Politics on the Hudson

The Westchester County Republican Party Wednesday night unanimously nominated Bob Hyland to run against county board Chairman William Ryan, D-White Plains.

Their selection was the last of 12 candidates vying for county office.

The District 5 race, which encompasses White Plains and Scarsdale, is going to be as much of a “centerpiece for the Republican ticket” as are the contests for county executive, district attorney and county clerk, said Doug Colety, the party’s chairman.

“He’s one of the poster-children of what’s wrong with county government,” Colety said of Ryan. “This is a highly targetted race.”

Read more about this story tomorrow in The Journal News or at www.lohud.com.

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   Sen. George Winner, R-Elmira, said senators are planning to go into session at 3 p.m. today, but it’s questionable as to why Gov. David Paterson would call a special session when his own counsel has said that any business conducted in the chamber in recent days is not binding or legal. Winner, speaking on Talk 1300 radio in Albany, said he thought the session would be “unproductive from a legislative standpoint.”

   The governor has called a special session for the Senate at 3 p.m. and has asked senators to act on about a dozen pieces of legislation.

   Earlier this week, Senate Democrats and Republicans held competing sessions in the chamber, and the scene was likened to a circus. Winner said he hoped today would not be a repeat of that.  GOP senators who formed a coalition with two Democrats to take over Senate control June 8. One Democrat has since withdrawn from the coalition and returned to the Democratic conference, leaving a 31-31 deadlock. Republicans contend they are in charge of the Senate, but the Democratic conference of senators dispute that. 

   “I would hope that it doesn’t happen again. It’s not productive to have any kind of an unruly atmosphere, but you’ll have to stay tuned. I don’t know whether there’s a resolution to that issue,” Winner said.

   Winner said the governor’s popularity among members of his own party, the Democrats, appears to be dwindling every day.

   “Granted I think that if the governor’s motives are to encourge the two sides to work together, I can only point out to you that both sides are talking. We did not need the governor’s rather bizarre interference here to take place,” Winner said on the radio.

   Democratic senators have also been critical of the governor’s involvement with the Senate. 

   Then again, Winner said, they want Paterson to be the Democrats’ candidate for governor next year because he has such poor approval ratings. That would assure Republicans enough senators to take back the Senate and the office of governor next year.

Senate Democrats and Republicans are following Gov. David Paterson’s call to hold a special session this afternoon after he threatened Wednesday to take them to court if they go home.

The sides were meeting this morning behind closed doors to continue discussions on whether the Senate leadership battle can be resolved to end a nearly three-week leadership dispute.

Paterson threatened to take the sides to court after Senate Democrats initially refused to re-enter the chamber because they claimed Paterson’s call of a special session was illegal.

But late Wednesday night Paterson issued a statement saying the sides will agree to meet in session today, the first time since the June 8 leadership coup that they’ll meet in the same session.

“The leadership from both the Republicans and Democrats has notified my office that they will attend (today’s) extraordinary session,” Paterson said.

“By complying with their constitutionally mandated obligations, there will be no need to seek a court order tomorrow. However, I will continue to use every power at my disposal to ensure that the Senate gets back to the people’s business.”

Paterson has asked lawmakers to take up 10 pieces of legislation today, including reforms to the state pension system, allowing the city of Peekskill to impose a tax on real property deeds and extending for two years the mortgage recording tax in Yonkers.

Since Tuesday Paterson has called special sessions, only to have the sessions blow up. On Tuesday, the sides held the dueling sessions, which led to chaos and nothing being accomplished. On Wednesday, only Senate Democrats entered the chamber and they gaveled in and out with taking any action.

The Senate has been deadlocked at 31-31. Republicans and two dissident Democrats voted out the Democratic majority June 8, but one Democrat, Sen. Hiram Monserrate, D-Queens, has rejoined the Democratic conference, leading to the gridlock.

Paterson has threatened to strip pay and stipends from senators until the Senate settles its leadership fight.

His strong attacks on senators have led to a war of words between him and senators in his own party. Senators have blamed Paterson for botching the special sessions by not also calling back the state Assembly, which they say is required by law.

“The one making a mockery of this whole situation is the governor,” Sen. Martin Malave Dilan, D-Brooklyn, said Wednesday. “And the level of incompetence in the second floor is unbelievable. They have no idea what they are doing.”

An angry Gov. David Paterson said Senate Democrats will not be heading home and if they try, he’ll take them to court at 9 a.m. tomorrow to order them back into session.

Paterson said he will consult with the state Comptroller’s Office to see if he can dock senators their pay and stipends since the June 8 coup. The two-week payroll for the Senate is $2.4 million, and the senators themselves make $190,000 for the two weeks. Senators also get $160 per day for expenses.

“Senators, get to work tomorrow, you’re not going home, you’re not getting paid and you’re not going to disrespect the people of the state of New York any longer,” he said.

Dennis Tompkins, a spokesman for Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, said there’s nothing in the state Constitution that allows a governor to strip senators of their pay. In fact, the Constitution includes language that prevents from their pay from being diminished, he said.

“It’s very questionable as to whether he can diminish their pay,” Tompkins said, adding the office with discuss the issue with the governor.

There is precedent for delaying lawmakers’ pay, however. If they don’t pass a budget on time, their pay is delayed.

Senate Democrats said they are heading home after they questioned the legality of Gov. David Paterson’s special session, saying any bills would also need to be approved by the state Assembly.

The Democrats held a brief session: gaveled in and gaveled out without taking action on the 11 bills Paterson put forth today.

“Our members will be going home,” said Sen. Malcolm Smith, D-Queens.

Democrats said the session couldn’t move ahead without the governor calling the Assembly back into session too. They argue that they can’t pass the same bills in the special session that the Assembly passed in regular session.

And the whole debate is moot anyway because there still are not 32 votes to pass any legislation. The Senate is at a 31-31 stalemate.

Democrats called on Republicans to put the leadership dispute aside and pass legislation. Asked why they haven’t just convened session with the Republicans and rogue Sen. Pedro Espada, D-Bronx, in charge to end the stalemate, Democrats said they would not come in under Espada’s leadership.

They pushed a bi-partisan power sharing agreement.

“You cannot call it reform, you can not call it bi-partisan government, you can not call it coalition government if Pedro Espada is the head” of the Senate conference,” said Sen. Jeff Klein, D-Bronx.

   The coalition of 30 Senate Republicans and Senate President Pedro Espada, a Democratic senator from the Bronx, told reporters this afternoon that their offer still stands as far as wanting to resolve the Senate leadership stalemate through binding arbitration. The 31 other Democratic senators have not agreed to it. 

   Espada and another Democrat, who has since rejoined the Democratic conference, voted June 8 for Republicans to take back control of the Senate. Since then, the Democrats and the GOP have been unable to agree on who should lead the Senate, or if there should be a power-sharing agreement.

   Espada said he and Majority Leader Dean Skelos, R-Nassau County, spoke with Paterson this afternoon about their continued offer on binding arbitration. Skelos said the governor indicated he thought it was a good idea.

   “I told the governor that it’s obviously clear that this has been a circus, a circus that our Democratic colleagues have been hugely responsible for…” Espada said.

   Espada said he told the governor that his leadership is needed. “We don’t need lectures. We need his leadership, and we need him to instruct the Democratic senators as members of our party, the Democratic Party, to be fair, to be focused and accept the challenge of having binding arbitration. We will live with those results,” he said.

   Members of the GOP coalition spoke before 3 p.m., the time set by Paterson for another special session. With unresolved legal questions about whether bills that have been passed are valid because the Assembly was not called back into session, they decided not to attend.

   “I don’t think anything’s going to happen today because the governor’s counsel has acknowledged that what they’re doing is not legal, therefore why create a whole lot of confusion out there and get away from the subject at hand, which is that our effort to have an endgame to resolve this whole dispute,” said Sen. George Winner, R-Elmira.

   For their part, the 31 Democrats showed up to session but were unable to act on any bills because of the outstanding legal issues. Sen. Jeff Klein, D-Bronx, said the governor has the authority to call the Senate into session without calling the Assembly in at the same time, but if the Senate wants to vote on legislation, the Assembly has to be in session too. With that, Democrats gaveled out of session

Candidates for Carmel town supervisor have dropped from three to two.

William Maxwell, a retired police officer, announced by e-mail late Tuesday afternoon he was ending his campaign for Carmel Town Supervisor citing a medical condition related to treatment of a kidney stone condition.

A Republican, he did not receive the GOP committee’s endorsement.  He said he would circulate petitions and seek a primary for the line against endorsed candidate Kenneth Schmitt, who is finishing his first term in office.

“It is with regret that I must announce the suspension of my campaign,” Maxwell wrote.  “I would like to thank all of my supporters for the help and dedication received on my behalf.  I would also like to thank the staff of the Camarda Care Center of Putnam Hospital for all there professionalism and care. I wish all the candidates for office in Putnam©ounty good luck.”

Schmitt faces opposition from Democrat David McKay Wilson.

This was a familiar scene: Lawyers for Senate Democrats and Republicans went before state Supreme Court Judge Thomas McNamara today seeking relief in the outgoing dispute over who controls the Senate.

And the outcome was also familiar: McNamara didn’t rule.

Senate Republicans want a restraining order against Democratic senate secretary Angela Aponte, who they accuse of shutting off the lights in the chamber, cutting their microphones, locking the chamber doors and other measures that are preventing them from conducting business.

GOP attorney Jack Casey argued that “one man in America” can’t have the power to do those things.

“If a functionary who is not an elected official is allowed to prevent (Senate functions) we’re in deep weeds,” Casey told reporters. “It’s like a third world country when you start allowing a functionary to do that sort of thing.”

Democrats, interestingly, argued that the court doesn’t have the right to decide the case. Democrats initially went to court to throw out the June 8 leadership vote, arguing that the courts should decide the leadership fight.

McNamara refused to rule then, saying it’s up the legislative body to decide its leadership. Democrats argued that this case is different because Aponte is an employee of the Senate. Democratic lawyer Shelley Mayer argued that the restraining order deals with the “inner workings” of the Senate and not for the courts to decide.

McNamara didn’t rule on the restraining order, which Democrats claimed as a victory. He will likely rule Friday at 9 a.m. when he asked the sides to reconvene.

Gov. David Paterson has called the state Senate back to the Senate chambers this afternoon amid questions over whether lawmakers can even legally pass the legislation that he’s putting before them.

The legal questions complicate an already chaotic fight over whether the Senate’s leadership, which has been in doubt since a June 8 coup by Senate Republicans and two dissident Democrats overthrew the Democratic leadership.

Republicans, meanwhile, are headed back to court this afternoon after Sen. George Winner, R-Elmira, and Sen. John Flanagan, R-Nassau County, sued Democratic secretary of the senate Angelo Aponte. They want a restraining order against Aponte, who they claim thwarting Republicans efforts to hold session.

Paterson’s counsel, Peter Kiernan, this morning hand delivered 11 resolutions the Democratic governor wants Senate Republicans and Democrats to pass today, including bills to legalize same-sex marriage, a state spending cap and enacting fair-labor protections for farm workers.

But Kiernan said that if the Senate passes the legislation in special session, the governor may need to call back the state Assembly to pass the same bills – even though the Assembly passed the measures in regular session before they left town Tuesday.

The reason, he explained, is that the bills need to match: one passed in regular session wouldn’t match one passed in a special session. He suggested the best method would be for the Senate to agree to adjourn the special session and enter into regular session to pass the same legislation already approved by the Assembly.

“We’re venturing into the legal unknown here,” Kiernan said. “It’s just never been done previously where one house only is called into session.”

Here’s the Senate Republicans lawsuit.
0624.2009 SENATE ART 78 Real Final