Care to comment on Nassau County DA Kathleen Rice, a DEMOCRAT who "promised" to do away with cronyism and "yes-men", hiring her sister (who has zero experience) a week after her election to a $90,000 gig as her own personal secretary?
At her inauguration Monday, Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice said the public "bestowed upon me a trust that I will not take for granted." But by the end of the week, she had already undercut that promise. Rice is making a mistake in hiring her brother's wife as a $95,000-a-year executive assistant. She should correct this early misstep.
Rice defends her choice of Cheryl Rice, wife of her brother, Larry, as the most qualified person to fill the job of confidential aide, scheduler and trusted adviser. But a good lawyer should know when an argument is off point. This is not about her sister-in-law's competence or credentials, which are impressive. It is about avoiding even the appearance of impropriety as top law enforcement officer. Rice is running the district attorney's office, not Off Track Betting.
Rice has quickly forgotten that she was elected on a "holier than thou" Democratic ticket that attacked the cronyism and patronage of its Republican opponents. She especially criticized Hempstead Town Supervisor Kate Murray for putting her father and brother on the public payroll. Murray defended her family by saying they were very competent. Is Murray now right, or is Rice now wrong? This need for an all-in-the-family hire sends a troubling message about Rice's judgment and that of her inner circle of advisers. It is an amateurish miscalculation.
http://www.newsday.com/news/opinion/ny-vpr...rials-headlines
But Democrats Different.