Hiram is expelled!

by: NYBri

Tue Feb 09, 2010 at 21:47:14 PM EST

More of this, please.

by: NYBri

Fri Jan 15, 2010 at 15:48:06 PM EST

The Senate is getting a dose of sunshine - Sen. Eric Schneiderman, talking on the Fred Dicker show, mentioned that the transcripts behind yesterday's report on Hiram Monserrate will soon be posted on-line.

More of that, and, who knows, maybe we'll actually get some good government.

NYS Senate Recommendation to Expel/Censure Senator

by: Andrew C. White

Thu Jan 14, 2010 at 15:58:30 PM EST

Full text of the report here.

Monserrate was elected to the Senate in Nov. 2008 to the seat formerly held by Sen. John Sabini. Monserrate narrowly lost a primary to Sabini in 2006 and challenged him again in 2008. Meanwhile Sabini had been pulled over in Albany the previous November, failed a field sobriety test and refused a breathalyzer. He pled guilty to a reduced charge of DWAI (Driving While Ability Impaired). Sabini decided against running for re-election and instead was appointed Chairman of the Racing and Wagering Board by Gov. Paterson in June of '08.

December 19, 2008, after his election to the Senate but before his swearing in, Monserrate was arrested for assault in an incident in which he slashed his girlfriend Karla Giraldo in the face with a broken drinking glass during an argument in his Jackson heights apartment.  

What Is Ford's Position on Monserrate?

by: prince nekhlyudov

Tue Jan 12, 2010 at 14:17:03 PM EST

WHO is Paying Monserrate's Legal Bills? UPDATED

by: robinia

Tue Oct 27, 2009 at 20:52:27 PM EDT

Hiram Monserrate didn't have the decency to resign his Senate seat after being convicted of spousal abuse.  His fellow Senators didn't have the decency to kick him out quickly (we ARE gonna make 'em do it eventually, though).  Now, word comes that "supporters" are contributing to his legal defense, but the public is not allowed to know who those contributors are, or how much they have given.

Sound fishy?  Well, it does to me, and probably to you, too.  But, hey, the Legislative Ethics Commission says its all good.  Special rules they have approved say, as long as everything about this legal defense fund is unknown to Hiram (and the public), it's hunky-dory. Even the name of the person managing the Get Hiram Out of Jail Free fund is secret. I'm sputtering.  The Times Union has an excellent article about it-- go read the whole thing.

Reform, perhaps. But reform Albany-style, which is to say that the new and, naturally, legal way of doing business is enough to make the public nostalgic for something as brazen and unsettling as indicted legislators dipping into their re-election money not only to stay in power but out of jail as well. A stunt that might have deserved the slogan "Give -- to the defendant of your choice" was actually subject to more regulation.

UPDATE: Well, the Legislative Ethics Commission is now claiming it did NOT tell anybody anything was ok, according to Cap Con:

The Legislative Ethics Commission took the unusual step today of declaring publicly that it has not been asked to provide guidance to anyone during the past two years on the setting up of a legal defense fund.

This means it did not advise Sen. Hiram Monserrate, D-Queens, on the legal way for the freshman lawmaker to set up an account to pay his considerable legal expenses from his assault trial. His attorney, Joseph Tacopina, confirmed to the Times Union the existence of the fund and said his client is being very careful.

The commission says that since it was created in 2007, having evolved from the Legislative Ethics Committee, it has not been asked to provide an opinion, nor has it provided one. It also says no current members of the commission who may have also served on the committee have weighed in on the issue.

So, OK-- the supposed watchdog is innocent of actually licking the crook.... how 'bout an itsy-bitsy bark, eh?

Meanwhile, the NY Times is barking big.

Updated list ~ Monserrate must Go.

by: NYBri

Thu Oct 22, 2009 at 14:37:51 PM EDT

List courtesy of Jessica. Add your name HERE.

Senator Craig Johnson Statement on Monserrate

by: NYBri

Thu Oct 22, 2009 at 13:38:49 PM EDT

"I've reserved comment on the gravely serious situation surrounding Senator Monserrate until Senate Leadership decided how to proceed. Now that a review panel has been formed, and the Senate Standing Committee on Investigations and Government Operations will not be referred this matter, I believe it is now appropriate to share my personal point of view. I join my colleagues in calling for Senator Monserrate to resign his position. Domestic violence is a horrific crime. As a husband and a father, I simply do not believe that someone convicted of assaulting a woman should be a member of this chamber. However, I also support due process. I am confident that this panel will conduct its work in a fair, impartial, and swift manner."

Remember, if you haven't signed the petition to remove Senator Monserrate, do it now and tell your friends that domestic violence is a terrible crime and it has no place in the lives of our elected officials.

The signatures will be delivered to Senator Monserrate's office as well as those of the Senate Leadership...and to the committee for good measure.

Ruben Rants

by: NYBri

Wed Oct 21, 2009 at 17:38:42 PM EDT

First, it is disappointing to hear Senate Conference President John Sampson saying that he is putting together an independent and impartial Senate Committee to investigate Senator Hiram Monserrate and at the same time sending a message to the committee members by stating "As a father and as a husband, I am not only angry, I am also pissed off".  That statement alone may be interpreted as a direct order to the committee to "get Monserrate".

Second, it is even more disturbing to hear the supposed President of the so called "independent and impartial committee",  Senator Eric Schneiderman saying that  he spoke with Senator Dean Skelos and reminded him that "since back in June we all know what this individual is capable of doing". So much for impartiality.

Third, if anyone thinks that there could be any Republican Senator who will be impartial to Senator Monserrate after the embarrassment that Senators Espada and Monserrate put them through back in June, he or she must be on another planet.

Four, to add insult to injury, there are five Hispanic Senators among the 32 Democratic Senators.  One must question why not even one of them was appointed to the committee.

For these four reasons and more, I believe that the real intention of this "independent and impartial" committee is to get even with Senator Monserrate for what he did to the Democrats this past June and to use the Republicans who have been praying for such an opportunity to settle the score with Senator Monserrate.

Skelos names his four to the Committee - plus one more

by: NYBri

Wed Oct 21, 2009 at 16:50:47 PM EDT

This creates a majority of women (five) on the nine member committee...and in case Sampson wasn't serious about the nine member thing, he offered Sen. Betty Little to be in the bullpen for short relief.

I wonder if Monserrate can read wall writing, because it's there in all its ten foot, spray painted glory....and Skelos just dotted a few "i's".

Here's Dean's statement:

   Senate Republican Leader Dean Skelos today announced members of his conference to serve on the committee that will investigate the matter regarding Senator Hiram Monserrate.

   Members of the Republican Conference appointed by Senator Skelos include Senator Andrew Lanza (R-I, Staten Island), a former Chair of the Senate Ethics Committee, Senator John Flanagan (R-C-I, East Northport), a former Chair of the Senate Ethics Committee, Senator James Alesi (R-C-I, Perinton), a former Chair of the Senate Ethics Committee and Senator Cathy Young (R-I-C, Olean).

   In addition to these four members, Senator Skelos also submitted to Senator Sampson the appointment of Senator Betty Little (R-C-I, Queensbury) to serve on the committee. Her appointment would make the membership of the committee even with five Democrats and five Republicans.

   "I submitted Senator Little's name as a fifth Republican member of this special committee to ensure balance and bipartisanship," Senator Skelos said. "As the editorial today in the Daily News recommended, 'Senator Sampson should add a Republican member to avoid setting an example of allowing the majority party to be the sole arbiter of ethics enforcement.'"

Side note: we are near 1000 signatures at FIREMONSERRATE.COM. Tell everyone you know. We have to keep the pressure on and not let this committee thing let the issue fall into the Albany sinkhole.

Removing the Gang of Three (is Kruger off the hook?)

by: NYTrialman

Wed Oct 21, 2009 at 07:04:33 AM EDT

Thats all.....would appreciate those with a greater well of information to taking this post from here.

Statement from Congressman John Hall

by: NYBri

Tue Oct 20, 2009 at 18:45:36 PM EDT

"All New Yorkers, especially those who have been victims of domestic abuse, deserve to have Senator Monserrate step down or be removed from office. Monserrate has been convicted of a deplorable crime. The New York State Senate should set the example that violence against women will not be tolerated in our society."

Congressman Hall's office just sent this to us. We applaud and agree with his position. He joins US Senators Schumer and Gillibrand and Congressmen Massa and Joseph Crowley in calling for NYS Senator Monserrate to do the right thing by the state of New York and his district by stepping down.

It's in Eric's Hands....and Four Female Democratic Senators

by: NYBri

Tue Oct 20, 2009 at 15:37:46 PM EDT

Eric Schneiderman will chair and, in a nod as to where this may be going, the other four Democratic members of the committee will be women; Sens. Ruth Hassell-Thompson, Diane Savino, Toby Stavisky and Andrea Stewart-Cousins.

Interesting choice here in that two of those four are women of color which would also blunt earlier charges of racism leveled by Senator Diaz in his statement of support of Monserrate.

We await the Republican's appointments to the committee. It will be interesting to see if women are represented there as well.

More later, but we need to continue to push the Senate so that they do the right thing and remove Monserrate from office.

The committee needs to move quickly and not let the old way of doing business in Albany stretch this out until the matter is buried.

Just heard from Congressman Massa's Peeps: His Statement

by: NYBri

Tue Oct 20, 2009 at 11:09:22 AM EDT

Domestic abuse is unacceptable and I have no tolerance for it. Senator Monserrate has been convicted and I think he should resign or the Senate Leadership should take steps to remove him from office. Elected officials should lead by example, that is why we must stand united and act decisively to oppose violence against women.

SIGN THE PETITION

The bandwagon is getting crowded. Are you aboard?

by: NYBri

Mon Oct 19, 2009 at 18:12:57 PM EDT

and now: Democratic Public Advocate Nominee Bill de Blasio

Your turn. SIGN THE PETITION. We will deliver it to the right people. Senator Monserrate among them.

Monseratte Must GO!

by: NYBri

Fri Oct 16, 2009 at 14:21:48 PM EDT

I believe Hiram Monserrate should not remain in the Senate, and for the sake of his constituents, the institution of the Senate and the Democratic party he should resign immediately based on the seriousness of his violent crime.

Being an elected official is an honor and a privilege, not a right. As a state legislator , the voters give you the power to decide what laws all 19 million of us live under. And as such we are obligated to hold ourselves to the highest standards of our laws.

To help her deliver that point, a group of concerned New Yorkers will soon be setting up a petition demanding that Senator Monserrate either resign or be expelled from the Senate. The petition will be delivered to Senator Monseratte and the Senate Leadership...both the Majority and Minority.

This action transcends party affiliation and ideology.

Keep an eye out here and elsewhere online for the url and the petition.

It will be step one in a concerted effort on the part of the people of New York to send a clear message to those who are in the Senate that we have had enough incompetence, corruption and dysfunction...and are willing to act decisively in all areas of the state to find and support representatives who are more interested in serving the public interest than power grabs and lining their own pockets.

November 2010. There is so much for us all to remember and so many who deserve to be in those memories.  

I need to take a (political) bath

by: simonstl

Thu Jul 09, 2009 at 17:00:26 PM EDT

Watching the Senate Democrats' press conference has been a painful experience. Welcoming back Espada was never going to be pleasant, but watching the smoothing over and repeating previously unfulfilled promises is excruciating.

It's still possible that something good will come out of this - maybe the Democrats will actually pass genuine reform instead of just talking about it, or maybe voters will finally have had enough and take it out on their legislators and party structures instead of thinking it's everyone else who's corrupt.

Is there anyone here who's actually happy about the state of our reconciled Senate? (I'm sure it's possible.)

There's still time for the Senate to redeem itself, but this chaos and even its resolution gives them quite a mountain to climb.

Update: The Brennan Center has a piece on what might happen for rules reform.

And update: I hope Amherst Guy will still visit New York for our sakes if this story about Steve Pigeon becoming a Senate staffer ("the majority leader's general counsel") is true.

Because it matters.

by: davesnyd

Tue Jun 16, 2009 at 08:24:58 AM EDT

We are faced with an extraordinary set of problems and the theatrics coming from the State Senate do nothing to help fix them.

Time to stop behaving like children, work together, and figure out how to make the State work in the short term and fix it in the long term.

Specific suggestions below the fold.

A Question Inspired by the Commentariat

by: robinia

Thu Jun 11, 2009 at 09:03:48 AM EDT

Monserrate wants someone to pay for the legal bills. To even have that discussion is a federal crime.

I had just finished commenting about how corrupt this whole process appeared, although, with everything happening in secret cabals at Red Square and behind closed doors in the Capitol, it is hard to tell.  I was looking for the FBI to ride to the rescue, a la Joe Bruno case (and as per NYCO's classic statement that

if NYS were a third world country, the Feds would have already invaded and installed a democracy.)

But, wait, we actually do have some separation of powers here in NYS still.... and, you know, I think that Andrew Cuomo actually has an open case on Espada, no?  Yo, Andrew, can you please subpeona all records or witnesses to these secret meetings, and make them testify about what, if any, deals involving his legal problems Espada was trying to cut?  FBI, you could go for same on Monserrate, either under existing Bruno investigation, or, give the slasher his own Federal case, if multiple felony counts aren't bad-boy 'nuf fer him.

A legal means to remove the most corrupt Senate politicians would be an excellent way to give NYers a real chance at a new start.

Maybe... coalitions?

by: simonstl

Wed Jun 10, 2009 at 21:10:01 PM EDT

It's been a mind-expanding day. First there was the prospect of principled disloyalty from Tom Duane, then the afternoon's wobbling around with Monserrate's position staying unclear, and now (hat tip NYCO), I see Eliot Spitzer suggesting "a step forward in New York politics.". (I really didn't expect him to chime in, but it's been a week of agreeing with people I'd rather not support.)

The core of his piece, I think, is:

good government groups and editorial boards rightly demanded that individual legislators be empowered to turn the Assembly and Senate into real deliberative chambers. In an odd way, that is exactly what is happening. With control of the Senate almost perfectly divided between the parties, any one legislator can tip the balance of power, and hence every legislator has something heretofore denied them-great negotiating capacity. After playing the role of sheep for years, legislators are now recognizing they have the power to be coyotes.

The use of that power by two Democratic senators, though perhaps for questionable purposes, is emboldening others to use their leverage to bargain for worthwhile causes. State Sen. Tom Duane is reported to be negotiating with the Republicans to persuade them to bring a bill authorizing same-sex marriage to the floor. And the Republicans, perhaps knowing that their control of the chamber will be short-lived, passed some reform measures, that while less than what should be sought, are more than what they put in place during their decades of control, or what the Democrats had put in place during the past five months....

The sterile decision-making that was criticized when it was behind closed doors has been replaced for the moment by the crass and ugly sausage-making that is legislative process. Out of this mess may come a legislative branch where legislators actually begin to voice differing views, argue on substantive matters, and finally bring into the open the discussion of issues that should be occurring in public.

It's crazy, I know, to suggest that maybe democracy (lower-cased) is a possible result of this wild ride. And Liz Benjamin can't believe this guy is saying this. (Update: nor is Robinia impressed.)

However, if you think about it, and if you can turn off your disgust filters on so many levels, it seems clear that voters presented New York with an unstable Senate in the last election, and maybe that's not so bad.

On the surface, yes, Democrats did have a 32-30 edge, though the negotiations to actually make that work demonstrated just how weak it was, more like 30-28-4. The "Gang of Four", "Three Divas", "traitors" - whatever you want to call them, they're the fulcrum of the Senate if you think strictly in terms of party. Espada has as much power in a divided Senate as he does specifically because his party loyalty is weak.

The suggestion that Duane was contemplating his options opened up the possibilities a lot more. I don't think anyone would argue that he's seeking personal enrichment rather than political goals. Maybe he's extreme in the pursuit of that goal, but I suspect there are at least some other Senators, in both parties, waking up to the possibilities.

My record for predicting New York politics is terrible, but I think I see an opening - an opening created by crass manipulation - for the process to change. Instead of simple partisanship, illustrated by the 10-1 member item split that both parties have now embraced, we could see shifting coalitions, in which the views of individual legislators matter more than just which party has control of the chamber.

Unless more Senators move clearly to one party or the other, some kind of negotiated settlement may force this to happen because neither side wants to be a classic NYS legislative minority.

I'm reasonably certain that party loyalty will again become the one true gauge of a Senator's worth at some point, but maybe this is a moment where strictly party loyalties give way, and instead of a strong and static leadership we have a weak placeholder leadership, and Senators doing what they want for a brief moment.

Who knows? They might even like it. So might voters.

Looking to 2010 and beyond

by: simonstl

Tue Jun 09, 2009 at 14:59:37 PM EDT

I was worried that I'd misplaced my sense of outrage yesterday, watching the Senate coup without nearly enough surprise or concern. The Republicans were doing what a minority party is supposed to do, and it had been clear for a long time that the loyalty of the Gang of Four was in question (though these weren't the two I'd have guessed most likely to flip.) Besides, I'd cheered up when Arlen Specter and Jim Jeffords grew weary of the other side of the aisle and came over.

But still, how could I be calm about the reversal of a goal I'd fought for? Well, I think this guy has the answer:

they should really take a breath, because-while they will have a clear and profound impact on the workings of Albany through 2010-the surprise defections of State Senators Pedro Espada and Hiram Monserrate to the Republican conference could end up, in the medium term, looking more like a blip than an earthquake....

the new G.O.P. majority will be built on an absurdly flimsy foundation. Sure, Espada and Monserrate will provide the two crucial votes that will make Dean Skelos majority leader, a development that will severely complicate the budget process and, more broadly, the agenda of David Paterson and state Democrats. But by flipping to the G.O.P., Espada and Monserrate have almost certainly expedited their own exits from Albany-and the election of new, far more loyal Democrats to their seats.

Maybe I'm misguided or naive, and I'm certainly not happy about the timing, but I actually see opportunity here. I'm not too excited about "loyal Democrats", though that's likely, but maybe there's a chance here for "better Democrats".

Talking with a friend about the coup, it occurred to me that I can't think of any "lions of the NY Senate" the way I might think of "lions of the US Senate", people who've demonstrated their ability to address complex problems despite the challenges of getting legislation passed.

Some of it's doubtless the nature of the institution, which hasn't exactly rewarded or even made a place for individual initiative. (I have a similar problem with the Assembly.) However, it also seems that NY Senators are kind of ossified. Whether that happened before they were elected (retired upward) or after is an open question.

I think, though, that this latest chaos, however it resolves, throws things wide open. A lot of Democratic seats will be competitive in 2010, and a number of Republican seats were already competitive in 2008. Maybe there's an opportunity to improve the quality of Democrats in the Senate overall?

And for the long term, maybe we'll learn that we need to value quality?

The short term is going to be awful - opportunities lost, state government in turmoil, and probably a good deal of suffering that could have been avoided. That seems unfortunately clear. At the same time, though, the long term looks pretty good to me.