GOP control of Senate appears to be over in NY
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is very suspect in the continued Republican control of the upper house.
The New York State Senate is apparently up for grabs. Governor Andrew Cuomo is very suspect in the continued Republican control of the upper house. We all knew, and I kept saying, that the moment Andrew called the so-called “traitors” of the sellout Independent Democratic Conference into a room and told them to get back where they belong with the regular Democrats, they would have to do it.
The last thing those self-serving characters wanted was to have Andrew, who many consider ruthless, really mad at them. Most are facing very serious primaries and despite their greed in selling out to Republicans and keeping them in power, they aren’t willing to risk their seats by alienating the governor.
How, you may ask, can you say that Andrew wants them back with the regular Democrats when it was clear that he wanted them to help keep the Republicans in power? Well, as the old saying goes “things change.” The basic thing that has changed is that unexpectedly, Cynthia Nixon has scared the stuffing out of centrist Andrew by offering him a serious primary contest from the left.
I am reminded of Alfonse D’Amato who, when he was questioned about having changed his mind, once famously said, “That was then -this is now.” So now Andrew does what he could have done years ago. He calls the errant Independent Democrats into the room, reads them their orders and they fold like a tent. Quite correctly, Cynthia Nixon asked Cuomo why he didn’t do that years ago.
That brings us to the present dilemma for the Republicans who still control the state Senate. They don’t want to deal with absolute reality that they may well end up in the minority. I’ve been interviewing these people for years and have often asked Democrats whether they would treat the Republicans as despicably as they have been treated if and when they took the majority position. Their answers have always been evasive. They often say things like, “Well, I would like to think that we wouldn’t.” In other words, “Of course we will.”
On top of that, think of all the Republican committee chairs. They are making out like bandits in their own personal business undertakings and campaign fund raising. That will come to a screeching halt if and when the Democrats take over. And needless to say, their gerrymander efforts will be reversed. So at the point at which the Democrats take over in Blue State New York, the Republicans are done, kaput, finis, the end.
Sensing this, a whole bunch of Republicans are deserting their sinking ship like the proverbial rats. Right now, the single person keeping them in power is one Simcha Felder of Brooklyn, who calls himself a Democrat but sides with the Republicans. Cuomo apparently keeps asking Felder to get back where he belongs with the Democrats and has written Felder an open letter asking him to do that. Cuomo’s problem is that people just don’t believe him on this issue any longer. They point out that he has a long history of suspect activity when it comes to keeping the Republicans in power.
However, the handwriting does appear to be on the wall. With a whole slew of Republicans announcing that they will not seek reelection and with Blue State New York in revolution against a Trump presidency, and with the Democrats having a numerical majority (minus the traitor Felder) there can be little doubt that this is the time that the state Senate will finally fall into Democratic hands. On the other hand, I’ve been around a long time and I’ve seen Democrats win a majority and immediately form a circular firing squad, proving once again that they are not capable of ruling.
If this is seen as an invitation to corruption or so-called “honest bribery” by certain Democrats, they will blow their advantage once again. Just saying.
Sunday Freeman columnist Alan Chartock is a professor emeritus at the State University of New York, publisher of the Legislative Gazette and CEO of the WAMC Northeast Public Radio Network. Readers can email him at alan@wamc.org.