By KATHERINE BAKAITIS
Staff Writer
I love New York, but there is something seriously wrong with this state. Perhaps it is just the people running it (which it definitely is), but we are all floating in a sea of corruption because our ethical ship has sunk. We all know that corruption in government is not limited to New York, but we probably possess some strong magnet that attracts scandal at every turn. State Senator Malcolm Smith and his accomplices are not even a recent example of this corruption crisis! Just two days after Senator Smith was arrested last Tuesday, two NYS Assembly men were also detained for similar charges! A New York City prosecutor said that political corruption in the state “is indeed rampant.” Indeed it is!
Malcolm Smith, who has served at times as the state Senate’s majority and minority leader since becoming a senator in 2000, was arrested in his Queens home at 6:00 a.m. Tuesday morning. Republican New York City Councilman Dan Halloran and four other political figures were also arrested with him. Here is what happened: Senator Smith wanted to run for the NYC mayor on the Republican ticket, but since he is an IDC member in the Senate (a Democrat), he needed approval from five prominent Republican leaders in the five boroughs of New York City. This is where the bribing comes in. $80,000 in cash was promised or paid to Bronx County Republican Party Chairman Joseph Savino, and Queens County Republican Party Vice Chairman Vincent Tabone, who were both arrested last Tuesday. A criminal complaint said that in meetings with a cooperating witness and an undercover FBI agent posing as a wealthy real estate developer, Smith agreed to bribe the five Republican leaders. “These are very serious allegations that, if true, constitute a clear betrayal of the public trust. As a result of these charges, I have made the decision to strip Senator Smith of his committee assignments and of his conference leadership position,” said IDC Leader Jeff Klein. “By participating in the alleged scheme, Senator Smith breached the trust of the Independent Democratic Conference. I trust that the U.S. attorney’s office will act expeditiously to resolve this matter and to ensure that justice is served,” Klein’s statement continues. “Finally, given the level of criminality alleged, I believe that Senator Smith should seriously consider whether or not he can continue to effectively serve his constituents.”
Here are the real damages broken down: The charges were bribery, wire fraud, extortion. Along with Senator Smith and Daniel Halloran III, two Republican Party leaders from Queens and the Bronx, Vincent Tabone and Joseph Savino; and two officials in Spring Valley, a village in Rockland County were also accused. Locations of the act included steakhouses, hotel rooms, parked cars and even Smith’s Albany office. And it was all for ballot access, a road project, a community center, politicians’ votes, and party endorsements.
Now on to the latest embarrassment: the NYS Assembly. Last Thursday, Assemblyman Eric Stevenson was arrested in a bribery investigation in which another state assemblyman, Nelson Castro, co-operated against him. Stevenson and four businessmen were charged in part with conspiring to pass a bill in the state legislature to protect a new Bronx adult center from competitors for three years to give the center a monopoly against other facilities that might want to offer meals, social activities and supervision for the elderly and disabled. What?! Castro, another Bronx Democrat, notified Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver that he was resigning Thursday. Silver called for the resignation of Stevenson as well, saying the charges he faced would be a “clear violation of the public trust and cannot be tolerated.”
“The allegations of public corruption by city and state officials revealed this week are appalling,” Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Thursday. “New Yorkers deserve a government that is as good as the people it serves and the events of the last few days fail this and every standard of public service.” Spot on, Governor. Although all of this corruption is horrible, the fact that these wrong-doers (even if they are public officials) are being caught and prosecuted is just another example of our Democracy at work. If we were in Russia right now, or any other Semi-Authoritarian state, this would be a daily norm and there would be no punishment. Nevertheless, there is no denying that we are all in a hideous mess right now in New York. But just remember this: not all politicians are slime balls who only work to satisfy their own greed, some (however small that amount may be) actually work for us, the people.
