Even big-government-hating Republicans have stopped cozying up to Wall Street. John Faso, the card-carrying conservative running for New York State comptroller, insists that he would use the power of his office to force reform on the Street. Furthermore, Faso asserts that the office’s current occupant, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Carl McCall, was tardy in cracking down on abuses. In July McCall said the $112 billion New York State Common Retirement Fund would no longer do business with money management firms and investment banks that allowed or even encouraged their investment banking needs to influence the work of their research analysts. “The fact is, a lot of these reforms have taken place after the implosion of these companies,” says Faso, onetime minority leader of the New York State Assembly and a close ally of Governor George Pataki. Still, Faso, who is facing off against former New York City comptroller Alan Hevesi, is quick to note that the health of the state’s economy is closely tied to a hearty financial services industry. “It is vitally important that we nurture that industry while at the same time insist on honesty in its dealings,” he says. “It’s a fine line to walk.”
