[Mb-civic] Nominee's Withdrawal Could Taint Giuliani

[Michael Butler]

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-kerick14dec14.story

Nominee's Withdrawal Could Taint Giuliani

The former New York mayor may be hurt politically by the failed candidacy of
Kerik, who reportedly had more than a nanny problem.
 By Josh Getlin
 Times Staff Writer

 December 14, 2004

 NEW YORK ‹ As local newspapers reported a series of new allegations against
Bernard Kerik, New York political observers suggested Monday that he hadn't
withdrawn his nomination as Homeland Security secretary solely because of a
nanny problem. 

 And Democrats and Republicans predicted that former Mayor Rudolph W.
Giuliani, who had pushed Kerik's candidacy with members of the Bush
administration, would take the greatest political heat for the failed
nomination.

 Over the last two days, the media reported that Kerik, one-time head of the
city's corrections department who was police commissioner on Sept. 11,
allegedly had helped a mob-linked Staten Island firm win a city sanitation
contract. 

 Other stories suggested that he had failed to disclose thousands of dollars
in gifts as required by city law and that he had carried on extramarital
affairs with two women, including Judith Regan, a prominent editor who
published Kerik's autobiography.

 "People are going to wonder, how could the [former] mayor not have known
that Kerik had all these problems?" asked Nelson Warfield, a GOP consultant.
"It adds up to a highly embarrassing development for Giuliani, especially
with other Republicans."

 At the White House, however, officials said the failed nomination would not
affect Bush's relationship with Giuliani, who campaigned for the president
and has been a strong supporter.

 "Absolutely not," White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan said. "In
fact, they are very good friends." The press secretary noted that Giuliani
had offered an apology to the president when the two had dinner Sunday
night, adding: "I don't think the president felt that one was necessary."

 Giuliani did not comment on the controversy Monday. But his spokeswoman,
Sunny Mindel, said that during the White House dinner, which had been
planned several weeks ago, "the president was very graciousŠ. They remain
good friends."

 Kerik withdrew his nomination Friday evening, saying that he had discovered
that his family had hired an illegal immigrant to take care of his children.
He explained that he had learned this when filling out forms for the
confirmation process, and immediately decided to withdraw his nomination.

 "What trash talk," former Mayor Edward I. Koch said in an online
commentary. "Most people who can afford a nanny know what questions to ask
if she is able to legally work in the U.S. Even if he were not the smartest
cop on the beat, and Giuliani appointed him police commissioner, he had to
know it was illegal on his part not to pay Social Security taxes on her
employment."

 On Monday, Kerik made a brief appearance outside his Times Square office,
where he works for Giuliani's security consulting firm. He asked the media
to leave his family out of the burgeoning news coverage.

 "For my family, this is a difficult time," he said. "We have seen things
written and heard things, sort of unbearable things Š you know, some true,
some not true, accurate, inaccurate.

 "If you want to attack me, attack me," he said. "But don't attack my
family. Don't chase people down the street near my house."

 The new allegations, published in the New York Daily News and the New York
Times, were the product of investigations begun before Bush nominated Kerick
earlier this month for the domestic security post.

 The News reported on Sunday that Kerik allegedly received and failed to
disclose thousands of dollars in cash and other gifts while he was New York
City police commissioner.

 As the city's corrections chief in the late 1990s, Kerik allegedly
interceded with the city's Trade Waste Commission to get a license for a
company suspected of having mob connections, according to reports in the
Daily News and the New York Times.

 On Monday, the Daily News also alleged that Kerik had carried on two
extramarital affairs ‹ one with Regan, the other with Jeanette Pinero, a
city corrections officer. The paper said that Kerik had met with the two
women in a Battery Park apartment rented for such purposes.

 Kerik's lawyer, Joseph Tacopina, said Monday that his client had done
nothing illegal, but declined to speak about Kerik's personal life. Tacopina
did say that Kerik and Regan in the past had denied having an affair.

 On Monday, Kerik acknowledged a relationship with Pinero, but said it
happened when he was not married. Regan was traveling Monday and had no
comment, according to a spokeswoman. Pinero could not be reached for
comment.

 And late Monday, Newsday reported that a background check found Kerik had a
former marriage that he apparently kept secret for the last 20 years.

 Giuliani continued to stress Monday that Kerik was obliged to withdraw his
nomination because of the nanny issue. The housekeeper, who has not been
identified, left the country several weeks ago, Kerik has said.

 Several observers said that the nanny issue clearly wasn't Kerik's only
problem.

 "It's impossible to believe this was all about a nanny," said Mike Long,
chairman of the New York State Conservative Party. "According to what's
coming out in the papers now, finances weren't disclosed, and there were
personal indiscretions."

 The worst fallout, he suggested, may be for Giuliani. The former mayor
already has taken positions, including his support for abortion rights and
pro-immigration policies, that many conservative Republicans do not support,
Long said. 

 "The fallout from Kerik only adds to this problem," Long said.


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