The Lessons of Cyrus Vance’s Campaign Contributions
Liz Holtzman co-authored an op-ed for The New York Times with David Yassky, discussing the criticism around Manhattan district attorney Cyrus Vance Jr.’s decision to not pursue sexual abuse charges against Harvey Weinstein in 2015. Holtzman and Yassky argued that Vance’s decision to take large campaign contributions from two defense lawyers after his office declined to prosecute their clients points to the urgent need for major reform. To prohibit similar situations in the future, they suggest integrating district attorney candidates into the New York City campaign finance system, which has stricter campaign finance laws.