Hypocrisy Isn't Possible, If Thy Name Is Andrew Cuomo

      "Hypocrisy, thy name is Andrew." 
Andrew Cuomo's very busy just as he's leaving office and is seeking to end pay to play.

The law firm Manatt Phelps & Phillips agreed to a five-year ban from appearing before public pension funds in New York State. 
Here's Cuomo's agreement with Manatt, Phelps & Phillips about accepting money required for the NY Comptroller's Office

Excerpt from above agreement:   WHEREAS:  the Attorney General finds that persons and entities doing business before the State Comptroller's Office are frequently solicited for and in fact make political contributions to the Comptroller's Office before, during, and after they seek and obtain business from the Comptroller's Office
WHEREAS, The Attorney General is the legal adviser of the Common Retirement Fund

      Manatt agreed to comply with the Attorney General’s Public Pension Fund Reform Code of Conduct, which, among other things, bans the use of placement agents to solicit investments from public pension funds and prohibits investments within two years of any campaign contribution from the investment firm to the Comptroller or other elected trustee.

     It all sounds wonderful until you realize, Cuomo's rules for the NY Comptroller's Office don't apply to the Retirement Fund's legal adviser, Cuomo, nor to Cuomo's Attorney General's Office.  No need to wait two years or two minutes to contribute (to pay up), Andrew has his own rules for the Attorney General's office on his donation forms, where "contributors [are asked] to sign a statement saying they have no “matter” pending with him. That rule “does not extend to attorneys representing persons or entities with matters before the NYS Attorney General’s office.”

      Did Manatt, Phelps & Phillips fail to first give to Andrew's campaign fund, since he was the retirement fund's legal advisor?   Maybe, they would have obtained a indulgence from Andrew and avoided all these problems.    Maybe they didn't read the earlier blog post here: "Two faces as Cuomo changes pay to play to indirect payment"


       Hypocrisy doesn't apply Andrew, who follows the Special Rules for Anointed Legacy Governors in waiting.  

A Cuomo Family Personality Cult With Pay To Play Improvements

     Isn't nice when we can look down on North Korea and admire our more highly refined version.  Whereas, Kim Jong-il's personality cult around his family provides frequent food shortages, here in NY, our Cuomo personality cult hasn't produced  food shortages, and any pending fiscal collapse is only a future possibility.


       Whereas, Kim Jong-il's sister, Kyong-hui was just raised to four-star general, in NY we have "Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's cousin tried to help a client cash in on state pension fund business last year - a move made amid the attorney general's probe of a pay-to-play scandal."   Why would Andrew Cuomo investigations of pay to play in the Controller's office be of any concern when Andrew Cuomo runs his own version of pay to play in the Attorney General's office and it's funding Cuomo's campaign.  See "Two Faces As Cuomo Changes Pay to Play To Indirect Payment."

        "When Matthew Cuomo set up a June 23, 2009, meeting for Advanced Recovery - an upstate electronic-equipment recycling firm seeking a $5 million pension fund inveMonetizestment - with state Controller Thomas DiNapoli", Matthew Cuomo was only emulating the system in North Korea with Kim's family personality cult.

        In New York, we're so fortunate to have Mario bequest the governorship to his son.  Unlike North Korea, where the Workers' Party met for the first time in 30 years, just so Kim Jong-il could arrange a power transfer for his youngest son, in New York, our Mario anoints a successor without the expense of a Workers' Party conclave.

Cuomo Bathes In His Own Hypocrisy In Buffalo

In Buffalo, the bully, Cuomo, has grabbed all the 'pay to play' marbles for himself, because his rules are for others and not for himself, as he is predestined by his father's legacy.  Comptroller, Thomas P. DiNapoli,  learned about  Cuomo's "do as I say, not as I do." When will Cuomo appoint an independent prosecutor to probe his office's and his personal dealings with  Global Strategies Group?
Doesn't the quote,  "Today's action is yet more evidence that kickbacks and corruption contaminated the Retirement Fund," said Robert Khuzami, director of the SEC' Division of Enforcement," apply equally to Cuomo's campaign funds which are kickbacks and corruption to Cuomo and his office and are received from attorneys with actions opposed to NY State's interests.  (described in the prior blog post, seen just below, dated 4/27/20100)

Andrew bathes in the Buffalo News headline, "Cuomo widens probe of  pay to play schemes," when he should have apologized "mea culpa" for his own pay to play indirect payment scheme.

Two Faces As Cuomo Changes Pay To Play To Indirect Payment

"Follow the money"  or "The best candidate that money can buy."

My friend, Joe, enlightened me decades earlier that for great service and a good table, the time to tip the maitre d' and then your waiter is when you first meet each.    Does this apply elsewhere in New York?
   
Andrew Cuomo is the multi-faceted candidate, with a smiling face for everybody.  Andrew Cuomo's face towards the People on his web site say Cuomo wants, "to eliminate pay to play campaign contributions."     Another face of Andrew Cuomo looks at his donation forms, where "contributors [are asked] to sign a statement saying they have no “matter” pending with him. That rule “does not extend to attorneys representing persons or entities with matters before the NYS Attorney General’s office.”

"Contributors to Cuomo include a who's who of law firms and their attorneys. In addition to Boies, Patterson Belknap, Paul Weiss, Sullivan & Cromwell, Skadden Arps, Kramer Levin, Mayer Brown and O'Melveny & Myers are named in the article as contributors or event sponsors."

The People have Cuomo's and his contributing attorneys' assurances that said attorneys would never give money, if they thought it would benefit themselves or their clients, "We do not think that the attorney general of New York would make it any easier for lawyers or cut any slack for their clients because of the lawyers’ prior campaign contributions,” said Arthur Culvahouse Jr., the law firm’s chair, who was counsel to President Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. “That was not our thinking in 2006 or now. Indeed, as officers of the court we would not contribute to a candidate if we thought that were the case.”

Cuomo wants to eliminate direct pay to play.   The People are assured that no NY attorneys would ever act as cash conduits for their clients in an indirect pay to play scheme.   Check out the NY court and lawyer reality show to see our honest judges and lawyers in action. and for the 98,750 exceptions to court/lawyer honesty.


Andrew, a smiling face for everybody?  There will be no indirect pay to play through attorneys?  What will my measly single vote buy?