The sleaze by no means ends in terms of New York’s gambling-addicted politicos and the fats cats who stuff their marketing campaign coffers within the hopes of scoring huge wins.
The newest: Gov. Kathy Hochul (no stranger to overt pay-for-play schemes and different shady shenanigans) palled it up lately with billionaire/Mets proprietor/would-be gaming magnate Steve Cohen at a recreation at Citi Area — a hair’s breadth from the positioning the place Cohen is hoping to construct a gaming den if he wins the one license for a New York Metropolis on line casino.
Cohen has already spent a fortune making an attempt to make this occur: a million-dollar software payment; $69,700 to Hochul’s marketing campaign struggle chest; $125,000 to the state Democratic Marketing campaign Committee; $25,000 to the state Democratic Meeting Committee; greater than $475,000 in lobbying associated prices; $22,600 to disgraced ex-Lt.-Gov Brian Benjamin (discuss a foul wager).
For Hochul to be seen hobnobbing with Cohen is slimy optics, on the very least: a robust signal the gov merely doesn’t care about avoiding the looks (not less than) of corruption.
And along with her lengthy and demonstrated historical past of what certain seems to be like baksheesh — the scandalous $637 million she shelled out in overpayments on a COVID take a look at contract to a bigtime donor, for instance — she’s lengthy misplaced the advantage of the doubt.
Cohen’s removed from the one deep-pocketed plutocrat wooing Hochul and different pols on this entrance. There’s additionally:
- Actual-estate titan SL Inexperienced, vying to plop a sin-den down in Occasions Sq.. Its chief, Marc Holliday, gave virtually $70,000 to Hochul’s marketing campaign and has enlisted hip-hop mogul Jay-Z as cultural artillery.
- Genting NY-Resorts World handed over $50,000 by way of lobbyists. It already operates a racino in Queens and is clearly trying to parlay its connections into an even bigger rating.
- Vornado honcho Steven Roth, additionally searching for a Midtown slot, gave the gov the authorized most of $69,700.
- Steven Ross, who chairs mega-real property agency Associated, additionally kicked within the max.
After all, most have (like Cohen) additionally given huge to Democratic state committees and the campaigns of different key officeholders.
And loads of different huge fish are within the combine: grocery store mogul John Catsimatidis; Thor Equities founder Joe Sitt; Bally’s chairman Soo Kim.
Bear in mind: The license itself would price at minimal half a billion — however, per the state, “an applicant could suggest to pay a better license payment.”
In different phrases: let the bidding begin, women and gents!
Casinos are horrible investments from the general public’s perspective. They fail 12 months after 12 months to generate promised revenues and — as with so many different insurance policies beloved of New York electeds — do huge harm to the social cloth by jacking up crime and fostering dependancy.
New York’s whole embrace of on line casino playing, briefly, is all in regards to the payoffs to the politicians — on the expense of the folks they allegedly serve.
