Letters to the Editor
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“Lawyers for Council Seen as a Departure”
“Lawyers for Council Seen as a Departure” discloses the scandal surrounding New York’s City Council Speaker Catherine Quinn, Finance Committee Chairman David Weprin, and colleagues over the potential misappropriation in millions of dollars for member item pork barrel spending has taken another turn for the worse [New York, April 28].
After getting caught with their hands in the cookie jar, they want to go back for more. Many council members want taxpayers to pay both their own and staff legal defenses.
They can all afford to pay for legal defense bills out of their own ample salaries (base pay of $112,000 plus lulus for chairing Council committees add $4,000 to $28,000 more per year), income from outside second jobs, or campaign accounts chock full of pay-for-play contributions from the same special interest groups who may be benefiting from these pork barrel member items or other legislative favors.
The only way to end this practice is to vote council members out of office.
Promoting term-limited council members who are running for other higher public offices such as mayor, comptroller, public advocate, or borough president in 2009 only serves to reward them for these outrages.
LAWRENCE PENNER
Great Neck, N.Y.
