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Last night, Putney Swope helped me see that I hold at least two conflicting opinions on the State Senate fiasco:
On the one hand, I have hope that some reasonably sane group of Senators, though probably not the leadership, can come together around a solution that establishes a solid precedent for a Senate that functions roughly according to the principles they suggested in high school civics class. On the other hand, I'd like to see the whole structure come crashing down - the louder, the better. New Yorkers have been poorly served by their legislature and by their political parties for decades, and it's long past time for the whole rotted frame to collapse.
What triggered this realization that I'd been painting rosy possibilities while secretly wishing for Bastille Day? Swope's suggestion that having the Assembly and the Governor accept the "Padavan quorum" might move things forward. I think he meant it in the sense of getting on with business, but think of the possiblities:
Some part of the Senate passes bills in a session of dubious legality that's guaranteed to be mocked for decades to come if it doesn't sink beneath the waves immediately. (Mission accomplished!) The Assembly, really trying to move New York forward, accepts the bill jackets for these votes, drinks of the poisoned chalice, and passes them to the Governor. (Not yet, not likely.) Governor Paterson either signs those bills or lets them ripen into law by waiting ten days. (Unlikely to sign, currently dodging the 10-day question.)
Think about the possibilities! New York State can pay less attention to the Senate nonsense for a while, and all of the "Three Men in a Room" would be contaminated by a "coffee quorum" story that's pretty mockable:
A guy stumbles into a bar, looking for coffee. No, it was coke. No, V-8. Anyway, he turns to leave, but the bartender shouts out, "hey buddy! We got a quorum now!" and the patrons pass a hundred-something laws.
Maybe even that isn't enough to tear down what's left of a rotting legislature, but it's a good start. Wandering down that path might well get us an electorate angry enough to know that even their local legislator isn't quite working for them. And maybe, just maybe, the results of this coup will generate enough fury that a Constitutional Convention, in 2017 or sooner, sounds like a good idea.
(Yeah, I know - a Constutional Convention sounds peaceful and likely conservative when compared to the French Revolution. I clearly still have a few hopes for calm.)
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