Jeanine Pirro
Jeanine Ferris Pirro (born 1952) is an American politician from the state of New York. A Republican from Westchester County, Pirro served as a county judge before making a failed bid for Lieutenant Governor of New York in 1986. In 1993, Pirro was elected District Attorney of Westchester County, and was reelected in 1997 and 2001. She is generally considered a moderate.
In 2005, she announced that she would seek the Republican nomination to challenge incumbent Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, a Democrat, in the 2006 Senate elections.
Life and career
Pirro was born in Elmira, New York. Her father was a mobile-home salesman and her mother a department-store model, She graduated from Notre Dame High School and later the University at Buffalo. She received her Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree at Albany Law School. She is a Catholic of Lebanese descent. [1]
In the late 1970s, Pirro became an Assistant District Attorney in Westchester County;
In 1986, she withdrew her bid to be elected to the office of Lieutenant Governor of New York. According the New York Times, it was "from factionalism within the New York Republican Party and from wariness among conservatives who are unhappy about her support for abortion rights and gay rights." [2] While according to the The Journal News (Westchester) the reason was "allegations that her husband was tied to organized crime forced her to quit rather than reveal his list of clients." [3]
In 1989, she became a judge on the Westchester County Court. In 1993, Pirro was elected District Attorney of Westchester County, and was reelected in 1997 and 2001.
Senate campaign
On August 10, 2005 in New York City, Pirro announced her candidacy for the Republican nomination for United States Senate in 2006, seeking the seat held at that time by first-term Democrat Hillary Clinton, the wife of former president Bill Clinton, who is running for reelection. During her live televised announcement, she paused for more than thirty seconds looking for a missing part of her speech, asking "Do I have page 10?"
Other Republicans who announced campaigns for the nomination were attorney Edward Cox, the son-in-law of former President Richard Nixon; John Spencer, a former mayor of Yonkers; and William Brenner, an attorney in Sullivan County.
On October 14, 2005 New York State Governor George E. Pataki endorsed Pirro for the Senate. He said:
I know Jeanine Pirro to be a tough, hard-charging district attorney and former judge who has made protecting our children and families her top priority. As a prosecutor and nationally-recognized advocate for tougher criminal penalties and stronger child protection laws, she has consistently fought for issues that are important to all of us. [4]
Cox then withdrew from the race, saying, "The governor is the leader of the Republican Party. Out of respect for his position and his decision, I have decided to stop my campaign." [5] (New York Times, October 15, 2005).
During an appearance at the Crime Victims Resource Center, Pirro described herself this way: "I am red on fiscal policy. I am conservative and I support the Bush tax cut." She added, however: "I have broad blue stripes when it comes to social issues... I am a woman who is a moderate in New York." [6]
Criticism
Pirro signed joint tax returns for which her husband, Albert J. Pirro, was convicted (see section below). Pirro herself has come under scrutiny because of three full-time county police officers that Pirro used as drivers and bodyguards. The staff was paid exorbitant overtime salaries and was used at political events; Pirro has not reimbursed the county. At the same time the budget was cut due to lack of funds and six prosecutors lost their jobs.
Albert Pirro
Albert Pirro has been an influential private attorney and lobbyist. In 2000, he was convicted on 66 counts of federal tax fraud. Pirro had hidden $1 million in income from the Federal Government between 1988 and 1997, claiming dozens of personal luxuries as business expenses, including his $123,000 Ferrari and his wife's Mercedes-Benz. He served 17 months in prison. Although only suspended from the practice of law for his wrongdoing by New York’s Appellate Court (2nd Dept.) in May 2003, he was later disbarred by the US Supreme Court in January 2004. [7]
Donors to the previous political campaigns of Jeanine Pirro have included designer Tommy Hilfiger, Donald Trump and numerous contractors and real estate executives who've done business with her husband.
Albert Pirro also has been accused of having mob connections. In an FBI tape recording of a conversation between convicted gangster Gregory DePalma and associates, DePalma claimed that "the DA's husband [Albert Pirro]" had shared information about the DA's investigation of a corrupt local cop with a reputed mob associate named Robert Persico. [8]
Jeanine Pirro has responded saying she and her husband lead different lives and do not talk about work at home. He has appeared with Pirro at some campaign events in 2005.
Sources and further reading
- "The Jeanine Machine" by S. Richard Blassberg a damning account of Pirro as a corrupt prosecutor. [9]
- "Driving Ms. Pirro." The Journal News. August 6, 2005. [10]
- Eddings, Keith. "Pirro's chauffeur on pace to be county's highest-paid employee." The Journal News. August 1, 2005. [11]
- Healy, Patrick D. "Democrats Push Rival to Repay Security Costs." New York Times. August 3, 2005. [12]
- Moritz, Owen. "Driver's banking on Pirro fame." New York Daily News. August 2, 2005.[13]
- "Report: Pirro's Bodyguard Makes $87K In OT." WINS. August 1, 2005. [14]