Eliot Spitzer

MINNEAPOLIS—At a breakfast for the New York delegation to the R.N.C., Joe Bruno called Barack Obama a “wimp” and implied that, like Eliot Spitzer, there may be a side to him voters don't know yet.

The attack by the former State Senate majority leader got a standing ovation.

Bruno called Spitzer “glib, articulate, fancy, dancey, prancey, all of those kind of things,” and said it was those qualities that helped him earn 70 percent of the vote when he was elected governor in 2006. “Broke a record, OK," Bruno said. "Why? Because of marketing. Selling. Think about it. Was that him? Was that for real? Was it? No—hell no.  read more »

The Hills' Whitney Port may have already started her new job working as in-house PR for Diane von Furstenberg. [NY Daily News]

Gotham magazine editor and socialite Cristina Greeven Cuomo is reportedly next in line to make an appearance on Gossip Girl. [P6]  

Jonathan Leitersdorf--real-estate investor and former owner of Noho's Sky Studios, an 11,000 square foot event space where the Seinfelds got married and several episodes of Sex and the City were shot--owns a 178-foot yacht that was just attacked by pirates off the coast of Corsica. The men were carrying "rifles and guns" and made off with $200,000 in cash, jewelry, and art work.  read more »

Speaking to reporters on the third floor of the Capitol in Albany this morning, David Paterson praised the Legislature for returning to deal with the budget.

"This legislature is converting to full-time," he said, and added that if the economy continued to struggle, "it would not be a problem to get this Legislature to come back and deal with it."

Late last month Paterson apologized to state lawmakers for saying, in a speech about the state's dire economic situation, that the Legislature was on "vacation."

“I am not going to have an acrimonious relationship with the Legislature," he said at the time, likely hoping to avoid the kind of combative relationship Eliot Spitzer had with state elected officials.  read more »

David Paterson is facing a $1.5 million ad campaign funded by groups opposed to his plan to cap property taxes. And ad man Jimmy Siegel knows how it feels.

Siegel made ads for Eliot Spitzer last year when the governor was trying to reduce health care spending.

When I played the ad for him, he said, “I got such déjà vu. I remember the first ad 1199 ran was exactly like that. It got worse, but they started with, basically, ‘Hey, everybody knows we got to do something to bring down Medicaid costs, but Eliot Spitzer’s plan is the wrong one. So, call and tell Eliot it’s the wrong one.  read more »

As part of his crusade to reform the state's finances, Governor David Paterson outlined a proposal yesterday to cut an additional $1 billion from this year’s budget, plus $1.6 billion next year. Doing so put him at odds with fellow Democrats, and it's unlikely to turn into a legislative coup for the governor. How it will play politically, however, is a different story.

The governor's first dramatic warnings about the state budget, which included a rare televised speech and a trip to Washington, were met with some skepticism from state Democrats, and a series of proposals for reducing the budget by $1.  read more »

Albany County District Attorney David Soares, whose handling of the Eliot Spitzer investigation has been severely criticized, is hoping that after releasing 8,562 pages of documents, folks will move on.

In a statement from his office, Soares said:

"Today, the two people who began this controversy are no longer a part of our government, but the spotlight on the political theater created is still just as bright as the investigations are wrapping up, and as the investigation of the investigations continues.

“Thousands of hours have been expended over the past year to uncover that no laws were broken and that politicians will always attempt to undermine their political enemies.  read more »

Eliot Spitzer authorized two of his aides to submit written testimony rather than speak directly to the Albany County District Attorney during the investigation of Spitzer's use of state police to discredit former Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno.

That’s according to the first round of news coming from newly released, 8,562-page report from David Soares office. (I haven’t gotten my hands on a copy of the paperwork yet, since it was released in Albany this morning and it's not available electronically. Sigh.)

The fact that Spitzer OK'd his aides stonewalling the investigation isn't really news anymore, but it about a year ago, when another report on the same issue was released. To his credit, Fred Dicker did once try, somewhat unsuccessfully, to confront Spitzer about it.

Here's more of that characteristic David Paterson humor:

Speaking at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., just now, Paterson was asked what lessons about the fallibility of politicians he had learned from his unusual rise to the governorship--a pretty direct reference to Eliot Spitzer, who met with a high-priced call girl at the Mayflower Hotel in D.C. before he resigned.

Paterson, pausing for a moment, told the audience, "Be careful when you come to Washington."

Thomas Earle, the asphalt heir, told his wife that Ashley Dupre tricked him into checking into the Gramercy Hotel with her and his wife believed him (!). But, Mr. Earle was reportedly bragging to his friends at a Jersey bar about being able to score with Ms. Dupre and told his wife he was on a business trip in Colorado when he snuck out to the city for his 24-hour date. [NYP]

Meanwhile, Eliot Spitzer got bullied on the Upper East Side for wearing a T-shirt that said, "New York Attorney General." [P6]

Al Sharpton reportedly turned down invitations to appear on Dancing With the Stars and Celebrity Apprentice.  read more »

Say one thing for Eliot Spitzer, in light of newly released testimony from the Troopergate affair: He knows how to stick to a story.

The former governor was spared, from a legal standpoint, because, according to the State Commission on Public Integrity: "[t]he failure to supervise subordinates, without more, does not violate the Public Officers Law." (The commission made public some 277 pages of sworn testimony it took from Mr. Spitzer on May 9 in Manhattan, and found that four of Mr. Spitzer's aides violates ethics law.)

But the documents do show the way in which Mr. Spitzer held fast to his claim, even after he left office, that it was his staff and not he who ordered the state police to create and disseminate travel records of Joe Bruno, who was then majority leader in the State Senate and Mr.  read more »

Earlier today the state's Commission on Public Integrity settled their claims against two of the four people investigated in the Troopergate probe--and now the agency has published several of the sworn testimonies online, including Spitzer's.

It will take me a while to go through them all (the files are so large it will take me a while to even open them), so if you see anything of note put it in the comments section.

Also, testimonies from Christine Anderson, Darren Dopp, Daniel Wiese, William Howard and others are here.

UPDATE: While still trying to open Spitzer's testimony, I skimmed through the Ethics Commission summary, which makes this powerfully worded (if not self-evident) point rather clear:

"The Executive Chamber's actions were flatly ad odds with its duty to assist this Commission's investigation and the promises of Governor Spitzer that his Administration was cooperating fully with the Commission's investigation.  read more »

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Some of the most significant collateral damage from Eliot Spitzer's implosion involves the reputations of two of his one-time allies: former communications director Darren Dopp (the original scapegoat for Troopergate) and David Soares, the Albany County District Attorney (who is the current scapegoat).

Dopp has been on the offensive trying to clear his name, speaking at length with the New York Times, and -- just this this morning -- providing the New York Post with his version of the testimony he gave to the state’s Public Integrity Commission.

The transcript Dopp provided undermines Soares’ initial report into the Troopergate incident, which alleged Dopp acted as a rogue agent and inappropriately ordered the state police to re-create travel records for state Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno, who received protection from the police (as is customary for legislative leaders).  read more »

Andrew Cuomo announced he won't appeal the court's decision to side with Dick Grasso, further eroding Spitzer's legacy as attorney general. Here's the statement:

"We have reviewed the Court's opinion and determined that an appeal would not be warranted. Thus, for all intents and purposes, the Grasso case is over."

Yesterday, The Wall Street Journal editorial board called for Cuomo "to cut his – and taxpayer – losses" on the Grasso case.

When news broke that Eliot Spitzer had been patronizing a high-class prostitute, one thing everyone seemed to want to know was what, exactly, he’d asked his call girl to do. It was “unsafe,” in the words of “Kristen,” a.k.a. Ashley Alexandra Dupre—but could that have been an excuse she fabricated in hopes of unloading an undesirable client? Speculation was all over the map, from unprotected sex to anal to dangerous S&M to wearing socks in bed (not unsafe, sure, but certainly annoying). For a few days there, as we marveled over the amount of money earned by the girls at Emperors Club VIP and wondered over their wealthy clients and envied Ms. Dupre’s Flatiron apartment, hookers were on the brain. Are their lives better or worse than ours? At the top end, at least, their jobs actually sounded more like dating than whoring.  read more »

Andrew Cuomo just held a press conference about an agreement he brokered with major internet providers to get them to block access to websites featuring child pornography.

It's the latest example of Cuomo taking (and succeeding with) an issue with national implications. (School loan industry, mortgage lenders, social networking sites, Credit Rating Agencies and now Internet providers.)

At the end of today’s press conference, a reporter asked why those companies - Verizon, Time Warner Cable, and Sprint - needed the attorney general to broker such a deal. Which, is another way of asking Cuomo, basically, what exactly is your strategy here, and why does it keep working?

“Why do you need the attorney general?” Cuomo asked, to some laughter.

“This question comes up, often, in different contexts,"

"Well, it’s not that easy,” he said. “They’re competitive companies--one is vying with the other. And to do an industry-wide reform, [to] get the main players to agree to simultaneously is very hard, if not impossible to do.  read more »

Eliot Spitzer's interested in taking his father Bernard's real estate firm to "the next level" by starting a distressed real estate fund (a.k.a. a vulture fund), according to today's New York Sun.

The vulture fund would basically find distressed properties nationwide, buy them, fix them up a bit, and flip them for quick profits. What better time to scrounge then during an economic downturn spurred in large part by a housing market collapse?  read more »

John Koblin examines Bill Clinton's angry response to Vanity Fair's recent profile of him. "The responses from the former president and his camp are very saddening in their own ways,” according to VF editor Graydon Carter. Plus: Ana Marie Cox joins Radar.

Leon Neyfakh reports from Los Angeles' Book Expo America where Random House's new C.E.O., Markus Dohle said, “I am looking forward to becoming a real New Yorker."

Spencer Morgan talks to Rip Torn about Norman Mailer: “Norman always dressed to the nines... He always had a suit, vest, tie, sometimes a hat. And so behind the lamppost, he turned to me and said, ‘Why you always dressed like a fuckin’ bum! Dress up, put on a nice shirt and tie, and you’ll get more respect.’"

Plus: George Gurley at 40... Eliot Spitzer's new job... and Sex and Our City.

By all accounts, Eliot Spitzer never imagined that Spitzer Enterprises would be his life’s work. His father Bernie’s real estate empire, the one he built from scratch, would finance Eliot’s ambitions. Not circumscribe them.

But that was then. This is now. And apparently, the deposed governor is adjusting.  read more »

In this clip from last night’s state Republican fund-raising dinner, state party chair Joseph Mondello introduces Joe Bruno, who then proceeds to call Eliot Spitzer “demented” (at the 5:35 mark).

Around 3:48 mark, Bruno thanks priest Jim Lisante for “being on the side of the angels."

"And thank you for helping God understand what Republicans are all about,” he adds.

Attorney General Andrew Cuomo won a lawsuit against Dell computers for what Cuomo’s office called “false advertising, deceptive business practices, and abusive debt collection practices.”

Once again, it's a victory (and future talking point) for Cuomo over a corporate mischief-maker on Main Street, rather than Wall Street, where his predecessor made his mark.  read more »

Contributions made to Spitzer 2010 are being refunded.

A reader just passed along an email from Allyson Giard, the main fund-raiser behind the former governor’s re-election committee.

Giard wrote:

We intend to re-distribute the campaign's remaining funds on a
pro-rata basis to contributors who make an official request for a refund, either by email or letter. To expedite this process, we have set a deadline of June 15; in order to be honored, a refund request must be received by the campaign office by close of business on that date. After June 15, we will determine the rate at which we are able
to issue contribution refunds and will begin issuing checks. (We will not be able to honor any requests received after June 15.)

Here's the full email:

   read more »

02138, the lifestyle magazine for alumni who attended college "near Boston—um, in Cambridge" has been sold to Manhattan Media, publishers of The New York Press, City Hall, The Chelsea Clinton News, and other papers. O1238 was launched in 2006 with the backing of Atlantic Media's David Bradley.  read more »

Finally someone is honoring Silda Wall Spitzer's mortifying role in her husband's debacle rather than criticizing her for it. Harper's Bazaarhas done a photo shoot titled "Stand By Your Man" inspired by the Spitzer sex scandal; it will appear in the magazine's June issue. The images, conceived by photographer Peter Lindbergh, portray the narrative of an uptown couple dealing with a very public political sex scandal. They even recreate the Podium Scene in which Ms. Wall stood beside the former governor with that infamous defeated look on her face. And check out the ascots!

Follow the jump for the rest of the "story."  read more »

If you remember this year's White House Correspondent's Dinner, you weren't there. Felix Gillette, John Koblin, and Choire Sicha flood the zone in D.C..

Janet Silver is moving from Houghton Mifflin to Nan Talese's imprint at Doubleday. Leon Neyfakh checks in with with Ms. Talese who says, "I called Janet and she sent us a list of the authors she had worked with and the ones who’d said they wanted to come with her, if not immediately then eventually." That list may include Philip Roth and Jonathan Safran Foer. Plus: Islam observers on Wieseltier's Amis review; James Frey's PR Dream Team; Spitzer's bio; Nabokov's unfinished novel.  read more »

Portfolio, the business imprint of Penguin Group USA, paid over $350,000 for the rights to a book by Peter Elkind about the rise and fall of Eliot Spitzer, according to a source familiar with the situation.

Mr. Elkind, who wrote a cover story about Mr. Spitzer for Fortune in 2005, will be collaborating with filmmaker Alex Gibney, who is working on a Spitzer documentary, the release of which will be timed to the publication of the book.  read more »

A couple of weeks after becoming one of the earliest and loudest critics of Council Speaker Christine Quinn over her proposed member-item reform, John Liu is publicly tweaking another one of his colleagues, this time over a more routine legislative matter.

Here’s a brief clip of Liu during a City Council hearing about biological, chemical and radiological detectors this morning, where he openly questioned the need for the legislation the committee was considering. The bill was introduced by fellow Queens Democrat Peter Vallone, Jr., whose committee meeting Liu was attending.

 read more »

 

Just because Eliot Spitzer is out of office doesn’t mean Republicans are forgetting about him. In fact, if Republican State Senator Serphin Maltese’s first television ad is any indication, we could be seeing a return of Spitzer in a big way this November.  read more »

Unlike most public officials, New York’s hard-charging attorney general, Andrew Cuomo, doesn't keep a written daily schedule.

That's according to his office, which, after two separate Freedom of Information requests from The Observer, finally said that Mr. Cuomo simply didn’t have any pre-existing documentation of his day-to-day professional and political activities that he could make public.

It's the nature of his job, an aide explained.

"The vast majority of the attorney general's time each day is spent working on and being briefed on our cases and investigations," said Benjamin Lawsky, a special assistant and deputy counsel to Mr. Cuomo.

Mr. Cuomo’s office eventually did provide a reconstituted outline of his public schedule between January 2007, when he took office, and April 2008. It is five pages long, listing press conferences, public outings and political events. They said it includes everything of a nonsensitive nature.  read more »

Former Eliot Spitzer fund-raiser Cindy Darrison, who recently was hired to help David Paterson, is working with another candidate in a potentially high-profile race for Manhattan district attorney.

If the seemingly unstoppable 89-year-old Robert Morgenthau decides not to run for reelection, Cyrus Vance, a Manhattan attorney, might.  read more »

The news that David Vitter may soon be called to testify at the trial of Deborah Jean Palfrey—more commonly known as “the D.C. madam”—serves as an important reminder: He’s still in office. And, really, in light of the bipartisan frenzy to expel Eliot Spitzer from the governorship when his ties to the Emperor’s Club were revealed, you've got to wonder why.

It was last July that we first learned that Vitter’s name and phone number were part of Palfrey’s client records between 1999 and 2001.  read more »

In case you were wondering, the departure of State Democratic Party co-chair Dave Pollak does not mean Hillary Clinton's superdelegate count is down. That's because Pollak, a committed Clinton superdelegate, will be replaced by Reggie LaFayette, who is now the party’s second highest-ranking member.

In other words, this is different than the unexpected departure of Eliot Spitzer. David Paterson was already a superdelegate for Clinton, so his ascension to governor resulted in the net-loss of one.  read more »

State Democratic Party co-chair Dave Pollak is leaving his position, the party announced a few minutes ago (right when most people are heading out the door for the weekend).

Pollak had previously run the group Democratic Leadership for the 21st Century, which brought political leaders in front of young professionals and provided a place for those leaders to recruit campaign operatives and legislative employees.

Pollak, along with chair June O’Neill, was hand-picked by Eliot Spitzer to run the party after the departure of former chair Herman Denny Farrell. Pollak was charged (naturally) with bringing the party into the 21st century.

The departure comes amid a number of personnel changes David Paterson has made to replace Eliot Spitzer's hires with his own.

Here is the official statement:  read more »

Tom Freston has put Andy Warhol's East 66th Street apartment on the market for $38.5 million, according to Page Six. The 12-room, six story apartment was originally bought by Mr. Warhol for $310,000 in 1974; Mr. Freston bought the property in 2000 for $6.5 million. [P6]  read more »

While much of former Governor Eliot Spitzer’s economic development agenda seems to be on hold or in flux (e.g. Moynihan Station, for one), his once controversial plan for the Javits Convention Center has outlived his tenure.

The Paterson administration is trekking down the path of a renovation and modest expansion for Javits, with plans for an additional 50,000 square feet of exposition space and a truck storage area. The budget, at least as of a few weeks ago, was $1.3 billion for the whole ordeal, $300 million or so less than the amount approved for a much larger expansion and renovation under the Pataki administration (which the Spitzer folks later found to have a true cost of more than $3 billion).  read more »