Senator Joe may be feeling glum after all the heat that Spitzer is taking from the helicopter investigation craziness, but there are more storm clouds ahead for him in the legal department. See, it is illegal to receive more than $5,000 in a year from any particular company, but that didn't stop Bruno from diving into the troughs of his corporate buddies after the giving was supposed to be over.
From Rochester Turning:
On January 9, 2006, Hedley Park Place of Troy donated $1,000 to Bruno. For all of 2006, Hedley donated $6,750.
On January 16, 2006, Caremark RX, INC. donated $1,000 to Bruno. All told, Caremark donated $9,950 in 2006.
On two separate occasions in 2006, Kasselman Electronics donated a total of $2,000 to Bruno. For all of calendar year 2006, Kasselman donated $8,500.
On September 25, 2005, Golub Realties, INC. donated $5,000 to Bruno, despite having already donated $3,050 earlier in 2005. Bruno’s donation brought Golub to a total of $8,050 in contributions in 2005.
We all know how republicans in the NYS Senate operate. Accordingly, they will no doubt attempt to deflect attention by intimating some democrats also took contributions over the legal limit. Unfortunately, that argument neglects two critical points that I hope will preempt any such distractions. First and most notably, is the common denominator to ALL of the heretofore mentioned donors is Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno. Second, Bruno’s admitted disdain for substantive campaign finance reform opens him up to strict scrutiny of his actions.
Uh oh Senator, you might want to stop throwing stones at the Governor while you are living in that pretty glass house of yours.
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