Cuomo, Paladino Out To Overcome 'Corruptocrats'
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (CBS 2) -- A scathing report about the corrupt Aqueduct racing contract had Democrat Andrew Cuomo and Republican Carl Paladino scurrying to the suburbs on Monday night.
Each claim they're the best hope of draining the Albany swamp.
The state inspector general's report on the shady dealing of Senate Democrats in trying to make sure their friends won a juicy contract to run slot machines at Aqueduct has spawned a new and horrifying word in the political lexicon -- "corruptocrats." So CBS 2's Marcia Kramer asked our gubernatorial candidates how they would see to it that lawmakers would do the right thing and not just sell their votes to the highest bidder.
"I'm going to keep doing as governor what I've been doing as attorney general -- zero tolerance for any ethical violations and then enforce the law," Cuomo said. "Let people know if they violate the rules there will be a price to pay."
Kramer asked Republican Paladino the same question.
"I am bringing my baseball bat and that's the people. The people will be in every room. With transparency and a spotlight we're going to have an open government like you never dreamed of seeing," Paladino said.
Both Cuomo and Paladino were trying to convince suburban voters they have the best solutions for cleaning up Albany.
Kramer: "Do you intend to appoint a special prosecutor to look at every member of the Legislature?"
Paladino: "No, I've said everybody in government – it doesn't matter to me if they're in the comptroller's office, in the state attorney general's office, if they're in the legislative, executive or the judiciary department."
Cuomo: "You know, Marcia, there are a number of specific mechanisms you can use to do the enforcement. I've been doing it as attorney general so the mechanism to me is less important. It's the will. It's the desire. It's the commitment."
The election is just one week from Tuesday and in addition to governor, all state and federal offices are up for grabs.
There is little chance the Assembly will change hands and go Republican, but the state Senate is a different story. Democrats have a one-seat edge, but there are enough contested races to flip control to the other party.
