According to one of his ex-girlfriends, Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas has a "fantasy [package]," is "easily aroused," and had "a strong interest in pornography." All of this is 100 percent legal and 110 percent really gross! What else is Justice Thomas doing that is also 100 percent legal? Oh, puffing on cigars, flying on private jets, hanging out on 161-foot yachts...and getting enshrined in a museum dedicated to his childhood? more ›

A spoonful of loopholes makes the medicine go down. A new ethics bill drafted in the New York state legislature will require elected officials to disclose their annual income in greater detail. Currently, lawmakers fall into one of six heavily redacted income brackets, the largest being "$250,000 or more." The new bill would include "109 narrow bands of income topping out at $10 million," the Times Union reports. But buried beyond the disclosure hype is a curious new ethics board whose members can dismiss ethics charges with a mere two votes. more ›

The NYC Conflicts of Interests Board has fined Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz $2,000 for accepting free legal work from a subordinate, in violation of the city’s conflict of interest law. The law explicitly prohibits officials from doing business with their underlings, even if they pay for it. In Marty's case, he ran afoul of the law in 2008, when he asked his Chief of Staff, Carlo Scissura, to recommend a law firm to handle his house purchase. Scissura recommended the law firm Carlo A. Scissura P.C., which he owns. more ›

The head of the NY Commission on Public Integrity is resigning and Michael Cherkasky broke the shocking news that the ethics panel doesn't do a very good job, because it's underfunded. Plus it's focused on the executive branch, while the legislative branch (hello, Shelly; hello, Pedro) has "virtually non-existent oversight." He says, "Starting with meaningful disclosure and conflict of interest rules, and closing with independent oversight, New York State needs a complete reform of Legislative ethics oversight." Cherasky, who was appointed by Paterson last year and even found the governor in the wrong over the World Series tickets, is leaving the job because his private risk management business is growing. more ›

Yesterday, the House Ethics panel voted, 9 to 1, that Rep. Charles Rangel should face formal censure for his ethics violations, including multiple rent-stabilized apartments, financial mishaps, and his work to solicit donations for a City College school named after him. Rangel was near tears and needed time to compose himself before speaking (see video below), "I don't know how much longer I have to live... I hope you can see your way clear to indicate any action taken by me was not with the intention of bringing any disgrace on the House or enriching myself personally." more ›

Today, Rep. Charles Rangel's ethics hearing started. But the longtime Harlem Congressman asked for a postponement, saying he needed time to set up a legal defense fund and get a lawyer, and added that he was denied due process, "Fifty years of public service is on the line." more ›

This morning, Politico revealed that MSNBC star Keith Olbermann made campaign contributions to three Democratic candidates...and now the cable network has suspended him without pay. (NBC has a strict policy about that.) Olbermann confirmed the donations, adding, “I did not privately or publicly encourage anyone else to donate to these campaigns, nor to any others in this election or any previous ones, nor have I previously donated to any political campaign at any level." This comes on the heels of (Olbermann's criticism) of News Corp. donations to Republican causes, but as Democratic consultant Hank Sheinkopf told WNYC's Azi Paybarah, "Who did people think [Olbermann] was going to give money to....the tea party?" more ›

Last night, embattled longtime House member Rep. Charles Rangel won the Democratic primary for the 15th Congressional seat in Harlem. He had 50% of the vote; the next closest challenger was Adam Clayton Powell IV, who had about 24%. The 80-year-old told his supporters, "I don’t know how this will be misconstrued by the press. But no matter what they say, I go back to Washington a stronger man than I have ever been." more ›

Rep. Charles Rangel, the 20-term politician who is facing trial for numerous House ethics violations, defiantly vowed to fight, fight, fight for renomination. Appearing this weekend at an outdoor celebration organized by church leaders in Harlem, Rangel decided that the best way to frame his fight was to play the "race card," as the Post so eloquently puts it: "All of you remember that this fight is never, never going to end. I'm just one of the foot soldiers; just one of those [who] fought in the march so that one day our kids [will] be able to say, 'Do you remember when there was bigotry and prejudice in this country? Do you remember when there wasn't fairness?'" more ›

A new report released today about whether Governor Paterson perjured himself over free Yankees tickets concluded the matter "warrants consideration of possible criminal charges." Sigh, Albany. more ›

Damn Yankees—these might be the most expensive World Series tickets ever! Last fall, Governor Paterson and his aides allegedly solicited five free tickets to the Yankees World Series games. The tickets had a face value of $425 each, but now the state's Commission on Public Integrity suggests that the outgoing governor pay up a $93,000 fine! The CPI's special counsel said, "The governor is supposed to set the ethical standard by which all state employees conduct themselves. I submit that he has sadly and widely missed the mark in doing so." Ethics? In Albany? What's that? more ›

Two days before the House ethics committee is scheduled to release details of violations it is charging Rep. Charles Rangel (D-Harlem) with, the embattled Congressman is reportedly trying to make a deal. The Daily News reports that when House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Maryland) was asked about about the "closed-door talks on whether Rangel will accept a wrist-slap deal to avoid an 'adjudicatory process' similar to a trial," he said "everyone would like this to go away." more ›

After years of questions about his four (!) rent-stabilized apartments, not reporting income and/or taxes on various properties and sales, using House letterhead to solicit donations for a CUNY graduate school named after him, and more, the House of Representatives will be taking Rep. Charles Rangel (D), the longtime Congressman from Harlem, to trial over alleged ethics violations. more ›

MTA internal affairs chief George Lake reportedly violated ethics rules by not reporting his internal affair with Leona Roots, an administrative associate in his department. All employees are required to report personal relationships in order to confirm that there is no conflict of interest, but Lake failed to report the relationship, and on disclosure forms he filed in 2007 and 2008 it says he is married to a woman with a different name. "He's a pretty high-level person and should have known better," one source told the Daily News. However, it's unclear how or if Lake and Roots hid the relationship, especially since the two live together. more ›

Despite approving an ethics bill that would have required them to reveal how much they make in outside income, nearly two-thirds of state lawmakers refused to reveal the information when pressed. The Daily News decided to try some legislators at their word, and most either refused or just didn't get back to them. Any outside income is not supposed to get in the way of a lawmaker's job, and violations can result in jail time. Blair Horner of the New York Public Interest Research Group said, "Everyone should disclose this information. The public has a right to know it." more ›

The legislature’s resident ethics panel has decided that it’s alright for Albany lawmakers to accept food and drink at lobbyist-sponsored events, nay it’s one of their “responsibilities.” In 2007 a law forbade officials from accepting gifts of more than “nominal value,” so some outside watchdog organizations are outraged by the apparent exception. "Legislators should be meeting with their constituents, but the issue is whether it has to be over complimentary shrimp and scotch," Public Integrity Commission Executive Director Barry Ginsberg told the Daily News. more ›

Although former Rep. Eric Massa has been abandoned by conservative pundits, new reports indicate he's still a teabagger. Men who served in the Navy with the former Congressman claim Massa repeatedly made unwanted advances toward subordinates, including one instance involving "snorkeling"—a maneuver "performed by placing your testicles over the eyes of your partner, forming a mask," according to Urban Dictionary. more ›

It's not a good time to be a Democratic politician. With elections just eight months away and Democratic leaders already under scrutiny for their positions on healthcare and the economy, ethics scandals involving Gov. Paterson, Rep. Charlie Rangel and Rep. Eric Massa have given Republicans another way to attack their rivals. more ›

What week it's been for Rep. Charles Rangel. He's gone from being found guilty of violating rules by the House Ethics panel and defiantly announcing he would run for a 21st term in Congress to "temporarily" stepping down from his position at House Ways and Means Committee chair. And now it seems that Rangel may not run for another term after all! more ›

After an ethics panel found he broke the rules, reports are swirling that scandal-plagued Rep. Charles Rangel (D-Harlem) will step down as the powerful chair of the House Ways and Means Committee. While some media outlets said Rangel would step down tonight, Rangel said he was still chairman, but as for tomorrow "I can’t make all those promises at my age." NBC News' Chuck Todd Tweeted, "Sources tell me after agreeing to step aside, Rangel now having 2nd thots; hence the defiant denial... but: Rangel was made aware that he does not have the votes to survive a floor vote tmro on whether he should keep the gavel." There have been questions about Rangel for years, from rent-stabilized apartments to apparent tax amnesia. more ›

Despite admonishment by an ethics committee for taking a corporate sponsored trip to the Caribbean, flouting House rules barring gifts worth more than $50, Congressman Charlie Rangel says he won’t resign from his powerful post on the House Ways and Means Committee. "Why don't you ask me if I'm going to stay chairman of the committee in light of the fact that we're expecting heavy snow in New York?" he quipped to reporters yesterday. Still, four fellow Dems called for him to step down and President Obama reprimanded him. According to White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs Obama stressed that "rules are put in place for a reason and that those rules can and must apply to each and every person." more ›

After a lengthy investigation, a House ethics panel ruled that Rep. Charlie Rangel violated congressional rules by traveling to the Caribbean on corporate junkets in 2007 and 2008. The Harlem Democrat said he had been "admonished" by the committee, which has not yet announced its findings regarding allegations of improper fundraising, tax evasion on property in the Dominican Republic, and his use of four rent-stabilized apartments in Manhattan despite House rules barring gifts worth more than $50. more ›

After Gov. Paterson announced his plan to implement far-reaching ethics reforms in Albany, the state Senate released its own pared down ethics reform proposal yesterday. The lawmakers' plan would create a new office for investigating ethics violations in legislature and would require elected officials to disclose how much money they earn from outside jobs, according to NY1. But the proposal wouldn't institute statewide campaign finance reform or initiate term limits, like Paterson had suggested. more ›

In his second State of the State speech this afternoon, Gov. Paterson revealed his new agenda, The Reform Albany Act, a set of sweeping reforms that will attempt to "rebuild our State’s economy into a national model of ingenuity and strength." All right, let's do this! Here's what David "Downer" Paterson's planning. more ›

Gov. Paterson is expected to announce a series of far-reaching proposals to curb corruption in state government by launching term limits, establishing a system that will give matching funds to statewide candidates, and implementing campaign finance reform measures intended to reduce the power of lobbyists and corporations, the Times reports. more ›

Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-Queens) is accused of soliciting favors from Venezuelan strongman Hugo Chavez on behalf of an alleged Ponzi schemer who paid for the politician's Caribbean vacations. According to a story broken by the Miami Herald, Texas billionaire and suspected scammer Allen Stanford asked Meeks — a member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs — to convince Chavez to initiate a criminal investigation against a former employee in March 2006. Meeks allegedly agreed, and traveled to Venezuela a month later where he met with Chavez. Venezuelan prosecutors indicted the former employee the following year. more ›

Yesterday, former governor Eliot Spitzer spoke at Harvard University's ethics center to discuss big business and government, much to the dismay of one of the madams he used for his dalliances with escorts. He mostly discussed the economic crisis, but he did answer a question about the prostitution scandal that brought down his poltiical career. According to the NY Times, a man "with a long gray ponytail sticking out of his baseball hat," began, "I may sound like a conspiracy theorist," and then asked if there were "'ulterior motives' behind the timing of the disclosure of the prostitution ring that he said was leaked to the news media." more ›

Today, former governor Eliot Spitzer will be at Harvard, speaking at the Edmond J. Safra Foundation Center for Ethics, discussing, "What Should Be the Rationale for Government Participation in the Market?" But given Spitzer's past, from Troopergate to Hookergate, one person is very upset—a madam who had Spitzer as a client. In a letter to Professor Lawrence Lessig, Kristin Davis wrote, "For nearly 5 years, I supplied Mr. Spitzer with high priced escorts while he was both Attorney General and Governor. For this crime, I served four months on Rikers Island, had all of my assets confiscated and am now considered a sex offender on 5 years probation. Mr. Spitzer broke both state and federal laws and walked away free." more ›

Yesterday, the Post reported that Governor Paterson had attended Game 1 of the World Series with his son, his son's girlfriend, and two aides after "secretly solicit[ing]" the tickets. Now, the state's ethics committee is looking into the incident. more ›