Albany's Hall of ShameRead original...
Pin a star on the starched white shirt of U.S. Attorney Michael Garcia. He's the new Sheriff of Albany - and he has the bad guys shaking in their boots.
It's high time that someone with subpoena power imposed some law and order on the corruption-infested Hall of Shame also known as the state Capitol.
The politicians have been left to police themselves far too long, with the predictable result that taxpayers get fleeced.
"When it comes to ethics, Albany is Dodge City without Wyatt Earp," quips veteran watchdog Blair Horner of the New York Public Interest Research Group.
It makes what you might call a target-rich environment for someone like Garcia, an up-and-coming federal prosecutor with a sharp eye for official corruption.
He has just bagged his fourth state politician in three years, with the hint of more to come.
At this rate, they'll have to add a Garcia wing to the Albany Hall of Shame.
His latest contribution is a plaque bearing the mug of Queens Assemblyman Tony Seminerio, caught on FBI wiretaps peddling his modest influence at the Capitol for hundreds of thousands in payoffs from a hospital in his district.
In Garcia's words, Seminerio "put his office up for sale to those willing to pay the right price."
Previously, Garcia convicted another Queens assemblyman, Brian McLaughlin, of embezzling $2 million from taxpayers and union members - including money intended for Little Leaguers in his district.
He's also going after Bronx Sen. Efrain Gonzalez for allegedly skimming $400,000 from the state treasury. Gonzalez, who is fighting the charge, lost the Democratic primary to keep his seat last week.
But the biggest notch in the prosecutor's gun belt has to be ex-Gov. Eliot Spitzer, a failed sheriff of Albany who was forced to resign in disgrace after admitting he was the "Client No. 9" in Garcia's indictment of a high-priced hooker ring.
The Albany crime wave of the past five years has generated plenty of work for other prosecutors, too.
Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau put Bronx Sen. Guy Velella and Bronx Assemblywoman Gloria Davis in jail for taking bribes.
Brooklyn District Attorney Joe Hynes won corruption cases against two Assembly members from his borough, Clarence Norman and Diane Gordon.
Albany DA David Soares convicted former state Controller Alan Hevesi for using state employees to chauffeur his ailing wife.
Garcia is showing signs he may top them all in bringing about a much-needed cleanup crusade.
For one thing, he and the FBI reportedly convinced McLaughlin - who hasn't been sentenced yet - to help make the case against Seminerio by wearing a wire.
Getting one pol to flip on another could be the most effective way of blowing Albany wide open.
"I've made it a priority to take a hard look for corruption," Garcia said recently. "So there are resources looking, doing the investigations, following up on leads and tips, and that's going to produce results."
He says the common thread of the cases he has pursued is Albany's "lack of transparency" - his way of saying the pols are keeping far too many secrets. With billions of tax dollars changing hands behind closed doors, people are bound to get greedy.
So, will he be exposing still more corruption in the months ahead?
"What you can expect is we'll keep looking, that we'll maintain this level of commitment," Garcia said. "If it's there, there's a significant chance we'll find it."
Go get 'em, sheriff.
