ALBANY – The head of the state Republican Party yesterday accused Attorney General Eliot Spitzer of “hypocrisy” for accepting fund-raising help from two ex-cons and called on him to return the money they raised.
The Post reported yesterday that the two former convicted criminals helped Spitzer, a Democrat who has received national attention for taking on corruption on Wall Street, raise $40,000 in Syracuse on Tuesday.
“Eliot’s ambitions for governor have clouded his judgment,” state GOP chairman Alexander “Sandy” Treadwell told The Post.
“The man who portrays himself as having impeccable ethics and integrity doesn’t find anything wrong with taking contributions from former convicts?” Treadwell said. “What hypocrisy. He should give the money back.”
The Spitzer event was hosted by Syracuse Mayor Matt Driscoll, who turned to his top two fund-raisers, Dean Vlassis and Charles Vinal.
The Post reported yesterday that Vlassis, a longtime fund-raiser for Syracuse Democrats, pleaded guilty in 1978 to tax-evasion charges and served two months.
Vinal, a registered Republican, was sentenced to a year in jail after pleading guilty to drug possession.
Spitzer aides admitted they had been unaware of the two men’s criminal histories.
Spitzer spokesman Darren Dopp said his boss will not return money from the event, explaining that Vlassis and Vinal “have put their problems behind them decades ago and went on to become influential members of the Syracuse community.”