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May 8, 2009
Paterson's Racism Costs New York $300,000
New York's unelected governor may be nearly blind, but he isn't color blind. Here's an idea for how he can help close the state's $20 billion budget gap: stop getting sued for discriminating against Caucasians:
Gov. Paterson, who raised state taxes by $8 billion last month, just cost state taxpayers $300,000 more.
The state has secretly settled an embarrassing federal racial-discrimination lawsuit, The Post has learned. The suit accused Paterson, back when he was Senate minority leader in 2003, of firing a white Senate photographer in order to replace him with an African-American.
The lawsuit had been scheduled to go to trial in federal court Monday in Syracuse, with Paterson, the state's first black governor, as a key witness. The case was settled earlier in the week, although a few glitches delayed the final deal until yesterday, legislative sources said.
The settlement ends a civil-rights action first filed in 2005 by Joseph Maioriello, 56, of Schenectady, a 26-year Senate employee who originally sought $1.5 million.
He was fired from his $34,000-a-year job as a photographer two years earlier and replaced by a black employee, El-Wise Noisette. The shakeup happened after Paterson ousted then-Sen. Martin Connor (D-Brooklyn) as the minority leader. …
In the lawsuit, Maioriello claimed he was told by John McPadden, then Paterson's chief of staff, that he was being fired because a number of minority senators wanted to replace him with "a minority photographer, a black photographer."
He said he was also told, "You got to remember who Sen. Paterson is. Sen. Paterson is black."
The $300,000 settlement comes despite Paterson having devised an ingenious defense:
Paterson, who is legally blind, claimed in a sworn deposition that he didn't see well enough to have fired Maioriello because of his race.
Welcome to the era of "postracial" politics.
On a tip from Wiggins.
Posted by Van Helsing at May 8, 2009 8:47 AM
Comments
I always groan when Van posts a headline that starts with "Paterson...."
I like to go trolling for posters' comments from NY papers sometimes. I can only find one or two people who do not actively loathe the man, then they get jumped all over for being so stupid. People are even saying *gasp* "maybe we should try a republican."
Posted by: Karin at May 8, 2009 9:04 AM
Lol I love that defense.
Posted by: Matt at May 8, 2009 9:32 AM
Blind as a moonbat?
Posted by: Eric at May 8, 2009 10:10 AM
It's a pity that the case didn't go forward; it could have alowed race-based suits against BLACK organizations, or sent afirmative actipon into the trash can forever.
Posted by: KHarn at May 8, 2009 10:49 AM
I ment "...AND sent afirmative action into the trash can forever."
Posted by: KHarn at May 8, 2009 10:50 AM
This story is the stupidest thing I've ever heard, and it's no wonder that the last clause of the second sentence is "The Post has learned."
Governor Paterson is a lot of things, but he is certainly not a racist. ACTUALLY, he's one of the most outspoken public figures on social equality in the country.
Paterson's "sworn deposition" was a joke: it was Paterson making fun of both himself and the sillyness of the allegation. Nice job of taking it out of context to prove a hollow point, though.
To whomever wrote this story: get a clue and find something real to criticize the governor about.
Posted by: Clark Kent at May 8, 2009 11:36 AM
To whomever wrote this story: get a clue and find something real to criticize the governor about.
I dunno, racist employment policies certainly seems a worthy reason, no?
Or maybe we could use something you said: "Paterson's "sworn deposition" was a joke: it was Paterson making fun of both himself and the sillyness of the allegation." I don't appreciate a governor making a mockery of the courts, do you? Maybe if he had taken it more seriously, and not been a racist to begin with, the state wouldn't have lost a $300,000 lawsuit. Just sayin'.
But thanks for the refresher on liberal reasoning and arguments, though. "Shut up! Look over there!"
Posted by: cowlove at May 8, 2009 11:48 AM
She has inpired me. I just made a donation in remembrance of Holocust victims to the American Nazi party.
Posted by: redsoxinCO at May 8, 2009 3:20 PM
"ACTUALLY, he's one of the most outspoken public figures on social equality in the country."
Social equality for WHOM, Clark? I would bet that he want's "equality" for only ONE race.
Governments can't mandate "social" equality, that is something INDIVIDUALS have to earn themselves. People today confuse Constitutional Rights with privleges. "Civil Rights" are actually PRIVLEGES alowed by society and can be nulified when they infringe on the RIGHTS of others.
Posted by: Anonymous at May 8, 2009 7:49 PM
