On the national stage, GOPers loyal to former president Donald Trump continue to work their voter base by claiming there was fraud in the 2020 presidential election. Former WNYT anchor "Kryin'" Kari Lake, for example, is still claiming she got screwed out of the governor's race in Arizona nearly six months ago, and is trying to pass herself off as the rightful governor, even as she's making subtle overtures about running for Senate next year.
Turns out Kryin' Kari ain't the only ex-journalist dealing in fraud & misinformation.
Rensselaer County Director of Operations Richard Crist, a former reporter for El Cheapo Media, was one of three local GOPer operatives indicted on charges that they committed voter fraud during the 2021 municipal elections. County Bureau of Central Services director and failed Mayoral candidate James "Don't Call Me Commissioner" Gordon and consultant Leslie Wallace were also indicted Thursday. All pleaded not guilty.
Taking his cues from Judge Lewis Kaplan in New York, presiding over the Trump vs. E. Jean Carroll civil trial, US Magistrate Judge Andrew Baxter warned each defendant about attempting to influence or intimidate prospective witnesses. You might recall that in 2019, Crist & Gordon were at the center of another scandal, in which they discouraged GOP Mayoral candidate Tom Reale from running against Patrick Madden, opting instead to favor independent Rodney Wiltshire. Madden was re-elected in a landslide, and will wrap his term in January after his successor is elected.
As for individual charges:
Each is charged with conspiring to abuse their positions to violate the constitutional rights of county employees, and bullying them into filling out absentee ballots. Gordon was charged on one count of witness tampering, and faces 10 years for conspiracy and 20 for witness tampering.
Wallace faces 5 years for making false statements. Crist could get 10 for conspiracy.
It wouldn't surprise anyone if this is the same sort of thing that goes on in states controlled by Republicans, like, for example, Florida, where Trump wanna-be Ron DeSantis is imposing laws designed to discriminate against minorities and the LGBTQ+ community. If he's really serious about running for president next year, he might want to start taking a look at things in upstate NY. Former county elections commissioner Jason Schofield will be sentenced in September. Former Troy city councilwoman Kim Ashe-McPherson is to be sentenced in June. They'll soon have some company with Crist, Wallace, & Gordon.
In a separate investigation further along than the federal probe, the office of NY Attorney General Letitia James issued subpoenas to the county several absentee ballot documents that supposedly had been handled by Crist & Gordon. In a parallel to Trump's criminal case, brought by Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, attorney William Dreyer requested a witness list, but in this case, since most of the witnesses are supposedly county employees, Dreyer wants to make sure not to get caught engaging in witness tampering.
Dreyer gets it, and so does Judge Baxter. Trump wanted the identities of the jurors so he could whine, rant, and complain, and incite his base. Dreyer and his clients have already assured Baxter there won't be any intimidation (we think), and just want to make sure they don't accidentally commit any violations. An appeal, however, is pending.
GOPers in other states, not just Florida, should be paying attention. The ivory towers in red states could soon fall if they get caught doing similar things.
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