Seeking to recruit disenchanted Democratic Party voters, Green Party candidates Jones and Jimenez visit to Queens

Overflow crowd greet Greens at Flynn's Garden Inn in Woodside

Greens reach out to reform-minded voters turned off by Gov. Cuomo's neoliberal priorities “A few months ago, there was a lot of attention around the Democratic primary,” said Brian Jones, the Green Party candidate for Lieut. Governor. “A lot of progressives were thwarted [when] top party leadership rallied around Andrew Cuomo.” Mr. Jones said that progressive voters, who want other options in the Democratic Party, have no candidate to support. “A lot of that energy is coming our way.” Ramon Jimenez, the Green Party’s candidate for the state Attorney General, was asked about one of the leading issues in this year’s election season : government corruption. During Mr. Jimenez’s campaign, he has made prior remarks about the Cuomo administration’s mistake in bringing to a premature end the corruption-fighting work of the Moreland Commission. At the meet and greet function in Queens today, Mr. Jimenez said that he found fault with Attorney General Eric Schneiderman’s handling of the Moreland Commission’s demise. Mr. Jimenez noted that the commissioners serving on the corruption-fighting panel had been deputized by Attorney General Schneiderman, giving his office a special responsibility in seeing to it that the commission’s work was handled appropriately. “It was wrong for him to remain silent as the commission was disbanded,” Mr. Jimenez said, adding, “The attorney general has to be more aggressive in prosecuting government corruption.”

RELATED In Queens, Green Party candidates Jones and Jimenez talk about issues, momentum (Progress Queens)

Christine Quinn Returns $25,000 In Donations From Firm Tied To William Rapfogel Scandal

Christine Quinn illegal William Rapfogel Century Coverage Met Council slush fund campaign donations left out : http://t.co/ywcjNLLLKQ

— Stop Christine Quinn (@stopchrisquinn) August 26, 2013

How about other campaign donations tied to Christine Quinn @NYCCouncil slush funds ? @klnynews @CharmianNeary http://t.co/FfOiSZSQxf #Preet

— Stop Christine Quinn (@stopchrisquinn) August 12, 2013

Quinn donations by Century Coverage don't add up to $25,000 @unitedNYblogs @klnynews @CharmianNeary http://t.co/lfvfJx24wB @NYCCFB

— Stop Christine Quinn (@stopchrisquinn) August 12, 2013

Daily News Daily Politics : Christine Quinn Returns $25,000 In Donations To Firm Tied To William Rapfogel Scandal

Hours after we blogged that City Council Speaker Christine Quinn had allotted New York City Council discretionary funds to the Metropolitan Council, Speaker Quinn's mayoral campaign announced that they were returning $25,000 in campaign donations at the center of the William Rapfogel scandal.

Mr. Rapfogel was terminated today as executive and president of the Met Council after revelations of financial irregularities. Initial reports showed that Met Council might have been using city or state funding to funnel money to an insurance company named Century Coverage Corporation, which would, in turn, funnel that money through employees to a/some 2013 New York mayoral candidate(s). But then later reports alleged that Mr. Rapfogel was taking kickbacks from an insurance company, which he would then funnel as campaign donations to a/some 2013 New York mayoral candidate(s). But a Campaign Finance Board report run today for all election cycles showing employers beginning with Century Coverage turned up no 2013 campaign donations.

2013-08-12 Century Coverage All Election Cycles CFB Advanced Search - New York City Campaign Finance Board by Connaissable

Three glaring problems exist with Speaker Quinn's announcement that she is returning $25,000 in campaign donations tied to the William Fogel-Met Council-Century Coverage scandal :

(i) The previous Campaign Finance Board doesn't show $25,000 in recent disclosed campaign donations to Speaker Quinn's mayoral campaign ;

(ii) The following Campaign Finance Board report shows all Rapfogel donations made for all election cycles, and Mr. Rapfogel is not shown as having made any campaign donations to Speaker Quinn's mayoral campaign ; and

2013-08-12 RAPFOGEL All Election Cycles Donations Quick Search - New York City Campaign Finance Board

(iii) In a Crain's report, it was reported that "Hank Sheinkopf, a veteran political operative and prominent member of the city's Jewish community, said Mr. Rapfogel's legal predicament will likely make more trouble" for New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver. (Met Council head fired amid probe) If Speaker Quinn was returning $25,000 in untraceable donations, does this mean that Speaker Silver is going to be expected to return tainted donations, too ? And why did Mr. Sheinkopf say that political backsplash was going to splish splash only on Speaker Silver, when within hours of our first blog post it was Speaker Quinn, who was rushing to unload $25,000 in undocumented campaign donations ?

Christine Quinn Slush Funds William Rapfogel Met Council Corruption Investigation ?

Christine Quinn illegal William Rapfogel Century Coverage Met Council slush fund campaign donations left out : http://t.co/ywcjNLLLKQ

— Stop Christine Quinn (@stopchrisquinn) August 26, 2013

Joseph Ross admitted that William Rapfogel, the former head of the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty, told him to make contributions to various politicians and political organizations using money from their $7 million kickback scheme, The Daily News reports.

Are mayoral candidate donations by Century Coverage tied to Met Council ? http://t.co/lfvfJx24wB @NYCCouncil #Preet @AGSchneiderman

— Stop Christine Quinn (@stopchrisquinn) August 12, 2013

BREAKING : The leader of yet another charity group that receives discretionary funds from Christine Quinn's political slush fund has resigned today from an organization due to an impending investigation into financial improprieties. This morning, the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty issued a statement announcing the immediate termination of its chief executive and president, William Rapfogel. (Attorney General Investigating Power Broker William Rapfogel) Under Mr. Rapfogel, Speaker Quinn has consistently funneled money to the Met Council, even when those allocations came under scrutiny for their regularity. (Christine Quinn Grants Slush Funds to Metropolitan Council) According to WNBC, "Sources familiar with the investigation said the probe is examining what happened to some of the organization’s funds and whether any of that money might have been improperly funneled into the political campaigns of some New York City mayoral candidates." (William Rapfogel Jewish Charities Metropolitan Council Investigation) We know from prior reports from the Daily News that Speaker Quinn has awarded hundreds of thousands of dollars in discretionary funds to nonprofit groups that have helped her mayoral campaign. (Christine Quinn Grants Slush Funds To Nonprofits Which Donated Campaign Contributions To Her Political Campaign)

Indeed, just last month, when Speaker Quinn's mayoral campaign was in trouble because of Anthony Weiner's ascendant, insurgent campaign, Speaker Quinn's closest political advisers were invited to an emergency strategy meeting to help fluff up her then-troubled mayoral campaign. The invitees to this emergency strategy session included Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty CEO William Rapfogel. (Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty CEO William Rapfogel Participated In Emergency Secret Strategy Session To Fluff Christine Quinn's Struggling Mayoral Campaign) What kind of role was Mr. Rapfogel and the Met Council playing as a result of Speaker Quinn's emergency campaign strategy session ? How could there be an arm's length distance between Speaker Quinn and the Met Council if the charity group was helping her strategize her electioneering strategy ? Were slush funds payments or kickback campaign donations part of this emergency strategy ? Hmmmmmmmm......?

According to The New York Times, "Investigators are, among other angles, looking at the relationship between Mr. Rapfogel and Century Coverage Corporation, an insurance company based in Valley Stream, N.Y., according to people familiar with the investigation. Investigators are focusing in particular on generous contributions that the company’s chief executive, Joseph Ross, and other employees have made to candidates for New York City offices. The company’s employees have given almost $120,000 to various candidates since the late 1990s, including $26,175 to several candidates in 2013. Company officials could not immediately be reached for comment."

But a report generated today from the Campaign Finance Board shows no campaign donations from 2013. This report was generated from a search by employer that begins with, "Century Coverage." Were the 2013 campaign contributions deliberately not fully disclosed to the Campaign Finance Board ?

2013-08-12 Century Coverage All Election Cycles CFB Advanced Search - New York City Campaign Finance Board by Connaissable