Golden's Attempted Coup of Brooklyn GOP Fails

Warming up a crowd for Senator Golden - back when he was a Republican.

As many of you know by now, State Senator Martin Golden (R?) attempted a hostile takeover of the Brooklyn GOP (Kings County Republican Executive Committee) by suing the current duly elected members of that organization, of which I am the Secretary.

But before we get into what led us down this road, some background is necessary.

My Introduction To Politics

I started my political life in 2005. After returning home from a tour of duty in Iraq with the U.S. Army, I decided to become a candidate for City Council in district 47 (Coney Island/Gravesend) and run against incumbent Domenic Recchia. My team and I qualified for the city's Campaign Finance Matching Funds Program and I wound up getting 31% of the vote. My surprising results put me on the party's radar and it wasn't long until I was asked to serve as a Republican State Committeeman (AD47) after the candidate (Thomas Stoppini) dropped from the race. I served as the Male State Committeeman from 2005 until I was drawn out of my own Assembly District by less that 6 houses in 2012.

Around the same time I ran for City Council, I interned at Senator Golden's district office and was eventually hired for a part-time community liaison position. I had always admired Mr. Golden. Being a Republican in Brooklyn is tough and he seemed to be a decent enough guy.

Through the years, I was a "good soldier" sent into battle in various ways to defend Sen. Golden against both political and personal attacks. Looking back, I question whether my own loyalty and political naivety blinded me to the truth of what Sen. Golden and those closest to him were really doing.

For years, he faced little (mostly no) challenges to his election/reelection. Rumors of backroom deals were always present. In many districts where Republicans could run competitive races, no Republican ever made the ballot, and in some cases the Democrats ran on both the Republican and Democratic ballot lines.  This never sat well with me.  

The Eaton Era

In 2007, along came Craig Eaton. As Chairman of the Brooklyn GOP, he made running Republican candidates and growing the county party his top priorities. Under his leadership, every southern Brooklyn election district (the only part of the borough where Republicans actually live in numbers significant to change the course of elections) had a Republican running for some public office. Together, we won two Special Elections- Bob Turner for Congress & David Storobin for the NY State Senate.

I also came to (briefly) know Tim Cochrane, or at least become peripherally aware of him, when he interviewed to run for that Congressional seat - even though he lived nowhere near the district. Mr. Cochrane also unsuccessfully ran for Congress as a CONSERVATIVE for the seat vacated by Republican Vito Fossella against Bob Straniere, which basically handed Democrat Michael McMahon an election that Republicans can and do win (Michael Grimm is currently in that seat).

In the case of David Storobin's victory, it was Craig Eaton, Gene Berardelli, myself, and other Brooklyn GOP Executive Committee members not associated with Sen. Golden that fought to get him on the ballot and win a recount/court battle. All along, Senator Golden made it clear to insiders like me that he favored a Democrat for the seat named Simcha Felder. But we pushed for Storobin - and he won. 

Golden's Sabotage

While the Storobin campaign was building momentum, Marty Golden and the Senate Republicans royally screwed him and us over. Golden participated in the redistricting process and voted for new lines that wiped away all of the electoral progress Chairman Eaton and the Brooklyn GOP made. Golden, assisted by his chief of staff and Brooklyn Conservative Party chairman Gerry Kassar, drew a plum district for their favored Democrat colleague Felder, who was elected in the newly drawn district in 2012.  Some would say that Kassar even sabotaged Storobin by assisting Felder in a write-in primary for the Conservative line, though I have no proof either confirming or denying that.  

As for Congressman Bob Turner's seat - it was just eliminated because the legislature could not decide on the new lines.  Golden barely put up a fight for our newly elected Congressman, but we in the Brooklyn GOP did.  Within 72 hours of the NYS Convention, Chairman Eaton garnered enough support to get Congressman Turner on the ballot for the U.S. Senate.  Golden & Kassar were nowhere to be found on that primary - they apparently supported Wendy Long over a Brooklyn Republican elected official (who ended up getting blown out in the general election)

But even through this, I was a "good soldier", still petitioning for Senator Golden to get him on the ballot, still supporting him.  Even when he came to a Young Republicans meeting and insulted me by publicly accusing me of not pulling my weight for David Storobin - the same David Storobin he had sandbagged -  I kept my mouth shut and did my job, delivering the 47th AD portion of Storobin's district.

Friendship Be Damned - And Open War

Like me, Eaton was a Golden friend and political supporter for years.  He donated tens of thousands of dollars.  He spoke at every event in superlatives about Marty.  He oversaw the collection of many thousands of signatures to see that Golden made the ballot. He went on TV even touting him for Mayor in late 2012!

But Golden couldn't stand having a Brooklyn GOP chairman that looked at the big picture - building a party - instead of focusing solely on Marty. Golden wanted a puppet.  Eaton is no one's puppet.  So when Golden's team lost his home neighborhood of Bay Ridge to a Democrat neophyte, Marty decided the time was ripe for a takeover.  

So in 2013, Golden (undoubtedly advised by his staff- many of whom are not Republicans) took the road more traveled in politics - stabbing friends in the back. He used political influence to coax City Council Republicans (all 3 of them - none from Brooklyn) to put a Golden puppet - Simon Shamoun - in as Brooklyn BOE Republican Commissioner.  Then, with Chairman Eaton mourning the death of his sister, Marty Golden leaked a story that Chairman Eaton was the mysterious "Chairman No. 1" named in the indictment of party officials connected to Senator Malcolm Smith.  He wasn't, of course.

After that, there was no going back.

Marty backed Joe Lhota for mayor and Tim Cochrane for Brooklyn GOP chair, while Eaton backed long-time supporter of the Brooklyn GOP, John Catsimatidis. The mayoral candidates worked to a virtual tie in Brooklyn on Primary Day and Cochrane lost handily to Eaton at the Brooklyn GOP convention soon thereafter. Lhota went on to receive less than 25% of the vote in a city that had elected republicans to run this city for the last 20 years!

Cochrane went on to be an unnamed party in a lawsuit against the elected Brooklyn GOP members (along with Golden) and failed miserably.

What Now?

The question must be asked: Why, Senator Golden?  Why?

For me, the answer is clear. Look at Golden's public actions:  Golden voted against the 2nd Amendment, held secret meetings with Democrats- the most recent exposed (again) by his own incompetent staff with Mayor de Blasio, and supports tax hikes to fund Governor Cuomo's universal Pre-K / public baby-sitting scheme.

Golden believes that only liberals can hold office in Brooklyn.

Although he says he is conservative, Golden believes that his own electoral victories came from giving people things (women's etiquette classes, free paper shredding events, etc.), not because of his political views or voting record. More importantly, Golden believes that cutting his own deals with local Democrats is the only way to hold his seat - because his seat is what matters, NOT building the Republican Party.

Golden walks like a Democrat, talks like a Democrat and thinks like a Democrat.

I am committed to continuing this blog to chronicle the past and current behavior of Senator Golden and those closest to him, and I will support a principled Republican candidate in a primary contest against Golden that I and others will actively seek out.

In the meantime, enjoy the decision of the Honorable Judge Schmidt below. I know I did.

Decision - Matter of Rudiano, et. al., v. Eaton, et. al. by Gene Berardelli