The May 25,2009 Issue of The Capitol

VOL. 2, NO. 5 May 2009www.nycapitolnews.com

First Lady Michelle Paterson emerges.

Page 20

Steve Levy sets his sights on a run for governor.

Page 4

Tom DiNapoli maps out his first campaign, amid scandal.

Page 9

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Republicans and Democrats read the

tea leaves of the 20th District win

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www.nycapitolnews.com2 MAY 2009 THE CAPITOL

Congratulations to the Legislature for coming up with a short-term solution to the MTA’s problems just two months after being thrown up against the wall by commuter panic

that demanded a long-term fi x. As for all the other important business that could have been accomplished during that long, wasted period of stonewalling and procrastinating—perhaps the Assembly and State Senate will get to it. Maybe.

Or they could start getting serious about how government should function. Calls to reform Albany often focus on structural changes, like the concentration of power in the hands of the few or the lack of anything resembling open debate. But the Legislature’s very real problem, of more closely resembling a group of cramming college seniors than a deliberative body, is just as much

a cause for concern. In this era of one-party dominance, there should be a way for the government to start acting wisely, and not just rushing to deadline.

Start by sorting out what will be done on mayoral control of New York City schools. The law is scheduled to expire June 30, with the system supposed to incorporate whatever Albany decides to do, whether tweaks or complete overhaul, by the beginning of the new school year in September. Responsible government would have been to reach a fi nal deal in March or even earlier, to give teachers, principals, parents and students time to adjust. Given how many people and dollars are involved, providing more time to adjust, not less, would have been a more reasonable way to go.

Instead, New Yorkers still wait for the real work to begin. Sure, there have been hearings and there have been reports (though whether any of them are offi cial remains, apparently, a topic of some debate). There

have been quiet suggestions from some corners about the changes which should be made. But not only will the real work of negotiations be done in private, it will be done when the twin deadlines of the law’s sunset and the end of session begin to loom very large.

In the meantime, wheels will spin as people try to guess the mood of the leadership and tread with extreme caution on everything else, lest they upset the slow gestation of the fi nal deal.

The same will likely go for gay marriage, just as it has for so many

years for the property tax cap and campaign fi nance reform. The local government morass that eats public dollars at an astounding rate will almost certainly go unaddressed. And as for the issues that sparked emergencies this session—the clearly obscene lack of regulations governing the state pension system, the judicial selection process which roiled Jonathan Lippman’s nomination, and the lack of a comprehensive, proactive

solution for the MTA—those will fade to the background again too, not to be touched again until the next crisis moment.

For too many Junes, legislators have headed home from Albany with far too little to show for their time there, far too many important problems about which they say “Not yet.” Not this year.

Enough with the inaction. Enough with the excuses. Each week that remains should be one in which something gets done. Legislators need to set a new tone for state government going forward into what may well prove the more diffi cult economic year ahead. No one should accept a process that once again careens toward last-minute, closed-door horse-trading in the last few days of session, topped off by late-night votes cast under the cloak of obscurity. Hard as it may be for the leaders and rank-and-fi le to break bad habits, New Yorkers deserve more. A government which manufactures crises out of inaction serves no one well.

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But the Legislature’s very real problem, of more closely resembling a group of cramming college seniors than a deliberative body, isjust as much a causefor concern.

One Month To Go,Much Left To Do

Forethought

WWW.UFANYC.ORGFor more information visit:

Uniformed Firefighters Association

AFTER BLOOMBERG’S SMOKING & TRANS-FATBANS, WHY DO NEW YORKERS STILL NEED

PRE-HOSPITAL CARE?This July and following the fall elections, Mike Bloombergbelieves eliminating 30 FDNY ambulance tours andclosing another 16 FDNY engine companies — on top of7 he already shut down — is a good idea to close hisbudget gap.

This devastating elimination of a combined 53 firecompanies and ambulances will be a severe andstunning blow to all New Yorkers, especially the elderly,infirm and poor.

Bloomberg’s draconian cuts to neighborhood 1st respondersis a flashback to the days when medical responses in NewYork City averaged over 15 minutes, far too late to providelife saving assistance in most medical emergencies.

According to the American Heart Association, a heart attackvictim’s chances of survival are reduced by 7-10% withevery minute that passes without treatment and that fewresuscitation attempts succeed after 10 minutes. Brain andpermanent death start to occur in 4-6 minutes after cardiacarrest. Cardiac arrest can only be reversed in most victimsif treated within 7-10 minutes.

The Heart Associationestimates that more than 95percent of cardiac arrestvictims die before reachingthe hospital but in cities likeNew York where CertifiedFirst Responders are on thescene within 5 to 7 minutes,the survival rate fromsudden cardiac arrest is ashigh as 30–45 percent.

The FDNY is the primary provider of pre-hospitalemergency care in the five boroughs with firefighterstrained as Certified First Responders. The FDNY respondsto more than 1.2 million medical emergencies per year,often with engine companies being the 1st to arrive tostabilize victims, before turning the patient over toparamedics for further treatment and transport toemergency rooms.

The current system of firefighter, paramedic andemergency room doctors acting as a true, three-tieredemergency medical system in New York City has saved asignificant number of lives.

According to the FDNY, “Studies by the American HeartAssociation have shown a dramatic increase in the survivalrates for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest victims who havequick and efficient CPR and defibrillation, followed by rapidaccess to the 911 system. The merger of FDNY and the NYCEMS has made this tiered response more seamless andeffective, generating a downward trend in response timesand saving the lives of countless New Yorkers every year.”

When Mike Bloombergcloses 53 FDNY units thatrespond to medical as well as fire emergenciesthroughout the fiveboroughs – an average ofOVER 10 closed perborough - New Yorkers willsuffer, medical responsetimes will soar andtaxpayers will be outraged.

NEW YORK’S ELECTED LEADERS CAN NOT PERMITMIKE BLOOMBERG TO GET AWAY WITH SHUTTING

DOWN FDNY UNITS THAT SERVE THEIRCOMMUNITIES. LIVES DEPEND ON IT.

Without CFR-D Treatment Only 5%of Cardiac Arrest Victims Survive

With CFR-D Treatment SurvivalRate Grows to 45%


BY SAL GENTILE

Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy, one of the more controversial fi gures in New York

Democratic politics, is mulling a run for governor in 2010, according to people familiar with his plans.

Levy has approached some of his major backers about the prospect of running in the Democratic primary next year, possibly against Gov. David Paterson, according to associates, who did not want to be named discussing details of private conversations. Levy has been gauging whether he would be able to raise enough money to run a viable statewide campaign.

“He’s been talking to a number of his supporters, just kind of testing the waters to see if there is the potential for an open seat, and depending on what happens, whether or not he would be a viable candidate,” said Suffolk Democratic Chair Rich Schaffer. “He’s a tenacious campaigner. He is relentless when it comes to putting together an organization, and himself doing the campaign.”

Schaffer added that Levy could also run for attorney general if Paterson bowed out and current Attorney General Andrew Cuomo became the Democratic nominee for governor.

Levy’s obstacle, other than his low name recognition statewide, is his toxic relationship with the New York City Democrats that largely run the state party. While Levy remains popular among moderates and conservatives in Suffolk,

liberals and minority groups roundly criticize him for his hard-line stances on illegal immigration.

“The Democratic establishment is an establishment from New York [City],” said one state Democratic operative. “Guess what all of them have in common? They hate Steve Levy’s guts.”

That sentiment is one reason why Levy has entertained a less likely but nonetheless enticing option: switching parties and running as a Republican.

“If I were the Republicans, I would ask Steve Levy to run,” said John Zaher, a Long Island political consultant who has worked for both parties. “On Long Island, he is by far their superstar.”

Some Republicans laugh off the idea of nominating a Democrat to run for governor on the GOP line, saying that would further solidify the perception that the party cannot fi eld its own talent. Levy himself would prefer to remain a Democrat, according to friends and associates.

But others have already attempted to

persuade Levy to run as a Republican. One, who has spoken directly to him about the idea, said Levy was receptive.

“He did not dismiss it,” said the Republican, adding that among party leaders, “the comfort level would be increased dramatically if he actually switched parties.”

Levy, fi rst elected in 2003 and again in 2007, is widely popular in Suffolk despite a series of controversial remarks regarding illegal immigration. A conservative Democrat who has been cross-endorsed by county Republicans, Levy is fi ercely anti-illegal immigration and disliked by some of the more liberal elements within the party.

Still, Levy’s approval ratings in Suffolk hover in the range of 70 to 80 percent, and he is viewed as a moderate political fi gure who has cut taxes and reduced spending, and identifi es with the values of white middle-class voters.

Those features could play well in a primary against Paterson, whose 2009-2010 budget has been widely panned

and who has been excoriated for his inability to govern competently at a time of economic distress.

“That’s a message that in these days is going to resonate very well,” said Michael Dawidziak, a Long Island political operative who has advised Levy in the past. “A guy like Levy is sitting with$4 million in the bank—by that time it’ll probably be $5 million. He could run for county executive one more time, and then what else?”

Through his spokesperson, Mark Smith, Levy declined to comment.

Levy’s supporters envision a scenario in which Paterson raises his poll numbers enough to ward off a coup by Cuomo. If at that point Paterson is still vulnerable, and fails to mobilize his liberal city base, Levy could step in as the moderate, suburban-friendly Democrat. He would run as a political outsider, much like Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi (D) did in the 2006 race against Eliot Spitzer, making the case that he has the best chance of defeating a Republican in the general election.

Alternatively, if Paterson refuses to step aside and Democratic leaders fail to stop a primary challenge from Cuomo, Levy could enter the fray and capitalize on a potentially split vote.

The only possibility that would almost certainly foreclose a potential bid by Levy is if Democratic leaders push Paterson aside and hand the nomination to Cuomo—a situation the county executive’s prospective candidacy, if resonating strongly enough, could prompt. In that case, many believe Levy would not be able to perform against Cuomo’s ability to mobilize the Democrats’ liberal primary base while also appealing to moderate suburban voters.

“If Paterson did drop out, and Cuomo was coronated, that probably would forestall a primary,” Dawidziak said.

Levy seems to relish his identity as a conservative, suburban-friendly Democrat who has co-opted much of the Republicans’ base.

In an interview last year with The

Capito, he described a failed bid for State Senate in 1990 as one of the formative experiences of his political career.“The rather far-left Democrats from the city who wanted to run [my] campaign only wanted to talk about gun control and abortion,” he said. “I tried to tell them that’s not the issue that’s resonating out there. It’s all about property taxes.”

Alan Capelli, a Democratic operative who ran H. Carl McCall’s campaign for governor in 2002, said Levy would have a more diffi cult time making headway if he chose not to bolt the party and run as a Republican.

But either way, with his aggressive fundraising and moderate appeal, he would be able to give Paterson a scare.

“On paper, it sounds like you have the makings of a race,” Capelli said.

[email protected]

Levy, Controversial Suffolk Executive, Mulling 2010 Run For GovernorCampaign for both Democratic and Republican lines under consideration

Steve Levy’s supporters envision a scenario in which Paterson raises his poll numbers enough to ward

off a coup by Cuomo. If at that point Paterson is still vulnerable, and fails

to mobilize his liberal city base, Levy could step in as the moderate,

suburban-friendly Democrat.

An agressive fund-raiser with sky-high approval ratings, Suffolk County executive Steve Levy hopes his moderate appeal could make him a statewide contender next year.

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BY SAL GENTILE

Three of the world’s largestfi nancial services companies—Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse and

the Park Hill Group—are spearheading an intensive, behind-the-scenes push to modify or overturn Comptroller Tom DiNapoli’s (D) ban on the use of placement agents in managing the state’s $122 billion pension funds, e-mails obtained by The

Capitol show.The e-mails reveal hints of the fi rms’

lobbying and public relations strategies and a willingness to dive into state politics if necessary. They also expose a deep suspicion of Attorney General Andrew Cuomo’s (D) motives in pursuing his sprawling investigation into the pension funds, which could color the industry’s relationship with him in the way that then-Attorney General Eliot Spitzer’s (D) fi ghts with investment banks made him the nemesis of Wall Street.

Describing the three major companies behind the lobbying effort, Michael Finnell, the president of Liability Solutions, an international fi rm that provides placement-agent services, wrote: “Their intelligence gathering has informed them that, as has been stated, this is a political issue that for the moment revolves around Cuomo’s desire to be Governor.”

Frank Minard, managing partner of New York-based XT Capital Partners,

described in a subsequent e-mail what the companies believe will be the fi nal outcome of the lobbying effort.

“Good to see some of the ‘big boys’ have entered the scene,” he wrote of Credit Suisse and the others. “If the ban impacts ‘only’ unregistered agents and politically connected ‘fi nders,’ we have a victory of sorts.”

The e-mails were exchanged earlier this month by the heads of small and mid-sized placement-agent fi rms organizing an industry-wide response to the ban.

So far DiNapoli has not met personally with representatives of the fi rms. DiNapoli imposed a sweeping ban on all placement-agents and third-party marketers in April, and has introduced legislation to make the change permanent. Through a spokesperson, he reiterated his pledge to pursue a total ban in the Legislature.

The three companies lobbying against the ban each have major placement-agent units that generate millions of dollars in annual revenue and help connect some of the world’s wealthiest and most powerful private equity managers to the massive pools of cash in the state pension fund.

The private equity fi rms, which have

become major players in the public-pension world and prolifi c contributors to the campaigns of pension trustees, have much at stake. Private equity fi rms thrive on money from large pension funds like New York’s, not just for the prestige such investments carry but also because of the sheer amount of cash available in those funds. The pension funds, in turn, have been pumping more money into private equity investments in recent years than ever before.

“If you are a huge private equity fi rm that needs to raise billions of dollars in

capital, who are the likely people that are going to help you reach your allocations?” said the head of one placement-agent fi rm that works with private equity managers, who did not want to be named in connection with Cuomo’s investigation.

“They’re not going to be Mr. Joe Investor on Main Street. They’re going to be people like the [New York Common Retirement Fund] and New York City. The

people who have deep pockets.”There appears to be some sympathy

for this argument within the comptroller’s offi ce, though offi cials there stress that the cost of cutting out middlemen is probably worth the benefi t of restoring integrity to the system.

“It is a legitimate business,” said one offi cial in the comptroller’s offi ce, who was not authorized to discuss the ban publicly. “Firms aren’t necessarily always fund-raising. … So what happens in those interim years is, you’re going to be paying

some guy a huge amount of money to essentially sit there and wait for you to raise the next fund.”

But, the offi cial added, “They’re in a high-margin business, and they can afford it.”

Assembly Member Peter Abbate (D-Brooklyn), chair of the committee which would

fi rst have to approve DiNapoli’s program bill, said he would be open to peeling back some of the more restrictive aspects of the ban.

“I could see if it’s a legitimate fi rm that does this in the private market day in and day out, that sounds fi ne,” said Abbate, who heads the Government Employees Committee. “Sometimes we overreact.”

[email protected]

“Good to see some of the ‘big boys’ have entered the scene,” wrote the head of one placement-agent firm. “If the ban impacts ‘only’ unregistered agents and politically connected ‘finders,’we have a victory of sorts.”

Investment Firms Prepare For Joint Effort Against Middlemen Ban

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BY CHRIS BRAGG

Five years ago, SchenectadyCounty and the public sector unions

ended a long deadlock over proposed health care benefi t cuts with a deal allowing the county to facilitate the importation of prescription drugs from Canada for employees and retirees. With drug co-pays in Canada signifi cantly lower than in the United States, the deal has already saved the county an estimated $6 million, allowing the county government to balance its budget, avoid cuts to worker benefi ts and even to reduce property taxes.

The catch: the federal government considered the practice illegal, which is why the Food and Drug Administration seized several drug shipments, while at the same time some prescription drug companies refused to send drugs to Canadian pharmacies exporting to Schenectady.

The Schenectady county government refused to budge—and eventually, both the federal government and the pharmaceutical companies relented.

“I think we’re on sound legal ground,” said county attorney Christopher Gardner, citing a provision in federal law that allows the importation of drugs for “personal use.”

Now, public employee unions locked in hostile negotiations with Gov. David Paterson (D) want the program implemented statewide, arguing the state could save $500 million annually, which would be more than twice the amount needed to stave off the governor’s 9,000 proposed public sector layoffs.

Still, the legality question remains, which is why the governor is opposed to the union plan and also to a bill proposed by State Sen. Ruben Diaz, Sr. (D-Bronx), the chair of the Senate Aging Committee, to allow drug importation for seniors.

“It’s one thing for a county to do it. It’s quite another for an entire state to adopt it, especially one the size of New York,” said Paterson spokesperson Morgan Hook. “That would almost ensure a federal crackdown.”

The Food and Drug Administration has maintained that importing drugs from other countries is unsafe, even if the drugs are from a country such as Canada, which has its own strict drug testing program.

Hook pointed out that although Congress has enacted provisions to allow the importation of some drugs if the FDA determines them to be safe and cost-effective, the FDA has not done so.

Instead, the FDA has formally notifi ed states and local governments that drug

importation programs are a violation of the federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.

Defying federal law would carry political risks for Paterson. In 2004, then-Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) went against the warnings of the FDA and began a program with several other states allowing the importation of drugs not only from Canada, but Ireland and the United Kingdom as well.

Because the plan ultimately fi zzled because of its own structural problems, according to one person involved in implementing the Illinois plan, the FDA largely ignored the issue. Still, Blagojevich’s violation of federal law did become one of the topics during his successful impeachment trial.

The tide may have turned, however, with Barack Obama (D) in the White House. On the campaign trail last year, Obama expressed support for eventually opening up the prescription drug market to competition, which was followed through with $5 million in his federal budget for the FDA’s use in developing policies that allow Americans to buy drugs approved in other countries.

Meanwhile, in New York, public employee unions have added Paterson’s refusal to save money on prescription drugs to their list of complaints as they picket him around the state. Pointing out that the federal government has done little to crack down on counties breaking the law, they are pushing Paterson to relent on creating a new statewide policy.

“A lot of this comes down to, ‘Where there’s a will, there’s a way,’” said Steve Madarasz, spokesperson for the Civil Service Employees Association. “If it’s illegal, why is it going on in a number of municipalities?”

Madarasz said adopting a new policy was the obvious thing to do.

“The governor has no reason that he can justify 9,000 layoffs,” he said. “And this one thing alone can save them.”

[email protected]

Unions Say Drug Smuggling Could Help Avoid Bitter Layoffs Pill

“It’s one thing for a county to do it. It’s quite another for an entire state to adopt it, especially one the size of New York,” said Paterson spokesperson Morgan Hook. “That would almost ensure a federal crackdown.”

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THE CAPITOL MAY 2009 9www.nycapitolnews.com

BY SAL GENTILE

Two years ago, Tom DiNapoli was plucked from a life as a backbench legislator and thrust

into a job that, because of the man he replaced, is now embroiled in a pay-to-play scandal shaking New York’s political world.

Nonetheless, most see Comptroller DiNapoli (D) as a safe bet for the 2010 elections.

The state Republican Party, hobbled by successive losses and a lack of talent within its ranks, is busily trying to line up a strong gubernatorial candidate, preferably Rudy Giuliani. Without one,

Republicans say, fi elding candidates for down-ballot races such as comptroller will be diffi cult.

The two prospects, both of whom are said to be mulling a possible run, are former GOP gubernatorial candidate John Faso and former New York City Tax Commissioner Andrew Eristoff.

Faso, who came within a hairsbreadth

of Alan Hevesi (D) in the 2002 general election, would say only that he had no plans to run for offi ce next year, but added that fi elding any viable challenger to DiNapoli would be diffi cult without a wholesale change in the GOP leadership.

“We can’t do it with the current structure that we’ve got now,” he said.

Eristoff confi rmed that he has had discussions with associates about possibly challenging DiNapoli, but that the planning was in the early stages.

“Friends have asked me to look at the 2010 race for New York State Comptroller, among other options,” he wrote in an e-mail. “I haven’t made any decisions or taken any steps toward a candidacy.”

The lack of movement among potential GOP hopefuls has not stopped DiNapoli from aggressively moving forward with his campaign. He has hired John Del Cecato, who worked on Barack Obama’s (D) presidential campaign, as a consultant, and Joel Benenson, who also worked for Obama, as his pollster.

DiNapoli has also taken careful steps to distance himself from the two men who will likely lead next year’s Democratic ticket: Gov. David Paterson and Attorney General Andrew Cuomo.

Earlier this month, DiNapoli issued a report panning Paterson’s 2009-2010 executive budget and the Democratic leaders who created it, saying they had done so in secret and without public input.

Later, amid Cuomo’s sprawling investigation into the pension fund scandal, DiNapoli issued a statement reminding the attorney general that he, not Cuomo, had instituted a package of reforms aimed at cleaning up the investment process as early as 2007.

Asked in his fi rst interview on the campaign since the scandal erupted if he thought that put him in the awkward position of running against his ticket-mates, DiNapoli said “yes and no.”

“That does seemingly put us in a different place than some of the other players,” he said. “No matter what we’re doing, at the end of the day we’re responsible to the citizens of the state. We’re not subordinate to the governor, we’re not subordinate to the attorney general.”

In a separate interview, Del Cecato said one of the campaign’s overarching themes would be to demonstrate DiNapoli’s independence from the rest of the political establishment—

including the governor.“He’s going to step on some toes,

and that’s going to create some political hurdles to overcome, and he may get drowned out by some of the more visible personalities,” Del Cecato said. “I think people get that. They know that while he shares a party affi liation and will be on

the ballot several notches down, that he’s an independent operator.”

To prove his independence, DiNapoli has very publicly resisted calls by Paterson to support a proposed cap on state spending. The bill would require Albany to adopt a budget that keeps spending at the average level of infl ation for the prior three years.

DiNapoli expressed hesitation about the measure, saying there were ways to effectively reduce spending without a mandatory cap.

“I think it’s a mistake to limit the discussion of how to control spending in the state to the discussion of a cap,” he said. “You can have a more disciplined approached to state spending without a cap. If a cap is the only way to get there, I don’t know that I feel that way.”

Del Cecato said the comptroller’s differences with the governor would be at the center of DiNapoli’s campaign.

“He’s been unafraid to stand up to some

pretty powerful folks and raise questions about budget gimmicks that allow press conferences to be held but don’t put New York on long-term footing that makes sound fi scal sense,” Del Cecato said. “People are right to be dismayed by the secrecy and lack of transparency.”

Depending on how dismayed they are, DiNapoli could fi nd himself running under the banner of a deeply unpopular incumbent, a prospect which makes differentiating himself to voters starting now all that more crucial.

“They know how to pick and choose. You’ve seen, in the not-too-distant past, a lot of ticket-splitting, and it’s not unusual for there to be very independent voting patterns,” the comptroller said. “So I think I have to bet on the independence and the careful choosing of New York voters. And I can’t depend on a very popular top of the ticket.”

[email protected]

Asked in his first interview on the campaign since the scandal erupted if he thought that put him in the awkward position of running against his ticket-mates, DiNapoli said “yes and no.”

Not Counting On Paterson, Not Counting On Cuomo, DiNapoli Prepares for 2010As Faso and Eristoff consider run on GOP side, comptroller digs in for fi rst race

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BY CHRIS BRAGG

With billionaire Tom Golisano now headed to Florida, there is

speculation that Steve Pigeon, Golisano’s top political operative, will hold even more sway over the Responsible New York political action committee formed last year to promote cutting taxes and spending.

Those who work with the group, however, say a tension exists between the motivations of Golisano, a Republican, and Pigeon, a Democrat.

Golisano’s primary motivation is genuinely to cut taxes and government spending, they say, while Pigeon often uses Golisano’s money to settle old scores in the fractured world of Buffalo Democratic politics. Pigeon was ousted as the Erie County Democratic Party chair in 2002.

Several who worked with the group during the 2008 cycle say that Golisano appears to keep Pigeon in the fold, despite their divergent motivations, because Pigeon is a smart strategist. There has also been a difference in the tenor of the mailers the group sends out for State Senate campaigns, those Golisano cared more about, which were more issue-based, and the more personal attacks in races where Pigeon has an axe to grind, such as last year’s bitter primary against Assembly Member Sam Hoyt (D-Erie).

But sometimes their motivations may work as cross-purposes.

In March, the group sent out mailers blasting Hoyt, Francine DelMonte (D-Niagara) and Susan John (D-Monroe). Pigeon said their seats would be top priorities for the group in 2010.

“We feel they’re probably our highest target in the Assembly,” Pigeon said. “I think that they represent what’s wrong with Albany.”

But both DelMonte and Hoyt voted against the budget. So if Responsible New York does go after them, DelMonte said, this would be in direct confl ict with Golisano’s assertion that the group would target lawmakers based on their budget votes.

She said the real reason Responsible New York was targeting her now was her 2006 primary defeat of another of the group’s operatives, Gary Parenti, a close friend of Pigeon’s.

Parenti said a repeat challenge to DelMonte in 2010 wa possible.

DelMonte questioned whether

Golisano really knew what was being done in his group’s name, recalling that when she met Golisano at a function at Niagara University last fall the billionaire was largely unaware of who she was.

“I don’t know that Mr. Golisano has a problem with me, so much as the people he chooses to surround himself with—Steve Pigeon, Gary Parenti, and the like,” DelMonte said.

Democratic sources in Erie County are also expecting Pigeon to guide Responsible New York into backing several challengers to Democrats in swing districts in the Erie County Legislature.

He has even gotten involved in a fi ght over a ballot issue in the town of West Seneca.

Golisano, meanwhile, is more concerned with the budget. After his recent press conference discussing why he is moving to Florida, Golisano was asked what the odds were of him again backing Senate Democrats in 2010.

“With the way things have turned out, I would say they’re pretty bad,” Golisano said.

He also recently held a meeting with Senate Minority Leader Dean Skelos (R-Nassau), after which Skelos

put out a statement “that concerns he expressed today echoed the points Senate Republicans have been making all along.”

Golisano has been sighted at a number of events recently with State Sen. George Maziarz (R-Monroe/Niagara/Orleans). That has fueled speculation that Maziarz and Responsible New York may back

a challenger to run against Sen. William Stachowski (D-Buffalo).

Golisano helped Stachowski pull out a close election last fall. But they have since had something of a falling out over Stachowski’s vote in favor of the budget, which was against Golisano’s wishes. A day after Golisano held his press conference, Golisano and Stachowski held an hour-and-a-half meeting in the senator’s offi ce to discuss their political future, said a source close to the situation.

Pigeon, meanwhile, takes a more sympathetic view of the Senate Democrats, saying that they will not be judged until after the passage of the 2010 budget.

Some wonder if Golisano will simply abandon the idea of changing the direction of the Senate and instead get involved in next year’s governor’s race.

Golisano, who is known to be close with Attorney General Andrew Cuomo (D), said his involvement would depend on which candidates run. When

pressed, Golisano said that if Gov. David Paterson (D) runs, he would be unlikely to support the governor, if only for pragmatic reasons.

“If David Paterson runs with these numbers, I don’t think it’s going to be an easy victory for him,” Golisano said. “So that’s it.”

On this, Golisano and Pigeon are likely to fi nd common purpose: even as Pigeon was helping craft Golisano’s third run for governor in 2002, he was also one of the strongest backers of Cuomo’s campaign.

[email protected]

Under an arrangement struck in January with Tom Golisano and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the state Independence Party will receive funding from the billionaires in exchange for control of their ballot line in certain races.

While the arrangement sounds good on paper, it may be causing a fracture between the state party and local Independence Party county chairs, who do not want to cede local control of their ballot lines to the billionaires.

In Erie County, for instance, Independence Party chair Frank MacKay has given Steve Pigeon, Golisano’s deputy and the top political operative for Responsible New York, the go-ahead to choose who gets the Independence Party line.

But the county party has resisted.That has led to litigation in which the state party is seeking

to remove the county party’s authority to choose candidates.Meanwhile, at a May 17 meeting of the Independence

Party’s executive committee in Albany, Onondaga County

Independence Party Chair Maleta Snell was officially stripped of her power to make endorsements. She claimed this was because she would not commit to only backing the Republican State Senate candidates likely to get Bloomberg’s nod.

“They’re corrupt as hell,” Snell muttered, as MacKay went through the formal motions of stripping her power. “They do this in county after county after county. If they can’t control you, they disband you.”

Snell has also filed litigation against the state party.MacKay said that under party rules, Snell had not demon-

strated that she had enough support in Onondaga County to continue having the authority to make endorsements.

He asserted that the party was committed to allowing county party leaders to remain autonomous, citing the recent peaceful transfer of power in Monroe County from a chair favored by the party to a less friendly challenger.

—CB

Under Sway of Two Billionaires, Independence Party Begins To Fracture

Billionaire Tom Golisano is moving to Florida, but Responsible New York is likely to continue playing a major role in state politics.

Some see tension in Responsible New York

With Golisano Departing, Pigeon Could Play Even Bigger Role

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BY CHRIS BRAGG

In his 18 re-election campaigns,State Sen. Owen Johnson (R-Suffolk)

has usually faced token opposition at best.

So when the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee recently sent a mailer trashing the seemingly invulnerable 79-year-old, longtime observers detected a distinct shift in political strategy.

Democrats are newly emboldened to take out Johnson, they say, because of changing voter registration numbers in his district and because of last year’s defeat of State Sen. Caesar Trunzo (R-Suffolk), another longtime incumbent who also entered the Senate in 1973, representing the adjacent district.

“When you look at Long Island, you see the Republican stranglehold has been completely broken,” said Doug Forand, head of the New York State Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. “You see the changes in enrollment, the years of Republican mismanagement, the corruption at the local level, and it’s all coming to the feet of Owen Johnson.”

In the suburban district running along the Great South Bay, Democratic registration has jumped by 14.6 percent over the past year, with Republican registration increasing by only 1.8 percent. For the fi rst time,

Democrats outnumber Republicans in the district, albeit by a slim margin of 621. The town of Islip, once the district’s conservative bastion, is now split nearly evenly between the parties.

As in the rest of the country, the shift has much to do with the candidacy of Barack Obama. But equally important, according to local Democrats, has been the election of several fi scally conservative Democrats to town supervisor positions

that have kept property taxes low and helped dispel the notion of the tax-and-spend liberal.

Johnson has also been weakened by the Democratic takeover of the Senate. While in the majority, Johnson earned the loyalty of even many Democrats in the district because of his ability to bring home pork. This had been particularly true since 2003, when he became chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. But

while he received $7.5 million in member items in 2008, during his fi rst year in the minority he brought home only $260,000.

Nonetheless, local Democrats are skeptical about recruiting a strong enough candidate to take on the popular senator.

Johnson’s retirement has long been rumored. If he did retire, there would likely be a fl ood of Democrats ready to run. But Johnson is by far the strongest Republican candidate for the seat, so the party is pushing him to make one more run as they try to retake the Senate.

Suffolk County Democratic Chair Richard Schaffer has reacted coolly to the idea of targeting the senator, saying that the money the DSCC spent on the mailer targeting Johnson would have been better used to prop up Sen. Brian Foley (D-Suffolk), the fi rst-term Democrat who defeated Trunzo.

The reasons for Shaffer’s reluctance to target Johnson are in part personal, according to several sources in the district. In the mid-1990s, when Schaffer was Babylon Town Supervisor, the city faced a massive debt and in order to cover it Schaffer begged Albany to allow the town to issue bonds.

While many Senate Republicans favored rejecting the proposal (which would have forced Schaffer into the unpopular move of raising taxes), Johnson backed the bailout and ensured its passage. Since then, the Suffolk

Democrats have not put forth any serious challenger to Johnson.

One potential complication to the prospects for Johnson challengers was removed with Rep. Steve Israel (D-Nassau/Suffolk) opting out of the race against Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D).

Babylon Town Supervisor Steve Bellone, who was believed to also be weighing a run for the House seat Israel would have

vacated, now has a much simpler decision for next year. Should he decide to run for State Senate, Bellone is seen as by far the strongest potential Democratic candidate, as the popular head of the district’s population center, and with a campaign account with over $600,000.

Bellone declined comment.Other potential candidates include

Suffolk County Legislator Lou D’Amaro, who said he would “not rule out” a run; Suffolk County Legislator Wayne Horsley, who said he was “making sure to prepare for anything”; and former Suffolk County Legislator David Bishop.

Johnson backers meanwhile have been bullish about his chances, despite the shift in registration patterns.

“He enjoys tremendous support in his district among both Republicans and Democrats,” said Jay Bore, Johnson’s chief of staff. “He is confi dent he will win re-election.”

Other Republicans note that if Suffolk native and former Rep. Rick Lazio is the Republican candidate for governor, he will bring out the party’s base in the district. They are also comforted by Gov. David Paterson’s (D) low approval rating and the infi ghting of the Senate Democratic majority.

Assembly Member Phil Boyle (R-Suffolk), the Republican most likely to run to replace Johnson whenever he retires, said he believes the senator is virtually a lock.

He also questioned whether over the long term all the newly registered Democrats in the district would really turn out when Obama is not on the ballot.

“All these newly registered people were a result of the Obama factor,” Boyle said. “That’s not likely to happen again. It is still a fi scally conservative district. It is still a Republican-leaning district.”

[email protected]

AmityvilleDeer Park

Bayshore

East Islip

Hoping To Capitalize On Recent Gains, Democrats Target Owen JohnsonShifting registration, end of lush member items could endanger 19-term incumbent

One potential complication to the prospects for Johnson challengers was removed with Rep. Steve Israel opting out of the race against Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.

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Sen. Owen Johnson has usually coasted to re-election in past campaigns but shifting voter registration numbers in his district may change that in 2010.


BY MERRYL TISCH

When it was enacted byCongress in 2001, the No Child Left Behind Act was meant to

put pressure on all of our nation’s public schools to improve and close the yawning achievement gaps separating African-American and Hispanic students from their white and Asian peers. By raising the bar on schools across the country, the thinking went, we could fi nally force real reforms to improve student performance across the board. Instead, by letting states set their own standards, No Child Left Behind has created a patchwork of varying standards. Many states have actually lowered standards to help schools remain in good standing under NCLB.

President Obama has taken a bold step already to stop states from lowering the bar and begun a movement towards one high national standard. The recently enacted federal stimulus bill sends billions of dollars in education money to states and school districts across the country. But it comes with a welcome hitch: states that accept the money must take action to more accurately report data to measure student achievement, raise standards across the board, include children with disabilities and those with limited English profi ciency in state assessments, and take

steps to ensure that more highly qualifi ed teachers fi nd their way to low-performing schools that need them the most.

The stimulus also creates a $5 billion “Race to the Top” fund for states willing to do the hard work needed to dramatically increase student performance. This funding, and this challenge, offer New York a tremendous opportunity to take a good, hard look at the standards we’ve set for our schools and lead a national movement for higher standards for our nation’s public-school children.

For a decade, we have challenged our elementary- and middle-school students by setting high standards for what our students should know and be able to do and testing them to measure their progress. Since the No Child Left Behind Act was implemented, New York has continued to insist on high standards for all of our kids. In 2005—at the same time that other states were watering down their standards—New York’s Regents chose the road less traveled, and approved even higher math standards.

But even in New York, there are troubling gaps between student performance on our state and national tests. In 2007, the last year that the National Assessment of Educational Progress was administered, almost twice as many of our fourth-graders were profi cient on our state math test as were profi cient on

the national test—80 percent versus 43 percent. These disparities are especially striking for our state’s African-American and Hispanic students. Only 10 percent of our state’s black eighth-graders met national standards for profi ciency in math, while 35 percent met our state standards in the same year.

These discrepancies feed an annual debate about whether New York’s test is “harder” or “easier” than the year before. As chancellor, I am anxious to meet the President’s challenge and put this debate to bed once and for all by leading a movement towards one high national standard for profi ciency. That kind of movement for greater accountability demands clear transparent data, and as chancellor I will prioritize the reform and expansion of our data system, extending from pre-kindergarten through college so that we will literally keep track of—and, in doing so, take responsibility for—all New York state children throughout their educational careers. It will also require that we continue to raise standards for all of our children while holding every district accountable for their results and that we do more to support districts in need of help. I am confi dent that with rigorous attention to standards and innovative new policies to increase the number of excellent teachers working in schools with students who need extra

help, including black and Latino students, English Language Learners and students with disabilities, New York can lead a national race to the top.

Merryl Tisch is chancellor of New

York’s Board of Regents.

BY REP. TIM BISHOP

America’s educational system has been a cornerstone of our economic strength in the

post-World War II era. Due to the quality of our higher education system, the best and brightest from around the world have come to our country to pursue advanced studies. But in this era of globalization, America’s competitive advantage is being challenged by Europe and Asia. Investing in our colleges and universities has never been more important.

As a member of the House Education and Labor Committee, I have worked for years to develop and fund programs which improve the classroom experience and make college more affordable. These priorities are refl ected in President Obama’s budget by an emphasis on long-term investments in higher education. Increasing Pell Grants, streamlining access to student loans and providing tax credits to families are a few ways to increase access and affordability in our educational system.

The current economic downturn has underscored the need for affordable higher education. With job losses and

tight credit markets constraining family budgets, Congress passed a nearly 15-percent increase in Pell Grants through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. President Obama will build on this by indexing scholarships to infl ation, ensuring that recipients are not

priced out of attending school in future years. By 2010, the maximum Pell Grant award will have increased by 37 percent since 2006.

As the former Provost of Southampton College, I understand the need for affordable, accessible student loans. I am pleased that President Obama plans to originate every federal student loan through the Direct Loan program, starting in the 2010-11 school year. By streamlining the loan process, taxpayers will save an estimated $90 billion over 10 years, and the loans will remain low-cost and insulated from economic instability. In the same way that we cannot gamble with Social Security, we should not risk our children’s future on the day-to-day fl uctuations of the credit market.

For students who wish to pursue a higher education but need additional economic support, Congress established the American Opportunity Tax Credit. Eligible students could receive a partially refundable tax credit of up to $2,500 to cover college costs. This funding will help open the doors of colleges and universities to every qualifi ed student. And the economic advantages associated with a college degree will have an

exponential effect on our economy in the years ahead.

However, we should not focus exclusively on new high school graduates. Adult education and job retraining also will be key components of a comprehensive plan to rebuild our economy and move Americans into the jobs of the 21st century. Toward that end, New York State received nearly $13 million in funding for Vocational Rehabilitation grants through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. I fi rmly believe that these policy measures will bolster our economy and preserve the American ideal of equal access to educational opportunity.

Education is one component of America’s new economic strategy for recovery and growth. In conjunction with creating and saving jobs, greater fi scal responsibility and long-term investments in health care and energy, improvements to our educational system will put our country back on the right track.

Tim Bishop, a Democrat represent-

ing Suffolk County, is a member of the

House Education and Labor Commit-

tee and former Provost of Southampton

College.

ISSUE FORUM EDUCATION

States Must Report Accurate Data To Measure Student Achievement

Investing In America Through Higher Education

Representing more than 600,000 professionalsin education and health care

New York State United Teachers

Affiliated with AFT • NEA • AFL-CIO

Richard C. Iannuzzi, Presidentwww.nysut.org

N E W Y O R K S T A T E U N I T E D T E A C H E R S

RAISING OUR HANDS FOR EDUCATION,HEALTH CARE & SOCIAL JUSTICE


BY ASSEMBLY MEMBER CATHERINE NOLAN

This legislative session, Iam pleased to report, we have held a series of public hearings

on the issue of school governance control in New York City. During the 2002 and 2003 Legislative sessions, the Legislature approved comprehensive governance changes to the New York City School District. The mayor was provided with the authority to manage the city’s public schools through the ability to appoint the Chancellor of the City District and a majority of the members of the City Board of Education. This translates into the ability to determine citywide education policies; the development of a master facilities plan and fi ve-year education facilities capital plan; administrative functions; the development of a procurement policy for public schools; and management over budgetary process and school-based budgeting. The law sunsets on June 30th of this year. The Education Committee, which I have the privilege of chairing, is interested in hearing about the impact of mayoral control on the City’s school system and how modifi cations to the law can address concerns and help to improve the current structure.

Legislative hearings were convened

in all fi ve boroughs, seeking to hear input from parents, teachers, students, advocates and all other interested parties. Overall, there were 245-plus witnesses and over 45 hours of testimony. These hearings gave members of the Education Committee a chance to hear from all interested parties about the changes that

have occurred since the mayoral control legislation was established. Witnesses testifi ed about their concerns, such as the important role of the Community Education Council, the input of parents and the community, and the need for oversight in budget preparation and procurement practices. This series of hearings gave the committee an insight into the impact the original legislation has had on the schools and students in New York City. The discussion continues, and we look forward to keeping the open dialogue going. The committee and I have continued to meet with groups, community leaders, advocates and others on this issue.

In past sessions, the Education Committee has also held hearings on compliance with physical education state requirements and English Language Learners testing standards. Education policy relies on collaboration. We have also held joint hearings and roundtables with other Assembly standing committees, on topics such as procurement procedures and environmental issues that have an impact on schools.

The Assembly Education Committee reviews almost 600 bills during each two-year legislative term. These bills deal with a wide range of issues—school funding, class size, pre-K and early childhood education,

special education, transportation, construction and maintenance of school buildings, continued issues of mayoral, community and other controls of the 700 school districts in our state, and so much more. There are many stakeholders, all with suggestions and opinions. It takes persistence for the Assembly Committee on Education to establish good public policy.

From the $21.9 billion that was allotted in the 2009-10 education budget to creating legislation that regulates the amount of physical education a student must receive, the committee works to create the best, safest, healthiest environment for all the students in the state of New York. Schools need to work for our children. My responsibility as committee chair is to try to achieve that goal. The lasting impact of education and the proper policies, legislation and funding are responsibilities that I take with utmost seriousness of purpose. I am optimistic that we will address problems in a comprehensive and ultimately successful way and look forward to working with all New Yorkers to do just that.

Catherine Nolan, a Democrat repre-

senting parts of Queens, is the chair of

the Assembly Education Committee.

BY STATE SEN. SUZI OPPENHEIMER

Our commitment to education—our “human infrastructure”—

remains paramount whether in times of prosperity or great economic uncertainty. Investment in education is an investment in our future and is thus vital to our long-term economic growth. Governor Paterson acknowledged this when he called on New York to provide the “world’s best system of education” as the means of ensuring our global economic competitiveness. Yet our current fi scal crisis poses real challenges to fulfi lling these educational goals.

In this unprecedented budget year, the State Legislature worked diligently to restore proposed cuts in education funding and increased $1.22 billion in school aid over 2008-09 levels. These funds will help to save jobs, maintain current class size levels, and preserve valuable education programs. We are fortunate that federal stimulus monies from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA) could be used to reaffi rm New York’s fi nancial commitment to education and to provide additional funding for fi nancially disadvantaged children under Title 1, and disabled students covered by the

Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA).

We are all thinking of ways to make do with less, and our local school districts face the same dilemmas. To ease their burden without imposing additional school taxes, I have pushed for legislation to eliminate duplicative and unnecessary paperwork requirements on our schools. Local districts should be able to gain effi ciencies by sharing in the provision of certain services to students, teachers and administrators, so we need to allow for greater consolidation of services between school districts through Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES). In the months ahead, I will be working closely with school administrators and my Senate colleagues to propose further changes in the law that can reduce school costs without affecting core educational programs.

I have always been a strong advocate for special education, early education and Special Act School districts, and my new position as Chair of the Senate Education Committee allows me the opportunity to pursue these legislative priorities. Expanding Universal pre-K programs affords at-risk children the early intervention they may need to

avoid a special education referral in the future. Giving school districts greater fl exibility to use state funding, exploring alternatives to standardized state tests and developing new funding formulas for special-act districts are initiatives worthy

of further consideration.At the same time, more must be

done to reduce the growing burden on property-tax payers. I support restoration of the STAR rebates and a Circuit Breaker tax credit, which would provide targeted tax relief to households earning up to $250,000 per year and that pay more than a threshold percentage of their income on local school taxes. I also favor legislation, when the economy is healthier, to transfer the fi nancial responsibility for pension costs from local school districts to the state, and have pledged not to entertain any new unfunded legislative mandates in my committee.

While many initiatives to improve public education may not be feasible in our current economic climate, I am proud of the steps we have taken to restore vital resources to local school districts. In these most diffi cult of times, we have honored our commitment to the children of New York and ensured that they will continue to receive the quality education they so richly deserve.

Suzi Oppenheimer, a Democrat rep-

resenting parts of Westchester County, is

the chair of the Senate Education Com-

mittee.

Modifi cations To Mayoral Control Could Help Improve Current Education System

Funding For Education Is Critical To Our Economic Revitalization And Recovery

ISSUE FORUM EDUCATION

In 2002, the New York State Legislature granted direct control over New YorkCity schools to the mayor, in order to eliminate a structure of inefficiency andmismanagement. An unintended consequence of the Legislature’s action haslead to a system of school governance in which parental and community inputhas been stymied and the decision-making process has become devoid oftransparency, or sufficient checks and balances.

Fortunately, the governance law thatgrants operational control of theNew York City public schools to themayor will expire at the end ofJune. The Legislature now has ahistoric opportunity to amend thelaw to restore public participationand transparency to New York City’sschool system, while maintaining thebasic structure of mayoral control.

As the legislature continues its review of this law, the Council of SchoolSupervisors and Administrators (CSA) recommends that participation beimproved, and strong checks and balances be added so that schools work bet-ter for children, families and communities.

Amendments to the School Governance Law must:■ Maintain the mayor’s majority on the Panel for Educational

Policy (PEP), but expand representation to include the New YorkCity Council. This, along with mandating fixed terms for PEP members,will result in better educational policy decisions for our children.

■ Restore the rightful role of community school superintendents to support parents and schools in their assigned district. Thiswill give parents and communities a place to go to with issues that affect their children’s education.

■ Mandate a meaningful role for the Community District Education Councils (CDECs) in reviewing the opening and closingof schools. School opening and closings have a profound effect on families and must involve parents and the community in the decision-making process.

■ Create transparency by empowering an independent agency to review all school performance data and the budget of the Department of Education.

The Council of School Supervisors and Administrators urges the New York StateLegislature to give our parents and community members the tools to enableour children to reach the highest levels of educational success.

An Important Messagefrom Your School Leaders

Restore the Publicin Public Education

Great Schools Begin with Great Leaders!

Council ofSchool Supervisors& Administrators

AFSA Local 1: AFL-CIO www.csa-nyc.org

Ernest A. Logan, President CSA

For advertising information, please contact your account executive at 212-284-9735

or [email protected]

POLITICS • POLICY • PERSONALITIES

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The Way to Reach Elected Officials

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The Capitol...


cott Murphy is only out on the street in front of his Saratoga offi ce for a few minutes before a woman rushes up to him.

Breathless, she corners him and asks what he is going to do about gun control.“We can’t have another Wesleyan,” she implores, referring to the shooting at the

Connecticut campus a few days earlier.She does not introduce herself, does not say who she is or where she is from.But she does say she voted for him.

Murphy thanks her, nods his head in agreement, and ducks back into the offi ce on Broadway that he inherited from his predecessor, now-Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D).

She and her staff left the offi ce bare. Unopened boxes of computers and unassembled furniture parts litter the fl oor. A fl agpole, without a fl ag, lies in a corner.

Once inside, Murphy says that interactions like those are the hardest to get used to in his new life.

Only three months ago, Murphy was a businessman in a small town in upstate New York, someone whose biggest public decisions came as a board member of the Glens Falls Civic Center.

Now, he has entertained Joe Biden at his Inauguration Party, where the vice-president charmed his

WHYSCOTTMURPHYMATTERS

By David Freedlander

94-year-old grandmother. He has masterminded a whirlwind eight-week special election campaign, which vaulted Murphy from obscurity into the one of the biggest political stories of 2009.

That Murphy is such a familiar face on the streets of small North Country towns has a lot to do with the $2.2 million the former venture capitalist provided and raised in his race against former Assembly Minority Leader James Tedisco (R-Saratoga/Schenectady)—twice what the typical Congressional campaign costs. And this one lasted two months, not two years.

The Republicans picked one of the best-known politicians in the state. They were counting on conservatives in a conservative district being disgusted with the Democrats’ free-spending ways in Washington. Rudy Giuliani and other state and national bigwigs dropped in, hoping the shine of an easy win in a blue state would rub off on them.

Embattled Republican National Committee chairman Michael Steele thought the race would be a springboard for a comeback of his own.

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Republicans and Democratsread the tea leaves

of the 20th District win


several Republican elected offi cials among their ranks, including Warren County District Attorney Kate Hogan, and, through marriage, GOP State Sen. Betty Little (R-Clinton/Essex/Franklin). Murphy’s wife is one of 87 grandchildren, 57 of whom get together for those Sunday suppers.

“I’m related to 1 percent of the electorate,” Murphy liked to joke during the campaign.This was not his fi rst exposure to politics. He had volunteered on the Clinton ’92 campaign during

his last year at Harvard, but moved back home to Missouri after he graduated to take care of his ailing mother. He worked on Gov. Mel Carnahan’s (D) staff there, and a few years later, when he was between jobs, as deputy chief of staff to interim Gov. Roger Wilson (D). In both jobs, he was known as a formidable fundraiser, raising over $2 million in two campaigns, which was big money in Missouri in the late 1990s.

Most of his life, though, Murphy has been an entrepreneur, making millions in the dot-com boom, and later as a venture capitalist investing in technology companies in upstate New York. It shows. Murphy does not come across like a politician. Call him the anti-Biden. He has none of the backslapping raconteur about him. Friends say there is even a bit of shyness in him.

But still, there was something about him which just worked.“I met with the guy, sat down with him and said, ‘This guy is a natural,’” said Rep. Steve Israel (D-

Suffolk/Nassau), who recruited Murphy for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “I called the speaker and said, ‘This guy is going to be in Congress. Do not give up on this district.’”

Israel was not the only one impressed.“It’s a big step to come out of nowhere and run for Congress,” said June O’Neill, head of the state

Many Republicans say that the process by which Tedisco was chosen, and Little was not, reveals a lot about what ails the party at this critical moment.

“That win will send a powerful signal to the rest of the country and especially those folks in the elite media who think they know more than the rest of us,” he said the week the election was announced. “Our game is not up … our message still rings true with countless Americans, specifi cally those in the 20th district.”

He was wrong, of course. But so were many Democrats who shrugged when Murphy was chosen, who fi gured that the party was just picking a rich guy who could self-fi nance in a race not worth the resources.

That so many were so wrong has a lot to do with Scott Murphy. But it has even more to do with the new political order in New York.

Murphy had already banked almost half a million dollars by the time he offi cially got the Democratic nomination, half of it from his own

pocket. The campaign poured the money into mail and television advertisements. Hence the “Scot-eee!!” shouts he gets from people who call out to him from their cars as they pass him on the street.

The fi rst ad, the one that introduced Scott Murphy to the world, was “Sunday Dinner.” Over some footage, Murphy talked about how he and his wife Jennifer Hogan get together every Sunday with her extended family, a large and well-known upstate dairy farming clan who count


Democratic Party. “He’s a natural.”Just about everyone in Glens Falls thought that Scott

Murphy was going to embark on a political career sooner rather than later. But no one guessed a run for Congress was where he would start.

“He was just another interested citizen who shows up at chamber of commerce meetings and those kinds of things and says, ‘Here’s what we should do,’” said Maury Thompson, who covers politics for the Glens Falls Post-

Star.Murphy says they talked about public policy a lot

around his house. He is an inveterate newspaper reader and television yeller. So perhaps he should have been expecting his wife’s reaction to the newspaper on the morning of Friday, Jan. 23, saying that Gillibrand was going to the Senate: “You should run.”

He kicked the idea around over the weekend. By Sunday, he was in the race for her House seat. A week later, the Democratic Party chose him from among 30 other candidates as their nominee.

The goal was to have a strong showing, to do well enough to maybe set things up for 2010. But one extended recount later, he was being sworn into Congress.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California) called from the rostrum for the New York delegation to congregate below.

In the well, there were only the Democrats.“Aren’t there any Republicans from New York?” she

said, laughing.A half-mock hush went through the gallery. But facts

are facts, and the speaker had hit a little close to home. Even some Republicans look at the results of the Murphy-Tedisco race and wonder if they are doomed. For Long Island and the outer-ring suburbs of New York City to become swing districts is one thing, Republicans say, but when Warren and Essex and Columbia and Saratoga, the reddest territory of the state, start to go the other way,

death knells start ringing.“We need to get our act together,” said JoAnn Trinkle,

a member of the Board of Supervisors in Washington County. “Here’s a man who is basically a businessman, who never held public offi ce, and boom, all of a sudden he is one of the top dogs up here. It’s like people are still conservative up here, but there just aren’t as many Republicans as there used to be.”

The Democrats have now won three elections straight in the 20th Congressional district, a swath of land that curves around 10 counties in upstate New York. Republicans outnumber Democrats by 70,000 votes in the 20th; the district elected Republicans for 28 years in a row before 2006. George W. Bush carried the district by eight points in 2004.

Those days appear to be over.“Now Republicans fi ght a Democrat who opposes

executing Sept. 11 murderers to a tie,” seethed the conservative monthly The American Spectator in the days following Election Day. “This is exactly the kind of district where the Republicans must win.”

But if the national Republican Party is tearing its hair out, the state party is downright splenetic.

“We needed that seat,” said one upstate Republican senator. “We can’t win the Senate, we can’t win the governor. Democrats are totally in control of re-districting and we are going to lose at least one congressional district. We only have three seats in Congress. We just really needed to win that seat.”

Had the Republicans given the nomination to Betty Little, much of the teeth-gnashing could have been avoided. A popular female legislator, she would have, many think, cruised to victory.

Plus, since Little is related (tangentially, but still) to Murphy and considers him and his wife friends, Murphy would probably not have sought the Democratic

nomination, and the party would have had been forced to pick among the union offi cials, party insiders and other wait-your-turners who would have almost certainly lost. (Now that Murphy is in Congress, Little says she will not challenge him, clearing out his most immediate threat.)

Little wanted it. The seat became available on the last Friday in January. On Saturday, she sent out 1,300 letters to party offi cials declaring her interest. Too polite, too slow. By Tuesday, when many of them had received her letter, the GOP had already decided on Tedisco.

Tedisco was a sensible choice—well-known, a party leader with working-guy cred. But he had not faced a serious challenge in years, though he had perfected the kind of attention-gathering stunts afforded to minority leaders in Albany. “He was manifestly unserious,” said one local Republican. “Every time he opened his mouth, he lost votes.”

Many Republicans say that the process by which Tedisco was chosen, and Little was not, reveals a lot about what ails the party at this critical moment. The vote was seen as rigged by the Saratoga County party and other heavily populated counties in the center of the district, turning off voters in the northern and southern portions of the district. The perception of a good ol’ boys

Political observers see him as playing kingmaker, perfectly positioned to bring middle-American values to the heartland of the state, someone to whom other Democrats will have to defer.

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For years, Democrats have avoided taking on James Tedisco, figuring that running against him, especially after he became Assembly minority lead-er and one of the most well-known Republicans in the state, was pointless.

But after Tedisco lost in his heavily-favored race to replace Kirsten Gillibrand, Capital Region Democrats now say they smell blood in the water and have begun circling to take out the 26-year incumbent.

“He’s been given a free pass for years,” said John Franck, the Saratoga Springs Commissioner of Accounts. “But he lost his luster when he lost the campaign. Democrats think he is ripe for the taking.”

Two names have emerged as likely contenders: Joanne Yepsen, a popular Saratoga County supervi-sor, and Susan Savage, the chair of the Schenectady County legislature.

“Whenever an opportunity comes up to make more of an impact, I’m going to take a look at it,” Yepsen said.

Yepsen believes that Tedisco, whose 26 years in office make him his chamber’s longest-serving Republican, finally seems vulnerable.

“He’s not seeing the support from his own party, which is a disgrace,” she said.

Savage could not be reached for comment.As part of a strategic move during the recount

of the Congressional race against Scott Murphy, Tedisco stepped down from his position as minority leader of the Assembly. Now he has even less clout within the party.

Tedisco did well in that race in the area that cov-ers his Assembly seat, winning in Saratoga county, which makes up half of the Assembly district, by over 4,500 votes.

So do not count him out just yet, said Jaspar Nolan, the Saratoga County GOP chair, and a big fan.

“People who want to challenge him better be careful,” Nolan said. “We are very, very supportive of Jim. If he runs he will have strong support.”

—[email protected]

Targeting Tedisco network rallying around one of their own hurt him with women as well, who came out in force for Gillibrand in 2006 and 2008 and did the same for Murphy.

Gillibrand’s shadow hangs over the district in other ways as well. Republicans thought that her 2006 win over John Sweeney was a fl uke, a result due more to allegations of drunk driving and spousal abuse on his part than anything having to do with the voters. She won then as the prototype of the kind of Democrat that Chuck Schumer and Rahm Emmanuel recruited to win in conservative districts: a gun-totin’ immigration hard-liner eager to disobey Pelosi.

By the time the race to replace her began, those kinds of hot-button issues were effectively neutralized—a credit, many say, to Gillibrand, who was often at Murphy’s elbow during the eight-week campaign. Like Murphy, Gillibrand spent most of her adult life in an offi ce tower in Manhattan, but she showed that just because you elect a Democrat does not mean your hometown becomes Berkeley.

“Once a Democrat wins in a district that has never had a Democrat before, all of those awful things Republicans tell you are going to happen don’t,” said Democratic state chair June O’Neill. “Once somebody gets in there who can get something done, it has a tendency to dispel those myths.”

So for every mile on which they encroach, the Democrats say, there are 10 miles more for them to take in another cycle or two. At this rate, they say, before long, the win-loss records for the North Country will look like those on the Upper West Side.

Others see something else going on, insisting that Washington misread the district all these years. These people are not the evangelical, socially conservative Republicans from the southern end of the big tent. They voted Republican because they were fi scally conservative. When the Republicans in Washington and Albany ceded that fi scal ground, they ceded the ground of the 20th and other districts to Democrats too.

“All of those hot-button issues speak to a subset of the electorate that is predetermined in how they are going to vote anyway,” said one state Democratic strategist. “That huge swath in the middle is much more concerned about pocketbook issues. That is what Scott Murphy talked about everywhere he went.”

A spillover in enthusiasm from November helped as well. Democrats say they had dozens of phone bankers every night, and voters who lived faraway from the district’s urban center had canvassers at their doorsteps for the fi rst time.

Labor unions have been quietly getting more and more involved politically in the cities and towns of the 20th electoral district. The Working Families Party, a labor-backed New York City-based political party, has been gaining strength in the area by working on down-ballot district attorney and town council races with an impact that is just beginning to be felt. The group says they knocked on 20,000 doors, and they received close to 4,000 votes on their line in the special election. The SEIU spent over a half a million dollars on the race and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) poured in another $100,000.

“The labor movement has been a big factor, going back to 2006,” said Thompson, the Glens Falls Post-

Star political writer. “I think the labor movement stayed neutral for a long time because you had Republicans in power. There are a lot of mill workers and correctional offi cers and teachers and government workers who are unionized who may be enrolled Republicans, but union ideas and union values resonate very much with them.”

Union efforts were magnifi ed by a state party that has honed its inside game through several election cycles to turn the State Senate blue and to fl ip eight seats in Congress.

“It’s a testament to the fact that we have right now basically a much better operation than the Republicans do,” said Shams Tarek, the communications director for the New York Democratic Senate Campaign Committee. He said his organization is now sending fi eld operations out wherever elections are held, from the upcoming U.S. Senate contest to contested council races in Newburgh or Newton Falls. Having allies in elected offi ce will provide an advantage in races down the road.

“They have access to the same tools we do,” he added, though “we come from a background where we have been reaching out to people from the ground up for a long period of time, so we naturally have an advantage.”

In the 20th, the difference in the two parties’ organizing prowess was most apparent at the end of the campaign. When Election Day votes were tallied, Tedisco led by 17. Most assumed the absentee ballots would favor the Republicans, as they often do.

But perhaps more on this front than any other, the Democrats out-mobilized the Republicans. They targeted on the permanent absentee list, sending out ballots and following up at nursing homes and with voters who reside elsewhere in the winter months.

The differences in the two parties’ approach was crystallized by whom they selected to do their robo-calling in the days leading up to the election. The Democrats had Joe Biden. The Republicans cued up Pat Boone.

When returns came back showing a slight Tedisco lead, Murphy knew he won the race. It was all part of the plan.

Murphy is sure to be one of the most targeted Democrats in 2010, but few think it will matter. If Tedisco could not win and Little will not

run, many Republicans acknowledge that the party will struggle with recruitment. If the Democrats hold on to the State Senate and the governor’s offi ce, the expanded margins of Murphy’s district will likely shift in his favor. Political observers see him as playing kingmaker, perfectly positioned to bring middle- American values to the heartland of the state, someone to whom other Democrats will have to defer.

That makes him more powerful than anything else.“I’m telling you,” one upstate Democratic operative

said. “This guy is going to be governor some day.”Murphy laughs off questions about 2010.“It is the furthest thing from my mind right now,” he

says, listing the economy, energy and fi nding a place to live in D.C as greater priorities at the moment.

And the Republicans? Not left with much.Already upstate Republican operatives are telling the

politicians that the only way to hold on is to focus on constituent service and to be an ubiquitous presence in their districts. In other words, hit every pancake breakfast, and never mention your party.

For decades, Democrats struggled with fi nding good candidates to run for upstate seats. People were convinced the idea was a lost cause. Now that burden is on Republicans, as both parties look at the Murphy win and acknowledge that no one, not a single upstate Republican, upstate Assembly member or Senator is safe. Not even, all of a sudden, Tedisco, for whom Democrats are recruiting challengers for the fi rst time in years. One day soon, 109 Assembly seats and 32 Senate seats may seem like a quaint beginning for the super-charged party.

“It’s like Mike Tyson back in the day,” said one upstate Democratic elected offi cial. “Everyone was scared of him. Then he got knocked down, and nobody was scared any longer. Murphy changed the whole culture. There are qualifi ed Democrats ready to take the Republicans out. We are not scared of the bully anymore.”

[email protected]

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BY ANDREW J. HAWKINS

First Lady Michelle Paige Paterson can effortlessly rattle off statistics about childhood

obesity. One in four children are overweight, she says. One in three in communities of color. More kids today have an increased risk of developing type-2 diabetes or cardiovascular problems than ever before.

For Paterson, who also works as an executive at EmblemHealth, a statewide health insurer, waging a public fi ght against childhood obesity combines her professional expertise with what she sees as a major health crisis facing the state.

“We have to start doing something to turn this around,” she said.

She started the “Healthy Steps” program while her husband was still lieutenant governor, challenging students in cities around the state to make exercise and healthy eating a regular part of their routine. In May, children who excelled at the challenge were invited to have lunch with Paterson at the Executive Mansion. She also recently testifi ed before a House subcommittee on health about the need to adopt the program nationwide.

“I believe we can do better,” she told the legislative panel. “We need federal legislation that raises the nutrition standards of all food and beverages available in our schools.”

Her role in publicizing the effects of childhood obesity have been successful so far, said Assembly Health Committee chair Richard Gottfried (D-Manhattan).

“It’s easy to dismiss efforts like that as window dressing,” Gottfried said. “But her participation has helped focus public attention on the program, which it needs and deserves, and has really energized people.”

Still, Paterson said, she steers clear of commenting on the decisions of her husband.

“I don’t really have a role in shaping health policy,” she said.

She does see her work as fi rst lady as an extension of her husband’s efforts to increase awareness of exercise and healthy eating. Though his highest profi le attempt, the proposed tax on soda and sugary drinks, has fi zzled—with the governor confessing he saw the idea less as a serious revenue-generating proposal than an attempt to raise awareness of obesity—Michelle Paterson thinks the tax could make a comeback.

“That didn’t pass, but I think that’s a very important initiative,” she said. “I think my husband did absolutely the right thing by lifting awareness around it.”

In the fi rst year of her husband’s term, Michelle Paterson appeared to eschew the spotlight. Unlike her predecessor, Silda Wall Spitzer, Paterson seemed uneasy with the public attention, preferring to

focus on her job and her family.She admits that her husband’s tanking

poll numbers are very much on her mind. But Paterson said her public push to raise awareness of childhood health is not some roundabout attempt to improve the governor’s image. That task is his, she said.

“Right now he’s been swamped with the budget and then the MTA negotiations,” she said. “But I think once he gets out and starts talking about his record and what he’s doing, instead of having other people interpret it, I think that people will see that David is an excellent governor.”

She has endured her share of criticism as well. She was publicly picked on for sending out an e-mail blast using her EmblemHealth address pleading for support for her husband in the wake of his botched Senate appointment. In the months since, Paterson said she has continued to feel protective of her husband’s image, especially as the governor’s approval ratings fall to new lows, but said she does not feel the need to publicly denounce his detractors.

“I feel like a lot of stuff that’s being reported today about David is to shape public perception [and] to sell newspapers,” she said. “It’s not actually telling the public what’s going on, which I feel is a disservice to everybody.”

But she is careful not to let her personal feelings get out too much.

“I wouldn’t say I feel a need to defend him,” Paterson said. “I feel a need to tell the facts, and put the facts out. And the facts speak for themselves.”

In the meantime, Paterson says she is determined on keeping public attention on her work on childhood obesity and trying to not add too much to her portfolio.

“Right now, I think childhood obesity is a big chunk, and I don’t want to offer myself to too many things, because then the message gets lost,” she said.

As for the rest of the governor’s time in offi ce, his wife says she will continue pushing those issues she feels are important. But fortunately, she said, she does not have to push too hard to get her husband’s attention on the ideas that are close to her heart.

“David is very attuned about health issues,” she said. “He’s very savvy when it comes to that.”

[email protected]

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Michelle Paterson said her public push to raise awareness of childhood health is not some roundabout attempt to improve the governor’s image. That task is his, she said.

Continuing Healthy Steps And Stepping Into The Role Of First LadyMichelle Paterson diagnoses state health care and her husband’s low poll numbers


BY CHRIS BRAGG

In his previous job atNASA, Andrew Hoppin was able to convince a bunch of

aging scientists to start Twittering.After that, trying to change the

culture of the New York Senate may not seem so daunting.

“That’s why I got the job: Because I was able to help turn around a large entity that was stuck in the past,” said Hoppin, the Senate’s new chief information offi cer, who oversaw the building of the Senate’s brand-new website.

Hoppin hopes to infuse the Senate with some of the ethos of the IT world, which holds that constant collaboration always improves the end product.

Bringing on Hoppin was the idea of Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith (D-Queens), who has said a more open and transparent body is a priority, and who Twittered a question at the roll-out press conference about whether he would be able to view the new website on his BlackBerry.

This attitude is refl ected, for instance, in the platform on which Hoppin built the new Senate website. The platform, Drupal, was built with open-source code—code that had been passing freely around the Internet, with each person working on it making an improvement and then shuttling their innovation along.

This method of working is very different from the longstanding political culture of Albany, where bills are often passed without committee hearings and then contain defi ciencies that might have been avoided through more input.

With technology, Hoppin hopes to begin changing this by making the legislative process work more like open-source software.

“We’re looking for a cultural cross-pollination,” Hoppin said.

On the new Senate site, for instance, there is a feature allowing the public to post their comments about proposed legislation, a method known as “crowdsourcing.” In the fi rst week the State Senate’s new website was online, 30 people wrote in their ideas about a bill proposed by Sen. Carl Kruger(D-Brooklyn) to bring down property taxes.

Hoppin also wants to implement new e-mail tools in Senate offi ces that would allow senators to more narrowly target their newsletters to

individual groups of constituents who are knowledgeable in certain policy areas.

In addition, the Senate team also has begun the “Plain Language Initiative” that will describe the content of bills and budgets in plain English, so that those outside the lobbying industry actually understand what is in legislation.

Each senator now has the option to blog, start a Facebook page, or a Twitter site (so far, Democrats seem to favor social networking, while their counterparts in the minority apparently prefer 140-character tweets).

Hoppin added that he hopes all of this Web 2.0 fl attens the hierarchy of Albany by putting lawmakers closer to their constituents.

Of course, if either senators or the public do not use these tools, the technology does not matter.

Much of the content on the site is posted voluntarily. Senators are not obligated to post bills online for comment, for instance, so if they do not want the public scrutiny, they are not forced to engage.

But at the least, Hoppin said, the website will lay bare who is soliciting public input and who is not, especially if a piece of legislation ends up fl awed as a consequence of inadequate vetting.

Hoppin also admitted that changing the Senate website is only one part of making the body more democratic. If the budget is negotiated again behind closed doors, for instance, then there will be no opportunity for the public to shape the bill, fancy website or no.

There will also now be a greater emphasis on putting slick content

on the site that will engage citizens, said Christopher Sealey, the Senate’s new creative director, noting that the Senate had recently hired a former producer from HBO fi lms to do this. In particular, Sealey wants to create more emotional content that shows senators out working in their districts, rather than simply showing the more mundane legislative process.

“A picture is worth a thousand words, and a moving picture is worth even more than that,” Sealey said.

But Blair Horner, legislative director for New York Public Interest Research Group, said the

Senate would be better served by focusing on creating more neutral content, in the form of a full-time “C-SPAN for New York,” run through a cable company, rather than the Senate majority, to avoid the appearance of bias, he said.

“I don’t think more promotion of members is going to engage the public’s interest,” Horner said.

Sen. John Bonacic (R-Delaware/Sullivan/Ulster), co-chair of the Senate Temporary Committee on Rules Reform, called the new website a “solid start.” But he noted that nonpartisan websites can quickly turn partisan. On the Rules Committee’s website, run by the Democrats, only the committee’s majority report is posted. The minority’s dissenting report is not.

“That goes against the promise of nonpartisanship on the websites,” Bonacic said. “I think the websites—both the main site and the individual sites for all Senators—will be positive, if they are maintained for the long term in a nonpartisan way as promised.”

[email protected]

Andrew Hoppin has brought his experience with Web 2.0 to the Senate Democrats, starting with unveiling a new website in May.

With New Site, Senate Democrats Log On To Crowdsourcing, Facebook, Twitter

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The New York Affordable Reliable ElectricityAlliance (New York AREA) is a diverse group

of business, labor, environmental, and commu-nity leaders working together for clean,

low-cost and reliable electricity solutions thatfoster prosperity and jobs for the Empire State.

S P E C I A L S P O N S O R E D S E C T I O N

PowerLong Island’sFutureBy James Castellane

As we all know, Long Island is a great place to place to live,

work and raise a family. We have a skilled workforce,

effective labor leadership and all the amenities needed to

ensure that our families enjoy the finest quality-of-life

anywhere within the Empire State.

However, we also know that the cost of living in Nassau and

Suffolk County continues to rise, and that high energy costs

have directly impacted our ability to grow our regional

economy through new jobs and new investment. Part of this

lies in Long Island’s limited and antiquated power generation

system.

Passage of a new power plant siting statute would expedite the

process for siting and constructing new, clean and efficient

power generation stations that will create jobs, use less energy

and stabilize electricity costs for consumers. The state

legislature is currently working with the Governor’s office to

craft a new siting bill, and the fact remains that they cannot

craft a new bill soon enough.

Recently, a wind energy project off Plum Island proposed by

Deepwater Wind was dropped because of the lack of a state

siting law. Rhode Island will now be the beneficiary of 800

new jobs and 1.3 million megawatts of annual electricity. This

is simply unconscionable.

The Nassau Suffolk Building Trades, which represents 62,000

union members throughout Long Island, also endorsed a plan

to construct a Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) facility some 23

miles from the Rockaway Peninsula. The new plant would

provide 4 million man-hours of work for construction trades

throughout the region while ensuring safe, secure access to this

clean, crucial fuel source.

New York’s families and businesses are using more and not

less power at ever increasing rates. Our elected leaders need to

take action and ensure a more affordable and reliable future for

the sake of New York’s economy.

James Castellane is the President of the Nassau-Suffolk Building

Trades Council with more than 35 years as a laborer, organizer and

officer with the Heat & Frost Insulators Local 12 union.

W W W . A R E A - A L L I A N C E . O R G


BY ANDREW J. HAWKINS

Larry Schwartz has a mess on multiple fronts to contend with in running Gov. David Paterson’s

(D) administration in Albany.But what he left behind in Westchester

County is becoming a multi-layered mess of its own.

Before accepting the job with Paterson, Schwartz was the top advisor and political

“brain” to Westchester County Executive Andrew Spano (D). Without him, some observers believe, Spano may have diffi culty navigating the budget problems caused by the economic crisis and the campaign that lays ahead in his quest for a fourth term.

“[Schwartz] was the enforcer, the heavy that would drive things through,” one Westchester-based Republican operative said. “It was a pretty big loss for that administration.”

Still, Spano has a lot going for him: about

$1.4 million in the bank, an overwhelming Democratic enrollment edge and, after 12 years in offi ce, a familiar, household name.

That name, though, is one he may not have to himself on the ballot if his 50-year-old son David goes through with an announced Democratic primary campaign aimed not just at getting rid of his father, but getting rid of county government entirely, as his very basic platform insists should be done.

Meanwhile, Westchester Republicans

are gunning for him too, with Rob Astorino undertaking what is expected to be a spirited rematch. Combined with their salivating over the idea of Spano without Schwartz at the rudder, property taxes in the county being at an all-time high and the economy being at an all-time low have the Republicans seeing Spano as particularly vulnerable.

Nonetheless, changes in the population have made the county executive race more uphill than ever before for Republicans in Westchester. Once a Republican center of the state, the county has grown increasingly Democratic, leaving all of the Congressional seats from the area in Democratic hands, in addition to three of the four state senate positions. Plus, there was Janet DiFiore’s switch to the Democratic Party to run for district attorney four years ago, and Assembly Member Mike Spano (no relation to the county executive), who changed caucuses in 2007.

But Astorino is optimistic about his chances. A former county legislator who is now the director of Sirius Satellite Radio’s Catholic Channel, he is planning a campaign centered on cutting property taxes and consolidating local government as a way to reduce waste—two hot-button issues in Westchester these days.

Another part of Astorino’s strategy is trying to position himself with some very strange company for a Republican candidate. He boasts of being on the same page with prominent New York Democrats like Attorney General Andrew Cuomo and Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi, and says he wants to seize the “change” theme popularized by Barack Obama’s presidential campaign, calling for a new direction in county government after 12 years of Spano.

“He’s been there forever,” Astorino said. “Just like milk cartons, you have expiration dates. And I think a lot of people are saying, ‘It’s time for a change, it’s time for somebody new.’”

Astorino said there will be differences between this campaign and his 2005 effort, which ended with a 16-point loss. The county government has swelled in the past four years, he said, noting that Westchester’s $1.8 billion budget is bigger than those of several small countries combined. Also, with the economy in such a dismal state, voters are more attuned to the bloat and waste in county government, such as taxpayer-funded bodyguards and chauffeurs for Spano, he said.

“As people are starting to lose their jobs, or worry about losing their jobs, their bonus check didn’t come in, and they start to question every bill,” Astorino said. “People have no idea what county government does or why they’re paying such a large bill.”

Spano countered that argument, saying that county government makes up only a fraction of the taxes residents pay annually. Trying to explain that to voters has been a challenge, he said.

In Schwartz’s Wake, Spano Gets A Two-Way Challenge In WestchesterGOP survival and oedipal politics at play in county executive race

Despite opposition, Westchester County Executive Andrew Spano sems set to score a fourth term in November.

GOP Challenger Rob Astorino


In Westchester D.A.’s Race, A Jumble Of Party-Swaps And Grand JuriesDiFiore, in a three-way race with Castro and Schorr, defends her record

The father-vs.-son-vs.-Republican race for county executive is not the only three-for-all in Westchester this fall.

District Attorney Janet DiFiore (D) is facing a possible three-way race of her own. But first she must win the Democratic primary, after having switched parties in 2007.

Her opponents are eager to leap on what they call DiFiore’s political expediency.

“Many Democrats don’t consider her an incumbent Democratic dis-trict attorney,” said Tony Castro, a Democrat who came within six points of defeating DiFiore in 2005 and is running against her again this year. “I know it’s semantics, but they consider me the Democratic incumbent.”

Castro would not rule out running as an independent against DiFiore should he fail to win the Democratic primary. But if he did, he could give Republican candidate Dan Schorr a better chance at victory.

“We’ll cross that bridge when it comes,” Castro said. “I don’t want to be a spoiler, that’s for sure.”

DiFiore also is struggling to come out from under the shadow of a controversial investigation into the killing of a Mount Vernon police officer, Christopher Ridley, an African-American who was shot 15 months ago by a white Westchester County officer. In a lawsuit, Ridley’s father alleges that DiFiore covered up an investigation into what could have been a racially motivated killing.

But DiFiore said a grand jury is currently looking into the case, preventing her from speaking publicly about it. As for her first time courting Democratic primary voters, DiFiore said she is confident that her record and her efforts to trim the D.A.’s budget (she says she has returned close to $1 million in savings to taxpayers each year) will speak volumes.

“I worked hard over the last three and a half years to build this model of a modern prosecutor’s office,” DiFiore said. “I’m not going to be my usual self-effacing self that I try to be. We have done this in an extremely prudent and financially responsible way.”

Her Republican challenger is hoping to tap into what he sees as a split between DiFiore and police officials over the Ridley case and oth-ers. But Schorr must still contend with a crushing Democratic enroll-ment edge in the county.

Schorr, a former prosecutor in Westchester and Queens, said he believes county voters are more conservative on crime. Plus, no Democrat has been elected Westchester D.A. since 1895, he noted.

He is courting police unions for support and plans to run alongside GOP county executive candidate Rob Astorino under a joint message of change.

“I think the common message in our campaigns is, something has gone off the tracks with Westchester county government,” Schorr said, “and there needs to be real change in leadership.”

—[email protected]

“Problem is, people don’t differentiate between schools, county government, local government, et cetera,” Spano said. “The general public is just not that sophisticated.”

Spano said he cut $46 million out of the county budget last year, maintaining some government services while consolidating others.

Spano and his supporters like to brag about Westchester being the only AAA-bonded county government in the state (which

translates into savings on interest costs for Westchester taxpayers when the county sells bonds) as a way to tamp down Astorino’s accusations of ineffi ciency.

Even so, the anti-county government movement is gathering some steam in Westchester, and the candidacy of David Spano will undoubtedly help it gain profi le. Groups like those that organized a mid-April anti-tax/anti-government rally, where the younger Spano announced his campaign,

or Rethinking Westchester Government, a new group that wants to eliminate county government, have been among Spano’s most vocal critics.

Not surprisingly, the county executive has defended the government system, even putting together a recent op-ed making his case.

As for the man leading the charge against him, he had little to say.

“I don’t talk to my son,” the county executive said curtly. “I don’t even know where that came from.”

Despite the fi re he is taking, Spano seems relatively safe, as even his critics admit.

“There’s a lot of people who feel that there’s waste and ineffi ciency,” said Paul Feiner, a former county legislator and current Greenburgh town supervisor, who founded Rethinking Westchester Government. “But I’m not sure how it’s going to impact in terms of the election. I personally don’t feel that Astorino is that strong. My gut feeling is that Spano will probably win.”

As for how he is faring without Schwartz, the man who for so long ran his operation now departed for Albany, Spano rejected the idea that his offi ce is without strong leadership, saying that he has full faith in Schwartz’s elevated replacement, deputy county executive Susan Tolchin.

“She knows what she’s doing, but it’s a different style,” Spano said. “I miss [Schwartz], he had a lot of skills. But the government is running smoothly.”

If anything, Spano said, Schwartz’s deep knowledge of Westchester will be a boon for the county as decisions are made in the state government.

(Through a spokesperson, Schwartz declined comment.)

Spano’s greatest asset may be Westchester’s changing demographics, said Jeffrey Binder, a White Plains-based lawyer and political consultant for Strategic Political Group. Democrats now have an edge over Republicans in enrollment that exceeds 100,000 voters, Binder noted, with more conservative residents moving northward to Rockland County and beyond. This migration is likely to have far-reaching implications for Westchester politics, he said, and Spano’s re-election.

“Honestly, going forward, the very interesting battles will be in the Democratic primary,” Binder said, “much like in Manhattan.” [email protected]

New York AREA’s membership includes someof the state’s most vital business, labor and

community organizations including: ThePartnership for NY City, Business Council of

NY State, NY Building Congress, NYSRestaurant Association, the Teamsters,

Carpenters, IBEW and many more.


Support NewYork’s EnergyConsumersBy Kevin Lanahan

The Energy Association of New York State represents the state'smajor energy corporations, which currently employ over 28,000New Yorkers. These New Yorkers, many of whom are membersof labor unions, pay over $2.5 billion a year in state and localtaxes. These employees also contribute tens of millions ofdollars each year to community and charitable purposes. Inshort, our member employees and their families continue toprovide the power to maintain the fine quality-of-life we allenjoy as New Yorkers.

We all know the challenges facing our great state. Sales taxrevenues have continued to slide at the state and local level –forcing our lawmakers to make some very tough decisions.Neighborhood after neighborhood continues to see the affects ofanother month of home foreclosures. Unemployment continuesto grow at a rapid pace.

However, rising property taxes and hidden utility fee increasesdirectly affect the bottom line of our working families. In fact, aNew York Post study recently found that 22% percent of atypical apartment dweller’s utility bill in New York City goes topay an array of city, state and federal taxes. For New Yorker,this is an unconscionable reality.

Additionally, some leaders in Albany are seeking to endcompetition within the state’s electricity markets. New York’scompetitive market structure has allowed consumers to choosetheir energy provider, while offering pathways toward greaterdevelopment of renewable energy resources such as wind andhydropower. Construction of a state energy plan offers theunique opportunity to reaffirm this important operating principlefor the good of all New Yorkers.

Instead of limiting choices and simply raising everyone’s taxburden to close budget gaps, our elected leaders should bechampioning programs that invest in New York. We should beinvesting in our infrastructure – turning to the development ofsmart grids and new technologies – projects that create jobs andgenerate income for workers, as well as for our state and localgovernments.

Our members look forward to working with lawmakers andcustomers alike to build an energy future for all New Yorkersthat is reliable, affordable and environmentally friendly.

Kevin Lanahan serves as acting Executive Director of the EnergyAssociation of New York (EANY) and is a member of the New YorkAffordable Reliable Electricity Alliance.



BY JENNIFER JO JANISCH

Albany is awash in ideas for reforming what is often called the most dysfunctional state

government in the country.But Leonard Roberto, a conservative

activist from Western New York, believes the only answer is to scrap the State Constitution, abolish the government and start from scratch.

A business owner (and former pastor) from rural Alden, a village with one main road and two stoplights, Roberto, 53, does not look like the type to take on the establishment in Albany.

“Somebody has to do it. By god, if nobody else will, I will, you know?” Roberto said. “Find somebody else with a PhD who wants to do this, and I’ll go back to making sheet metal parts.”

But back in the early 1990s, he “began to see how demanding the state of New York had become, and how demanding life had become” for the people of Western New York. Frustrated by the state’s high taxes, gerrymandering and “three men in a room” system, he ran for state offi ce twice and Erie County executive once. He did not fare well.

In 2005, he founded Primary Challenge, a citizens’ group dedicated to putting forth non-establishment candidates to run in state primary elections and challenge entrenched politicians. But at this point,

he says, corruption and dysfunction have gotten so bad in New York that the only solution is a referendum that would wipe the slate clean entirely.

Primary Challenge plans to hold a referendum of its own next May at citizen-run polling places—right alongside the Board of Elections voting booths—with a single issue on the ballot: vote yes or no to abolish the State Constitution.

If they get four and a half million votes (the number of votes cast in the last gubernatorial election), he insists, the existing state government would lose its moral authority to govern.

That is not a totally ridiculous claim, said Blair Horner, legislative director for the New York Public Interest Research Group.

“It certainly would be compelling if they were able to pull that off, but it certainly wouldn’t be binding,” Horner says. “Groups like these periodically show up in New York, and they usually occur when people are getting increasingly frustrated with the government and the economy.”

The pie in the sky idea has found some resonance, he said, especially with frustration about high taxes and corruption. To wit, he points to the 20,000 unique visitors Primary Challenge.org attracted in the fi rst 10 days after its launch, and the dozen or so guests his counter shows are perusing the site at any given time.

As for the idea of rewriting the Constitution itself, people are divided as to whether that would actually disentangle what has gone wrong with the state. Already under a clause in the constitution, voters must be presented every 20 years with the option of a constitutional convention to rewrite things completely. The last vote was in

1997. Voters passed on the chance.The last time there was a constitutional

convention, in 1967, the public did not ratify what was produced, meaning that New Yorkers have lived with the same constitution since the one written in 1938, which critics feel is both outdated and responsible for creating a more favorable environment for the power establishment.

Having another one soon should be considered, said Dr. Seymour Lachman, a former New York state senator and now a professor at Wagner College on Staten Island.

“Many of these constitutional conventions have really been very important,” Lachman explained. “For example, the constitutional convention in the 1930s occurring during FDR’s New Deal was very, very important in terms of labor and education, social welfare of that sort.”

The next referendum vote is scheduled for 2017. To have a convention before then would require the Legislature putting the measure on the ballot.

Roberto believes he can help spur all this to happen.

“Embedded within our law is the power for the people of New York to simply click their heels and abolish the existing government and start over,” Roberto said. “That the people will buy if we can get the word out to them.”

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Western New York Activist Leads Charge For Constitutional Convention

Wanted:Comings and goingsand weddings, too

Let City Hall and The Capitol know about all yourofficial staff changes by e-mailing information aboutyour staff hires, promotions and departures. We’dalso like your unofficial changes such as engage-ments, weddings and anniversaries. Please includephotographs when possible.

Please e-mail all submissions [email protected] and [email protected].


Sue Them in Your Own CountryMatar v. DichterDecided by: Second Circuit Federal Appeals Court, April 16

In July of 2002, Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) aircraft targeted an alleged leader of the Palestinian organization Hamas as he worked on the top fl oor of a residential apartment building in Gaza City. The bomb the IDF used, which killed the Hamas offi cial, ended up destroying much of the building and damaging surrounding structures. In the end, 14 civilians died and 150 others were injured in the controversial “al-Daraj bombing.”

Three years after the bombing, some of the injured survivors and relatives of the deceased fi led a class-action lawsuit in Manhattan federal court against the former head of the Israeli security agency, Avraham Dichter, who supposedly ordered the attack. The plaintiffs

sought money damages from Dichter under the Alien Tort Statute, which allows American courts to hear cases and award damages for violations of the “law of nations.” The district court threw the lawsuit out, fi nding that Dichter, as head of the security agency, was “an instrumentality of a foreign state” and, thus, immune for his decisions in offi ce.

Last month, the federal appeals court upheld that decision using a more expansive rationale than the district court; indeed, the appeals court’s opinion shields all foreign offi cials from liability as long as the U.S. State Department supports such immunity. Although the district court had based its decision in the Foreign Sovereign Immunity Act (FSIA), a federal statute limiting the situations where immunity is to be applied to foreign offi cials, the appeals court relied on an older common-law principle where a judge will defer to the wishes of the State Department on immunity questions. Here, because the Bush Administration fi led a brief urging immunity for Dichter, the State Department’s wishes should be honored.

The appeals court defended its decision on a theory of judicial restraint—not wanting to interpret the FSIA too broadly—but the decision resurrects a theory of judicial obeisance to the Executive Branch on immunity not seen for decades. If such deference continues, Manhattan’s federal courthouse will be off-limits for suits against foreign offi cials for many years to come.

Killing the Suicide PresumptionInfante v. Dingan and Green v. Penn Life InsuranceDecided by: Court of Appeals, May 4

Traditionally, New York law had a presumption against death by suicide—that is, where the cause of death is not readily identifi able as suicide, it was assumed that a person perished for other reasons. This rule most often surfaced in life-insurance disputes as most

policies exclude payouts for suicide.

Earlier this month, concerned by the burgeoning use of the presumption by the lower courts, the Court of Appeals handed down two decisions, Infante v. Dingan and Green v. Penn Life, to temper the activism

of the lower courts and narrow (and possibly eliminate) the presumption’s use.

In Infante, the father of the deceased sued the county medical examiner, who had declared the daughter’s death an intentional drug overdose, to revise her determination. The appellate court sided with the father and held that the medical examiner failed to incorporate the state’s presumption against suicide in her report. In Green, the deceased was found in bed with two empty pill bottles and an empty glass nearby. Given the circumstances, Penn Life Insurance Company refused to pay on the policy. Again, the appellate court found that suicide was not an appropriate conclusion because some evidence showed that Green may have died from natural causes.

The high court reversed both decisions as unwarranted expansions of the presumption against suicide. Finding that a legal principle has “no role to play” in a medical examiner’s work, Infante said the doctor should reach her conclusions on the basis of science alone. According to the court, so long as the examiner

had a reasonable basis for her decision, her conclusions should not be clouded by non-scientifi c factors like legal presumptions.

Using similar language, the court in Green found the presumption should only be a “guide” for a jury in deciding whether someone committed suicide. The court said, “Where the evidence leaves open two possible fi ndings, it is the jury’s business to resolve the doubt.”

Both results create uncertainty for the future of the presumption against suicide since its use now appears rarely, if ever, to be warranted.

Homing Devices Not Given a Home in New YorkPeople v. WeaverDecided by: Court of Appeals, May 12

For 65 days from December 2005 to February 2006, the New York State Police tracked every movement of Scott Weaver’s car. By placing a GPS-tracking device known as a “Q-ball” in his bumper (without a warrant), the police were able to get constant updates of Weaver’s location. Weaver was arrested and charged with two robberies, one in July 2005 and one during Christmas of 2005, when his van was being tracked.

At his trial, the prosecution introduced the tracking data to show Weaver’s car was in the parking lot of K-Mart on the night it was robbed. Weaver objected, arguing the GPS data was gathered in violation of his Fourth Amendment right to be secure from “unreasonable searches and seizures.” The trial judge ruled against Weaver, and he was convicted of the December robbery (and acquitted of the other July charge).

A sharply divided Court of Appeals overturned the conviction and tossed out the GPS evidence for infringing Weaver’s zone of constitutional privacy. In the 4-3 decision, Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman relied on the State Constitution, which he said offered “greater protections” than the Fourth Amendment. The Chief Justice wrote that GPS tracking of this sort was as likely to reveal criminal misdeeds as it was to show trips “to the psychiatrist … the abortion clinic … [or] the AIDS treatment center.” Because it could expose so many habits, hobbies and actions, installing the Q-ball without a warrant was “inconsistent with even the slightest reasonable expectation of privacy.”

—James McDonald

To learn more about New York AREA advocacy,educational programs, events, membership or

sponsorship opportunities, contact us at212-683-1203, [email protected] visit us at www.area-alliance.org


New State EnergyPlan Key toOur FutureBy Al Samuels

The Rockland Business Association (RBA) represents the

concerns of over 1,000 membership companies, ranging from

major corporations to small business owners. As we watch our

state leaders work to construct a new energy plan, I encourage

them to focus on a plan that will create jobs, foster new

economic growth and reduce costs for businesses and

consumers alike.

First and foremost, a new energy plan should include a new,

comprehensive and fuel-neutral power plant siting law. Plant

closures, such as the Lovett plant in Stony Point have

significantly impacted the budgets of local Rockland

communities and school districts. We cannot allow more

communities to suffer the same fate. Our state must maintain a

supply of affordable, reliable baseload power well into the

future.

The plan should also specifically support the use of nuclear

energy and the continued operations of the Indian Point Energy

Center. Indian Point’s clean, low-cost power flows through our

lines, and into our businesses and homes. Indian Point’s

employees own homes in Rockland County, and when those

same employees pay their school taxes, their money flows to

Rockland classrooms and goes toward paying teachers’ salaries.

Lowering utility costs for businesses and homeowners should

also be an important goal for the new plan. We must continue

competition in New York’s electricity markets, lower property

taxes for utilities and power producers, end the gross receipts tax

on utilities and curtail raising fees on utility bills. These actions

would be most helpful to our small businesses and our region’s

middle-class.

Finally, the new energy plan must encourage greater energy

efficiencies, new transmission infrastructure investment and the

development of a new generation of green jobs. While many of

us have expressed concerns regarding the federal stimulus

package, we can all agree that those dollars should be used for

what they were intended for - rebuilding our transportation and

energy infrastructure, developing alternative energy resources

and putting New Yorkers back to work.

Al Samuels is the President and CEO of the Rockland BusinessAssociation as well as an Advisory Board Member of the New YorkAffordable Reliable Electricity Alliance.



BY AARON SHORT

The Statue of Liberty’s crown was closed after the Sept. 11 attacks due to concerns that

the winding stairway did not provide adequate means for evacuation in case of an emergency.

That will change on July 4, when The Department of Interior will re-open the crown to tourists. Ten visitors at a time, chosen through a lottery system, will be able to climb the 354 steps. Also announced were plans for improvements which, once completed, will allow more people to visit the crown at a time.

The reopening of the crown represents a signifi cant legislative victory for Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-Brooklyn/Queens). In August 2004, after Congress spent $20 million in safety renovations, the National Park Service reopened the base of the Statue to the public, but kept the crown closed. One year later, Congress passed Weiner’s Save the Statue of Liberty Act, which he reintroduced in 2007, directing

the National Parks Service to implement safety improvements to the crown and the stairway. After Congress approved additional security funding, Weiner and his colleagues began increasing pressure on the Bush administration to follow through.

Last August, the National Parks Service launched a Life-Safety and Emergency Management Study for the Statue. Four days after the Obama inauguration, Weiner led United States Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar and his colleagues up the stairways from the Statue’s feet to her crown.

“It took the Obama administration four months to do what the Bush administration could not do in nearly seven years,” said Weiner. “They have what the Bush administration always lacked: courage and creativity to solve this problem.”

While the crown was closed, tourism at the site went from a high of 3.6 million visitors in 2000 to only 2.5 million 2006, a decrease of 31 percent.

Many civic leaders believe that the Statue of Liberty is the cornerstone of tourism in Lower Manhattan, but have watched as visitors have spent their dollars elsewhere. The Alliance for Downtown New York, which provides services for local businesses and keeps statistics for local commerce, noted that 5.23 million people visited Lower Manhattan in 2008, up signifi cantly from 3 million in 2003. Nearby museums, such as the Museum of the American Indian had its highest visitation numbers since 2005, while the Museum of Jewish Heritage recorded its highest numbers ever.

Hotels in Lower Manhattan also performed well over the past year with Average Daily Rates (ADR) of $335.96—8 percent higher than the city’s ADR of $312. Both business and leisure travelers had high median incomes, with business travelers earning an average $236,000 per year and leisure guests earning $164,000. Leisure travelers said they chose hotels in Lower Manhattan because of their proximity to tourist sites like the Statue

of Liberty, and 86 percent of guests said they would likely stay in downtown Manhattan on a return trip.

City offi cials know the importance of tourism dollars generated from downtown attractions, especially as the tax base from the fi nancial industry has dwindled signifi cantly this fi scal year. Tiffany Townsend, a spokesperson with NYC & Company, said the city is forecasting a 5-percent decrease in tourism for 2009, leading to 46 million visitors for the year, but she is optimistic that the opening of the Statue will draw more tourists to Lower Manhattan. New York City Council Member Alan Gerson (D-Manhattan), whose district includes Liberty Island, agrees.

“It can only have a positive impact,” said Gerson. “More people will come now that they are able to make their way up. It will be another one of the many reasons people come and enjoy Lower Manhattan.”

Direct letters to the editor to

[email protected]

The Glory of Dutch Bulbs:A Legacy of 400 yearsThrough June 7New York Botanical GardenBronx River Parkway at Fordham RoadBronx, NY 10458

The Glory of Dutch Bulbs exhibit, presented by Henry Hudson 400 and the New York Botanical Garden, features more than fi fty thousand rare Dutch bulbs—including the tulip ‘Duc van Tol’ of 1595, the oldest in Holland’s famed collection—arrayed in the New York Botanical Garden’s crystal palace, the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory. This unprecedented indoor exhibition—inspired by the lavish gardens at Keukenhof, near Amsterdam, renowned for its vibrant spring displays—celebrates 400 years of Dutch supremacy in bulb cultivation. The spectacle will focus on tulips for the initial two weeks followed by fi ve extravagant weeks of dazzling lilies, alliums, irises and narcissuses.

A Walking Tour Of 17th-Century Dutch New YorkThrough Dec. 31The New Amsterdam Trail

To make historic Dutch Manhattan come alive for the greatest number of people, Henry Hudson 400, with the Dutch National Archives and the National Parks of New York Harbor Conservancy at Federal Hall, have joined forces to create the multi-platform, self-guided walking tour, “The New Amsterdam Trail.”

The trail may be accessed in a number of ways. It may be downloaded to a handheld mobile device for a self-guided walk or experienced online as an interactive virtual tour. The tour is also available as a printed brochure available at tourist sites around the city.

Dutch Barges on the HudsonSept. 1-20

Early on September 1, 2009, a fl eet of distinctive Dutch fl at-bottom boats will sail with great fanfare into New York Harbor. The distinctive “bottoms”—low-slung skûtsjes, fi shing boats, barges—are direct descendants of the sailing ships that plied Dutch coastlines in the 17th century, immortalized by the country’s painters, and closely related to the fi rst ships built in New York.

New Amsterdam FestivalSept. 10-20Governors Island, New York

This one-time-only performance art festival will bring together 150

artists from the Netherlands and New York to create art installations, open-air performance and other art projects. Governors Island will become a temporary art colony, including the Boulevard of Broken Dreams, a temporary theater street with nostalgic theater tents, bars, restaurants and an antique merry-go-round. www.newamsterdamfestival.com.

New Amsterdam VillageSept. 5-15Bowling Green ParkBroadway and Beaver streets, New York

Traditional Dutch canal houses, open-air stages and windmills will be constructed to present a traditional version of Holland (yes, wooden shoemaking included). For a more contemporary portrait, a greenhouse will demonstrate innovations and energy-saving technologies developed in the Netherlands, a global leader in the industry.

Peekskill CelebrationSept. 7-131008 Park StreetPeekskill, NY 10566

Established in 1997, the annual Peekskill Celebration is the largest festival in the Hudson Valley, attracting over 30,000 people from the New York City metropolitan area to the shores of the majestic Hudson in mid-summer. Festivities showcase the city’s historic

TOURISMReopened Crown Seen As Boost For New York In Tough TimesStatue of Liberty may be beacon for otherwise lost tourism dollars in recession

Regarding Henry

This year marks the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson’s fi rst trip in the ship Half Moon up the river that now bears his name. New Yorkers are celebrating the occasion with events and exhibits across the state all year long. Some of the most notable:

>> Continued on page 29

Arthur H. KatzExecutive Director

NYSAWMD211 East 43rd Street

New York, NY 10017

Alexandria PopePresident

Local 805, I.B.T., AFL-CIO44-61 11th Street

Long Island City, NY 11101

WHY???Why does the misguided and mystifying avoidance of $1.6 billion annually in taxes from the illegal sales of cigarettes by Native American outlets to non-Indians remain unsolved by this administration? The answer has been before us since 1994: Tax stamp allcigarettes and issue tax refund coupons for Tribal use.

Why have we given away another $150,000,000 to terrorists and criminals since our last letter fi ve weeks ago, when our budget crisis demands courage and conviction over greed and politics?

Why did New York State fi ght for and win the right to tax cigarette purchases by our non-Indian citizens, all the way to The United States Supreme Court in 1994 and to this day not collect the tax when our State Tax law, under article 20, requires that we do?

Why has the New York State Legislature twice passed legislation that the executive branch has not implemented? The state courts have ruled that the tax department must issue the tax exempt coupons for Tribal consumption and then the law will take effect.

Why does the administration continue to permit 40 million cartons annually of untaxed cigarettes to fl ow to the reservation stores when Congressman Peter King, Congressman Anthony Weiner, Mayor Bloomberg, the FBI and others have uncovered massive funding of terrorists and other criminals from the illegal sales of cigarettes that are purchased from these outlets?

Why do we frustrate the effectiveness of health programs by making cigarettes more affordable and available to teenagers by permit-ting the illegal sales of untaxed cigarettes by Indian outlets through the mails?

Why in the past year did 3,000 stores close their doors and not renew their cigarette licenses, resulting in the loss of thousands ofgood New York retail jobs, did our administration not ‘close the door’ on this illegal trade?

Solution: As prescribed by law; tax stamp all cigarettes with a New York State tax stamp for sales outside New York City, apply a New York City ‘joint stamp’ for consumption within New York City and issue the tax exempt coupons for all tribal consumption

* Below is a chart of some of those who have made public statements urging the collection of all cigarette taxes due and those who are opposed!? It speaks for itself.

NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg New York PostNewsdayCongressman Peter KingCongressman Anthony WeinerAmerican Lung AssociationAmerican Heart Association

Those who say DON’T collect the cigarette tax.

Those who say collect the cigarette tax.American Cancer SocietyNew York State Tax AgentsCayuga CountySuffolk CountyTeamsters Local 805Hospital WorkersMTA

NYS Association Service StationsNACSNYACS (Jim Calvin)Small Grocers AssociationNYC Corporation CouncilNYS SenateNYS Assembly

Indian TribesIndian LobbyistsUnlicensed Street Peddlers

CriminalsTerroristsPast Three Administrations

WHY???


CASEWORKER/CONSTITUENT SERVICES LIAISONTHE OFFICE OF US CONGRESSMAN JERROLD NADLERThe Office of US Congressman Jerrold Nadler seeks a full-time Caseworker/Constituent Ser-vices Liaison for his Manhattan District Office. Responsibilities include responding to constitu-ent inquiries regarding public benefits, land-lord/tenant and consumer issues; acting as the Congressman’s liaison to tenant associations and affordable housing advocacy groups; represent-ing his interests and advising him on appropriate actions; and drafting testimony, correspondence and talking points. B.A. required. Excellent writ-ing, interpersonal and problem-solving skills es-sential. Interest in and familiarity with social welfare policy and, in particular, government-subsidized/sponsored housing programs and rent regulation laws strongly preferred. Competitive salary and excellent benefits. Position reports to the Director of Constituent Services and begins immediately. Please fax or e-mail resume and cover letter to: “Caseworker/Constituent Services Liaison” at (212) 367-7356 or [email protected] by June 1, 2009. NO PHONE CALLS PLEASE.

CHIEF OF STAFFNYS ASSEMBLYAssemblymember seeks innovative and highly motivated person to serve as Chief-of-Staff to manage all aspects of the District Office.

Requirements include: excellent writing skills, experience in government, ability to work flex-ible hours, strong communication and organi-zational skills and ability to work well under pressure. Qualified candidates should submit a resume and cover letter to [email protected]

DIRECTORTHE OFFICE OF US CONGRESSMAN JERROLD NADLERThe Office of US Congressman Jerrold Nadler seeks full-time Manhattan Director to serve as his principal community relations liaison for the Manhattan portion of his district. Responsibili-ties include: acting as the Congressman’s lead Manhattan liaison to community boards, organi-zations and governmental agencies; represent-ing his interests and advising him on appropri-ate actions; writing and speaking on his behalf; serving as a member of the Senior Staff team and managing staff. B.A. or advanced degree required. Excellent written, verbal and interper-sonal skills essential. Interest in urban policy, familiarity with NYC political environment, and background in land use issues preferred. Com-petitive salary and excellent benefits. Position reports to the District Director and begins im-mediately. Please fax or e-mail resume and cover letter to: “Manhattan Director” at (212) 367-7356 or [email protected] by June 1, 2009. NO PHONE CALLS PLEASE.

In Printand OnlineAd Copy: ($30/30 words, $.65 per additional word)

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Mail: Steve Blank/Classifi ed Advertising Manhattan Media 79 Madison Avenue, 16th Floor NY, NY 10016

Fax: 212.268.2935

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ADVERTISING SALES EXECUTIVESCAPITOL PUBLISHING LLCEarn up to $80,000 in the fi rst year representing City Hall and The Capitol, two fast-growing political newspapers that cov-ers policy, politics and personalities in New York City and New York State government for government decision-makers and people who do business with government. Salary plus com-mission, health, 401k, dental, paid holidays and sick days.Our awarding-winning group is looking for self-starters with outside sales experience, good communication skills, atten-tion to detail and good computer skills. Knowledge of New York City and State politics a plus. Experience in newspaper real estate sales a strong plus.

To apply, please call Steven Blank at 212.894.5412 or email your resume and cover letter to [email protected].


and colorful maritime heritage of the Hudson River.

Albany’s Hudson 400 CelebrationSept. 26Albany Riverfront Park at the Corning Preserve

Mayor Jerry Jennings and the City of Albany invite you to experience the 17th Century! Take a trip back in time to when Dutch settlers and Native Americans began creating Albany.

ExhibitsHudson Valley:Spanning the BanksThrough June 7, 2009Albany Institute of History & Art125 Washington AvenueAlbany, NY 12210

For 25 years, New York photographer Harry Wilks has been looking at this world from different viewpoints: from the roofs of New York’s skyscrapers to the perspective of a concrete barrier and the vantage point of a highway guardrail. Using a Widelux swing-lens camera, Wilks captures panoramic slices of the Hudson River Valley, from New York City to the Hudson Highlands, where mundane

structures along roadways, industrial wastelands and abandoned gardens assume sculptural properties.

Fashioning FeltThrough Sept. 72 East 91st Street New York, NY 10128

The Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum presents the exhibition “Fashioning Felt,” a comprehensive overview of the varied uses of felt in contemporary design with installations by two of today’s leading hand-felters, American designer Janice Arnold and Dutch designer Claudy Jongstra. Fashioning Felt will also spotlight a number of other innovative Dutch designs, including Tord Boontje’s Little Field of Flowers carpet, LAMA Concept’s Cell LED carpet and felt jewelry by Brigit Daamen.

Amsterdam/New Amsterdam: The Worlds of Henry HudsonThrough Sept. 27Museum of the City of New York1220 Fifth AvenueNew York, NY 10029

Amsterdam/New Amsterdam: The Worlds of Henry Hudson, presented in collaboration with the New Netherland Project in Albany and the National Maritime Museum Amsterdam/

Nederlands Scheepvaartmuseum in Amsterdam, will employ rare 16th- and 17th-century objects, images and documents from major American and Dutch collections to bring the transatlantic world to life and reveal how Henry Hudson’s epic third voyage of exploration planted the seeds of a modern society that took root and fl ourished in the New World.

Aernout MikThrough July 27The Museum of Modern Art11 West 53rd StreetNew York, NY 10019-5497

This exhibition presents a series of discrete installations by Aernout Mik (Dutch, b. 1962), placed in both non-gallery and gallery spaces throughout the Museum. Mik—whose work encompasses motion picture, sculpture, architecture, performance and social commentary—interrogates the nature of reality and subverts the traditional relationship between viewer and viewed.

Dutch Treats: Highlights from the collection of George WayThrough Sept. 6Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden, Building C1000 Richmond TerraceStaten Island, NY 10301

The center is organizing an exhibition of art works collected by George Way, a native Staten Islander who has amassed a unique collection of fi ne 16th- and 17th-century Dutch paintings, drawings, etchings and furniture.

Dutch Seen: New York RediscoveredThrough Sept. 13Museum of the City of New York1220 Fifth AvenueNew York, NY 10029

The Museum of the City of New York and Foam (Fotografi emuseum Amsterdam) present Dutch Seen: New York Rediscovered. Guest-curated by Kathy Ryan, photo editor of The New

York Times Magazine, the exhibition will mark the 400th anniversary of the Dutch arrival in Manhattan and feature the work of contemporary Dutch photographers.

Hudson River PanoramaThrough January 2010Albany Institute of History & Art125 Washington AvenueAlbany, NY 12210

This unprecedented year-long exhibition commemorates Henry Hudson’s 1609 exploration of the river that bears his name and the remarkable narrative of the people, events and ideas that have shaped this magnifi cent region.

Continued from page 26

Hudson

TOURISM

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In Print and Online


source = Public Fund Survey

$28,900,000,000

9

New Jersey

Trustees

$30,800,000,000

11

Pennsylvania

Trustees

$47,800,000,000

9

Virginia

Trustees

11Trustees

$52,400,000,000

North Carolina

5Trustees

$59,300,000,000

Oregon

11Trustees

$61,300,000,000

Ohio

9Trustees

$73,400,000,000

Wisconsin

1Trustees

$121,100,000,000

New York

$130,700,000,000

Florida

Trustees

3

13$216,500,000,000

California

Trustees

Pension TensionAttorney General Andrew Cuomo’s widening investigation into alleged pay-to-

play schemes set up in former Comptroller Alan Hevesi’s offi ce has exposed what many say is an inherent weakness in the state pension fund system: It only has one trustee. No other state comparable in size to New York puts its retirement money in the hands of one person, as shown by the chart below. The largest system, Califor-nia, has 13 trustees, while even the smaller Iowa system—which is about a sixth the size of the New York fund—has 14. The closest thing to the New York system can be found in Florida, where just three people manage $130.7 billion in assets.


Assembly Member Jack Quinn (R-Erie) kicked off the debate over same-sex marriage ear-lier this month by peppering the bill’s sponsor,

Assembly Member Danny O’Donnell (D-Manhattan), with questions about whether the bill would force public accommodations with a religious focus, like the Knights of Columbus, to perform same-sex mar-riage ceremonies. Quinn says he took a lead role in opposing the bill, which passed the Assembly for the third time, not because he opposes marriage equality necessarily, but out of party duty as the ranking mem-ber on the Judiciary Committee.

Quinn talks about his friendship with O’Donnell, his personal feelings on the issue and how the bill will fare in the Senate, should it come up for a vote.

What follows is an edited transcript.

The Capitol: Why lead the opposition to the bill legalizing same-sex marriage?Jack Quinn: I think more so from my end, it’s more of a procedural issue. As ranking member of the Judiciary Committee, that’s my role that I play. That’s where the bill came out of. I want to, and at least try to, argue the merits of the bill from a legal perspective as a lawyer, and just kind of get out there before we get more into the issues of personally why people were for or against this. Let’s lay out what this bill does, issues on both sides of it, and just kind of where we’re at.

TC: Considering there are so many personal issues wrapped up in this bill, was it diffi cult to lead the opposition?JQ: Without a doubt. I consider Danny [O’Donnell] to be a friend. The hardest part about it is, you know this issue is one of the few issues we deal with that is so personal. Not a question of politics, not a question of conservative, independent, liberal. You just go about it by looking at the bill, discussing it, what it does, what it doesn’t do, the impact it could have on people in the future, what impact it could have on businesses in the future. I went fi rst, and then [Assembly Member Michael Fitzpatrick (R-Suffolk)] went second. I’m hopeful that we can look at it from that perspective. And in fact, to be honest with you, I didn’t listen to all of the debate. After he and I went, there weren’t many questions. From that, it was just people giving their opinion one way or the other. And that’s the thing, there’s really not a whole heck of a lot of questions you can ask. Either you’re on one side or another on this issue.

TC: This is the second time the bill has passed the Assembly. Is everyone just beating their heads against the wall on this issue?JQ: I think it’s an important issue. And because people feel so strongly about one side or another, to simply say we’re not going to debate it I think is a disservice to our constituents and a disservice to the people who feel strongly about the issue. And a disservice to Mr. O’Donnell, who I said is a friend of mine, and for whom, I think, this is a very emotional and personal issue. He deserves the right, just like every other member of that chamber whom this effects personally, to debate the issue and tell us why it’s important for them that it passes, or in some cases does not pass.

TC: Why is there not as organized an opposition in the Senate as there is in the Assembly?JQ: I think it would be more organized if they knew. I don’t think anybody knows which way the vote is going to go. If they had an idea that it was going to pass or it was going to be very close, or that it was going to come up for a vote, that it would be more organized one way or another. We’re only organized because we know we’re

going to lose the vote. Let’s be honest: it’s organized in the respect that Brian Kolb [(R-Onondaga/Ontario/Seneca/Cortland/Cayuga)], our new leader, never said, “You all have to vote one way or the other.” The only thing we’ve said in conference is to say, “Hey, this is personal for all of you, we know how some of you are going to vote or not going to vote.

Therefore vote your conscience.” They knew I was going to speak out and Fitzpatrick was going to speak out because we went to our leadership and said, “We’re going to start the questions.” From there on out, it was kind of just a free-for-all. I think [Senate Minority Leader] Dean [Skelos (R-Nassau)] would take a little more interest in that if they knew it was coming to a vote.

TC: Are you under intense lobbying pressure at all from pro-marriage equality groups?JQ: I gotta tell you, on a personal level, I’m not as cut-and-dry on this issue as you may think. It’s a very tough vote for me, fi rst of all as a lawyer and second of all as a younger legislator. I’ve been here for fi ve years but am only 31 years old. This is an issue that I have really gone over in my head several times. I am by no means the most vocal opponent to this in the Assembly, by any stretch of

the imagination. I look at it simply as the ranker of the Judiciary Committee—this is my job. Just like when we do bills on justice courts that Mr. O’Donnell is sponsoring as well. That’s a bill that I’m going to get up and argue against. That’s a bill that affects me much more so as an upstate New Yorker, but that’s my duty—to bring that discussion to the fl oor as the ranker. And because of that, that’s always been my role. It’s never so much been like, “Hey, I’m so against this and I want to speak against it.” It’s more a question of, “Jack Quinn, ranker, I should represent my party in the minority here, or the people who are on the same side of this issue.”

TC: Do you see this as a civil rights issue? As a way to provide a group of people with a right that has been denied them so far?JQ: I think it’s a very big part of it. I think Mr. O’Donnell, as sponsor of this bill, is simply saying that we should have the right to be married like everybody else does. I think that one of the main issues that we really spoke about on the fl oor is an area that will continue to be looked at, and will continue to be an area, which is the reason I voted no at the end of the day, is that on the issue of public accommodation, because of the fact that other states like Vermont have created an opt-out for public accommodation. That’s where it gets a little dicey. To say a group like the Knights of Columbus may be sued because of the fact that they own a hall and don’t want to hold a marriage ceremony for a same-sex couple—that’s where it gets a little bit tough. And I understand what Danny’s saying, which is, “Discrimination is discrimination.” Public accommodation law is what it is. The human rights law of New York State is what it is. You can’t pick and choose who you’re going to support and who you’re going to protect. He’s right. But when you get away from talking about what the bill does, that’s one area where some people have a little bit of a problem right now. To be honest, it may be just a question of the fact that it’s different than what we have now. That may be it. I’m not sure. But because a state like Vermont did it, and did create that opt-out, I think that’s where some people are questioning it.

TC: Do you think civil unions and commitment ceremonies are another case of gay and lesbian couples being asked to accept a “separate but equal” status in society?JQ: Yes. At least from my perspective, to say you’re going to have a civil union is simply separate but equal. There’s no way around that, for god’s sakes. I think it’s actually kind of, to a degree, in some cases considered to be even more disrespectful than not having it. You’re basically saying to people, “You can have as close to what marriage is, but we’re not going to hold you to the same level.” I think that’s offensive.

TC: If the measure does pass the Senate, would you attend Danny O’Donnell’s wedding?JQ: Without a doubt. I would without a problem. I would defi nitely go. And that’s what I think should not be lost. Danny and I talked, after the fact, we talked several times. He and I have a pretty good relationship, I think. And he understands where I’m coming from, which is that I’m taking on a role that, to be honest with you, I must have had 30 people say to me, “Oh my god, you really want to do this?” It’s not the question of do you want to do this. It’s the question of we owe it to ourselves to do it.

—Andrew J. Hawkins

[email protected]

: Wedding Crasher

“I gotta tell you, on a personal

level, I’m not as cut-and-dry on

this issue as you may think.”

A message from the New York State Trial Lawyers Association Nicholas Papain, President132 Nassau Street New York, NY 10038 Tel: 212-349-5890 www.nystla.org © 2009 NYSTLA

NEW YORK STATE TRIAL LAWYERS ASSOCIATION

Protecting New Yorkers Since 1953

New York’s statute of limitations governing medical malpractice is one of the most unjust in the country: 2½ years from the date of the negligent act. Only a handful of states have a shorter time period in which a victim of medical negligence is allowed to bring a claim against the negligent practitioner.

Under current law, the victims of a misread test—such as a mammogram, PAP smear or prostate test—or a botched surgical procedure often face fatal consequences. Uncaught or misdiagnosed, a curable disease becomes a symptom-free killer. Treatment is foregone. When the symptoms do appear, the disease may be so advanced that treatment is futile. The law, however, says no one can be held responsible and victims lose their access to justice.

Only a handful of states (AR, ID, ME, SD) are like New York — lacking some rule that says that the clock starts running when the wrongful action is discovered, either specifically to medical negligence or generally to all cases.

It’s been 11 years since Justice Seidell called New York’s backwards statute-of-limitations rule “unjust, illogical, and cruel.”

Please support the Date of Discovery Law (S.1729/A. 4627).

It’s Time for a Change.

Too Wrong for Too Long “[This case] should be included as a class of cases subject to the discovery rule.... It is the function of the legislature to right [the] unjust, illogical, and cruel result of the effects.”

Helgans v. Plurad, Supreme Court, Suffolk County, October 22, 1997 (Justice Seidell)

The May 25,2009 Issue of The Capitol

Documents

Transcript of The May 25,2009 Issue of The Capitol