State senators on Wednesday rubber-stamped the controversial appointment of city Department for the Aging Commissioner Lorraine Cortes-Vazquez to the MTA board.
Mayor Bill de Blasio’s nomination of Cortes-Vazquez — who was the head of the Puerto Rican Parade Committee three years ago when it invited convicted terror mastermind Oscar Lopez-Rivera — triggered widespread condemnation from cops and other critics earlier this year.
Lopez-Rivera spent over 35 years in prison for his leadership role in the Puerto Rican nationalist Fuerzas Armadas de Liberación Nacional, or FALN, which claimed responsibility for more than 100 bombings in the 1970s and ’80s. One was at Fraunces Tavern in Manhattan in 1975, which killed four and injured dozens.
But at her confirmation hearing Wednesday, Cortes-Vazquez did not face a single question about the fiasco.
“You’ve been a great role model to so many young people, and so many people in the state,” said Sen. Leroy Comrie (D-Queens), who, like many senators, offered Cortes-Vazquez “condolences” for taking on a role at the beleaguered transit agency.
“Thank you for deciding to continue your service in this way,” he said.
The nomination of Cortes-Vazquez also came under fire after The Post revealed she gets chauffeured to and from her job by a city driver, despite living within walking distance of the 6 train.
Democratic and Republican senators also unanimously confirmed the nominations of de Blasio administration disability chief Victor Calise, Gov. Andrew Cuomo pick Jamey Barbas — the former project manager for the Mario M. Cuomo Bridge — and two more reps from Dutchess and Rockland counties.
All five were subsequently approved unanimously by the full Senate.
Board members can only be advanced to the Senate with approval of Cuomo, whose own reps have a de facto majority on the board.
With the confirmation of Calise and Cortes-Vazquez, all four of the city’s board spots are occupied for the first time since former city planning chief Carl Weisbrod stepped down last April.
On Wednesday, de Blasio touted his new board reps as “extraordinary public servants who will fight for more equitable, reliable, and accessible public transit as our city bounces back from the COVID-19 crisis.”
“Vulnerable New Yorkers … need [an] MTA Board that puts their interests first. I plan to be an advocate for them, and also advocate on working closely with communities of color and minority and women-owned businesses enterprises,” Cortes-Vazquez said in a statement.
Additional reporting by Bernadette Hogan