Apparently stepping down from office isn't good enough for the FBI and their case against Joe Bruno. While the investigation was not the reason he is leaving Albany, he still had his lawyer plead with the Federal Bureau of Investigations to make the case go away. Bruno may think that everyone is susceptible to a deal in Albany, but not when it comes to his situation and the FBI.
From The Gothamist:
While State Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno has denied his surprising decision not to seek re-election had anything to do with the FBI's investigation into his finances, the FBI hauled away a "massive volume" of Bruno's records, dating back to 1995. The Post says the FBI seized the documents hours before Bruno's Monday afternoon announcement.In 2006, Bruno announced that he was under investigation, for various deals involving land, racehorses, and labor unions. Interestingly, the Daily News reports that Bruno's lawyer contacted the FBI to see if his stepping-down "would help end" the FBI probe. But the FBI did not make a deal. And the Times Union says the documents were requested months ago, but the Senate "delayed responding to the request."
Even with this week's events, I still do not believe that the FBI's investigation has anything to do with his decision to not run for re-election. Trying to snatch a deal from the FBI is merely a bonus while the main issue is that the Senate is poised to switch to the Democrats in the Senate, ending the lucrative practices Bruno has been involved with for years, incidentally the reason why the FBI has been on his case. The thing is, Bruno is a smart guy and has alluded authorities for nearly three years. Making the authorities' spotlight go away would be nice, but the real deal is the loss of power, and in Albany, that is all that matters.
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