New York
Related: About this forumMoreland mess erodes Cuomo’s fear factor
Jimmy Vielkind
ALBANY—Even if the consequences of Thursday's public chastisement by a federal prosecutor aren't felt at the polls next month, the ongoing fallout of Governor Andrew Cuomo's Moreland Commission meddling could make for a much rougher second term.
The Democratic governor admitted that members of his administration contacted various commission members to help him present his defense to an expose about his interactions with the commission after U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara sent a letter suggesting such contact could constitute witness tampering or obstruction of his ongoing probe.
What the episode has done, people involved in government and longtime observers say, is make it OK, for the first time since Cuomo came to office, to defy him.
Where once other officials wouldn't publicly oppose the famously controlling governor, out of fear, they now will. Where once they would have flocked to his side, they'll now bide their time until they're satisfied that he's gotten a grip on things.
http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/albany/2014/08/8550051/moreland-mess-erodes-cuomos-fear-factor?top-featured-1
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hrmjustin
(71,265 posts)Will Brunelle
ALBANY—"I feel comfortable that every decision we made was made on the merits," former Moreland Commission member and Bronx County District Attorney Robert Johnson said Thursday afternoon.
Johnson said the commission managed to "address a number, not all, of the issues that were brought to us," and that he was "glad" to have been a member. He said he believes the "valuable results" of the commission's short lifespan will be carried on by U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara and other law enforcement agencies.
Johnson's statement comes on the heels of Governor Andrew Cuomo's response to a letter from Bharara, in which Cuomo admitted his office had contacted "relevant parties" this week in an attempt to stop a "wave" of news stories, "some with inaccuracies," about his failed Moreland Commission and its former members.
Bharara's letter had firmly instructed Cuomo's office to inform the U.S. Attorney's staff of anyone who attempted "to influence or tamper with a witness' recollection of events relevant to our investigation," so it could be determined whether a punishable offense of witness tampering or obstruction of justice had been committed.
http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/albany/2014/07/8550042/moreland-commissioner-every-decision-made-merits
