Thank You for Responding to Initial Letter and Documentation
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Update January 21 st , 2016:
This paper and flow chart were submitted with a cover letter (which I have included in this update) and Civilian Criminal Complaint Form to the office of U.S. Attorney General Preet Bharara in May 2015 . The complaint was filed against NY Governor Andrew Mark Cuomo. By law an investigative file had to be opened. While the Moreland Commission file may be closed this file may indeed be open to continue the investigation into the dealings of Governor Cuomo. Of the names and organizations on the flow chart, located at the end of the paper, at least two of companies have been investigated (and I believe are still under investigation), three of the people named have been found guilty in a court of law, one has had warrants served on him and his home and property and is still the subject of an ongoing investigation, one is rumored to have received immunity for his testimony to date. Others named in this paper have been investigated or are under investigation. May 31, 2015
Mr. Bharara:
Thank you for responding to initial letter and documentation.
I have taken the time to fill out the Civilian Crime Report you sent to me and have lodged my complaint against New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo and hope that you will take my accusation(s) seriously enough to investigate.
Enclosed in this mailing you will find documentation of information I have researched regarding the possible corruption in Albany as it relates to Governor Cuomo. There is now a part three as there have been subsequent events that have taken place since the original mailing:
1) The indictment of Dean Skelos and his son & the involvement of AbTech
2) The appointment of John Flanagan in Skelos’ place
3) Recent banking activity regarding Citigroup, Citibank, and Chase
4) Warrants being served on Steve Pigeon as well as his firm’s appointment as chief lobbyist for the Seneca Nation
For your convenience I have stapled them together and sent three copies. I am sure I have only connected a few simple dots of an extremely complicated mosaic.
In the original document I believe I accurately connected Governor Cuomo to players and entities such as Sheldon Silver, Jordan Levy, casinos (Seneca Nation), Pearson, Meryl Tisch, various Real estate companies and tax "incentives," Blackstone and possibly another equity firm called Leeds Equity Partners, as well as some others. In the updated version Cuomo has been connected to every new “player” listed in numbers 1-4 listed above.
Some of it I know you have knowledge of, and some of it I think you probably are aware of, but I hop that in some small way I may be of assistance to you.
The last thing you will find attached to my documentation is a “web” diagram, albeit a convoluted one, that clearly links Governor Cuomo to many people and groups of interest.
As I stated in my original communique to your office: please do not presume me arrogant. I merely share this with you in the off chance it may reveal an angle or connection not yet thought of or seen by your team. I almost did not send this due to the fact that I do not believe an act such as this should be done anonymously. It is a rather "big deal" for every-day people such as myself to contact an office such as yours. The deciding factors: 1) I believe that Governor Cuomo has played fast and loose for far too long, perhaps since before he was Governor (that will be my next piece); 2) I have faith in you Mr. Bharara, and believe you have the tenacity, honor, and integrity to persevere until justice is served; 3) It seems many people are afraid to speak out about many things that are ethically wrong in NYS and in politics in general….afraid! That is neither the country I grew up in nor the state I grew up in; nor is what I want for my sons nor the parents and children I serve.
I am desperately holding onto the ideals that our nation was founded upon. I thank you for your time in this matter.
Respectfully submitted,
John D. Sheffield 70 Edwards Circle Oswego, NY 13126 Ph) 315-343-0698 Contents
1) PART I
Original Part 1: “ Cuomo Labyrinth Part 1: Playing Fast and Loose in a Labyrinth of Deceit”
2) PART II Original Part 2: “Cuomo Labyrinth part 2: Albany & Alibaba, Buffalo & Blackstone, Capital & Casinos; the ABC’s of Corruption”
3) PART III
Update written April 6th 2015 regarding the April 20, 2015 Success Academy Charter Schools Third Annual Spring Benefit (note: at last minute Governor Cuomo made a quick trip to Cuba….which raises more questions in my opinion)
4) PART IV New connections: Skelos / AbTech; John Flanagan / banks; Scott Pigeon / Seneca Nation PART I
Cuomo Labyrinth Part 1: Playing Fast and Loose in a Labyrinth of Deceit
The impeachment process of a governor in New York starts in the state Assembly and then moves to the state Senate. “It doesn't have to be a crime. It doesn't even have to be an official act. The words are "willful and corrupt conduct in office." It could be a private act. The Assembly decides what's impeachable.” http://www.myfoxny.com/story/17430161/impeachment-process-in-new-york-state
Andrew Cuomo's recent budgetary tactics are completely despicable to me. His”strategy”of blackmail is usurping the budget process and completely circumvents the entire idea of democracy. Holding the budget process hostage in order to achieve his own personal and political goals is nothing short of economic terrorism against his own constituency.
Over the past few days I have had information shared with me and today started digging some more on my own. This writing unfortunately is itself a winding labyrinth meandering from education & campaign donations to hedge funds to Pearson to education reform to tax breaks to real-estate and back. At this point is impossible for me to make it fluid narrative because of all the twists and turns.
After piecing this together though it is difficult for me to believe that Governor Andrew Cuomo has not broken any legal laws of ethics. It is also my opinion that he most certainly has betrayed the working class of NY and the public trust. I also believe that there is enough here to begin the impeachment process.
A reading of the Teachout/Kuhn Washington Park Project paper, “Corruption in Education: Hedge Funds and the Takeover of New York’s Schools,” published recently in December of 2014 clearly shows the amount of private dollars that were pumped into the NYS legislative process last year with the sole purpose of taking over public education.
“New York State is plagued by legal corruption: campaign contributions and outside spending explicitly designed to buy policy outcomes. In 2014, a tiny group of powerful hedge fund executives, representing an extreme version of this corruption, spent historic amounts of money in order to take over education policy. This paper details this fast-paced purchase of political power, and the threat it poses to democracy and public education in New York State. A small cadre of men, including Carl Icahn, Paul Tudor Jones, and Dan Loeb, poured more than $10 million into state lobbying and election campaigns since the beginning of 2014, with electrifying results.i Their campaign bears the signature components of the corporate takeover world which they occupy: rapid action on multiple fronts; highly secretive activity shielded from the public view; high stakes, big spending; and top-down power plays that are not accountable to the public. First, in a span of 10 weeks they spent over $6 million on lobbying that won unprecedented public funding to pay for charter school rent. ii This was done as part of a campaign orchestrated with Governor Cuomo, designed to frustrate Mayor Bill de Blasio’s efforts to win universal full-day pre-K, paid for entirely through expanded taxation of New York City millionaires. Phase two of the attack came in the fall elections. Twelve individuals spent $4.3 million on a PAC apparently designed to purchase control of State Senate education policy.iii Their effort depended on misleading voters about the actual intentions of the PAC. Rather than honestly advocating for more public funding for privately-run charter schools, and explaining who was behind it, the TV ads, mailers and radio spots paid for by the PAC attacked Senate Democrats for doing the bidding of New York City and Mayor de Blasio.iv Ironically, the PAC’s priority was actually to win more money for charter schools located in New York City. The PAC also attacked candidates for supporting the vital anti-corruption measure of publicly funded elections.v These Wall Street titans cemented their power play by securing the political allegiance of Governor Andrew Cuomo through campaign donations and outside spending. They worked together with Governor Cuomo during the state budget process…..”
I recommend that everyone read this very clear, precise, well written, and well referenced document in its entirety: http://www.aqeny.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Hedge-Fund-White- Paper-Teachout-Final-Formatted-2.pdf
Here is a partial accounting of some of Mr. Cuomo's campaign contributors which makes clear that any ethics reforms must include the Governor's office itself.
Andrew Cuomo’s Campaign Contributors With Charter Schools Affiliation
Great Public Schools PAC Belongs to Eva Moskowitz CEO of Success Academy $65,000 Joel GreenBlatt Success Academy co-founder $50,000 Julia Greenblatt Joel Greenblatt’s wife $23,000 John Petry Success Academy co-founder $60,000 Samuel Cole Success Academy Board $42,500 Bryan Binder Success Academy Board $20,000 Jill Braufman Success Academy Board $57,500 Daniel Loeb Success Academy Board, StudentFirstNY BOD $60, 367 Margaret Loeb Daniel Loeb’s wife $29,000 John H. Scully Success Academy Board $50,000 Daniel Nir Success Academy Board $65,000 Charles Strauch Success Academy Board $25,000 Jarrett Posner Success Academy Board $2,500 Andrew Stone Success Academy Board $60,000 Dana Stone Andrew Stone’s wife $25,000 Gregory Sawers Success Academy Board $10,000 Catherine Shainker Success Academy Board $2,000 Suleman Lunat Success Academy Board $1,000 Kent Yalowitz Success Academy Board $5,000 Steven M. Galbraith Success Academy Board $35,000 Larry Robbins KIPP NY Board (charter school organization) $90,800 Winston Fischer Civic Builders BOD (non-profit developer specializing in charter school construction) $64,500 Jessica Fischer Winston Fischer’s wife $13,000 Kenneth Fischer Winston Fischer’s brother $67,500 Steven Fischer Winston Fischer’s brother $47,500 Brian Olson Involved in multiple charter school support & advocacy orgs (ConnCan, Civic Builders, NewSchools Venture Fund) $45,000 Kenneth Langone StudentFirstNY Board of Directors $50,000 David Boies StudentFirstNY Board of Directors $35,000 Boies, Schiller, & Flexner LLP David Boies is chairman of the company $95, 543 Paul Tudor Jones StudentFirstNY Board of Directors $80,000 Sonia Jones Paul Tudor Jones’ wife $25,000 Joel Klein StudentFirstNY Board of Directors $10,000 Brian Higgins Harlem Children’s Zone board $15,000 Tania Higgins Brian Higgins’s wife $35,000 Jonathan Sackler Achievement First charter schools network Board of Directors, NewSchools Venture Fund (a non-profit supporting charter schools) $46,000 Bruce Kovner Bronx Preparatory Charter Schools board $45,000 Carl Icahn Icahn Charter Schools founder $75,000 Whitney Tilson KIPP Academy Charter Schools board, Democrats for Education Reform (non-profit advocating for charter schools) $12,000 Brian Lawrence Democracy Prep Charter School $20,000 Democrats for Education Non-profit supporting charter schools Reform $72,000 Coalition for Public Charter Charter schools advocacy organization Schools PAC $10,500
Total: $1,636,710
Source: Campaign Disclosure Reports You can see an article that addresses some of these donations here:
“Success Academy donors give big to Cuomo campaign,” by Geoff Decker on January 17, 2014 http://ny.chalkbeat.org/2014/01/17/success-academy-donors-flood-cuomos-coffers-filings- show/#.VONsMfnF-al
As reported by the New York Times In December of 2013 The Pearson Foundation was found guilty of repeatedly breaking NYS laws and fined almost $8 million. “The Pearson Foundation, the charitable arm of one of the nation’s largest educational publishers, will pay $7.7 million to settle accusations that it repeatedly broke New York State law by assisting in for-profit ventures.” http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/13/nyregion/educational-publishers-charity- accused-of-seeking-profits-will-pay-millions.html?_r=0
Also as reported by the Times,” Under the terms of the agreement to be announced on Friday, the money, aside from $200,000 in legal expenses, will be directed to 100Kin10, a national effort led by a foundation, the Carnegie Corporation, to train more teachers in high-demand areas, including science, technology, engineering and math.”
The Carnegie Foundation is one of the front runners in the Charter School movement, not for improving public schools. The question of who decided to funnel the Pearson money to them must be investigated. Is the Carnegie Corporation via its “foundation” sliding money into Cuomo’s campaign coffers or into the reform movement or to the NYS Board of regents themselves as shown on page 15 of the document found here: http://www.regents.nysed.gov/meetings/2015Meetings/February/215bra2.pdf where it states:
“ACTION ITEM : Acceptance of a $500,000 grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York BR (A) 4 MOVED, that the Board of Regents accept the sum of $500,000 from the Carnegie Corporation of New York to support the work of the USNYRegents Research Fellowship Program.”
Is the Carnegie foundation taking advantage, as many others are, through a campaign finance loophole that Governor Cuomo has raised millions of dollars. A loophole by the way that he pledged to close during his first campaign? http://billmoyers.com/2014/06/23/cuomo-has-raised-millions-through-loophole-he-pledged-to- close/
Some of the major Limited Liability Companies (LLC) that take advantage of this loophole and have contributed to Cuomo are indeed some major real estate players in NYC; which brings back to Pearson and how this may tie together: “Leading Global Learning Company Will Expand Presence in Hudson Square – One of City’s Burgeoning Neighborhoods – with 270,000 Square Feet of Renovated Space by Summer 2014.”
The leading Global learning Company referred to is Pearson. Information about this expansion can be found at http://www.nyc.gov/portal/site/nycgov/menuitem.c0935b9a57bb4ef3daf2f1c701c789a0/index.js p?pageID=mayor_press_release&catID=1194&doc_name=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nyc.gov %2Fhtml%2Fom%2Fhtml%2F2011b%2Fpr332-11.html&cc=unused1978&rc=1194&ndi=1
This link also provides information about how much the dollar incentive was for Pearson to make such a move.
More information about the real estate area in question can be found here: http://therealdeal.com/issues_articles/honing-in-on-hudson-square/
Curiously in 2010 Governor Cuomo appointed Jeffrey Leeds, the President and Co-Founder of Leeds Equity to his handpicked committee education reform. He was the founding chairman of the Green Dot New York Charter School . According to http://littlesis.org/person/70419/Jeffrey_Leeds Mr. Leeds made two campaign donations to Governor Cuomo around this time: 1) between Sept 1, 2007 and Jan 14, 2009 he contributed $27,000 and, 2) between Jul 2, 2009 and May 6, 2010 he contributed $28,000.
http://polhudson.lohudblogs.com/2010/11/16/cuomo-adds-more-bold-faced-names-to-transition/
Of greater curiosity to me is the fact that a gentleman named Jim Behnke is also part of Leeds/ Equity Partners. “… Behnke served as Executive Vice President and Chief Learning Officer at Pearson, where he led strategy and development for online learning programs in the company’s global Higher Ed and US K12 curriculum businesses. Furthermore another former Cuomo appointee, Matthew Goldstein also affiliated with Leeds: “ Appointed by Governor Andrew Cuomo, he chaired the New York City Regional Economic Development Council and was a member of the NY Education Reform Commission.” All of this can be found at http://www.leedsequity.com/people
The following quote is from the Leeds Home page: “Leeds Equity Partners is the pioneer in private equity investing in the knowledge sector, which includes the education, training, business services, and information services and software industries. Founded in 1993, Leeds Equity has deployed over $2.6 billion of capital in investments across the knowledge sector spectrum. Today, Leeds Equity’s portfolio of investments collectively generates more than $3 billion of revenue annually …” http://www.leedsequity.com/ Now we come to Glenwood Management and the Extell Development Co.
“Of the LLCs giving to Cuomo, the most generous are controlled by Glenwood Management, a real estate development company headquartered on Long Island. Headed by Leonard Litwin, a reclusive 99-year-old magnate, Glenwood has given $800,000 to Cuomo since he took office using 19 separate LLCs.”
“Another real estate developer, the Extell Development Co., has also given extensively to Cuomo through LLCs, including two donations last year that were flagged by the Moreland Commission. Two LLCs affiliated with Extell gave the governor a total of $100,000 on January 28, 2013 — two days before Cuomo signed legislation that granted a tax break to Extell’s One57 skyscraper in Manhattan, as well as properties owned by four other developers.
Two other LLCs with ties to Extell gave Cuomo another $100,000 six months later. (The contributions were first reported last year by The Daily News.)” Glenwood management and Leonard Litwin have direct ties to Sheldon Silver and his alleged illegal activities. As quoted from http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20150122/BLOGS04/150129937/charges-against- speaker-point-to-leonard-litwin
“An unnamed firm that is described in federal charges filed Thursday against Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver appears to be Glenwood Management, a Manhattan luxury residential apartment developer…. Mr. Silver was arrested Thursday on charges of using his powerful position to reap millions of dollars in bribes and kickbacks. A complaint filed by federal prosecutors in Manhattan states that Mr. Silver worked to "induce real estate developers with business before the state" to hire a law firm run by his former Assembly counsel, that the speaker earned fees from the referrals, and that the developer knew about the fees.
“The complaint, released by the office of Southern District U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara, cites a “Developer 1” that has made more than $10 million in New York political donations since 2005 and was the state’s largest political donor during that time. Including contributions made through various limited liability corporations, Glenwood Management’s 100-year-old owner Leonard Litwin has been the state’s largest political donor during that period.”
“In addition, the complaint states that Developer 1 in 2014 had paid eight lobbying firms a total of $900,000. State lobbying records show Glenwood Management paid eight lobbying firms exactly $900,000 last year.” Regarding Extell, according to the NY Post, “US Attorney Preet Bharara is investigating the massive tax breaks granted to Midtown’s luxury One57 condo building, where a mystery buyer just paid a record $100 million-plus for the duplex penthouse, sources told The Post on Sunday. The now-disbanded Moreland Commission panel on public corruption was reported to have been investigating the sweetheart tax abatements scored by developer Gary Barnett of Extell Development. Bharara took over that probe when he subpoenaed the firm’s records after Gov. Cuomo unexpectedly shut down the commission last year, sources said.” http://nypost.com/2015/01/26/bharara-probing-tax-deals-given-to-luxury-condo-building/
On top of all this I must pose this question: will a deep and thorough investigation eventually lead to the NYS Board of regents, in particular Merryl Tisch, in collusion with Governor Cuomo in unethical behavior regarding educational decisions in New York? As reported by Alan Singer (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/alan-singer/new-yorks-secret-educatio_b_4368282.html ).
“In December 2010, Merryl Tisch, chancellor of the New York State Board of Regents announced that thirteen Regents Research Fellows would report to and advise John King and the seventeen-member board. Instead of making them state employees subject to review and public accountability, the fellows were paid by a private funds. This included a $1 million donation by Tisch herself. Tisch is a member of one of New York's wealthiest real estate clans.”
This was also reported in the Albany Times Union by James M. Odato: “Since that $1 million commitment, other philanthropists have opened their wallets. The Hewlett Foundation, Carnegie Corporation, Tiger Foundation, Robin Hood Foundation, the Helmsley Trust and General Electric are among 19 donors that have underwritten the program.” (http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Education-reform-backed-by-the-wealthy- 5006670.php ).
One final and intriguing Tisch connection was reported in the Daily News
(http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/wayne-barrett-sheldon-silver-gang-article-1.2098497) this month (Feb 2015) regarding the ongoing Sheldon Silver investigation:
“…a scandal-consumed Silver affiliate, the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty, which has become a headline hog all its own. It was the Met Council that caused these layers of insular overlap to blow up even before the Silver bust. The council's longtime CEO, Willie Rapfogel, took his fall in 2013, having squeezed $9 million out of his state subsidies for the poor, pocketing $3 million of it himself……The Met Council board is chaired by Merryl Hiat Tisch.” As I said at the outset: the web of money, appointments, corporations, hedge funds, people, and campaign contributions crisscross so much in this complex money maze that it was difficult to write with any fluidity. It appears to me that Merryl Tische needs to be seriously investigated as to her part in this web of deceit, as well as many others. The corporate money and real estate connections to Tische cannot be ignored. There is no doubt to me, however, that Mr. Cuomo may have crossed some ethical lines. There is also no doubt to me that due to the way the impeachment process of a Governor works in New York state that if our senate and legislature were truly the voice of the people, then they would pursue that avenue with much vigor until Governor Cuomo is indeed impeached. PART II
Cuomo Labyrinth part 2: Albany & Alibaba, Buffalo & Blackstone, Capital & Casinos the ABC’s of Corruption
The impeachment process of a governor in New York starts in the state Assembly and then moves to the state Senate. “It doesn't have to be a crime. It doesn't even have to be an official act. The words are "willful and corrupt conduct in office." It could be a private act. The Assembly decides what's impeachable.” http://www.myfoxny.com/story/17430161/impeachment-process-in-new-york-state
This is part two of what may or may not turn into an ongoing journalistic investigative series into Governor Cuomo’s potential corrupt conduct as Governor. After writing and sharing my essay “Cuomo: Playing Fast and Loose in a Labyrinth of Deceit,” I was given the name of Jordan Levy. It was that name more than anything that led to the writing of what you are now reading.
Jordan Levy is a Buffalo business man. According to the website of Softbank Capital (http://www.softbank.com/newweb/team/jordan-levy.php)
“Jordan Levy is a General Partner at SoftBank Capital NY and also Managing Partner of Seed Capital Partners, an early stage venture capital fund that he co-founded in 1999.
Prior to co-founding Seed Capital Partners, he was co-founder of ClientLogic and was President, co-CEO and co-Chair of its predecessor companies SOFTBANK Services Group and UCA (now SITEL Worldwide). Previously, Jordan was SVP of Software Etc,now GameStop (NYSE:GME) and prior to that he was also co-founder of Software Distribution Services, now known as Ingram Micro (NYSE:IM).
Jordan currently serves on the boards of several technology companies including SocialFlow, Spanfeller Media, Synaptic Digital, COKeM Int. and is Chairman of Synacor (NASDAQ: SYNC). He is a Board Observer of Betaworks and Boxee. Previously, Jordan served on the boards of ZipList (sold to Condé Nast in 2012), OMGPOP (sold to Zynga in 2012), Hyperpublic (sold to Groupon in 2012), and KickApps (sold to KIT digital in 2011). He also is the first non- Native American on the Board of Seneca Holdings Corporation.
Jordan is Chair of the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation, the State Agency responsible for the redevelopment of Buffalo’s vast historic waterfront. He is also on the Advisory Board for NYC Seed and a trustee of the University of Buffalo Foundation. He served for nine years as a trustee of the Albright Knox Art Gallery and is a past President of the Jewish Federation of Greater Buffalo.”
One very recent item I came across was actually just released today (March 3rd, 2015) by the Buffalo News http://www.chatsports.com/buffalo-bills/a/Buffalo-Bills-name-7-to-stadium-panel- 0-9565149 In which the headline read “Bills announce their picks to panel that will explore options for new stadium.” According to the article the Bills named seven people to this panel one of which was Jordan Levy. Levy was brought on board due to his strong ties to Albany, “ Levy, for example, is former chairman of the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corp. with strong ties in Albany, including to Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver.” Levy is and has been affiliated with several venture capital organizations and funds. As stated above he is a board member of Soft bank Capital which according to their site states that are “affiliated with the SOFTBANK Group, a global telecommunications, internet and media conglomerate headquartered in Tokyo.” Their assets include “SOFTBANK Mobile; Sprint; Brightstar; Yahoo! Japan; Alibaba Group; and gungHo Online Entertainment.” The site further states that they assist the SOFTBANK group in identifying key strategic investments” http://www.softbank.com/newweb/focus.php
In 2012: Softbank Capital is involved in a project that receives $4 million from Cuomo ESD. http://investor.synacor.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=687102
“Z80 Labs Technology Incubator, Grand Opening Monday, July 23 Top Investors to Ignite Internet-Based Technology Sector in Buffalo and Western New York. Z80 Labs will be funded by Softbank Capital, with additional funding from SCP Incubator LLC via a $4 million Innovate NY grant awarded by Governor Cuomo's Empire State Development (ESD). Corporate support in services and personnel will be provided by The Buffalo News, Campus Labs, PC Business Solutions and Synacor.”
In 2011: The Alibaba group, part of SoftBank, teams up with Blackstone Group and Bain Capital http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/30/us-yahoo-idUSTRE7AT32E20111130 :
“Private equity firms Blackstone Group and Bain Capital will lead a bid for the whole of Yahoo Inc after agreeing to team up with Alibaba Group, two people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.”
In January 2015: “Governor Appoints Official at Blackstone Group as His Top Aide” http://www.wsj.com/articles/cuomo-turns-to-wall-street-for-top-aide-1421028778 As quoted from the article, “Bill Mulrow, a senior managing director at private-equity firm Blackstone Group LP, will become Mr. Cuomo’s secretary to the governor, filling the top aide slot whose duties include playing a key role in annual budget negotiations.” So here we have a director of a private equity firm that has past dealings with a SoftBank affiliate being appointed as Secretary to the Governor. Remember, SoftBank is tied to Jordan Levy. We also now have a Wall Street equity firm director playing a key role in budget negotiations….negotiations that involve education reforms in which the harming of public education could directly benefit certain Wall Street investors, and the firms they do business with. Another BlackStone connection should also be noted, this one from December of 2013 as reported by The New York World: “While Sandy victims in New York wait anxiously for government assistance to rebuild their homes, a charity organized by Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the wake of the storm to aid homeowners has steered millions of dollars to two troubled state- sponsored housing developments in Brooklyn.” It goes on to say, “The complexes are partially owned by funds managed by a private equity giant, the Blackstone Group, that also employs a powerful state housing official who has authority over spending from the charity.” The housing official referred to is none other than Bill Mulrow, Cuomo’s now acting Secretary. http://www.thenewyorkworld.com/2013/12/13/empire-state-relief-fund/
So here we have Cuomo connected to Mulrow connected to Levy connected to Cuomo and let’s not forget Mr. Silver…..all tied together by money.
The Levy connection becomes even more of a revelation with just how strong Levy’s ties to Sheldon Silver are. The Buffalo News reported that the Silver probe run by U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara cited funds managed by two firms located in Buffalo, one of which JoRon Management LLC. JoRon is controlled by Levy and a partner, Ronald M. Schreiber. The article states “Whenever Sheldon Silver ventured west to Buffalo during his 21 years as Assembly speaker, it seemed that businessman Jordan A. Levy was there to greet him. The Buffalo entrepreneur and venture capitalist accompanied Silver to local appointments, attended fundraisers when the speaker’s beloved New York Rangers came to town, and introduced him to local delis that can meet Silver’s strict kosher requirements.”
It further goes on to say: “In the indictment delivered last week naming Silver on two charges of honest services fraud plus extortion under the color of official duties, Bharara identifies JoRon Management LLC and Counsel Financial Services LLC as repositories for Silver’s alleged illegal profits.”
The article can be found here http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/silver-probe-cites-funds- managed-by-2-firms-here-20150223
Jordan Levy is also associated with a group called 43north. This from the website: “43North gives out $5 million in cash prizes each year to some of the best and brightest entrepreneurs and startups from around the globe. We came on the scene in 2014 and now our first class of 11 winning teams is rolling up their sleeves and getting to work in our new incubator in Buffalo, NY.” 43north is scheduled to receive $7 million dollars in 2015 from Cuomo’s Empire State Development (ESD). http://www.43north.org/governor-cuomo-announces-1-million-in- additional-funding-for-43north
“With the additional $1 million announced by the Governor today coming from the Buffalo Billion, 43North will receive a total of $7 million in funding from New York State for 2015 ($6 million was previously allocated in December 2014 from the Western New York Power Proceeds Allocation Board). As with the $5 million in funding for last year's 43North winners, the awards come from revenues obtained from the market sale of unutilized hydropower from New York Power Authority’s (NYPA) Niagara Power Project, as provided for under 2012 legislation spearheaded by Governor Cuomo.” In the official NYS from February 11, 2015 there is no mention of Levy’s JoRon ties. http://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-cuomo- announces-1-million-additional-funding-43north
It is clear that Levy and is tied to both Silver and Cuomo personally and through assorted companies and organizations. His ties to Cuomo take an even more interesting turn.
Earlier it was mentioned that “He [Levy] also is the first non-Native American on the Board of Seneca Holdings Corporation.”
In June of 2013 it was announced by Governor Cuomo that a landmark agreement involving casinos and Seneca nation http://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-cuomo-and-seneca- nation-indians-announce-landmark-agreement Governor Cuomo said, “This agreement marks the beginning of a new chapter between the Seneca Nation of Indians and New York State, built on trust and mutual respect. I commend President Barry Snyder and the leadership of the Nation for their hard work in helping reach this landmark agreement."
As reported in an pre-interview informational segment with Levy ““He has been a member of numerous community and corporate boards, including the Seneca Holdings Corp., the business arm of the Seneca Nation (not affiliated with its casino operations).” http://www.investigativepost.org/2013/01/27/qa-jordan-levy/
How he is part of the “the business arm of the Seneca Nation (not affiliated with its casino operations),” seems like an awfully convenient statement that to this writer screams to be looked into.
This is of particular interest now as Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has begun investigating last year's casino selection process for potential conflicts of interest according to Crain’s Insider http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20150223/BLOGS04/150229965/attorney-general- investigating-cuomos-casino-picks
The last thought I leave you with in this section is this: Why is Governor Andrew Cuomo approaching with renewed vigor an email deletion policy? This is from an article written by David Sirota in the International Business Times:
“Earlier this month, New Yorkers watched an inferno tear through a warehouse full of old government records from the bygone paper era. Many probably felt relief in thinking that such records are now often digitized and therefore not at risk of being accidentally incinerated. Yet as Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration is showing this week, many records are vulnerable to another form of destruction: deliberate deletion.
In a memo obtained by Capital New York, Cuomo officials announced that mass purging of email records is beginning across several state government agencies. The timing of the announcement, which followed through on a 2013 proposal, is worth noting: The large-scale destruction of state documents will be happening in the middle of a sprawling federal investigation of public corruption in Albany. That investigation has been looking at state legislators and the Cuomo administration.
Cuomo’s move to purge state emails follows a similar move he made as state Attorney General. International Business Times confirmed that in 2007, he put in place a mass deletion policy for emails in the New York Attorney General’s office that were more than 90 days old, making it difficult for the public to know how -- or whether -- his office investigated bank fraud in the lead-up to the financial crisis of 2008. In the Cuomo administration’s announcement this week, the governor's chief information officer, Maggie Miller, justified the new email purge as a cost- saving measure aimed at “making government work better.” http://www.ibtimes.com/amid-federal-corruption-probe-andrew-cuomo-administration-purges- state-government-1828824
Why now? Is it because he is potentially being investigated by Federal Attorney Preet Bharara? Is it because the Attorney general of NYS, Eric Schneiderman, is investigating Cuomo and the casinos? Or is it both?
There is an old quote by Robin Cook, “If it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, it’s a duck.”
A, B, C. PART III
(Written April 6, 2015)
Success Academy Charter Schools Third Annual Spring Benefit
According to http://perdidostreetschool.blogspot.com/2015/04/save-date-andrew-cuomo- campbell-brown.html : "Monday, April 20, 2015 Success Academy Charter Schools Third Annual Spring Benefit. 6:30 pm. Cocktails and dinner. Business attire. Honoring Eli Broad. Chaired by Campbell Brown, Joel Greenblatt, Daniel S. Loeb, John Scully, Regina Scully. Tickets from $1,250.00. Tables from $15,000.00. Cipriani 42nd Street. New York. Contact: Julianna Harder. (212) 245-6570. Event address: 110 East 42nd Street, New York. Event web address: www.successacademies.org.
More incentive to attend:
CUOMO TO HEADLINE SUCCESS ACADEMY BENEFIT—Capital’s Eliza Shapiro: Governor Andrew Cuomo will be the keynote speaker at Success Academy's annual spring benefit this April, according to an invite sent to Success employees this weekend. Cuomo and Success C.E.O. Eva Moskowitz officially became allies last winter..."
FUN FACT 1: Eva Moskowitz gave at least $65.000 to Cuomo last year FUN FACT 2: Campbell Brown's salary $475,000. from Marantz, Andrew, "Charter Chief," (New Yorker, March 24, 2014, p. 32.)
The person being honored, Eli Broad has donated millions to what can be described as anti- public school campaigns ( http://dianeravitch.net/2013/10/25/bombshell-eli-broaf-secretly- funded-anti-public-school-anti-union-initiatives/ ) Further evidence of his feelings can found here http://democracyeducationjournal.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1078&context=home ) The abstract states: "Eli Broad’s approach to reforming urban public education does not recognize his own self-interest in promoting changes within such educational systems, a classic problem of misrecognition. The Broad agenda is an assault on the notion of the mission of public education as a service instead of a for-profit enterprise concerned with making money for the owners and stock holders."
Daniel Loeb is the CEO of, and founded, Third Point LLC, a $17 billion asset management firm headquartered in New York, in 1995. He leads portfolio management, risk management and research activities. He is also the Chairman of the Board of Success Academies Charter Schools. http://www.thirdpoint.com/executive-team/daniel-s-loeb/
The power couple of John and regina Scully are interesting as well. According to the Success Academy Charter School Website "John Scully is a founding partner of SPO Partners & Co., a private investment firm. Mr. Scully is also a director of Plum Creek Timber Company and chairman of the board of Advent Software, both public companies. Both Mr. Scully and his wife, Regina Scully, have demonstrated their commitment to expanding access to quality education by launching and overseeing the California charter network Making Waves Academy and Making Waves Education Program. In addition to serving on the Making Waves board, Mr. Scully and his wife support education reform through participation on the Success Academy Charter Schools network board." http://successacademies.org/about/board-of-directors/ This is another example of the marriage hedge funds and charter schools.
Joel Greenblatt ( http://www.sayyestoeducation.org/person/joel-greenblatt ) is the Managing Partner of Gotham Capital, an investment partnership he founded in April 1985. He alos is a Charter School backer and has infused big money to Albany politics to control the education agenda. As a matter of fact the following link will take you to an article in the New york Daily News published on March 15th, 2015, that shows some of the money trail involving Greenblatt, Loeb, Moskowitz and others; the amounts are staggering. http://www.nydailynews.com/new- york/education/hedge-fund-execs-money-charter-schools-pay-article-1.2145001
"Since 2000, 570 hedge fund managers have shelled out nearly $40 million in political contributions in New York State, according to a recent report by Hedge Clippers, a union-backed research group. The single biggest beneficiary has been Andrew Cuomo, who received $4.8 million from them."
Doesn't it strike anyone as odd that the Governor is rubbing elbows with Campbell brown who is involved in a lawsuit against New York State? http://dianeravitch.net/2015/04/03/politico- campbell-brown-not-satisfied-with-ny-teacher-law/
Campbell Brown's husband is Dan Senior who is heavily active in Student's first which is the political arm of charter school networks; "Students First New York is the political action arm of the charter school networks, the Board includes Joel Klein, Eva Moskowitz, Michelle Rhee and Dan Senior (Campbell Brown’s husband) and they poured over four million dollars into the Cuomo and Republican state senatorial campaigns." Let me repeat that in case you missed it "...they poured over four million dollars into the Cuomo and Republican state senatorial campaigns."
This all fits with information from Part I of this document. A hurricane of money is swirling about Albany and the Governor, and the eye of the storm is Governor Cuomo himself. PART IV
In mid April 2015 it was no secret that U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara was investigating Dean Skelos and his son as part of ghis ongoing investigation into Albany corruption. “Dean Skelos, the New York Senate Majority Leader, is under investigation by the federal government for possibly taking actions to benefit Abtech, an Arizona-based company that hired his son, as well as Leonard Litwin’s Glenwood Management”. http://therealdeal.com/blog/2015/04/16/dean-skelos-being-investigated-by- feds/#sthash.7i6oIMIk.dpuf
Glenwood management was mentioned in part 1 of this document. It is apparent that Glenwood and its owner are heavily involved in the flow of money into and around Albany. They have been clearly linked to Governor Cuomo, Sheldon Silver, and now Dean Skelos and a company called AbTech. This should come as no surprise to anyone that Governor Cuomo is also linked to AbTech.
“The company at the center of the reported federal investigation of Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos and his son has strong connections to an environmental group headed by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.” http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/albany/2015/04/8566159/firm-skelos- probe-linked-kennedy-environmental-group What many people may be unaware of is that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is also NYS Governor Andrew Cuomo’s former brother-in-law. He not only sits on the board of AbTech he also is heavily involved in a group called “Waterkeeper,” (also referred to as the Waterkeeper Alliance) which is also part of the Skelos’ network via AbTech. http://dailycaller.com/2015/05/04/robert-kennedy-jr-s-anti-fracking-group-has-ties-to-company- in-ny-corruption-probe/
Another interesting Waterkeeper connection is a gentleman named Marc Yaggi. Part of his resume includes having once been a speechwriter for another NY Governor, one very familiar to Andrew Cuomo: his father Mario. Marc Yaggi is the Executive Director of Waterkeeper.
Waterkeepers Board Chair, Karl Coplan, also has ties not only to former Governor Mario Cuomo, but also had dealings with current Governor Andrew Cuomo when he served as NYS Attorney general.
On May 28, 2015 Dean Skelos and his son Adam were formally indicted by a grand jury http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/29/nyregion/dean-skelos-ex-senate-leader-and-son-are- indicted-in-corruption-case.html?_r=0 “Roughly three weeks after their arrest in a federal corruption case, Dean G. Skelos, the former majority leader of the New York Senate, and his son were indicted by a grand jury on Thursday on charges of extortion, wire fraud, conspiracy and bribe solicitation.” As a result of the criminal investigation Skelos stepped down as the NYS Senate Majority Leader prior to his indictment. His handpicked replacement was Senator John Flanagan. Flanagan was also the person that Governor Cuomo wanted in that position. “ According to http://polhudson.lohudblogs.com/2015/05/14/defrancisco-cuomo-called-senators- to-back-flanagan/ Syracuse Sen. John DeFrancisco said it was clear Cuomo was talking to senators to back Flanagan, the Long Island senator who narrowly won the support of the GOP conference to succeed embattled Sen. Dean Skelos, R-Nassau County. “I wasn’t thinking that he would weigh in, but he did,” DeFrancisco said on “The Capitol Pressroom,” a public radio show. “He called people. He said he didn’t, but he did. But that’s fine. He can do anything he wants, but don’t say you don’t if you did.”
John Flanagan may find himself having the same issues that Sheldon Silver had, to the point where he too may be leaving office in disgrace. http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/long-island-state-senator-voted-bills-benefit-clients- article-1.2150383 Senator” Flanagan is “of counsel” at Forchelli, Curto, Deegan, Schwartz, Mineo & Terrana in Uniondale, where he reported making between $100,000 and $150,000 in 2013.”
“A number of the clients listed on the law firm’s website have business before the state, including Cablevision, Chase Bank, and Citibank. The firm also lists as clients different colleges, governments and other groups with matters before the state.”
At the very least Senator Flanagan certainly appears to have many conflicts of interest. Especially since Citicorp and Chase just plead guilty to felony charges:
“Five major banks—Citicorp, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Barclays PLC, The Royal Bank of Scotland plc and UBS AG—have agreed to plead guilty to felony charges. Citicorp, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Barclays PLC, and The Royal Bank of Scotland plc have agreed to plead guilty to conspiring to manipulate the price of U.S. dollars and euros exchanged in the foreign currency exchange (FX) spot market and the banks have agreed to pay criminal fines totaling more than $2.5 billion. A fifth bank, UBS AG, has agreed to plead guilty to manipulating the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) and other benchmark interest rates and pay a $203 million criminal penalty, after breaching its December 2012 non-prosecution agreement resolving the LIBOR investigation.” http://www.fbi.gov/washingtondc/press-releases/2015/five-major-banks- agree-to-parent-level-guilty-pleas Governor Cuomo may have his own issues with some of these banks. According to International Business Times “New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has since 2012 taken in more than $131,000 in campaign contributions from three major financial firms that were then tapped by his administration to manage state bond work, according to an International Business Times review of campaign finance documents and state bond prospectuses. The Democratic governor accepted the money -- and his officials handed out the government business without competitive bids -- despite federal rules that bar campaign contributors from receiving taxpayer-financed state bond work.” The banks in question: JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup.
“Federal rules bar states from awarding bond work to parties who have donated to gubernatorial campaigns within the last two years (more than $86,000 of the campaign cash from the firms flowed to Cuomo in the last two years).”
More details can be found at http://www.ibtimes.com/new-york-gov-andrew-cuomo-gave- bond-deals-his-wall-street-donors-despite-federal-1911822
In addition to being linked to Skelos & Flanagan through various companies and banks I have recently found another dubious Cuomo connection…once again the Buffalo area (remember Jordan Levy?). The new name: Steve Pigeon.
In 2013
“And if Pigeon did come under scrutiny, it would mean the Cuomo-appointed members would be investigating someone who has contributed $50,000 to the governor's own campaign treasury.?”
May 2015 http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/politics/law-enforcement-officials- search-residences-of-pigeon-two-other-key-political-figures-20150528
Rep. Chris Collins, R-Clarence, expressed shock that his chief of staff was under investigation. "This is a complete shock and news to me," he said of Grant. "I know of no reason they would be investigating my chief of staff, and I don't expect there would be any wrongdoing, but like any investigation, it has to play itself out."
But Collins said he was not surprised by the developments regarding Pigeon. "Anyone in Western New York knows that Steve Pigeon has never been a financial supporter of my congressional campaigns," the congressman said. "Steve is a political operative who has been active in Western New York politics for decades. I was certainly aware there has been an investigation of him ongoing for some time."
Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has reportedly been looking into the campaign fundraising activities of Pigeon since last year. Among the entities being looked at is the WNY Progressive Caucus, which Pigeon has been involved with to spread money around to various political causes.
The state Board of Elections last year voted to approve an investigation into the political committee.
Pigeon was in Albany last week. Pigeon would only say he was at the Capitol on business.
Pigeon is a registered lobbyist in Albany, with clients including the Seneca Nation of Indians and a Niagara County firm attempting to win the bidding to become one of the state's first growers and distributors of medical marijuana.
May 2015 http://www.nystateofpolitics.com/2015/05/here-and-now-1276/
The Seneca Nation of Indians has hired
Sept 2013 http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/erie-county-politics/new-effort-seeks- probe-of-pigeon-committee-20130921
And if Pigeon did come under scrutiny, it would mean the Cuomo-appointed members would be investigating someone who has contributed $50,000 to the governor's own campaign treasury.? Flow Web: