Patronage And Nepotism Still The Norm In Hempstead Town
Did anyone care that Supervisor Kate Murray had her father and brothers on payroll in the Town of Hempstead?
Apparently not. This was public knowledge -- and blasted conspicuosly and regularly in the media -- before the last election. Murray was resoundingly re-elected, blatant nepotism notwithstanding.
Now we learn that Murray's dad, Norman, 83, has retired from one job at the town -- so he could collect a hefty pension -- only to show up the next business day, collecting a salary at a newly created position at Hempstead town hall. Well, at least he showed up.
No attempt to even hide this overt abuse of the taxpayers' money, let alone the trust of the people one of the Murrays was elected to serve.
Its the electorate be damned in Hempstead Town, where the only qualification one needs for employment is pedigree.
As Kate Murray works on her unauthorized autobiography, aptly titled, The Pomposity of Dope, Town of Hempstead residents have had their pockets picked yet again. Kate's no dope. Voters, on the other hand? Well...
No apologies from town hall. No comment from Kate Murray's dad, the pensioneer cum $40 per hour clerk. And no apparant outrage from the good people of Hempstead Town.
You may not always get what you deserve in life, but you do get what you elect.
When will we ever learn?
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Newsday EDITORIAL:
Patronage in the Town of Hempstead? It's the same old story
What do the jobs of a $130,542 law assistant and a $40-an-hour clerical worker in Hempstead have in common?
Patronage.
That's why the 83-year-old father of Town of Hempstead Supervisor Kate Murray could leave the full-time law assistant's position in the town attorney's office on a Friday and return to the same office as a clerk the following Monday. As Norman Murray passed go, he got to cash out $39,735 in severance pay and start collecting a $49,188 public pension.
The town says the rehiring of Murray doesn't violate the state's new law barring double-dipping because it's a different job. Well, the job he left is unfilled, and the new post seems to have been added. Besides, he's being paid more than three times the average hourly rate of any other clerk.
Outrage could be one response. In the Murray case, where the supervisor's two brothers also are employed by the town in the parks department, nostalgia seems more appropriate. Here, in the Nassau GOP's last power base, it was a move reminiscent of the glory years, when the party thumbed its nose at taxpayers, defiantly and unapologetically.
She is an absolute disgrace who acts like she answers to no one. Try to get a response from her on anything, you will be waiting a long time,,,,
ReplyDeleteSHAME ON YOU KATE!!!
I thought Newsday's editorial was outstanding and I wholeheartedly agree with your point concerning the fact that as voters, we all bear responsibility for the Kate Murray's of the world. That said, it should be noted that Newsday actually endorsed Ms. Murray in the last election cycle, and one has to assume that this had the effect of bringing at least some number of voters into her camp. Here's hoping that those voters, as well as Newsday, will reconsider their positions in the next election cycle.
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