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I've been trying for the past some odd hours to figure out something to say about the developments in the State Senate today. I could recite the basic facts: Pedro Espada has returned to the Democratic conference in the State Senate, where he'll be made Majority Leader in return for insuring a quorum.
But the raw facts lack a real feeling for the depth and breadth of this Faustian pact's unseemly qualities.
For having "won" this tussle that has been going on a year and a day, this seems an awful lot like losing. We're now saddled with a Senate majority leader who I would not trust with a shiny nickel. A man who has, quite probably, committed a federal felony or two just since he got into office.
I'm particularly apalled--even given my low opinion of them before--with the rest of the Democrats in the State Senate. Yes, I know they're my fellow party members, and as a loyal partisan I should follow Reagan's rule and not speak ill.
My response to that isn't suitable for a family friendly forum such as this.
Believe me, I've done the party loyalty thing. This goes so far beyond the acceptable boundries of that that it's pathetic. And the Democrats who went along with this deal either know it, or should. Not only have you thrown out pretty much all hope of having a substantive reform agenda passed; You've also just set Democratic party-building in greater New York State back probably, I don't know, five years or so?
Please do remember that there are some of us out here who are still trying to build operations and win elections. Most of you may have forgotten what it's like to run competitive races, or to actually deal with more than token input by the public. The rest of us haven't. We're still out here working our butts off, preparing for future races and trying to inject some fresh life into this state's government. This sort of political ipecac syrup does not help us in the least.
It was quite bad enough when Eliot Spitzer was unable to keep his pants on, but that was at least a personal failing and not related to government. You guys, however, just pretty much produced a signed letter to every independent, moderate Republican, and a lot of rank and file Democrats, attesting to the fact that you intend to be just as rancidly dysfunctional as the Republicans were.
Why then, the public will ask us, should we bother voting for Democrats when they deliver the same thing on the state level? And we're going to have a hard time answering them. If you intend to try and keep the State Senate majority, then you need to do something different than what you're doing right now. Because behavior like this is politically radioactive. |
