The Port Authority’s split board and Chris Christie’s downfall

The “Bridgegate” scandal has shone a spotlight on the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the public authority responsible for the George Washington Bridge lane closures. Christie political appointees at the Port Authority ordered the closures, apparently as an act of political retribution; now the Daily Beast is referring to the organization as …

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Who’s who at Cuomo’s NYC and DC fundraisers

NY Governor Andrew Cuomo celebrated his Moreland Commission’s report decrying the influence of money in politics–and his 56th birthday!–at two pricey fundraisers in the past two weeks.  Some guests paid as much as $50,000 a pop to add to Cuomo’s $28 million campaign war chest. Thanks to the Buffalo News, we know the names of …

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How the business community works in New York

Last week Governor Cuomo was joined by John Mack and Leslie Whatley to launch Start-Up NY, which will create zones around universities where businesses can locate tax-free for 10 years. Mack, formerly CEO and chairman and currently senior advisor of Morgan Stanley, will be an advisor to the governor and to Empire State Development’s board …

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The Committee to Frack New York?

New York State governor Andrew Cuomo has gotten a major assist during his first year and a half in office from an outside lobbying group known as the Committee to Save New York, a coalition of corporate elites that advocates for austerity policies and specializes in taking to the airwaves to heap praise on the …

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Cuomo and the “Consoling Proximity of Millionaires”

Governor Cuomo is hosting a $15,000-a-head fundraiser at the Top of the Rock tonight to raise money for a “likely battle with special interest groups” over his budget agenda. The location is appropriate because 30 Rockefeller Plaza (“30 Rock”) is owned by – and host to – some of the leading lights of the Committee to …

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A Portrait of the Austerity Committee

Governor Andrew Cuomo’s austerity budget has won the backing of a coalition of business interests named the “Committee to Save New York,” which LittleSis analysts have been researching as part of our Cuomo Watch investigation. Together, we have put together the beginnings of a portrait of the Committee to Save New York, class of 2011. …

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Who is the Committee to Save New York?

In a prelude to the looming budget battle, a shadowy group going by the name of the “Committee to Save New York” has started coordinating with the Cuomo administration to promote the dawning of a new era of “fiscal sanity” in New York State. The group has amassed a $10 million war chest to run …

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