When people have such long and storied careers, it’s almost sad to think that in just one quick moment, it can all simply disappear in an instant.
It’s even sadder to think that a career of such epic proportions can be pulled underwater by the weight of multiple ethical and legal woes that were hiding in plain sight.
Former Assemblyman Steven Englebright (D-Setauket) was an Albany mainstay for thirty years who was viewed as the chief counsel and legislator on all things environmental. From conservation, ecology and geology, protection of coastal waterways, and even pledges to green energy, Steve Englebright had his finger in every pot.
Like him or not, Englebright did have some fairly large claims to fame, even if some didn’t pan out. Of dubious note, and as reported on in The Messenger, is that of his 2013 bill to ban hydro-fracking New York State, while at the same time investing in oil and natural gas fracking ventures in Kansas and Texas. Perhaps the practice was simply so damaging to the environment that Steve had to short the supply in the Northeast and head for the Plains to go find out with his own wallet.
By the way, The Messenger reached out directly to the New York League of Conservation Voters, urging them to reevaluate their endorsement of Steven Englebright for the Suffolk County Legislature this year. We have yet to hear back from them.
Another mark of distinction, as reported in the New York Post, is that of his ban on commercial fishing which led to an increased shark population and attacks on swimmers. Although a fairly logical conclusion for most, Englebright’s admission that no one could have seen it coming was a cheap cop-out at best or a solid “politician’s” moment at worst.
We say “like him or not,” because it’s almost amazing how he managed to hide his oil ventures in plain sight, or somehow pull the wool over the Assembly’s eyes regarding his pathological environmentalism.
But pure environmental hypocrisy barely compares to pure, unadulterated lack of responsibility.
Our latest revelation that Englebright used his taxpayer-funded government resources to conduct personal business is nothing short of what we’d expect from a decades-entrenched incumbent in what was seen as an unflinchingly-blue part of Suffolk County. Unethical? Yes. Against state laws? Absolutely.
However, where simply unethical by the books turns to reprehensible by any other standard is how Englebright abused his power and betrayed his constituents’ trust to handle personal, private, and highly-sensitive health and insurance information over a government fax.
We could play Devil’s Advocate and say that if it was his and his staffs’ eyes only, then it’s not quite akin to the documents just being “out there.”
While his then-girlfriend, now-wife Susanne Meyers and fellow practitioner Christina Stern were using the government-issued fax number to process health information, the problem becomes much more complex when we realize that this team of bureaucrats never really had a contingency plan for when Englebright inevitably lost to shifting political moods fomented by a statewide red wave and voters’ growing dissatisfaction with their increasingly out-of-touch Assemblyman.
What we do know, according to trusted statements and letters, is that Englebright used the government fax line to receive personal, unredacted medical data.
We can’t really build a case for cost either since a private fax machine and line do not equate to that much money at all. Additionally, if Englebright and his associated practitioners were conducting private business out of the main district office, then a separate fax machine wouldn’t have remedied this issue.
Even a theory of pure convenience ultimately doesn’t pan out because of the addresses. We know the 290 Main Street address is the one linked to the practitioners, but the government fax number is linked to the main district office. It would be more convenient to just have a different machine or work solely out of 290 Main.
This leads us to believe that Englebright’s wife and associated practitioners were conducting business out of the main district office. We’re comfortable with this assumption because there is no readily apparent alternative that satisfies the fragments of the case.
This does beg the ultimate question though: did Englebright and company ever think they would have to answer? We don’t believe it’s too off base to assume that Englebright’s ego had preceded him by the end of his tenure in Albany, mainly due to constituent complaints, a proclivity for him to be more reclusive except during campaign season, and his humiliating upset by Ed Flood in what was previously known as the most Democratic part of Brookhaven.
Additionally, Englebright’s ego and arrogance check out when compared with his out-of-state oil investments and his lack of foreknowledge for a fairly logical assumption regarding his commercial fishing ban. He was the long-served Assemblyman of thirty years. His reputation preceded him before his ego did.
We don’t think he realistically considered an environment that would see him lose his seat, nor do we think his lack of empathy for voters would be something called into question by Flood. When his office was vacated, Flood and his incoming staff had nothing; Englebright had taken all constituent case paperwork and left behind an empty shell of an office. We’re left to assume he did not want even the smallest chance that private documents would end up in the wrong hands.
So, does Englebright’s career go out with a bang or a whimper? We’re inclined to think he is not victorious in this Legislative race, but if he is, then there will only be mounting pressure for investigations, resignations, and criminal charges. You could argue that’s a bang, but maybe also a whimper.
One last piece of the arrogance puzzle: Steven Englebright can’t just retire to Fort Myers – where he already purchased a home in a joint venture with Susanne – he has to redeem himself and prove that he’s still the king of northwestern Brookhaven, even if it is just for two years in the Legislature. He can’t just bow out gracefully; he needs to continue fooling his voters into thinking he cares about them, while using government apparatus to imperil his wife’s customer’s information.
We think Steven Englebright should take the high road and end a forty-year-plus political career with a whimper.
The last bang was for us.
