{"id":328709,"date":"2021-08-20T21:56:06","date_gmt":"2021-08-20T18:56:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/cuomo-aligned-pr-firm-must-face-audit-over-ludicrous-state-contracts-lawmaker-says\/"},"modified":"2021-08-20T21:56:06","modified_gmt":"2021-08-20T18:56:06","slug":"cuomo-aligned-pr-firm-must-face-audit-over-ludicrous-state-contracts-lawmaker-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/cuomo-aligned-pr-firm-must-face-audit-over-ludicrous-state-contracts-lawmaker-says\/","title":{"rendered":"#Cuomo-aligned PR firm must face audit over \u2018ludicrous\u2019 state contracts, lawmaker says"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;<strong>#Cuomo-aligned PR firm must face audit over \u2018ludicrous\u2019 state contracts, lawmaker says<\/strong>&#8221;<\/p>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft\">\n        <\/aside>\n<p>As Gov. Andrew Cuomo packs up and moves out of the Executive Mansion, a New York lawmaker is calling for an investigation into \u201cludicrous\u201d state contracts given to a public relations firm with close ties to the disgraced governor.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dropbox.com\/s\/da9t5ye1au5qex1\/Letter%20to%20Comptroller%20DiNapoli%20re%20Kivvit%20%5Bdigital%5D.pdf?dl=0\">letter<\/a> released late Thursday, Assemblyman Ron Kim urged New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli to \u201caudit and release all information\u201d on $88 million worth of contracts between the state and Kivvit \u2014 a top public relations firm that also works with companies like Google, Citigroup, Tesla and Lyft and which employs former Gov. David Paterson.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">news<\/a> comes two weeks after The Post reported that Kivvit has been raking in millions from state deals that were not subject to pre-audits \u2014 and the attorney <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/general\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"3\" title=\"General\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">general<\/a>\u2019s investigation found that two ex-Cuomo employees who were then managing directors at the firm helped Cuomo \u201cdiscredit and disparage\u201d sexual harassment accuser Lindsey Boylan.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor the firm to be awarded such a lucrative sweetheart deal worth millions of dollars is beyond questionable,\u201d Kim told The Post of Kivvit. \u201cIf you were part of a shady deal to serve the governor and participated in illegal acts your company should im<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">media<\/a>tely be terminated and we should be clawing back any contracts.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized is-style-default\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-05.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-19190735\" width=\"618\" height=\"411\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-05.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1233 1236w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-05.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=925 927w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-05.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=618 618w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-05.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=308 309w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-05.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 618px) 100vw, 618px\"\/><figcaption>Even as Andrew Cuomo prepares to leave office, his allies in the business world are still facing fallout from his sexual misconduct scandal.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Matthew McDermott<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The two Kivvit managing directors named in the attorney general\u2019s investigation as having helped leak Boylan\u2019s confidential personnel files, Josh Vlasto and Rich Bamberger, were former Cuomo communications staffers.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The duo left Kivvit earlier this week, and the online bio of Kivvit managing partner Maggie Moran \u2014 who worked as Cuomo\u2019s 2018 campaign director but was not named in the attorney general\u2019s report \u2014 was quietly updated to remove all references to the disgraced governor.<\/p>\n<p>Kivvit\u2019s contracts with the state of New York include $85 million worth of ongoing media buying deals, which the company says bring in commissions of 4 to 10 percent.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The firm also has an ongoing $2 million consulting contract with the New York Department of Health \u2014 an agency that Kim and other lawmakers have said Cuomo arm-twisted into hiding thousands of nursing home coronavirus deaths.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-default\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-03.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-19190827\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-03.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-03.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-03.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Rich Bamberger (left) and Josh Vlasto (right) left their jobs as Kivvit managing directors earlier this week after the attorney general\u2019s investigation said they helped smear Cuomo accuser Lindsey Boylan.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Kivvit has said that Vlasto and Bamberger were acting in a \u201cpersonal capacity\u201d when they helped smear Boylan, and claimed that the state contracts were awarded after a competitive bidding process \u2014 but Kim, a Democrat from Queens, doesn\u2019t buy it.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt couldn\u2019t pass the smell test,\u201d Kim said. \u201cWhat\u2019s clear to anyone who\u2019s looking in from the outside is that this is the governor\u2019s inner circle of people who landed ludicrous contracts.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image is-style-default\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-nypost-small-post\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"231\" height=\"226\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-06.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=231\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-19190843\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-06.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=462 462w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-06.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=346 346w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-06.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=231 231w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-06.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=115 115w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-06.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 231px) 100vw, 231px\"\/><figcaption>Kivvit managing partner Maggie Moran worked as Cuomo\u2019s 2018 campaign manager.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Kivvit<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cIf there is even an inkling of corruption we need to immediately terminate the contract and possibly explore clawback clauses,\u201d added Kim, who faced a barrage of racist hate earlier this year after he called out Cuomo over the governor\u2019s handling of nursing homes during the pandemic. <\/p>\n<p>Kim said he would have not called for the audit if The Post hadn\u2019t uncovered Kivvit\u2019s state deals \u2014 and added the comptroller must release all details about the bidding process for the contracts the company won, including what other firms submitted bids for the contracts and why Kivvit was chosen.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe contracts referenced were competitively bid in a public, transparent process, and awarded in compliance with New York State Finance Law,\u201d a Kivvit spokesperson said Friday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have received the letter and are reviewing the request,\u201d said DiNapoli spokesperson Matthew Ryan.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Cuomo spokesperson Rich Azzopardi previously dismissed the idea that personal relationships helped Kivvit land contracts as \u201cthe dumbest thing I ever heard.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Vlasto and Bamberger were part of the governor\u2019s \u201cinner circle\u201d that helped coordinate the governor\u2019s response to sexual misconduct claims, according to the attorney general\u2019s investigation. The group also\u00a0included CNN host Chris Cuomo, former\u00a0Pete Buttigieg communications director Lis Smith,\u00a0Human Rights Campaign President Alphonso David\u00a0and\u00a0Facebook communications manager Dani Lever, among others.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-default\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-02.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-19190883\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-02.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-02.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-02.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli would handle the potential audit of Kivvit\u2019s deals with the state.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">David McGlynn<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Kim told The Post that Facebook and the Human Rights Campaign were failing to hold their employees accountable for helping the scandal-plagued governor \u2014 and called on Lever and David to be fired.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf these entities like Facebook and the Human Rights Campaign are smart about putting their mission and their goals ahead of protecting people like Cuomo employees, they should cut their ties,\u201d Kim said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>He said that \u201cat a minimum\u201d Facebook should hire an outside law firm to investigate Lever\u2019s role advising the governor \u2014 a step that was recently taken by the Human Rights Campaign.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Facebook and the Human Rights Campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment.\u00a0\n                        <\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more News articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2021\/08\/20\/cuomo-aligned-pr-firm-must-face-audit-over-ludicrous-state-contracts-lawmaker-says\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;#Cuomo-aligned PR firm must face audit over \u2018ludicrous\u2019 state contracts, lawmaker says&#8221; As Gov. Andrew Cuomo packs up and moves out of the Executive Mansion, a New York lawmaker is calling for an investigation into \u201cludicrous\u201d state contracts given to a public relations firm with close ties to the disgraced governor.\u00a0 In a letter released&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":328710,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/08\/cuomo-pr-firm-01.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=1024","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70897],"tags":[114591,70430,71972,113941,74534,71007],"class_list":["post-328709","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-8-20-21","tag-andrew-cuomo","tag-new-york-state-assembly","tag-ny-assembly","tag-public-relations","tag-scandals"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/328709","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=328709"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/328709\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/328710"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=328709"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=328709"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=328709"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}