husband have each filed a claim for a School Tax Relief (STAR) Program--which married couples receive on their primary residence. After calls for her resignation, the Assemblywoman said, "I'm not surprised that one's political opponents will try to make a small situation into a big one." Maybe the Assemblywoman should apply for a cabinet position in the Obama administration, they don’t seem to mind a tax cheat or two or three. In March, 2010 facing increasing pressure related to the scandal surrounding her residences, Carrozza announced she would not run for re-election - And the people of Queens breathed a sigh of relief.
Pedro Espada (D)
Democrat Senate Majority Leader Pedro Espada siphoned nearly $14 million from his own, non-profit, government-funded clinic to support his lavish lifestyle. While New York State is mired in a fiscal mess, the Democrat Majority Leader used taxpayer dollars to live it up. According to charges, federal and state tax dollars that were intended to help the poor went instead to pay for Espada’s food, trips, political campaigns, and jobs for Espada’s allies and family members. Additionally, Espada has decided to ignore State laws that bar nepotism and hire his uncle (affectionately known around the Democratic Conference as Uncle John) to work as his personal aide in the State Senate for $80,000 a year. Things have gotten so bad with Espada that even Andrew Cuomo has emerged from his cocoon to attempt to do something about the mess before it brings him down as well.
Gregory Meeks (D)
Democrat Congressman Gregory Meeks, has funneled tens-of-thousands of dollars from tax-exempt, non-profit organizations to line his own pockets. Congressman Meeks has been subpoenaed multiple times by federal grand juries who are demanding information about Meeks’ mysterious dealings. One investigation involves the charity Meeks set up to assist Hurricane Katrina victims. That charity collected more than $30,000, but little more than $1,000 was ever paid out by Meeks’ organization. As recently as 2008, Meeks was fined $63,000 by the Federal Election Commission for improperly using campaign funds to pay personal expenses. Most recently, Meeks has become a central figure in the corruption case of his fellow Queens Democrat crony and State Senate President Malcolm Smith. Smith and Congressman Meeks have funneled hundreds-of-thousands of dollars, including taxpayer money, into a charity led by their spouses and cronies -- an organization with almost no accountability on its spending – for their own personal benefit.
Tom DiNapoli (D)
State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli now has the illustrious distinction of joining his disgraced predecessor, Alan Hevesi, in the Hall of Shame, having extended the reign of corruption and incompetence in the State Comptroller’s Office. For the past three years, the unelected DiNapoli has served as Sheldon Silver’s lap dog and stood idly-by as Democrats in Albany bankrupted the state. Prior to DiNapoli’s appointment, a trio of former Comptrollers, tasked with finding a replacement for Hevesi, reviewed DiNapoli’s credentials and determined that he was unfit to be New York’s chief financial officer. Despite his lack of qualifications, Silver and DiNapoli engaged in an insider’s game of backroom dealing to ensure their Democrat colleagues installed DiNapoli as the State’s Comptroller. DiNapoli has demonstrated time and again that he is beholden to special interests and the Democrats who anointed him, having been repeatedly unwilling to rein in, or make inquiries into the Democrats’ outrageous policies and reckless spending. Ultimately, Tom DiNapoli’s refusal to exercise financial oversight has led New York State to the brink of insolvency. The Attorney General’s office is currently and actively investigating the unelected DiNapoli as part of an ongoing investigation into pension fund pay-to-play scandals. DiNapoli’s most recent political acrobatics involved him voicing opposition to a tentative deal reached by state leaders to borrow billions of dollars from the state pension fund – a plan which, in fact, originated with DiNapoli, who had been pushing an even greater amount of borrowing for an unlimited period of time.
