UPDATE: Former Assemblyman Anthony Seminerio is there too.

No one, including Judge Sullivan, is quite sure what's going on with Frank DiPascali, a 33-year veteran of Madoff Securities who called himself C.F.O. and supposedly executed the firm's trades.

In August, Judge Sullivan denied bail to Mr. DiPascali, over the objections of prosecutors. Yesterday, he did it again, saying the only thing that might mitigate Mr. DiPascali's flight risk is if he was providing information against other Madoff defendants.

Apparently, the judge is still in the dark about whether Mr. DiPascali is, in fact, singing. Yesterday Judge Sullivan wondered if the former Madoff lieutenant was only giving up men who were "prison in Butner, North Carolina or dead at the bottom of a swimming pool," according to the Wall Street Journal. (Mr. Madoff is in prison in North Carolina; while Madoff Securities' most profitable investor, Jeffry Picower was found dead in his Palm Beach swimming pool over the weekend.)

For Mr. DiPascali, there might not be much incentive to cooperate. Judge Sullivan threw the book at former Assemblyman Brian McLaughlin even though Mr. McLaughlin was cooperating with the government, and prosecutors recommended an 8-10 year sentence.

In an odd twist that shows just how incestuous the federal judiciary really is: Mr. DiPascali's being represented by Marc Mukasey, who worked under Judge Sullivan when the two were both federal prosecutors in Manhattan. Mr. Sullivan was later appointed to the federal bench when Mr. Mukasey's father, Michael, left to become attorney general.

It turns out there are lots of pots of campaign money out there, just sitting, some being spent, controlled by elected officials who have left office and are unlikely (at best) to return.

Bill Mahoney at NYPIRG put together the above spreadsheet. I asked some of the people on it—several of whom are lobbyists—what they used the money for.

"I haven't liquidated it because, frankly, I haven't ruled out ever running for public office again," said former State Senator Ray Meier, now an attorney with Bond, Schoeneck and King. "Lobbyists make political contributions, so you can ask the broader question, is it proper for lobbyists to make political contributions?"

Good-government advocates—including NYPIRG—have said that accounts should be closed when the officeholder leaves office. Election law allows for campaign funds to be expended for any lawful purpose, which includes legal fees, politically related trips or pretty much anything short of financing arms sales.

Meier could, theoretically, make another run for office. But what about Brian McLaughlin, an ex-assemblyman? The 57-year-old lawmaker was sentenced to 10 years in prison for stealing money and taking kickbacks. His campaign account contains $732,000; it paid attorney (and Senate staffer) Josh Ehrlich $10,000 in the last six-month reporting period.

"I have a contract with the committee, and as I have to do filings or deal with things, I get paid," Ehrlich told me, noting he's been under contract for three years. "I had to deal with the board, I had to deal with the bank. It is what it is."

John Faso, a lawyer and lobbyist with Manatt, Phelps and Phillips, told me his spending over $16,000 these past six months is "entirely appropriate."

"There's no law or regulation against it. I had money left over from my campaign—being a fiscal conservative, I didn't go into debt in any race I've ever run," he said. It's just simply where I may be asked to go speak somewhere in conjunction with someone's candidacy, or if a candidate who's supported me in the past, in particular, is running for office, then I try to reciprocate that support."

"I don't think there's anything that's untoward or illegitimate about that," Faso, who has run for governor and comptroller and may someday run for something else, said. "As a percentage of the total amount I raised, very small amounts were left. We budgeted that way, because you always have unanticipated expenses that occurred at the end of the campaign. It's a worthwhile approach towards budgeting in general that I think individuals and campaigns should adopt."

While at Sheinkopf’s office, Shafran was working on the Democratic transition, and has been accompanying Malcolm Smith at numerous events.

Shafran’s move comes shortly after Smith re-arranged his press office following an awkward week in Albany, which included him walking out of his own press conference.

Before Sheinkopf, Shafran worked in Queens for City Councilman David Weprin and has something of pedigree in local politics. His mother, Phyliss Shafran, worked for former borough president Donald Manes and former Assemblyman Brian McLaughlin.

Barrett, who is pretty familiar with the murky side of New York City politics, argues that legislative leaders aren’t normally held accountable when legislators misuse money.

“No one has ever blamed a legislative leader for that. I think it’s a totally new concept that Christine Quinn would be responsible for Kendall Stewart’s chief of staff,” said Barrett, referring to the indicted staffer and referencing Assemblyman Brian McLaughlin, and State Senators Pedro Espada and Efrain Gonzalez.

Barrett also says that it "remains to be seen" if Quinn will get a "free pass," since there are still questions about her own staff's conduct, what she knew about it, and when.

A new political club in Assemblyman Rory Lancman’s district - which used to be represented by Brian McLaughlin before he was implicated in a contract-rigging scandal - is having its first meeting tonight in Fresh Meadows, featuring as guest speaker Queens District Attorney Richard Brown.

Another event happening tonight, unrelated, is the first in a series of planned New York City fund-raisers for Democratic Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand, who defeated incumbent John Sweeney in a Republican-leaning district upstate and has been the target of Republican challenges ever since.

The invitation is after the jump.

Gillibrand's email:

The head of the Central Labor Council, Ed Ott, is quoted as saying the group felt it best "to remain focused on our organizational priorities and review the various observances of our Labor Day events as we consider how to march forward in the best way possible for workers."

The group did hold a parade last year, immediately after Ott's predecessor, Asssemblyman Brian McLaughlin, was indicted for misusing public money and steering contracts to allies.

"This shows there is new leadership," NYS AFL-CIO head Mario Cilento just told me. He denies McLaughlin's scandal had anything to to with this year's decision. He said around the time this year's parade would have been held, the group will instead honor labor workers by focusing on the health care needs of World Trade Center heroes and relevant legislation in Congress. That'll taje place on September 8th (more info on that after the jump, along with Ed Ott's statement).

Although it's not unprecedented for the parade to be canceled, it's the first so far to be done strictly for the sake of a legislative priority.

The parade was cancelled in 2001 because of the terrorists attacks, and in 2004 because the Republican National Convention was held in the City and, as Cilento said, "labor was squarely behind the Democratic candidate." But Cilento did say the parade was held more frequently in previous years.

Writing about the other scandal of the day, Blair Horner thinks the indictment of labor-leader and Assemblyman Brian McLaughlin "should be an indictment of Albany's political culture. A culture that is far more interested in maintaining a clearly ethically challenged status quo than working for change."

George Pataki is going to Harvard. For a speech.

In the exciting world of federal interest rates...nothing changed.

Grand Army Plaza gets some changes that should make pedestrians happy.

Alan Hevesi will be greeted by the Young Republicans outside the NY1 studios, and from every reporter in New York.

Ben notices an interesting headline swap after the same-sex/gay marriage ruling.

A reader emails to report that Charles Barron gave Jimmy Oddo an ovation because Oddo, the Republican minority leader on the council, criticized Rush Limbaugh.

And above is Alan Hevesi in happier times.

-- Azi Paybarah

According to the massive indictment [pdf] against McLaughlin, here's how the plan worked: McLauglin got his friends and their wives to send $250 contributions which would qualify for the city's 4-to-1 matching fund program. Then, McLaughlin reimbursed the donors from a union-controlled back account.

One Council member who said they unknowingly got money from this scheme was Tony Avella of Queens, who came out of the McLaughlin's political club. But the indictment said there was a second Council member who - in all likelihood unknowingly - got contributions from this scheme too.

The contributions in question were made in the reporting period of 10/1/2005 and 01/12/2006. Thanks to the Campaign Finance Board's website, you can search for $250 contributions for 2005 Council candidates during that time period.

Councilman James Gennaro, whose district overlaps with McLaughlin's Assembly district, had 17 contributions that fit the search, but a lawyer for his campaign said Gennaro personally knows all those donors, and they're not connected to McLaughlin in any way.

Tom White, whose campaign advisor (and my old boss) worked closely with McLaughlin, got ten $250 contributions during that time. Including one from the Central Labor Council PAC. White's office said they would get back to me, and so far hasn't.

One person floated Dennis Gallagher's name, but he received 0 contributions that fit the description.

So, who is that other Council member?

-- Azi Paybarah

From the report's conclusion:

and

There's more on the report here, here and here.

All of which will only add to the speculation about who might replace Hevesi.

-- Azi Paybarah