US Attorney Preet Bharara, who is investigating Gov. Cuomo’s dealings with his tainted anti-corruption panel, dined with a key potential witness: state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.
Neither camp is saying whether Cuomo or his Moreland Commission to Investigate Public Corruption was on the menu.
But sources said it’s more than a coincidence that the two were spotted having lunch at the City Hall-area restaurant Tuesday — a very public place where pols and government insiders dine to be seen.
“It’s hard to believe they went there by accident. It’s a reasonable guess that they’re sending a message they’re working together — whether it’s tackling corruption on Wall Street or State Street in Albany,” said Blair Horner of the New York Public Interest Research Group.
It was Schneiderman, in his capacity as AG, who “deputized” members of the commission and gave them legal authority to issue subpoenas to targets of their probes.
Bharara has taken control of the commission’s files and is investigating its operations. Cuomo shut down the panel in April.