Racial and gender equality in the US.
Fraud is no longer a "White Man's Club"
7
Instead of providing assistance to children and young adults in the arts within her own community, no, she rather funnel those monies into her own personal checking account. Forget the children in the community, it's about building her own personal piggy bank. What a disgrace!
6
Build It Back, New York Rising, and Recreate NY employees' behavior? All three programs created with FEMA funding yet thousands of the new hires working and getting paid by those funds, funds that were meant to go to the Sandy victims, are going to these "no nothing about rebuilding" salaries, vacations, and paid holidays instead of to the victims? These employees cannot complete case management work. Repeat home visits, losing casework, asking for homeowners hazard insurance when they have flood insurance documents, procedural errors, etc., they have secured their employment on the backs of Sandy victims. State would rather support the salaries of all the employees hired to work at these emergency set-up companies, getting paid with FEMA funding money to try to prove their employment value trying to screw homeowners out of properly supported claims? They're all buying their time. State does nothing but re-victimize victims. Send the checks out and let the little people get their homes fixed and elevated already. That is what victims were told would happen. No one from the State told victims it would take 15 different employees and 9 inhouse appointments just to get house measurements correct. Get everyone off the payroll that had no experience with engineered home building. So tired of someone who used to lay carpet for a living telling me and my case manager that my home doesn't need 16 helical pile screws! If Pamela Harris goes to jail so should all of them.
4
Elect more women. Isn't that the answer from #metoo? Or, are all human beings regardless of gender prone to flawed behavior?
8
The people she was elected by, she chose to disregard, and punish by her greed. Reprehensible, disgraceful, and completely unprofessional behavior. She's not alone. We've tolerated this behavior from too many for too long. When are we going to learn?
4
The childish demeanor reflected in some commenters saddens me every bit was much as the article...truly.
1
Wow...the allegations are simply examples of working the margins and picking the low hanging fruit. While it may have taken some degree of planning this wasn't, if true, rocket science...proven by the fact that she got caught. Now the plea bargaining begins...if she's smart she'll fess up, take the 10 year stretch in and when she comes out, rehabilitated and a model prisoner, put that knowledge to work as a corrections officer consultant.
2
Possibly an occupational hazard? The say prisons are schools for crime.
2
"Well regarded legislator" ? Sorry there Mr. Lawyer, the scope of the indictment seems to a different individual.
4
All it takes to rip off the government is a fake lease, some fake receipts and a fake signature? Imagine the millions that professional scammers have stolen.
1
Justice should be blind, but it would bother no one if this woman received the maximum sentence. This is not a case of someone making a bad decision while under financial duress. This is a case of someone being a serial thief, driven by pure greed, and having no compassion for the disadvantaged people being robbed by her actions. This was deliberate and willful.
The maximum sentence exists for someone exactly like her.
3
Many crimes are committed because the perpetrator thinks “No one will be looking.” Wrong. Also, some legislators have the extra hubris to think “I make the law--I am above the law, so if I do it, it’s OK.” Also wrong.
2
Is this the best we can get for our elected officials? I hope the wave of new entrants to politics that we saw in Virginia will sweep into New York as well.
3
I am reminded of what a political science professor told me many, many years ago: "that we have laws & regulations in order to protect people from harming themselves or others, to level the playing field and hold all to the same standards [both ethically & morally]." But what struck me most was law's ability to "make individuals do the right thing if they lack internalized ethical & moral standards." An ethical human won't steal or harm whether someone is looking or not...laws attempt to ensure those who can't do this on their own believe someone is always looking. Even with this, people still try to do the wrong thing....
2
I see a common thread here. Politician sets up a not-for-profit organization that is supposed to help people in the neighborhood. It gets government funding, which the politician diverts to his/her own use.
Does every politician in NY set up such an organization?
23
It's hardly unique to NY. Try Chicago and Denver, just for starters. It appears to simply be too tempting for politicians to set up a nonprofit and then hire the wife, the sister, the mistress -- none of whom have the resume for that kind of job -- and then hit on every available city, state and federal funding. Not much oversight on that funding by the way.
3
This is an excellent point. Many do, from what I have read. Maybe not all are corrupt but the temptation is there, as it is with them being permitted to have other jobs beyond the $79,500 (plus per diems) they make supposedly working for us!
2
HRC was never FROM New York.
But yeah, that's the way it works these days.
2
My usual response when I read about this stuff is "what was she thinking?" Then I realize it may have been: "If they can do it, I can do." How do people like that LIVE with themselves? I hope she goes to jail.
15
Oh, they live with themselves easily enough. The only time they "regret" something is when they are caught and advised to do the, as I call it, 'boo-hoo, I'm so sorry, and I didn't mean to harm anyone' act in th hope of getting a lighter sentence. Regrettably enough, it sometimes works.
2
They live with themselves very easily because they don't work like you and me. When we forget that we set up systems based on the presumption that people are telling the truth when they attest to something in writing. Living off the lie is easy and becomes so routine that it is an entitlement. When thwarted they don't feel guilty or contrite or foolish, just angry at you because you denied them the easy good life to which special persons like themselves are entitled. They are the wolves.
1
Corruption in politics is so standard it seems. It's like the old expression, "the mud in the river is different every day".
10
sadly, statistically, over 70 percent of politicians busted for corruption are Democrats; I was afraid that this was the case when I saw the headline.
all power corrupts
37
Really? Does that include the entire U.S.? Time frame? as we used to say when we were kids - prove it.
2
Seriously? Where do you get your information? Would you like to post a citation for that absurd claim?
1
Since Andrew Jackson, the Democratic Party, when not defending slavery, white supremacy, and the lynching of Chinese immigrants, has always been the means by which yesterday's downtrodden "little man" could join the kakistocracy and steal with the best of them.
21
This statement shows a limited understanding of history.
21
Limited perhaps, but not incorrect.
2
KBronson--
You read this and the first thing that comes to mind is for you to use it politically, inferring that it is not just the poor part of human nature, but a political party's practice?
Geez, no wonder politics are so polarized. Give us a break!
Why is this news? It's just another corrupt New York City Democrat who is charged with lying, fraud and other crimes. Don't they all do it? Besides, the voters will continue to vote for her until she is led away to prison. And then another equally corrupt Democrat will replace her.
44
She was taking her cue from Republicans, who have been doing it longer. And, usually getting away with it.
20
It is news because no matter how commonplace you may perceive such occurrences to be, the role of the press is to bring such accounts to the public forum. Corruption is endemic in every city, state and country. The fact that it exists does not signify that the system is broken, but rather the fact that those who are corrupt face justice means that the system is working just as it should.
29
What’s new?