Thursday, December 07, 2006
Eliot Versus the Sloths
Illustration by Darrow"His predecessor didn’t do him any favors. And the new governor will need all his wiles to defeat the two-headed monster currently ruling Albany."
'The guy who’s still in charge of the state? Who has to quickly determine whether to send the report, which would eliminate about twenty hospitals, to the State Legislature, which would then have until December 31 to accept or reject it? George Pataki is in an undisclosed location (it eventually turns out to be Iraq). Only if reporters call Pataki’s office do they get his transcribed thoughts: “At this time we have received the full report and are giving it a thorough review.” Sorry to bother you, Governor.
Yet for all the messes Pataki leaves behind after twelve years in office—a bloated health-care system, brutal property taxes, underfunded city schools, multibillion-dollar structural deficits—at least he’s eager to get out of town. The scariest problem in Albany is the pair of guys who are staying.'
Yet for all the messes Pataki leaves behind after twelve years in office—a bloated health-care system, brutal property taxes, underfunded city schools, multibillion-dollar structural deficits—at least he’s eager to get out of town. The scariest problem in Albany is the pair of guys who are staying.'
'As attorney general, Spitzer won his most famous victories without even entering the courtroom. He had the facts behind him, sure, but he turned the use of shame into an art form, with the press as his delivery vehicle. As governor, he’ll need more than a single silver bullet. Spitzer will again shine a spotlight on enemies and hold himself out as moral exemplar, and he’ll argue for the rightness of his policy ideas. Politicians don’t shame as easily as publicly traded corporations, however. So Spitzer will try stroking at first. But if that doesn’t succeed, he’s preparing to use his electoral mandate as a wedge to separate Joe Bruno and Shelly Silver from their usually lockstep followers, and his popularity as a shield against the army of lobbyists. "
You must read the rest of Chris's article ....very well written and right to the point.........andy
