Governor Andrew Cuomo (D. NY) is not my favorite Democrat but I do like, intentionally or unintentionally, that he's making big name conservatives cry like babies. First it was Sean Hannity, now it's this guy:
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/...
Conservative prankster James O'Keefe is accusing New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) of trying to run him out of the state.
O'Keefe told the Daily Beast in a story published Thursday that he believes the state Department of Labor's requests for financial documents from his Project Veritas organization were politically driven. The accusation comes after Cuomo said last week that "extreme conservatives"have no place in New York.
"Despite the fact that Project Veritas’s finances are meticulously maintained to the penny, Governor Cuomo and the New York Department of Labor is on a witch-hunt, demanding all documents and financials since our founding," the organization's website reads. "This is nothing more than meritless, politically-driven targeting."
Project Veritas compiled the requested documents for a scheduled meeting in December, according to O'Keefe, but Department of Labor officials failed to show. - TPM, 1/23/14
Again, here's what Cuomo said:
http://www.syracuse.com/...
"I think what you're seeing is, you have a schism within the Republican Party. The Republican Party is searching for an identity. They're searching to define their soul. That's what's going on. Is the Republican Party in this state a moderate party or is it an extreme conservative party? That's what they're trying to figure out. And it's very interesting because it's a mirror of what is going on in Washington, right?
"The gridlock in Washington is less about Democrats and Republicans. It's more about extreme Republicans versus moderate Republicans. And the moderate Republicans in Washington can't figure out how to deal with the extreme Republicans. And the moderate Republicans are afraid of the extreme conservative Republicans in Washington, in my opinion.
"You're seeing that play out in New York. There's SAFE-ACT. The Republican Party candidates are running against the SAFE-ACT. It was voted for by moderate Republicans who run the Senate. Their problem is not me and the Democrats, their problem is themselves. Who are they? Are they these extreme conservatives who are "right to life," "pro assault weapon" "anti-gay"? Is that who they are? Because if that's who they are, and if they are the extreme conservatives, they have no place in the state of New York because that's not who New Yorkers are. If they're moderate Republicans, like in the Senate right now, who control the Senate -- moderate Republicans have a place in this state."
Here's some more info:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/...
According to Jennifer Ridgely, a spokeswoman for Project Veritas, the inquiry has to with whether or not employees with the group are classified as full-time or contract labor.
“We just think that this is kind of a fishing expedition where they are not going to find anything,” Ridgely said, a theory she said was bolstered by the governor’s recent comments and the fact that the group airs videos that “the governor would rather keep hidden.”
A spokesman for the state’s Department of Labor said that they are required by law to make sure that businesses pay into an unemployment insurance fund, and that whenever businesses use outside contractors the state requests routine information about those employees. When employers do not respond to multiple requests for information, they must as a matter of law face a subpoena for further information.
O’Keefe has largely left Cuomo and the New York State Democratic Party alone, although in 2012, he attempted to expose the state’s green jobs program by posing as an executive from a business that merely would dig holes and refill them. In the video clip sent around to reporters, a labor leader and a former state lawmaker promise the undercover O’Keefe that he will find a welcome reception for his “work” in Albany. “You know, the Green Jobs Green New York, between us, a lot of it’s bullshit,” the labor leader is quoted as saying.
Now O’Keefe says he may follow the lead of Hannity.
“We really haven’t focused a lot on New York State, but the fact is, we conduct business, we are located in New York State. That is really what this comes down to. Frankly, I am contemplating leaving. I am contemplating going back to New Jersey to not have to deal with this kind of harassment.”
After the ACORN videos, much of O’Keefe subsequent work has failed to have the impact he is looking for, as reporters treat his work with far greater skepticism than they did when he first appeared in 2009. In 2010, O’Keefe plead guilty and was ordered to pay a $1,500 fine stemming from an attempt to break into the office of Louisiana Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu in order to record telephone calls.
When asked if accusing the Cuomo administration of targeting him was a prank as well, O’Keefe said, “You ask me if I am lying to you. I don’t know how to even respond to that. “ - The Daily Beast, 1/23/14
Hey, if O'Keefe wants to move to New Jersey, go right ahead. Good luck trying to get across the G.W. Bridge though with Governor Tony Soprano running the show in the Garden State.