Friday, November 5, 2010

Pension Fund Scandal No Trial: Will the Full Story and Cost to New Yorkers Every Get Out?


Pension Fund Scandal No Trial
Will the Full Story and Cost to New Yorkers Every Get Out?


Hank Morris’ plea deal won’t be released.



NYT Skimps on Facts About Their Advisor Steve Rattner
Hevesi Adviser in Pension Scandal Makes Deal to Plead Guilty to Felony (NYT) Still unsettled is the question of Steven L. Rattner, the financier whose firm, the Quadrangle Group, has admitted to paying Mr. Morris $1.1 million as it sought business with the pension fund.  Two weeks ago, Mr. Rattner rejected a settlement offer from Mr. Cuomo that would have required him to pay a $20 million fine, according to a person who had been briefed on the negotiations but was not authorized to discuss them.  Mr. Morris is prepared to plead guilty to a single Class E felony under the Martin Act, a sweeping state securities law. He faces up to four years in prison under sentencing guidelines, though as a first-time offender, he may be given more lenient treatment. The S.E.C. has reached a tentative deal with Mr. Rattner, but has held off on finishing it while talks continue with Mr. Cuomo. No criminal charges are being pursued against Mr. Rattner.


Left Out of NYT Morris Plea Deal Story
Did Rattner Tell Cuomo the Truth About Chooch? 
The power brokers have not been able to game Cuomo to let they agent Steve Rattner off the hook.  The power brokers who are not used to being out of control are sitting and waiting to see what the new Italian American governor does about Rattner part in funding a movie (Chooch) about Italian teens who get drunk in New Mexico and visit some madams who if things don't change could be future candidates for governor of New York. * Attorney General Andrew Cuomo cool to Steve Rattner SEC pension case deal (DN) * The feds are going ahead on a "pay-to-play" settlement with Manhattan moneyman Steve Rattner without the backing of Attorney General Andrew Cuomo.

Tense Call Led to Rattner Legal Standoff A tense phone call helped lead to a standoff between Andrew Cuomo and Steven Rattner in a pay-to-play investigation of the state's public pension fund.
"During that call, previously undisclosed, Mr. Cuomo said he was troubled that Mr. Rattner's former firm only recently had given investigators certain emails relevant to the probe, long after his office first asked for documents. Mr. Cuomo also questioned whether, based on these emails, Mr. Rattner may not have been fully forthcoming in testimony under oath in 2008 before a grand jury, people familiar with the call said. It isn't clear how his lawyers responded at the time. . . .  During that call, previously undisclosed, Mr. Cuomo said he was troubled that Mr. Rattner's former firm only recently had given investigators certain emails relevant to the probe, long after his office first asked for documents. Mr. Cuomo also questioned whether, based on these emails, Mr. Rattner may not have been fully forthcoming in testimony under oath in 2008 before a grand jury, people familiar with the call said. It isn't clear how his lawyers responded at the time." (WSJ)* State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli on the pay-to-play pension fund scandal: “There was a problem with the office. I can’t make that history change, but what I can change is how we’re going to do things in the future.”

NY Post On the Pension Scandal
Albany pension perp admits state $cam  Morris could receive as much as four years in prison under sentencing guidelines. Another hearing has been scheduled for Nov. 22. Cuomo's office said Morris may have pocketed as much as $19 million after squeezing massive brokerage fees out of equity and hedge funds that wanted a piece of the state's pension pot.  Those companies included the Quadrangle Group, then run by Obama-administration auto-industry czar Steven Rattner.

WSJ Does Not Explain How Rattner Was Granted Criminal Immunity
Figure in N.Y. Pension Probe in Plea Deal  (WSJ) The specific charge to which Mr. Morris agreed to plead guilty couldn't be determined. Nor was it clear whether he would pay restitution as others who pleaded guilty in the probe have.  Mr. Rattner, for his part, has obtained criminal immunity for grand jury testimony in the probe, but Mr. Cuomo could file a civil lawsuit against him, people familiar with the matter have previously said. The two sides held negotiations in recent weeks, but failed to reach agreement even as Mr. Rattner struck a tentative deal in a corresponding civil probe by the Securities and Exchange Commission.


As Cuomo Checks Out New Desk, Pension Case Moves Toward Finish Wall Street Journal (blog)

Hank Morris Reaches Plea Deal in N.Y. Pension Probe (Bloomberg)
Under the agreement, Morris would plead guilty to “a minor charge” that carries a maximum sentence of 1 1/3 to 4 years, New York State Supreme Court Justice Lewis Stone said at a hearing yesterday, according to a transcript of the proceeding


Cuomo's Transition Begins
Will Governor Now . . .  No Waiting in the Wings
Andy won't take the road to 'El' (NYP) * Planning First Girlfriend's Role (WSJ) * She's no (First) Lady: New gov's gal won't have title (DN) * Cuomo: 'Cleaning up Albany' is his top priority (DN) * Richard Lipsky hopes Cuomo takes some cues from his counterpart across the Hudson * Andrew Cuomo says his focus on policy during the campaign freed him up to focus on personnel now. * Cuomo also said that everything wouldn't change on Day One. * A $315 million state budget shortfall could mean 1% across the board cuts. * Governor-elect Andrew Cuomo's "transition is being headed by Michael DelGuidice, a former top aide to Cuomo's father, former three-term Gov. Mario Cuomo. Confidant Howard Glazer and former Mario Cuomo aide Andrew Zambelli may be named co-executive directors of the transition team, sources said. Jeffrey Sachs, a longtime Cuomo friend and Columbia University professor, has also been assisting," reports our Ken Lovett.

Rent is To Damn High
Jimmy McMillan’s Election Night

Legislature Fight to the Death                      
When the State Senate has pasted ultimate fighting this pasted June, little did they know they would be in their own Ultimate smack down.

The Legislature and the Board of Elections, two of N.Y.'s worst, robbed voters of a full say The Legislature insisted on maintaining a full-face ballot, meaning the names of all candidates on all lines must be squeezed onto a single sheet. And, by legislative fiat, every ballot also had to include detailed, legalistic instructions, printed in a designated size. (DN Ed) * Paterson conceded his Nov. 15 special session likely won’t happen due to the ongoing Senate recounts, which are likely to take a while. * “It could certainly could drag out past January,” said former Senate Minority Leader Marty Connor, one of the Democrats’ fleet of election law attorneys. * Dave: GOP NY Senate coup likely (NYP) * The governor is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts,” said Senate Democratic spokesman Austin Shafran. “Once every vote is counted, it will be clear Democrats have retained the majority.” * Oppenheimer Expands Lead Over Cohen * Uncounted Nassau votes mean race remains undecided * Legal Fight Ahead Over State Senate (WSJ) * Unchartered Legal Waters

Assembly  Silver On The Veto-Proof Majority ‘Fiction’ 

Winners & Losers, Nov. 5 (2013 Mayoral) Edition (City Hall News)




New York Economic Meltdown  Miserable Mets slash 'Citi Failed' tix prices (NYP) * Raising hail for riders  Push for cab-fare hike (NYP) * Garages Want a Taxi-Fare Increase  (WSJ) *Un-fare taxi proposal: 19% hike & $53 to JFK! (DN)  * Can California and New York Be Saved? The two states are symbols of wasteful spending and dysfunctional government. How can Jerry Brown and Andrew Cuomo make a difference? (NYT) * Stuyvesant Appraisal Likely to Hit Junior Debtholders (WSJ) * Silverstein's Four Seasons Lacks Financing Real estate developer Larry Silverstein talked about a stalled construction project -- nope, not the World Trade Center. His Four Seasons Hotel downtown still lacks construction financing. (WSJ) * Bloomberg's Chinese Lessons: Low Taxes, Hardworking Immigrants


New York and California's Thelma and Louise Future                                               
Indebted and Unrepentant by Fred Siegel, City Journal 3 November 2010 New York and California stand virtually alone against the rest of the country. 3 November 2010



Here is a story that came from the Taxi company lobbyist at a time when they are looking for fare increases 
Silverstein's Four Seasons Lacks Financing
Real estate developer Larry Silverstein talked about a stalled construction project -- nope, not the World Trade Center. His Four Seasons Hotel downtown still lacks construction financing.


Higher Levels of Lead Seen in City Tap Water (NYT)

Is the voter drop-off on the ballot questions because of ballot design? * The Legislature and the Board of Elections, two of N.Y.'s worst, robbed voters of a full say (DN Ed)

Ripping Off the System


Delays at New York Airports Aren’t Improving, U.S. Says (NYT)

Terrorism  'Most of the stupid Taliban are dead' ... but those who remain.... Official: Taliban not as worn-out as Gen. Petraeus wants Americans to believe.


Law and order   Pal: 'Suicide' killer got $tiffed (NYP) * School killer to die in prison (NYP) * Pirated Films From Nigeria Are Seized in Brooklyn (NYT) * Mets clubhouse manager Charlie Samuels under investigation for allegedly betting on baseball, theft (DN) * She's no (First) Lady: New gov's gal won't have title (DN) * Gag order in sex statue prince's New York trial (DN) * Mom of slain Pace student sobs on stand over pic of son (DN) * Brooklyn man convicted of 2008 Christmas rape *Cop shoots and injures man who attacked him with a cobblestone

Media and New Tech  Movie Review | 'Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer': The Really Strange Bedfellows That New York Politics Made (NYT) * Eliot Spitzer on 'Client 9' (Daily Beast)  * New York Post's Weiss Defects to DNAinfo.com Scribe broke some of tabloid's biggest recent stories  * Keith Olbermann Donated To Three Democrats Last Week, Potentially Violating NBC Rules * Spitzer Media Roll-Out Continues

Some At MSNBC Can Contribute Some Can't?
* Disciplinary Action MSNBC: 'No Time Frame' For Olbermann's Return to Primetime (Updated) * UPDATED: http://mediamatters.org/blog/201011050037Does NBC's ethics policy apply to CNBC anchor Larry Kudlow and MSNBC's Joe Scarborough

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U.S. News & World Report Shuts Down Weekly Magazine (Update) *  US News & World Report to cease printing magazine



Election Fallout
For G.O.P., Big Ambitions Face Daunting Obstacles (NYT) *  Tea Party Flexes Muscle with Republicans (NYT) *  FiveThirtyEight: How the Pollsters Fared (NYT) * And They're Out! The midterm elections brought a sudden end to the political careers of many senators and representatives. Trading cards commemorate just six of these soon-to-be-cut power players.  (NYT Ed) * American Dreamland For many voters, Obama crossed the bridge from American self-reliance to the European nanny state. (NYT)  *   Let's make deal on tax cuts for rich, Obama says (DN) * Krauthammer: A national restraining order * Rasmussen Polls Were Biased and Inaccurate; Quinnipiac, SurveyUSA Performed Strongly