Extension of Remarks: State leaders must act
News of the last week featured Joe Bruno's victory lap -- with the outgoing Senate majority leader announcing millions of state dollars for projects in the Albany area -- and David Paterson's midnight ride -- as the still newish governor spread the word of gigantic state budget deficits on the horizon. Guess which one won the most applause.
The lead editorial in Sunday's Buffalo News calls on other state official's to finally heed the governor's call for facing the budget facts: With 20 percent of state revenues flowing from New York City’s 
financial district, when Wall Street catches a cold, Albany sneezes and upstate takes to its bed. Wall Street is shivering.
Today's New York Post splashes an exclusive about Paterson's plan to deliver a major address on the state budget problems: The governor's address - which his aides hope will be televised by public and cable news stations - will say that plunging state revenues will force painful cuts in state services, necessitate a reduction in the state work force, possibly through layoffs, and require other difficult economic measures, source said.
But, beyond that, Paterson's call of alarm isn't getting that much ink.
Elsewhere:
* The Post also supports the call from NYC Mayor Mike Bloomberg to help fill the state's budget holes by collecting the taxes from the smokes sold on Indian reservations.
* Newsday editorializes in favor of Paterson's call for any future economic stimulus from the federal government to come in the form of infrastructure -- highways, rail, mass transit -- rather than checks to individuals: Rebate checks are, at best, a stopgap. Putting people to work gets to the root of solving our economic woes.
* The Times Union in Albany has a problem with legislative action to cough up $50 million for three new law schools, at a time when the basics of the existing SUNY system are not being adequately funded: This is baffling. Three new law schools when the SUNY system needs an infusion of cash? New law schools when SUNY funds are being "swept" into the state budget? New law schools when statistics show that 9,267 new lawyers were admitted to the bar last year, competing for just 9,260 new jobs projected over the next six years?
--George Pyle/Editorial Writer
