ALBANY—It’s David Paterson against the world.
The unelected governor—whose poll standing remains low, whose ability to raise campaign cash has been hampered and who has called legislators “liars” as some of them have brought up his prior drug use—used the greatest platform he is afforded to bludgeon legislators, lobbyists and in Read More
ALBANY—Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver is split on David Paterson’s government reform proposals: he likes public campaign financing but thinks forcing lawyers to disclose their clients treads into a “complicated area of ethics.”
“I and my Assembly majority colleagues have long supported, long passed and I personally offered the first publicly financed campaign finance bill Read More
Nick Ayers made a blind joke, then retracted it.
George Marlin has advice for Ed Cox on how to revive the G.O.P. in New York.
Bill Hammond decodes John Sampson.
The L.A. Times blog on Harold Ford: “[A]s a telegenic member of the media’s chattering classes, he would get lots of Read More
ALBANY—David Paterson–Republican hero?
“It seems to me that there’s a question of conscience that’s bothering him, and that’s whether all of the taxes and fees that he’s supported not just in last year’s budget, but also when he was a senator in the minority,” Senate Republican Leader Dean Skelos said in a press conference after Read More
ALBANY—Andrew Cuomo had a reception outside his Capitol office right after the State of the State speech, which was packed with lobbyists, and legislators of both parties saying hello.
Eventually, reporters cornered the attorney general, who began by kibitzing with the now-bearded Danny Hakim.
“You’re shaggy,” Cuomo said, pointing to Hakim’s jaw, captured on Read More
ALBANY—The only other governor present for David Paterson’s State of the State speech was George Pataki, a Republican who told me David Paterson was spot on.
“I thought it was exactly the right message,” Pataki told me after the speech before saying hello to some of his former legislative colleagues. “These are times when Read More
ALBANY—Here’s the Republican response to David Paterson’s State of the State address, as delivered by Senator Dean Skelos.
Skelos lauded Paterson’s focus on fiscal issues, but blamed him and Democrats for “an opportunity that was squandered” to use stimulus funds for investment.
Here’s the text, and YouTube clip, of the response.
In his Read More
ALBANY—Senator Hiram Monserrate is not, in fact, here.
His appearance was scheduled, as his spokesman told the Daily News this morning, but his other (less official) spokesman and colleague Ruben Diaz Sr. just toe me ta he will not be attending. I didn’t see him anywhere in the chamber.
“You will not have the Read More
ALBANY—In his State of the State Address, David Paterson dispensed with all pleasantries and attacked the past actions of the legislators and other prominent New Yorkers sitting before him.
“My colleagues, the times are measured. I would ask for your understanding that we dispense with the flourishes and formalities,” he said, and launched immediately into Read More
ALBANY—Several members of New York’s Congressional delegation who have expressed displeasure with David Paterson are here at the Capitol on the day of his speech.
I saw Representatives Scott Murphy and Paul Tonko of the Capital Region, Mike McMahon of Staten Island, Mike Arcuri of Utica, Eric Massa of the Southern Tier and Steve Israel Read More
