Parker's Problems Propagate

New York State Senator Kevin Parker's problems continue growing. He was arrested yesterday after assaulting a New York Post photographer, and today his fellow State Senators have stripped him of his leadership posts.

That means he's losing $22,000 in perks for his problems, and throws into question how he's ever going to repay his obligations to lenders on his real estate holdings.

The reason that the photographer was there in the first place was to get Parker's mug for a photo for stories to run alongside the reports about Parker's pending foreclosure on a Brooklyn home.

Lopez got into his car and attempted to leave. But Parker allegedly followed him, forcing his way into the Subaru.

As the two tussled in the car, Parker managed to allegedly kick an inside panel off a door, sprain Lopez's finger and break the camera's flash.

Parker finally gave up and got out of the car, but immediately began blaming Lopez for the incident.

"You see this guy? He's a sellout," he said to a group of neighbors who had gathered, according to Lopez. " 'The Man' is using him to make me look bad."

"You all saw him assault me," he said, then called 911.

But when cops showed up, witnesses corroborated Lopez's story. The police ended up booking Parker.

It's not Parker's first brush with the law, nor the first time he allegedly tried to weasel out of trouble by blaming someone else.

Last year, Parker allegedly clocked aide Lucretia John, 32, and crushed her glasses with his foot after she told him she couldn't work for him anymore.

John filed a complaint, but the combustible senator filed a cross-complaint hours later, claiming John had punched him in the face. In press reports, he accused her of being lazy and slow to learn.

This isn't the first time Parker's assaulted someone either. He went after one of his employees, although he claimed that it was a misunderstanding and he agreed to go to an anger management course. I guess that didn't do the trick.

The man is a menace.

Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith showed how politicians can act swiftly to discipline fellow members. Good on him to take this action. It's a shame that it happens so infrequently as members are more likely to shield those who engage in criminal acts or other ethical misconduct than excoriating and casting them out.