Graft

Glen Cove Councilwoman Marsha Silverman returns to the podcast to help us gawk at the shocking results of the NYS Comptroller's audit of one of the most wasteful agencies in the state.  Follow us at @graftpodcast.  Subscribe at graftpodcast.com. 

It's a special crossover episode with OldBull.tv, your insider's guide to political prediction markets.  With scandals continuing to pile up, could covid prom king Andrew Cuomo's days in Albany be numbered? Traders on PredictIt have him at 60% to make it through the year. We think that might be generous...  Follow us at @oldbulltv and @graftpodcast.  Subscribe at oldbull.tv and graftpodcast.com.  All content and opinions presented herein, whether by hosts and guests, are for informational purposes only and should not be construed as investment or other advice.

Back in October, 4-term Republican congressman Chris Collins resigned his seat representing New York's 27th District upon pleading guilty to insider trading, setting up a fierce competition to replace him, first in a special election this April, and again this November for a full term. The 27th is one of those few deep red districts in New York, so the winner of the GOP primary is virtually guaranteed a seat in Congress. Today, we're talking with two of the leading candidates in that primary - first the outsider, attorney Beth Parlato, then the insider, State Senator Rob Ortt. Beth Parlato's campaign site Rob Ortt's campaign site To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

Buckle up listeners, because we're going back to Cohoes, NY. This is our 4th episode on Cohoes and former mayor Shawn Morse. And why can't we quiet this tiny upstate city? Because it's simply the most fascinatingly dysfunctional political scene in New York and that's a high bar. The recently ousted Morse, awaiting sentencing on a federal fraud charge, has long maintained he'd simply fallen prey to a coordinated political hit job. Now it appears he may have been (at least partly) right. So is Morse a villain, a victim, or both?Our prior Cohoes episodes:Apr 30, 2019: Spindle City Summit (with Shawn Morse) Apr 25, 2019: Return to Spindle City (with Randy Koniowka) Feb 28, 2019: Bonus Minisode: Spindle City Takedown To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

Yesterday was Election Day in New York. Joining us to gawk at the results of the biggest (downstate, non-NYC) races is Brad Schwartz, host of "The Big Fish" podcast (www.thebigfishpodcast.com), a fantastic new show focused on Long Island's biggest, fishiest political movers and shakers. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

Here's an uncontroversial statement: New York taxpayers shouldn't pay for lawmakers' sexual harassment settlements. And yet we do, to the tune of millions of dollars. With us today is Bob Confer, author of a recent op-ed exposing this dirty little secret and offering lawmakers a variety of proposals for them to ignore on how to fix it. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

Today we're joined by Diane Madden, animal advocate and an independent 2019 candidate running on the brand new Libertarian line for supervisor of the Town of Hempstead, NY, America's largest town. Central to Madden's anti-corruption campaign is her ongoing exposé of the jaw-dropping waste and mismanagement at the Hempstead Animal Shelter. Should the party-backed candidates be nervous? Let's find out. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

Last month, Governor Cuomo signed a new bill called the School Bus Camera Bill. A bill for the kids that no one can disagree with, which aims to stop people from bypassing stop sign arms on school buses. But Chris Paolillo, a member of the West Babylon School Board, is joining us today to tell us why this bill may not be everything it's cracked up to be. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

A couple weeks ago, we aired the explosive episode On Your Left, featuring Michael Weinstock, a progressive primary challenger to the Democratic incumbent from NY's 3rd Congressional District, Tom Suozzi. But Weinstock's not alone in taking the self-styled centrist to task over his self-styled centrism. Today we're joined by another 3rd District Democratic hopeful, Melanie D'Arrigo, who aims to prove that in the era of Trump and AOC, machine-backed moderate Democrats - even in purple, suburban districts - have vulnerable left flanks. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

If you remember our July 15 episode, The Supernumerary Mayors of Mount Vernon, you know that city just north of NYC was experiencing a remarkable power struggle between two men, Richard Thomas and Andre Wallace, both of whom claimed to be mayor. Department heads, city employees, and citizens didn't know quite what to make of it. At one point, the newly appointed (though naturally contested) chief of police was arrested when he arrived for work. After a few weeks, a judge's ruling seemed to quell the crisis. And then it got suddenly worse. Today, actual mayor Andre Wallace joins us to discuss. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

Today we’re probing the ignominious end of Jeffrey Epstein’s ignominious life. The circumstances of Epstein’s death are suspicious, whether or not you subscribe to the more fantastical conspiracy theories. While the details of timelines and security lapses remain sketchy and incomplete, what we know is that the highest profile prisoner in the federal prison system died of unnatural causes, in the special housing unit of a facility used to incarcerating mob bosses, drug kingpins, and terrorists - a facility that hasn’t seen a suicide in over 20 years. Here to help us make sense of it are two fantastic guests - Catherine Linaweaver, the former warden of NY’s Metropolitan Correctional Center (the facility in question) and 2012 Warden of the Year; and Cameron Lindsay, the former warden of the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, that borough’s 3x larger equivalent to Manhattan’s MCC. Lindsay and Linaweaver of course have uniquely well informed perspectives about what happened here, where and why the breakdowns occurred, what to do about it, and where the investigation goes next. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

In the era of AOC, NY's Democratic incumbents are sleeping with one eye open, even in the suburbs. Congressman Tom Suozzi (Nassau, Suffolk, and Queens) has attracted at least two challengers from his left flank. Today, we sit down with former sex crimes prosecutor Michael Weinstock (weinstockforcongress.com), one of those progressive Democrats looking to snatch the 3rd District nomination from Suozzi. Weinstock blasts Suozzi not only for being a "fake Democrat," but over his support for a convicted felon and political ally, who Weinstock alleges criminally sexually harassed him. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

A crisis is brewing in the NYPD, with implications far graver than a few cops getting doused by bucket-wielding miscreants. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

It's been 25 days since Queens Democrats went to the polls to pick their nominee for District Attorney, a primary and proxy war that pitted borough president Melinda Katz against the AOC/Sanders/Warren-backed upstart Tiffany Cabán. The borough of over 2 million people wound up with the candidates separated by just 16 votes, sparking an overtime battle being waged at the Board of Elections, in court, and naturally all over social media. Assuming it ever ends, will the losing side accept the result or cry foul? And what does it mean for the establishment vs. far left divide in the Democratic Party? Here to help us sort through it is our first-ever returning guest, Hofstra University's Dr. Craig Burnett. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

Think your local government is dysfunctional? If you don't live in Mount Vernon, you don't know the meaning of the word. Last week, a year after being indicted, their mayor pled guilty to pilfering campaign funds. So the city swore in a new mayor. But they both keep showing up to work. Also, there's now a third mayor. It's complicated. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

The NYC Public Advocate is a heartbeat from the mayoralty. Yet the position (formerly held by current mayor and quixotic presidential candidate Bill de Blasio) is virtually powerless. Councilman Joe Borelli wants the gig anyway. Let's find out why. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

What do a man indicted on felony federal corruption charges, a Gen Z named Hercules, a state senator who took office about 15 seconds ago, and the socialist party's favorite public defender have in common? New Yorkers have the chance to vote for all of them. Tomorrow. Today, we're breaking down all the big primary races, and politely pretending you didn't just realize tomorrow was primary day.Elections featured:- Cohoes Mayor (D)- Yonkers Mayor (D)- NYC Council District 45 (D)- Queens District Attorney (D)- State Senate District 57 (R)- Erie County Executive (I)Find out whether and where you vote tomorrow at elections.ny.gov or in NYC at nyccfb.info/voterguide. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

Put on your green eye shades and get ready to count some beans. Because today we're talking with Jack Schnirman, the comptroller of Nassau County, that perennial fiscal basket case that's the suburban home to over a million New Yorkers and the site of some of our state's most egregious corruption and mismanagement. Over the past 18 number-crunching months, Jack's taken on the challenge to fish Nassau County out of the financial and ethical toilet. Let's see how he's doing so far. Follow Jack at twitter.com/NCComptroller and send your tips about county waste, abuse, and inefficiency to reportitreformit@nassaucountyny.gov. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

Ten years ago this week, a couple state senators had a wonderful, awful idea. The ensuing power struggle unleashed a perfect storm of government dysfunction and disarray. David Lombardo joins us with a behind-the-scenes look at his brand new, award-winning podcast series on the Senate Coup of 2009 and its woeful legacy. Check out Dave's work at https://blog.timesunion.com/capitol/archives/category/podcast/.To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)Additional music from https://filmmusic.io"Plain Loafer" by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)Licence: CC BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Meet aviation and real estate tycoon Adam Katz, who might be a little too good at convincing people to give money to Andrew Cuomo (a governor who might be a little too good at making decisions that benefit Mr. Katz). We're joined by investigative journalist Chris Bragg from the Albany Times Union, who's hot on the trail. Bragg's excellent reporting can be found at timesunion.com/chrisbragg. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

Some unsqueamish souls make whole careers out of dissecting NY's political underbelly. One such fellow is Hofstra University's Dr. Craig Burnett, who brings us his gruesome findings. Can this molder of the minds of the civic leaders of tomorrow help them - and us - learn from the mistakes of the bums of today? If not, what a waste of time this will be!To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

Veteran Albany newsman Ken Lovett helps us puzzle through why on earth Bill de Blasio is running for president, why New York voters actually like their politicians corrupt, and what the changing media landscape means for the future of investigative political journalism.   To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060.   Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

We’ve got brand new revelations in the growing scandal involving a politically connected real estate developer who not only quietly defaulted on a project the taxpayers of Glen Cove are subsidizing to the tune of a quarter billion dollars, but seems to have somehow convinced a powerful group of unelected local bureaucrats to cover it up for them. City Councilmember Marsha Silverman joins us to discuss.If you haven't listened to our April 3rd episode "Crony Capitalism in Glen Cove" yet, you'll want to do that before you enjoy this one. You can find that episode at https://www.graftpodcast.com/e/glencove/.To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

2018 Libertarian gubernatorial candidate Larry Sharpe has a bridge to sell you. Literally. Larry's going to share some secrets from the campaign trail, where he did well enough in last year's election to earn his party qualified ballot access for the first time in history. Lesson #1: shut up about corruption. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

Mayor Shawn Morse of Cohoes, NY joins us to tell us why he didn’t love last week’s episode. On trial for several felony counts of federal corruption involving alleged theft of campaign funds, Morse is resisting calls to resign and even some of his most vocal critics expect him to win reelection this fall.We’ll ask Morse about additional allegations of abuse of power, whether he plans to step aside if convicted, and (if it’s true that he’s been wrongly accused time and time again), why the whole world is out to get Shawn Morse. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)Additional music from https://filmmusic.io"Plain Loafer" by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)Licence: CC BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Cohoes Mayor Shawn Morse is running for reelection, despite being on federal trial for corruption, the latest chapter in his extensive and violent criminal history. Councilman Randy Koniowka joins us to to explain why Morse is likely to prevail (at the ballot box, if not in court) and to help us get to know the most entrenched politician on the planet. (If you haven't already, listen to this one first: https://www.graftpodcast.com/e/cohoes/) To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

Which town is dirtier - Albany or Washington? Congressman and former State Senator Lee Zeldin is here to help us compare slimes of the Hudson and Potomac varietals. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

Legendary political consultant and columnist Bill O'Reilly joins us to explain why the crusade to get money out of politics is dishonest, foolish, and just another con job. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)

"Byron Brown has a problem," says The Buffalo News' editorial board. Actually he's got two. In the wake of being dethroned as NYS Democratic chairman, the accusations of abuse of power and pay-to-play schemes are piling up quickly for the Buffalo mayor. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)Additional music from https://filmmusic.io"Plain Loafer" by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)Licence: CC BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Today, we’re talking capitalism. And not the good kind. But authentic New York style crony capitalism. Foolish state laws and sky-high campaign finance limits have enabled this particularly resilient parasite to flourish throughout New York. And nowhere is that truer than the City of Glen Cove, which can’t seem to stop opening its own veins to feed it. To subscribe or to contact the show, visit us at graftpodcast.com, email graftpodcast@gmail.com, or call (646) 450-4060. Theme Music by Jay Lifton (www.jaylifton.com)