Nix the taxpayer-funded legal-defense slush fund – Latest News
Holy chutzpah!
State lawmakers have quietly tucked a sweetheart measure into one of the must-pass price range payments that will put taxpayers on the hook for legal payments Attorney General Letitia James racks up dealing with federal probes.
The $10 million criminal-defense slush fund would seemingly cowl any state worker 1) dealing with any federal “legally compulsive process” (e.g., subpoenas and so forth) as of Jan. 1, 2025, 2) who can declare the federal probe is “a result of the employee’s New York State employment or duties.”
Insiders are clear that it could cowl James, regardless that nothing official hyperlinks her day-job work to the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s felony referral over her non-public real-estate affairs.
There is totally no motive for taxpayers to should bail out James. If she didn’t do something fallacious, as she claims, then the case ought to be simply dismissed. And if there may be a case, nicely, didn’t she say that no one is above the law? That doesn’t imply no one is above legal payments.
Bailing out James isn’t simply offensive on it’s own. The invoice is so broad that it could cowl nearly any federal investigation of anybody who cashes a state paycheck.
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Which is exceptional, since most New York political-corruption convictions come from federal prices, and have for many years.
That is: The Legislature right here isn’t simply serving to out James, it’s succoring future lawmakers and different state officers caught with their fingers in the cookie jar.
Added irony: Back when ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo sued to make state taxpayers fund his protection towards sex-harassment fits, AG James was caustic in condemning him.
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James will argue that the case towards her is political, however that’s wealthy after how political her legal pursuit of Trump was on prices that an appeals courtroom is critically contemplating throwing out. By the means, New York taxpayers paid for that case, too.
James has already established a non-public legal protection fund to combat potential federal prices, so it’s not even clear that she wants a taxpayer bailout right here.
Does James wish to show New Yorkers that she actually stands for them? Then she ought to aspect with taxpayers and inform lawmakers to overlook about this bailout.
