State Conservative Chair Gerard Kassar Reacts To Scandal In State Commission
“Governor Cuomo needs to act immediately to restore the credibility of every commission in New York State. That begins by removing State Democratic Party Chairman Jay Jacobs as Chairman of the so-called ‘Commission on Public Financing’ who just got caught with his thumb all over the scale.”
“It’s clear beyond all doubt now that this commission has been a sham designed to stifle free speech and political competition to the advantage of Cuomo and the Democratic Party from the very beginning. Evidence revealed by Politico today showing Jacobs using his power as Party Chairman to artificially gin up ‘public’ testimony from Party subordinates in favor of eliminating fusion voting is nothing short of scandalous. It screams to all corners of the state: ‘The fix is in!'”
“Fusion voting has been an established practice for more than a century in New York. It sprang from the good-government reform movement that challenged infamous Tammany Hall corruption, and it has been protected from political assault three times by our State Constitution. Fusion voting empowers voters to send clear messages to preferred candidates about where they lean on issues and the direction in which they’d like to see the state go. It also develops candidates with dissenting viewpoints—the very lifeblood of Democracy—that go on to be preferred by members of New York’s major parties.”
“Nothing about this commission has been legitimate. That’s been obvious since the day Governor Cuomo hand-picked his state party chairman to chair it. The credibility of both men is in tatters.”