Politician pays Santa's fee

NEW YORK, Nov. 7 (UPI) -- A New York politician wrote a check for $660 to pay a veteran Santa Claus to play the role at a general store run by Suffolk County.

Steve Bellone, a Democrat running for county executive, fronted the money for David McKell, a retired police detective lieutenant and former state trooper, to reprise his role as Santa at the St. James General Store for a 10th year, WCBS-AM, New York, reported Monday.

Bellone made the announcement after officials announced there was no money in the budget to pay McKell and they were seeking volunteers to fill the void, WNBC-TV, New York, reported.

Angie Carpenter, the Republican running opposite Bellone, called the announcement a "cheap political stunt."

""They create this scam of Santagate, you know that Santa is being fired and he rides in on a horse as the white knight and saves the day," Carpenter told WCBS. "This is not appropriate."

"This is personal, not political," Bellone said. "Politics ends at the North Pole. This is about all the kids of this county and my own kids getting a chance to come here."