"A government big enough to give you everything you want, is big enough to take away everything you have"
Thomas Jefferson

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Cross Post From Monroerising

This is a cross post from the blog Monroerising in Rochester and a Buffalo News article.

PIV will add that these are the same Senate Democrats who are raising taxes and increasing spending more than 10% over last year's budget.

And the same Senate Democratic majority who is passively watching the Governor cut jobs because of a "tight budget."

What are their priorities? Themselves, their staff and their reelection.

If this were an advertising campaign it would be; 
The New York Senate Democrats,
politics first - people second.


Malcolm Smith And Senate Dems Are Ready To Waste Even More Of Our Money

The Buffalo News is reporting that Senate Democrats are opening several patronage filled regional offices across the state.  Other branches of government have had these offices in the past, but they were eliminated because there was no justification for the offices.  Assembly Democrats closed their regional officers about 20 years ago and Assembly Republican’s did the same even longer ago.
From the Buffalo News opinion page:
I have the perfect nominee to run State Senate Democrats’ new, expanded office in Buffalo: Rick Wagoner.
Not since the former GM head accompanied his Ford and Chrysler buddies to D. C. on private jets has anyone been so out of touch with angry and financially drained taxpayers.
The Dems’ excuse for expanding the size and number of regional offices here and across the state? They want to bring their “message” to constituents.
News flash: The budget they just passed did a pretty good job of that.
Imposing $8.3 billion in tax and fee hikes while making virtually no structural reforms and living temporarily on federal stimulus money says all we need to know about their “agenda.”
Bringing more bureaucrats here merely adds insult to the financial injury.
(snip)
If their budget has enough money for extra people, downsize the political operation and put the funds into effective programs such as “Read to Succeed” and others outlined in The Buffalo News’ “Children of Poverty” series last year.
(snip)
Any such use would be better than more patronage in the midst of a recession, whether here or the other places the new or expanded offices are planned: Rochester, Syracuse, New York City, Long Island and—get this—Albany.
That’s right, Albany is planning a branch office in Albany.
Of course, it’s no shock that one of our senators, Bill Stachowski, could say only that he had nothing to do with the expanded Buffalo office, that it all emanated from the Capitol.
A Western New York representative having nothing to do with what happens in Western New York?
Gee, what a surprise. Antoine Thompson, our other senator, refused to comment, apparently following the dictum, “If you can’t say something good about something, . . .” Or, more likely, he was following that other famous dictum, “If the press isn’t going to say something good about you, hide.”
This is shameful. Things aren’t going to change in Albany if stuff like this is allowed to continue.  Let’s hope the Democrat and Chronicle reorts on this.  It really is too bad that we have to find out about stuff like this happening in Rochester from the Buffalo newspaper.

6 comments:

Danny M. Francis (Eyepublius) said...

Once in power and holding a majority (huge in Congress or slim in Albany), rational thinking takes a backseat to political priorities (i.e., pol favs, payback to huge moneyed interests, and build up reelection coffers) - convince the voters later (or last).

It's the same with both parties... that's the point not to be forgotten.

Anonymous said...

Nothing to disagree with there, Dan.

So your point might be to always make sure you don't give all the power to one party. Is that what you're saying?

If so I agree. We screwed up. But how could it have been otherwise. Putting all power on one side of the aisle isn't smart. But NY voters seem ready to make this move. Donkeys we be.

Unchecked power is never good.
I guess gridlock wasn't as bad as we thought it was.

Anonymous said...

well dmf, you said that you don't know what spending plans are in the budget, so where are the paybacks, etc? If you
(and others) haven't looked at the budget, how can you say it's too high, or if the money is going to the wrong places?

Anonymous said...

7:45, you ask how anyone can claim how the budget is too high? Let me run this by you.

We are broke. We are losing jobs. Kids can't stay. Companies are leaving. Deficits are growing. Wall Street won't recover right away. Property taxes are the highest in the nation.

Now wouldn't you say that in the face of this, raising spending by 9% is BY ITSELF an indication that the budget is too high? Or do you think that's sensible planning, 7:45?

Anonymous said...

8:29- I don't like it any more than you do. I would hope the pols we elect are doing their best for us. We are hopelessly pinned down by layers of regulations and user fees, by manipulators of the system, by a governing process that is opaque to the average citizen, and by seniority power in the legislature. Yet most incumbents run unopposed, and many voters don't know about their candidates. If the budget is the problem, then we should find out more about what's in it, and go from there. As an example of how things work, Saturday's paper ran an article about a rebar mill planned for the WNY area. The company rep said that NYPA promised only half the low-cost power the plant required. NYPA said the company never formally requested power. The electric power business in NY is enormously complicated, and I couldn't explain what "low-cost power" is in $$ terms. A % of Niagara power is supposed to be set aside for use in WNY, but who knows how much and which businesses are entitled to it? What about Empire Zones? Here's a link to the budget if you are interested:
http://publications.budget.state.ny.us/eBudget0910/fy0910_30day/30DayReport.pdf

Anonymous said...

Ya know, 8:29. I'm gonna give it to ya. You're a better man than me. I've had it with this place. You are still thinking, while guys like me are so pissed off they see a 9% increase in spending and we STOP thinking. I don't want to look at no stinking budget. And unlike you, I have absolutely NO confidence any of our politicians are doing anything but looking out for themselves. They are all a disgrace as far as I'm concerned. All are willing to look us in the eye and lie to us. This was the year we had to make some changes. We had to start being honest. And from Aubertine and Adddddie on local level to Silver on high, we saw nothing but bs. They all should be ashamed of themselves.

But you Sir are still an optimist. I salute you in that regard. But 9%is 9%. And broke is broke. I don't have to read the lines on the tab to understand what it means.

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