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| Sen. Pedro Espada to crack down on nepotism after son quits Senate job | |
| 2009-08-17 | |
| Days after his son quit his Senate job under pressure, an angry Sen. Pedro Espada warned other lawmakers he'll be keeping tabs on future hires. Espada (D-Bronx) told the Daily News he never has publicly raised the issue when the family and "girlfriends" of fellow lawmakers were on the state payroll. Upset at what he called the "pinata" treatment of his son, Pedro G. Espada, and the mostly anonymous quotes from lawmakers ripping the hiring, the senator warned all gloves are off. "I'm not going to be a vigilante, but I am going to be vigilant," Espada said. "I'm going to know why people are hired and what their job descriptions are." He added that "everybody (will be) cutting out all the nonsense about relatives, girlfriends. It's over, it's over, it's over." The lawmaker refused to name names about hiring abuses. He said he appreciates the support he got from some Democrats, but "I will not forget some of the ugly things that some of the other so-called anonymous sources had to say. It's personal, damn right. I'd like to meet a father or mother who wouldn't be upset by this." Pedro G. Espada was recently hired as a $120,000-a-year Senate employee. He quit this week after aides in Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's office began looking into whether the senator was involved in the hiring, which would violate state law. Critics say the younger Espada was hired as payback after his father returned to the Democratic fold to end a Senate stalemate. The senator has vehemently denied playing a role or that there was a quid pro quo. Meanwhile, Sen. Reuben Diaz asked Cuomo to "determine the number of family members of state legislators, commissioners and department heads" on the Legislature's payroll.
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| Posted by:Fred |
| #1 I don't mind "Connected" If "Competent" If not, begone. |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2009-08-17 13:32 |