Would-Be Spitzer Successor Takes HF Heat

New York Attorney General candidate Andrew Cuomo is facing criticism for putting his campaign funds in a hedge fund.

New York Attorney General candidate Andrew Cuomo is facing criticism for putting his campaign funds in a hedge fund. It’s not that the Democrat made a bad investment – the campaign’s $750,000 with EnTrust Capital Partners earned 19%, or another $143,047 to spend, in less than a year. Some are questioning the ethics of investing donor bucks with a hedge fund, while others say the investment is just a way to skirt campaign contribution limits. “There’s no way to know what’s going on with a hedge fund,” Fred Wertheimer of Democracy 21 tells The New York Times. “The candidate knows, and the hedge fund manager knows, but the public doesn’t.” Cuomo – who boasts a double-digit lead in polls over his Republican opponent – has his own dough with EnTrust, and EnTrust officials have donated nearly $200,000 to Cuomo’s campaigns. Wendy Katz, a Cuomo spokeswoman, told the Times that “the rationale for investing campaign funds in a hedge fund is the same rationale employed by nonprofits, universities, state and city public pension funds and charitable foundations for investing in hedge funds, which is to grow the asset and maximize returns.”