Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Hevesi's honest graft provokes reform

From the Times Ledger:

Long before disgraced former state Comptroller Alan Hevesi was charged in October for his role in a pay-to-play scandal involving the state pension fund under his watch, a little-known treasurer of Saratoga County, J. Christopher Callaghan, knew something was up — and it was in plain sight.

Callaghan, who ran on the Republican line against Hevesi in 2006, said a New York Sun editorial from May of that year pointed out how Hevesi had large contributions donated to him through the wife of Elliott Broidy, the head of the California-based Markstone Capital Partners, and Hevesi invested $250 million of the state’s pension funds into the hedge fund.

The Sun editorial credited the Los Angeles Times with first running a story about Hevesi’s connection to Broidy.

In a phone interview Monday, more than a week after Hevesi was sentenced to one to four years in prison on corruption charges, Callaghan said he pounced on the revelation but nobody noticed.

“To me, that’s one of the great ironies here,” Callaghan said. “This particular incident ... was in print as early as early 2006. It just didn’t seem to be of interest. We released press releases. It’s not like we had any secret information. Everything we knew about Markstone had been published in the newspaper.”


From the NY Post:

This doesn't seem fair: Not only do state taxpayers have to pay disgraced ex- Comptroller Alan Hevesi's room and board for the next 1-to-4 years -- they've still got to pay his pension, too.

That is, even as the twice-convicted felon pockets pennies a day for stamping license plates upstate, he'll still be drawing a whopping $105,000-a-year payout.

Which is why it's such good news that Gov. Cuomo unveiled a bill Tuesday to end the practice.

"It is long past time that we learned the lessons of the Hevesi case and made permanent changes to our system that will stop [such] corruption," Cuomo said.

Nearly a dozen convicted former lawmakers are in the same circumstance, netting big checks while behind bars.

And even if alleged criminals like state Sen. Carl Kruger and former Sen. Pedro Espada are convicted by juries of their peers, those same peers will still have to pay taxes to support their retirement.

Their pensions are protected by the state Constitution -- so only newly elected officials will be subject to the law Cuomo proposes.

What better reason, then, to pass it quickly?

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

how did Stephen Rattner's lawyer, Jamie Gorelick,former Clinton Asst. A.G. keep him out of jail in this scandal? is there a connection between G.Soros and S.Rattner? who got the millions in fines?

Rattner was a "TIMESMAN",who worked out daily with with the son of the N.Y.Times ,owner.

Rattners wife was the finance director for the Democrat National Comm.

Anonymous said...

"is there a connection between G.Soros and S.Rattner?"

Do you have a concrete allegations?...Let alone evidence?

Or are you just blowing bilge at people you hate, as per usual.

Anonymous said...

I hope that Bubba warms Alan's ass good in prison.

Let Hevesi get a taste of how he's screwed us all!

Anonymous said...

FINISH THE JOB AND GO AFTER THE STAVISKYS!

CLEAN OUT THE CLUBHOUSE STABLES!

Anonymous said...

I read about this guy in a book. I believe it was called the PROTOCOLS OF THE ELDERS OF ZION!!!

Anonymous said...

You read fairy tales written by the Czarist government in Russia?

Anonymous said...

"Their pensions are protected by the state Constitution -- so only newly elected officials will be subject to the law Cuomo proposes."
- - - - - - - - - - - -
Of course their pensions are protected. When they re-wrote the State Constitution the last time around, Albany pols made sure to protect their own pensions, knowing full well that some day, they themselves may end up in jail.

Anonymous said...

I love that photo of big Al.

Anonymous said...

I bet big AL gets a rusty trombone toots sweet in the big house! Or maybe gives one?

Bubba said...

He's got a purdy mouth.

Anonymous said...

funny how tony avella claims to be reformist and like every other stavisky hack

he will put evans clients ahead of his district avella must go in 2012

Anonymous said...

Does he also get to keep the $$$ that he stole?

Anonymous said...

Let me tastefully try to explain what a "rusty trombone" is to you "civilians" outside of prison walls.

A finger up the bell...hand on the slide...lips on the mouthpiece.

Whew...that's as far as I dare go.

Now, use your imagination in transposing my info to the parts of the human body.

Now Hevesi can choose to swallow the music if he likes!

Anonymous said...

Let me tastefully try to explain what a "rusty trombone" is to you "civilians" outside of prison walls.

A finger up the bell...hand on the slide...lips on the mouthpiece.

----------------------------

That was tastefully done INDEED!

Anonymous said...

Let me tastefully try to explain what a "rusty trombone" is to you "civilians" outside of prison walls.

And how do you explain 76 trombones? Just sayin'...

B. Madoff said...

And how do you explain 76 trombones?

Party time!!!

A. Hevesi said...

And how do you explain 76 trombones?

Party time!!!

----------------------------------------------------

Where's my invite? I wanna be one of the boys in the band! If these lips could talk...

Bubba said...

Purdy lips.