Tribune bucks the status quo

From the Queens Tribune:

The Stavisky family has been exposed to the Albany culture of corruption years before Senator Toby replaced her deceased husband in the Senate. She had gone to Albany with her husband, who had been a member of the legislature for 34 years before his untimely death.

Toby has extended the Stavisky hold on the legislature for the past 14 years.

In the close to 50 years the Staviskys have made their living as legislators, their only child Evan was exposed to Albany and learned very well how to make a huge amount of money by playing the lobbyist game. Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with lobbying Albany. There is nothing wrong with being a lobbyist.

However, when your mother is chairperson of a committee, there is something wrong with that committee legislating and funding your firm’s clients and their industry or giving grants or member items to your firms’ client. There is something wrong when you profit because your mom is an elected official or she does anything as an elected official to help your firm, its clients or to help you to recruit clients.

But such is the culture of Albany.

Evan Stavisky has run the fastest-growing lobbying firm since its inception a decade ago, and his mom’s elective office is one of the firm’s biggest assets with its Albany clients.

If it’s not illegal, it should be. Either way, it stinks.