Posted on 05/29/2013 11:23:18 PM PDT by Impala64ssa
Several Rockland County and New York City-based lawmakers were arrested by federal authorities on corruption charges today.
Spring Valley Mayor Noramie Jasmin (D) and Deputy Mayor Joseph Desmaret (D) were among those arrested. The Spring Valley pair are being hit with charges for allegedly taking bribes on sales of village property and asking for a stake in a company as conditions in a deal.
Bronx GOP Chairman Jay Savino, who happens to live primarily in Congers and is Clarkstown’s tax certiorari attorney, was arrested for allegedly selling the mayoral ballot line in New York City to Senator Malcolm Smith of the Independent Democratic Caucus, also arrested.
New York City mayoral scandal, which had officials colluding to make the Democrat Smith the GOP nominee in exchange for cash, also led to the arrest of Councilman Dan Halloran (R-Queens) and Queens GOP vice chairman Vincent Tabone.
All the arrests are results from the same investigation, however it is not clear what the link between Jasmin and the NYC scandal is. The arrests making the largest national headlines are Smith, Halloran and Savino’s. The spector of Republicans fixing a line to get a prominent Democrat to run made top billing on the Drudge Report and other prominent sites.
As a member of the Independent Democratic Conference, Smith helps his small cohort of Democrats control the Senate along with the GOP. If the Senate was divided strictly along party lines, the Democrats would have the majority. Local Senator David Carlucci (D-Rockland/Ossining) is a member of the conference.
Manhattan District U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said of the arrests, “Today’s charges demonstrate, once again, that a show-me-the-money culture seems to pervade every level of New York government. The complaint describes an unappetizing smorgasbord of graft and greed involving six officials who together built a corridor of corruption stretching from Queens and the Bronx to Rockland County and all the way up to Albany itself.
“As alleged, Senator Malcolm Smith tried to bribe his way to a shot at Gracie Mansion – Smith drew up the game plan and Councilman Halloran essentially quarterbacked that drive by finding party chairmen who were wide open to receiving bribes. After the string of public corruption scandals that we have brought to light, many may rightly resign themselves to the sad truth that perhaps the most powerful special interest in politics is self-interest. We will continue pursuing and punishing every corrupt official we find, but the public corruption crisis in New York is more than a prosecutor’s problem.”
Mayor Jasmin has received criticism in the past for repeatedly raising her own salary and giving herself and her board other perks. One of her first actions upon taking office in 2010 was to use taxpayer money to purchase for her position a luxury SUV with all accessories valued at close to $60,000. The previous mayor’s vehicle was around $20,000 in value.
Jasmin had been running for reelection this year against Ramapo Councilman Daniel Friedman (D) and others.
Savino has been the subject of reportage by the Rockland County Times as his appointment to the Clarkstown position appeared to be an inside “political patronage” deal at the time. Four of five Clarkstown board members voted for him, with only Stephanie Hausner (D) objecting.
He has since been relieved of his duties, the board announced yesterday. Savino also has been one of the top election-law attorneys in the area, handling dozens of cases for local politicos in Rockland, Westchester and the Bronx.
According to a 28-page complaint text released to the public, key to the case were two undercover informants, one which federal authorities describe as being “a man posing as a wealthy real estate developer” and another known only as a “confidential witness.”
Through these two witnesses and wiretaps, the federal authorities describe various dramatic situations in which large sums of cash were traded by for political favors.
Newspaper identified the confidential information as Morris Stern of Monsey. Stern also goes by the name of Mark and Moshe.
Stern had pled guilty in March in a famous case highlighted in 2010 in Forbes magazine involving a failed $126 million loan. He is also reputed to be a campaign finance “bundler” that has helped the campaigns of many politicians. The Rockland County Times is researching his background and connections further. He is 40-years-old.
In perhaps the most dramatic scene a Councilman Halloran unaware he was being recorded explained the meaning of money and politics as such, “That’s politics, that’s politics, it’s all about how much. Not about whether or will, it’s about how much, and that’s our politicians in New York, they’re all like that, all like that.
“And they get like that because of the drive that the money does for everything else. You can’t do anything without the f**king money. Money is what greases the wheels — good, bad or indifferent.”
Morris Stern of Monsey, also known as Moshe and Mark Stern, was in the center of a famous case which earned him a 2010 headline in Forbes Magazine as “Citigroup’s Bad Boy: how an untested businessman got a $126 million loan–and personally owes every dime of it.”
The bad deal was made in 2007 when Stern was only 34. His case reads like a look into the world of bad business practices that dominated banking prior to the 2008/2009 financial meltdown.
“Several banks were pitching me at the same time,” says Stern. “Every bank, including JPMorgan Chase and Deutsche Bank, wanted product.”
Stern bought 11 shopping malls with the $126 million and they promptly floundered. Ultimately he filed for bankruptcy and Citigroup only recouped $40 million of the money.
During the deal, Stern forged the signature of another supposed backer, and this and other allegations led to federal charges against him and ultimately to his becoming an informant for the feds.
Stern is a Hasidic Jew who was born in Argentina. He began his career in the garment industry and also is reputed to be a local politico, bundling cash donations to various different candidates and playing other roles of influence.
According to www.vosizneias.com he graduated Satmar Yeshiva United Talmudical Academy in Kirays Joel in 1991.
http://www.rocklandtimes.com/2013/04/03/informant-owed-citigroup-tens-of-millions/
It is not just in your stomping ground this kind of corruption is taking place. The US is the most corrupt country in the world
What you have in NY state....is a political apparatus that pretends to be two parties, when it’s really just one. You come up and want to get to a elected position to help someone with your influence. So you go to a political peddler and get the status of being a Republican, when you’ve been mostly a Democrat your entire life. The media in the state merely looks the other way, and people just accept this comedy of political activity.
The sentences can never be enough. These pigs feed off the public teat and only pretend to do a job. Loss of all benefits upon conviction and claw back anything that can be gotten. Oh and sentence should be of the terminal sort.
We the People request it.
At this point in New York State it is no longer necessary to add the “D” behind an arrested politician’s name since there aren’t enough Republicans to make a difference. This is especially true down state.
Their real crime was holding out. They did not kick back the juice demanded by the Obamacrats
The bombshell appears to be that the feds don’t like corrupt locals.
And all this is surprising because...?
The problem is the local District Attorny's office does not prosecute, either because they are understaffed in the public integrity unit or for political reasons they won't pursue the corruption.
They (politicians) have a phrase they fall back on when they refuse to deal with something.
“Chilling effect.”
Too harsh laws and it will stop a politician from doing their best. They will be too worried of falling afoul of the law.
I personally believe any politician using that phrase when protecting their own should go to jail,not pass go and not collect $200.
There is something to be said for the "chilling effect" if you press too hard. The chilling effect will be good people not wanting to seek office becasue of the risk. It is a complicated environment without resources, at least at the local level.
The solution as I see it is to make campaign contributions illegal. That takes most of the corruption out of the system.
You take a all these ass-clowns out and do some public dunking....and tar and feather them.
I highly doubt that....
Would you accept "The Democrat party is the most corrupt party in the civilized world"?
Probably not, but I think we have the biggest gap between our public perception of corruption and reality in the world. At least in other countries, the public usually knows and understands the nature of corruption in their governments - the US has an extraordinary number of voting-age citizens who just can't wrap their minds around the concept of government corruption personally affecting them at all.
NO BUSINESS can be done that is not on such a record.
If you make a back-door deal, it is void because it is not public.
how would that be?
Are even half the candidates these days ‘good’ people?
There are plenty of corrupt countries in the world.
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