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Politics : Just the Facts, Ma'am: A Compendium of Liberal Fiction -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: mph who wrote (61467)	7/31/2007 11:57:18 AM
From: jlallen	Respond to of 90947

Is there some reason for that? That was a rhetorical question, right? lol

To: mph who wrote (61467)	8/6/2007 11:35:28 AM
From: Peter Dierks	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 90947

A Special Counsel for Spitzer New York's governor needs to come clean. BY JOSEPH L. BRUNO Thursday, August 2, 2007 12:01 a.m. EDT New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer is now traveling the state trying to put a scandal behind him that risks enveloping his administration. It's going to be a hard task. Here's what we know, thanks to some enterprising reporting by the New York Post and an investigation by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo: Two close advisers to the governor apparently used the New York State Police to carry out a political smear campaign against me by creating documents designed to generate negative press reports about me. And it nearly worked. Now, with an outline of what really happened made public, there is only one way forward for Mr. Spitzer. He needs to support a full airing of the truth. That support must include publicly testifying under oath, and making advisers available to publicly testify under oath, as part of an independent investigation that should not be limited to a panel of his appointees. It would be best to appoint an independent counsel to look into the issue. The abuse of power now being alleged is a very serious matter that has placed a cloud over state government. It is especially damaging because the scandal involves misusing state troopers and alleged misconduct by the governor's top aides, including the state assistant secretary for Homeland Security. New Yorkers have made it clear in several polls that they believe the governor knew about the smear campaign and should publicly testify about what he knew and when he knew it. It is troubling that a governor who campaigned on ethics, openness and accountability, is now trying to sweep the "Troopergate" matter under the rug. But it is not surprising. This is not an isolated incident. It is just the most serious example of a pattern of behavior that raises very serious questions about the governor's judgment, temperament and ability to govern New York State. When Mr. Spitzer took office earlier this year, the Republican Senate majority--and I, as majority leader--pledged to work with him on critical issues such as strengthening our economy, creating jobs, keeping communities safe and cutting taxes. But we quickly found that we did not have a willing partner. We found a man who did not respect opposing viewpoints and who verbally threatened those who disagreed with him. In his public statements and behind the scenes, the governor has refused to work in a bipartisan manner. Instead, he has politicized his office like no other governor in history. Rather than negotiating and compromising with people who challenged him, Mr. Spitzer tried to eliminate them. That is dangerous for democracy. And this governor does need to be challenged. Here's a partial list of his unfulfilled campaign promises and misplaced priorities: • Mr. Spitzer promised to provide tax relief, but he proposed a budget that included more than $1 billion in new taxes and fees. The Republicans in the Senate stopped these tax hikes and were successful in getting new tax cuts for businesses. • Mr. Spitzer promised to promote greater economic opportunity, but instead worked to block the Senate's efforts to make new capital investments in key projects to strengthen New York's economy, particularly upstate. • Mr. Spitzer promised to be tough on crime, but he hasn't done anything to help the Senate's efforts to impose the death penalty for criminals who kill police officers. • Mr. Spitzer promised property tax relief, but has tried to thwart every effort by the Senate Republicans to provide relief to people paying the highest property taxes in the country. • Mr. Spitzer promised to work cooperatively with the state legislature, but then announced that he would run the government without the legislature by using his state agencies. This type of autocratic rule is not what the Founding Fathers had in mind. • Mr. Spitzer promised to enact sweeping campaign finance reforms, but instead launched one the most hypocritical and aggressive fundraising campaigns ever--complete with massive "bundling" of million-dollar contributions, and promises of access depending on the size of a donation. The Senate, which recently opened a probe of the governor's past fundraising practices, has been the only institution willing to point out the governor's hypocrisy. Mr. Spitzer is not shy about using threats and verbal abuse against those who oppose him. Wall Street Journal readers will remember that John Whitehead, formerly chairman of the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation, detailed on theses pages a bizarre and threatening phone call from then New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer in 2005. The call came after Mr. Whitehead wrote an article for this newspaper critical of Mr. Spitzer. There have been profane and abusive phone calls to members of the Senate and Assembly. And, of course, the governor also admitted that he lied to Michael Goodwin of the Daily News about whether his father helped bankroll his campaign for attorney general in 1998. In light of these incidents, New Yorkers are beginning to raise serious questions about the governor's temperament. And all of this helps place the "Troopergate" scandal in context. This most recent abuse of power represents an intentional effort to damage me politically and--by extension--to destroy the Republican majority in the state Senate. Apparently, with the state Assembly and every statewide office controlled by Democrats, Mr. Spitzer came to view Senate Republicans as the only thing standing in his way. On this particular point, the governor is absolutely correct. Mr. Bruno, is majority leader of the New York Senate. opinionjournal.com