Pension Fund Play to Play
NYT scratching the surface
By Gary Tilzer
In today's editorial the NYT describes NYS pension funds as ‘A Culture of Corruption’ they quote former Hevesi pension big David Loglisci guilty plea which is said "Investment decisions were made in part according to political benefit for the comptroller, rather than exclusively in the best interests of the people." Where the NYT editorial falls short it blames all thye problems on the way the state comptroller operates, "As sole trustee of the pension fund, New York’s comptroller has far too much power over a huge pool of money that is supposed to be managed for the benefit of state workers and retirees."
The NYT editorial ignores mayor candidate Bloomberg charges against Comptroller Thompson Mayor Bloomberg rips Thompson for taking cash from pension middlemen. During the campaign the mayor made dozens of commercials attacking Thompson for talking over a quarter of this contributions from people who do business with the NYC pension fund. True News wrote about this last Year Bloomberg Hits Thompson Pension Play to Play *** The Wolf at Thompson's Door *** True News: Wolf at Thompson Door, Part II . Avella Opens A Cut
The NYT demanded that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and the New York State Legislature should clean up this pay-to-play culture once and for all. The S.E.C. has been considering a rule that would prohibit donors to comptrollers’ campaigns from doing business with pension funds for two years. The editorial did not ask Albany to clean up the pension culture of corruption. I guess the NYT feels that Albany is not going to clean up anything to do with play to play. Not much help with the SEC either last month SEC backs off ban on pension-fund middlemen - Crain's New York
The NYT said the New York State Pension funds was out of step does not explain how New Mexico and California suffer from the same play to play culture. It also does not explain how the same people who are being investigated in New York play to play are involved in the same scam in other states. In fact three is strong evidence that the corruption is interconnected NY PensionGate Explodes in New Mexico
Deep Doo Doo Why is the NYT trying to find a simple incomplete pension fix there and there partners are involved Rattner: Toxic Conflict of Interest; Is the NYT at Risk? * GMAC *** In an article in Businessweek owned by Bloomberg who was once a client of Steve Ratner this report Rattner, Cuomo Said to Be in Talks on Pension Probe * Rattner in Talks to Settle a Probe (WSJ) *** Rattner, N.Y. Attorney General Talk Pay-To-Play Settlement ***Sulzberger pinches double the pay *While Globe suffers, NY Times Co. execs got big pay hikes Boston Herald ** Who's Afraid of Steve Rattner? Everyone? *** Steve Rattner the Untouchable
*** The Meaning of "Cheap" to the New York Times, Who's $1B In Debt
Pension Fund Pay to Play Hevesi Gotbaum: True News Exclusive
Pension Fund Pay to Play Hevesi Gotbaum
True News Exclusive
Yes, they 'kin'! Gotbaum hired Hevesi kid & pals NYP reports today in what they called their exclusive story that Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum was once so friendly with disgraced city and state Comptroller Alan Hevesi that she hired three people close to him -- including one of his kids and his top aide's daughter. What the NYP story did not include was that Gotbaum step son Joshua was a managing partner is Blue Wolf Capital Management a company founded by two of Hevesi aides when he was NYC Comptroller. Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum is a trustee of New York City’s Pension Funds which awarded Blue Wolf Capital $63 million from the City’s pension funds to invest, yielding Blue Wolf $1.2 million in fees. The NYT reported on April 21, 2009 that it was under former top Thompson aide (Joshua Gotbaum's Wolf-Powers partner) that Josh Wolf-Powers’ advisement Steven Ratner owner of the private investment firm Quadrangle Group to hire the now-indicted Hank Morris as its placement agent. Ratner badly wanted to gain access to investment from the State’s pension fund and according to the Times, “Wolf-Powers told Mr. Ratner that he could not think of any investment firm that had persuaded the city’s pension fund to invest without using a placement agent.” Morris was a good friend for the new money manager company Blue Wolff to have. Morris is now under indictment awaiting trial in a multi state corruption organize crime operation designed to steal pension funds for rich investors and money managers. Steve Ratner dismissed by the White House is hiding out at his horse farm waiting to see what investigators do to him. Even the new administration in Washington is on of keeping the spoils of the pension funds "All in the Family" Joshuoa Gotbaum nominated as director of Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. *** Blue Wolf Exec to Head U.S. Pension Agency The Pension Benefit agency’s inspector general found in May that its former director, Charles E. F. Millard, had inappropriate communications with Wall Street firms.
There are still many who delay making a start and a frightening number of people who believe that their entitlement to a basic State pension will be enough to see them comfortably through old age.
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