Welcome back, Pedro?

I guess (4.00 / 2)

someone was running out of lawyerin' money.

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by: NYCO @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 18:03:08 PM UTC

Another source (4.00 / 1)

Liz Benjamin has it too.

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by: Dan Jacoby @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 18:13:11 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

What a mess. (4.00 / 2)

At least we got this out of the deal:

Steve Pigeon, one of the architects behind the June 8 coup, was pacing in the Senate gallery alone, talking on his cell phone. He looked agitated.

I bet he did. Asshole.

I'm not gonna rock the boat. Rockin' the boat's a drag. What you do is sink the boat!
- Truth and Soul, Inc.

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by: Putney Swope @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 18:34:20 PM UTC

To be fair (4.00 / 2)

Steve Pigeon looks agitated when he's in Disney World:

"That mouse is a fucking liar! He's a lying liar! He's got nothing better to do with his time than tear me down by telling lies about me! I DRIVE A DODGE STRATUS! I'LL KILL YOU MICKEY!"

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by: Amherst Guy @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 19:37:40 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Fuck Espada (4.00 / 11)

I don't care how he comes crawling back- that corrupt, pathetic hack has no business being in a leadership position, much less even being in any office.

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by: Roatti @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 19:02:57 PM UTC

I'm kind of thinking he's the Republicans' secret weapon (4.00 / 2)

Since the Democrats taking him back and making him Majority Leader makes us look even worse than we did before.  I guess we'll see...

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by: simonstl @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 19:06:50 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

yes (4.00 / 4)

Which makes you wonder... just what in the holy hell was this past month all about?  Except wasting time and money?

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by: NYCO @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 19:11:16 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Power, patronage, greed (4.00 / 3)

And the financial interests of the fat cats that orchestrated this whole thing.

I'm not gonna rock the boat. Rockin' the boat's a drag. What you do is sink the boat!
- Truth and Soul, Inc.

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by: Putney Swope @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 19:17:04 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Two Words (4.00 / 3)

Pedro Espada.  That's what these few weeks have been all about.  He thought he got what he wanted until Monserrate flipped back to the Dems.  After that it was just a matter of which side of the aisle gave him the better deal.

If you don't know where you're going
Any road will take you there.

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by: El Loco @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 19:28:37 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

if it's any consolation (4.00 / 1)

Espada probably doesn't realize the ball ends at midnight and it's only a matter of time before his trusty coach horses turn back into mice.

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by: NYCO @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 19:48:23 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Coming Storm (0.00 / 0)

So which Senator switches next, and what do they get?

I think this fight is poison to every incumbent, at every level.  

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by: Hyde @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 21:39:09 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

one other thing (4.00 / 3)

Is the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee now going to robocall everyone and tell us that Pedro is now not, in fact, a slimy guy who steals money from old ladies?

Maybe they'll just let that slide.  NY's Democratic voters have such short memories.

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by: NYCO @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 19:15:12 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

my head hurts. (4.00 / 1)

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by: Amherst Guy @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 19:38:38 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

wait, there's more... (4.00 / 2)

Espada sends the GOP a letter pledging his loyalty to the reform cause.

http://www.nydailynews.com/blo...

So, let's see... you have a guy who stabbed his own conference in the back, now stabbing the GOP in the back, but now "pledging his loyalty" to "reforms" that weren't even reforms in the first place...but just a naked coup...

I think my head just exploded.

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by: NYCO @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 19:43:44 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I'll be glad to ask Senator Addabbo's CoS (0.00 / 0)

who used very colorful language to describe Pedro a month ago.

See if that still stands.

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by: nrafter530 @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 23:16:23 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

What? (0.00 / 0)

You expect integrity?

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by: Michael Bouldin @ Fri Jul 10, 2009 at 00:43:18 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

oh well (0.00 / 0)

Lets welcome him back with our 2 hands

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by: theafapt @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 19:21:21 PM UTC

Or our two middle fingers. (4.00 / 4)

The idea that this man gets to be one of the Three Men In The Room makes me frothing mad.  Let's see that he's immediately relegated to lame duck status.

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by: Steaming Pile @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 20:47:56 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

So who's the acting LG? (0.00 / 0)

Espada will be Senate Majority Leader, but (according to the NY Times) John Sampson will be the Temporary President of the Senate.

Since the "appointment" of Ravitch as Lt. Gov. is unconstitutional, that means Sampson will be the acting LG, and the acting Governor whenever Paterson leaves the state.  Watch for Paterson to stick around, however, until this is all sorted out in the courts.

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by: Dan Jacoby @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 20:10:19 PM UTC

Still not convinced (4.00 / 1)

That it's unconstitutional. Undefined/poorly defined, yes. Unconstitutional, no.
For Espada to jump so quickly today, IMHO, means that the Ravitch LG ploy is more right than wrong. Espada is for Espada and the writing is on the wall. Cut a deal and go back or get hung out to dry with Skelos.
The big question for the republicans is "was it worth it?" Skelos tried to cling to power for a second time and got burned bad. Reps will go back to thier 'safe" districts and get an earful from angry constituents. If the Dems have the sense to do it, they need to keep reminding people that it was Skelos and the republicans that created this mess. Yes, Monserrate and Espada are to blame too but Skelos could have said "Thanks, but no thanks." A good leader knows when over-reaching is going on. If Skelos survives this debacle, the republicans are a sorrier lot than they already look like.

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by: nassaupolitics @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 20:43:22 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I read (0.00 / 0)

that Smith is President, Espada is majority leader, and Sampson is "conference leader".

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by: BingChester @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 20:51:29 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I sit corrected (0.00 / 0)

Smith will indeed be Temporary President, with Sampson as conference leader, and Espada as majority leader.

This puts Smith back in line of succession; the only question remains how quickly the courts shoot down Paterson's "appointment" of Ravitch.

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by: Dan Jacoby @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 21:29:01 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

At least it's now super obvious (4.00 / 2)

that this was all about power.  

I will be thrilled to wave Pedro Espada good-bye in 2010.

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by: BingChester @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 20:50:09 PM UTC

un fu ck ing believable (4.00 / 1)

only in New York

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by: shepherd @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 20:50:31 PM UTC

f*ck that motherf*cker. (4.00 / 3)

Seriously.  What the F*ck!  The mfer is the reason for a month of nothingness?  No legislation.  Nothing?  What a f*cking f*cker.

I'm sorry about the expletives (no, that is not a rhetorical device to apologize), but I cannot believe what a douchenozzle Espada is, and I cannot accept what witless hacks the dems are.  I want a new party, and I want it yesterday.

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by: davidseth @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 23:03:36 PM UTC

Amen! (4.00 / 2)

And I'm not even the religious type.

But let's be post-partisan about this. I want two new parties. They both have too many hacks.

Still, there are some in the chamber who are fighting for reform. If some of them can get primaried out (DON'T VOTE FOR PEDRO!), maybe we will have a critical mass actually interested in governing and so won't need new parties after all.

Yeah, I'm naive....

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by: dsimon @ Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 23:51:58 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I hate to say this (4.00 / 2)

but words fail me about this.

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by: Michael Bouldin @ Fri Jul 10, 2009 at 00:45:06 AM UTC

Yeah. (4.00 / 1)

I absolutely cannot think of anything remotely ladylike to say, so, nothing it is.

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by: robinia @ Fri Jul 10, 2009 at 03:02:58 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Hello . . . . (4.00 / 3)

I can't belive Cuomo doesn't have enough to indict this little shit. Where the fuck are you, Andy?

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by: urizon @ Fri Jul 10, 2009 at 02:16:09 AM UTC