Dem Committee Tries to Address Golub/O’Neill Cases

In the days before their Saturday, November 16, 2024, meeting, the members of the Saratoga Springs Democratic Committee received the following email: a proposal for a resolution addressing the criminal charges being brought against former Public Works Commissioner Jason Golub, a Democrat, and current Public Works Deputy Joe O’Neill, a Republican.

Upon hearing that this resolution was passed by the Committee, my first reaction was that this was a temperate and thoughtful resolution and a welcome change from the toxic comments from Democratic Accounts Commissioner Dillon Moran, which were repeated on the Democratic Committee Facebook page. Moran had repeatedly wrongly accused Public Safety Commissioner Tim Coll and the Saratoga Springs Police Department of engaging in a racially motivated vendetta against Golub.

Unfortunately, not everyone on the Democratic Committee, including Dillon Moran and members of the leadership, supports this resolution.

The History

As described in an earlier post, the city Democratic Committee posted a shrill attack on Tim Coll and the police on their Facebook page, prompted by the misdemeanor charges against Jason Golub and Joe O’Neill for allegedly using city employees and resources to do work on private property—in the case of Golub, it was his home. The Democrat’s Facebook page claimed the accusations against Golub and O’Neill were motivated by “revenge and racism,” ignoring, among other things, that the case had originated in the New York State Comptroller’s Office and that O’Neill is white. One Committee member commented that she thought the charges were “petty.”

That prompted Republican chair Mike Brandi to write, “To be clear here, it’s the official position of the Saratoga Springs Democrats that you are ok with city officials having city employees do work on their private homes on city time with city property?“

Otis Maxwell, who chairs the city Democratic Committee and manages its Facebook page, never answered Brandi’s question but blocked further comments instead.

The Resolution

Upon learning that the committee had adopted the resolution, my first response was hopeful. As I read it, rather than make harsh speculative accusations that implied that the charges were driven by racism and some kind of alleged grudge, they appropriately urged that the public consider the two men innocent pending actions by the court and affirmed in the strongest terms that any use by public officials of city resources for personal use is illegal and wrong.

I welcomed what I hoped would be the committee’s long-needed shift toward a disciplined and civil approach to future political engagement.

Hopes Dashed

Unfortunately, as reflected by their Facebook page, the committee’s leadership subverted this welcome development.

Otis Maxwell, the committee’s chair and the moderator of the Facebook page, simply added a “note” to the toxic post stating that the committee does not condone the use of public resources for private gain by elected officials. He left the reckless attacks untouched.

I wrote to Maxwell to ask if he would post the resolution in its entirety, but he has not responded.

Likewise, Commissioner Moran ignored his party’s sentiments expressed in the resolution when he once again, this time at the Council table, belittled the charges against Golub and O’Neill for using city workers and materials to resolve a plumbing issue in Golub’s private home. In this video from the November 19, 2024, council meeting, Moran describes the case as being about “criminalizing Draino.”

The Good And The Bad

The resolution is a modest statement that simply asserts what is traditionally accepted as the core of our justice system: that people accused of a crime should be considered innocent until proven guilty and that it is improper for public officials to utilize government resources for personal use.

While I applaud the authors of this resolution and the committee members who voted for it, I am struck by the fact that a significant number of committee members either abstained or voted against it. Among them was Dillon Moran.

I only wish I had been present to have heard the arguments against this resolution.

Digging Down

While I was surprised by this resolution, considering the committee’s recent history offers some insight into its possible roots.

The committee wanted the special election to fill Golub’s vacancy, which would occur on November 5 to coincide with the national election. Given the dominance of Democrats in the city enrollment, it was assumed that any Democrat would have been elected on the coattails of Kamala Harris.

Unfortunately for them, Jason Golub refused to resign in time for a replacement to appear on the ballot despite numerous attempts to convince him to do so. I am told that he stopped taking telephone calls from the committee’s leadership and ignored their texts and emails.

My sources tell me there is considerable bitterness toward Golub among many committee members.

I am also told that many of the committee members dislike Dillon Moran despite Chairman Otis Maxwell being very close to Moran. As the readers of this blog will know, Moran has been both outspoken and toxic in his defense of Golub, who has been a loyal ally of Moran. Readers may recall Golub was a key vote in paying Moran’s $1,250.00 an hour lawyer. Moran also has a bitter history of conflict with Ron Kim, one of the resolution’s drafters, when they served together on the previous City Council.

These internal dynamics in the committee may have contributed to the resolution’s success.

It is unclear whether the resolution will impact Maxwell, which means that the committee’s Facebook page and weekly newsletter will continue what has become a regrettable tradition of hyper-partisanship and ugly attacks.