Democracy in Albany 3: The Restoration
Last week, after a month-long struggle for control of the Empire State’s upper legislative house, the Democratic conference found its way back to majority status.
There’s been an unusual peace in Albany this week.
Describing the end of the Cold War, Charles Krauthammer once proclaimed, “It ended with one of the great anti-climaxes in history. Without a shot fired, without a revolution, without so much as a press release, the Soviet Union simply gave up and disappeared.”
Such was the case with the recent war for the New York State Senate. Last week, after a month-long struggle between the Republicans and Democrats over the control of the Empire State’s upper legislative house, one side finally won and the other lost. But unlike the Cold War, the end result couldn’t have been more disappointing.
The Democratic conference, briefly ejected from power, has found its way back to majority status and unipolar leadership. The “Senate Reform Coalition,” originally composed of 30 Republicans and 2 Democrats, has collapsed, leaving the GOP back in the Senate’s minority.
The reason for disappointment is simple: On June 8, a vote for new leadership took place and 32 out of 62 senators voted to install Dean Skelos (R-Long Island) as Majority Leader and Pedro Espada Jr. (D-Bronx) as President Pro Tempore. The Democrats kicked and screamed, cut the lights and shut down internet feeds, all to obstruct the perfectly legal vote from being recorded in history. When they brought their grievance to the State Supreme Court, they were shooed away and told to work it out amongst themselves.
It seemed that the Republicans had pulled off a successful coup. Even after one of the two Democratic defectors, Hiram Monseratte of Queens, was lured home by his original party, Skelos and his colleagues were right to repeatedly insist that, whether the Democrats liked it or hated it, “June 8 happened.”
And then last Thursday happened. Pedro Espada, who was deemed public enemy No. 1 just weeks ago, was convinced to return home as well, thereby re-establishing the Democrats’ majority and, after a 10:00 p.m. floor resolution, returning them to power.
As Irene Jay Liu of the Albany Times Union put it, “After five weeks of angst, turmoil and stalemate and the repetition of ‘June 8 happened,’ it appears now that, well… it didn’t.”
Considering that New Yorkers were without a functioning Senate for more than a month, it’s pretty depressing to see that it was all for nothing. Many may feel inclined to blame the GOP for launching the coup in the first place. But in reality, the whole saga was more about Espada and Monseratte and their vainglorious flirtations with opposing parties just so they could “neuter” fellow Democrat Malcolm Smith. And even that remains debatable.
As the New York Senate at long last returns to business today, here’s what’s new:
- “A new, new Democratic leadership team,” as Jimmy Vielkind calls it, including: Smith as Senate President (through December), Espada as Senate Majority Leader, Jeff Klein as Deputy Majority Leader, Carl Kruger as Finance Committee Chairman, and John Sampson as “conference leader.”
- Speaking of leadership, Skelos will likely remain Minority Leader despite the unraveling of his coup. It’s widely believed that Skelos did all that he could do to preserve the leadership change and is not to blame for Espada’s re-defection.
- Mayoral control of schools will be taken up.
- Gay marriage won’t be.
- Expect a review and possible restructuring of the Senate’s “oppressive” rules so that future dysfunction can be altogether avoided and peace restored for good.