What You Should
Know
By Senator Rev. Rubén Díaz
32nd Senatorial District
By Senator Rev. Rubén Díaz
32nd Senatorial District
You should know that the Mayor of the
City of New York is under fire and he is facing 5 different investigations.
It is important for you to know that I
never supported Mayor de Blasio when he was a Mayoral Candidate, and instead. I
supported Eric Salgado and Bill Thompson. For the record, I don’t like Bill de
Blasio’s policies, we have nothing in common, and I have not met with him nor
spoken with him in person since he was elected Mayor. But as I see him being
subject to what looks like selective prosecution, I must speak out.
It is important for you to know that
Risa S. Sugarman, who was appointed by Governor Andrew Cuomo to serve as the
Chief Enforcement Officer for the Board of Elections, sent a report to the
Manhattan District Attorney regarding Mayor Bill de Blasio’s “willful and flagrant”
campaign law violations.
Ms. Sugarman’s report prompted a
criminal investigation into Mayor de Blasio’s fund-raising.
According to Ms. Sugarman’s report,
Mayor Bill de Blasio and his team raised money to send to certain County
Committees in 2014 to help Democrats running for the State Senate. In a
response to Ms. Sugarman’s report, a criminal investigation against Mayor de
Blasio is underway.
You should also know that City and
State’s Winners and Losers column for the week ending 4/29/2016 included NY
Times columnist Jim Dwyer in the Winners’ column for successfully “putting
pressure on state Board of Elections Chief Enforcement Officer Risa Sugarman to
explain her selective investigation process.
This hat-tip tip Jim Dwyer includes his
April 28, 2016 column “Faulting de Blasio for
Walking a Beaten Path in Elections.”
Mr. Dwyer wrote: “In 2008, when Michael R. Bloomberg was mayor, he gave
$1.2 million to the tiny Independence Party, which used the money to help the
campaigns of two Republican senators in Queens, Frank Padavan and Serphin R.
Maltese … Mr. Bloomberg also gave $500,000 to the Republicans’ Senate campaign
committee, which supported Mr. Padavan and Mr. Maltese in their races.”
As you can see, Mayor de
Blasio’s actions are not the first time a Mayor has used his political power
and resources to influence New York State Senate races. This is routinely done
by Democrats and Republicans alike, and we all know it.
I have to ask myself, how is it that
Mayor de Blasio is being investigated and has received subpoenas from the Manhattan
District Attorney and the US Attorney General, and how is it that he is being
lambasted on the front pages and editorial columns of New York’s daily
newspapers, when the things he did are no different than what Michael Bloomberg
did when he was New York City’s Mayor?
Why was there no outcry for
investigations and allegations made when Michael Bloomberg also violated New
York’s Campaign Finance laws by donating large amounts of money to the
Republican and Independent Parties in order to hold sway over certain State
Senate elections?
If everyone does it, how come only Mayor
Bill de Blasio is being held accountable?
I am Senator Reverend Rubén Díaz and
this is what you should know.
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