Senate Democrats’ Talk Of No-Show “Shameful,” Paterson Says
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- November
- 6
Gov. David Paterson today called talk of Senate Democrats potentially boycotting his address Monday to a joint session of the Legislature “shameful” and said “I’m even insulted by the delay” in debating whether to come.
This morning, a spokesman for the Senate majority said the conference plans to attend, and aides insisted that it was never the conference’s position not to attend, but that some members didn’t plan to go.
But Paterson, in an interview with Gannett’s Albany Bureau, was dismayed that it was even considered.
“I think even the wasted time discussing whether or not they should come to the joint session indicates how shameful the conduct of the senators continues to be,” he said. “This group, after what they did at the end of the session, I would think would be on their best behavior.”
He continued that “It is standard that in an emergency that a governor should have the right to call the Legislature into joint session to try to lay out what he thinks the course should be and then to meet and dialogue with the individual legislators and see if the governor can persuade them to respond.”
Paterson said his understanding was that some Senate Democrats didn’t like that he has dismissed their plan to raise $500 million by refinancing tobacco bonds. He said that plan wouldn’t cut the deficit long term and would only require the state to pay back the money—at a high interest rate—in the future.
“I’m against pushing off problems into the future. I’m not doing it anymore,” he said. “It’s only going to create the problems in New York state that I’ve described that other states have had.”
Paterson said Senate Democrats have offered him a proposal to close the current $3.2 billion deficit that makes no cuts to education and health-care, which Paterson said is unacceptable.
“They didn’t suggest one cut—not one dime,” Paterson said.
Travis Proulx, spokesman for Senate Democrats, said the conference has concerns with mid-year cuts to schools and health-care and are working with lawmakers and the governor’s office on alternatives.
This entry was posted
on Friday, November 6th, 2009 at 4:09 pm by Joseph Spector.
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