Wednesday, November 30, 2011

The way things work for the Machine

From the NY Times:

All of this might have Democratic Party leaders — Representative Joseph Crowley is the party boss in Queens — wailing and rending palm cards. Except that isn’t how it works in Queens. Power and money are found not so much in the voting booth as in the machine-controlled judicial conventions that pick judges, and in the courthouse on Sutphin Boulevard.

That is where you find Surrogate’s Court, otherwise known as widows and orphans court. This court appoints guardians who make handsome fees processing the estates of those Queens residents who die without wills.

To enter this court is to stumble upon Ponce de Leon’s own spring, an eternal source of easy money for the politically wired. The Surrogate’s judge appointed the public administrator, Lois M. Rosenblatt, who is a fierce and battle-tested elections lawyer, Democratic division.

Ms. Rosenblatt reappointed the court’s counsel, who for about a millennium has been Gerard J. Sweeney. In 2010, Mr. Sweeney’s office pulled down $2.284 million administering estates. This year has been slower; through the end of October, his take was $993,764.

As legal sinecures go, it is bearable.

Mr. Sweeney’s law firm on Queens Boulevard is a beehive of Queens Democratic worthies; Michael Reich and Frank A. Bolz III are partners and top party officers.

The geographic metaphysics of their party membership is curious. All three “Queens” Democrats — Messrs. Sweeney, Reich and Bolz — live on Long Island. The current Surrogate’s judge, Peter J. Kelly, is admirably frank about the ways of this world. He even frames the questions for you.

“Do I know Sweeney’s related with the Democratic Party and close to Congressman Joe Crowley?” the judge offers. “I would be a moron if I didn’t know that.”

32 comments:

Anonymous said...

Is La Familglia Di Vallone part of all this?

They opened up a new law office in Don Paulo's nabe on Francis Lewis B'lvd.

Charlie "the judge", ol' grand-pappy Vallone was, after all, a judge that began the family business.

What an old time powerful political mafia the "V"s are!

Isn't Paul going to run for Queens borough president?

Or will it be Halloran's city council seat?

Adam said...

Machine Politics: Where loyalty is measured by submission.

Anonymous said...

Yeah the Vallones are hoping Dan beats Avella so there will be a special election and Paulie No-Nuts can step into his council seat. Wouldn't want to have a primary and a general election. And none of them showed up at the memorial for the QCC president last night so you have to wonder how serious to take any of them.

Anonymous said...

This article only scratches the surface. The amount of money that flows through the courts and into QDEMS' hands is amazing. Even with the fiduciary process reform of a few years back, the Queens Dems still completely control every job and every placement and every appointment.

Anonymous said...

get crowley out he does not even live here let him run for office in virginia where he resides but even joe knows he would not even win there he is the poster chile for a carpetbagger

georgetheatheist said...

And Ragusa and Ognibene have nothing better to do? Hey, Republicans, the fruit is not only ripe on the tree, it's yelling out "Pick-me, fercrissakes!"

Cav said...

Maybe some blame should be placed on the people who keep on electing the Crowleys and the other political dynasty families to office?

Anonymous said...

Occupied Queens Courts. Occupied by the Queens' Machine

Anonymous said...

And Ragusa and Ognibene have nothing better to do? Hey, Republicans, the fruit is not only ripe on the tree, it's yelling out "Pick-me, fercrissakes!"

While Ognibene was representing Bart Haggerty and suing Ragusa, Ragusa was busy running 6 Republicans for each open seat in the judicial elections. But I guess everyone was too busy watching "American Idol" to notice and go vote.

Anonymous said...

Tom Ognibene forgot Reagan's 11th Commandment: Never say anything bad about a fellow Republican.

Anonymous said...

This is why we need Matt Silverstein for Office

Matt Silverstein for city council we need you more then ever. I knew you were the apple of evan stavisky's eye for reason. It is because we need you.

PLEASE RUN NOW

Anonymous said...

And none of them showed up at the memorial for the QCC president last night so you have to wonder how serious to take any of them.
---

No, it tells you that no one takes QCC seriously.

Anonymous said...

It is amazing that people can expect so little out of their goverment, let it set an agenda that actually hurts them (how does a million more people in NYC actually help anyone?),

and let the machine make politics unintesting while the public focuses all its attention on trivial bullshit like the Jets/Mets and Dancing with the Stars

while letting people like "Honest Joe" Crowley, at the head of an organization of the inept and the convicted, run their lives.

If this was a sitcom pilot that was floated in Hollywood it would get shot down as too fantastic to be real.

Anonymous said...

debra markell you are the shining city on the hill we need u to help Matt silverstein get collected

PLEEEAAAASSSSEEEE

Anonymous said...

Markell is a sham artist and Silverstein is a Stavisky Halloran is a Moron and Avella is well an Avella Tabone is a shit and Vallone a snake Braunstein does nothing and where in the world is Toby? Crowley is a pimp and his sister a ho. WE ARE FCKD!

Anonymous said...

debra markell you are the shining city on the hill we need u to help Matt silverstein get collected

PLEEEAAAASSSSEEEE



Bwaahahahahahahahahaha!

Markell's got her nose so far up Parkside's butt that it's tickling their tongue!!! Just ask her best friends like Toby, Claire and the rest of the usual suspects. The trolls are really out there (in more ways than one).

Anonymous said...

What troll has a Matt Silverstein fixation? The Parkside a-holes are at it again!

Anonymous said...

Check out the photo of the 3 stooges:

http://www.matthewsilverstein.org/

Anonymous said...

Markell is a sham artist and Silverstein is a Stavisky Halloran is a Moron and Avella is well an Avella Tabone is a shit and Vallone a snake Braunstein does nothing and where in the world is Toby? Crowley is a pimp and his sister a ho. WE ARE FCKD!

Dennis? I thought you quit drinking and learned how to use punctuation? Or is that you Bart?

Laura P said...

Al Centola said it here best folks: "write in the next candidate, no matter who it is".

Let Prickside and the rest of these criminals know they no longer control us, we control them.

Anonymous said...

Speaking of trolls, has anyone taken a good look at her and her husband?

Anonymous said...

Al Centola said it here best folks: "write in the next candidate, no matter who it is".

I say we vote Al in let him put up or shut up.

I think he will put up and work for us.

Anonymous said...

The Crowley Klan are creeps, liars, and thieves.
Vote them outta here!!!!

Anonymous said...

They have the audacity to name their club after Tammamend Hall! What did you expect? Why don't national media ever pick this up?

Anonymous said...

La Famiglia di Salsiccia di Bologna ha sempre vissuto in Malba. Until 1991, the council seat went from Astoria to Malba.

Anonymous said...

It's getting old! WRITE IN! Bypass the corrupt parties with your own representate of the people, That's Democracy.

Anonymous said...

Matt silverstein and debra markell the batman and robin of good goverment. Please clean house. The city needs you. GO FIGHT CRIME

Anonymous said...

GOP judicials this year had best performance since laGuardia. If the rent control addicts in Manhattan donated to Queens instead of Nebraska, they could have won.

Anonymous said...

Matt silverstein and debra markell the batman and robin of good goverment. Please clean house. The city needs you. GO FIGHT CRIME
----------------------------------------------
Stuff a sock in it, TROLL!!!
When was the last time you took your head out of your ass?

Anonymous said...

Speaking of Debbie Markell, does anyone know how much $$$ the former president of the Mitchell-Linden Civic Association withdrew from the North Flushing Senior Center till? Thanks to her buddy Toby, the senior center receives hundreds of thousands of dollars annually. Does that seem normal to you folks?

Anonymous said...

How did this thread go on such a tangent? Oh right, it's Queens Crap!

This is not about the Stavisky's, Vallone's, or any other group except for Joe Crowley and his handlers, Sweeney, Reich and Bolz - who control the entire Queens County Democratic Organization, largely without Crowley's own input, as well as a very lucrative law firm that uses political connections to gain clients, access and money. They made $2.2 million simply due to their connection to Crowley. This is criminal in nature and would bring down the entire operation if exposed by a federal probe. I give it one or two years tops before that happens. Count on it!

Anonymous said...

How did this thread go on such a tangent? Oh right, it's Queens Crap!

This is not about the Stavisky's, Vallone's, or any other group except for Joe Crowley and his handlers...
______________________________________________

Oh really? So you don't think some of the funding is associated with the Darkside Group and the usual suspects? Seriously? Anyone who claims to be a Democrat in Queens is suspect and the Feds should investigate the whole lot!!!