I guess it's better than what you **** skins produce...****ED UP TURD WORLD
FAILURE s**** HOLE COUNTRIES..
HAHA!! ****IGN LOSERS
"indiaBPOking" <indiabpoking@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
news:0ef96ea5-94e6-45d1-b52e-14b724875640@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
lawmaker seeks Spitzer impeachment
http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/03/11/spitzer/index.html
ALBANY, New York (CNN) -- The minority leader in New York's state
Assembly said Tuesday that he will introduce articles of impeachment
within two days if New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer does not resign first.
art.podium.afp.gi.jpg
Gov. Eliot Spitzer, with his wife, Silda, by his side, apologizes to
his family and to the public on Monday.
On Monday, prosecutors unsealed an affidavit detailing a rendezvous in
a Wa****ngton hotel room last month as part of a federal prostitution
ring investigation.
The affidavit refers only to "Client 9," but a source with knowledge
of the investigation told CNN on Monday that the reference was to
Spitzer.
Sources say Spitzer spent more than $15,000 for several encounters
with prostitutes.
"It's not something we rejoice in; it's nothing political,"
Assemblyman James Tedisco, a Republican, told CNN's Wolf Blitzer.
"It's what's right and what's wrong." Video Watch more of Tedisco's
interview »
Tedisco said he was providing the two-day window because Spitzer "may
be making decisions or negotiations with the law enforcement officials
in relation****p to the legal aspects of this."
Meanwhile, aides to Spitzer and the state's lieutenant governor have
begun planning for a possible transition, a top legislative staffer
said Tuesday.
Spitzer, whose reputation as a scourge of white-collar crime propelled
him to the governor's office in 2006, has faced calls for his
resignation since apologizing for an undisclosed personal indiscretion
Monday afternoon. Video Watch how details of the scandal are emerging
on the Web »
A Democratic source with firsthand knowledge of the issue said, "it is
a 'when' question on the resignation. Not an 'if'. He knows that. It
is hard to come to terms with, and there are legal issues that are
related to any big political decisions. But Eliot knows he cannot hold
onto his job here. He might want to, but he is absolutely aware of his
predicament."
A Democratic campaign veteran with ties to the Spitzer team added, "a
resignation was part of the discussions early yesterday but was
tabled. The political people were clear about the options. There are
none, not for him."
If Spitzer resigns, Lt. Gov. David Paterson, 53, would become the
first black governor in the state and the fourth in U.S. history. The
former state Senate minority leader, who is legally blind, is the son
of Basil Paterson, a longtime Democratic operative in New York City.
Paterson comes into office as a relatively fresh face.
"The public is hoping for that replacement to redeem the office and to
redeem their faith in elected officials in general. So David Paterson,
in a sense, walks into a great op****tunity," said Steve Kornacki of
the New York Observer.
No further information was immediately available about the re****ted
meetings between Spitzer and Paterson staffers.
Tedisco said impeachment articles are being prepared, though they
haven't been introduced in the state Assembly in more than a century.
He insisted that it wasn't about partisan politics but "about what's
right and wrong in moving this government forward."
"Our hearts are broken," Tedisco added. "But we have to continue with
governance here, and this is a total distraction. It's a circus here
at the New York State Capitol."
All About Spitzer
# Time magazine named Spitzer "Crusader of the Year" during his two
terms as New York attorney general.
# Tabloids labeled him "Eliot Ness" because of his reputation for
rooting out corruption, busting white-collar criminals and tackling
organized crime.
# Spitzer also prosecuted prostitution rings.
# He attended Princeton and Harvard universities and then became an
assistant district attorney in Manhattan.
# He worked for three New York law firms and decided to run in his
mid-30s for attorney general.
# The first-term governor had been considered a rising star in the
Democratic Party.
# Spitzer is married and has three daughters.
More than half the Assembly would need to approve impeachment for it
to pass. That would require all 42 Republicans and about a third of
the 108 Democrats in the Assembly to cast "yes" votes. The GOP-
controlled Senate then would need to pass the measure by a two-thirds
vote.
Tedisco spokesman Josh Fitzpatrick said the state's system of
impeachment is modeled on the federal system, which cites "high crimes
and misdemeanors" as the bar needed to convict by the legislative
body.
"Basically, it's like a trial of sort," Christina Dickinson, deputy
counsel for the New York State Senate Minority Conference, said of the
Senate's role. "They have subpoena power to get clarification on the
issues. Then there's a judgment that is rendered."
Though he hasn't been been charged with a crime, Spitzer has begun
assembling a legal team. He has chosen Michele Hirshman as his lead
attorney, said Madelaine Miller, a spokeswoman for Hirshman's law
firm, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison.
Hirshman, who was the first deputy attorney general under Spitzer when
he was New York attorney general, also is a former assistant U.S.
attorney who "served as chief of the Public Corruption Unit, where she
led major investigations and prosecutions of government fraud and
political and police corruption," according to the law firm's Web
site.
The Republican Governors Association called on Spitzer to resign to
"allow the people of New York to pursue honest leader****p."
"The American people are tired of corrupt and hypocritical
politicians. The governor of New York is just another in the long list
of politicians that have failed their constituents," said Nick Ayers,
the association's executive director.
Spitzer, 48, took office in January 2007 after eight years as the
state's attorney general, rising to national prominence.
He built his career on rooting out public corruption and became a
national figure with a series of high-profile Wall Street
investigations. He also prosecuted prostitution rings. See a timeline
of his life »
Spitzer, who is married with three children, went before re****ters
Monday to confess to an undisclosed personal indiscretion, saying he
had acted "in a way that violates my obligations to my family, that
violates my or any sense of right and wrong."
He did not acknowledge the allegations, which were revealed Monday in
The New York Times, nor did he take questions. Video Watch Spitzer's
apology »
According to two sources who spoke Tuesday with CNN, Spitzer hit the
federal radar when a bank re****ted to the Internal Revenue Service
that a significant amount of money had been suspiciously transferred
from one account to another. View a gallery of recent political ***
scandals »
The prostitute, identified only as "Kristen," worked for the Emperors
Club. The group charged between $1,000 and $5,500 an hour and operated
in New York; Los Angeles, California; Miami, Florida; London, England;
and Paris, France, according to court papers.
If Spitzer paid for Kristen to travel from New York to Wa****ngton to
perform ***ual acts for money, as is alleged in the affidavit, the
governor could be found in violation of federal law. The Mann Act
makes it a federal offense to take someone across state lines for the
purpose of prostitution.
A source identified the Wa****ngton hotel where the pair is said to
have met as the tony Mayflower. Spitzer registered at the hotel under
the name George Fox, two sources said.
Now his lawyers may be questioned about how he paid for the alleged
hotel encounter, whether the trail was concealed and whether any
banking laws were cir***vented as a result, the source said.
advertisement
The investigation into the Emperor's Club, which began in October,
included evidence from a confidential source identified in court
papers as a prostitute who worked at the club in 2006 and was given
immunity.
It also included statements from an undercover officer who posed as a
customer, more than 5,000 intercepted phone calls and text messages,
more than 6,000 e-mails recovered with search warrants, bank records,
travel and hotel records and physical surveillance.
|
