THE BROOKLYN MACHINE IS ALIVE AND WELL

Until Thursday of last week, Leo Beitner was a candidate for Kings County Surrogate.

Apparently, Beitner's momentum (and fundraising efforts here in New York County) posed a threat to Brooklyn politicos who strong-armed the guy into withdrawing from the race.

Earlier today, I received an e-mail from Michael Miller, a noted Trusts & Estates attorney, who had hosted an extremely successful fundraiser for Mr. Beitner on July 11, 2007.

The disappointment with the former candidate's decision is palpable. And, we wholeheartedly agree with the sentiments expressed in Miller's note. 

It's disheartening and disillusioning that dirty, backroom politicking still governs the borough.

By allowing "the machine" to select the next Surrogate, you've let us all down, Leo!

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Here's the text of Mr. Miller's note:

Dear Lucas:

I write to provide some insight into the circumstances surrounding Leo Beitner's withdrawal from the King's County Surrogate's Court race.

I received a call from Leo Beitner on Thursday evening, July 19, 2007. Leo then informed me that, although he had collected four times the number of signatures required to be on the ballot, the support which he expected from members of the Orthodox Jewish community and other constituencies did not coalesce and that he believed he could only be a "spoiler" in the race. 

To say that I was incredulous is an understatement.  

When asked what had happened since the time of the fundraiser on July 11, 2007, Leo really didn't have an answer for me, other than to state that he no longer believed that he could win the primary.  I informed him that it was hard for me to understand how, just a few days earlier, he and his campaign manager had expressed such passionate optimism to his supporters at the fundraiser, but he repeated that he no longer believed he could win the primary. He did state that it was his belief that political pressures exerted by the Brooklyn Democratic machine had persuaded the leaders of the Orthodox Jewish community to refrain from supporting him, and without that support, he no longer believed he could win. 

When asked what had changed between July 11 and July 19, he again had no answer. The ugly reality, however, is that "the machine" won.

As far as the refunding of campaign contributions is concerned, the former candidate told me that once his campaign has completed its financial record-keeping, and paid its outstanding expenses, his contributors would be receiving pro-rata refunds. Under the circumstances, it is my hope that the campaign will refund, in full, every contribution received. Obviously, however, that outcome is solely in Leo's control.

I welcome your phone call or email, but should you have any questions regarding Leo's decision to withdraw, about a refund of your contribution, or anything else concerning the campaign, you may contact Leo directly at ***@aol.com or (718) ***-****.

While these developments were disheartening, I appreciated your most generous support of this effort. 

Very truly yours,

Michael Miller