Perdido 03

Perdido 03

Thursday, January 16, 2014

There Needs To Be A Moreland Commission To Investigate Andrew Cuomo

Sheriff Andy used the Moreland Commission as a bludgeon against the Legislature, saying in effect it is a cesspool of corruption where private interests hand over campaign donations (or bribes) and get favors and/or policies in return.

But take a look at how much money Cuomo takes in, just where he takes it from and who gets favors in return:

ALBANY – He may be promoting a taxpayer-funded campaign system, but Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo is doing quite nicely playing by the current rules.

The governor reported Wednesday that his 2014 re-election campaign raised $7 million in the past six months.

That brings his 2014 campaign bank account up to $33.3 million, an increase from $27.8 million in July. He spent just $1.5 million in the past six months.

The governor brought in money from a who’s who of wealthy bankers, real estate developers, lawyers and private-sector unions, many of which have business dealings before the state. Movie studios that benefit from tax breaks expanded by the governor donated to him, as did entities looking to get one of the casinos the state will award this year, such as Rochester developer David Flaum, and the owner of an Albany-area restaurant company that runs a new cafeteria in a state concourse near the Capitol.

Buffalo-area donors included former Erie County Executive Joel Giambra, a registered Albany lobbyist who gave Cuomo $1,000, an amount also given by Roswell Park Cancer Institute President Donald Trump, whose hospital has had talks with the Cuomo administration over various future ventures. Uniland Properties, a Western New York real estate company, gave him $3,000.

The donations also included $117,000 in in-kind contributions; how much of that went to pay for private jets that the governor flies when he goes to some fundraisers, such as ones held in Buffalo in mid-November and one in Rochester in late November, was not detailed in his campaign report. He also held fundraisers in the Hamptons where Jon Bon Jovi played, and in Manhattan, where his friend Billy Joel performed.

A who's who of campaign donors giving money to Cuomo and getting favors, policies or tax breaks in return.

The Legislature in Albany may be a cesspool of corruption and malfeasance, but so is the governor's office.

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