News
Wilson: Capitol Confidential
Sep 03, 2010
The timing here is surely not coincidental, but it’s interesting nonetheless: GOP Comptroller Candidate Harry Wilson — hours before incumbent Dem Tom DiNapoli will announce the latest pension fund numbers and the expected return — is out with a report that predicts a dire future for the fund as well as New York State’s taxpayers, who are obligated by the state constitution to pay public sector pensions, regardless of how the fund does.
Wilson, a Wall Streeter who served on President Barack Obama’s task force to rescue General Motors, charges that the state’s fund is a “Ponzi scheme” that will implode as it becomes apparent in future years that it can’t spin off 8 percent annually, which is the current assumed rate of return (which DiNapoli is expected to lower during an 11 am news conference).
State Pension Fund Faces Shortfall, Candidate Says
Sep 02, 2010
NYT - Every year, New York State issues a report that depicts its pension fund at the peak of health — not a penny short of what it needs to pay retirees their benefits. In some years, the report even shows a little surplus.
But now a Republican candidate for state comptroller, Harry J. Wilson, says those rosy numbers are little more than an accounting illusion. In fact, the pension fund is papering over a shortfall in the tens of billions of dollars, says Mr. Wilson, who has an M.B.A. from Harvard.
Republicans want control of N.Y.’s government
Aug 31, 2010
BROADALBIN - Area Republicans heard from candidates urging them to support fellow Republicans in the polls and push to take back the Democratic-controlled state government at the annual Fulton County Republican Party picnic and rally at Mary Ann’s Restaurant on Sunday.
Organizers said about 100 people attended the picnic, where candidates for several seats lobbied for their support. Fulton County Republican Chairwoman Sue McNeil said all of the candidates will be expected to keep their promises and account for their actions.
Wilson presses DiNapoli for debate
Aug 27, 2010
Carl Paladino isn’t the only Republican candidate in New York anxious to debate his opponent.
Former hedge-fund manager and Scarsdale, Westchester County, resident Harry Wilson today pressed Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli to agree to a debate before the November election.
RE: Rising pension costs: That didn’t take long
Aug 23, 2010
Republican Comptroller candidate Harry Wilson, who is seeking to replace Democrat Tom DiNapoli in the job wasted no time in blasting his opponent for news that the state pension fund would likely lower its rate of return, meaning that municipalities, school districts and other entitities the following year will have to increase their pension contributions.
To be fair, other states have already looking at lowered pension fund return estimates from the 8 percent now used in New York to 7.5 percent or 7.75 percent.
Either way, here is Wilson’s statement:
Phillips Welcomes Harry Wilson to Spiedie Fest
Aug 18, 2010
From Phillips For Congress:
George Phillips, candidate for Congress in New York’s 22nd congressional district, will be hosting a booth at Spiedie Fest this year. George will welcome Harry Wilson, GOP nominee and candidate for Comptroller, on Friday August 6, 2010 at 3pm. Mr. Wilson will meet with and take questions from voters and the media. He will also discuss the role of Comptroller in New York State, his plans to reform the office and his campaign to unseat Democrat Thomas DiNapoli.
Harry Wilson Pension Concerns
Aug 16, 2010
(newschannel34.com) Republican candidate for New York State Comptroller, Harry Wilson says some Southern Tier residents are going to be socked with what he calls the DiNapoli tax. Wilson, who most recently served on the auto industry crisis federal task force team, was recently in Binghamton outlining his concerns.
Wilson says over the next six years the pension contributions of state and local governments will roughly triple and as a result the average New York household will see its share of pension contribution costs skyrocket by $1,300. Currently, the average is $500 and Wilson says they will increase to $1,800 per household. He says the reason is due to a secretive pension borrowing scheme to mask an under-performing pension fund, which state comptroller Tom DiNapoli is in charge of.
Gomez Stands With Harry Wilson Against $1,300 Property-Tax Increase
Aug 12, 2010
Hauppauge, NY – Local businessman John Gomez (left), Republican/Conservative candidate for New York’s 2nd congressional district, is seen here standing at a recent press conference with Harry Wilson, New York’s Republican candidate for Comptroller. The press conference was held to protest the “DiNapoli Tax,” a budgetary quick-fix that will increase Long Islanders’ property tax $1,300 over the next six years.
If We’re Both In Rochester, Let’s Debate, Wilson Says
Aug 11, 2010
Rochester is the hotbed for state comptroller’s race today as both Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli and his Republican challenger Harry Wilson are in town. To read more, click below.
Wilson Raises Off DiNapoli “Pop Quiz” Answers
Aug 05, 2010
(PoltickerNY) Harry Wilson is out with a fundraising email entitled “Back To School” that cites two tabloid stories that question Democratic Comptroller Tom DiNapoli’s financial acumen.
In the first, The Post tries to revive a pop quiz that they sprung on DiNapoli three days after he was named to the office by his Assembly colleagues. The reporter asked the Comptroller again what an inverted yield curve was—for the record, it’s a term for economic condiditions that can herald a recession—and he declined to answer.
Candidate for Comptroller Harry Wilson Meets with Orthodox Union Leadership
Aug 04, 2010
Harry Wilson, Republican nominee for New York State Comptroller, met today with leadership from the Orthodox Union (union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America), the nation’s largest Orthodox Jewish umbrella organization in Manhattan to discuss the community’s public policy priorities.
Jul 28, 2010
Two state comptroller race-related e-mails arrived in my in-box this morning within a 10-minute span.
The first, with the subject line “Now is the Time!” came from the Democratic incumbent, Tom DiNapoli. It’s a fundraising appeal, and it’s pretty straightforward:
Dear Friends,
There are 96 days to go until Election Day! In this short time, I will be hard at work traveling our great state, continuing to promote fiscal responsibility, accountability in government, and economic opportunity. I am eager to share my platform with New Yorkers, from Buffalo to Brookhaven. But, I need your help!”
As we gear up our field operations and our advertising efforts at DiNapoli 2010, it is crucial that we build resources. Please make a donation to the campaign today, to ensure that we can reach every voter in New York State. With your support, we will achieve victory this November and deliver the reform that New Yorkers deserve.
Best regards,
Tom DiNapoli
To read more of the news release, click here.
Comptroller Candidate Accuses DiNapoli of Pension Fund Abuse
Jul 27, 2010
Republican Harry J. Wilson showed an early indication Monday of the hard-hitting campaign for state comptroller he plans this year after calling incumbent Democrat Thomas J. DiNapoli’s management of the state pension fund “the largest Ponzi scheme in New York State history.” To read more of this Buffalo News story, click below.
Jul 15, 2010
On Monday Harry issued a detailed statement outlining the failures of the Wall Street Reform Bill. Instead of issuing threats, like that of unelected candidate, DiNapoli, Harry addressed the issue with real concerns that the bill will hurt an industry that serves as the main economic engine for both the city and the state.
Read the full story from Capital Tonight.
Jul 12, 2010
Comptroller candidate Harry Wilson, has unveiled ethical reforms to clean up the Comptroller’s office. To read an article about his ethics proposals, take a look below. Also, you can read the ethics white paper in its entirety here.
Wilson challenges DiNapoli to debate on pension
Jun 16, 2010
Republican comptroller candidate and Scarsdale, Westchester County, resident Harry Wilson this morning challenged incumbent Democrat Thomas DiNapoli to a debate on his handling of the state’s pension fund.
Comptroller Backflips on Pension Borrowing
Jun 15, 2010
State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli is trying some political acrobatics as he voices opposition to the tentative deal reached by state leaders last week to borrow billions of dollars from the state pension fund.
Watching The Watchmen
Jun 14, 2010
Republican state comptroller candidate Harry Wilson wants a no-holds- barred debate with incumbent Democrat Tom DiNapoli “in every statewide media market” through Election Day.
Controversial Pension Plan Could Sink State Controller Tom DiNapoli
Jun 14, 2010
Wilson, the GOP candidate, said borrowing from the pension fund to cover pension costs would be a “perverse situation where the controller is reversing his historical role of defending the pension fund at all costs.” He called the plan a “purely naked political attempt to raid the pension fund to cover up for [DiNapoli’s] performance shortfall.”
State Plan Makes Fund Both Borrower and Lender
Jun 12, 2010
ALBANY — Gov. David A. Paterson and legislative leaders have tentatively agreed to allow the state and municipalities to borrow nearly $6 billion to help them make their required annual payments to the state pension fund.
And, in classic budgetary sleight-of-hand, they will borrow the money to make the payments to the pension fund — from the same pension fund.
As word of the plan spread, some denounced it as a shell game and a blatant effort by state leaders to avoid making difficult decisions, like cutting government spending or reducing pension benefits.
“It’s a classic Albany example of kicking the can down the road,” said Harry Wilson, the Republican candidate for comptroller, who holds an M.B.A. from Harvard.
DiNapoli Gets Hit Twice
Jun 11, 2010
“Mr. DiNapoli took his recent flip-flops and acts of hypocrisy to new lows today, when he reversed his own pledge to limit campaign contributions. We have come to expect Mr. DiNapoli to deny his spendthrift 23- year record in a vain effort to pretend to be a reformer, but reversing a self-made pledge that is only a few months old is a new low, even for a career politician like Mr. DiNapoli.
A zebra can’t change its stripes and Mr. DiNapoli cannot fool voters into thinking he’s anything but a typical politician.”
Wilson: Bring It, DiNapoli
Jun 08, 2010
GOP State Comptroller hopeful Harry Wilson just threw down this gauntlet before incumbent Democrat Tom DiNapoli, challenging him to debates in every major media market across the state between now and Election Day:
“New York taxpayers have been badly burned by the current leadership in Albany and they need to hear what the two state comptroller candidates plan to do about it,” Mr. Wilson said. “Our taxpayers are supposed to have a chief fiscal watchdog overlooking state budgets, so how is it possible that we are in the shape we are in? Mr. DiNapoli probably doesn’t want to answer questions like that, but it his obligation to the voters of this state to make himself available to them.”
Wilson Says DiNapoli Is Using Fuzzy Math On Pension Fund
Jun 03, 2010
Republican comptroller candidate Harry Wilson is taking an opposing view of Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli’s announcement earlier this week that the state pension fund grew by nearly 26 percent in the past fiscal year.
Wilson, who won the GOP nomination unanimously on Tuesday, said the $133 billion fund is actually down for the past three years, after a 26.3 percent drop in the 2008-09 fiscal year. Wilson said DiNapoli has estimated an 8 percent return in the fund each year, but the fund has fallen short of those projections by $40 billion.
“DiNapoli is digging a hole not for himself, but for the State of New York and all of us taxpayers who are on the hook to bail out our pension fund when it can no longer afford to cover promised benefits to its more than one million retirees and beneficiaries,” Wilson said in a press release.
The fund’s losses has coincided with the declines on Wall Street in recent years, but benefited from the recent uptick in the stock market.
Wilson charged that DiNapoli has assumed more risk in the state’s portfolio “than is prudent.”
There was no immediate response from DiNapoli’s campaign.
GOP Nominates Harry Wilson for NY Comptroller
Jun 01, 2010
NEW YORK (AP) - New York’s Republican Party has nominated former hedge fund manager Harry Wilson to run for state comptroller against incumbent Democrat Thomas DiNapoli.
GOP State Convention Opens
Jun 01, 2010
Republicans have largely agreed on candidates for attorney general and comptroller. Harry Wilson, a hedge fund manager from Westchester County, is running unopposed against Comptroller Tom DiNapoli, and Staten Island District Attorney Dan Donovan is running for attorney general with only a nominal challenge from Onondaga County Comptroller Bob Antonacci.
“The choices that will be made over the next four years will be difficult, and it’s critically important to the progression of our state. And that’s why I think it’s incredibly important we get the right people in place,” said Wilson. “Certainly all the parties—Republicans, Democrats and Conservatives—have faced contentious primary processes before. ... And I think the (GOP) has shown an ability to unify around the standard-bearer after that—but certainly the sooner and more quickly that gets done, the easier it is to do.”
Conservative Party
May 28, 2010
In the races for attorney general, comptroller and governor, Conservatives seem pretty clear who their candidates will be: Dan Donovan, Harry Wilson and Rick Lazio.
Wilson Clinches GOP Nod
May 27, 2010
Wilson is the one bright spot for Republicans, who are warring over every other statewide slot on their ballot.
He’s the only candidate for whom state Conservative Party Chairman Mike Long and state GOP Chairman Ed Cox have been able to put aside their differences and join together to endorse.
May 21, 2010
Harry recently had another article written on his qualifications to become the next New York State Comptroller. Here’s an excerpt from the article:
“Wilson, a political newcomer, was in town Monday to receive the endorsement of Erie County Republicans but spent part of his day off the campaign trail at GM’s Town of Tonawanda engine plant.
‘GM went through a near-death experience last year,’ Wilson said after his visit to the plant. ‘That’s the experience New York State is going to face unless we bite the bullet now.’”
Tioga County GOP Endorses Wilson
May 12, 2010
‘The Tioga County Republican Committee today endorsed restructuring expert Harry J. Wilson (R) for New York State comptroller.
‘Harry Wilson has tremendous skills to bring to bear on New York’s State’s fiscal mess,” said Tioga County Republican Chairman Don Leonard. “His work revitalizing General Motors was nothing short of extraordinary. New York taxpayers need his restructuring expertise working for them.’
Harry Wilson: The Great GOP Hope
May 10, 2010
‘As Republican Comptroller candidate Harry Wilson sat answering questions at his campaign office in Manhattan, he strained to speak over an old air conditioner whining in the background. The walls of the small office were almost completely bare and the skeletal space contained few amenities beyond an odd desk or chairs. Despite the racket caused by the air conditioner, the place was brutally hot.’
‘At least in his campaign office, the former hedge fund manager does not look like the fat cat caricature that Comptroller Tom DiNapoli’s campaign would like to project on him.’
Orange County GOP Chairman Endorses Wilson
May 06, 2010
Recently Harry has received many endorsements from all over New York State. One endorsement this week came from Orange County Republican Chairman William DeProspo. In his endorsement of Harry, Mr. DeProspo said, “Harry Wilson stepped forward to help the federal government when it needed a top-notch restructuring expert to save General Motors; now he’s stepping forward to help New York State government work through a terrible fiscal crisis.”
DiNapoli’s Focus is on Sears, Not State Budget
May 03, 2010
In a Wall Street Journal article today, New York State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli voices his opinion on Sears’ CEO troubles. DiNapoli owns stock in the company, however, he is using his public position as a means to gain influence in a company that he benefits from when it does well. It has become clear that by publicly getting involved with Sears’ company business, DiNapoli is diverting his attention from the state budget to matters that benefit only his own wallet.
Wilson Receives Conservative Nod
Apr 22, 2010
At a meeting of the State Executive Committee of the New York State Conservative Party, a resolution was passed to recommend Harry Wilson for State Comptroller at the Spring Convention. Here is an excerpt from the article:
‘Chairman Mike Long noted that the leaders of the party were wholeheartedly on board with Mr. Wilson. Mr. Wilson brings a wealth of experience from the financial world, wit expertise in determine how to fix problems, particularly rooting out waste and inefficiencies Most voters focus on the top of the ticket, so it is important for voters to know that the comptroller candidate has the background necessary to manage the State’s assets,” said Long. “Harry Wilson will be able to draw on his experiences, especially from being able to negotiate with the members of the President’s Auto Task Force. As a fiscal conservative who believes in free markets, Harry wanted a say in how the auto bailout plan was administered. Harry Wilson was the right man then for that position and is the right man to be the sole trustee of New York’s retirement funds,” concluded Long.’
A Candidate Makes An Asset Of His Wall Street Past
Apr 19, 2010
ALBANY — Harry Wilson, a former hedge fund manager, has a novel idea for New Yorkers. Why not put a Wall Street veteran in the state comptroller’s office to oversee the $129.4 billion pension fund?
Certainly, the recent history of the comptroller’s office under career politicians has been undistinguished and dotted with corruption, scandal and resignations in disgrace.
Wilson Campaign Uses DiNapoli’s Report Against Him
Apr 05, 2010
You just knew this one was coming.
A Democrat called me in the wake of state Comptroller Tom DiNapoli’s report earlier this morning that accused the state of playing budget games and moving money around to make it harder to pinpoint the actual dollar amount of the deficit.
“How many of those budgets did Tom DiNapoli vote for when he was in the Assembly?” the indignant Dem demanded.
Long And Cox Call Temporary Truce For Wilson
Apr 01, 2010
State GOP Chairman Ed Cox and state Conservative Party Chairman Mike Long, who are warring over the governor’s race, put their differences aside today to unite behind the lone Republican state comptroller hopeful, Harry Wilson.
When I asked the chairs why Wilson is the only candidate they have been able to agree on, Wilson, who referred to his Democratic opponent, incumbent Tom DiNapoli, as “the appointed comptroller,” stepped up the microphone and quipped: “I’m that good.”
Bronx GOP Endorses Wilson
Mar 22, 2010
Bronx County Republican Chairman Joseph Savino today endorsed Harry J. Wilson for New York State comptroller.
“The experience and credentials Harry Wilson will bring to the comptroller’s office is a breath of fresh air,” said Savino. “We have a failure of leadership in Albany and Harry is exactly the kind of professional we need to overhaul state government. The Bronx Republican Party is proud to support him.”
An Interview With Harry Wilson
Mar 19, 2010
A veteran of the Obama administration’s auto task force doesn’t, on the face of it, seem the most likely candidate for comptroller in New York state – at least on the Republican side.
“So far, every free market guy has been skeptical when we start talking,” the candidate, Harry Wilson, tells me over lunch at a Greek restaurant in Midtown Manhattan. None of them, he says, have still been skeptical when he is done talking.
GOP Comptroller Candidate Attacks Ravitch Deficit Plan
Mar 12, 2010
Republican Harry J. Wilson hasn’t generated a whole lot of attention in his young campaign for state comptroller, but Lt.Gov. Richard Ravitch’s new deficit reduction plan, which hinges on $6 billion worth of borrowing, now grants him the bulliest of pulpits to criticize what he calls Albany’s overspending ways.
Red Tide 2010?
Feb 21, 2010
By the end of 2008, the Republican Party seemed to be in disarray. That year, Democrats took control of the New York State Senate for the first time in more than four decades. Barack Obama was elected President, and his party had bolstered its majority in Congress. For a moment, anything was possible for the Democrats.
Then 2009 happened.